My IQ has been increasing year by year.

June 22nd.

4:10 PM.

The examination site is the Third Middle School of Zeyang City.

The last exam for the ninth graders was a combined physics and chemistry test.

The exam room was located on the top floor of the old teaching building. The roof had been exposed to the sun all day, and the classroom was like a steamer.

The two ceiling fans overhead were turned on at their highest setting.

The sound couldn't drown out the sighs that echoed throughout the classroom.

There are 20 minutes left until the end of the exam.

A girl sitting in front of Zhang Qiang was trembling slightly.

She held a mechanical pencil in her hand, drawing circles on the draft paper incessantly, erasing the paper repeatedly with the eraser until a layer of paper was worn away. The girl's mechanical pencil fell to the ground.

She bent down to pick it up, and when she looked up, Zhang Qiang saw that her eyes were completely red, her nose was covered in sweat, and tears were welling up in her eyes. Zhang Qiang looked away and glanced at the test paper on his desk.

The last challenging physics problem.

It took up a full half-page.

The diagram shows a complex dynamic circuit connected to a beaker filled with water, inside which a metal block connected to a sliding rheostat is suspended. It tests not only circuit analysis but also incorporates the dynamic changes in buoyancy and pressure.

The test creator clearly intended to widen the score gap among all candidates in the province on the last question.

Zhang Qiang's draft paper was spread out next to the exam paper.

In the very center of the draft paper was a disassembled circuit diagram.

The image is filled with two lines.

Red represents high potential, and blue represents low potential.

At the boundary between red and blue, the dynamic circuit that looked like a maze degenerates into a simple parallel structure. The change in resistance caused by the change in buoyancy is also transformed by Zhang Qiang into a simple linear equation in one variable.

The answers were written neatly on the answer sheet.

Current: 1.ZA.

Voltage range: 4V-12V.

Zhang Qiang glanced at the clock hanging above the blackboard.

Eighteen minutes left.

He put the pen cap back on.

He leaned back, his back pressed against the back of the chair.

A little boring.

He thought the final question on the high school entrance exam would be terrifying; he was so nervous last night that he couldn't sleep well and forced himself to drink two bowls of pig brain soup.

Is that all?

This question is indeed full of traps. First, it uses short circuit to mislead people, and then it uses buoyancy to change the resistance value.

However, there is no paradox here.

All the known conditions are solid and straightforward, without any contradictions or hidden variables that need to be assumed out of thin air. Compared to the problems in Chen Zhuo's error notebook, this problem is as straightforward as cursing someone in the street.

The questions Chen Zhuo posed were like leading you into a dead end with a smile, and then building a wall around it.

Zhang Qiang yawned.

He picked up the other side of the draft paper and started scribbling on it.

Down, forward, light punch.

Down, back, heavy foot.

He drew a crooked version of Iori Yagami, with the move list from the arcade game next to it.

Inside the exam room, some people began to anxiously flip through their exam papers, making a rustling sound.

The proctor, wearing soft-soled shoes, paced back and forth in the aisle, offering quiet reminders.

"Be quiet, do your own thing, and don't look around."

Zhang Qiang stared blankly at his drawing of Iori Yagami.

Finally, the bell rang for the papers to be handed in.

It was like a rusty saw tearing open the tense atmosphere in the examination room.

"Everyone stop writing, stand up, and remove your hands from the table."

The proctor stood on the platform and announced loudly.

The girl in the front row finally couldn't hold back anymore. She buried her face in her arms on the desk, her shoulders shaking violently. Her suppressed sobs sounded particularly jarring in the quiet classroom. She wasn't the only one.

Some boys in the back row also let out frustrated curses.

Zhang Qiang stood up.

He glanced at the girl crying in the front row, unsure whether he should offer her a tissue.

After thinking about it, forget it.

The invigilator collected the exam papers and answer sheets one by one.

After verifying that everything is correct.

"You may leave the examination room now."

Zhang Qiang picked up his pencil case and walked out with the flow of people.

He felt his legs were a little numb, and he had been sitting in the chair for more than two hours without moving. His back was also a little sore.

He twisted his neck, stretched his shoulders, and walked down the stairs.

Outside the examination center gate.

The asphalt road was softened by the sun.

Parents crowded both sides of the road, their colorful parasols forming a continuous line.

