ATPnovel Chapter 35: College Entrance Examination Scores Hidden!
Chapter 35: College Entrance Examination Scores Hidden!
The atmosphere in the living room was somewhat heavy, with Mr. and Mrs. Lu sitting on the sofa.
The two men frowned, looking at Lu Jingchen across from them with worried expressions.
Lu Jingchen leaned back in his chair, looking relaxed, and smiled helplessly.
"Dad, Mom, please don't look so gloomy."
"Besides, Jiangzhou University is not bad either; it's a proper 985 university."
"If anything happens, I can get back as quickly as possible."
Lu's mother opened her mouth, but hesitated, her brows still furrowed.
"But that's outside the province, thousands of miles away from home."
"Tsinghua and Peking Universities are located in Beijing, and countless people would kill to get in."
"Your score is practically guaranteed, and I won't feel right about giving up like this."
Mr. Lu nodded and sighed heavily.
"Your mother is right, this concerns your entire future."
"We can't just decide on this so casually. You need to think about it carefully again."
Just as Lu Jingchen was about to speak again to persuade him, his phone suddenly rang urgently in his pocket.
He glanced down at the caller ID; it was his homeroom teacher, Zhang Weiguo.
He quickly pressed the answer button and held the phone to his ear.
"Hello, Teacher Zhang."
To the left is the school office, where Zhang Weiguo is as anxious as an ant on a hot plate.
He paced back and forth in the office, his face a mixture of anxiety and anticipation.
The ashtray at my feet was already overflowing with cigarette butts.
To the right is the Lu family's living room, where Lu Jingchen leans back in a chair.
Holding his phone, he remained calm and composed, showing no sign of emotion.
Zhang Weiguo's urgent voice came through the receiver, his voice cracking.
"How's it going, Lu Jingchen? Have you checked your score yet?"
"I can't find your data in the backend, it's driving me crazy!"
Lu Jingchen spoke very calmly, as if he had just eaten a bowl of noodles today.
"I checked, but I couldn't find the specific score."
Zhang Weiguo was stunned for a moment, and his voice rose eight octaves.
"Can't find it? How come it can't be found?"
"Could the score checking system have crashed? That shouldn't be the case, everyone else can check their scores!"
Lu Jingchen added a sentence indifferently, his tone completely flat.
"It's not that the page crashed; the page says the scores have been hidden."
Zhang Weiguo on the other end of the phone was silent for a second.
He then slammed his hand on the table, making a loud clanging sound as he struck the solid wood desk.
He was so excited that he jumped up from his chair.
His voice cracked with excitement, and you could feel his ecstasy even through the receiver.
"Blocked?! Only the top 50 in the entire province are blocked!"
"Top scorer! Our school might be producing a provincial top scorer!"
Lu Jingchen listened to the wailing and howling on the phone and helplessly rubbed his forehead.
"Teacher Zhang, I have to go now, I have something to do."
"We'll talk about it when the specific rankings are released."
He hung up the phone immediately and looked up at his parents, who looked completely bewildered.
He shrugged helplessly and put his phone back in his pocket.
Lu's mother looked at him blankly and quickly moved closer.
"Blocked? What does that mean? What top 50?"
"Why is your teacher Zhang so excited? It's like he's won five million."
Lu Jingchen smiled and offered a casual explanation.
"It's nothing, I just got into the top 50 in the province."
"The system hid the specific score; Teacher Zhang was just too excited."
Mr. and Mrs. Lu exchanged a glance, their eyes widening instantly.
The worry on his face vanished instantly, replaced by ecstatic joy.
Lu's mother stood up abruptly from the sofa, her voice trembling.
"Top 50 in the province?! My son's really something!"
As night falls, the streetlights at the entrance of the residential area are dim and flicker.
Lu Jingchen carried the freshly bought vegetables and pork belly and strolled leisurely to the apartment building.
As soon as they arrived at the door, they saw Wang Jianjun wearing an inappropriately expensive suit.
He stood there like a gatekeeper, with five or six cigarette butts already lying at his feet.
When Wang Jianjun saw Lu Jingchen approaching, his eyes lit up instantly, as if he had seen a savior.
They immediately came running up to them, all excited and eager.
"Brother Lu! You're finally back!"
Wang Jianjun smiled obsequiously, like a lucky cat.
