Lan Jie took a deep breath. As a high school mathematics teacher, he was very sensitive to numbers.
Third-year middle school students are generally fifteen or sixteen years old, and Qiao Yu's mom is only thirty-four. In other words, Qiao Yu's mom had him just barely after becoming an adult, certainly not at the legal age for marriage. Even in those days over ten years ago, this was shocking enough that he didn't know how to comment on it.
No wonder Teacher Yuan had that mysterious gossip look just now.
"So..." Lan Jie didn't know what to say.
"But as for the claim that his family is struggling, I don't think so. Originally, I was supposed to do a home visit in the first year of middle school, but it was delayed due to that issue, and later it was postponed to second year when I was already Qiao Yu's homeroom teacher. I saw wine bottles everywhere in his house, all neatly arranged.
So Qiao Yu's mom must like drinking, and I even suspect she has a drinking problem, and she drinks high-end beers. Also, it was just about dinner time that day, and I saw the takeout they ordered: a few dishes that cost several hundred yuan, so their family is definitely not financially struggling.
However, it's also quite pitiful to think about. Qiao Yu has never had a dad, and naturally no grandparents; his maternal grandparents passed away when he was very young, and his mom rarely interacts with relatives or friends. It's just the two of them relying on each other to get by. Sigh..."
A long sigh that almost made Lan Jie feel depressed.
"Alright, I roughly understand the situation. Thank you, Teacher Yuan."
"Mm, this time it's really been a hassle for you, Teacher Lan. Don't worry, once I take Qiao Yu with me, I'll give him a good education."
"No need. Anyway, he doesn't have evening self-study, so let him stay with me for a while."
"Huh?" Teacher Yuan was visibly stunned.
A high school mathematics teacher is very busy, not to mention Lan Jie is the head of the high school mathematics teaching and research group. She really couldn't understand why Lan Jie would want to spend time on a student like Qiao Yu, who is recognized as a poor student.
"This..."
Seeing this Yuan Yuan teacher's extremely confused look, Lan Jie decided to enlighten her.
With the gossip talent Teacher Yuan just showed, he was afraid of misunderstandings if he didn't explain clearly.
So he said seriously, "I can't be sure about Qiao Yu's other subject grades, but I can be sure that his math grades are excellent, at least at the level of a competitive student."
Lan Jie could see the intense confusion in Teacher Yuan's eyes at this moment. She opened her mouth, seeming to want to say something, but no sound came out.
So he simply added another sentence: "Let me put it this way, if we can get him a spot in the Mathematics Olympic Competition this year, I can't guarantee he'll be selected for the National Team to represent Huaxia in international competitions, but getting a national gold medal is definitely not a problem. I'm referring to the high school mathematics Olympiad."
"What? Mathematics Olympiad? National gold medal? Teacher Lan, there must be some misunderstanding, right?"
"I don't know if Qiao Yu has any unspeakable circumstances that make him deliberately hide his grades, but there's no doubt about this." After he finished speaking, Lan Jie roughly explained the situation he saw today.
The most authentic situation, without any embellishment, but from Teacher Yuan's expression, it was like hearing a mythical story.
"You mean to say that today, you gave the Olympiad class a transformed version of a real question from the International Mathematics Olympiad, and they couldn't solve it, so they went to an internet cafe to find Qiao Yu from our class, and then Qiao Yu solved the problem while playing a game after hearing it?"
With eye contact, Lan Jie silently nodded.
"Wait a minute, Teacher Lan, I don't think our school's Mathematics Olympiad has ever had a student win a gold medal in the National Competition, right? I think the year before last or the year before that, there was a student who won a Bronze Award, and the school even held a celebration ceremony?" After staring blankly for a while, Yuan Yuan reacted and immediately asked.
Lan Jie nodded silently again.
Actually, you can't blame the teachers; it's mainly because Star City's education system is quite special. Almost all the quality students are completely monopolized by the four top high schools: Lu Ya, First Middle School, Shida Middle School, and Changjun. Normal high schools can only pick the best from the remaining ones.
The Shida Middle School the year before last, and Lu Ya Middle School the year before that, both had students selected for the National Team and won gold medals representing Huaxia in the International Mathematics Olympiad. Moreover, Huaxia was the IMO champion for two consecutive editions, which shows the strength of Star City's high school education.
But Railway First Middle School is just a regular middle school, and the fact that it can nurture a student who entered the National Competition and won a Bronze Award is already enough to demonstrate Lan Jie's ability.
"Oh dear, what should we do? The high school entrance exam is next month, and even if Qiao Yu's math grades are excellent, his overall grades surely won't meet the line for a regular high school. I remember the national Mathematics Olympiad is usually in November, right?"
"Yes, this year's provincial league is on September 8, and the final is on November 22."
This timing... is just awkward!
This year, Star City's high school entrance exam is from June 18 to 20, which means Qiao Yu can officially bid farewell to Railway First Middle School from the 20th onward.
Through the eye contact, Teacher Yuan understood Lan Jie's thoughts from the fiery look in his eyes.
"Well... Teacher Lan, are you thinking of letting him take a year off?"
"Yes! Take a year off, exchange for a high school student Olympiad national gold medal, and he'll always have a university to attend. Given Qiao Yu's age, he can participate in two or three more editions. But this requires his cooperation, so I need to talk to him later."
"Do you need me to help persuade him?" Teacher Yuan asked.
Lan Jie hesitated for a moment, shook his head, but didn't close the discussion: "I'll talk to him first to understand his thoughts, and then, if necessary, I might really need your help."
"Alright, I'll head back first. I still have to supervise the evening self-study for Class 8 today. Sigh... this kid, I really didn't see it coming."
Teacher Yuan tactfully left, and Lan Jie didn't rush into the office either but instead took out his phone and called a colleague: "Hello, Teacher Zhou, it's like this, I have something urgent on my side, can you help me supervise the evening self-study tonight? Yes, yes, for Class 2, just let them work on the papers I distributed today.
Do the paper for an hour and a half, then swap papers among them for grading, and then explain briefly on the questions where mistakes are common. Thank you, sorry to trouble you, Teacher Zhou."
After hanging up, Lan Jie composed himself, opened the door, and walked into the office, only to see Qiao Yu sitting cross-legged on the desk next to him, engrossed in swiping his phone.
The school doesn't allow students to bring phones. How did this kid manage to bring a phone to school?
Forget it, that's not important, he's not the middle school dean.
"Ahem..."
"Teacher Lan."
"I want to visit your home with you, do a home visit."
"A home visit? You?" Qiao Yu looked up and down at this old man in his thirties with a skeptical look...