Chapter 43

Saint Monica, adjacent to Los Angeles, is a city located on the west side of Los Angeles, close to the coastline. When most people mention Saint Monica, they do not consider it a separate city but rather a district of Los Angeles.

In fact, this is a misconception.

There are many small cities around Los Angeles, such as Saint Monica, Laguna, Beverly, and Compton, etc. Although outsiders may think they are all in the Los Angeles area, these cities are independent of Los Angeles.

Even places like Beverly have their own independent municipal governments and mayors.

It can be said that the cultural and political environment in the United States is quite different from that in China. Xian Tai only gradually understood this after living here for more than half a year.

At first, when he came to this timeline's United States, he was somewhat unaccustomed.

But since he had to survive here, Xian Tai could only slowly learn and understand, eventually adapting.

This was a gradual process of getting used to and accepting the new environment. Even immigrants had to go through this, let alone a穿越者 like Xian Tai.

Saint Monica has a population of 6 million, which is comparable to a medium-sized city in another timeline in China.

But in this timeline, Saint Monica, with a population of 6 million, is just a small city in the greater Los Angeles area of California.

Since there are over 6 million people living and working here, the municipal government needs to consider issues related to education, healthcare, and roads.

Therefore, in Saint Monica, there are dozens of public universities and even more private schools to address the educational needs of various families.

These private colleges, which are attended by the children of the wealthy, do not need to be mentioned; their educational quality is beyond doubt.

However, the tuition fees for private colleges are not affordable for ordinary families.

Most of the time, these private colleges admit either the children of local wealthy families or international students from abroad.

Local residents, on the other hand, choose public universities.

The university Xian Tai was preparing to join for the entrance test was a public institution.

'Saint Monica Public University' ranks among the top five in the Los Angeles area, with a strong faculty, making it a well-known public university. Many graduates from this university are admitted to famous universities after graduation.

Therefore, many ordinary families hope to send their children to this university.

From this perspective, Americans' attitude towards their children's education is not much different from that of the Chinese; parents all hope their children can attend good schools.

Of course, this is the case for American families in this timeline, but it is unclear about the original timeline.

After all, Xian Tai had been transported to this timeline's United States and had lived here for almost a year, whereas he had never been to the United States in the original timeline.

'Saint Monica University' has elementary, middle, and high school departments, essentially a comprehensive educational institution covering all three stages of education, with over 30,000 students, making it a large school in the entire Los Angeles area.

When Xian Tai initially told Dave not to find him a private college, the school that came to Dave's mind was Saint Monica University.

With Annie's instructions, her butler Nord provided the necessary assistance to Dave, and the matter of Xian Tai's enrollment was smoothly resolved in a short time.

If an ordinary person wanted to enroll temporarily, it would be extremely difficult, if not impossible.

But with Annie's assistance, it was not an issue.

Early in the morning, Xian Tai met Dave at the publishing house, then got into Dave's car and headed to Saint Monica University.

On the way, Dave gave Xian Tai a detailed introduction to the school, giving him some understanding.

According to Dave, although Saint Monica University is a public university, its educational quality is no worse than that of private colleges and is even higher in some aspects.

Of course, apart from the educational quality, there are many issues in public universities, such as uneven student quality, gang problems, and bullying among students.

These issues exist in almost all American universities and are difficult to resolve.

However, ignoring these issues, Saint Monica University is still a good school.

After all, it ranks among the top five in the Los Angeles area, which speaks volumes about its quality.

Therefore, Dave reminded Xian Tai that if he were to study at this school, he should be low-key and avoid associating with problematic students to prevent them from causing trouble.

Xian Tai agreed with this advice.

He was only continuing his education to solve his current problems and set a good example for his daughter in the future, not to date girls or hang out with a bunch of kids and party.

Besides, although he had the appearance of a 16-year-old, his soul was that of a 36-year-old man, and he genuinely felt a generation gap with those teenagers.

In Xian Tai's eyes, those under 20 were essentially kids.

Therefore, he took Dave's well-intentioned advice to heart.

He would not be high-profile at school and would not associate with delinquents. He would blend in quietly and cautiously, then complete his high school and college education smoothly.

As for gang issues and other problems, Xian Tai believed they would not affect him.

As long as he did not stand out, he would not attract malicious attention.

A 36-year-old man's soul would not fail to understand this basic principle.

Yes, and one more thing: he should not flaunt his wealth.

The school bullies love wealthy students, who are their primary targets for exploitation.

As long as he did not show off his wealth and remained low-key, he should be able to get through his high school life smoothly.

At least, that was what Xian Tai thought.

However, Xian Tai overlooked one point: how could someone like him not attract attention?

Quoting a line from a movie he had seen in his previous life, "He is like a firefly under the moon, so distinct and outstanding that he cannot be hidden." Therefore, Xian Tai's school life would definitely be 'colorful.'

Especially after traveling through the time tunnel and arriving in this timeline, his appearance had been 'optimized,' making him strikingly handsome.

His attractiveness to high school girls was terrifying.

Attracting girls' attention also indirectly attracted trouble.

Girls are synonymous with trouble, and this is not without reason...

---

Marti, a plump African American woman, 42 years old, looked like a friendly neighbor. However, she was indeed the principal of Saint Monica University, which was Xian Tai's first impression upon seeing her.

After arriving at the school with Dave, Dave directly took Xian Tai to meet the African American principal and introduced him.

Marti was always smiling, and her plump figure and round face made her smile even more approachable.

After some pleasantries, Dave got straight to the point, and Principal Marti did not waste time. She immediately brought out two test papers and asked Xian Tai to start answering them. To ensure fairness, she also called in a few other teachers to supervise.

The two test papers Marti brought out were one for 11th grade (sophomore) and one for 12th grade (senior), covering subjects such as mathematics, literature, chemistry, history, and biology.

This was to test Xian Tai's knowledge level.

According to the fabricated 16-year life trajectory in this timeline, Xian Tai had dropped out of school at the age of 16 (sophomore) and had been out of school for a year.

So, the question arose.

Should Xian Tai start from 11th grade (sophomore) or 12th grade (senior)?

Based on the actual situation, Xian Tai should repeat 11th grade.

However, to avoid wasting too much time in high school, Xian Tai wanted to directly join 12th grade, which posed a dilemma for the school.

Therefore, they decided to have him take both tests.

In fact, the school's concerns were unnecessary because, with Xian Tai's current intelligence, he could directly attend college without any issues.

So, how could two high school-level tests be difficult for him?

In front of Principal Marti and a few unfamiliar teachers, Xian Tai immediately started writing without hesitation.

It took him only an hour to complete both tests, which consisted of dozens of pages.

This speed shocked Principal Marti and the other teachers.

Principal Marti had the teachers take the test papers and leave her office to grade them quietly. After they left, she began chatting with Xian Tai to understand this 'young man.'

Throughout the process, Dave remained quiet and did not interfere.

Everything depended on Xian Tai.

Clearly, Xian Tai had anticipated this situation and was not at all nervous.

"What motivated you to return to school?"

After a brief thought, Principal Marti asked.

Xian Tai responded without hesitation, "For myself, to set a good example for others, and for my daughter."

Hearing this, the plump Principal Marti, who looked like a friendly neighbor, showed a hint of confusion in her eyes.

Clearly, she did not immediately understand the implications.

Therefore, Xian Tai provided a brief explanation...