Chapter 21

Xiu Cheng No. 2 High School, in Xiu Cheng, can hardly be considered a top school.

The best high school in Xiu Cheng is Xiu Cheng High School, followed by Xiu Cheng No. 1 High School, then Bohai University Affiliated High School, and then Xiu Cheng Railway High School...

Alright, Xiu Cheng No. 2 High School can barely rank fifth.

"Brother Hai! Brother Hai!" A fat boy, almost perfectly round, pedaled his Feige bicycle furiously, drenched in sweat as he dashed into the school gate of Xiu Cheng No. 2 High School.

"Er Pang, what's the rush?" Hu Wenhai pulled the brake, screeching to a stop behind the school gate.

"Brother Hai, I heard it!" The fat boy, whom Hu Wenhai called Er Pang, jumped off his bicycle and grabbed Hu Wenhai's handlebars.

"What did you hear?" Hu Wenhai was puzzled.

"You made a fighter model that's as real as the real thing!" Er Pang's eyes sparkled with excitement. "I heard it can fly as fast as a real fighter jet, and it even makes the same sound! The cockpit is just like a real plane! How is our relationship? You can't forget me when something good happens!"

Hu Wenhai couldn't help but laugh and cry at the same time. This fat boy's name is Zhou Shuo, and he lives up to his name with a very "bulky" figure. Like Hu Wenhai, he is also a child of the 501 Factory. His father is a small leader in the 501 Factory, a middle-level cadre in the factory.

However, in this era, whether middle or high-level, even the factory janitor and the factory manager's salary difference would not exceed fifty yuan, and the living standards were not much different. Zhou Shuo's family and Hu Wenhai's family both lived near the 501 Factory, and the two had been friends since childhood, forming a pretty good group of buddies.

Hu Wenhai spread his hands and said helplessly, "No chance, your dad didn't tell you about it. It's now a military project. Not to mention you, even if I want to fly it again, I have to submit a report in advance!"

"Brother Hai, you're too unfair! You didn't even think of your brother in such a good thing..."

Seeing Zhou Shuo's aggrieved look, Hu Wenhai was also at a loss. What he said was true. The current simulation aircraft project, due to involving many core data of the J-7, had already entered a confidential stage. Not to mention, the 501 Factory's technical department and the temporary runway were guarded by a company of the People's Liberation Army.

However, for the 501 Factory, which had been transferred to local management, how long had it been since such a grand scene? For all the employees of the 501 Factory, this was not a burden but an honor.

Hu Wenhai and Zhou Shuo chatted for a bit, then both locked their bicycles in the shed and walked towards the school's teaching building.

There was only a week left before the start of the school year, so this was Hu Wenhai's last summer return to school during his high school years. After more than a month of freedom, his classmates were clearly not yet ready to focus on their studies.

In the classroom, the front stage was empty, and the students below were exchanging their summer experiences. Zhou Shuo greeted Hu Wenhai and sat down at his seat, starting to reconnect with his classmates. Hu Wenhai, sitting a bit far away, didn't join him and sat down at his own seat.

An ordinary third-rate high school in an ordinary third-line city, of course, wouldn't have such a good learning environment as in TV dramas. What seventeen-year-olds don't cry, and the season of flowers and rain, were only levels seen in coastal cities in the 1990s.

In the early 1980s, Xiu Cheng No. 2 High School's teaching conditions were so poor that they couldn't even be described as satisfactory. This directly led to the average academic performance of the students at No. 2 High School being nothing special.

For Hu Wenhai, he had already picked up all the high school knowledge in a semester during his first year. With the thinking ability of an adult and the learning energy of a young person, plus his previous work always being in a technical position, it was not difficult for him to rank at the top of his class.

"Hey, Brother Hai, did you do the homework? Quick, help me out!" The person sitting behind Hu Wenhai patted his shoulder, looking anxious.

"Xia Boyang, you didn't do your homework again!" Hu Wenhai took out two thick homework books from his bag and threw them on the desk behind him, asking curiously, "Where did you go to steal electricity this summer, and didn't even do your homework?"

Xia Boyang said innocently, "Brother Hai, don't say that. I'm now focusing on preparing for the college entrance exam and can't afford to think about romance."

