The night before the college entrance exam results were released, I redeemed my Peking University ad

(Thanks to the amazing Gu Dexi Yue for the expert certification!!!)

"Feed?"

Ji Bai answered the phone.

A standard, sweet voice came from the hotel receptionist's side.

"Hello sir, I am the hotel receptionist."

Please note that your stay in the Executive Suite expires at 12:00 noon today. If you wish to extend your stay, please check in again at the front desk before 2:00 PM.

Just to confirm, the daily rate for the executive suite you stayed in is 2988 yuan. Extending your stay will incur the same rate as before.

The words were spoken politely, but the subtext was all too clear: the room wasn't cheap, and when it was time to leave, it was time to go.

Ji Bai raised an eyebrow, didn't ask any further questions, and simply said "I understand" before hanging up the phone.

They really can't wait.

The conference just ended yesterday, and they're already impatiently urging us to check out today, not even willing to give us the courtesy of staying an extra half day.

It's obvious that someone had given him instructions to leave.

Let's go.

He hadn't planned to stay any longer.

Ji Bai got out of bed and quickly packed his luggage.

He traveled light, arriving with just a backpack and leaving with a few new changes of clothes, which together didn't even fill a small 20-inch suitcase.

There's nothing to miss, and nothing to take with me.

He carried his bag downstairs, and the receptionist greeted him with a standard smile as he checked out, being very polite but never mentioning the conference or his identity.

This was a stark contrast to the attentive manner the hotel manager had shown when he first arrived a few days prior, personally greeting him at the door and bowing throughout his visit.

Stepping out of the hotel, the midday sun was so bright it made my eyes dizzy.

There were no waiting Hongqi state limousines, no escorting police lights, and no academic luminaries lining the way.

Ji Bai stood by the roadside and casually hailed a ride-hailing car.

The driver was a talkative middle-aged man who chatted about the traffic and weather in Beijing the whole way. He didn't recognize that the quiet, masked young man in the back seat was the math genius who had been all over the internet these past few days.

Forty minutes later, the car stopped at the entrance of the high-speed rail station.

Ji Bai paid the money, picked up his bag, and joined the crowd.

There was a line of moderate length at the ticket counter. He slowly moved forward with the line, surrounded by migrant workers carrying woven bags, students laughing and playing, and office workers talking on their phones. No one gave him a second glance, and no one recognized him.

He bought a second-class high-speed rail ticket back to Fucheng. The ticket stub came out of the machine; it was thin and light.

Security check, ticket check, find your seat.

The second-class seats weren't very spacious, so he sat down by the window and put his backpack on his lap.

The train slowly started moving, and the buildings of Beijing outside the window rushed past.

Compared to the grand entrance they made, the return journey was so shabby it was almost pathetic.

……

The high-speed train slowly pulled out of the station, and the scenery outside the window rushed past.

Ji Bai leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes.

Feeling frustrated?

A little.

But more than anything, I found it laughable.

Some people's vision is limited to this extent.

He took out his phone and opened Weibo. The moment his fingertip touched the screen, a flood of topics came crashing in.

Of the top ten trending topics, six were related to him:

#JiBai's Youthful Speech on China#

#Ji Bai shows no respect for elders#

#Ji Bai's private morality is flawed#

#Top Overseas Universities Offer Ji Bai Exorbitant Conditions#

#Should Ji Bai pursue further studies abroad?#

#A Top-Quality White Chicken#

The hype, which had been brewing overnight, not only didn't subside but actually intensified.

The two opposing forces, one black and one red, were entangled and argued fiercely.

"Having achieved a little success, they become disrespectful to their elders, belittling the older generation in front of the whole world. Is this what they call a role model for young people?"

"Arrogance stemming from talent, and a lack of virtue to match one's position! No matter how much knowledge one possesses, if one cannot conduct oneself properly, one will not go far."

"Following those borderline bloggers, criticizing everything and everyone, including the education sector, and now they're going international—does this kind of person deserve to be a national idol?"

"The Chinese tradition is to be humble and low-key, but he's like this, as if he's afraid the whole world won't know how arrogant he is. He's really disgraced the country."

The royalists fought back fiercely, presenting their achievements and facts one by one, and argued fiercely with the Blackwater Party.

"It's obvious someone's deliberately stirring up trouble! A bunch of smear articles were released right after the event ended; it's crystal clear who's behind this!"

"What's wrong with youthful arrogance? Stand at the top of the world through your own abilities, why should you have to humbly follow others!"

"Ji Shen, don't go! We're all on your side! We can't let these villains succeed!"

But most of the private messages were urging him to leave.

After a night of online arguments, many of his genuine fans lost heart, shifting from "defending him to the death" to "feeling sorry for him and advising him to leave":

"Ji Bai, don't stay here, go abroad! MIT and Harvard will offer you the best treatment, isn't that better than suffering here?"

"Life is not worth living! Go away, your talent should not be buried by these idle gossips."

"If they don't want me here, there are plenty of other places that will. Going abroad to focus on research is a million times better than being smeared with dirty water here, isn't it?"

"Seriously, it breaks our hearts to see you being slandered like this! Go on your way, we'll support you wherever you go."

"Staying here will only lead to your being wasted; you can only realize your value abroad. Go, we all understand."

Many IDs who were arguing with people in the royalist camp yesterday are now disheartened and advising him to leave.

As Ji Bai's fingertips traced the outline, he realized that those prestigious overseas universities had actually taken advantage of the public outcry to officially announce their recruitment conditions.

The price offered was indeed extremely tempting.

Tenure, unlimited funding, independent research institute, full-authority laboratory...

Each of these conditions is enough to excite anyone in academia.

Ji Bai remained calm and continued scrolling down.

Amidst the screen filled with voices urging people to "leave," a clear-headed voice suddenly emerged:

"Ji Bai, don't be fooled! Many of those desperately trying to persuade you to leave are just paid trolls pretending to be loyal!"

"One plays the bad cop, splashing dirty water, while the other plays the good cop, feigning concern. Their charade has reached your doorstep! Their goal is to force you to go abroad!"

"Thinking about it carefully, how come so many people suddenly appearing saying they 'feel sorry for you and advise you to leave'? How could people who were fighting tooth and nail with the haters yesterday suddenly turn around and be persuaded to leave overnight?"

"This is a divisive tactic! It's designed to discourage you, to make you feel that the country can't accommodate you, and to make it seem natural for you to defect overseas!"

"The person upstairs is right! This is a classic case of reverse psychology + feigning loyalty! They deliberately create the illusion that he can't leave, tricking him into leaving voluntarily!"

"Ji Bai, don't fall into their trap! Leaving will play right into their hands! Stay, we all support you!"

"Trying to drive our genius away? No way! Hang in there, Ji Shen! We'll fight you to the very end!"

There is no shortage of smart people online.

This scheme of "one attacking and the other pulling" was quickly exposed by netizens.

On one side, the smear campaign relentlessly smeared him, portraying him as arrogant and immoral; on the other side, the "runaway party," posing as fans, patiently persuaded him to leave if he felt disheartened.

With a push and a pull, the goal is to force him out of this land.

His calculations were undeniably shrewd.

Ji Bai looked at the screen and suddenly smiled.

Is that all the tricks you've got?

You're underestimating him.

He tapped his finger to switch to the Weibo posting interface and opened the editing box.

Self-Portrait Inscription

My mind is powerless to escape the divine arrow; the wind and rain are as heavy as a rock, darkening my old home.

My heart is entrusted to the cold stars, but they do not understand; I offer my blood to Xuanyuan!

……

send!