Chapter 4

Li Mu and Chen Wan took a taxi to the city hospital. On the way, Chen Wan kept apologizing to Li Mu and asking how his exam went.

"Pretty good."

The moment he thought about the exam, Li Mu smiled happily with a silly grin.

In his previous life, even if he hadn't been hit by a car, he wouldn't have been this confident about his English exam. He felt he had a good chance of getting into a key university this year.

Chen Wan sighed, feeling guilty. "I'm really sorry for causing such a big problem for your college entrance exam. If you didn't do well today and want to retake the exam, I'll cover all the expenses."

Li Mu stared at Chen Wan curiously and asked seriously, "Sister, what do you do? You look only about three or four years older than me, and you already have a private car."

In 2001, private cars were not very common, but those who owned them were definitely wealthy or influential.

Chen Wan blushed a bit at Li Mu's question.

"I'm still in school, starting my senior year. The car is my dad's. I just got my driver's license and wanted to practice during the summer. Today, I was driving fine until it suddenly started raining heavily. I was fiddling with the wipers, got flustered, and accidentally turned on the turn signal instead. I couldn't see clearly outside, and that's how I hit you..."

Chen Wan patted her chest, still feeling the aftereffects of the incident. "Fortunately, I instinctively hit the brakes first, otherwise, you would have..."

After hearing Chen Wan's explanation, Li Mu was speechless. Mistaking the turn signal for the wipers, Chen Wan could indeed be classified as a dangerous driver.

However, Li Mu didn't continue on this topic. He wanted to get to know Chen Wan and ideally build a friendship. So he asked, "I don't even know your name, Sister."

"My name is Chen Wan, Chen as in 'ear east,' and Wan as in 'graceful.'"

Li Mu smiled slightly. "Then I'll call you Sister Wan from now on."

"Sure!" Chen Wan smiled. "I'm twenty-one, so I'm probably three or four years older than you?"

"I'm eighteen, so you're three years older."

Chen Wan nodded and smiled. "If you did well this year, where do you plan to go to university?"

"Beijing," Li Mu answered almost without hesitation.

"Beijing..." Chen Wan seemed a bit disappointed. "Hai Zhou is only about 300 kilometers from Shanghai, but it's 1,000 kilometers to Beijing. Shanghai is much more convenient, and its development is no worse than Beijing's."

"Is distance a problem?"

"Isn't it?"

"Is it?"

Li Mu shook his head and smiled.

He couldn't say that he had lived in Beijing for eleven years in his previous life. He couldn't say that Beijing only had two subway lines now, but in fifteen years, that number would multiply tenfold, full of opportunities and wealth. He also couldn't say that half, or even more, of China's internet industry was concentrated in Beijing, including companies like Baidu, Sina, Sohu, NetEase, JD, 360, Youku, and Tudou, all in a place called Zhongguancun. He couldn't say that Beijing held a lifetime of struggle and many regrets from his previous life.

In comparison, Shanghai had almost no appeal to him. So, even if it was far, he wanted to go north.

Chen Wan was both helpless and curious, so she asked, "By the way, why did you tell me not to buy stocks when you got out of the car?"

Li Mu shook his head. "I must have been confused from the collision..."

At the hospital, Chen Wan took Li Mu directly to the emergency room, made a call, and a middle-aged doctor came running over. The doctor then took Li Mu through nearly ten different tests. Chen Wan accompanied him for each test, except for a few that were less convenient, where she waited outside.

When Li Mu came out after the brain CT, not only was Chen Wan waiting outside, but also his parents, who looked much younger but were now full of anxiety.

"Dad, Mom." Li Mu had been excited since his rebirth, almost ecstatic. But the moment he saw his parents, that ecstasy vanished like a receding tide, replaced by warmth, guilt, gratitude, and concern.

Li Mu quickly stepped forward and hugged his parents tightly, who had just stood up. He didn't cry or speak, just held them tightly.

His parents were both forty, his father exactly forty and his mother thirty-nine. They had been workers at the state-owned Xiling Coal Mine since the planned economy era. Although there was a wave of layoffs in the early 1990s, the coal industry remained relatively stable, and the layoffs were less severe than in textile and machinery factories. While his parents weren't wealthy, they had no major worries and looked much younger.

But everything changed with this car accident.

First, he was injured, causing his parents to worry. Then, he did poorly on his English exam, barely missing the first-tier university line. After that, his parents were laid off...

Thinking about how his parents had aged significantly in just a few years by the time he graduated, Li Mu vowed to prevent them from enduring those hardships again.

At that moment, his parents were asking him how he felt, and his mother was even shedding tears and sobbing.

Li Mu, with a slight choke in his voice, said, "Dad, Mom, I'm fine, don't worry."

The doctor then walked over and explained, "I've done many tests on Li Mu. He's basically fine, just some minor abrasions on his forehead and arm. Given that he was briefly unconscious at the time of the accident, I arranged for a brain CT. The results aren't in yet, but you don't need to worry. Based on my experience, it's unlikely to be a concussion."

Chen Wan also stepped forward, feeling very guilty. "Uncle, Aunt, this is all my fault. Please rest assured, I'll take full responsibility."

Li Mu's parents were reasonable people and both said it was fine as long as their child was safe.

After hearing this, Chen Wan felt a bit embarrassed.

Li Mu then laughed and said, "It's not a big deal. Let's not say such formal things. Once the brain CT results are out, if there's a problem, Sister Wan just needs to cover my medical expenses. If everything's fine, Sister Wan can treat us to a meal. I'm not trying to take advantage of you; it's just about time for dinner."

Li Mu's mother was amused by her son's words and laughed through her tears. Li Mu's father, however, looked at Li Mu with surprise. He was a bit taken aback by Li Mu's playful words, which made him feel that Li Mu seemed very eager to befriend this girl named Chen Wan.

Looking at Chen Wan, she was indeed very beautiful, with a good figure and a graceful demeanor. She was also very kind, but she seemed a bit older than his son...

But as the saying goes, a woman three years older is like a golden brick. Chen Wan looked to be about twenty-one or twenty-two, fitting that old saying perfectly...

Li Mu's father shook his head, thinking to himself, "What am I thinking? My son is only eighteen and hasn't even started university yet."

Chen Wan, however, didn't pick up on the many nuances in Li Mu's father's eyes. She simply said, "Of course! Let's go to Hai Zhou Hotel. I'll call and book a private room right now!"

Li Mu's father shook his head again, thinking, "What a straightforward girl. Compared to her, I realize today that my usually honest son is quite cunning."

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