Chapter 28

"Have anything big happened while I was away?" After greeting his friends, Li Xu asked as he sat down in his usual seat, which was the second to last row by the window.

"Big things at Auckland High? Graduation season is almost here, but it hasn't really arrived yet. Everything is pretty calm," Adam shrugged.

Then he leaned in a bit, with a mysterious smile, and lowered his voice to ask, "I heard you went to New York this time because the Hunt family's silver stock plummeted, and you made a lot of money from it?"

"Oh? The news has already spread?" Li Xu raised an eyebrow.

"Of course, I heard from my uncles that Wall Street has been discussing an 18-year-old who made a big move in the silver stock case," Adam mimicked the raised eyebrow, "I didn't hear it clearly, but I know it must be you."

"Alright," Li Xu shrugged, "Shorting silver, 5 million in capital, 10 times profit."

The explanation was brief, but it was enough for someone like Adam Pritzker to understand, so he whistled immediately, "Wow, if Lauren Hewlett finds out, he'll be green with envy."

"What, has he had any new ideas lately?" Li Xu asked curiously.

"Oh, of course. He doesn't want to go into politics anymore. He wants to be a banker. A few days ago, he was boasting that with his family's relationship with the Chase Manhattan board, he could easily make a few million once he gets in." Adam shrugged.

"Poor guy." Li Xu shrugged insincerely.

Americans aren't as timid as the Japanese. Even though he got into a fight on the first day of school and even brought in the parents, it only quieted down for a little over two weeks.

Moreover, this was high school, and they were all teenagers. There were plenty who were不服气 (unconvinced) and didn't like him.

What could he do in such a situation? If they wanted to argue, he'd argue. If they wanted to fight, he'd fight.

Of course, because the first fight didn't have a good impact, although there were a few more fights afterward, they were more like "sparring," such as the second fight with Adam.

Yeah, that guy who, after Li Xu's arrogant self-introduction, found him very annoying and brought three people to corner him behind the gym, only to get beaten up and left with a bruised face, was Adam Pritzker.

This guy was beaten up badly and wanted to regain his dignity, but because of the parent issue, he didn't dare to make a big move. After enduring it for three weeks, he saw someone challenging Li Xu to a fight and decided to do the same.

Of course, there was no question about it. At the time, he was only a little shorter than Li Xu, but in terms of physique and technique, he was completely overpowered. Li Xu's fighting skills, though rudimentary, were enough to deal with a 12-13 year old, and he directly locked him down on the ground.

But Adam was tough and refused to admit defeat. Li Xu let him be stubborn, repeatedly throwing him down until both of them were out of energy, sitting on the gym floor, panting heavily.

"Come... come on! Again... again!" At the time, Adam, leaning against the wall, with his school uniform and tie thrown far away, his shirt already soaked, was clearly unable to stand but still shouting loudly, as if he was enjoying the humiliation.

And Li Xu, who still had the strength to sit, clearly wasn't gay, gave him the middle finger, picked up his clothes, and left, leaving Adam behind, laughing loudly and very satisfied.

SB! That was Li Xu's thought at the time, but when the other party came to apologize to him, even though it had been over a month since the fight, he suddenly remembered and found the guy interesting.

Because Adam came to thank Li Xu for going easy on him.

Three days before he apologized, another fight happened at school, and both parties were beaten up badly. Although it wasn't reported to the police and the school handled it, it started to crack down more strictly on all violations.

After knowing this, Adam realized that Li Xu had indeed gone easy on him, especially during the first fight, so he came to apologize.

Alright, a straightforward guy, Li Xu forgave him generously. After that, their relationship gradually became more harmonious. After exchanging some information, they found out that Adam had been provoked and challenged, and they became friends.

However, not every enemy could become a friend, like the previously mentioned Lauren Hewlett, the child of the Hewlett-Packard Group's leader, who always looked down on Li Xu with a sense of superiority, and although they hadn't fought—perhaps out of fear—he always found opportunities to mock Li Xu to show his presence.

But after the school started to crack down more strictly on violations and Li Xu quickly earned his first million in 1974, fewer people dared to provoke him. There were many well-known families at Auckland High, but how many could earn a million by the age of 12? Most were still asking their parents for pocket money.

By the end of 1975, Li Xu had already hit his first 10 million, and no one dared to provoke him, whether it was a fight or a verbal spat. Just the phrase "If you have the guts, don't play the games I developed" was enough to make people speechless, and for these 15-16 year olds, it was quite a powerful statement.

