Rebirth after the college entrance examination

Chapter 150: Time to Change Circles

Xia An has some face blindness, especially towards men, but he is very good at recognizing people by their body shape, especially women.

The reason he recognized Xu Wanying's ex-boyfriend from a profile view was because the embarrassing scene in the wedding car that day left a deep impression on him.

Xia An believed he would never forget the expression on Xu Liang's face when he was being suppressed and manipulated by the bride and her best friend. He couldn't imagine any other situation that could be more embarrassing for a man.

A wedding is a very important day in the lives of both men and women. Those who can attend are definitely close relatives and friends. As a result, Mr. Xu Liang borrowed 5,000 yuan from relatives and friends and scraped together 20,000 yuan from his ex-girlfriend... Tsk, Xia An couldn't imagine that if this scene happened to her, one of them would probably have to bleed on the spot.

Now, this man is sitting here drinking alone in silence. It's not hard to imagine his state of mind—reminiscing about the bitter past and appreciating the sweet present, feeling that people are not as good as they used to be.

Xia An curled the corners of her lips and looked away.

Qi Buyang seemed to have figured out the meaning of Xia An's words, "You think she did it for you?" He felt a little bitter, picked up the bottle with a tragic air, silently toasted Xia An, and then chug another bottle.

Xia An remained silent, but still drank the wine.

"Are you going again? If so, can I get you another card in a while?"

He meant it as a sarcastic remark, but to be honest, he felt an instinctive closeness to his three roommates. He wouldn't be stingy if he could help them out, as long as it wasn't a matter of principle.

But he also understood the principle of treasuring kindness while harboring resentment, and that everything should be done in moderation.

Aside from Lu Fei, he did not intend to interfere too much in Qi Buyang and Lu Yao's private affairs.

As for spending money to buy happiness in one's youth, it's really harmless.

But who knew...

"Really?"

Qi Buyang's eyes lit up, but before the three boys could get angry, his expression dimmed again. "Forget it, let me rest for a while. Once I've forgotten Yingying, I'll go to other bathhouses and try my luck."

Xia, Lu, and Lu: "..."

Xia Anqi laughed: "There are no wrong nicknames, only wrong names. You are quite the 'Bathing Emperor'."

Qi Buyang patted his chest without any shame.

That's it for now. That's how men are; they keep it in their hearts but don't say it out loud.

Conversely, it was only then that everyone realized what was going on and started asking about Bai Nan's identity.

Qi Buyang winked at Xia An: "No, Lao Xia, have you changed your taste?"

Even Lu Fei couldn't hide his curiosity.

Lu Yao tore off a strip of squid, dipped it in the secret spicy sauce, and stuffed it into his mouth: "I bet it's one of your men?"

Xia An nodded to Lu Yao: "I just started a small company outside, didn't I? She's in HR."

Qi Buyang clicked his tongue and said, "Looks similar to Director Xu, both have baby faces. So young, how can they understand human affairs?" He raised his eyebrows as he spoke, looking extremely lewd.

Xia Anzhong flicked a peanut into Qi's arms without lifting it, saying, "Recent graduates, not much older than us." Not wanting them to continue their rambling, he added, "My business is just a small workshop, in the early stages of starting a business. Unity and drive are more important than ability and experience."

Qi Buyang was about to make another joke, but upon hearing the last sentence, he shut his mouth, exchanged a glance with Lu Yao, and sighed, "I believe there are very few people in the whole school who can say that."

Lu Yao took a sip of wine: "These are the conclusions that Lao Xia himself came up with. What does it have to do with whether others say them or not?"

No matter how close they were, they had to admit that Xia An was far ahead.

Xia An rolled her eyes: "The principles are all written in books. Whoever can use them well is awesome."

Lu Fei said, "Yes."

Bai Nan returned, and Qi Buyang toasted him several times.

This was Bai Nan's first time attending a dinner hosted by Boss Xia. Regardless of the ambiance or the price, the key reason was that these three were the boss's roommates.

Okay, the boss was a freshman in college. She found out when she took the boss's personal information south to apply for a business license—a monster!
The crucial point is that my first glimpse into my boss's daily life was... asking him to bail out a classmate at the police station, and PC got arrested...

Bai Nan has only been out of school for a few months. Goodness, are college students like this now?

She could think about it but couldn't show it. She obediently drank with Qi Buyang, feeling that she couldn't appear too distant and disrupt the harmonious atmosphere. So she racked her brains and came up with a brilliant topic.

She smiled and looked at Lu Yao: "Are you related to your advisor? How come you know her ID number so well?"

Lu Yao swallowed a mouthful of squid strips, and the smell of alcohol immediately rose to his face.

Even though Xia An and Lu Fei were talking about other things, they stopped talking and burst into laughter when they heard this.

……

Bai Nan had to go back to the company, so he left his car keys and took a taxi.

