At this time, Qiao Ze was still just an ordinary college student. No, it would be inaccurate to even call him that since he had yet to complete all the registration procedures.
He hadn't yet had the chance to boldly and explicitly tell reporters outside the mathematicians' conference that many Nobel and Fields Medal laureates were also a bunch of idiots.
Therefore, Zhang Zhou and Gu Zhengliang didn't realize just how heartwarming Qiao Ze's comment, "You guys aren't that stupid either," actually was.
They just suddenly felt not so hungry anymore.
Luckily, that was all temporary.
Once they got to the cafeteria and the aroma wafted into their noses, Zhang Zhou regained some of his former liveliness, "Qiao Ze, let me tell you, our school may not be much in other respects, but the stir-fry at Cafeteria Three is really delicious. Today you can order whatever you want, it's on Zhang's card!"
…
After lining up and getting their meals, the three found an empty table and sat down.
While eating, Zhang Zhou looked at Qiao Ze who was silently enjoying his meal and sighed inwardly, beginning to make an effort to help this quirky guy fit in with their little group as soon as possible.
So, while eating, he instructed, "Qiao Ze, there's one more person in our dorm, the one who sleeps across from you, named Chen Yiwen. You mustn't evaluate him the same way you did me and Gu, or he'll really get mad."
Gu Zhengliang added, "Yeah, well, it's not that Chen is a bad guy. He actually does care if classmates are in trouble, but he's got this prideful temperament and always likes to compete for first place. There, he didn't come back after class, he went to study in the cafeteria by himself."
Zhang Zhou shrugged and said, "That's right. The top scorer in our class for now is the class representative, a girl named Su Mucheng. Last year's final exam grades were A+ in all subjects except abstract algebra where she got an A, and Chen was ranked second.
So this year, the guy has really started studying like crazy. You have no idea, he's quite intense. He hasn't relaxed a single weekend this semester, and whenever he's not in the dorm, you can find him either in the library or the study room."
Gu Zhengliang nodded vigorously, "Yes, he's so competitive that I hardly dare to be friends with him – I'm afraid he'll drive me insane. So, you definitely shouldn't talk about low IQ with him; he really will get angry. What's more frightening is that the guy is also a rich second generation. His family's from Guang Province. He invited us over during the winter break, and they owned several houses there."
Qiao Ze was listening to their chatter, more or less getting the picture of the student named Chen Yiwen they were describing as very competitive. As for being a rich second generation, Qiao Ze didn't think much of it.
"Hey, Qiao Ze, what are you thinking about? Why aren't you talking?" Zhang Zhou, sitting next to Qiao Ze, nudged him with his elbow and asked.
"Oh, I was just thinking that from now on, Chen Yiwen will probably have to settle for third place," Qiao Ze replied casually.
He had no choice, he promised that Dean Uncle to take the exams seriously.
"Pfft…" Gu Zhengliang couldn't help but burst into laughter, spitting out his food.
Qiao Ze looked at him, perplexed, wondering where the punchline was in what he had just said.
"Sorry, sorry, I didn't mean to. It's just that what you said made me suddenly think of the expression Chen Yiwen would make," Gu Zhengliang said, waving his hands apologetically.
Completely unaware that his serious name had such a strange punchline.
"Enough, enough, cut it out," Zhang Zhou gave Gu Zhengliang a glare and then said, "Qiao Ze, it's good you're confident. But this semester we're not only taking Mathematical Analysis, there are also courses like Advanced Algebra and Analytic Geometry, Abstract Algebra, Real and Complex Function Theory, and Probability Theory. And yes, there are compulsory courses like Marxist Theory, Mao Zedong Thought, and Modern History, but these are the kind you can just cram before the exams; nothing too difficult."
Qiao Ze, puzzled, asked, "The School of Mathematics has political classes?"
Zhang Zhou slapped his forehead, exasperated, "Big brother, these are compulsory courses! Every major in the school has them."
On hearing this, Qiao Ze let out a sigh of relief, "Oh, that's good. With these classes dragging down my grades, I won't be able to get first place."
Zhang Zhou paused, then said, "Qiao Ze, did you not hear everything I just said? There's more to our major than just Mathematical Analysis."
Qiao Ze shook his head and answered, "I know, but I've self-studied all those professional courses you mentioned. Haven't you guys noticed? The whole point of learning math analysis is to make those professional courses easier to grasp. For example, today in your math analysis class, you studied the relationship between Lebesgue Integration and Riemann Integration, and the teacher must have derived those concepts and theorems. Once you understand that, the most core part of the Real Function course becomes very simple, and there's no difficulty at all."
Gu Zhengliang stared at Qiao Ze, shocked once again, "No way, Qiao Ze, did you actually sneak into our class this afternoon, didn't you? How come what you're saying is almost exactly what Zhu said in class?"
"Zhu?" Qiao Ze tilted his head, puzzled.
"It's Professor Zhu who teaches us math analysis."
Zhang Zhou dramatically covered his face, speaking very fast, "Damn, Qiao Ze, I'm really starting to believe you're not just showing off! By the way, when you said earlier in the dorm that even the geometry professors at our school aren't very good, you were serious, right?"
Qiao Ze looked at Zhang Zhou oddly and replied, "At least I didn't find those research papers boasted on the faculty's official website very useful. Plus, the mathematical tools employed are quite outdated, without any innovative points. Also, what do you mean by showing off?"
Zhang Zhou: "..."
Gu Zhengliang: "..."
Then, after exchanging a look, they almost simultaneously said, "Big bro, can't you study more down-to-earth stuff?"
Sometime later, Zhang Zhou added somberly, "Moreover, I don't know about other schools, but the School of Mathematics doesn't count compulsory courses for GPA ranking, only professional courses."
"Hmm?"
...
After dinner, I returned to the dorm.
Sure enough, the only person Qiao Ze hadn't seen yet in the dorm, Chen Yiwen, had not come back.
Probably went straight to the library to self-study after eating.
According to Gu, it was unlikely he would return before half-past ten.
Zhang Zhou then enthusiastically added Qiao Ze to Basic Mathematics Class One's group chat.
Zhang Zhou's WeChat name was "Solitary Boat", and his group nickname was "Solitary Boat Class Rep". Before formally introducing Qiao Ze to everyone, he even changed his group nickname to "A Good Person Solitary Boat Class Rep".
"@everyone: The person I just added to the group is our Basic One class's new student — Qiao Ze. Let's all help each other out and work hard together."
Gu Zhengliang looked at Zhang Zhou's changed nickname and silently changed his own to "Not Too Dumb Class Secretary", then pulled up a meme from his collection, "Welcome new student."
With both the class rep and class secretary posting at the same time, it immediately set off a storm among the students. The originally quiet class group suddenly became lively.
"What's this? A new student?"
"Feels like a throwback to high school."
"Is the new student a bro or a sis?"
"A Good Person? Not Too Dumb? Am I out of touch with the times again? What are these memes the class rep and class secretary are using?"
...
Qiao Ze glanced at the buzzing group chat, then set his phone aside, turning his attention back to his notebook. He planned to search for some of Uncle Li's published papers in the library's research database before going to bed. That was way more interesting than following the group chat.