Chapter 4. Cho Ryu Hyang’s Retest (1/2)

Chapter 4. Cho Ryu Hyang’s Retest

The first thing Cho Ryu Hyang heard when he woke up distressed him.

“I heard you were having a retest.”

Cho Ryu Hyang felt that there was another meaning to Peng Ga Ho’s statement by instinct.

Sure enough, Peng Ga Ho immediately spoke with an annoyed tone.

“They said you were cheating during the test. Unbelievable.”

Peng Ga Ho was angry. He knew Cho Ryu Hyang got first place in the competition with pure skill. Would one not be angry if someone accused him/her of cheating, when he/she accomplished something with their own power? Because of that, Peng Ga Ho was furious at that moment.

“Why aren’t you saying anything?”

Cho Ryu Hyang was unexpectedly calm. No, he looked like he didn’t even care about it.

It wasn’t time to be concerned about such petty things. He was more concerned with the strange things that were floating in front of him.

Because Cho Ryu Hyang was unable to take his eyes off these objects, he looked like he was in a dazed state to Peng Ga Ho when he talked.

“…….That kind of test, I can always retake it.”

“Aren’t you angry? They’re accusing you!”

“Of course I’m angry.”

“An angry person has that kind of look on his face?”

Cho Ryu Hyang wasn’t being angry because there was no point in being that way. He disliked doing fruitless activities like such.

“I’m the one who’s getting pissed off.”

Peng Ga Ho smashed his chest with his fist in anger.

Peng Ga Ho admitted that Cho Ryu Hyang was indeed a genius. He also knew that this genius always worked ceaselessly.

That made him even angrier. The current situation where no one even recognized the amount of time Cho Ryu Hyang put into study, but even dared to look down upon it, made Peng Ga Ho furious.

Peng Ga Ho put his hand on Cho Ryu Hyang’s shoulder, and spoke seriously.

“Since it’s already like this, just go smash the old men’s noses in. Show off all of your skills.”

Cho Ryu Hyang smiled.

He knew why Peng Ga Ho was being so angry. And even if he didn’t say it, it was his every intention to rub his skill in their faces.

Cho Ryu Hyang, too, was bothered by the actions of the school, after all.

“You’re alright, right? You wouldn’t have any trouble at the retest tomorrow?”

“I’m alright.”

Right now, his physical condition wasn’t what was important.

The strange things that he was seeing from before. It was bothering him to no end.

It was numbers. There were numbers floating in the air everywhere.

“You need books? Want paper?”

Cho Ryu Hyang was thankful towards Peng Ga Ho for rushing to him right from school after receiving word of his recovery, but right now, he wanted to be alone.

There were too many things to think about right now.

Compared to the things he had in mind, the test was a small matter.

‘It’s an easy task.’

It didn’t matter if he had to retake the test several times.

The importance of figuring out what these numbers were was far more important.

Peng Ga Ho, who was unable to vent all his anger, went out while complaining by himself.

Watching that, Cho Ryu Hyang closed his eyes. He called upon the old man in his mind. He couldn’t decide on what to call the old man, as he still was unable to decide if the old man really was Zhuge Liang.

‘Sir, I have a question.’

[You bother me.]

The old man appeared in his thoughts, and stared at him with a face of contempt.

Cho Ryu Hyang, looking at the old man, asked a question.

‘What are these numbers that I am seeing?’

[What do you think they are?]

‘I do not know.’

The numbers were everywhere, and they were constantly changing.

What did they mean?

Cho Ryu Hyang’s curiosity sparked just then.

He opened his eyes a little, and tried to touch the number near him with his hands. Then the colorless number took on a lifelike color.

“Ah?”

The number immediately became colorless again.

“Wha, what’s this?”

Cho Ryu Hyang closed his eyes in confusion.

[Simpleton, you can only see the numbers at your current level. If you want to touch them, you need to train yourself, so don’t be greedy.]

‘What training to I need? What will I be able to do if I become able to touch the numbers?’

[Hoho, a boy who can’t even walk already dreams of running.]

The old man clicked his tongue, looking at the agitated boy.

[You yourself represents one of the smaller numbers that make up the whole universe. But the universe was created from the small numbers like you gathering together to become one. Right now, what you have to do is to be able to feel and sense those numbers around you. Performing tasks with the numbers come next.]

Looking at the numbers, no, to be specific, the old man taught Cho Ryu Hyang the way to be able to be able to correctly look at the origins of the world.

The Faultless View of The World (正觀法)

This was the first skill Cho Ryu Hyang inherited from the old man.

* * *

“mm….”

Eu Hyun Guk frowned.

It was good to have the test done in public.

Make the questions on the spot, and make him solve it on the spot. There were no possibilities of cheating.

