Chapter 50

Li Mu called and booked a booth at the Hai Zhou Hotel. The family of three then took a taxi to the restaurant to celebrate.

On the way, Li Mu received a text message from Su Yingxue.

"Have you checked your scores?"

Li Mu replied, "Yes, 636. You have to treat me to a meal."

A moment later, he received a reply: "Really? That's great! How about tomorrow night? You can choose whatever you want to eat."

"Tomorrow night won't work, we have a family gathering."

"If tomorrow night won't work, let's do it another day."

"How many points did you score?"

"657."

"Congratulations! You're definitely going to Renmin University."

"Your major is flexible, so Renmin University should be no problem for you too."

Li Mu replied with a smile, "Haha, I hope so. If I get the admission letter, we'll be classmates for the next four years."

Su Yingxue also sent a :) smiley face: "I'm going to the driving school to learn theory tomorrow, don't forget."

"Okay, see you tomorrow!"

Seeing Li Mu playing with his phone in the passenger seat, Li Dad asked curiously, "Brat, who are you texting? You look so happy."

"Am I?" Li Mu realized he had been grinning, and his cheeks were even a bit sore.

Li Dad and Li Mom exchanged a smile. When it came to their child's romantic relationships, they were more open-minded than most parents. They wouldn't stifle Li Mu's nature, and they had even discussed privately that the best outcome would be for Li Mu to find a suitable partner in college and get married right after graduation.

For Li Dad, the order of getting married and starting a career followed the ancient advice: get married first, then start a career. Graduating at 22 would be the perfect age to get married.

Li Mu didn't explain his infatuated smile and sent a message to Zhao Kang. Zhao Kang scored 481, which was likely not enough for a third-tier university, but he could definitely go to a junior college.

Li Mu felt relieved.

At the hotel, a waiter led the family of three to the reserved booth. After ordering the dishes, Li Mu went to the front desk and booked a super large private room for the next evening.

Back at the booth, Li Mu said to his parents, "I've booked the private room. It's here, at 6 PM tomorrow, room 888. Mom, please tell Grandpa, Grandma, Uncle, and Aunt."

Li Dad raised an eyebrow, "888, that's quite vulgar."

Li Mu laughed, "Can't help it. The large private rooms all have numbers like that. There are over ten people from Grandpa and Grandma's side, so we need a bigger room to fit everyone."

Li Dad nodded, but a hint of discomfort still flashed across his face.

The waiter brought out a few cold dishes and an expensive bottle of genuine Maotai wine.

The waiter asked Li Mu if he wanted to open it. Li Mu waved his hand, but his father quickly said, "No, no, we can't drink such expensive wine. Let's have the local Hai Zhou Special instead!"

"We'll have this one," Li Mu said firmly.

The waiter immediately opened the bottle, and Li Dad felt a pang of pain.

Li Mu personally poured a glass of wine for his father and said meaningfully, "Dad, things are different now. Our path is very different from before. When the road is blocked, we have to find a different way."

Li Dad was taken aback for a moment, but seeing his son's determined gaze, he understood.

His son was encouraging him. His son knew that out of pride and inferiority, he didn't want to face his wife's extended family. But his son was right; things were different now. The fact that his son could earn money was a small matter, but the key was that his son scored 636, which meant he was likely going to Renmin University!

The eldest and youngest of the Xiao family could look down on him, but they couldn't look down on his family's future. Li Daoping had lived a mediocre and honest life, but he had a successful son, which was enough to make him stand tall in front of them!

...

Jin An Driving School's first year of the college entrance exam fast-track class was quite successful in terms of enrollment numbers.

In 2001, high school students generally didn't think about learning to drive, and most people who learned to drive were unemployed young men in their twenties, who were often very forward with young girls. Therefore, young girls didn't dare to come, and without young girls, young boys weren't attracted either.

However, the idea of a college entrance exam class solved this problem. Only recent high school graduates were allowed, which excluded the general public, and this attracted over a hundred high school graduates.

At around 9 AM, Li Mu and Zhao Kang went to the driving school to show their high school graduation certificates and register. When they were registering, Su Yingxue happened to arrive and greeted Li Mu. Li Mu then introduced Zhao Kang to Su Yingxue.