Traffic police set up a cordon in the middle of the road and were sweating profusely as they directed traffic.

Zhang Zhicheng and Wang Li stood under a large sycamore tree.

Zhang Zhicheng was wearing a red short-sleeved shirt, while Wang Li was tightly holding a thermos cup filled with chilled mung bean soup.

The large iron gate slowly opened.

The candidates poured out like a tide.

Zhang Zhicheng stood on tiptoe and craned his neck to look into the crowd.

The students who came out had different expressions.

Most people had their heads down and looked dejected.

Several girls rushed to their parents and burst into tears as soon as they stepped outside.

"The last physics question was insane!"

"It's impossible to finish. I didn't even understand the second question."

"I completely miscalculated that buoyancy..."

A jumble of complaints drifted over on the hot wind.

Zhang Zhicheng's expression changed.

He turned to look at Wang Li, whose lips were tightly pursed.

"The questions seem very difficult."

Zhang Zhicheng lowered his voice and said.

Wang Li didn't say anything, she just stared intently at the school gate.

"They're out!"

Wang Li suddenly shouted and squeezed forward half a step.

Zhang Qiang mingled in the group chat and walked out the door.

Zhang Zhicheng noticed something was wrong with his son at first glance.

Unlike before, Zhang Qiang didn't rush out as soon as he finished the exam.

He walked very slowly.

His shoulders slumped, his hands hung limply at his sides, his eyes stared unfocused at the ground in front of him, and his expression was blank, even somewhat dazed. Actually, Zhang Qiang had just been sitting for too long, and coupled with not sleeping well the night before, the breeze had made him sleepy.

He was thinking about what to eat for dinner.

But in Zhang Zhicheng's eyes, this was a sign that the sky had fallen.

My son failed his exam.

I bombed the exam.

He couldn't even speak.

Zhang Zhicheng felt a pang in his heart.

He quickly reached out to block Wang Li, who was trying to rush forward from behind.

Listen.

Zhang Zhicheng leaned close to Wang Li's ear and spoke very quickly.

"You're not allowed to ask a single question about the exam, understand? Don't mention a single word."

Wang Li's eyes were a little red, and she nodded repeatedly.

Zhang Zhicheng took a deep breath and forced an exaggeratedly bright smile onto his face.

He strode forward to meet him.

"son!"

Zhang Zhicheng put his arm around Zhang Qiang's shoulder and patted him hard twice.

Zhang Qiang was brought back to his senses by the camera and turned to look at Zhang Zhicheng.

"Dad, what are you doing standing here? Where's the car?"

"The car is parked over there at the intersection, with the air conditioning on."

Zhang Zhicheng chuckled and took the pencil case from Zhang Qiang's hand, putting it into his pocket.

"You must be exhausted. Come on, let's go home. Your mom made some pork ribs."

Wang Li quickly came over and unscrewed the lid of the thermos.

"Qiangqiang, have some mung bean soup to cool down in the summer heat."

Zhang Qiang took the thermos and gulped down a few mouthfuls of the cool mung bean soup. He then let out a comfortable burp.

"Let's go, let's get in the car."

Zhang Zhicheng put his arm around Zhang Qiang and walked towards the intersection, talking loudly as they walked.

"Now that the exams are over, you can completely relax! Don't think about anything these next few days. Tomorrow, Dad will take you to buy a new computer with an LCD screen!"

Zhang Qiang stopped and looked at Zhang Zhicheng with some surprise.

Normally, if he wants to buy a game disc, Zhang Zhicheng would nag him for ages. Why is he suddenly asking to buy a computer today?

"Dad, are you alright?" Zhang Qiang asked.

"What could possibly happen to me!"

Zhang Zhicheng waved his hand.

"Son, I'm going to tell you something, so don't feel pressured."

Zhang Zhicheng looked around and lowered his voice a little.

"The high school entrance exam is just a formality. Everyone thinks the questions are difficult, so even if... I mean, even if we don't do well, so what?" Zhang Zhicheng patted his chest.

"Dad may not have much else, but he does have some money. Even if the school selection fee for the No. 1 Middle School in the city is 30,000 or 50,000 yuan, Dad won't even blink. He'll just go to the Education Bureau and pay it for you! You'll still get into the No. 1 Middle School!" Wang Li chimed in from the side.

