Li Hengzhong was incredibly shaken.
Indeed, in this city-wide joint exam, Linjiang No.1 Middle School had far outstripped the other schools. But he had never considered that this had anything to do with the Hanmen Training Class. Now that he thought about it, there were seventy students from Linjiang No.1 Middle School in the Hanmen Training Class.
The improvement in those seventy students' performance was almost single-handedly lifting the results of Linjiang No.1 Middle School significantly.
Li Hengzhong held a cigarette in his hand, his gaze fixed on the window outside. The cigarette between his fingers had burned down to the stub, yet he had no reaction at all.
"Principal Li, what do you mean?" Liu Dajun tentatively asked.
"Director Liu, you could go find him yourself," Li Hengzhong replied.
"That's not..." Liu Dajun glanced at Li Hengzhong awkwardly and said, "I'm not familiar with the person either. Besides, you're the public face of the Hanmen Training Class, I believe you must be very familiar with him, otherwise..."
"No!" Li Hengzhong quickly shook his head and said, "To be honest, I'm not really acquainted with that young man named Xiao Han."
"Ah?" A group of officials from the Education Bureau were shocked.
"It might be unbelievable when you hear this..." Li Hengzhong said with a bitter smile, recounting the events of the afternoon.
Liu Dajun and the others felt as if they were listening to a fantastical tale.
"So... Old Li, what do you mean?" Liu Dajun hastily asked.
"First off, trying to win him over definitely won't work," Li Hengzhong analyzed seriously, "Even if he's a staff teacher, how much does one earn a month? The guy is making one hundred thousand a month. Plus, the Hanmen Training Class already has one hundred students, but apparently, he's the only teacher. If we expand blindly, it might actually harm these one hundred students' studies. In my opinion, we might as well just watch and wait. Additionally, the Education Bureau should issue him an official certification."
"Right, right, right!" Liu Dajun nodded eagerly.
As the vice director of the Education Bureau and someone passionate about LJ city's educational endeavors, Liu Dajun believed that as long as Xiao Han's strength could improve LJ city's college entrance rate and guarantee the number of students accepted into Tsinghua University and Peking University, any matter would get the green light.
After returning, Liu Dajun immediately instructed his staff to issue a certification to the Hanmen Training Class.
Liu Dajun and the others discussed for a good while in Li Hengzhong's office before leaving.
After Liu Dajun and his party left, Li Hengzhong sat alone in the office, motionless. He couldn't fathom how one person, one podium, could improve so many students' performance. Just how capable was Xiao Han?
......
After school.
The school entrance was packed with people, and bursts of exclamations could be heard from the crowd.
Xiao Han, curious, made his way over. He saw Li Dapang straddling a brand-new motorcycle. It was an off-road bike, white with streaks of red and green, looking extremely cool and flashy.
"Wow, that's a really cool motorcycle."
"That bike is expensive, seems to cost over eight thousand. It's got a lot of power, they say it's even four-cylinder."
"I so want to get one too!"
Admiring voices came from the crowd of onlookers.
Li Dapang, with a cigarette stuck in his mouth, sat on the motorcycle, showing off an air of disdain. Li Dapang quickly noticed Xiao Han in the crowd and called out eagerly, "Xiao Han..."
"You got yourself such a cool motorcycle?" Xiao Han was surprised.
"Hehe..." Li Dapang said proudly, "Yeah, it cost over eight thousand three hundred. It's really fast when it gets going."
"Quite the piece," Xiao Han walked over and gently touched the motorcycle, which was new and still had its license plate, indeed very stylish and fitting the aesthetic of young people. It was much cooler than those Lingyang, Wuyang, Qianjiang motorcycles. This bike might not be a big brand, but what appealed to young people was coolness – the pursuit of speed and passion.
Just as Li Dapang was basking in glory, suddenly, a piercing voice rang out, "Li Dapang, what are you doing here!"
Li Dapang was startled and turned to look, only to find Liu Jinmei staring at him from a distance, her face dark with anger.
"Xiao Han, hurry, get on," Li Dapang urged as he jumped on.
Xiao Han, seeing the situation, quickly mounted the bike as well. Li Dapang started the ignition and took off. The roaring sound of the motorcycle seemed to be taunting Liu Jinmei.
"Damn you, don't run," Liu Jinmei shouted, "Come to my office!"
Li Dapang couldn't be bothered with Liu Jinmei, and in a puff of smoke, he was gone without a trace. The monster that could reach a top speed of up to two hundred miles per hour disappeared in seconds.
Li Dapang sped away with Xiao Han in tow.
"Haha... That old witch actually thinks she can catch up with me!" Li Dapang exclaimed excitedly, "No chance!"
Xiao Han sat behind on the motorcycle, letting the warm wind hit his body, his eyes closed, savoring this exhilarating life, this rebel lifestyle. Li Dapang rode the motorcycle to Beihu Park in Wangjiang District.
