A small commotion ensued, and frightened, Hu Yu stood up.

Lin Jingzhe gently turned her away from the corridor and patted her shoulder, motioning for her to sit down.

In the accompaniment of Li Yurong's wails, Du Kang said to Lin Jingzhe, "Don't worry, the admission spot will be yours—after all, it traditionally goes to the person with the best academic results."

Joy and grat.i.tude appeared in Hu Yu's eyes, but Lin Jingzhe slightly shook his head. "No, it's fine."

Du Kang was stunned, "What?"

He thought Lin Jingzhe was just being contrary, but the youth actually said, "I don't want to go to Qunnan University."

This answer was unexpected but at the same time, not surprising; Hu Yu, anxious because of Lin Jingzhe's refusal, calmed down after hearing it. Du Kang was also convinced—while Qunnan University might've been the most prestigious higher education inst.i.tution in Qunnan Province, on a national scale it wasn't really worth mentioning.

The young man managed to gain a connection with Elder Fang. Even if his academic performance wasn't outstanding, he shouldn't and wouldn't be confined to the small skies of Qunnan Province.

Not to mention the whole country, in Yan City alone there were not a few excellent universities!

But once Hu Yu thought about it more, the more she worried. Wasn't this too radical a move? Lin Jingzhe did well on the mock exam, but it didn't mean his college entrance exam results would be good too. Since there were many uncertainties, it was better to keep Qunnan University admission spot, just to be safe.

Lin Jingzhe knew what she was thinking. He firmly shook his head, looking at her.

However, since he refused, Du Kang was left in a bit of a quandary—what should be done about the admission quota? He got so furious today that he had to do at least something before he left.

He knew nothing about the students though. He glanced at the list of third-years, ranked according to grades and the mock exam's results brought by Vice-Princ.i.p.al Qu Yuan, and asked, "Then what are your suggestions, everyone? You can speak freely."

Lin Jingzhe stood next to him on the dais, leaning on the teacher's desk. At his words, he pointed at one of the names. "What about this person?"

The student he proposed was the one who, except for the second mock exam, had always ranked first—Yu Zhiliang.

The vice princ.i.p.al's eyes immediately lit up. "Yu Zhiliang? Yes, I think it's very appropriate."

The academic director, who loved to throw in his two cents in any matter, was also satisfied: "Indeed. Though his second mock exam's results were not as impressive as Lin Jingzhe's, he's been studying earnestly since the first day of high school and had earned his good grades with hard work. He's a quiet, serious child. I've heard his family's situation is not very good."

Lin Jingzhe thought it was rather self-evident. In the last life, Yu Zhiliang sat on the throne of the best student in school through the whole three years, which pretty much guaranteed he'd get the admission quota. If his family had a strong background, it would have been impossible for Jiang Run to rob him of it.

No one had any objections, so Du Kang officially appointed Yu Zhiliang the quota. Thanks to this, the feeling of suffocation in his chest, caused by his anger toward Tao Fangzheng and Li Yurong, lessened somewhat.

Before leaving, he once again expressed his regret to Hu Yu and enjoined the vice-princ.i.p.al to list her as an official teacher, which should've been done long ago, as soon as possible.

The vice-princ.i.p.al nodded all the while, along with the academic director. Though they were scolded, they felt as if the dark, heavy clouds in the sky had been blown away by a windstorm. They were desperately fighting to keep their faces from breaking out in a grin.

The tyrant, Tao Fangzheng was knocked down!

That big and deeply-rooted tree, which smothered them for many years, had finally been felled!

Since Du Kang personally ordered it, removing the princ.i.p.al from power was exceptionally quick. When the members of the inspection team arrived at the school's entrance, they had Tao Fangzheng with them. He had regained consciousness and was being escorted to the car by the two of them, stumbling heavily.

This was an explosive news! Almost all the teachers and students in school couldn't resist coming out to watch the proceedings from the windows. Everyone wore thrilled smiles on their faces—there wasn't a hint of sadness to be seen.

Du Kang looked on, poker-faced. He'd just gained a new understanding of Tao Fangzheng's popularity.

In the end, he never found the right timing to talk with Lin Jingzhe in private, and departed with some regret.

The students of No. 1 High School, however, especially those of the third-year Cla.s.s 5, were exhilarated like a flock of chickens finally let out of a dark, too-small coop.

On the way home, Deng Mai was so excited that he couldn't walk straight, and his swarthy, handsome face glowed. He chatted with the equally-excited Gao Sheng, and suddenly, the topic of their talk switched to Lin Jingzhe.

“Jingzhe, you really don't want to go to Qunnan University?” Deng Mai asked.

Gao Sheng replied, "He did say he wanted to go to college in Yan City, but I never expected he would be so determined that he'd give up the admission quota. That Yu Ziliang kid struck it lucky."

