"Hmm, Qiao Yu, you seem pretty confident, so you didn't take last term's finals or this term's mock exams seriously? Oh, and the midterm biology-geography exam."
After a long pause, Yuan Yuan finally squeezed out this sentence.
In the middle school entrance exam, there are three main subjects—Chinese, Mathematics, and English—plus four electives: Physics, Chemistry, Daoism, and History. With only a 23-point margin for error, if Qiao Yu still thinks it's not hard, then there's only one possibility.
Very shocking.
After all, if this is true, it means Qiao Yu definitely has the capability to enter the Rocket Class, yet he's mixing in with the remedial class.
Honestly, any teacher who hears about this will probably be dumbfounded on the spot.
"Pretty much." Qiao Yu replied vaguely.
"What are you aiming for?" Yuan Yuan suppressed her inner astonishment and couldn't help asking.
Even though the question seemed random, Qiao Yu understood.
Looking at the indescribable expression on the homeroom teacher's face, Qiao Yu thought for a moment and decided to tell the truth: "No one supervises me, and I don't have to attend evening self-study sessions."
This answer was so reasonable that Yuan Yuan, as the homeroom teacher, could only feel a mix of laughter and tears.
Qiao Yu didn't want to explain further; everyone has their own ideas and ways of living. As long as he can bear the consequences of his choices, that's enough. In this regard, Qiao Yu felt he did quite well.
Every choice was meticulously thought out, and even though his understanding of the world was not yet clear and the future relied solely on himself to explore, as long as he could afford some room for error, it was fine. After all, what's most important is living life, and if possible, trying to make it more comfortable.
As for which path to take, Qiao Yu didn't really care. He had no significant ambitions anyway.
"Alright, go back to your self-study session now. By the way, keep up the good work!" Before leaving, Yuan Yuan didn't forget to offer an encouraging remark.
Watching Qiao Yu return to the classroom, Yuan Yuan instinctively patted her chest.
Upon careful reflection, if Qiao Yu truly has this level of talent, it's a great thing for her as the homeroom teacher.
If Lan Jie's previous plan to have Qiao Yu take a year off were to be followed, even though his school registration would still be at Railway First Middle School, any future success in winning Olympic Competition gold medals or getting directly admitted to Huaqing or Yanbei would have nothing to do with her as his homeroom teacher.
But if Qiao Yu can get into Railway First Middle School's high school division under her guidance, it would be a different story.
Not to mention producing a student with excellent core subject scores from the remedial class, let alone any bonus, just the prestige of the achievement itself would be something to boast about for life.
What's most interesting is that with a student like Qiao Yu placed in Class 13, no one would specifically investigate, so his previously poor grades suddenly showing remarkable improvement in the entrance exam...
She couldn't think any further; the more she contemplated, the more excited she became.
It's important to know that teachers assigned to the remedial class are usually hired directly from society and don't have official status.
For example, that's the case with Yuan Yuan. Despite being at Railway First Middle School for three years, she was still just a hired teacher with no official status.
Bringing up a student like Qiao Yu might be her chance for a permanent position. Yuan Yuan even thought about discussing this issue further with Teacher Lan Jie, as the only frustrating aspect of this situation lies in this fact.
Her own student was actually discovered by a high school math teacher.
She also seemed to need to inform the teachers in the class.
Thinking about the expressions of those faculty members, especially the math teacher, Yuan Yuan suddenly found it somewhat amusing.
Clearly, the teachers' office would be bustling this morning.
Of course, Qiao Yu wasn't interested in how lively the teachers' office would be, but unfortunately, the excitement found him anyway.
...
In Class 13, Math often occupies the first two morning periods, which isn't quite the most scientific arrangement.
The morning is the best time for memorization, actually making it better for subjects like Chinese or English.
But considering the teachers of Class 13 also need to conduct lessons for regular classes, the natural science courses must be arranged, giving priority to parallel classes hopeful of entering a normal high school.
In any case, the kids in Class 13 hardly pay attention during class.
After all, junior high covers the most fundamental knowledge, not much related to intelligence. As long as one is willing to study, they won't fall far behind.
The teacher for Mathematics in Class 13 is Gong Jiatao, a young lecturer not yet thirty, who entered Railway First Middle School right after completing a master's degree and has been teaching for two years. He is also a hired teacher without an official status.
In fact, most teachers assigned to teach Class 13 do not have formal teaching positions, except for the music and physical education teachers.
When the class bell rang and he stepped into the classroom, he didn't pay attention to the group of half-asleep kids reluctantly greeting him with "Good morning, teacher." He just glanced at Qiao Yu and then instructed the group leaders to come up and distribute the tests from his hands.
If one is willing to let go, Class 13 is really easy to manage.
Especially now that we're in the review stage; during class time, distribute the papers and let students do them by themselves, and announce the correct answers before class ends for them to correct themselves. If there's still time, choose some representative questions from the paper related to teaching points to explain.
No overtime, no internal friction, everyone benefits.
Comparatively, teachers of the Rocket Class work much harder. Endless test grading, endless homework corrections, and countless meetings. Nonetheless, teachers of the Rocket Class not only have formal positions but are also well compensated with bonuses.
So there's a trade-off for both.
After the papers were handed out, as usual, there were only a few students diligently working on the papers; Gong Jiatao could see from the podium that most students were hiding behind the high stacks of books on the desks doing something else.
Napping, reading extracurricular books, even playing Gobang...
Basically, anything other than working on the math paper was more interesting.
Qiao Yu did the same, though his reason was that the paper was too simple and he couldn't be bothered. Plus, his phone had been confiscated, so he could only continue reading the chemistry book.
Until Mr. Gong walked directly to his side.
The unusual move startled many students, especially Zhou Shuang.
After all, usually, the math teacher, after distributing the papers, would sit at the podium correcting other classes' assignments without checking their paper work.
Today, not only did he come down, but he stood right next to his deskmate, making Zhou feel a bit stressed while reading his novel.
Thankfully, the teacher didn't seem to notice him at all and just tapped on Qiao Yu's desk, then softly said, "Stop reading for now. Can you solve the last question on this paper?"
Qiao Yu helplessly raised his head and glanced at the face filled with curiosity, knowing it was probably Elder Yuan's doing again.
In fact, Qiao Yu always thought the homeroom teacher was pretty decent, just a bit too chatty.
Therefore, always not wanting to go against the course teachers, Qiao Yu picked up the paper, flipped a page, and glanced at the last question.
After quietly reading it, Qiao Yu nodded and said, "I can solve it."
"Solve it now, and I won't bother you for these two periods." Mr. Gong eagerly whispered.
Not wanting to waste time, Qiao Yu quickly picked up a pen and began writing on the blank space of the paper.
1. The equation of the parabola: y=x^2-4x+3.
2. ...When x=3/2, the line segment PD has a maximum length of 9/4.
3. ...That is, on the axis of symmetry, there exists a point (2, -3) where |MA-MC| is maximized.
In total, it took three minutes, and Qiao Yu stopped writing. Seeing Mr. Gong, he felt that the always stern face had turned into a grin like a blooming chrysanthemum.
"Very good, you may carry on with your work."