Rebirth 08: Equipment God

Chapter 151 What are you so proud of if you only have a junior college degree?
As night falls, the intersection at the main entrance of Utopia becomes lively again, with countless parents picking up and dropping off their children.

Since this scene has become the norm, police officers from the nearby police station often come here regularly. They don't need to do anything; they just park their police cars on the side of the road and maintain order with their presence, making passing vehicles drive slower and more carefully.

However, another group of parents went against the tide today, entering Utopia with expressions of curiosity or joy.

They are the parents of the "classmate employees" of Utopia.

Excluding those families who didn't need to consider volunteering, a total of 9 families came.

Incidentally, the person who came to Li Dongdong's house was her own father, the county magistrate.

No matter how busy I am with work or how many social engagements I have, my only son's future is still the most important.

This was the second time Zhai Da had met County Head Li. The first time was at his home, where County Head Li, accompanied by the Director of the Education Bureau and the Deputy County Head, came to visit and take photos. Oh no, I mean, to offer his condolences and promise that the county would reward the two top scorers with 39999 each.

It's not a lot, and the strangeness of the numbers suggests there's a story behind it.

This money is public funds, so there's no need to be so stingy. But Dongyang County is, after all, a poor county. It's a great joy that the county produced a top scorer in the college entrance examination, but we can't make it too extravagant, as if we're just pretending to be poor all the time.

It's clear that they did as much as possible without violating any taboos.

See, it's not over 40,000, is it? We're a poverty-stricken county, we won't do anything reckless!

However, County Chief Li stated at the time that they would actively contact local businesses to encourage them to contribute more voluntarily.

The day went relatively smoothly, the only regret being that Zhai Da refused the arrangement to ride a donkey through the streets.

Wearing a red flower tied to his neck and riding a donkey through the streets of Dongyang was utterly humiliating. While top scholars from other regions might have been given similar arrangements, it's likely they were forced into it.
The title of "impoverished county" came into play again, so County Chief Li stopped trying to dissuade him.

"Xiao Zhai, we meet again."

"Hello, County Chief Li, welcome to your inspection."

"Hey~ I'm just an ordinary father today, just call me Uncle Li."

It was the first time Lin Shuyao and Chu Xiang's parents had met Zhai Da. Lin Shuyao's parents came together and had a very ordinary demeanor; they were said to be ordinary office workers. Chu Xiang's mother, on the other hand, was a slightly plump aunt with a complicated and large hairstyle.

The headdress is very elaborate; it must take a lot of effort to prepare, probably requiring frequent maintenance.

There were two special guests today. One was Lu Siwen and her daughter Qian Yarong. It wouldn't make sense to charge them another 2000 yuan, so we invited them to come along.

Finally, there were Yu Jinghui and two admissions officers from Harbin Institute of Technology. They came out of pure curiosity after hearing that Zhai Da was going to explain college application procedures.

There are too many people to have a lively chat with everyone individually, so let's just chat for fifteen minutes in the courtyard first, and let everyone get to know each other.

On a stone platform in the corner, a slender figure sat alone, keeping a distance of ten meters from the crowd.

It seemed out of place amidst the hustle and bustle.

She had no reason to stay; she didn't need help with college application, and no family members came to visit. She was just waiting for someone to come home.

The person she was waiting for was surrounded by people in the center, greeting everyone with ease, and had no time to pay attention to her for the time being.

In the crowd, Zhai Da spotted Lu Wei, dressed in white, quiet and alone in a dimly lit corner.

He was stunned for a moment.

"Wait a mininute."

Excuse me, excuse me.

Zhai Da pushed through the crowd and came to Lu Wei.

"tired?"

Lu Wei shook her head: "It's alright."

"Then come with me."

Zhai Da took Lu Wei's hand and led her into the crowd.

Lu Wei staggered, following step by step.

A pair of hands rested on her thin shoulders, and amidst Lu Wei's bewildered expression, someone said in a sunny tone:
"Let me introduce you, this is our teacher, Ms. Lu."

Thus, Lu Wei also found herself in the midst of a lively atmosphere.

"Oh my, this is our female champion. Hello, hello."

"Teacher Lu, I'm Hailey's mother. I often hear her mention you."

