Fang Bai didn't have to worry about business matters now; the only business he needed to do was spend two or three days each month urging the valve company for payments and signing new orders.
In the past one or two months, Jiayu Company's equipment count had reached 8 units. Fang Bai and Qin Donghai discussed that once the total number of units reached over ten, they would rent a factory spanning several acres to achieve a significant leap in factory scale and develop their own products in the future.
What reassured Fang Bai was that his father-in-law was still unaware of his true situation. Being busy with business all day, he probably had no mind to inquire about other matters.
Fang Bai still needed to keep his relationship with Qin Shuyu a secret; it would be best if his father-in-law and mother-in-law found out two or three years later.
Three days later,
The scores for the second mock exam were released.
Fang Bai's total score was 625!
Chinese 101, English 96, Mathematics 113, Physics 90, Chemistry 92, Politics 75, Biology 58.
His 625 points also squeezed him into the top one hundred in Wen City, ranking 38th.
School's Second Mock Exam Results Bulletin Board Top: Fang Bai, 625 points (38th in Wen City)
The second-place student in the school was the third-place student from the first mock exam, Jiang Ya, with 572 points.
Zhang Yuanqing fell to third place with 565 points.
There would be one last mock exam in mid-June, which would also be the one closest to the actual college entrance examination scores.
After the mock exam, students would have to declare their university preferences.
Students with a total score below 450 in this second mock exam were in despair, seeing no hope of getting into university, and the study atmosphere in the classroom was very oppressive.
With a total score of 710, only those who scored above 480 had a chance of getting into a junior college.
This score was equivalent to 510 out of 750 in later generations, which would be the key score line in some provinces.
Therefore, it was truly very difficult to get into university in those years.
Fang Bai estimated that for First Repeat Class, this elite class, it would be good if half the students could get into university.
For ordinary repeat classes, with sixty or seventy repeat students in one class, only a few could get into university.
Those who didn't get in would either continue to repeat or go out to work.
When Xinghai Company recruited personnel, they could hire these high school graduates, train them, and they could all stand on their own.
...
Time flew by, and soon it was mid-June.
The daytime temperature gradually rose, the flowers by the roadside of Xinghai Shopping Mall began to bloom, and the air was filled with a rich floral fragrance.
At the construction site west of the shopping mall, the concrete framework of the first basement level had been poured, and workers began to build side walls for waterproofing and anti-seepage work.
Fang Bai had just finished the third mock exam, and the scores were out.
Total score 650, second place in Wen City!
Chinese 102, English 98, Mathematics 115, Physics 95, Chemistry 96, Politics 82, Biology 62!
His scores in all subjects reached new heights, shocking all the teachers and students in the school.
If the college entrance examination score was this, let alone Fudan, getting into Qingbei would be no problem.
The top students in the Jiangzhe Province college entrance examination were mainly concentrated in the provincial capital, Wen City, and Ning City, almost monopolizing the top twenty in the province every year.
It was difficult to score high in Chinese, and the same went for Politics.
For the remaining half a month, Fang Bai had to memorize Politics and Biology by rote, while solidifying his studies in other subjects.
"Fang Bai, aren't you considering Qingbei?" Zhan Feng approached Fang Bai to discuss his university preferences. After the third mock exam, students started filling out their preferences, not a few days before the college entrance examination.
Some students simply gave up, feeling that whatever they scored in the college entrance examination didn't matter, they'd just leave it to luck.
Fang Bai shook his head: "My future career is in Shanghai, the capital is too deep, I can't play there."
"Alright, you have a point."
Zhan Feng was amused by his words and smiled easily. Given his family's wealth, he wouldn't be able to enter a public institution after graduation; he would definitely go into business, or perhaps pursue a political career.
She handed Fang Bai a reference book for college entrance examination preferences, asking him to look at it and then pass it on to other students.
Fang Bai took the materials and went back to the classroom to understand them.
This was the admission line data for various universities in Jiangzhe Province from the previous year. It was hard to say how accurate it was, but it was compiled by the provincial education department and distributed to various high schools.
Fudan University, planned enrollment 25, actual enrollment 26, highest score 631, lowest score 568;
Tsinghua University, planned 122, actual 124, highest score 643, lowest score 575;
East China University of Chemical Technology, planned 127, actual 128, highest score 586, lowest score 505;
Shandong University, planned 24, actual 24, highest score 558, lowest score 530;
Beijing Forestry University, planned 7, actual 7, highest score 522, lowest score 495;
Peking Union Medical College, planned 6, actual 6, highest score 629, lowest score 583;
Shanghai Jiaotong University, planned 155, actual 155, highest score 659, lowest score 556;
...
When Fang Bai saw that 575 points could also get into Tsinghua, he was somewhat disbelieving, but then he thought about it being a blind selection, and it made sense. He probably applied for an unpopular major.
Moreover, the lowest score had no reference value; one had to look at the average score, but the data did not include that.
He estimated that without at least 620 points, it would be difficult to reliably get into Qingbei.
After flipping through it, he found that the highest score was only 659 points, equivalent to 695+ in a 750-point system.
But this highest score was for Shanghai Jiaotong University, which probably meant the student lacked confidence in applying to Qingbei before the exam and then overperformed.
It was possible that 659 points was the provincial top scorer's score.
When classmates saw Fang Bai looking at the university admission score line data, they also gathered around to look. Soon, more than ten classmates surrounded Fang Bai, most of them lamenting that the admission score lines were too high.
Very few were below 500, and those who got in were mostly lucky finds.
"Fang Laoda, Jiao Tong University or Fudan?"
"Maybe he's going to Qingbei."
