I control the AI ​​empire thanks to the geniuses in my group.

In the math competition research room of Komaba High School affiliated with the University of Tsukuba in Moku Ward, Tokyo, four students sat upright.

The research lab is small, but well-equipped. The whiteboard is covered with formula derivations written in Japanese, and next to it is a printed list of participating teams in the Western Mathematics Invitational Tournament.

The instructor, Tanaka, held a document translated from a Chinese mathematics competition website and slowly began to speak.

"Our opponents in this Western Conference Finals are stronger than we expected."

He picked up a marker and circled several names on the whiteboard.

"Chengdu No. 7 Middle School has won the Western Conference four times in a row. It has the strongest overall strength, especially in algebra and combinatorics. Almost every year, students from the school enter the IMO national team."

"Jiaxiang Foreign Language School has seen a very strong upward trend in the past three years. Their geometry training system is already very mature. Last year, one of their students got a perfect score in a single subject."

"Shude High School is a traditionally strong school with a style similar to ours. They have solid basic skills, rigorous problem-solving steps, and well-rounded comprehensive abilities."

"Mianyang Middle School, Bazhong Middle School, Yuzhong Middle School..." Tanaka circled three schools, "The middle and upper-level players in these three schools are all quite good, and they are the kind of schools that could upset you at any time."

He turned around and looked at the four students.

"These are our main competitors this time, so please take them seriously."

A student sitting in the second row raised his hand: "Mr. Tanaka, what about the other schools on the list? Should we pay attention to them?"

Tanaka glanced at the full list on the screen.

"Schools like Chongming High School?"

He shook his head: "Weak schools in competitions, they haven't had any noteworthy results in the past five years. Don't worry about them, they are not our competitors."

Tanaka closed the materials and rested his hands on the podium: "I analyzed the problem-solving data of the top five individual scorers in the Western Conference over the past three years."

A radar chart he had drawn in advance appeared on the whiteboard, with the six dimensions labeled as: algebra, geometry, number theory, combinatorics, inequalities, and functional equations.

"Students from No. 7 Middle School are extremely strong in algebra and combinatorics, but their error rate on difficult geometry problems is relatively high. Jiaxiang Middle School is strong in geometry, but weak in combinatorics. Shude Middle School is well-rounded overall, but it doesn't have any particularly outstanding individual subjects."

He drew a near-regular hexagonal outline on the radar chart with a pen.

"And what is our greatest advantage as a member of the Tsukuba Affiliated School?"

"They have a strong foundation and are meticulous," one student said.

"That's right," Tanaka nodded. "Our fundamentals and problem-solving rigor are top-notch among high schools in Asia. Our deduction rate is extremely low. Students from other teams may come up with more elegant solutions, but they will also make more detailed mistakes."

"Therefore, our current goal is to maintain our strengths and make up for our weaknesses."

"As long as we can keep up with the students of No. 7 Middle School and Shude Middle School in algebra and combinatorics, and then widen the gap in geometry, we have a chance to win the team first place, or even the individual total score first place."

"You should all know what this competition means to you."

The eyes of all four students lit up at the same time.

"What Professor Tanaka said before... about Tsinghua and Peking University, is that true?"

"It's absolutely true. I've confirmed with several friends who teach at universities in China. Tsinghua and Peking University have separate admission channels for overseas students with outstanding achievements in international competitions."

"If you can get a top-two finish in the individual competition or win the team championship in the Western Conference, that would be a very valuable stepping stone."

The classroom was silent for two seconds. Then, a student whispered what everyone was thinking: "It's easier than getting into the University of Tokyo, right?"

Everyone here knows how fierce the competition is for the University of Tokyo. The top high school students in all of Japan are scrambling for those few hundred spots, and many repeat their senior year for two or three years.

But what if we take a different path?

Applying to Tsinghua and Peking Universities with international competition results and enrolling as an international student not only significantly increases the acceptance rate but also provides scholarships to cover tuition fees. After graduation, whether you stay in China or return to Japan, the prestige of having Tsinghua or Peking University on your resume is no less than that of the University of Tokyo.

"Furthermore," Tanaka added, "some university professors in China are quite friendly to Japanese students. As long as you demonstrate sufficient academic ability and politeness, your impression score won't be low."

The students below clenched their fists, their eyes filled with a determined light.

"We must win this time."

"I've already started working on the questions from No. 7 Middle School and Shude Middle School, and I've basically figured out their patterns," another boy chimed in. "To be honest, they're a bit weaker than I expected."

"Don't underestimate your opponents," Tanaka cautioned. "However... with your strength, as long as you perform normally, finishing in the top three shouldn't be a problem."

The four of them exchanged a glance, their eyes brimming with undisguised confidence.

In their minds, the course of this game was already written: their team would sweep the Western Conference, crush the local Chinese players, and knock on the doors of Tsinghua and Peking Universities with a glittering record!

At the same time, in the Chongming Middle School Complex Building.

As soon as Su Zhou finished saying "That's all for today," the audience erupted in a commotion.

"Su Zhou! Su Zhou! Wait a minute, I haven't fully figured this out yet!"

"Could you explain the structure on page seventeen again?"

"I wrote down the steps of your method using Fermat's Little Theorem to solve it quickly, but I didn't quite grasp the underlying principle..."

Eleven people surrounded Su Zhou, blocking him in front of the podium.

Su Zhou leaned against the whiteboard and patiently answered each question one by one.

He spent another twenty minutes, until the last problem was solved, before the students reluctantly began to pack up.

The girl with the ponytail hesitated for a moment before leaving, then turned around.

"Su Zhou, I wanted to ask... will you continue offering classes?"

Everyone else slowed down their packing, their ears perked up.

Su Zhou paused for a moment while wiping the whiteboard.

To be honest, he was willing, after all, the income from each class was considerable, and it added up to a substantial amount.

The problem is that the multi-functional classroom used today was temporarily borrowed by Zhang Hengyuan. It's fine to use it once, but if he wants to use it permanently, the situation will be different, and Zhang Hengyuan may not be willing to take that risk.

Moreover, he's been very busy lately.

With the monthly exams approaching, I can't afford to have bad grades in my regular academic subjects, otherwise I won't be able to explain it to my homeroom teacher. On the other hand, the progress of the neural network task in group 42 also needs to be pushed forward.

Tutoring, at present, can only be done on a large scale like today, and we can't provide more refined tutoring.

Su Zhou wanted to refuse, but the temptation of money was real.

"I'll arrange a time," Su Zhou said, wiping the whiteboard clean and turning around. "I'll let everyone know when it's set."

The eleven students breathed a sigh of relief. As long as Su Zhou hadn't refused, there was still hope. With satisfied smiles on their faces, they walked out of the classroom one after another.

The classroom finally quieted down.

Su Zhou packed her things and ran into someone as soon as she went outside.

"Well said."

Zhang Hengyuan leaned against the wall of the corridor, arms crossed, and stood there for an unknown amount of time.

"Let's go, I'll take you home." Zhang Hengyuan walked towards the stairwell, "We can chat on the way."

The car was Zhang Hengyuan's gray Volkswagen Sagitar, which he had driven for several years. The interior was clean but not new, and there was a half-empty bottle of mineral water and two books on the center console.

Su Zhou sat obediently in the passenger seat and fastened his seatbelt.

The car drove out of the school gate and merged into the evening rush hour traffic.

Zhang Hengyuan, with his left hand on the steering wheel and his eyes fixed ahead, casually said, "Su Zhou, there's a competition I'd like you to participate in."