After everyone had finished exchanging pleasantries and calmed down, Zhai Da led the group of parents to the classroom. After everyone was seated, he walked up to the podium.

He is now completely familiar with public speaking, even when there are twenty or thirty parents below.

He reached into his sleeve and pulled out a short stick from somewhere to use as a pointer; the scent of Teacher Zhai immediately came through.

"First of all, welcome to Utopia. Today is our internal seminar to help you with volunteer guidance."

"It's getting late, so let's get started right away. I've memorized everyone's scores, including the grades for electives and required courses."

He made special preparations, otherwise it would have taken a long time to tally everyone's scores and grades.

"In theory, college and university applications don't need to be discussed together, but since I'll be talking about a lot of 'employment' issues today, please listen carefully to the topics that aren't within your child's options. Let's start with colleges."

"Ao Wen, 290 points (B). With this score, you have a chance to get into a public junior college. You can pay attention to these schools, which are particularly strong among junior colleges: Shicheng Post and Telecommunications Vocational Technical College, Shandong Electric Power Higher Vocational College, Xingcheng Aviation Vocational Technical School, and Shenzhen Vocational Technical School."

"These three schools are respectively affiliated with the State Post Bureau, the State Grid Corporation of China, and the Air Force General Administration. The last one is a school that is frequently recruited by enterprises and institutions in Shenzhen. It is known as the 'Little Tsinghua and Peking University' among vocational colleges. The employment rate is over 95%, and many majors have the opportunity to directly enter the civil service."

At first, the parents of the undergraduate students were a little distracted, but after hearing this, they became a little restless.

What?! A college diploma can get you into the State Grid? And with a permanent position?
Did you hear me wrong?

Zhai Da paced back and forth and said, "I suggest that those with suitable scores should try their best to get into these four schools. Even those who are struggling to get into a third-tier university and can only get into a very bad school can still consider it."

"Remember, the training policy of junior colleges is to learn vocational skills. Never choose meaningless majors such as management, economics, or sociology." "I know some families hope that their children will return to the county in the future, but this is not contradictory. Being able to learn real skills will also help them find employment back in their hometown."

Several families aiming for junior college students immediately sat up straight, some even eagerly moving forward: "Um, brother, could we switch seats? My child wants a junior college!"

Lin Shuyao's father thought to himself: No, what are you so proud of about having only a junior college degree!
I'm just a little envious. They have the opportunity to be employed, and in good companies and good places. Even graduates from top universities rarely have such opportunities in ordinary families. Isn't the point of studying to get a job?
He looked at his daughter, as if to say: "How about we go to a junior college too? That way we can avoid taking so many detours."
Lin Shuyao rolled her eyes at him.

Although the lecture has not yet been formally launched, Zhai Da has already shown the parents the truth through his actions.

How important is information asymmetry when it comes to choosing university majors? How much can understanding or not understanding, and whether or not one has guidance, change one's destiny?

Even if it's free for internal use, charging two thousand or twenty thousand would be worthwhile.

If I really get accepted, I'll definitely send them a banner.

Zhai Da continued his explanation:

"The following are the fastest-growing majors among the four vocational colleges, based on annual enrollment statistics. Rapid growth indicates a large demand, and of course, I have also taken market conditions into account."

At the back of the slightly crowded classroom, Yu Jinghui stood with his arms crossed, chuckling softly, "Xiao Zhai is really efficient; he seems to understand some things better than any of us..."

He doesn't really need to pay attention to junior colleges, nor does he really need to compare himself with other schools.

A subordinate said, "That's really impressive. Some of our university students have also done tutoring, but compared to that, it's nothing."

Yu Jinghui remarked with emotion, "Our top scholar is truly different; he's completely unlike those who just study by rote."

"Have you met many top scholars?"

"Why bring up something you shouldn't discuss! I haven't met many top scholars, but we might have recruited the best one yet."

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

The four-hour seminar ended close to 1 a.m.

Zhai Da recommended the most reasonable college application strategy that maximizes the use of scores, based on each person's abilities, interests, and wishes.

He talks about these things on a regular basis, since it's a paid program at Utopia, but he explains them in more detail to his own people.

