Mr. Fong has some pencils. If he ties them in bundles of 7, he will have 2 extra pencils. If he ties them in bundles of 8, he would be short of 3 pencils. What is the smallest possible number of pencils Mr. Fong has?
Multiples of 7: 7, 14, 21, 28, 35
Multiples of 7 (+2): 9, 16, 23, 30, 37
Multiples of 8: 8, 16, 24, 32, 40
Multiples of 8 (-3): 5, 13, 21, 29, 37
Smallest possible number of pencils that Mr. Fong has = 37
Answer(s): 37