Chapter 25: This Is Not Chenghua Avenue

In the morning, Zhai Da sported a pair of dark circles under his eyes.

Despite his best intentions, he couldn't resist sneaking in a session late last night, rewarding himself with "High School Mathematics: Lecture Five."

After waking up, Zhai Da felt deep regret over last night’s indulgence. At the same time, he became a bit more wary of the [Old Man’s Television].

First, the [Old Man’s Television] did not increase his actual "brainpower." At most, while increasing his "level of addiction," it indirectly boosted his focus and resistance to distractions. Things like phones, games, or even eating and sleeping became significantly less appealing.

The problem, however, was that without an increase in raw intelligence, the time he spent would only grow longer, not shorter.

He had understood "High School Mathematics: Lecture One" on the first try. By "Lecture Three," he already needed to watch it three times. By "Lecture Five," he barely understood anything, yet he still wanted to keep watching.

Hard to fathom, isn't it? That feeling of being utterly crushed yet completely addicted.

Think about playing a video game. Though you are immersed in it, Zhai Da never felt bored; in fact, it was quite enjoyable. But once he detached from that state, he would still be hit by a strong sense of "wasted time."

His precious weekend, gone just like that?

On the way to school, Zhai Da was debating whether to reply to Lu Wei’s text message. According to his past habits, if you missed the initial window, it was basically as good as not replying at all... Well, that was his habit after winning the lottery; he wasn't working, so there was never anything urgent to attend to anyway.

Passing by a small shop, Zhai Da, feeling relatively flush with cash, stopped for a while and bought a few bags of snacks.

Suddenly, the familiar sound of footsteps came from behind.

Zhai Da curled his lip, anticipating the move. He turned around, pointed directly at Wu Yue’s face, and declared:

"Whoever slaps my butt is a 'gay'."

Wu Yue’s hand froze in mid-air, suspended in an awkward position.

Zhai Da viciously added: "If you move, you're a 'gay'."

Wu Yue didn't dare move an inch. In this day and age, homophobia was practically an instinct engraved in their genes.

Zhai Da turned and walked away.

Wu Yue shouted in agitation: "Untie me, quick! I can’t balance on one leg!"

"Then just be a 'gay'."

As Wu Yue wobbled, struggling, Yang Fan happened to walk by. Wu Yue was overjoyed and slapped Yang Fan on the shoulder: "The curse is passed on to you! If you move, you’re a 'gay'!"

Yang Fan stood frozen in place.

Wu Yue picked up his pace and caught up with Zhai Da: "Where did you go to have fun last night? How come I didn't see you at the internet cafe?"

He had earned four hundred yuan yesterday and had a blast. After years of surfing the net, he finally got to experience the extravagance of "top up three hundred, get three hundred free."

Zhai Da rolled his eyes: "I didn't go anywhere; I stayed home." To be precise, he barely even left his room.

Wu Yue looked at Zhai Da’s dark circles and recalled that old television he had hauled back yesterday... So that’s what it was for... But why go through the trouble of getting an old TV? I get it—fighting "low resolution" with "censored content"! Fighting fire with fire?

He wanted to ask if Zhai Da had any good resources—after all, going through so much trouble and ending up with dark circles after one night must be pretty intense, right? But remembering he had taken "hush money," Wu Yue chose to keep his mouth shut. Better to just zip it.

...

Zhai Da arrived at the classroom drowsily, greeted by the bustling army of students copying homework. Everyone was scribbling frantically, their pens practically smoking.

The weekend homework was exceptionally heavy, and the urge to play on the weekend was even stronger than usual. As a pseudo-key school in a county, the standards of Mao Textile Middle School would be considered garbage-tier in a city; if it were in a major metropolis, it might even lose its status as a general high school and be relegated to a vocational school.

Especially Class 3-8, which wasn't even a key class.

So, one couldn't count on the students' self-discipline. Those who could finish their homework on time and keep up with the teachers' requirements were already the elite among them.

Zhai Da was more relaxed; he didn't need to hand in homework for now. Of course, the deterrent effect of his "fainting in the exam hall" would gradually fade with time. He was currently in a state of quantum superposition: if the teacher didn't ask, he didn't hand it in. The time class representative Chu Xiang had caught him didn't count, but if a teacher were to really corner him one day, his golden shield would be shattered.

The first period was math, and Zhai Da listened very intently. He wanted to test the results of last night.

He found that there was indeed some progress. Although what he learned yesterday was only the first-year curriculum, it was at least like laying a few foundation bricks into the bottomless pit of mathematics. At least it wasn't complete gibberish anymore.

By the end of the school day, Zhai Da had reached a conclusion: he needed to push harder.

Admittedly, the effect of the [Old Man’s Television] was strong enough to give him a possible path to turning his life around. If he committed to being addicted to study from today on—grinding early and late, 996 as a norm, and 007 as a super-evolution—he might be able to return to the level of a junior college student from his past life.

But this path was still just a narrow, winding trail. What he, Zhai Da, needed was a grand highway. Using cheats wasn't meant for squeezing himself dry...

As a junior college student in his previous life, Zhai Da had ample experience: if you spend high school relaxing for three years, you'll suffer for thirty years afterward. But if you suffer for three years in high school, you'll suffer for thirty-three years...

He suddenly thought of Lu Wei. The plaque at the school gate was still fresh in his memory; before she started working at the factory... her math seemed quite good. It was even possible she was good at all her subjects.

Now that Lu Wei was so obedient, could he snag a free tutor?

At the school gate, Fan Junwei was sprinting with a "thud-thud-thud." His massive frame was like a dump truck, and every step made Zhai Da feel like the cheap sneakers on his feet would burst.

Does no one in this school know how to walk normally?

Zhai Da quickly dodged; if he got hit by that... he might just get knocked back to 2024.

As Fan Junwei passed Zhai Da, he didn't forget to greet him: "Bye-bye."

It was fortunate he hadn't picked up the same bad habit as Wu Yue, otherwise, one slap to the butt might have left a bruise.

Several girls were so frightened they hid against the wall. Only after Fan Junwei left did they show their disgust:

"It stinks, so gross! His belly and his moobs were all jiggling."

"I’m about to puke!"

Do not overestimate the linguistic cleanliness of teenagers; it’s the same for both boys and girls. The only difference is that girls only say these things to people they know well, while boys fire indiscriminately at everyone.

When Zhai Da was a junior college student, he was accidentally added to a group chat of girls in his class because his QQ avatar looked cartoonish. That was a real eye-opener. He lurked for half a month and learned more biology than he had in high school...

As he was deep in thought, passing over a pedestrian bridge, a system prompt appeared before his eyes.

"Discovered white special item: [The Literary Girl’s Pen]: Since she was very young, this pen has been recording the girl’s innermost thoughts."

"Ownership status: Not owned, not activated."

"Effect: 1. If the content written is original by the author, it will be imbued with emotion. 2. If the content written is not original, it will deepen memory."

"Not yet activated; the host must obtain ownership."

"Note: When young, she wanted to write about her self; when older, she wants to write out her self."