He explained in detail those obscure professional names, those industries and professions that are simply unavailable in small towns, and those misconceptions and mistakes that have misled countless people. He even used his memories from his previous life to provide forward-looking insights into many employment directions.

The National College Entrance Examination (NCEE) is fair. Regardless of your background, family circumstances, or even whether you are born with a disability or physical defect, you have the opportunity to compete with young people from all over the country.

However, the college entrance examination is not fair, especially for children in rural areas, small towns, and county towns. Even if they start on the same footing through the college entrance examination, they cannot properly plan their future path.

How could a small-town boy who has never seen a subway know what "urban rail transit management" is?

How could a family that has never left the county town understand that "international trade major" just sounds impressive?

In Utopia, Zhai Da helped his friends and many children in the county, gradually bridging some of the gaps.

In the following days, Zhai Da resumed his daily routine, attending classes at Utopia during the day and learning a craft from Xu Xuejun in the evening.

Before I knew it, the day for filling out undergraduate applications had arrived.

With Yu Jinghui as their witness, Zhai Da and Lu Wei officially filled out their applications for Harbin Institute of Technology as their first choice, with their respective majors being Materials Science and Engineering and Mathematics and Applied Mathematics.

Of course, for the two top scorers, this is just a formality. Their specific coursework will not be restricted by their major or even their college. They will also be assigned academicians to intervene from their undergraduate studies, based on their interests.

I wouldn't say we can do whatever we want, but we can learn whatever we want. More specific details will be determined after we register and work with Zhai Da to develop a training plan.

The college application process also meant that the destinations of the two top scorers were officially determined, and Liu Tiejun, who was admitted to Tsinghua University, ultimately had no choice but to leave.

I had a pretty good idea of ​​the outcome. Tsinghua University had a better reputation and more academicians, but it simply couldn't offer the same conditions to get these academicians involved in their training from the very beginning of their undergraduate studies.
After being stranded in Dongyang County for more than ten days, Yu Jinghui was finally able to embark on his return journey with peace of mind and return to Harbin Institute of Technology.

Before leaving, Yu Jinghui came to Utopia to say goodbye, and Zhai Da accompanied him all the way to the intersection.

"Xiao Zhai, I'm leaving now. I'll wait for you in Harbin."

"Don't worry, Teacher Yu, I'll run this business until around the end of August, and then I'll go back to school."

Yu Jinghui nudged Zhai Da with his elbow and laughed, "If you have any problems or difficulties, you can contact us. From now on, Harbin Institute of Technology is your alma mater. Don't treat us like outsiders."

Zhai Da didn't mince words: "Do you have tickets for the opening ceremony of the Beijing Olympics? Can I buy three at a high price?"

Yu Jinghui:
No, there really isn't. He wanted to go too.

The car slowly drove away, and the intersection returned to silence. Zhai Da stretched.
Now, besides running Utopia as usual and watching it rake in profits, we're also waiting for "The Long Road of Lu" to see its sales skyrocket.
It seems there's only one main thing left for summer vacation:

Learn enough skills from Old Man Xu, acquire ownership of all the notes, and incidentally hone your handcrafting precision to five micrometers, then win that "Uncertainty Pocket Watch".

He's making progress very quickly, thanks to his "dexterous hands."

He had no classes today, so he turned around and went straight into Xu Xuejun's workshop. The old man had gone to collect materials today. Because of Zhai Da's training, the workshop needed a lot of miscellaneous materials every day.

Wood, metal, and polymers are all essential components, and most of them come from waste materials.

Because the demand was so diverse, Old Man Xu spent every few days collecting scrap.
However, Zhai Da is now very familiar with this place and can use it by himself even without the old man. He opened the roller shutter door and went straight in.

Inside the workshop, a set of tables and chairs that had been moved in from the Utopia storeroom at noon was placed in a corner.

That was a "seat reserved for underachieving students" that had never been used before.

Zhai Da twisted his fingers, and a razor appeared in his hand.

That was the "Hard Man Razor" that Fan Junwei brought during the day.

Zhai Da turned on the workshop lights and pulled the roller shutter door back up.

Both of these items were carefully selected.

Today he will try for the first time to actively modify the [equipment].

(End of this chapter)