Autumn comes and goes quickly.
Entering December, Yicheng, with its humid southern climate, grew colder day by day as the chill of early winter set in.
Waking up early in the morning in such weather was truly not a pleasant experience.
Tan Jinyue changed day by day, and occasionally let out a cry or two at night, making the already sleep-deprived Tan Jincheng even more depressed.
In an era where even internet access was inconvenient, short videos were out of the question.
There were no evening entertainment options.
Playing Snake on a Nokia?
Forget it.
Live broadcasts of international football matches were too late, affecting his family's rest, so there was no point in thinking about them.
At this very moment, AC Milan was at its peak.
Coach Ancelotti was still a young manager, and superstars like Maldini, Nesta, and others gathered in the Rossoneri.
Most importantly, AC Milan's lineup at this time included Tan Jincheng's favorite star: Kaká.
"Silver saddle gleams on a white horse, swift as a shooting star; a man like jade on the road, a peerless noble."
Back then, buying football magazines was just to get a free Kaká sticker; what a memory for many born in the 80s.
Messi and Ronaldo are strong, but Kaká is better!
"Hurry up, what are you dawdling for? You'll be late for the exam."
"Got it," Tan Jincheng said weakly.
Today was the driving test, and he didn't know why the test site was so remote and the exam time so demanding, requiring such an early start.
Tan Lihua drove him to the test site.
Tan Lihua knew much better than his son what Yicheng taxis were like, and he was quite uneasy about his son taking a taxi to a remote place so early in the morning.
Sitting on the back of the motorcycle, Tan Jincheng was filled with regret.
Why didn't you borrow a car, old man!
Upon arriving at the test site entrance, Tan Lihua turned and left; he had to rush back to work.
With an extra mouth to feed at home, Tan Lihua had been full of drive recently.
Don't think state-owned enterprises necessarily have weekends off; overtime still has to be worked.
"Tan Jincheng!"
Just as he entered the test site, Tan Jincheng heard a crisp shout from behind him.
He turned around and saw, hey; he actually ran into an acquaintance here.
It was Chen Shuyi, dressed in a light khaki cotton jacket, white trousers, sneakers, and a small cross-body bag.
Her Korean-style outfit perfectly matched the mainstream fashion concepts of the era.
"What a coincidence, you're here too, for the exam?"
After speaking, Tan Jincheng also smiled; indeed, the social network in a small city is simple in a way.
Everyone is related in some roundabout way, so it's not surprising to use connections to find the same driving school.
It's just that they had never met before.
Thinking of this, Tan Jincheng asked,
"Why haven't I run into you practicing driving before?"
Chen Shuyi rolled her eyes and said,
"I have classes, okay? I've been signed up for over a year; but you, it's only been two months since you came back, right? How are you already taking the exam?"
Chen Shuyi was currently a sophomore at Yicheng Normal University, so she naturally had no time to practice driving during regular class hours, and it was not surprising that they hadn't met.
"My instructor told me to come; let's go, get inside, it's so cold. How did you get here?"
"My dad drove me, he's waiting outside."
Chen Shuyi pointed to the old Jetta parked at the entrance.
"Perfect, my aunt can give me a ride after the exam."
Tan Jincheng said shamelessly.
He never wanted to ride Old Tan's motorcycle again.
After returning this time, he absolutely had to get a car.
"What are you yelling about? Giving you a ride is fine, but what's in it for me?"
"No problem, I'll treat you and your dad to dinner when we get to the city, you pick the place."
"So you're a boss now, quite a big talker; by the way, why are you back learning to drive at this time? Didn't you say you went to do business?"
"My sister was born, you know, so I came back to see her. I figured since I was idle at home anyway, I'd get my driver's license first."
"Oh, right; I haven't congratulated you yet. What does it feel like to be a big brother at almost 20?"
Chen Shuyi had heard about Tan Jincheng's mother's pregnancy from her cousin, but she hadn't inquired about the specific birth details.
She hadn't expected the baby to be born already, and it was a sister.
Time seemed to have passed unknowingly; in the blink of an eye, everyone had graduated from high school a year and a half ago.
"Feeling? I can't really describe it, but I'm definitely happy,"
Tan Jincheng said with a smile.
At 20, a half-mature, half-immature age, Tan Jincheng in his previous life had been somewhat resistant to his sister's arrival, mainly because it was unexpected.
However, this emotion came quickly and disappeared even faster.
After his sister was born, Tan Jincheng was overjoyed.
Later, after he became successful, he doted on her even more, spoiling her even more than he did his own son.
When he was dating his ex-wife, she was quite jealous of this younger sister.
Thinking of his ex-wife, Tan Jincheng's heart couldn't help but darken:
"Sigh, I hope not to meet her again in this life. May we both be well."
His life path had completely changed, so he probably wouldn't encounter her again.
His ex-wife was neither from Yicheng nor Yongcheng.
Their meeting was an accident, and their separation wasn't due to emotional problems; on the contrary, their relationship remained quite good after they parted ways.
An accident occurred in business, and his ex-wife's family also experienced some changes.
Neither side could overcome the psychological hurdle, so they amicably ended their seven-year relationship.
By the end of 2019, after the three-year-long black swan event, Tan Jincheng even felt somewhat fortunate that they had separated.
If he had stuck to his original path and endured those three years, he might not have even been able to keep his remaining assets.
Even then, if they had still been together, both of them, including their child, would have lived in great suffering.
It was fate, or destiny.
The fleeting sadness in Tan Jincheng's eyes did not escape Chen Shuyi's notice; she just didn't understand why Tan Jincheng, who had just been full of smiles, suddenly had such a sorrowful look.
Logically, Tan Jincheng shouldn't have such a look at his age.
Chen Shuyi wondered internally:
"What exactly did he experience during that year at sea?"
At this moment, Tan Jincheng had recovered from his thoughts, and all the students for today's exam had arrived.
The instructor was arranging them into groups for the test.
Tan Jincheng looked around; while there were students his and Chen Shuyi's age, their number was very small.
Most students were around 30 years old.
In an era when cars were expensive, many people from ordinary families rarely considered getting a driver's license unless it was for work.
Even fewer university students took driving tests.
From this perspective, Chen Shuyi was quite progressive.
One should know that in future life, a driver's license would often be more useful than an ordinary academic degree.
Soon, it was Tan Jincheng and Chen Shuyi's turn.
(End of chapter)
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