Jiang Luxi glanced at Cheng Xing but remained silent.
She had been wondering how someone with his academic performance managed to get into Ancheng No. 1 High School.
"Let's start with simple equations from the fifth-grade textbook," she suggested.
"Okay." Cheng Xing nodded, handing her the math book. He cleared the table and prepared some paper and a pen.
Jiang Luxi flipped to the section on simple equations and began explaining. She deliberately kept some distance from him, making it hard for him to see the pages clearly.
"I can't see the textbook from here. You're too far away," Cheng Xing said. "There's a stool nearby. You should sit down. Squatting too long will hurt your legs."
Reluctantly, Jiang Luxi moved a stool closer, though she maintained about a meter's distance. Cheng Xing could now just make out the content.
"This will have to do for now. If you don't want to sit closer, we can see if the rain stops this afternoon. If it does, I'll buy a small blackboard. That way, even from a distance, you'll be able to see everything. If it keeps raining, we'll wait until tomorrow," Cheng Xing said.
Jiang Luxi pressed her lips together, staying quiet.
She knew tutoring from a distance wasn't ideal, but she felt uneasy. School bullies often teased girls with braids or faces—she wasn't taking any chances.
Returning to the lesson, she said, "Equations are mathematical statements that express the equality between two expressions. Let's start with these examples. Can you tell me which one is an equation?"
Cheng Xing glanced over the problems and pointed at the first one. "This one."
"Why?" she asked.
"Because it has an X. The others don't."
To him, anything with an 'X' was an equation.
Jiang Luxi sighed inwardly.
"An equation isn't just about having an X," she explained. "It's about balancing two sides with an equal sign. The unknown, often represented by letters like X or Y, is simply a placeholder for a number we don't know yet. Now, tell me again—which one is an equation?"
Cheng Xing looked at the examples and hesitated. "The first one still feels right because of the X," he muttered.
She picked up her pen and wrote on the notebook: A + 3 = 5.
"Is this an equation?"
Cheng Xing shook his head. "No. There's no X or Y."
"In math, any symbol can be an unknown," she said. "It doesn't have to be X or Y. A, B, or any letter works. What makes it an equation is the equal sign, which balances both sides. Now, is this an equation?"
Cheng Xing hesitated. "Yes?"
"Yes, it is," Jiang Luxi confirmed.
"And the answer is... two?"
"Yes." She nodded, smiling faintly.
"I get it now." Cheng Xing smiled. Equations were about balancing unknowns, not just X or Y.
"Don't get ahead of yourself. This is the basics. Equations will get more complex, involving multiple variables, inequalities, and formulas you'll need to learn," Jiang Luxi warned gently.
His enthusiasm was refreshing, but she doubted it would last.
"I'm serious about learning this time," Cheng Xing declared.
"Alright," she replied, resuming the lesson.
Cheng Xing glanced at the clock. It was half an hour before noon. "You've been at this for over three hours. Let's take a break. Have some water."
"It's fine," Jiang Luxi shook her head. "I'm not that tired."
Still, he poured her a cup. "There's a water dispenser and disposable cups. Help yourself if you get thirsty."
"Okay," she said, accepting the cup.
Cheng Xing stretched, surprised at how effective the morning had been. For the first time, math didn't feel unbearable. Jiang Luxi's explanations made it clear and approachable, turning frustration into something manageable.
Math had always seemed like an unsolvable knot, but now, as they unraveled it layer by layer, he felt a growing sense of relief and accomplishment.
It reminded him of literature—texts he once hated memorizing, only to appreciate their depth years later. By then, though, youth had slipped away, leaving only nostalgia.
Outside, rain poured steadily. Inside, the faint scent of paper mixed with freshly dried hair, filling the room with calm.
Perhaps this simple, quiet life was what he yearned for. No rushing deadlines. No soulless work. Just peace.
"I'll write a few problems for you to solve," Jiang Luxi said after finishing her water.
She leaned over, her hair cascading like a waterfall down her back. Beneath the dark waves, her slender neck gleamed, smooth and pale like carved jade.
Cheng Xing found himself smiling. He finally understood why ancient scholars cherished the image of red sleeves adding fragrance during their studies.