Lu Jingchen stopped in his tracks, his face full of surprise, and raised an eyebrow.
"Mr. Zhang? What are you doing here?"
"Why are you standing guard at the entrance of my residential compound so late at night instead of staying home?"
Wang Jianjun quickly smiled ingratiatingly, rubbing his hands together with a fawning expression.
"Brother Lu, I've come here today to ask you for a favor."
"I had to ask several friends and Old He at the construction site to find out that you live here."
Lu Jingchen switched the dishes in his hand and looked at him with a half-smile.
"What's the matter that warrants Mr. Zhang personally guarding this door and waiting for me?"
"Could something strange have happened at the construction site again?"
Wang Jianjun quickly leaned forward, lowered his voice, and spoke mysteriously.
"It's not about the construction site. It's like this, I'm here on someone else's behalf."
"A big shot I know has recently run into some strange trouble and is looking everywhere for experts to solve it."
"After much thought, who in the entire Linchuan City could be more capable than Brother Lu?"
"That's why I thought of you and wanted to ask you to come out of retirement and help me out."
Looking at his shrewd expression, Lu Jingchen's lips curled into a playful smile.
"Oh? So Mr. Zhang is using me as a bargaining chip for personal favors."
"Using me to curry favor with your big boss, you're really scheming to the point of making me look bad."
Wang Jianjun was instantly embarrassed, his face turned red, and he gave an awkward laugh.
"Brother Lu, please stop making fun of me. I really need your help."
"I can't let you make a wasted trip, regardless of whether this matter ultimately succeeds or not."
"How did your negotiations with the big boss go? I'll give you this amount, brother."
Wang Jianjun held up one finger and gestured towards Lu Jingchen.
The winking and eye-rolling are a veiled reference to a million dollars.
Lu Jingchen didn't respond to him, but just played with the bag of vegetables in his hand.
His eyes were indifferent, revealing no emotion whatsoever, and he remained silent for a long time.
Wang Jianjun's heart pounded instantly, and his palms started sweating.
Fearing that Lu Jingchen would not agree, she didn't dare to breathe loudly.
After a few seconds, Lu Jingchen spoke, his tone leaving no room for argument.
There was absolutely no room for negotiation; every word was crystal clear.
"No matter how my talks with him go, whether it works out or not."
"You have to give me two million for travel expenses. If you don't agree, then forget about it."
Wang Jianjun was stunned for a moment, then realized what was happening.
Seeing Lu Jingchen's determined gaze, she dared not hesitate for a moment.
He nodded immediately, like a chick pecking at rice, very decisively.
"Alright! Two million it is! Not just two million, three million is fine too, as long as you're willing to step in!"
He patted his chest and made a solemn promise.
"If you ever need my help in the future, Brother Lu."
"As long as it's within my capabilities, I'll have no hesitation; I'll go through fire and water for you!"
Lu Jingchen nodded, took out his phone, and exchanged contact information with Wang Jianjun.
After putting away his phone, he looked up at Wang Jianjun and casually asked a question.
"Do you know why that big shot you mentioned is searching everywhere for a master?"
Wang Jianjun shook his head and scratched his head, looking confused.
"This... I really don't know."
"We small fry wouldn't dare pry into the big boss's private affairs."
"All I know is that this is a very strange matter, and we've consulted several fortune tellers but none of them could solve it."
Lu Jingchen nodded knowingly and picked up the groceries in his hand.
"Okay, I got it. Contact me again later to arrange a time to meet."
After saying that, he picked up the groceries, turned around, and went upstairs.
His silhouette, illuminated by the streetlights, appeared exceptionally enigmatic.
Watching Lu Jingchen's figure completely disappear at the entrance of the corridor.
Wang Jianjun's originally respectful face instantly lit up with wild joy.
He jumped up and down excitedly, as if he had won the lottery.
He clenched his fists tightly, muttering to himself, his voice trembling.
"Great! We've finally convinced Brother Lu!"
"This time, we've completely secured the favor with Boss Song!"
He quickly took out his phone and dialed a number with lightning speed.
As soon as the call connected, he immediately switched to an extremely obsequious tone.
"Feed? Could you please pick up Boss Song for me?"
"You told Boss Song he was looking for a master, and I've found him!"
"I'll arrange a meeting between the two of them right away! I guarantee it will resolve Boss Song's problem!"