Lin Jingzhe did not answer; there were some things one couldn't say out loud. He wanted to go to Yan City, that was true, but in fact he had another, much more important reason to refuse—

In his last life, the person who got the school's guaranteed quota was Jiang Run. Judging from what Lin Jingzhe knew now, his cousin clearly didn't get it by honest means.

Now, this cheater became Lin Jingzhe. Having already lived through another lifetime, his perspective and experience couldn't be compared to that of ordinary teenagers. He even knew what would happen in the next decade or two. With this, at least for the moment, he had reversed his disastrous fate.

But the admission quota was never his, and he was not going to rob a child.

Lin Jingzhe tightened his grip on the strap of his school bag, watching the group of carefree, naive, unruly youths horse around under the blazing July sun, his gaze softer than usual. Well, let them play for today—the college entrance examination wasn't far away.

As he contemplated the boys and their futures, their cheerful laughter abruptly cut off. Lin Jingzhe came out of his thoughts and saw everyone had stopped and was warily watching the person who suddenly appeared in front of them.

Li Yurong's eyes were swollen from crying. She stepped out from behind a tree, the tears on her face "like raindrops on a pear blossom," and uttered weakly, "Lin Jingzhe…" No one had ever heard her use this humble, pitiful tone of voice before.

Gao Sheng and Deng Mai reacted immediately—they stepped forward, protecting Lin Jingzhe behind them.

Li Yurong was unable to even see him through this human wall, but as she thought of Tao Fangzheng's fate, she couldn't give up: she had to grab on to Lin Jingzhe, her last life-saving straw. She cried, "I know my past actions weren't right—I'm sorry, I apologize for everything I've done…"

Everyone gaped at her—what they were accustomed to was her arrogant disdain. Now, seeing her like this, their hearts filled with a sense of satisfaction. Gao Sheng recalled everything she'd done to Lin Jingzhe and opened his mouth, expression indignant.

Lin Jingzhe, however, patted him on the shoulder before he managed to say anything. "Don't bother. Come on, let's go."

Once he spoke, even Deng Mai, who loved to make trouble, was unconditionally obedient. Li Yurong pursued for a few steps, but in the end, she could only watch the youth's slender silhouette fade in the distance. Finally giving in to despair, she leaned feebly against a tree and cried until she was hoa.r.s.e.

The new English teacher, a beautiful woman whose looks were no less than those of Li Yurong, arrived soon. Add to that her smart, fas.h.i.+onable clothing, exquisite makeup, and long, dark brown curls, she easily turned heads. Her name was Qian Tian.

When Qu Yuan, the acting princ.i.p.al, introduced her in cla.s.s, quite a lot of the boys stared at her in a daze. During the first recess after she took up her duties, she looked for Hu Yu.

She clearly heard a lot of things, and had a skill of dealing with people; soon, she learned from Hu Yu the third-years' situation. Since there wasn't much time before the college entrance exam, she was under a lot of pressure. Then, once she looked through the textbooks and materials Li Yurong had been using, her forehead furrowed. "No, the scope of material is too narrow."

When Hu Yu heard that Qian Tian had graduated from one of the National Key Universities, she was very hopeful. At these words, her eyes lit up immediately. She pulled out her revised curriculum, which the school leaders.h.i.+p rejected but on which she'd never given up, and presented it diffidently. "Teacher Qian, what do you think of this?”

Once Qian Tian glanced through it, her expression turned serious. "Which teacher made this?" She asked.

Though Qian Tian was kind, Hu Yu was still nervous around such a forceful personality. Shrinking a bit, she whispered, "It was me…"

"Teacher Hu!" Qian Tian immediately grabbed her arm and got up. "I think it's necessary to implement this curriculum right away. Come on, let's find Princ.i.p.al Qu!"

Because of Li Yurong's shadow, Cla.s.s 5 had some resistance to the new English teacher, but Qian Tian's ability equaled her appearance. Her friendly demeanor and interesting cla.s.s, after only one, made the students accept her wholeheartedly.

Lin Jingzhe could finally step down from his role as a teacher. He was quite relieved, and his temper was much better. During recess, he even graciously allowed Deng Mai to gossip.

“Do you know how much money Princ.i.p.al Tao was found to have embezzled from the school?” Deng Mai asked. He kept them in suspense for a moment. "My dad said, at least a million—at least!"

Everyone in the cla.s.s cried out in shock, though most didn't believe it and accused Deng Mai of exaggerating. After all, for the high school students in that era, one million yuan was something as unimaginable as meeting aliens.

"It's true!" Tao Fangzheng had been investigated quickly, and Deng Mai's father apparently had been promoted, so he knew all the details. "My dad said, Princ.i.p.al Tao bought several apartments in the provincial capital and in Yan City, and he planned to send his daughter to study abroad. His lifestyle was also unusually rich…"

Lin Jingzhe was in a bit of a daze, ignoring the increasingly heated debate raging around him. This morning, he saw the news about the cultural relics donation in the newspapers: Liyun Morning News, Liyun Town Post, Qunnan Daily… It was front-page headlines in all of them.