No one else stayed long either. When Xia An reached the door, she glanced back and saw that the man was still sitting in the same spot, drinking alone, his back looking forlorn.
-
It snowed again early the next morning.

The coastal area is like this: spring is long, autumn is short, and winter is windy and snowy. But the snowflakes cannot stay on the ground. It's as if God has hidden each unique and beautiful ice crystal in his palm, so that people can only look at them once and then close their eyes.

Xia An chatted with the golden-haired Venus via email for half the night, and soon couldn't fall asleep.

The money arrived in his account immediately, and he was very excited.

When Xia An woke up, everyone else was still asleep, including Lu Fei. Two months of university life had already turned that country boy, who was used to waking up early, into this state.

I promised Le Ning I'd go for a week of morning runs, so... I'll give it a try.

Xia An put on a fleece-lined tracksuit and went downstairs.

The early winter morning was misty, and snowflakes clung to the leaves that had not yet fallen, as if they had been rolled in syrup.

There are several resettlement buildings in small fishing villages around Binhai University, and there are more residents than students coming to the school for morning exercise.

Xia An ran along the path to the playground and encountered many men and women who had gotten up early to get their meals.

The boys carried steamed buns, soy milk, tea eggs, and side dishes to the girls' dormitory to feed them.

The girls had it simpler: they brought a big bag of steamed buns and went to wait downstairs at the boys' dormitory.

They were shivering from the cold, but their eyes were full of happiness.

A pure love that can be sustained by a bag of steamed buns only happens on campus, beautiful and fleeting like snowflakes, but enduring from generation to generation.

A layer of frost covered the track on the playground. Xia An took even steps while imagining her hotel date with Xiao Le Ning next week.

Unlike most guys his age who are new to romance, he never considered girls like Le Ning and Zuo You as goddesses. He deeply understood the meaning of "knowing about beauty leads to admiring young women," and that not only boys but also girls yearn for those forbidden things.

Le Ning is cold to others, but how many years has she been open with Xia An about her feelings? She no longer hides anything from him.

In this life, things are alright. In the original world, their first time together was so natural that even the word "water" couldn't describe it. After it was over, Le Ning only said one sentence: "If you don't want me anymore, I'll go through menopause soon."

Even now, Xia An can't help but laugh out loud when she thinks about it.

"You're daydreaming while running? Aren't you afraid of falling?"

A voice came from beside her, startling Xia An. She turned her head and saw Xu Wanying, who was also dressed in sportswear, wearing fluffy cartoon earmuffs and orange woolen gloves, and breathing out breaths.

"morning."

"That's early enough. I haven't seen any freshmen going for a morning run yet. Did you go to deliver breakfast to Le Ning?" Xu Wanying's face revealed a playful smile that confirmed the truth.

Xia An nodded: "Yes. Have you eaten?"

"I made noodles in the dorm. How many laps can you run?"

"I plan to run three laps."

A standard track, three laps of 1200 meters.

Xu Wanying scoffed, "Do you think this is a sports meet? A morning run of three or five kilometers is best for your health."

Xia An didn't want to admit it was his first day running, as everyone needs to save face. He said, "Three fast laps, three slow laps, then three race walks. The old man who passed by just now said that's how you should train properly."

Xu Wanying frowned slightly: "Is there such a saying?"

"Yes, it's similar to the nine shallow and one deep method; it's all based on folk experience."

He unconsciously started flirting, thinking that Xu Wanying, who had dated such devoted boyfriends before, shouldn't be unable to understand and would definitely be angry. But she only muttered, "Never heard of it..."

The two jogged side by side, chatting idly. Xu Wanying brought up the class meeting that afternoon.

"You really don't want to be the class monitor?"

The class committee election will be held during the last two periods this afternoon. Xu Wanying still hopes that Xia An can become the class monitor, at least... better than the one who has ulterior motives towards her now.

Although she didn't understand it very well, she always knew that people who couldn't manage their emotions couldn't be officials.

"I don't want to." Seeing that Xu Wanying was still trying to persuade her, Xia An smiled and said frankly, "I've been running a small company outside, as you know. I'm not often at school, so I can't do much as class monitor."

Xu Wanying pouted and didn't say anything more.

Being a class monitor or joining the student union are, frankly speaking, just basic ways to build prestige. Then, joining the Party or taking the civil service exam—being a student leader at a 211 university might have a tiny bit of an advantage when it comes to pursuing a career in government.

Ultimately, it's all about getting a job.

This is nothing to Xia An.

Xu Wanying didn't want to force anyone, but Xia An saw through her thoughts at a glance and smiled, "Teacher Xu, regardless of all that nonsense, at least I know that the students all praise you for being beautiful and kind-hearted, and they have a very high opinion of you. You don't need to worry, we are no longer junior high or high school students who need to be disciplined."

University is another concept. Xu Wanying, having been through it all, understood perfectly well. She simply said, "When I was in school, I was practically invisible, so I really don't understand these things. Xia An, do you all think I'm a good teacher?"

