socalfunplaces Chapter 6: The Ubiquitous "Fate"
Chapter 6: The Ubiquitous "Fate"
In June, the atmosphere at the entrance of Jiangning No.1 Middle School was even more scorching than the summer sun.
A dense crowd of parents accompanied their children to the exam, filling every shady corner. The fans in their hands seemed to be waving so hard they looked like they were about to spark, but their eyes were glued to the tightly closed school gate.
Nie Xiguang stood under an old locust tree, holding a light green parasol, with beads of sweat on his forehead.
She wasn't nervous; she had some confidence in her cousin Jiang Rui's inhuman brain.
It's purely the weather and the overwhelming sense of anticipation around us that's creating this.
My uncle has an important project in another city, and my aunt has to accompany him. So the heavy responsibility of being both the "logistics manager and the pillar of support" falls on her shoulders.
Before the bell rang to signal the end of the first Chinese exam, the atmosphere at the door was already extremely tense.
Just then, a clear, even refreshing shout, like a summer soda, broke the stillness like a pebble thrown into a viscous lake:
"Dear parents, thank you for your hard work! The sun is strong, and you might be anxious, so why not take a look at these flowers for good luck! May your child achieve great success, like the sunflower and bamboo, and have a bright future! This exclusive limited-edition '985' halo bouquet is a blessing for your little one!"
That voice... why does it sound so familiar?
Nie Xiguang turned his head in surprise and looked towards the source of the sound.
Just a few steps away, under another patch of shade, a strikingly conspicuous simple flower stall had sprung up.
A large whiteboard, with cute cartoon champions and witty slogans drawn on it using colored markers.
Behind the flower stall, the young stall owner, who was deftly pruning the sunflower stems with a bright smile on his face, was none other than Yu Chen.
Nie Xiguang blinked, almost wondering if he was hallucinating from the heat.
Libraries, lectures, old platforms... Now you can even run into him outside the college entrance examination hall?
Is this guy's "business scope" randomly refreshed with her as the center?
She was still in a daze when Yu Chen saw her. His eyes curved slightly, and he nodded to her across the crowd, his expression as natural as if they had bumped into each other by chance in the library.
His hands didn't stop; he was wrapping a bunch of orange roses and silver leaves and handing it to a beaming auntie: "Auntie, nine yuan and eighty-five cents. Wishing your child a sure place in a '985' university!"
The aunt was amused by the auspicious words and the clever pricing, and readily paid the money.
Nie Xiguang couldn't help but walk over.
Yu Chen had just finished a sale and looked up with a smile, "Senior, what a coincidence! Came to cheer on the younger students?"
"My cousin." Nie Xiguang pointed to the examination hall, her gaze shifting between him and the flower stall, finally voicing her surprise, "...Yu Chen, why do I feel like I keep running into you wherever I go lately?"
Her tone was joking, but her doubts were genuine.
This frequency is ridiculously high.
Upon hearing this, Yu Chen paused for a moment, then gave a somewhat helpless yet resigned smile: "Now that you mention it, it does seem true. But thinking about it carefully, it makes sense."
As he sprayed water on another bunch of lucky bamboo, he counted on his fingers, "The library, the old campus platform, those are my 'data collection points' and temporary office areas; the remote presentations, those are my 'industry research sites'; as for here..."
He pointed to the anxious parents around him, "It's like a temporary flash trial in a niche market. My activity area does seem to have a high degree of overlap."
His explanation was reasonable and logically consistent, attributing the series of coincidences to "similar activity trajectories".
Nie Xiguang listened and thought it made sense, but the subtle feeling of "how could it be such a coincidence" in his heart did not completely dissipate. Instead, it was like a small seed that quietly fell into a corner.
"What were you thinking with this '985' bouquet?" She changed the subject, looking at the conspicuous "9.85 yuan" on the whiteboard.
"Market demand drives product innovation," Yu Chen said, his eyes lighting up as he became more talkative. "At this time, what parents need is a tangible, auspicious, and anxiety-relieving 'little moments of happiness.' Too expensive is inappropriate, and too ordinary is meaningless."
"The number '985' is something all parents across the country are obsessed with; it costs 9.85 yuan, is affordable, and sounds auspicious. See?"
He pointed to some "products" under development next to him, "I've also prepared bouquets of '211' potential winners, and 'Double First-Class' vibrant combinations... Of course, the best-selling ones are still the '985' and the basic 'Winner in One Go' bouquets."
