Chapter 20: Entry

Wang Chen's words made Zheng Fa start to ponder whether these patterns had some connection to the math competition.

"Does anyone in our class do competitions?"

"Our class?" Wang Chen looked at him strangely: "Our Qingshui Middle School doesn't even have a few people doing competitions! This is a field only the strong from provincial key high schools can enter!"

Qingshui Middle School is actually quite good in the city.

Every year there is one or two top university prospects, but a provincial key? That is still hard to match.

"However, I heard Tang Lingwu is probably studying for the competition privately."

Zheng Fa's gaze involuntarily turned toward the front of the classroom.

In the first row near the podium, a girl with a ponytail was propping her cheek while reading; morning light slanted in from the front door, falling on her profile and fingers, making her look youthful and exquisite.

Tang Lingwu, the top powerhouse in the class, the undisputed king of the class with no class cadre title, the class monitor Old Chen's little treasure, and a strong contender for first place in the school, having won first place in the class for three consecutive years.

Although her face was quite attractive, attracting bees and butterflies, few boys in the class dared to be bold in front of her—brave souls had already proven that if you curse Old Chen's baldness to his face, he might not beat you to death, but if you dare to have ulterior motives toward Tang Lingwu.

Then sorry, a one-stop service of changing seats and calling parents is guaranteed to make a prodigal son turn back.

"Early love is normal, but the swan is flying just fine, why is the toad flapping wildly on the ground?"

Old Chen's words made that boy almost cry.

Since then, the air around Tang Lingwu became quiet and studious.

However, she, who received special treatment from Old Chen, inevitably went her own way in the class, looking somewhat friendless.

Zheng Fa picked up the pattern he had drawn and walked toward Tang Lingwu.

"Brother, you are truly brave!" Wang Chen, greatly alarmed, stopped Zheng Fa: "What do you want to do?"

"Ask Tang Lingwu."

Zheng Fa slapped away Wang Chen's arm and walked to Tang Lingwu's seat.

"Tang Lingwu, may I disturb you for a while?"

Not only Wang Chen, but other classmates also looked in that direction, intentionally or unintentionally.

Since a boy previously expressed his feelings to Tang Lingwu and was severely punished, no classmate, or rather, no male classmate, would go talk to Tang Lingwu without reason.

Tang Lingwu put down the book in her hand, turned her head to look at Zheng Fa, and a sentence was clearly written on her face: You have already disturbed me.

"I want to ask you, are you preparing for the math competition?"

Tang Lingwu nodded.

"Then... are these patterns something that will be tested in the math competition?"

Zheng Fa placed the few patterns in front of Tang Lingwu.

Tang Lingwu frowned, looked at these patterns, and then shook her head slightly.

"Not them?"

"You might have some misunderstanding about the math competition." Seeing his disappointed look, Tang Lingwu actually started to explain: "For example, these geometric shapes will be tested, but there must be questions and problems; it won't just be a few shapes."

Zheng Fa suddenly realized; he understood.

Even the college entrance exam wouldn't just give a shape.

What could be seen from this?

"However, these geometric shapes should have certain patterns." Tang Lingwu looked carefully again and frowned, saying: "Maybe the person who drew them had their own idea in mind, but I can't see it."

"I see..."

Compared to his own intelligence, Zheng Fa trusted the top student Tang Lingwu more.

"Maybe the teacher who teaches me the competition will understand a bit better."

Zheng Fa's spirits lifted, and he couldn't help but ask shamelessly: "Then can you ask your teacher?"

He and Tang Lingwu were actually not close, but at this moment he couldn't help being a bit presumptuous.

After all, he knew clearly in his heart that Gao Yuan wanted to understand these few patterns just to keep the position of the book boy.

Actually, Zheng Fa needed this position even more than him.

Gao Yuan at least has a butler father when he goes home.

If he were kicked back, the family's days, which had just started to improve, might take a sharp turn for the worse.

If there was even a sliver of hope, Zheng Fa was willing to lose his shame.

Tang Lingwu looked at him quietly for a while, then slowly nodded: "Actually, the teacher who teaches me the competition lives at Qingshui Middle School; I go to his house for tutoring every weekend; I will take you to ask him then."

"Take me?"

"I don't know what you want to ask; isn't it better for you to go yourself?"

When Zheng Fa returned to his seat, he still felt that Tang Lingwu was not as cold as she appeared on the outside.

"Brother, what did you say to her?"

"Don't you know? Just asked about these patterns."

"You really... for these patterns?" Wang Chen's expression suddenly became lecherous.

"What else?"

"Didn't you just find a few patterns from somewhere and go talk to her?"

Wang Chen spoke more and more seriously, even believing it himself.

Zheng Fa shook his head and said: "You misunderstood."

"It's not that I misunderstood; everyone probably misunderstood."

Wang Chen pouted; sure enough, a few classmates nearby were looking at him with ambiguous smiles, seeming to carry a hint of respect.

Zheng Fa also felt a bit helpless; for high school students, seeing a male and female classmate talking together sometimes easily leads to teasing; whether it's true or not doesn't matter, but they just like to do this.

Especially with Tang Lingwu.

"Forget it, I can't control what they think, but it's really not true."

Compared to these classmates, Zheng Fa had far more weighing on his mind; he truly lacked so many romantic inclinations.

"They don't care, but..." Wang Chen pointed at the door: "Old Chen seems to have misunderstood too."

Zheng Fa glanced up; Old Chen stood at the front entrance with a stern face, his gaze like a searchlight, staring fixedly at Zheng Fa's face.

Over the next few days, Zheng Fa attended classes quietly, striving to appear single-minded.

On the other hand, he would rise an hour early every morning to practice the Pine-Crane Post.

He dared not go to the park; instead, he found a spot behind the faculty dormitories of Qingshui Middle School.

This place was located in a corner of the Qingshui Middle School wall, with several old trees outside providing cover; if Zheng Fa practiced there, he would not be easily seen unless someone observed him deliberately.

Moreover, Zheng Fa rose very early; by the time he finished standing the post, it was only six o'clock, a time when most people were still asleep.

So for several days in a row, no one discovered him practicing.

On Friday morning, Zheng Fa was still immersed in the warm current within his body.

Since Xu Jiaotou taught him the Pine-Crane Post, he had practiced for nearly a week in both the Xuanwei Realm and the modern world.

At first, the warm current within his body was faint and elusive, uncontrollable.

Later, with every breath, he could perceive this warm current.

By today, during practice, the warm current no longer vanished; instead, it seemed to flow continuously without end.

"Truly entered the door!"

Xu Jiaotou had once told them: when the warm current within the body circulates like a thread around the waist, abdomen, and hips, that is when one has truly entered the door of the Pine-Crane Post.

At this moment, he felt exactly that!

After lowering his stance, Zheng Fa immediately sensed the difference within it.

Besides the hunger that came with daily practice, his waist and abdomen felt warm, giving him an illusion—his buttocks and legs seemed to possess a mighty force eager to be released.

Zheng Fa looked around at the empty surroundings, then bent his knees.

He exerted all his strength... and leaped!

"Whoosh!"

"Ouch!"

Zheng Fa felt his thighs act like a spring, launching him straight into the sky!

The branches and leaves above his head crackled and slapped against his face.

His head even burst through the tree canopy, which was over three meters high!

When Zheng Fa landed on the ground, still shaken, he couldn't help but clutch his chest and exclaim:

"Holy crap!"

No, that wasn't his own voice.

Zheng Fa looked up; the curly-haired old man from the park earlier was staring blankly at him.