Study Monster Cultivation System

Chapter 76 - 076 The platform for experts to exchange skills

After the two left, the boss quietly closed the door and sent a WeChat message.

"Checked her out for you, the girl is really nice, down-to-earth, quiet, and genuinely cares about our son."]

"But Brother Li, aren’t we considering their family a bit too early?"

Having boarded the return trip, it was already past eight in the evening.

Xu Mengxi finally felt relieved and let out a long breath.

Li Zheng was both ashamed and grateful.

"Mengxi, this is no longer about owing a huge favor," he said, looking at Xu Mengxi and nodding, "From now on, your matters are mine, and what’s mine is also yours."

Xu Mengxi looked at Li Zheng, who was earnest and solemn, and turned her head shyly toward the window, "You… Your words are getting more and more… annoying."

"Still not enough?" Li Zheng said with feigned resentment, clenching his fist, "It’s also my fault for not being good enough. If only I could help you with your studies."

"Enough, enough, please no more," Xu Mengxi nearly laughed until she cried, waving her hands with a smile, "Your dad is so impressive, getting experts from Yunxiaotan to give you a special consultation."

"Yeah, Old Li is a true academic powerhouse," Li Zheng said with a bitter smile, "I indeed find it hard to keep up with his pace."

"What are you talking about, you’re a long way from the college entrance exams," Xu Mengxi, seeing Li Zheng a bit discouraged, quickly grabbed his arm and shook it, "Last week, that test you took with Zhang Xiaoke, you were almost better than me, and that was just one night’s effort."

"Teacher Mengxi is too modest,"

"Not at all." Xu Mengxi slowly bowed her head, "It’s me, I’m the one who can’t keep up with you guys. I’ve reached my limit with the way things are now, I feel utterly inferior every time I see Jingjing."

"Same here."

"It’s different for you, you still have a chance, at least Teacher Sun Leyang thinks so," Xu Mengxi perked up, forcing a smile at Li Zheng, "You don’t know, Teacher Sun even asked me in secret, inquiring about you and Lin Yujing from your class."

"About me?"

"Yeah, he asked if you two were involved in any academic competitions," Xu Mengxi said, her fist pumping with enthusiasm, "He has high hopes for you~"

"Academic competitions... like Math Olympiad or something?" Li Zheng asked.

"Of course, Math Olympiad is definitely the most important, but besides that, there are four major academic competitions," Xu Mengxi explained, gesturing, "In order of importance, they are Physics, Chemistry, Informatics, and Biology."

"There are so many?" Li Zheng exclaimed.

"Damn, you study all day long and you don’t even know this..."

"Indeed, I’ve never paid attention to it," Li Zheng scratched his head, "Competitions always seemed far away from me. I just touched on Math Olympiad in elementary school. The school recommended that I take the test, and then I got crushed by those geniuses."

As he spoke, he suddenly remembered something and gritted his teeth, "Lin Yujing might have been among them... The more I think about it, the more irritated I get."

"Wait, you said the school recommended you?" Xu Mengxi asked, "Have you never been to a Math Olympiad training class?"

"No."

"Well, that definitely won’t do. Jingjing had a Math Olympiad teacher specially training her back in elementary school."

"My dad never went to those classes either, and he did fine," Li Zheng said earnestly, never one to make excuses for his failures.

"Times have changed," Xu Mengxi hurriedly explained, "Take high school competitions for example, the bar is set very high nowadays, a lot of people start preparing since the summer of ninth grade, and they enroll in many training classes. Even more extreme are schools like Ren Da Fu, where you get placed in competition classes upon admission. Teacher Sun Leyang leads the Chemistry Olympiad."

"No wonder he didn’t let me leak the problems," Li Zheng muttered. "Tricky questions—all prepared for his own students…"

"There’s nothing to be done about it, they’re the ones paying him a salary at Ren Da Fu," Xu Mengxi sighed as well. "I actually wanted to register for the preliminary round this November, but I really have no experience.

I went to ask Teacher Sun for advice, and he said that even if I performed exceptionally well, I could only get a provincial third prize at best, which wouldn’t help with college admissions at all. I figured I might as well not get distracted and just forget about it."

"Why does it have to help with college admissions?" asked Li Zheng, puzzled. "Aren’t competitions meant to be a platform for experts to exchange skills and challenge themselves?"

"…Well…after all, most people aren’t as pure-hearted as you," Xu Mengxi replied with an awkward smile. "Most just want to get a provincial first or second prize, which could be a stepping stone to independent recruitment by prestigious universities. If they could get a national first place, it might even be possible to get admitted to Jinghua University without taking the entrance exam…"

Xu Mengxi was visibly excited talking about this, gesturing wildly as if she were Li Zheng daydreaming about the Nobel Prize.

"Actually, Lin Yujing’s talent is more than enough for her to take part in the Olympiads, but it’s a pity our school doesn’t have the resources, and her family doesn’t seem to prioritize it either—such a waste of talent…" Xu Mengxi suddenly realized she might have said too much and chuckled awkwardly, rubbing her hair. "Forget it, forget it.

For all we know, she might be able to get straight into Jingbei anyway. Here I am, half a bottle of vinegar, worrying about someone else."

"Mengxi," Li Zheng began to seriously consider, "theoretically, is it possible for a high school student to take part in all subject competitions at the same time?"

"Huh?" Xu Mengxi’s mouth gaped open. "Are you out of your mind?"

"Just theoretically…" Li Zheng felt a little outrageous himself, but this wasn’t actually his original intention.

As his grades in various subjects improved, he felt he wasn’t far from reaching his limit, especially in chemistry.

He needed to stand on a higher platform to challenge himself.

Seeing Li Zheng’s expression, Xu Mengxi couldn’t find it in her heart to laugh at him.

No help for it, that’s just the kind of person he was.

She then started to help Li Zheng figure things out: "As long as the competition dates don’t clash, it’s fine. But I warn you, forget about Informatics, it has nothing to do with the college entrance exam. It’s purely programming and such, if you really are devoted to IT you can give it a shot."

"Okay, let’s cross Informatics off the list first."

"Hey, hey, hey, you’re not actually going to sign up, are you?" Xu Mengxi advised. "Your chemistry is good enough; getting more involved could hinder your other subjects. Plus, there’s an element of gambling in competitions—pouring a lot of effort into one subject, and if you don’t get a provincial first place, it could affect your overall college entrance exam score."

"Hmm, I’ll take that into consideration," Li Zheng responded. "Aren’t you going to sign up for the chemistry preliminaries in November? There’s nothing to lose."

"I’d better not, I’m still too average. If I fully prepare, my other subjects will suffer," Xu Mengxi said with a goofy smile as she leaned back in her chair. "Sigh, if I were as smart as Lin Yujing, I would definitely sign up."

While they talked, the car came to a stop.

"Sunshine Home has arrived," the driver announced.

Li Zheng looked out the window. It was an ordinary old residential area, but it was well-managed and tidy.

"Anyway, stop thinking about the competition." Xu Mengxi slung her backpack on and got off the car. Before closing the door, she leaned back in to remind him, "Take off the bandage after 24 hours, and no showers allowed."

"Yes, Teacher Mengxi."

Watching the angel leave, Li Zheng’s mindset gradually steadied.

If he really signed up for a competition,

He would probably encounter hordes of Lin Yujings and end up battered and bruised.

Thinking about the mocking faces of so many Lin Yujings piled up together,

Li Zheng shuddered.