The provincial propaganda department spared no effort to publicize this matter, and it indeed made quite an uproar. The newspaper photos showed the simple, crude bronzeware in a carefully arranged exhibition in the National Museum in Yan City, and the articles lavished praise on the not-willing-to-be-named donor, describing him as a living Lei Feng, whose selflessness and dedication to the country knew no bounds. The leaders of various work units made public speeches, commending the donor for his great contribution to recovering their lost cultural heritage. Lin Jingzhe, who had some knowledge of the future, felt a little dizzy looking at the speakers' familiar names.

The scale and intricacy of political struggles were far beyond his imagination. This was but a simple donation of cultural relics—they were rare and priceless, yes, but hadn't this gone way over the top?

He recalled the phone call he got from Elder Fang a few days ago. The old man seemed to know the matter would be exaggerated this way, and told him not to panic: no one would reveal his name and origins, and there would be people in Liyun Town responsible for ensuring his safety. As for the official commendation—it was real, and it would definitely be of benefit to him in the future.

Although Lin Jingzhe's horizons were widened by the experiences and ordeals of his previous life, he was still only an ordinary person. He knew the current spectacle was part of some strategy but was unable to see through to its heart.

In another place, thousands of miles away

The sound of propellers was deafening at this close of a distance. Yet, somebody struggled through the headache-inducing noise, attempting to read a newspaper.

"f.u.c.k me sideways!" The indomitable reader glanced through several pages, then closed the newspaper and stuffed it somewhere. He took off his headset and shouted to his companion, who was fastening the straps of his rig: "This is f.u.c.king sick! Some guy donated a few c.r.a.ppy antiques, and Zheng Cunzhi is nearly p.i.s.sing his legs from excitement. I'm surprised he didn't f.u.c.king sell the news to the d.a.m.n New York Times too!"

The man sitting next to him didn't even glance up as if he'd heard nothing, focusing all his attention on adjusting the belly band. He was remarkably good-looking. With his head lowered, his long, straight nose cast a considerable shadow on his cheek. His eyes were slightly narrowed, and his sharp gaze pierced through the long eyelashes. His hair, not exactly short, was curled. The curls, natural but looking like a work of an expensive hairstylist, danced in the wind, sticking to his face now and then.

"You can get in so many newspapers just by donating antiques! Hey, how about I swipe some of my old man's darlings and donate them? What do you say?" The young man kept on talking, and because it had to compete with the sound of the engines, his voice was very loud. Accompanied by this endless chatter, his curly-haired friend finished fastening all the straps, then finally opened his mouth.

His calm, powerful voice had a kind of unique metallic quality. It easily penetrated the noise: "What are you even angry about? He got in your way?"

For a second, his companion was stumped for words, then he rolled his eyes. "No, but that's not the point."

The man smiled. He glanced at the stack of newspapers his friend rested his b.u.t.t on and pulled one at random. After several seconds of staring at the black-and-white photo of bronzeware on the first page, he folded the newspaper neatly and put it in a storage compartment in the bulkhead.

He said, "Hu Shaofeng, just make your trade company tighten the belt. Don't do stupid things like Deng Kai."

His friend choked, and his expression became unnatural. Somewhat embarra.s.sed, he replied, "I haven't done anything yet, and it's not as if I want to do it. But Deng Kai earned nearly 100 million yuan last year and the year before last. He made money easier than snapping his fingers."

"Of all the people, you take Deng Kai as an example to follow? That's who you want your younger brother to emulate? Tell that to your dad, and he will break your legs. If you want to make quick money, there are other ways. Shen City Stock Exchange will open soon. In another month, I'll take you to Qunnan." The curly-haired man didn't even bat an eyelid. He stood up halfway and moved to the plane side door somebody had opened. He grabbed the door frame then looked over his shoulder to add, "Don't hang around Deng Kai. In a few days, he's going to find himself in hot water."

Then, before the other young man managed to give him even a puzzled look, he crouched and leaped out!

Startled, Hu Shaofeng jerked in shock, his face slightly deformed by a sudden blast of wind. He gathered his courage but still didn't dare look out. A second later, he recalled what his friend said before he jumped out and lost his temper.

"Screw you, Xiao Chi!" He closed his eyes and shouted at the endless blue sky outside. "What the h.e.l.l is wrong with Deng Kai now?! Can you f.u.c.king stop with these cryptic remarks?! If you start to speak, say it to the end, a.s.shole!"

Since Deng Kai was a dud, now he had to think of another way to make money.

Translator: Eques

Editors: Dark, Bet

Eques:

The chapter is divided in two parts because of its length.