Eight people, when visiting Qiao Ze's mother, split into three cars.
Originally two cars would have been enough, but unfortunately, at the moment, there was a lack of unity, and everyone found someone displeasing to the eye.
In the end, upon Qiao Ze's insistence, he and Li Jiangao got into one car, while Yu Chenggong shamelessly squeezed himself into the co-driver's seat.
Recruiting a student with a serious psychological disorder could be planting a landmine in his career.
But if he recruited a student fervently sought after by professors from several 985-ranked universities even higher than Xilin University of Technology, it would be only proper to raise his monthly bonus, and he might even be named an Advanced Worker at the end of the year.
However, this couldn't be blamed on Yu Chenggong being pragmatic; it's just that the world is that pragmatic.
...
At seven in the morning, outside the Jia Hexing Garden neighborhood, at the Happiness Fresh Supermarket.
Those with even a slight understanding of Xingcheng's real estate industry know that if the name of a neighborhood ends with the character for "garden," it indicates that it's a resettlement housing area built in exchange for land requisition.
Jia Hexing Garden was no exception.
At this time, Lu Xiuxiu was busy in the supermarket, just like any other day.
Although it was a privately-owned business, Happiness Supermarket was not small, boasting a full five hundred square meters.
Because there was a specialized fresh produce section, mornings were actually the busiest time of the day.
The early risers, akin to those attending a morning market, would start choosing their picks very early. Lu Xiuxiu's job was to constantly restock and also to promptly clean up the mess left behind in the supermarket's produce area after shopping, maintaining cleanliness indoors.
It was tiring, and the pay wasn't much, but for Lu Xiuxiu, the advantage was that it was close to home and convenient for looking after her child.
The supermarket's owner, surnamed Xiao, was a local and a land-requisitioned household, just turned fifty. The storefront used for the supermarket was a self-owned asset provided in exchange for the requisitioned land. Both his children had been admitted to university, and with the store doing quite well, he could be considered a local rich man, equivalent to a wealthy landlord of ancient times.
The man was rather decent; although he oversaw the store every day, knowing Lu Xiuxiu's family situation, he would proactively let her leave early to spend more time with her child when the store was not busy.
It was a gesture of kindness, but actually not much. For example, Lu Xiuxiu had been working here for five years but had never received a raise, her monthly salary fixed at three thousand. Yet, on the occasions she requested leave, her pay had never been docked.
But for Lu Xiuxiu this bit of kindness was already enough; after all, most of her life revolved largely around Qiao Ze.
The only thing that made Lu Xiuxiu dissatisfied with the old boss was that he often tried to persuade her, "Xiu Xiu, your kid has a mental issue, so don't fuss over it. If it really comes to it, after he graduates from high school, he can come work here. I'll give him a job where he doesn't have to deal with people, like moving things, crunching numbers or something, I'll pay him 3500 a month, enough to support himself."
Her Qiao Ze was a genius!
Working in a supermarket? How could that be possible?!
But today, just thinking of the boss's words made Lu Xiuxiu's mood particularly joyful.
Though she still didn't know what had happened yesterday when Qiao Ze went with Li Jian Gao.
But the message Professor Li had sent her yesterday gave her a feeling of happiness she had never experienced before in her life.
She had even taken a screenshot and carefully saved it in her photo album.
She really wanted to show the boss how a major university professor evaluated her child... A genius, no less! And a genius comparable to many great figures in history, at that!
But Lu Xiuxiu didn't dare.
Because she heard that if parents boast about their children's excellence in public, it can easily ruin the children's fortunes, many children whose careers were going very well have been destroyed by parents who liked to show off.
In Lu Xiuxiu's view, she couldn't help her child much, but she mustn't drag him down either.
Having finally finished her work, Lu Xiuxiu could take a brief rest and catch her breath.
She couldn't resist taking out her phone, opening WeChat, and planning to read Professor Li's message again.
Although it was just a short sentence, she never tired of reading it, and with each glance, her heart felt as sweet as if she had tasted honey.
At this time, in Lu Xiuxiu's mind, Li Jiangao had become a personage like a living Buddha of this world.
Without Professor Li, who would recognize her child?
That's when she suddenly saw a message that Professor Li had sent ten minutes earlier.
"Ms. Lu, hello. The professors I introduced to Qiao Ze yesterday would like to meet you and inform you about the schools, including Jiangcheng University, Hua Ke University, etc., as well as their admission policies, to help Qiao Ze decide which university to enroll in. We are already bringing Qiao Ze with us on the way to your workplace; we should arrive shortly."
Lu Xiuxiu was momentarily stunned, then her mind suddenly became a mess, and she panicked.
This...
The professors are coming to see her?
Shouldn't they have given notice, and then she could meet these prestigious professors?
How was she supposed to receive them?
The house was too small, and she hadn't bought any good tea or anything; wouldn't the professors think less of her?
If they came to the supermarket, and the professors found out she was just a menial worker there, wouldn't it also affect their impression of Qiao Ze?
This message was sent ten minutes ago, and she didn't know if she'd have enough time to go home and change...
Such a vexing problem.
Lu Xiuxiu, in a state of complete distress, went straight to the office in the back of the supermarket.
Through the partially open door, Lu Xiuxiu could see the boss leaning back in his chair, feet propped up on the desk, bobbing his head and humming along with the opera playing from his phone.
She had no choice, for her child's sake she had to gather her courage and knock on the door.
"Come in."
"Xiao, may I take some time off?"
"Eh? Taking time off again? Didn't you just take a day off yesterday? What's up with your son now? I've told you before, stop fussing. You're tired and so is the child. It's not the end of the world if he doesn't go to university. Look how many college graduates still end up living off their parents after graduation. Haven't you been watching the news? College graduates aren't in demand these days. Study for four years, graduate, and the salary is just a couple thousand."
"It's not that, Xiao. This time it's different."
"What could be different? I'm aware of your son's situation. Even if he barely makes it through university, he might become too proud to settle for work, and even less likely to find a job. Wouldn't it be better to have him come work for me straight after high school? You'd save some unnecessary expenses. Let me tell you, tuition fees are not cheap these days, and for those collaborative education programs, they're ridiculously expensive. A relative of mine insisted on attending one..."
Xiao was in the middle of his spiel when the office door suddenly burst open, and a young girl barged in: "Boss, boss, oh? Lu, you're here? No wonder I couldn't find you. There are several men with an imposing presence at the front door looking for you, they brought your son to the supermarket."
"What?" Xiao jumped, startled, and immediately sat up straight, looking at Lu Xiuxiu in astonishment: "Lu, you didn't borrow from loan sharks outside, did you? Did they kidnap your child?"