A group of elderly men and women were gathered around the horizontal bar by the track. An old man was doing pull-ups non-stop, drawing cheers from the crowd, which attracted the attention of both of them.

After passing by, Xia An said with a smile, "That's how communities are. There are outstanding members, supporters, and bystanders. Let them develop on their own. If they fight, stop them. If they make mistakes, criticize them. Occasionally, organize group activities to increase cohesion. That's enough."

"In other words, it's not that you can prevent everyone from making mistakes. Rather than electing a class monitor, it's more like you are the class monitor and you're just finding a proxy."

"Finally, you are a good teacher, I'm sure of it."

They were acquaintances across two lifetimes; he wasn't lying.

Of course, since they were acquaintances from two lifetimes, he didn't mention running into her ex last night. He had intended to ask Xu Wanying if she had been "harassed" recently, but after thinking about it, he held back.

Although Xia An doesn't exercise often, given her age, she managed to run nine laps and only broke out in a light sweat.

Xu Wanying arrived before him and ran a total of thirteen laps. He sat in a chair in a relaxed posture, while Xu Wanying still had the energy to stretch her legs.

She wasn't very tall, but her proportions were great; her legs weren't slender, but they were very straight.

Seeing Xia An looking at her, Xu Wanying smiled and said, "I've been an athlete since I was a child. Just you wait and see at next year's sports meet. None of you art students can do it. I'll have to win the teachers' group."

Xia An smiled: "Sprint?"

Xu Wanying: "I'm fine with both sprinting and long-distance running."

Xia An: "No wonder." Her legs aren't thin enough.

Xu Wanying reacted quickly this time, glaring at him. Xia An said, "Wait for me downstairs in a bit, I'll return your things to you."

The two walked towards the dormitory building together. When they passed the cafeteria, Xu Wanying accompanied him to buy two large bags of xiaolongbao (soup dumplings) for the students in his dormitory.

After waiting a few minutes downstairs at the dormitory, Xia An returned the staff badge and teacher's certificate to her, and sincerely thanked her on behalf of Qi Buyang.

During the third break in the morning, Xu Wanying called Xia An to say that she had received a reply regarding the campus movie theater issue she had inquired about for him.

It's difficult and complicated.

Campus cinemas have been a long-standing idea, but obtaining the necessary permits is extremely difficult.

This is not something that started from the bottom up. Although university gates are semi-open, there are still strong barriers for businesses to enter the campus.

To establish a secondary campus cinema chain, you need to obtain permits from the Ministry of Education, the Central Committee of the Communist Youth League, and the State Administration of Radio and Television.

The procedures are not yet readily available.

Since this system didn't exist before, it's very likely that we'll need to start planning and applying from scratch, and finally issue it as an official government decree.

To put it bluntly, this is a huge untapped market. Although the regulations for secondary cinema chains are closed venues such as campuses, military bases, fire stations, and hospitals, no one has actually done it on campuses.

There are 3,000 universities and 7,000 campuses across the country, and very few people can afford to play this game.

Xia An felt a bit numb after hearing this; with his current abilities, it was nothing short of wishful thinking.

However, Xu Wanying conveyed the school's opinion that some procedures could be simplified.

"What the dean means is that if you want to do it, you can renovate the cinema, and the school can help you with the relevant fire safety permits and licenses. I don't quite understand, though. The dean is talking about some kind of independent cinema, which seems to mean it can't show synchronized films or something..."

In the end, Xu Wanying's tone became weak.

Xia An was speechless for a while. The school was treating him like an outsider. He was paying for the movie theater for free... Who wouldn't cooperate?
How will he make money if he can't play synchronized videos?
"Okay, I think I understand now. Thank you for your help, teacher."

After hanging up the phone, Xia An leaned against the window outside the classroom door, lost in thought.

Laughter and chatter filled the classroom, a scene of youthful energy, but Xia An knew that she really shouldn't put too much energy into school anymore.

Tang Wan's company is about to go public, and Candy Convenience aims to cover all supermarkets in the province and then expand nationwide, which requires more than just manpower and financial resources.

The film and television company that paved the way for Little Pomelo was still an unhatched egg, and the Pomelo Hotel was started with borrowed money.

Lin Jiajia's public fund is still just a concept, and 08 is almost here.

Always stay with me.

Xia An knew that what he really lacked now was not only comrades-in-arms, but also supplies. Don't be fooled by the fact that 38 million US dollars sounds like a lot; when it comes to any of the above-mentioned things, it's just a small ripple.

A brownish-yellow withered leaf fell from the low plum tree outside the window.

Li Xiaoru walked over from the end of the corridor carrying several bottles of drinks, handed one to Xia An, and went into the classroom.

Xia An felt it was time to pave the way for her future.

Flipping through the phone book of only twenty-odd people—family, lovers, classmates—the only new resource was someone named Liu Xiao, the one from the National Development and Reform Commission.

(End of this chapter)