When he talked about these things, he had a pure enthusiasm for discovering fun, and he didn't think that setting up a stall to sell small bouquets was anything low-class.
This posture felt both familiar and novel to Nie Xiguang.
As the two chatted, the bell finally rang, signaling the end of the first exam.
The quiet campus instantly erupted in excitement. The gates opened, and the examinees filed out, each with a different expression.
Nie Xiguang immediately looked around and soon spotted that familiar figure.
Jiang Rui carried a backpack that didn't look like it contained many books. He walked out with the crowd, his face showing neither tension nor excitement, but rather a calmness as if he had "finally completed a set procedure."
He even gave a high five to a classmate as he left.
"Jiang Rui!" Nie Xiguang waved.
Jiang Rui strolled over, first calling out "Sister," then her gaze fell on Yu Chen and the flower stall, raising her eyebrows: "Hey, Sister, who's this? Your friend? Your business has expanded to the exam hall front lines? Pretty cutting-edge!"
He spoke quickly and lightly, with the vibrancy unique to young people and a touch of good-natured banter.
"This is my junior, Yu Chen," Nie Xiguang introduced. "He just happens to be here."
"It's not a coincidence, it's a business sense," Yu Chen corrected with a smile, then took two bottles of chilled electrolyte water from a small insulated box next to him and handed them to the siblings. "Jiang Rui, right? Rehydrate and cool down after the exam. No matter how you feel, passing the first hurdle is worth a drink."
"Thanks, bro!" Jiang Rui took the water, unscrewed the tap, took a big gulp, sighed comfortably, and then stared at the words on the whiteboard, reading aloud, "'985 Halo Bouquet'... You've got an idea, bro! What a pity..."
He shook his head with feigned seriousness, "With my level, I can barely get into Tsinghua or Peking University if I perform normally. It would be a waste for me to use your '985' blessing."
Nie Xiguang slapped him lightly, annoyed: "Still talking nonsense after the exam!"
Yu Chen laughed: "The Tsinghua-Peking University line? Then we should celebrate even earlier. It seems my flower stand is too small-scale; I should prepare some 'TOP2 exclusive salutes' instead."
Jiang Rui was amused and thought this senior was quite interesting; he wasn't pretentious and had a quick mind.
He rolled his eyes, glancing at his cousin and then at Yu Chen, before suddenly saying, "Sis, I'm starving after the exam! It's so crowded and hot here, let's find somewhere to eat?"
He turned to Yu Chen and said very naturally, "Want to join me, senior? You're almost done selling, aren't you?"
"I'll treat you to dinner, to thank you for the iced water and... well, your unique business insights from the exam room. And let me tell you about any other amazing businesses you've developed; I think they're more interesting than exams."
The invitation came suddenly, but Jiang Rui spoke sincerely and casually, with the direct enthusiasm of a young man.
Nie Xiguang looked at Yu Chen, unsure of what to say.
Yu Chen glanced at the dispersing crowd, then at the few remaining flowers he had, and after a moment's thought, readily nodded: "Sure, then I won't be polite."
"It's time to close up shop, and I'm starving. I know a small restaurant nearby that serves local food—clean, delicious, and reasonably priced. They should still have seats at this hour. Let me treat you guys to celebrate Jiang Rui's first victory and to thank my senior for supporting our business."
"No way, it's a deal, I'll treat you!" Jiang Rui immediately chimed in.
Watching the two of them quickly settle the dinner arrangements, Nie Xiguang suddenly found it both amusing and relaxing. "Stop arguing," she decided, "It's on me, to celebrate Jiang Rui finishing his exams, and also... to thank Yu Chen for his market analysis earlier, which broadened my horizons."
A few minutes later, Yu Chen neatly packed up his flower stall and locked his tricycle in the backyard of a familiar shop by the roadside.
The three walked for a few minutes, then turned into a quieter alley and arrived at a restaurant called "Old Chen's".
The shop wasn't big, but it was spotless and the air conditioning was on full blast. The proprietress clearly knew Yu Chen and warmly invited them to sit in a quiet spot by the window.
After ordering, Jiang Rui's curiosity was fully aroused, and he kept asking questions about Yu Chen's "business model," from how errands were priced, to how "Jiangda Baishitong" prevented false information, and then to the cost and profit margin of selling flowers today.
Yu Chen was very open with his knowledge, answering every question honestly and occasionally throwing in a few humorous analogies, which Jiang Rui listened to with great interest, repeatedly saying, "It's much more vivid than an economics textbook."
