Chapter 59

With a strong accent that carried the rich flavor of the black soil, Jin Xuntao chatted with his 'little fellow townsman' and easily bridged the gap between him and Yang Weiwei. At the same time, Jin Xuntao's witty remarks made the young girl laugh heartily. △￠

Of course, when he chatted with Yang Weiwei, they both used Mandarin, which the other classmates couldn't understand. They could only look on curiously, puzzled, but they saw the two of them chatting happily.

The young girl was still quite innocent, so when chatting with Jin Xuntao, she easily revealed her personal information, allowing Jin Xuntao to learn about her situation.

According to Yang Weiwei, her father was a minor county official in China, and her mother also had a public job in the county. The reason she was able to come to the United States for study was somewhat complicated.

Based on this, Jin Xuntao had a preliminary judgment.

Jin Xuntao had no interest in Yang Weiwei's family background. As for how she managed to come to the United States for study and enter a public high school, and how much effort her parents had put into it, Jin Xuntao didn't want to investigate.

After all, Jin Xuntao felt that investigating these things would be of no use.

"You are really interesting. Your mouth is full of authentic Northeastern Chinese dialect. I think even if you went to China to chat with someone, they might not know you are American."

Yang Weiwei was right, because Jin Xuntao's Northeastern accent was indeed very authentic.

The strong Northeastern 'Da Chazi' flavor would burst out as soon as he opened his mouth, allowing you to experience the way Northeastern 'people' speak.

Yang Weiwei wasn't surprised by this at all.

Because in China, there are indeed such cases, for example, a foreigner who stays in China for a long time can learn fluent local language.

If a foreigner stays in Xi'an, they will speak Xi'an dialect; if they stay in Chongqing, they can speak Sichuan dialect; even in Guangdong, a foreigner can speak Cantonese, which is a common occurrence.

So, Jin Xuntao learning Northeastern dialect from a master chef who came to the United States from Northeast China was a normal thing in Yang Weiwei's eyes.

At this moment, the teacher walked into the classroom, and the casual chat between Yang Weiwei and Jin Xuntao came to an end.

"You are quite interesting. If you have time and are willing to make friends, I can introduce you to some people. We are all Chinese students studying at Monica High School, and there are also some local Chinese Americans. What do you think?"

Jin Xuntao thought about it for a moment and then smiled and agreed.

"Sure, I can join your gatherings if I have time."

Getting to know the Chinese community at Monica High School and expanding his social circle was a good thing.

Now he was in 11th grade (sophomore year), and he clearly still had two more years of school ahead.

During these two years of high school, he wanted to make his life more colorful, and making more friends was a good choice.

Although Chinese international students and local Chinese American students are often perceived as bookworms, unsociable, and rigid, Jin Xuntao was very clear that this was mainly due to the cultural differences between the East and the West.

In fact, when Chinese international students or local Chinese American students gather, they are quite good at having fun.

Of course, Chinese international students and local Chinese American students should be viewed separately. Compared to the group of Chinese international students, local Chinese American students are more materialistic, so Jin Xuntao had no interest in the local Chinese American community.

Especially the local Chinese American community, most of whom are immigrants from Taiwan, so... well, you know.

Therefore, facing Yang Weiwei's kindness, Jin Xuntao did not refuse, and the time he took to decide was much shorter than when he considered Omar's invitation to join the fraternity.

After all, the nature of the two things was completely different.

In the afternoon, there were two classes, neither of which were academic subjects. The first class was a life skills practical course, where boys and girls were separated. Girls learned cooking skills, and boys learned car repair.

That's right, in American high school curricula, there are such life skills practical courses, and even in the timeline of Jin Xuntao's previous life, such courses existed in American high schools.

However, in recent years in Jin Xuntao's previous timeline, these courses have been canceled by more than 60% of schools, with only 40% of higher education institutions still retaining them. In this timeline, they have not been canceled.

There are some reasons why such courses are included in the curriculum, and Jin Xuntao understands some of them.

Because he was going to attend high school in this timeline, before he registered, he learned some information about high school education through the internet.

In the American higher education system of the parallel timeline, students are generally divided into two major groups, and because of these two groups, the school must offer such life skills courses.

