From child prodigy to chief scientist

"Look at the time yourself, what time is it?"

Following the direction Fei Ran was pointing, Xu Xiao then noticed that it was already past seven o'clock in the evening.

He not only missed dinner, but also missed his evening class.

"I'm sorry, Professor Fei, I got so engrossed in writing my paper that I completely lost track of time..."

Xu Xiao had originally planned to go to the cafeteria for dinner around 5 or 6 p.m. and then continue attending evening classes.

However, in a state of flow, Xu Xiao couldn't even feel hunger, let alone consciously pay attention to the time.

It turns out that when people are too engrossed in something, they really can forget to eat and sleep.

"Do you know that our entire national math competition training team mobilized to find you? We almost called the police!"

Hearing Fei Ran say this, Xu Xiao realized that her behavior this time was indeed inappropriate.

Although Xu Xiao always considered himself an adult, from other people's perspectives, he was just an 11-year-old child.

It's hard not to feel anxious when such a young child suddenly goes missing.

Seeing that Xu Xiao looked somewhat guilty, Fei Ran didn't press the matter further.

Ultimately, Xu Xiao did not intentionally violate the team's rules, and what he did was indeed related to mathematics.

Even though Fei Ran was still somewhat angry, he eventually softened.

"You haven't eaten yet, have you?"

"Mm." Xu Xiao nodded.

After emerging from the flow state, Xu Xiao did feel a bit hungry; writing papers for several hours straight had been incredibly energy-consuming.

Afterwards, Fei Ran called the other coaches in the team and said that Xu Xiao had been found and that the other team members could continue with their evening classes as usual.

After reporting his safety to the team, Fei Ran said to Xu Xiao:

"Let's go, I'll take you out for a meal."

Although Xu Xiao skipped the training camp's evening classes, Fei Ran couldn't let him go hungry. After all, Xu Xiao's entry into the national team was practically a done deal, and they would need to rely on him to compete in the IMO in the future.

At this time, the cafeteria was basically out of food, so Fei Ran led Xu Xiao out of the school.

They found a small restaurant outside and Fei Ran ordered a chicken leg rice for Xu Xiao.

Xu Xiao was indeed hungry, so she picked up her chopsticks and began to wolf down her food.

Seeing how much Xu Xiao was enjoying his food, Fei Ran couldn't bring herself to be angry with him anymore. She hadn't expected that Xu Xiao, despite his young age, could eat so much.

On the way back, Fei Ran recalled what she had just seen on the computer and asked Xu Xiao with some curiosity:

"Xu Xiao, were you writing your thesis just now?"

"Well, Professor Fei, I did some research on a topic before, and I was thinking of writing the research process into a paper and submitting it for publication, but of course, the chances of success are probably not very high."

Now that Fei Ran had seen it, Xu Xiao no longer hid anything from him.

Upon receiving Xu Xiao's confirmation, Fei Ran couldn't help but gasp at the chilly air of early spring in Yanjing.

An eleven-year-old child is already doing academic work on his own and has even started writing papers?

Although Fei Ran didn't quite understand what kind of research Xu Xiao was doing.

But even from the little bit of content he saw, he could tell that Xu Xiao's paper was indeed written at a very professional level.

Even if this paper is published in the future, Fei Ran wouldn't be very surprised.

"Xu Xiao, I personally support your academic research, but please make sure this kind of thing doesn't happen again during training camps in the future."

Fei Ran wasn't too worried about how writing the paper would affect Xu Xiao's training.

After all, Xu Xiao now already possesses the ability to achieve a perfect score in the IMO, and is even at a higher level.

Fei Ran was more worried about Xu Xiao's safety. This time, nothing really happened, but if Xu Xiao continued to run around recklessly in the future, no one could guarantee that something might actually happen.

Xu Xiao wasn't quite sure what Fei Ran meant, so she quickly asked him.

"Professor Fei, if I finish the test early next time, can I still go to the computer lab to write my paper? These questions were indeed a bit too easy for me. I promise I will definitely let you know in advance next time and won't be late again..."

Fei Ran didn't really want Xu Xiao to do this, but seeing his pitiful appearance, Fei Ran's heart softened a little, and he hesitated about how to answer.

Seeing that Fei Ran did not immediately agree, Xu Xiao continued:

"Teacher Fei, how about I buy another cell phone? That way you can contact me anytime, no matter what."

Previously, Xu Xiao received a 3 yuan bonus from Yucai for entering the CMO National Team, and Yucai also gave him an additional 3 yuan for achieving the highest score. He is quite well-off financially.

Thinking that it would be more convenient to make phone calls in the future, Xu Xiao would eventually have to buy a mobile phone.

After hearing what Xu Xiao said, Fei Ran decided to simply grant Xu Xiao's request.

In fact, according to the training camp's rules, students are not allowed to bring mobile phones during the training period.

But Xu Xiaolian only goes to the computer lab to write papers, so it's highly unlikely that she would secretly play on her phone at night.

Fei Ran could rest assured as long as he could contact Xu Xiao when necessary.

"Okay, then it'll be like you said. From now on, you absolutely cannot leave the campus without permission. Even if you go to other places on campus alone, you must report it first. If I can't find you again, even if you finish answering ahead of time, you'd better stay in the training room obediently."

Xu Xiao knew that Fei Ran was thinking about her safety, so she didn't dare to argue and readily agreed.

Back in the training room, Xu Xiao felt embarrassed as she remembered how everyone had been busy helping her and sat back down in her seat.

Everyone was curious about what Xu Xiao had been doing, but seeing that neither Fei Ran nor Xu Xiao had brought it up, they didn't feel comfortable asking directly and had to suppress their curiosity.

However, after returning to the dormitory after evening class, my roommate couldn't help but ask me about it.

"Xu Xiao, what were you doing just now? We've been looking for you for so long and still can't find you."

"Ah... I went to the computer lab, but I accidentally missed the time. Sorry to have worried you guys."

Xu Xiao didn't directly mention that he went to the computer lab to write his thesis, since the thesis might not actually be published and there was no need to publicize it.

Hearing Xu Xiao say that, her roommates instinctively felt that Xu Xiao must have gone to the computer lab to play games.

Even Ge Xijie smiled helplessly, it seems that Xu Xiao still has a childlike side.

"Oh, I see. You can't be so playful next time."

"Hmm... okay."

Although her roommate clearly misunderstood her meaning, Xu Xiao did not explain anything further.