Speaking of which, Xia Boyang, Hu Wenhai, and Zhou Shuo formed a small circle, often discussing some private topics. Xia Boyang, tall and fair, looked quite good. As early as his first year, he had been "broken in" by a senior sister from Xiu Cheng Medical College. He later described it as feeling like an electric shock, earning him the nickname "Electricity Thief" among the three.

"Hey, by the way," Xia Boyang copied some homework and suddenly looked up, saying, "Did you hear? Our school apparently has a spot for a six-month exchange student in Los Angeles!"

"Oh? Los Angeles?" Hu Wenhai had spent the summer almost oblivious to the outside world, so he wouldn't know such gossip.

"That's Los Angeles!" Xia Boyang seemed excited, rubbing his hands together. "Where Xu Haifeng and Li Ning won gold medals! I really want to see it with my own eyes!"

Xia Boyang's words made Hu Wenhai suddenly remember that 1984 was the year of the Olympics. The 23rd Olympic Games held in Los Angeles that year saw shooting athlete Xu Haifeng and gymnastics prince Li Ning achieve China's first Olympic gold medal!

"Ah!" Hu Wenhai slapped his forehead in frustration, shaking his head. "How could I forget this? I didn't even watch their live matches!"

Hu Wenhai was truly regretful. Such a historic moment, and he had missed it so easily after being reborn!

"Hey, watching TV is nothing compared to going to the place where the Olympic champions once fought. If I could go to Los Angeles, America..."

"Finish your homework first! If you don't even do your summer homework, do you think the school will give you the only spot?"

Hu Wenhai poured cold water on Xia Boyang. This unique exchange student spot would obviously not fall to them. It would either go to the top student in the grade or a child of a leader.

"True." Xia Boyang smacked his lips and shook his head. "I was just thinking, is it wrong to even think about it?"

Hu Wenhai wasn't particularly interested. His family's conditions were average, better than ordinary workers' children but not part of the privileged class. As far as he knew, the school had at least one full bureau-level and two deputy bureau-level parents, and department-level and section-level parents were not uncommon.

Even if the teachers and principal of No. 2 High School were as impartial as Bao Qingtian, the opportunities would still be greater for outstanding student leaders or top students. Hu Wenhai, though academically good, didn't put all his energy into it, maintaining a top ten ranking in the grade and being free of any official duties. There was no way such a lucky opportunity would fall on him.

Besides, just a six-month exchange to Los Angeles to satisfy the superiority complex of foreigners? Hu Wenhai didn't have that masochistic nature.

He quickly dismissed the gossip from his mind. Just then, the classroom door opened, and a woman in her thirties, not quite forty, stood at the podium. She had a round face but was not fat, rather sexy and curvy. Her every move exuded a calm and composed demeanor, giving her a contradictory aura of mature allure and scholarly elegance, which was the most lethal image for teenage boys.

"Good morning, Teacher Xiao!"

"Teacher Xiao, are you not collecting homework today?"

"Teacher Xiao, when will school be over?"

...

Clap, clap—

Two sounds of the blackboard eraser hitting the podium silenced the classroom. Xiao Haidan, standing on the podium, nodded in satisfaction and pointed to a girl in the first two rows. "Feng Hongqi, you take the roll call."

Feng Hongqi, a somewhat frail girl, stood up. Despite her shy appearance, she was the class president of Xiu Cheng No. 2 High School, Grade 2, Class 2. Generally, a class president is either very organized or has excellent academic performance. Feng Hongqi spoke softly, lacking any authority—so, her academic performance was undoubtedly the best in the second grade of No. 2 High School.

"Huang Lu."

"Here."

"Lei Chunfang."

"Here."

...

Roll call was a necessary procedure. Xiao Haidan then spoke about various matters on the podium, urging the students to complete their summer homework on time. She then took out a set of test papers.

"You are about to be seniors, and the school has decided to conduct a baseline test before the start of the school year. So today we will take a test. Don't worry too much about it; the results won't determine anything, and the school won't use it for ranking. You still have a year to prepare. What matters is whether you can perform well in a year..."

Xiao Haidan said this, but Hu Wenhai didn't believe the school would prepare a test for no reason. A term popped into his mind: class placement test! Although it was the 1980s, and he hadn't heard of any school doing this, maybe No. 2 High School was planning to do it?

However, as the test papers were passed down row by row, when Hu Wenhai got his and glanced at it, he couldn't help but exclaim.

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