"Yes, yes, if all else fails, we'll send you abroad to Australia. Your aunt is there. There are many paths to Rome, so don't put all your eggs in one basket." Zhang Qiang finally realized what was going on after listening to his parents' constant reassurances.

He looked at Zhang Zhicheng's forced smile and then at Wang Li's cautious gaze.

Zhang Qiang scratched his hair in exasperation.

"Dad, Mom, what are you thinking about?"

Zhang Qiang sighed.

I didn't fail the exam.

Zhang Zhicheng was stunned for a moment, his smile freezing on his face.

He thought his son was just being stubborn and was about to continue comforting him.

"real."

Zhang Qiang said earnestly.

"I didn't fail the exam. The questions were quite difficult, but I could do them all. I even figured out the last big question."

Zhang Zhicheng and Wang Li exchanged a glance.

Their eyes were still full of doubt.

Just then, a boy wearing thick glasses ran over. He was Zhang Qiang's classmate and usually ranked among the top three in the class. "Zhang Qiang!"

The bespectacled boy ran over, sweating profusely, holding a piece of draft paper in his hand.

"Did you solve the last physics problem? What was the value of that current?"

Zhang Qiang glanced at him.

"1.2 amps."

Zhang Qiang said it casually.

The bespectacled boy's eyes lit up, then immediately turned into ecstasy.

"You're wrong! You're wrong!"

The boy was so excited that his voice cracked.

"When switch S2 is closed, the sliding rheostat is short-circuited! There's no need to calculate it at all! The answer is 2.5 amps!"

The boy, holding the draft paper, seemed to be validating his own correctness by observing others' mistakes. After speaking, he excitedly ran off to his classmates. Zhang Zhicheng watched the boy run away, then glanced at Zhang Qiang. The glimmer of hope that had just risen in his heart was instantly shattered.

"It's okay, son, what's wrong with one question?"

Zhang Zhicheng patted Zhang Qiang on the back.

"He's wrong."

Zhang Qiang rolled his eyes, too lazy to explain the hidden condition about the change in buoyancy caused by the drop in water level.

"Dad, give me your phone."

Zhang Qiang extended his hand.

Without hesitation, Zhang Zhicheng took the flip phone from his waist and handed it to Zhang Qiang.

"Who should we call? Do you want to make the call from the car? It's hot outside."

"No need, I'll just make a call and leave."

Zhang Qiang, holding his phone, walked to the shade of a large tree by the roadside, avoiding the noisy crowd.

He skillfully pressed a string of numbers.

He had long since memorized Chen Zhuo's phone number.

at this time.

The third floor of the old library in Huizhou.

Chen Zhuo sat at the table.

He was holding a martial arts novel, but he seemed a little distracted while reading it.

In the quiet reading room, Chen Zhuo's cell phone, which was on the table, suddenly vibrated.

Chen Zhuo grabbed the phone.

The words "Uncle Zhang" are displayed above.

That's Zhang Zhicheng's number.

But Chen Zhuo knew that the one calling at this moment must be Zhang Qiang.

Chen Zhuo took out a thin bookmark, tucked it between the pages of the book, and closed it.

He picked up his phone, stood up, and quietly walked out of the reading room.

We arrived at the empty corridor.

The window at the end of the corridor was open, and you could smell the leaves from the campus.

Chen Zhuo pressed the answer button and put the phone to his ear.

"Finished the exam?"

Chen Zhuo's voice was calm, with a gentle undertone.

On the other end of the phone, Zhang Qiang was surrounded by a lot of noise, including car horns and people talking.

"Brother Zhuo!"

Zhang Qiang's voice was so loud that the phone's earpiece went numb.

There was no resentment, no frustration, only extremely arrogant excitement.

"I'll smash it to pieces!"

Zhang Qiang practically yelled it out on the other end of the phone.

"A challenging physics problem! A crazy dynamic circuit with added buoyancy to change the resistance. All the top students around me were crying, one even dropped his pen." Chen Zhuo leaned against the wall in the corridor, listening to the voice on the other end of the phone, without saying a word.

"I'll do as you say!"

Zhang Qiang became more and more excited as he spoke, as if he were still in the examination room.

"I didn't care about any principles, I just drew lines along the positive and negative terminals! Once I finished drawing the red and blue lines, that stupid diagram turned into a parallel circuit at the junior high school level!" Zhang Qiang took a deep breath, his voice filled with an unprecedented sense of satisfaction.

