Left with only a few thousand renminbi (S$1 is approximately RMB5.30) in his bank account, Zhang Xinyang, who became an applied mathematics PhD student at an elite university in China at the age of 16, said he does not intend to get a regular full-time job.

"I can afford not working my entire life. Not only can I rely on my parents, but also their parents and their parents' parents," he added.

Zhang made those comments in a video interview with Chinese media outlet Jiupai News.

In China, Zhang is well-known.

But is he a genius? Or foolhardy? Or just entitled?

It is difficult to pinpoint what drives him, when Zhang's history as a brainiac is considered.

For naysayers, he is nothing more than a petulant man-child who has excelled intellectually but not emotionally — where he is still developmentally stunted.

Took university entrance exam when he was only 10

Born in 1995, Zhang underwent an expedited education, skipping several grades throughout primary to high school.

He was only 10 years old when he took China's highly competitive university entrance examination.

Zhang was subsequently admitted to a university in Tianjin, a neighbouring city of China's capital, Beijing.

For this achievement, Zhang was regarded by Chinese media at the time as "the youngest undergraduate of China" and a "child prodigy".

Doesn't regard himself as a "child prodigy"

Despite the high praise from the media, Zhang did not regard himself as a "child prodigy".

In fact, during middle school, his scores were already amongst the lowest in his class, revealed Zhang.

After entering high school, Zhang's scores improved, and he even considered applying for two top-ranking universities in China: The Renmin University of China and The Minzu University of China.

However, in the end, he was ineligible for either school because his university entrance examination score turned out lower than expected.

"Unlikely" to enter highest-ranking universities with his intelligence

Even if he had never skipped any grades, Zhang believed he would not have been able to score well enough to enter China's highest-ranking universities, Peking University (PKU) and Tsinghua University (THU):

"It is quite unlikely for me to be admitted to PKU or THU. With my intelligence, the best I could do was to enter a 985 Project university. Were the situation not ideal, I might have even ended up in a youth detention centre."

For those wondering, the 985 Project was a higher education development programme launched by the Chinese government in 1998 to create world-class education institutions in the country.

Some of China's most elite universities, including PKU and THU, were selected for the project.

Demanded parents to buy a flat in Beijing

Besides his academic achievement, Zhang also made the headlines previously by demanding his parents to buy him a flat in Beijing.

Otherwise, he would not work on his master's thesis, Zhang told his parents.

In an earlier interview with Chinese media, Zhang shared that he made such a demand because his parents were the ones who wanted him to stay in Beijing the most.

He also told Jiupai News that before February 2011, the year he started his PhD programme, his family was able to afford a flat in Beijing as the flats weren't as expensive and there weren't restrictions on non-locals buying flats in the city:

"When I came to Beijing and Tianjin when I was 10 years old, I could feel the differences between me and the local kids strongly. The predominant majority of families in Beijing and Shanghai would purchase a flat for their kids when the latter were born or even before they were born. I felt I should [have] the same."

"If you don't even have a house in Beijing, what use would the PhD degree have?" asked Zhang.

Self-imposed spending allowance of S$1.89 million

In the end, Zhang's parents did not concede to his request and only rented him a "large flat" in Beijing during his PhD programme.

Zhang said he made a "bigger compromise" by continuing his studies. He graduated in 2019 after spending eight years in his PhD programme.

However, to Zhang, his parents' inability to fulfil his request meant that he could demand anything from his parents as long as the total amount fell below the current market price for a flat in Beijing:

"I am really quite happy with my life right now, and I don't have many desires. If I really need something, all I need to do is to call my dad.

My parents still owe me a flat in Beijing, which would have cost more than RMB10 million (S$1,895,050) by now. From this perspective, as long as my spending is below RMB10 million, I can do whatever I want."

Zhang's parents paying his rent

Zhang revealed that he currently makes a living by taking on ad-hoc projects with his friends.

After graduating from his PhD programme, he worked as a teacher at Ningxia Normal University before calling it quits in August 2021.

While Zhang was able to save around RMB50,000 (S$9,349) from his teaching job, he admitted that he had basically spent all of it.

As a result, Zhang's parents would transfer him RMB10,000 ($1,895.22) every two to three months without him asking.

They also pay for Zhang's rent, which amounts to RMB2,200 ($441.36) per month.

"No work, no stress"

While financial pressure forced him to adopt a frugal lifestyle, including ordering only vegetable dishes and eating expired food, Zhang said he did not want to get a regular full-time job:

"[Getting a regular full-time job] would be worse than my current situation. How would you achieve financial freedom by working for others? That would be an utter joke. For now, at least, I don't need to be at someone's disposal.

Time has changed, and no one will starve to death nowadays. If you just sit around and do nothing, you can live a happy life. However, if you start a business recklessly, you can easily lose everything. I am quite satisfied with my current situation. No job, no stress."

When asked what if his parents became reluctant to continue giving him money, Zhang responded: "It doesn't matter whether they are willing or not. Even if they are unwilling, they need to give me the money."

Top image via 九派新闻/Weibo