Nie Xiguang listened intently, watching her cousin and Yu Chen chat happily. Although Jiang Rui was talkative, he was intelligent and had a keen eye for people; the fact that he could strike up a conversation with Yu Chen so quickly showed that Yu Chen was indeed quite capable. She would occasionally chime in, and Yu Chen would always catch up naturally, steer the conversation towards topics she was also interested in. For example, when discussing information filtering, she would mention database techniques she might use in her thesis.
The meal was relaxed and enjoyable. Jiang Rui's witty remarks flowed smoothly, Yu Chen's humor flowed naturally, and Nie Xiguang found herself laughing many times without realizing it. The worries about the thesis, the confusion about graduation, and the subtle tension in the dormitory seemed to be temporarily smoothed out in the warm, homey atmosphere of this casual restaurant.
After finishing his meal, Jiang Rui was called away by a classmate to check their answers.
In his words, it's called "de-dimensionality attack-style psychological comfort."
Nie Xiguang and Yu Chen walked together toward the bus stop.
The evening breeze dispelled the summer heat, and the streetlights lit up one by one.
"Thank you for today," Nie Xiguang said. "Jiang Rui seems to really enjoy chatting with you."
"Jiang Rui is very smart, has a good attitude, and has a bright future," Yu Chen said sincerely. "I also learned a lot from chatting with him, such as the immediate feedback from future consumers."
Nie Xiguang smiled.
He always manages to offer an interesting perspective in a serious manner.
"Oh, right," Yu Chen remembered something, took out a small notebook from his old canvas bag, flipped to a certain page, tore off half a sticky note and handed it to her.
"I stumbled upon this while organizing my materials. It's an online forum with some groups discussing international accounting case studies, and there are occasionally some interesting discussions and information sharing. The access requirements aren't high, so it might be helpful for your thesis."
It was another natural and perfectly timed "information sharing".
Nie Xiguang took it and looked at the neat handwriting. The strange feeling about "coincidence" in his heart seemed to be irrigated once again.
"Yu Chen," she suddenly asked, her tone more serious than before, "are you... planning to keep doing these... all sorts of 'small jobs' from now on?"
She carefully chose her words.
Yu Chen was half a step ahead when he heard this and turned his head to look at her.
The glow of the streetlights softened his silhouette.
"These small projects are for accumulation, observation, and testing," he said calmly. "What I really want to do is to do something tangible and solve real problems. For example... if we can more efficiently turn the sunshine in the west into electricity that every household can use, so that good technology is not held back by cost and distribution channels."
He paused, then smiled. "Of course, it's too early to talk about that now. We need to find a base and accumulate enough capital first."
His words weren't impassioned, but they carried a weighty significance. Nie Xiguang sensed the certainty beneath his calm tone.
This is different from Zhuang Xu's pursuit of elite positions, and even more different from the vague aspirations of most people around her.
Yu Chen's goal, imbued with the scent of earth and metal, was concrete yet unfamiliar, strangely reassuring.
"Base?" She caught the peculiar word.
"Well, I'd like to find a suitable place to give it a try." Yu Chen didn't elaborate, only saying, "Once things start to look promising, I might need to consult with Senior Sister, this future financial elite."
The bus has arrived.
Yu Chen stopped in her tracks: "Senior, the car is here. Thank you for your hospitality today."
"Please give my best wishes to Jiang Rui, and I hope he does well on his exam the day after tomorrow."
Nie Xiguang got into the car and waved to him through the car window.
As the car started, Yu Chen's figure grew smaller and smaller in the rearview mirror, eventually blending into the city lights.
She leaned against the car window, clutching the still-warm note in her hand.
She recalled his ever-present presence, his seemingly unpredictable yet always perfectly tailored "business" to her needs, and the calm light in his eyes when he spoke of the future…
Is this really just a coincidence and an "overlapping activity trajectory"?
A deeper, more subtle emotion than mere curiosity quietly began to grow within her. She couldn't quite put her finger on what it was, but she felt that this junior named Yu Chen was like a book whose pages had been turned, its contents seemingly far richer and more captivating than she had initially anticipated.
At that moment, as Yu Chen walked back to his rented room, a brief system notification flashed through his mind:
[Scenario achieved: Relaxed social interaction and lateral contact with family relationships. Impression deepened. Achievement points +80.]
Daily task "Flexible Revenue Generation" completed. Achievement Points +30.