Although everyone was already divided into classes when they registered, they only found their respective coaches when they got into the cars. The two-day theory course was a large class for all 100+ students.

In 2001, getting a driver's license was not very formal or rigorous. The exam process didn't have specific subjects; it was roughly divided into a theory test, parking and moving, internal road test, and external road test. Li Mu had heard that all the exams were still done without electronic equipment, and passing was relatively easy.

The three of them found seats, and soon the large classroom was full. Su Yingxue, who had been the school beauty for three years at No. 1 High School, was still a unique attention-grabber among the 100+ students. After all, the majority of the students were male, and they made up about 80% of the classroom.

A group of boys kept looking at Su Yingxue from various directions, either secretly or boldly, making her feel somewhat uncomfortable. Li Mu, feeling the many glances passing by, whispered to Su Yingxue, "Sit closer to me."

Su Yingxue was taken aback for a moment but then moved closer to Li Mu, almost touching his arm.

Su Yingxue's action made the attention shift to Li Mu. Li Mu was also quite handsome and looked more mature and cool than his peers. Many people, mistaking her action as a sign of a relationship, assumed they were a couple.

This made many people back off.

"Thanks," Su Yingxue sighed in relief. No matter how good her mental fortitude, she didn't want to be stared at by so many people with strange looks.

Li Mu leaned closer and whispered in her ear, "Before you get your driver's license, you can use me as a shield anytime."

It took Su Yingxue a moment to understand what Li Mu meant, and her face turned red.

At this moment, Guo Yuhang arrived.

Over the past two days, Guo Yuhang had been thinking about two people: the beautiful Su Yingxue and the person he hated, Li Mu.

Entering the classroom, Guo Yuhang's eyes scanned the room. First, he saw Su Yingxue and was once again amazed by her beauty: This woman is so beautiful, I'd be willing to live ten years less if I could have her as my girlfriend!

Then he saw Li Mu, who was sitting next to Su Yingxue, taller, handsomer, and fairer than him.

Guo Yuhang's eyes turned cold. Li Mu, huh? I've been thinking about you. You'll see, your parents are about to be laid off from the mine. They haven't gone to work these past few days, but once they do, they'll receive the layoff notice. Then you'll regret it. We'll be in the same driving school for a long time!

The theory course was boring and dull. The two-hour morning session and the two-hour afternoon session were optional. After the morning session, Li Mu suggested that Su Yingxue and Zhao Kang go home and study on their own, as the theory test was simple and they could pass by just reviewing the question bank. There was no need to waste time here.

Both agreed that Li Mu's suggestion made sense. There was no point in just watching videos.

Moreover, Su Yingxue didn't particularly enjoy the atmosphere in the classroom.

Li Mu called a taxi, first dropping off Su Yingxue at home, and then preparing to go back to the neighborhood with Zhao Kang.

After Su Yingxue left, Zhao Kang asked Li Mu, "I saw Guo Yuhang just now. He looked at you with a strange expression. Do you have a conflict with him?"

Li Mu briefly explained what happened on the registration day.

"Damn," Zhao Kang said angrily. "That bastard is no good. If he dares to mess with you, I'll be the first to take care of him!"

Li Mu waved his hand, "Don't bother with him. It's not worth it. Focus on getting the Douban forum up and running. How's the water army going?"

"It's started," Zhao Kang said. "I found a few active users and made them moderators. They're helping me recruit more people. Now we have about a hundred members."

Li Mu nodded, "The water army is mostly an online team, so you need to find a way to keep them engaged. Build a proper army, not just a bunch of people you recruit when needed."

Zhao Kang said, "I have a rough plan."

Li Mu said, "Let's find a place to have lunch and talk about it."

Both of their parents were at work, so they found a small restaurant, ordered two dishes, and started talking while eating.

Zhao Kang explained his plan, "I want to give the power to recruit members to the team leaders. They will evaluate their subordinates, and I will do a final review. Once approved, their accounts will be set as official members. They will post and sign in daily in their respective groups, maintaining 20 points of activity and one hour of online time,