"Not decided yet." Fang Bai pouted, handed the materials to his classmates, waved for everyone to disperse, and said he needed to continue working hard.
There were still more than ten days; perhaps he could improve even more.
Two days later, students began filling out their university preferences. The school required submissions before June 22nd.
In some provinces, preparations for filling out preferences began in early June, but it was generally after the last mock exam.
Before filling out his preferences, Fang Bai called Qin Shuyu to discuss it. He ultimately chose the Mechanical Design and Automation major at Shanghai Jiaotong University.
There were too few chip talents in China, and Fang Bai felt he couldn't do it alone. Moreover, chip-related supporting equipment was hard to come by, and even with technology, it was difficult to accomplish. It was better to start with mechanics first and then see if there was an opportunity when his Golden Finger level was higher.
Of course, whether he would engage in chip development in the future was uncertain; a single person who could specialize and excel in one field was already very impressive.
Zhang Xiaoai, who sat in front of Fang Bai, filled out a preference for a vocational college in Shanghai. Her third mock exam score was 510, which was quite good.
Her deskmate scored 500 in the third mock exam, not much different, and applied to Wenda.
Most classmates filled out preferences for universities within the province, and many asked Fang Bai for his opinion.
"Although universities within the province admit more students, the number of applicants is also high. Plus, our province's examinees generally score higher, so the admission scores might also be high. If you're not very confident, it's better to choose a university in a remote area; you might even be admitted if you're below the line," Fang Bai mused, "Of course, this is just my opinion. If you ultimately aren't admitted, please don't blame me. Your own matters are for you to decide."
When he said this, many classmates felt it was very reasonable. Jiangzhe Province had good student sources, so the admission scores for universities within the province were higher. It was unlikely to get in if one was below the line.
Conversely, for a university in a remote city, students from Jiangzhe Province were less willing to go, so the number of applicants was too small. Coupled with the good student sources from Jiangzhe Province, it was possible to be admitted even if one was below the line.
Most of the students with poor grades listened to him, and their focus shifted to universities outside the province, rather than those within the province.
July's heat, July 7th, the college entrance examination day arrived as scheduled.
Fang Bai brought a water bottle to prevent heatstroke, but he dared not drink too much water to avoid frequent trips to the restroom.
The examination center was at his own school, but the invigilators were not teachers from his school.
On the first day, Chinese was in the morning. Fang Bai was still a bit worried, mainly about not writing the essay well.
A few minutes before the test papers were distributed, a tense and solemn atmosphere filled the classroom, as if time itself had frozen.
Every examinee sat up straight, their gaze focused, with a hint of nervousness and anticipation on their faces.
A moment later, the teacher distributed the test papers. After Fang Bai received his paper, he first looked at the questions.
Two essay questions?
"1. The teacher draws a circle on the blackboard and asks students to write an imaginative essay, around 200 words.
2. A class holds a debate. One side's view is 'Bad company corrupts good manners'; the other side's view is 'Bad company does not necessarily corrupt good manners.' Please choose one side and write a speech to participate in the debate.
Requirements: (1) Can be written as a speech or an argumentative essay.
(2) No less than 500 words.
Bad company corrupts good manners / Bad company does not necessarily corrupt good manners (Cross out the unchosen topic)."
There was an extra short essay, which didn't require many words.
He thought for a moment: a full moon like a circle, planets, pearls, irregular shapes not forming a circle, etc., all could be written about.
The main essay was a choice of two, a common type, not difficult to write.
What he feared most were the essay questions of later generations, where one couldn't even understand the prompt, like ancient text prompts from "Dream of the Red Chamber"; people who hadn't read the book would be very confused, especially those classical Chinese texts that were incomprehensible.
Fang Bai wiped his forehead and started writing from the beginning.
He wrote quite smoothly and even had time to check his paper after finishing.
After the Chinese exam, other subjects followed, two subjects each day.
Three and a half days later, the exams were finally over.
"Wow, it's finally over!"
Fang Bai breathed a sigh of relief, wanting to shout loudly.
After the invigilators left, a relaxed atmosphere of release filled the classroom.
The motivational quotes for exam preparation on the classroom walls were still hanging, but they had lost their oppressive feeling of the past, becoming somewhat pale and powerless.
After the exam, the homeroom teacher still had things to say, asking students not to leave school temporarily.
Fang Bai returned to the classroom and saw that most classmates were relaxed and happy, but some were silent, mostly because they hadn't performed well and felt their future was bleak, as if everything in this space was quietly waiting for the next beginning.
The graffiti and formulas on the desks bore witness to everyone's struggle and hard work.
Many classmates carved phrases like "Keep going, Senior Year 4," "See you next year," "Farewell, Senior Year 4," "I love you, XX" on their desks.
Most college entrance examinees directly threw away their textbooks, and the classroom was full of scattered books and papers.
There were also a few examinees who just lay on their desks and cried, comforted by their classmates.
Fang Bai sat in his seat, quietly observing these classmates' actions.
The college entrance examination, it was both an end and a new beginning.
Here, he left his footprints, and in the years to come, others would continue to walk in his stead, starting their own new chapter of repeating a grade.
A moment later, Zhan Feng came to hold a class meeting, comforting the students who hadn't performed well: "It's good that you tried your best; no one is a failure. Life is still long, and going to university is not the only path.
The first batch of university admission notices generally starts mailing out at the end of July, and the second batch in early August. Students, please register at the school after you receive your notice."
After the short meeting, classmates took postcards for Fang Bai to sign. Fang Bai agreed to each one, and for classmates he was close with, he left his phone number, telling them to find him at Xinghai Shopping Mall if they needed anything.