One group of students is preparing to take the college entrance exam and continue their studies. The other group plans to enter the workforce after high school.

For the students preparing to take the college entrance exam, life skills courses are not as important, but for those planning to enter the workforce after high school, these courses are very practical.

In the original timeline, whenever Jin Xuntao and most Chinese people saw American TV shows and movies where American men could do many things, they thought these guys were amazing and almost all-round.

Now Jin Xuntao fully understands that his view of these people as 'all-round' was very wrong. In fact, they learned these skills from school, which is why they know so much and can repair cars, unclog drains, and cut wood...

And there is another key factor: in both the original timeline and this parallel timeline, hiring someone to do things is very expensive, meaning labor is costly.

So, this forces people to do many things themselves, which is a way to save money.

Jin Xuntao only gradually understood these principles after coming to this timeline and learning about American high school education.

In the past, he didn't understand these nuances.

Through the first class in the afternoon, Jin Xuntao understood why American men are so knowledgeable about cars. It turns out that the school teaches car repair, so how could they not know?

It's amazing that high school even includes an auto repair program!

Jin Xuntao felt a bit amused and helpless about this.

Of course, in public high schools, the curriculum is very broad, including these life skills and practical knowledge, mainly to give students a skill for the future and to strengthen their ability to stand on their own in society.

In private high schools, such courses do not exist.

For a simple reason: can the students who attend private high schools lack money?

Basically, the future paths of private high school students are already planned out, and they don't need to work as hard as public high school students, who will have to start from scratch and strive in society.

In short, private high schools teach cultural knowledge and focus on management, meaning these elite students will be the ones managing others in the future.

Public high school students learn knowledge and skills, and when they enter the workforce, they will be the ones doing specific tasks. It's a very simple principle.

These divisions made Jin Xuntao feel a bit harsh, but they are very realistic.

In a capitalist society, this is a normal phenomenon.

It's a world dominated by the rich.

That's why many public high school students, even if they have to take out loans from banks, still want to go to college, because they all want to change their fate and the fate of their future children, hoping to strive to become managers and social elites.

Jin Xuntao had little interest in the first class and just went through the motions with the other eight boys in the class.

His new friend Omar, however, took the course very seriously and was very enthusiastic during the practical sessions.

When the class ended, Jin Xuntao asked Omar why he was so enthusiastic, and Omar gave him an answer.

"By learning these skills, I can find a part-time job during my free time to earn some money."

Well, that's a reasonable reason.

The boys had car repair practice, while the girls had home cooking. According to Yang Weiwei, it was just simple salad making. Do they really need to teach this? Americans are truly incomprehensible.

As a Chinese girl, although she didn't do much housework at home, making a few simple dishes was not difficult for her.

But when she came to the United States, she found that many American classmates were even less capable than her, and even simple salad making needed to be taught.

Disdain, no explanation needed!

From the separate classes for boys and girls, it can be seen that they are very targeted. The girls' classes can be seen as home economics, preparing them to make delicious food when they become wives. The boys' classes, on the other hand, involve more physical and hands-on activities.

Yes, this is very reasonable, isn't it?

At least, that's how Jin Xuntao felt.

The first day of high school was almost over, and Jin Xuntao felt that he had gained something from his first day in the parallel timeline.

A chatty and timid black friend who wouldn't abandon him in a pinch, and a young Chinese international student classmate.

Although there was a small incident during lunch that made Jin Xuntao slightly disappointed with high school life, this unpleasant event in the afternoon did not completely shatter his expectations for high school life.

As long as he could ignore the occasional bullying incidents, to be honest, Jin Xuntao was quite satisfied with his first day of high school.

"Hey! Jin, the second class is PE. What sport do you want to choose? I'm on the football team. How about you join me? I think your physique is quite suitable for this sport."

After the first class ended, Omar, who didn't know anything, took Jin Xuntao to the locker room to change clothes and hoped that Jin Xuntao would join the football team with him.

Football, the sport where everyone wears protective gear and crashes into each other?

Jin Xuntao wasn't unfamiliar with this sport, but he wasn't very knowledgeable about it. He looked at Omar's slightly thin body and thought, 'You play football?'...

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