"Memories are like yesterday!"
After a slight sigh, Li Haochen got back on his little Aima and drove towards the administrative building.
It was a little past nine in the morning, and there weren't many people on campus. Those without classes were sleeping in their dorms, and those with classes… were also sleeping.
After a few minutes, he arrived at the entrance of the administrative building. Looking at the unfamiliar building, Li Haochen felt a bit awkward. He really had no idea where Lu Dehong's office was. The only thing posted at the entrance was a collection of faculty photos.
Just as he was feeling lost, a voice called out from behind, "Haochen?"
"Class monitor?"
The one who stopped Li Haochen was Liao Ziying, the class monitor of their cohort.
"It really is you. I thought I recognized the wrong person. What brings you here?"
"Oh, I have something to discuss with Director Lu. I've never been here before, so I don't know how to find it," Li Haochen said, scratching his head sheepishly.
"I'll take you up. It's on my way anyway."
"Thank you so much. I'll treat you to a meal later."
"I wouldn't dare. If your girlfriend finds out and misunderstands, it won't be good. Hehe. Here we are. You go ahead and get busy."
Li Haochen wanted to say thank you again, but Liao Ziying was already gone, having hurried off to the counselor's office.
"Haochen, you're here. Come in quickly. Director Lu has been waiting for you."
Just then, Luo Bin also arrived. Seeing Li Haochen standing at the door, he called out to him to go in together.
"Director, Haochen student is here."
"Director, hello!"
Li Haochen respectfully shook hands with him, holding both hands. He had great respect for his teachers.
"Student Haochen, you are truly young and promising. The school is very fortunate to have outstanding students like you."
"This is also due to the school's effective education."
The two engaged in a bit of mutual flattery. Li Haochen was now a master at this. There was no harm in saying nice things, and it always helped.
"Student Haochen, Ah Bin mentioned that you urgently need a batch of part-time service staff?"
"Yes, Director. We also want to help students who are facing difficulties. We need about 50, and more is acceptable."
"This is a great kindness. Thank you very much, student Haochen," Lu Dehong said, looking at Li Haochen again. "Student Haochen, I have a presumptuous request. I wonder if I may speak it?"
"Director Lu, you are too kind. Please speak."
"You can rest assured that these students are all outstanding in both character and scholarship. However, a short-term opportunity won't help them much. I wanted to ask if you could provide some long-term part-time jobs for them, to help them through these difficult few years?"
Lu Dehong's words touched Li Haochen. He had experienced similar struggles in high school. If it weren't for his form teacher arranging a work-study position in the cafeteria for him, those years would have been even tougher.
"Alright, I will try my best to arrange it."
"Thank you, thank you so much. I thank you on their behalf."
Lu Dehong was truly grateful. Although he wanted to leverage these achievements to increase his chances of promotion, his actions were ultimately for the students' benefit, and this was genuine.
"Director Lu, there's no need for that. It is my duty and obligation, and they are my classmates. I should help them."
"Excellent!"
Although it was Li Haochen's first time interacting with Lu Dehong, their brief conversation revealed his character, and Lu Dehong's evaluation of him was very high.
"Haochen, those dozens of students are gathered in the multimedia classroom. You should go over and say a few words."
"Uh? Is that really necessary?"
"Student Haochen, I hope you will go and say a few words to them, offer them some encouragement. Although they are very good academically, they lack confidence."
Li Haochen deeply empathized with this. After a moment of thought, he nodded and said, "Alright, I'll go over and chat with everyone."
The three walked down. As soon as they entered the classroom, the lively conversation instantly fell silent. Everyone sat up straight, but their eyes darted towards Li Haochen behind Lu Dehong. They recognized him and looked at him with eyes full of admiration and envy.
"I believe you all recognize him. That's right, it's student Li Haochen, the recruiter for this part-time job opportunity. Now, I invite student Li Haochen to say a few words."
"Tap~tap-tap…"
The applause, initially sparse, gradually grew louder and continued until Li Haochen walked onto the stage.
Li Haochen smiled slightly, raised his hands to quiet the students below, but they all kept their heads down, not daring to meet his gaze.
Clearing his throat, he began with a hint of melancholy, "Three days before the college entrance examination, I tragically lost both my parents. All they left me was a debt of thirty-eight thousand, five hundred and sixty-seven yuan, and an old sampan.
From the day I gained consciousness until my parents passed away, I received new clothes a total of six times. Once was the year I was accepted into the county's key high school; the other five times were all school uniforms. I always bought shoes that were too big, just to reduce the frequency of replacement due to growth spurts, and I wore them for five years straight, from the fifth grade of elementary school to the first year of high school. Every time I passed the sports field, I envied others who could run freely and sweat it out.
I yearned for sports, but I dared not participate, for fear of damaging my shoes.
In my six years of middle school, apart from daily necessities, I never once visited the school store. Every time I saw classmates buying snacks, I would swallow a large mouthful of saliva and run to the tap to fill my stomach with plain water.
As I grew up and saw more of the world, I couldn't help but think a lot. I complained about why our family was so poor, why I wasn't born into a wealthy family, and even complained about why my parents didn't work harder to make money.
One holiday, when I went home, I accidentally saw my father meticulously straightening a wad of coins in the room. There were one-mao and two-mao coins, and the largest was two yuan. All of them added up to less than ten yuan. From their conversation, I realized they were saving that money to buy me shoes for the New Year.
Then I looked at their hands, calloused so thickly that they wouldn't feel pain even after being burned for several minutes, and my complaints seemed particularly ironic.
After that incident, I never complained about anything again.
My parents had very little education, having only attended primary school for a few years. However, they taught me the true meaning of life. They often said, 'Be honest in your dealings, be diligent in your work, do not blame others, and above all, be confident and self-reliant.'
This is my growth experience. Like you, I come from a poor family. The reason I have achieved what I have today is because my parents taught me 'honesty, diligence, and confidence.'
I am sharing this with you all today in the hope that you will not care about the worldly gaze, that you will not feel inferior. Only through confidence and self-reliance can you shine brightly."
"Tap-tap-tap…"
"Tap-tap-tap…"
After Li Haochen finished speaking, everyone in the room gave him the most enthusiastic applause. One minute… three minutes passed, and the applause was still fervent, indicating how deeply his words had resonated.
"Alright, I should be going now. By the way, besides Ye Qin Xiang, I also have fifteen fishing boats, a villa, two aquaculture bays, and 430 commercial properties. Oh, and a property under construction that will be over 300 mu large. That's all for now, so… the world belongs to us. Keep working hard!"