Chapter 3

The procedures for dropping out of school went unusually smoothly. Only when he saw the date on the certificate of withdrawal did Qin Feng realize that he had only been in high school for a month and a half this time around, and it had only been a week since the National Day holiday ended.

When Qin Feng went back to the classroom to get his backpack, the room was unusually quiet. It was clear that Xia Xiaolin had announced his withdrawal a few minutes before he returned. Under the watchful eyes of his classmates, Qin Feng calmly packed his textbooks, slung his backpack over his shoulder, and just as he was about to step out of the classroom, he took a step back, smiled, and loudly said to everyone, "Don't follow my example, everyone. Study hard!"

Though the words sounded sad on the surface, coming from Qin Feng, they somehow had a humorous tone. A few light laughs leaked out in the silent classroom, and from a corner, someone replied, "Take care, no need to see you off!"

With that, various farewells followed one after another, and the classroom suddenly became lively.

Qin Feng waved to everyone and then turned and left without any hesitation.

Exiting the teaching building, his father, Qin Jianguo, was waiting downstairs.

Seeing Qin Feng come out, Qin Jianguo's expression was serious. He frowned and said coolly, "Let's go."

Qin Feng didn't say a word and silently followed Qin Jianguo, walking out of the school gate together.

On the way home, Qin Jianguo didn't say a single word. Qin Feng understood Qin Jianguo's feelings very well. Although he hadn't been married or had children in his previous life, if he were to put himself in Qin Jianguo's shoes, he would also be quite conflicted if his son suddenly dropped out of school. However, despite this, Qin Feng had no intention of comforting Qin Jianguo, because with Qin Jianguo's temper, if he tried to comfort him now, Qin Feng couldn't guarantee that he wouldn't get beaten.

For a 30-year-old man to be beaten by a man in his early 40s was psychologically quite awkward.

After getting home, Qin Jianguo made lunch for Qin Feng and then immediately went back to the factory—had it not been for Qin Feng's matter today, Qin Jianguo would have eaten lunch at the factory as he had done for decades.

After his father left, Qin Feng calmly ate his first meal after being reborn.

The dish on the table was just a plate of salted fish, heavily seasoned, but it was undeniably very appetizing.

The afternoon after lunch was quite leisurely. Qin Feng turned on the bulky TV and watched an NBA game live. It was no surprise that CCTV was broadcasting a Rockets game, and Qin Feng actually watched it with great interest. After all, it had been over a decade, and watching a "rerun" was almost the same as watching a live broadcast.

For the entire afternoon, Qin Feng seemed to be aimlessly passing the time, but in fact, he was calming his emotions.

Once he had adjusted his mood, Qin Jianguo also came home from work.

"Dad," Qin Feng heard the door opening and walked out of his room, calling softly.

Qin Jianguo responded indifferently with a "hmm," showing no sign of forgiving Qin Feng. He busied himself with preparing dinner. Qin Feng didn't want to embarrass himself and stepped out of Qin Jianguo's line of sight. Half an hour later, Qin Jianguo came to find Qin Feng on his own.

"Come and eat," Qin Jianguo said sternly, pushing open the door to Qin Feng's room with a stern face.

Qin Feng obediently stood up and walked out.

On the dining table in the kitchen, a steaming bowl of rice was already placed. Qin Feng sat down at his usual spot, and just as he picked up his chopsticks, he heard Qin Jianguo say in a deep voice, "In a few days, Dad will find you a job at a hotel as an apprentice."

Qin Feng looked up at Qin Jianguo and said, "Dad, don't trouble others. I'll go out and find a job myself."

"What kind of job can you find at your age? Stay at home these few days and don't run around everywhere," Qin Jianguo said bluntly, clearly still seeing Qin Feng as a child who couldn't take care of himself.

Qin Feng wisely didn't argue with Qin Jianguo, lowered his head, and quietly ate his rice.

The first day of his rebirth passed very calmly.

Since there was no computer at home, Qin Feng went to bed early and woke up early for three consecutive days.

On the third evening, when Qin Jianguo came home from work, he seemed quite pleased.

From his expression, Qin Feng could roughly guess what had happened, but he didn't want to spoil the mood. It wasn't until after dinner that Qin Jianguo pulled Qin Feng to sit on the sofa, took a small stool, and sat opposite him, ready for a heart-to-heart talk.

"I've arranged a job for you at a hotel as an apprentice," Qin Jianguo said, looking at Qin Feng with a hopeful gleam in his eyes. "Since you're not going to school anymore, you should learn a skill to support yourself in the future."

"Which hotel?"

"A Qing Building."

Qin Feng nodded.

A Qing Building was an old-established hotel in Dongou City. Ten years later, there were four branches in Dongou City, making it a very strong brand.

However, despite this, Qin Feng was far from satisfied with Qin Jianguo's arrangement.

In Dongou City, for people like Qin Feng's family, there were only three paths in life. The best path was to finish university and find a proper job in a government agency, state-owned enterprise, or public institution. As long as one could secure a formal position, life would be considered complete. The second path was to do business, whether big or small, as long as one could get by. The last path was to learn a skill and work for others.

Qin Feng knew that given his current situation without a diploma or ID, working was inevitable. However, if he were to make working for others his life goal, he truly couldn't accept such a mindset.

If he really had to work, Qin Feng thought the breakfast shop less than 100 meters from his home, right across from the kindergarten, would be a good choice—business was booming, the salary wouldn't be too low; it was close to home, so he wouldn't have to worry about being late in the morning; and most importantly, he would only need to work in the morning, giving him plenty of time to do other things freely.

However, as good as this idea was, Qin Feng couldn't refuse Qin Jianguo at the moment.

After all, Qin Jianguo had been upset a few days ago, and if he were to upset him again, there was no doubt that Qin Feng would end up getting beaten.

After much deliberation, Qin Feng chose to compromise and nodded—actually, he had no choice but to compromise. As a minor, he had no better arrangement than this. If he wanted to start his own business, he would have to wait until he was 16, and he couldn't borrow capital from Qin Jianguo. Working and saving a little money was a choice he had to make.

That night, Qin Jianguo talked to Qin Feng for a long time, telling him to listen to others, work hard, and never be lazy.

The next morning, before dawn, Qin Jianguo woke Qin Feng up.

It was not yet 6 a.m. when Qin Feng was led by Qin Jianguo through the back door of A Qing Building into the kitchen.

The kitchen was brightly lit, and many people were already working. Qin Feng was brought to a middle-aged man in a chef's uniform, and Qin Jianguo said earnestly to the man, "Chef Guo, this is my son, Qin Feng. I'll leave him in your care. If he doesn't listen, you can hit him."

Qin Feng's lips twitched.

Chef Guo glanced at Qin Feng, a faint smile on his face, but his attitude was openly arrogant. As soon as Qin Jianguo finished speaking, Chef Guo dismissed him bluntly, "I'll take care of the kid. I'm busy here, so you can go to work now."

"Okay, okay, I'll go then," Qin Jianguo hurriedly replied. Before leaving, he pointed at Qin Feng and added, "Listen to him and don't cause trouble!"