Chapter 42: University Entrance Examination

  At this time, the rain had already stopped, and the sun was rising to shine on the ground. The sunlight passed through the transparent fabric of the tent and shone in, making the inside of the tent very bright. Adding to the excitement of getting up early, both of them were wide awake at this moment. Zhang Chengyuan picked up his backpack and the shirt he had taken off last night, whispered something to Li Xiaoli, and then nervously crawled out of the tent, his heart constantly worrying that Li Xiaoli would gradually drift away from him.

  Turning around to look, at this time except for Zhang Chengyuan and Li Xiaoli, there was not even half a person's shadow on the mountain. The surroundings were quiet, but at the foot of the mountain, there were several moving figures. Zhang Chengyuan put on his jacket, took out a bottle of water to rinse his mouth, punched and kicked to stretch his muscles, waited for a few more minutes, before seeing Li Xiaoli come out with her attire in order, bowing slightly.

  Jang Sung-won hastily greeted her and asked how she was doing, then handed over a can of milk and a piece of chocolate bread that he had prepared earlier. "Hyo-ri sister, are you hungry? Eat something first." He smiled on his face, but his expression seemed somewhat uneasy.

  Lee Hyori didn't even glance at him, walked to the east and gazed up at the rising red sun in the sky, let out a few loud cries, before saying: "Today's weather is really great!"

  Following Lee Hyo-ri, Jang Sung-won immediately echoed: "Yes, yes, the weather is really good, it's great."

  Lee Hyo-ri didn't respond, gazing at the dawn clouds on the horizon for a long time without making a sound. Suddenly she said, "Don't tell Joo-hyun, Jin-ah, and Yoo-ri about what happened this morning. If you do, I'll never forgive you! Did you hear me?"

  "Xiaoli sister, I promise I won't say a word," Zhang Chengyuan said with delight. He knew that this time Xiaoli had truly forgiven him.

  They played for six more days, climbed several high peaks, and drove through several cities and counties. Lee Hyori felt a bit tired, after all, she was not a professional mountaineer and didn't have much to pursue in this aspect. Having been out for so long, she started to miss home, so she suggested going back home. Zhang Chengyuan naturally didn't dare to disagree. During these six days, the weather was still pretty good, and the two of them didn't spend another night on the mountain top. Zhang Chengyuan couldn't relive that morning's scenery, and it seemed like nothing had happened between them, but what they were thinking in their hearts wasn't something others could guess.

  Back in Seoul, Jang Sung-won met up with the other three members of Fin.K.L for a small gathering before throwing himself into his busy schedule. In order to make up for the losses from the previous period or to save up for next year's university tuition fees, Jang Sung-won embarked on a month-long frenzy of making money, regardless of the type of work or pay, as long as it didn't affect his image. He let Park Byung-ryul take over all the jobs he could get, whether it was shooting commercials, magazine covers, small TV roles, or mall promotional activities. As long as there was money to be made and it wasn't too time-consuming, he would do it. Almost every day, he would wake up at 4 am and sleep after 1 am, without resting during the day. Even when sitting in the car on his way to the next work location, he would think about how to improve his professional skills so that he could perform better in his next job and earn more pay.

  Thanks to Park Byung-ryul's extensive connections and Jang Sung-won's own "good quality at a low price" and hardworking personality, he was able to receive countless offers. Although the majority of them were small-scale with average pay and extremely low exposure rates, at least on the surface, Jang Sung-won seemed more popular than top stars. After accumulating these small jobs for a month and a half, his personal income exceeded 8 million won, which is equivalent to the salary of a star actor filming one episode of a TV drama. This was enough for him to pay for a year's tuition at a private university, and even after paying the tuition, he had enough money left over to support himself for the next three months.

  Before long, September arrived and a new semester began. This was Zhang Chengyuan's last semester in high school, with only about two months and ten days left before the national college entrance examination. Students across the country who were eager to attend university had all entered the stage of desperate sprinting, with scores and rankings being their top priority at this time. Although it was dry and tasteless, it concerned their future and fate, making them unable to ignore it. Even when they felt tired and wanted to retreat, parents and teachers would urge them to persist. In such a situation, some students with extremely fragile mental qualities were even driven to psychological collapse and death by the suffocating atmosphere of tension.

  At this critical moment, Jang Sung-won, as the top student of the nine-year-old high school and the most likely to be admitted to the country's highest educational institution - Hanyang University, can no longer easily take time off from school to work. His instructors would like to lock him in the campus to supervise his studies day and night. Even on weekends during the legally mandated rest period, Jang Sung-won is required to attend supplementary classes like most third-year students, although he has long been able to handle those lessons and exercises with ease. However, his instructors dare not relax their guard even a little, fearing that he might become complacent and miss his chance of a lifetime.

  Apart from this, his father Zhang Donghu and agent Park Byung-ryul also stepped in, forcing him to put down all extracurricular activities and focus on reviewing his lessons. It's understandable that Zhang Donghu wants his son to succeed, but it's puzzling why Park Byung-ryul is also doing this.

  Zhang Chengyuan was initially somewhat perplexed, but after a moment's thought, he understood. Compared to the meager benefits at hand, if he had the aura of a famous university on his body, then slightly hyping it up would greatly increase his popularity and reputation, and the benefits he would gain would far exceed his current income level. Although he is currently not working and cannot make money for the company, his contract with the company still has more than three years left, and there will be plenty of time and opportunities to make up for this small loss in the future.

  Busy days always pass very quickly, and before I knew it, the day of the university entrance examination had arrived.

  On this day, more than 6 million candidates from all over the country, including freshmen and seniors, came to take part in this exam that attracted attention from tens of millions of people. The exam only lasted for one day, which was seen by many as a day that determined the success or failure of one's life.

  On this day, whether it's the President of South Korea or the CEO of Samsung Group, everyone has to step aside. Military training is suspended, flights are adjusted, traffic control is in place, and companies delay working hours. If anyone or any organization affects the conduct of this exam, they will definitely be criticized and scolded by citizens across the country.

  On this day, from dawn till dusk, all candidates have to fight for every second in the exam to perform at their best, even lunch has to be solved within the examination room. Outside the examination hall, parents pray and bless them, younger schoolmates cheer them on.

  At around 8:10, Zhang Chengyuan smiled and waved to his father and teacher, then calmly prepared to enter the examination room. This exam was just a small challenge in life for him, he had absolute strength and 100% confidence that he could achieve the best results, so there was no need to be as nervous as other candidates.

  At the moment he was about to enter the examination hall, he suddenly saw a very familiar car, which was Fin.k.l's four sisters' nanny car. He knew they must be looking at him from afar by the window and silently blessing him in their hearts. So he waved his hand towards the car and then made an OK gesture. After that, he turned around and entered the examination hall.

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