I Studied Abroad in the Modern Times

Chapter 19 Getting Started

Zheng Fa mulled over Wang Chen's words, pondering whether these patterns might have some connection to the math competition.

"Do we have anyone in our class participating in competitions?" he asked.

"Our class?" Wang Chen shot him a strange look. "In Qingshui High? We barely have anyone who competes in these. That kind of thing is reserved for the elite from provincial key high schools!"

Qingshui High was a decent school in the city. Every year, there were one or two students who made it into top universities. But a provincial key school? That was a league above.

"Though, I heard Tang Lingwu is secretly studying for competitions," Wang Chen added.

Zheng Fa’s gaze drifted to the front of the classroom.

Seated near the podium in the first row, a girl with a ponytail rested her chin on her hand, engrossed in a book. The morning sunlight streamed through the front door, casting a glow on her delicate features and slender fingers.

Tang Lingwu, the class prodigy. She had reigned as the undisputed top student for three consecutive years, the strongest contender for the school's first place, and the cherished star of their homeroom teacher, Mr. Chen. In the class, though she held no official title, she was widely regarded as the "uncrowned queen."

Her looks were undeniably striking, but few dared to act rashly in her presence. Courageous souls had learned the hard way. You could get away with teasing Mr. Chen about his baldness, but harboring improper intentions toward Tang Lingwu? That would earn you a one-way ticket to a parent-teacher meeting and a stern lecture.

“Puppy love is natural,” Mr. Chen had once famously declared, “but what’s the point of a toad flailing on the ground while a swan soars?”

That statement had left one would-be suitor in tears, and since then, the air around Tang Lingwu had become one of quiet reverence.

However, her favored status also left her somewhat isolated in the class. She seemed to have few close friends.

With these thoughts in mind, Zheng Fa picked up his sketches of the patterns and began walking toward Tang Lingwu’s desk.

"Are you insane?!" Wang Chen tried to block him, aghast. "What are you doing?"

"I’m just going to ask her about something," Zheng Fa said, brushing Wang Chen's arm aside and stopping by Tang Lingwu's seat.

"Tang Lingwu, can I trouble you for a moment?" he asked.

Not just Wang Chen, but other students also turned their attention toward them. Ever since the last brave boy had been thoroughly punished for expressing affection toward Tang Lingwu, no male student dared to approach her without a compelling reason.

Tang Lingwu put her book down and turned to look at Zheng Fa. Her face plainly said: You’ve already disturbed me.

"I wanted to ask if you’re preparing for math competitions," he ventured.

Tang Lingwu nodded.

"Then... are these patterns related to competition problems?" He laid the drawings in front of her.

Tang Lingwu frowned, studying the sketches before shaking her head slightly. "No, they’re not."

"They’re not?" Zheng Fa felt a pang of disappointment.

"You might have a misunderstanding about math competitions," she explained, seeing his crestfallen expression. "These geometric shapes might show up, but there’d always be questions accompanying them. They wouldn’t just hand you some pictures and leave it at that."

Zheng Fa realized her point. Even in college entrance exams, they wouldn’t just give you a diagram without context.

"That said," Tang Lingwu added, examining the drawings again, "these shapes do seem to follow a pattern. Maybe whoever drew them had some ideas in mind, but I can’t decipher them."

"I see..."

Zheng Fa trusted the class genius more than his own instincts.

"My tutor might be able to make sense of them," Tang Lingwu offered after a moment's thought.

Hope reignited in Zheng Fa’s eyes. "Would you mind asking them?"

Although they weren’t close, he couldn’t help but be a little bold at this moment. He knew why Gao Yuan wanted to solve the mystery of these patterns—it was to keep his position as the study attendant. But Zheng Fa needed that role even more desperately. Gao Yuan at least had his steward father to fall back on. If Zheng Fa got kicked out, it could jeopardize the fragile progress his family had made. He was willing to swallow his pride for even the smallest chance.

Tang Lingwu regarded him silently for a moment before nodding. "Actually, my tutor lives at Qingshui High. I go to their place for tutoring every weekend. I can take you along to ask."

"Take me?"

"I don’t know what exactly you want to ask. Wouldn’t it be better for you to do it yourself?"

When Zheng Fa returned to his seat, he was surprised by how approachable Tang Lingwu had turned out to be.

"So, what did you talk to her about?" Wang Chen asked.

"You already know. I asked about the patterns," Zheng Fa replied.

"You’re telling me you did all this just for those sketches?" Wang Chen’s expression turned sly.

"Of course, what else?"

"You didn’t just make up an excuse with those sketches so you could talk to her?" Wang Chen’s voice grew more serious, as if even he was starting to believe his own theory.

"Misunderstanding," Zheng Fa said, shaking his head.

"It’s not just me. Everyone else probably thinks the same," Wang Chen muttered, nodding toward their classmates. A few of them were giving Zheng Fa teasing smiles and nods of approval, as if acknowledging his courage.

Zheng Fa sighed, exasperated. High school students loved to overreact whenever boys and girls spoke to each other. It didn’t matter whether it was true or not; they just enjoyed the excitement.

And this was Tang Lingwu they were talking about.

"Let them think whatever they want," Zheng Fa said, brushing it off. "It’s not true."

"Sure, your classmates don’t matter, but…" Wang Chen gestured toward the front door. "It looks like Mr. Chen has the wrong idea too."

Zheng Fa looked up to see Mr. Chen standing at the doorway, arms crossed, his glare piercing through the room like a searchlight trained on Zheng Fa.

---

For the next few days, Zheng Fa kept a low profile, focusing on his classes and trying to appear completely uninterested in anything else.

At the same time, he began waking up an hour earlier every morning to practice the Pine Crane Stance. Instead of going to the park, he found a secluded spot behind Qingshui High’s faculty residences, near the school’s perimeter wall. Shielded by a few large trees, it was an ideal hideout for his training. Unless someone was specifically looking for him, it was unlikely he’d be discovered.

And he practiced early—so early that most people were still asleep by the time he finished around six.

After several days of diligent practice, Zheng Fa was completely absorbed in the warm energy flowing through his body. Since Chief Instructor Xu had taught him the stance, he’d been training for about a week now, both in the Xuanyi Realm and in the modern world.

Initially, the warm energy had been faint and uncontrollable. But gradually, he began to sense it with every breath. Now, for the first time, the energy didn’t fade during practice; instead, it flowed continuously, circling through his waist, abdomen, and hips.

"I’ve really mastered the basics!" Zheng Fa thought, elated.

Chief Instructor Xu had explained that once the warm energy flowed like a steady thread through his core, he would have truly entered the first stage of the Pine Crane Stance.

As Zheng Fa finished his routine, he noticed a distinct difference. Aside from the usual hunger that followed training, his waist and abdomen felt warm, and his legs seemed brimming with strength, as though they were coiled springs ready to unleash their power.

Looking around to ensure no one was watching, Zheng Fa crouched low and sprang upward with all his might.

"Whoosh!"

"Ahhh!"

Zheng Fa felt as if his legs were springs, launching him straight into the air. The leaves and branches above slapped against his face as his head shot through the treetop, over three meters high.

When he landed, heart pounding, he heard a startled exclamation—one that didn’t come from him.

Looking up, he saw the curly-haired old man from the park, standing dumbfounded, staring at him.

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