"I wrote down the answer in ten minutes, and spent the remaining tens of minutes drawing Iori Yagami on the draft paper."

Chen Zhuo listened quietly the whole time.

He looked at the leaves swaying in the wind outside the window.

Behind this corridor, in the reading room sat the nation's top minds, while on the other end of the phone, a young man was shouting excitedly about solving a middle school physics problem. Chen Zhuo finally breathed a sigh of relief.

He suddenly felt that hearing this voice made him feel much better than writing that article back then.

After Zhang Qiang finished shouting, he was panting heavily.

Chen Zhuocai slowly began to speak.

His tone remained calm and unhurried, even carrying a hint of casual banter.

"Not bad, that's good."

"Absolutely."

Zhang Qiang said smugly on the phone.

"Um."

Chen Zhuo paused for a moment.

"You didn't draw the line on the answer sheet, did you?"

There was a sudden silence on the other end of the phone.

The car horn was still blaring, but Zhang Qiang's voice had disappeared.

Chen Zhuo's voice echoed in the corridor, carrying a hint of wicked malice.

"According to the middle school entrance examination regulations, using handwriting other than the prescribed style or making any color markings in the answer area will be considered as intentionally making marks," Chen Zhuo said calmly.

"A single subject score will be recorded as zero."

Zhang Qiang suddenly paused, realizing that he seemed to... probably... possibly... should...

"I scribbled it on the scratch paper; I only wrote it in black on the answer sheet."

"Scribbling on draft paper is a good habit."

Chen Zhuo stopped smiling and his tone became gentle again.

"Can't you just give me a compliment? You have to scare me like this."

Zhang Qiang complained irritably.

Chen Zhuo straightened up and looked at the bright sunlight outside the window.

"Zhang Qiang."

Chen Zhuo called his name.

"The entrance requirements for the No. 1 High School in the city are very high; you are very capable."

Chen Zhuo's voice was soft, but clear.

"You did a great job."

Zhang Qiang remained silent for a long time on the other end of the phone.

The previous arrogance was gone, and so were the complaints.

On the side of the road in Zeyang.

Zhang Qiang held his flip phone in his hand, looking at his parents who were anxiously waiting for him in the distance.

His eyes finally welled up with tears.

Half a year of torment, countless sleepless nights, and the humiliation of being forced to memorize guide lines in the arcade.

Everything was soothed at that moment by that simple "Well done."

Zhang Qiang sniffed.

He raised his head and looked at the sun in the sky.

"Brother Zhuo."

Zhang Qiang lowered his voice, his tone more serious than ever before.

"Um."

"I've kicked open the gates of the city's No. 1 High School."

Zhang Qiang said.

"When school starts in September, I'll be a student at No. 1 High School."

He paused for a moment, recalling the words he had spoken with such conviction a year ago downstairs in the Sunshine Family Compound.

"When you come back to Zeyang for vacation in the future, Brother Qiang will continue to protect you. I mean what I say."

Chen Zhuo listened quietly in the corridor.

He didn't argue whether he needed the protection of a high school student at that moment.

He just smiled.

"Okay," Chen Zhuo said.

"I'm waiting for you to protect me."

"I'm hanging up. My dad thought I failed the exam and was about to take me out for a big meal to comfort me. I have to hurry, or he'll change his mind." Zhang Qiang's tone returned to its honest and simple manner.

"Go ahead and eat more."

The phone hangs up.

The receiver emitted a busy tone.

Chen Zhuo took his phone off and put it in his pocket.

He turned around, walked back to the quiet reading room, pulled out a chair, and sat down.

After sitting there blankly for a while, I suddenly smiled and reopened the copy of "Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils" with the bookmark inside.

Outside the Zeyang examination center.

Zhang Qiang shoved the phone back into Zhang Zhicheng's hand.

"Finished?"

Zhang Zhicheng carefully observed his son's expression.

"It's over."

Zhang Qiang grinned, revealing an extremely bright smile.

He put his arm around Zhang Zhicheng's shoulder and strode toward the car parked at the intersection.

"Let's go, Dad! Let's go get a big meal! The most expensive one!"

Sunlight filters through the leaves, and wine swirls on the asphalt road.

The summer breeze dispelled the stuffiness outside the examination hall, and everything seemed so relaxed.