Chapter 24: The Beginning of a Political Life

Li Yi first rented a place to live outside the school, handed over the 100,000 yuan to Fang Fang, and asked her to buy some clothes and daily necessities, and to check out new housing developments.

Before he knew it, it was Monday. Li Yi said goodbye to Fang Fang and strolled down the tree-lined avenue toward the school.

As soon as he entered the classroom, the counselor Wang Haibo called him, "Li Yi, go to the principal's office. Principal Qian Ning wants to see you."

Everyone in the class looked at Li Yi with surprise, as if they were seeing something unusual.

Normally, ordinary students have nothing to do with the principal's office, no wonder the classmates thought something big had happened to Li Yi.

Even Wang Haibo was surprised and asked him, "Li Yi, did you do anything wrong? Why did Principal Qian suddenly call you?"

Li Yi shook his head and said, "Teacher Wang, I just got out of the hospital, and my leg isn't fully recovered yet. How could I have done anything wrong?"

"Then go. Be careful what you say. If it doesn't work out, just stall and come back to discuss it with me." Wang Haibo patted his shoulder.

"Thank you, Teacher Wang. By the way, thank you for lending me the money for my hospital stay. Rest assured, I will pay you back as soon as possible."

"Don't mention it. Go quickly, Principal Qian is waiting for you."

Li Yi nodded and, as he looked up, caught Guo Xiaoling's anxious gaze. But as soon as their eyes met, she turned away.

Li Yi walked to the principal's office,整理了一下思绪，确保那个死鬼李毅没有给他惹什么大麻烦，就抬手敲门。敲门的瞬间，李毅忽然想到，会不会是有人举报了他和柳若思开房的事情？不会吧，这种事情，在大学校园里，早就不是什么公开的秘密，只怕还惊动不了校长大人吧？

"Come in!" a voice, both aged and kind, came from inside.

Li Yi felt a bit relieved, suppressing his doubts, he pushed the door open and walked in.

The office contained only Principal Qian Ning. He was in his fifties, with gray temples and a pair of large black-rimmed glasses, exuding a scholarly air.

Principal Qian Ning, sitting behind a large desk, put down his pen when he saw Li Yi enter and pointed to a sofa beside him, "You must be Li Yi? Please sit down."

"I am Li Yi. I don't know what the principal wants to discuss with me?" Li Yi stood, speaking with respect.

"Ha ha, to give advice, I dare not! The younger generation surpasses the older! I never thought that among my students, there would be a dragon like you, a tiger like you! Li Yi, you have really surprised me!" The principal walked out from behind his desk, sat on the sofa, and gestured for Li Yi to sit down.

Li Yi thanked him and sat down.

"Principal, what do you mean?"

"You don't need to be modest. You don't need to hide it from me. Your story is already in the Southern Daily!"

Li Yi was suddenly enlightened.

Fortunately, the Southern Daily is not a mass newspaper. Ordinary students and people generally don't read such a political mouthpiece. Otherwise, Li Yi would have become a celebrity on campus. Even so, it still caused a huge stir among the school leadership and some insiders.

"I was just lucky, a lucky guess. Ha ha, actually, my abilities are quite limited, and I need to study more."

"Even a lucky guess can make a billionaire? I wish I could have a lucky guess too!" Qian Ning laughed heartily, "The phone in your dormitory has been ringing off the hook! But they couldn't find you. They found me, and in the past few days, I've received hundreds of calls, my hand is even sore! There were calls from the provincial foreign affairs office, foreign consulates, provincial government offices, the Southern Provincial Party Committee and government, and many more from steel plants."

"What did they ask you?"

"They asked a lot of questions. Your background, your bottom line! And a few special calls were to ask me to do ideological work with you, to consider the bigger picture and prioritize national interests."

"Oh!" Li Yi responded lightly, thinking this was the real topic. Although the blueprint had been taken by the Liugang people, many of the data and information were still in his mind, and they couldn't be stolen. The Liugang people would eventually come to him.

Qian Ning looked at him, secretly admiring the young man's composure, "Well, I called you here today to ask if you, such an outstanding student, have any plans?"

Outstanding student? When did Li Yi become an outstanding student? In his years at university, he hadn't even become a class officer!

How dramatic!

Li Yi knew that the Liugang or government had approached the school to have them work on him and make demands. A thought popped into his mind, and he sat up straight, speaking solemnly, "Principal, I want to join the Party! I believe that besides a natural life, a person also has a political life. Joining the Party is a show of support and faith in the Party, and it is the beginning of a person's political life."

"I agree," Qian Ning replied without hesitation, "Young man, you have a bright future."

The principal looked at him meaningfully, stood up, and handed him a thick stack of documents and a few books, "Take some time to read these; they are essential. Fill out this form, and write my name as the introducer! After passing the exam, you will become a probationary Party member. After a year of observation, you will become a full member of the Party."

Li Yi quickly filled out the form, feeling a bit excited at this moment. A mysterious path seemed to be opening up for him.

After filling out the form, Li Yi smiled, "Principal, I have one more request. I want to work in the government."

Qian Ning was happy to have dealt with Li Yi with just a Party membership slot, but he hesitated when he heard this, "Government? That's quite difficult to enter. I heard that the staffing is very tight this year, and many units are overstaffed and don't accept new graduates. Actually, for someone with your talent, is it necessary to work for the state?" In other words, you have so much money that you can't even spend it all, and you still want to work for a few hundred dollars a month?

"That's my only request," Li Yi said firmly, "My ideal is to enter politics! It has nothing to do with money."

"Alright! I'll help you," Qian Ning finally nodded.

"I request to be assigned for an internship as soon as possible," Li Yi made another request.

Qian Ning chuckled, "It seems you're a real bureaucrat!"

Li Yi smiled without comment. He had many things to do, but to achieve them, he needed a high political status. He didn't want to waste his precious time on a daily routine.

Seeing that the principal had agreed, he felt relieved and said, "Principal, that's all. Notify the people from Liugang to send technicians, and I will instruct them!"

The principal was taken aback, "So, you knew everything?" He gave a thumbs up.

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