"Speaking of which, after this deal, your net worth should be around 100 million, right?" Adam asked.

"How could that be? 10 times profit is only 50 million, and there's still tax to pay. But if Apple goes public by the end of the year, maybe it could reach that number," Li Xu said half-jokingly.

"Alright, watching you become a millionaire, a ten-millionaire, a hundred-millionaire... I feel like my life has been a waste!" Adam said with exaggerated tone.

There was no jealousy, only deep envy. As the saying goes, when you surpass them a little, they envy you; when you surpass them a lot, they admire you.

"You still have a long life ahead of you, Adam." Li Xu laughed it off.

"Hey, Eddie, you're back." At this moment, another person entered and greeted the professor, then sat down behind Adam.

This was also an Eurasian, but compared to Li Xu, he was much more reserved, with very obvious Asian characteristics.

"Yeah, how have the past few days been, Scott?" Li Xu asked with a smile, his tone more casual compared to Adam.

"Nothing much, Adam has been taking care of me," the other person sighed, "I'm just worrying about which university to go to."

"Isn't Mr. Fujita hoping you'll go to Stanford?" Li Xu raised an eyebrow.

"But I want to go to the East Coast, Yale, Harvard, Columbia, Cornell, any of them, even New York University. I want... I want to change my environment," Scott Fujita said, "I don't want to stay on the West Coast all the time."

"Good idea, I think with your grades, going to the East Coast won't be a problem." Li Xu patted his shoulder and then turned to Adam, "Speaking of which, Adam?"

"Stanford, business school, no choice." Adam shrugged, then asked, "What about you, Eddie? Didn't you say before..."

"Forget it." Li Xu waved his hand and sighed, "Even if I deliberately score zero on the SAT, my dad and grandpa will still kick me into Harvard."

"Ha, do you want a comforting hug?" Adam immediately spread his arms wide.

"Get lost!" Li Xu raised a finger.

"I think going to college isn't a big deal," Scott said carefully, "College is definitely easier than high school. As long as you have enough credits, graduation isn't a problem."

From elementary school, the pressure increased year by year, with the last two years of high school being the most intense. But once you enter college, it immediately relaxes. This is the case in most countries that value education.

However, in Europe and America, only private schools are like this. Public schools are places that promote happy education.

Uniforms, semi-closed group life, various activities to promote a sense of honor and responsibility, and heavy homework that can't be completed without staying up late—these processes that are common in the college entrance exams 20 years later in the Pacific region are also common in private schools on this side of the Pacific. Knowledge isn't something you can learn easily and happily.

Of course, American public schools at the time weren't as bad, and anti-intellectualism was just beginning to show signs but hadn't yet spread, because... well, it wasn't the right time yet.

In college, there weren't as many rules. Students from the lower classes who hoped to change their fate through college and those who wanted to learn more still studied hard. But for most well-known families, this was a place to make friends and build networks for future development, so they frequented various parties, making useful connections while enjoying themselves. As long as they had enough credits to graduate, that was enough.

If a well-known family member, after graduating from college, couldn't find any support, faced setbacks everywhere, couldn't get into a bank in finance, didn't know how to run for office in politics, or couldn't get funding in the film industry, they were either a fool or a fake well-known family.

True members of well-known families never start from scratch. Gates had his mother's help, Buffett had his parents' influence. Li Xu himself was a good example. Without his parents' and grandfather's support, no matter how many good ideas he had, he couldn't have achieved such a net worth at this age.

So Scott wasn't wrong. Going to college wasn't a big deal. As long as you kept your credits, you could graduate, and that was enough. His father and grandfather probably meant the same thing.

"Scott, why don't you come to Harvard with me?" Li Xu suddenly said, "Adam will definitely go to Stanford. If you come to Harvard, I'll have a familiar face."

"Can I?" Scott Fujita looked up, his eyes shining.

"Your grades are better than mine, so getting a recommendation letter shouldn't be hard." Li Xu smiled.

"Then... thank you, Eddie." Scott nodded seriously.

Seeing this, Li Xu nodded in his heart. If Adam Pritzker was his friend, then Scott Fujita was his follower. His father was a second-generation Japanese immigrant who married an American woman and, it was said, had lived in a concentration camp as a child, which made him even more devoted to America.

So, it seems that masochism is indeed a Japanese trait.

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