This was a bit troubling. The child just solved all the problems with ease. There were not even the slightest bit of hesitation in his writings.

King Shura Chapter 4 Illustration

“This is truly amazing.”

“Indeed.”

Was his name Cho Ryu Hyang? He was only 11.

Eu Hyun Guk couldn’t understand why the child stubbornly stuck to mathematics with that kind of talent.

While he did look down on math, he did not look down on its difficulty. But in daily life, wasn’t it enough to just be able to calculate living expenses? He didn’t know why one had to memorize all these complicated equations and such.

Isn’t it truly foolish?

Mathematicians devoted their lives on a pointless subject and wasted their time away.

This was what most of the population thought, and this was why many looked down on math.

“I’m done.”

Jo Gi Chun took up Cho Ryu Hyang’s answer sheet with his, and showed it to the teachers.

Their answer sheets matched perfectly.

All the students that were watching nodded their heads in shock.

It seemed that everyone except Cho Ryu Hyang and his acquaintances doubted his skills.

In all honesty, how could they believe it? The answers were answers, but at that solving speed?

“I don’t think there are any more complaints that can me made, no?”

When Jo Gi Chun said this, Eu Hyun Guk nodded with a unsatisfied expression. He turned to Cho Ryu Hyang after doing so.

“I hear you study math, and only math. Is this true?”

“It is.”

“Why do you study such a thing? With that kind of talent, you should be able to make it big in the subjects that I teach. Earning fame shouldn’t be too difficult if you studied some other skill instead.”

Cho Ryu Hyang had a dumb expression on his face for a while, but he immediately recomposed himself, and glanced at Jo Gi Chun.

To say such a thing right in front of someone who devoted himself to math all his life… Even if they didn’t like each other, this was too much,

However, Jo Gi Chun’s face did not change one bit. From the start, he wasn’t one to display his emotions outright.

But Cho Ryu Hyang was furious. He didn’t know why, but he was just furious.

Cho Ryu Hyang put on his calm face, and opened his mouth.

“There is someone I respect. I wish to follow the path he treaded.”

Eu Hyun Guk’s face turned ugly.

“Could it be that person studied mathematics?”

“Indeed.”

“I pity your talent. How foolish, how foolish!”

Eu Hyun Guk sighed in sorrow.

It really was appealing.

To think there was a genius like Nangong Yubin! He wished to take the boy and teach him everything he knew.

But since the boy himself said that he didn’t want it, he couldn’t even say anything. Indeed, one could take his cattle to a river, but it wasn’t possible to force the cattle to drink.

Cho Ryu Hyang bowed a little towards Eu Hyun Guk.

He really disliked this man. At a public area, in front of so many students, how could he insult a fellow teacher like that?

‘Was mathematics looked down upon this much?’

To think even a scholar like Eu Hyun Guk would act like this towards it. Cho Ryu Hyang smiled a bitter smile.

And he looked at Eu Hyun Guk’s forehead at a glance.

A faint number was stuck onto Eu Hyun Guk’s forehead.

“…….Thirty two.”

Cho Ryu Hyang whispered to himself.

Jo Gi Chun, who was standing next to Cho Ryu Hyang, heard what he said, but since he didn’t realize the significance of Cho Ryu Hyang’s words, didn’t do anything.

He later opened his mouth while looking at Cho Ryu Hyang.

“You can go rest now. You had to do something troublesome this time…”

“It’s okay.”

It was indeed troublesome, but it was worth it. There was no one who would doubt his mathematical skills now. Life would be a little more comfortable now.

Cho Ryu Hyang took a step back, and took a breather.

He inhaled slowly for a long time, and exhaled fast, and rapidly. Then he took a look at all the teacher’s faces. And lastly, he looked upon Jo Gi Chun and smiled a bit.

It was as expected.

“Seventy one.”

He turned back, and walked away.

A lone crane was bound to be bullied in a flock of crows.

The numbers that portrayed the worth of a human being.

Cho Ryu Hyang respected Jo Gi Chun even before he gained his powers. At first, Cho Ryu Hyang only respected him because of his title, but now, he respected the man’s whole self. The man’s passion for math didn’t decline even as he aged.

He even went through all this torture just to pass on his art to his students.

The fact that he was able to take on all the insults regarding math, and taught the students who didn’t know math well, was naturally admirable.

He didn’t know about other subjects, but regarding math, it became more and more profound as one got deeper into it. And Cho Ryu Hyang believed that his knowledge regarding math became more profound.

The knowledge the strange old man gave him truly did help him learn math faster, after all.

While Cho Ryu Hyang was thinking about this and that while he walked towards the dorm, Jo Gi Chun approached him from behind.

“Can you come find me some time later?”