Later that day, the students of Finance Class 03 sat in their usual seats as the counselor stood at the front.
Liu Mei clasped her hands together and smiled.
"Alright everyone, just a quick briefing before we officially begin Golden Week."
She pulled out a small stack of notes.
"First, behave yourselves. I know you're all adults, but I still have to say it." She glanced around the room. "While you're allowed to leave campus, you must return by ten o'clock. No exceptions. The guards will be checking."
A few students nodded.
"Now, regarding Mid-Autumn Festival." Her expression brightened. "The school will be distributing mooncakes, apples, and some other snacks. Make sure to collect yours from the student affairs office."
She flipped to the next page.
"Also, if anyone wants to make DIY mooncakes, let me know. I can arrange something with the kitchen staff."
A few murmurs of interest rippled through the classroom.
"One important thing, no unauthorized lantern lighting." Her tone turned serious. "We don't want any fire hazards."
A hand shot up from the middle of the room.
"What about LED lanterns?"
Liu Mei paused. She checked her notes, flipping through a few pages.
Then she scratched her head.
"Well... LEDs should be fine." She shrugged. "The main concern is fire hazards. LEDs don't produce much heat, so..."
She waved her hand vaguely.
"Just use common sense."
The student nodded, satisfied.
Liu Mei continued with a few more reminders - noise levels in the dorms, proper waste disposal, emergency contact numbers.
Finally, she set down her notes.
"That's about it. Have a nice holiday, everyone." She paused, her expression turning slightly stern. "But don't just have fun. Make sure to rest as well. Midterms will be starting soon after we return."
A collective groan echoed through the classroom.
Liu Mei smiled sympathetically.
"One more thing before I let you go."
She turned toward a specific section of the room.
"Those of you who placed in the advanced group for English - if you wish to take your CET-4 exams this December, you need to register at the portal." She tapped her wrist for emphasis. "You need to do this like yesterday. The window is closing soon."
With that, she gathered her things and left.
The classroom erupted into chatter as students began discussing their holiday plans.
But Lin Feng sat frozen in his seat.
CET-4 registration...
He had almost completely forgotten about it.
His mind raced. The December exam window - if he missed this registration period, he would have to wait until June next year to take CET-4. And then December for CET-6.
That was almost a full year of delays.
He pulled out his phone immediately.
I need to register this. Now.
…
The four roommates sat together in the dorm.
Lin Feng checked his phone. There was a message from Madam Zhao - it seemed Tingting wouldn't be available for a lesson today.
He closed the phone and looked up at the others.
"Alright, let's talk about registration."
The room fell quiet as everyone gave him their attention.
"We'll be registering as an LLC," he began. "Each of us will own 25% of the company."
He paused.
"As for me personally - I'll be transferring my shares to a holdings company I'm creating. It's called Fenghua Holdings."
Li Jun raised an eyebrow. "Won't that be problematic?"
Lin Feng shook his head.
"There's no need to worry. I'll set up the correct measures." He leaned back slightly. "The holdings is just to make it easier for me to manage my assets. I've been thinking of investing in startups, and having a separate entity simplifies things."
He continued before anyone could interrupt.
"I'll draft a contract stating that I - and only I - can own 100% of Fenghua Holdings at any given time. If this is ever breached, the contract gives you all the right to buy back my shares at market price before any other entities can."
The others nodded slowly. They understood that Lin Feng wasn't the type to bail on them.
"Now, as for our roles." He looked around the room. "It's mostly the same as before - just as we decided."
He turned to Li Jun.
"You'll be our Executive Director as well as our Legal Representative. Not to be confused with CEO."
Li Jun tilted his head slightly.
"Think of this role like a whole board of directors for a large company," Lin Feng explained. "Basically, you're our highest decision-maker. So be careful with what you do."
He held up a finger.
"Unless there are special circumstances, you're the only one who can sign off on important matters. You could also get us into legal trouble as the Legal Representative, so... don't do anything stupid."
Li Jun nodded seriously.
"That being said," Lin Feng continued, "since this isn't a job title, you won't be paid for it directly. Well, you can still earn money from the company, just not through a normal salary. It would have to be through something like dividends, but that's a whole other thing."
He waved his hand.
"For now, you can also take on the CEO position. That one is paid."
Li Jun nodded again.
Lin Feng turned to Chen Ming.
"As for you, there isn't much to say. You're basically the Chief Marketing Officer. You already know what to do. Just keep doing it."
Chen Ming grinned and gave a thumbs up.
Lin Feng then looked at Zhang Wei.
"Your role is Chief Technology Officer. Anything IT-related goes through you."
Zhang Wei nodded without complaint.
"And as for me," Lin Feng said, pointing at himself, "I'll be taking on the Supervisor role."
He shrugged.
"It's mostly just formality, to be honest. My duty is mainly to watch over our Executive Director and ensure he doesn't do anything bad."
He glanced at Li Jun with a slight smirk.
Li Jun rolled his eyes.
"Anyway, that's about it for now," Lin Feng said. "There are other details - like taxes and earning money through our shares - but I'll explain those after we're officially registered."
He paused, remembering something.
"Oh, that reminds me. After registering, we should finally be able to start taking on part-timers."
He turned to Chen Ming.
"Do your thing."
Chen Ming straightened up and saluted.
"Leave it to me, boss! I'll check for any willing participants and how much they expect as payment."
Lin Feng nodded approvingly.
This guy catches on quick.
"Yeah, that's basically it," he said. "Anyone have something they want to say?"
"Me! Me!" Chen Ming raised his hand enthusiastically.
The others looked at him.
"Why don't we go have a drink to end the month?" he suggested, a wide grin on his face.
The four of them exchanged glances.
Then they smiled.
Lin Feng considered it. He didn't have any lessons today, so...
"I suppose a drink or two wouldn't hurt."