The Chinese millionaire fails the college entrance exam for the 27th time

But the 1950s always frustrated him not getting enough mark in “gaokao” to be able to integrate the prestigious University of Sichuan, the province in southwestern China where he lives.

Having failed the exam for the first time at the age of 16, this obstinate man, always in vain, re-took it nearly ten times, before he had to stop, having reached the minimum age (25).]time.

Once that limit was raised in 2001, Liang Shi thought he had another chance.

And this year, he was on his 27th try every time after months of “life as a monk”: waking up every day at dawn to spend 12 hours a day on textbooks, no alcohol, no distractions, not even mah jong his favorite game with his friends.

And late Friday night, like hundreds of thousands of high school students in his county, he scrambled to the Internet for his results. With a number of journalists now following him every year. Even before he saw his result, they understood from their disappointed looks that he had failed again.

This year’s result makes him doubt. “I thought that I would not score high enough to enter Sichuan University. But I did not expect that my score would not allow me to enter any university, even the lowest-ranked one.”

Until now, he had never been discouraged, as every year he would immediately announce that he would re-take the exam the following year.

“But if I really don’t see any improvement, I tell myself it might not be worth trying anymore. I’ve worked so hard every single day. I don’t know at the moment if I’ll try again next year,” he admitted with a tired look.

On the other hand, he finds it hard to imagine giving up. “If I ever stop coming for a gaocao, every cup of tea I drink for the rest of my life will taste like regret.”