After discarding the motorcycle by the roadside, the two stretched out on the grass by the lake.
"Xiao Han, how about it, isn't it thrilling?" Li Dapang asked.
"Awesome!" Xiao Han nodded.
"Why don't you buy one too?" Li Dapang hurriedly suggested.
"Forget it," Xiao Han shook his head and said, "Our business is just starting; this is when we need to spend money. I can't waste it."
"Er…" Li Dapang was taken aback; he looked guilty and said, "Xiao Han, then I…"
"You should have it," Xiao Han consoled him. "After all, you need to travel a lot, and your home is also so far from the school. It's not convenient without a motorcycle."
"Hehe…" Li Dapang chuckled and said, "Xiao Han, you are my good brother!"
"Your score in this simulation test is still 301 points though, no one's competing with you for the last place anymore," Xiao Han joked.
"Seeing you take first place, I'm fucking happier than anyone!" Li Dapang excitedly sat up, looking at Xiao Han with a face full of enthusiasm and said, "You didn't see Jiang Xiaoliang's expression. When Liu Jinmei announced your score, his eyeballs nearly fell out, hahaha…"
Xiao Han chuckled; he didn't seem to take these things to heart.
This young man seemed to have put all his efforts not into the school or his studies, but into his future life. This eighteen-year-old had his sights set on the future, on his own life.
While everyone in his grade was striving to improve their scores, this handsome and stylish young man was already contemplating how to create his own business. How could he use his first pot of gold earned in life to amass even greater wealth?
"Our training class is a big success, Xiao Han!" Li Dapang said excitedly, "Have you thought about expanding enrollment or opening branches?"
"Why do you say that?" Xiao Han asked curiously.
"These past few days, a lot of people have been queuing up outside the training class to sign up!" Li Dapang said helplessly, "It's just a pity we have a limit on the number of students, and it seems no one's dropping out this month. What to do…"
"It's fine, we must ensure teaching quality," Xiao Han replied, "We absolutely can't seek a dead end just to make money. Neither expanding enrollment nor opening branches is an option. We'll stick to the standard of one hundred people, one turnip, one hole. As one leaves, we'll recruit another."
"No one wants to leave," Li Dapang said with a wry smile.
"Then we'll maintain the original team," replied Xiao Han.
"Okay!" Li Dapang nodded.
After chatting for a while, Li Dapang suddenly asked, "Xiao Han, what do you think about Yang Xiaoyan?"
"Her?" Xiao Han was stunned and asked, "What about her?"
"Nothing much." Li Dapang's face turned red, and he smiled sheepishly.
"You… you're not falling for her, are you?" Xiao Han teased with a sly smile.
"Hey, don't be absurd," Li Dapang quickly shook his head and said, "I was just asking. Do you think she'll agree if I pursue her?"
"Haha…" Xiao Han couldn't help but laugh, "If you like her, just go and chase her. I should've known; you got yourself this cool motorcycle, all for the sake of impressing girls."
"That's not it," Li Dapang became anxious.
"Actually, it's nothing, if you like her, then boldly go after her," Xiao Han encouraged, "Even if you fail, so what? Who hasn't had a first love?"
"Good brother, your words are enough for me," Li Dapang said, suddenly elated.
......
Chen Jun was a member of the Hanmen Training Class and a student of Linjiang No.1 Middle School's senior class one. He had average grades, but after a month of classes at the Hanmen Training Class, Chen Jun's scores had significantly improved, especially in the sciences. In this citywide joint exam, he scored a good 540 points.
During the first mock exam, he had only scored 490 points, which at best would have granted him a second-tier university acceptance. However, this improvement gave Chen Jun hope for a first-tier university and his family saw hope as well.
"Mom, I'm back," Chen Jun entered his home excitedly after school.
Once inside, however, he felt something was off. The house was eerily quiet. His father sat on the worn sofa smoking, while his mother sat alone on a small stool. Both of them had somber expressions.
Chen Jun slowed his pace, feeling nervous. Had he done something wrong?
"Dad, Mom, I…" Chen Jun walked in.
"Xiao Jun, sit down," his mother looked up at Chen Jun, her eyes slightly reddened.
"Mom, what's going on?" Chen Jun anxiously asked.
"It's nothing," his mother shook her head, dabbing at her tears with a handkerchief.
Chen Jun's father then spoke up, "Xiao Jun, aren't you due to pay the tuition for the Hanmen Training Class the day after tomorrow?"
"Yes!" Chen Jun nodded and replied, "I'll pay it during class."
"Good!" his father gritted his teeth and pulled out a thousand yuan from his pocket, handing it to Chen Jun, "Take this and pay the tuition fee the day after tomorrow."
"Have you gone mad?!" his mother looked at Chen Jun's father incredulously and said, "You want to lose your job?"