Chapter 49

Lin Beichen covered his head, trying hard to put on a serious expression, and said, "Alright, then may I ask, what exactly are we supposed to collaborate on?"

Ding San Shi felt his high blood pressure rising.

Interacting with this wastrel could make his blood vessels burst at any moment.

But thinking about the repeated instructions from the grade head Chu Hen in private, thinking about his expectations for Lin Beichen, and thinking about the glory of the Third Academy...

Calm down.

He rubbed his face hard, trying to calm himself down.

"Actually, the purpose of the camp organizing this bonfire party is not just to feed everyone or to let everyone relax. It is to allow the students to use this opportunity to get to know each other, communicate, and ideally form alliances and collaborate to maximize their benefits in the upcoming ten-day competition."

"The preliminary selection is not about individual combat prowess."

"It is a test of your wisdom, leadership, and adaptability."

"It is a test of your ability to live and adapt in a group."

"Every move you make, every word you say, is under the watchful eyes of the three major figures in the camp. They see it and remember it."

Ding San Shi explained patiently.

Lin Beichen wiped his mouth with a towel: "So, you mean the real competition has already started from the moment the party began?"

Ding San Shi shook his head: "No, to be precise, it started from the moment you stepped into the camp."

"I see, so the bonfire party isn't just for a farewell meal, but it's a public opportunity for everyone to find partners, form temporary teams, and secretly collude, act in concert, and use each other... Is that it?"

Lin Beichen said as if he had just realized something.

Ding San Shi was at a loss.

What farewell meal?

At first, what he said made sense, but why did it get so strange later?

But the meaning is roughly correct.

He gritted his teeth: "Sort of."

Lin Beichen looked around.

No wonder Mu Xinyue, Wu Xiaofang, and Yue Hongxiang were nowhere to be seen from the beginning.

"So, you mean Mu Lücha and Wu Tiangou have already gone to collude with geniuses from other academies?"

Lin Beichen asked.

Ding San Shi was even more at a loss.

The way he referred to his classmates... too... brutal.

"Of course not," he said irritably. "Do you think everyone is as hopeless as you?"

Lin Beichen took a sip of fruit wine and said, "That's not right. Generally speaking, students from the same school should unite and bring glory to their school. Why would they go collude with students from other schools? Why don't they come and collude with me?"

Why don't they collude with you? Don't you have a clue?

Ding San Shi was speechless.

"Actually, it's the opposite," Ding San Shi said. "Students from the same school are definitely competitors within the school, with short-term conflicts of interest that are hard to reconcile. It's difficult to fully cooperate. Historically, students have preferred to collaborate with those from other schools, exchange information, and maximize their benefits while maintaining their basic position in their own school."

"Moreover, any student who can make it to the main selection is bringing glory to their school. Why wouldn't anyone want to do something that can suppress their school's competitors and gain fame?"

Lin Beichen pondered.

That's true.

It's easier to betray acquaintances than strangers.

Shrewd merchants always prefer to take advantage of their acquaintances, and there's a reason for that.

It involves the wisdom of dealing with people, traveling, making money, and even committing crimes.

"But the geniuses from the National Royal Junior Academy shouldn't be interested in such alliances, right?" Lin Beichen continued. "They should have no doubt about entering the competition. If they form a group, other academies won't stand a chance."

Ding San Shi shook his head: "Not exactly. In this list of a hundred, there is only one genius who is completely above such struggles and is guaranteed to win, standing out like a crane among chickens. No one can threaten him. As for the others... remember, there is competition at every level. Ordinary students compete with ordinary students, and geniuses compete with geniuses. The competition among the geniuses from the National Royal Junior Academy is even more intense. Think about it, if they can eliminate their competitors in the preliminary selection, why wouldn't they?"

Lin Beichen realized that his previous thoughts were indeed too simplistic.

Competition is everywhere.

This training camp is not just a simple preliminary selection.

It's more like a brutal survival game filled with scheming and intrigue.

Oh.

Isn't this just cultivating schemers?

Lin Beichen thought to himself.

The educational department of Yunmeng City's approach is a bit like raising a swarm of insects.

But then again...

The Northern Empire's emphasis on grassroots education is clearly not just to cultivate brute force, but to produce more talented, strong, and flexible leaders with comprehensive qualities.

From this perspective, the model of the training camp's preliminary selection is indeed well thought out.

Lin Beichen nodded and then chuckled, "Right, hehe, the truly outstanding genius you mentioned earlier, wouldn't that be me?"

Ding San Shi said, "What are you dreaming about? Of course not. I'm talking about Lin Chen, the top-ranked genius on the individual leaderboard."

"Alright."

Lin Beichen said unhappily, "I understand."

Then he turned around and started to indulge in the food, completely engrossed.

Ding San Shi waited for a moment and couldn't help but ask, "Then what?"

Lin Beichen said, "There's nothing else."

"Then why did I tell you all this... Am I talking to a cow?"

Ding San Shi suppressed his almost explosive anger.

"You still haven't understood one thing, Instructor Ding. Talking to me like this won't work," Lin Beichen said. "The main issue right now is that my reputation is terrible, and I'm infamous. Forming alliances won't help. Who would want to team up with a scoundrel?"

Ding San Shi was speechless.

This makes so much sense.

He was at a loss for words.

"You should at least try," Ding San Shi's tone clearly weakened.

Lin Beichen said while eating, "I am preparing, you know? I need to eat and drink to my heart's content to be in top form. Only then can I go and form alliances... I mean, collaborate. Believe me, once I'm full, I'll take down Lin Chen, the top-ranked genius, hehe."

Ding San Shi said angrily, "If you can form an alliance with Lin Chen, I'll eat this table."

"Damn, Instructor, are you so disrespectful?" Lin Beichen countered, "Don't forget, I'm a scoundrel, and a particularly handsome one at that. I have a knack for dealing with naive young girls..."

Before he could finish, a mocking voice said, "I have never seen such a shameless person."

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Thank you, Fang Yiyi, for your support. Also, I'm heading to Beijing tomorrow. Are there any Beijing-based readers who want to meet up? I'll be there until around the 21st.