Chapter 260: One is in the open, while the enemy lurks in the shadows.

“What a pity?”

Li Qingrong didn’t understand what was a pity, but after pondering for a moment, she looked up and said seriously,

“It’s only three months short.”

Jiang Nian thought, three months won’t do. Driving licenses are strictly regulated now. The rules state you must be an adult to register and take the test; not even a day earlier is allowed.

If it were before, taking a driving test?

Forget the test, I’d just pay for one directly.

As far as Jiang Nian knew, a relative of the Jiang family had bought his license. The rough fellow couldn’t pass the test no matter how many times he tried, being illiterate and utterly confused, so he could only pay.

Four thousand five hundred, and he got it directly.

As for driving, this old man had been driving on the road for several years before even getting his license. If you asked him, he’d say life was tough, he was an old reliable driver, you could count on him.

He’d set off when it got dark; whether he got caught depended entirely on luck and various intelligence networks.

Later, when license checks became stricter, a friend reminded him that if he didn’t buy one soon, it would be too late. That’s when he reluctantly spent money to find connections and got a license.

He vaguely remembered a few years ago, at a New Year’s dinner, that elder, his neck flushed from drinking, was smoking and bragging with a circle of middle-aged elders, including Old Jiang.

When the topic of driving schools came up, they somehow started arguing.

That old fellow was truly spirited; he slapped his driving license on the table with a bang, a domineering posture that said, “No proof, no talk,” and looked around, saying,

“In ’07, Huang’an Driving School, registered without being connected to the internet—there was no internet at all—four thousand five hundred!”

The surrounding relatives immediately gasped, all leaning in to look.

“Brother, you really bought it?”

“Ah, yes, indeed.”

An even older fellow came out, leaned over for a look, and started bragging even bigger.

“Back in the nineties, when I was learning to drive big trucks in Guangdong, I knew a guy who bought a license for eight thousand yuan. There was no internet back then, and ID cards were still 15 digits.”

“Uncle, can you still buy them now?”

“What are you kidding about? Every place has people who make a living from this. But now it’s all connected online, so if you can pass, just take your time. Sign up for a guaranteed pass class, maybe?”

“Wouldn’t it be a headache if you didn’t pass?”

“Nah, it’d be the instructor’s headache.”

One can only say it was like a line of cows, one brag following another.

Old folks like to talk big when they drink, so the content isn’t highly credible. But at least thirty percent of it is true, meaning regulation really wasn’t as standardized back then.

Now, don’t even think about it. It’s better to spend three or four thousand and cram for a month to finish the test.

Jiang Nian came back to his senses and shook his head.

“Class monitor, this really does require you to be an adult.”

Li Qingrong frowned slightly and asked,

“Why?”

“Huh? It’s the law,” Jiang Nian didn’t know how to explain, his mind still on the driving license, “I should be able to, but you, class monitor, can’t.”

Wait, he seemed to have forgotten to say something.

Li Qingrong hummed, her tone showing no fluctuation.

“Can’t you wait three months?”

“It’s not impossible, I was still considering it,” Jiang Nian looked up, then suddenly hesitated for a few seconds, “Class monitor, are you also planning to get a driving license?”

Li Qingrong paused for a few seconds, then averted her gaze from Jiang Nian and picked up her pen.

“Mm.”

Jiang Nian was delighted; he felt he had finally found a common topic and said enthusiastically,

“I might sign up first and take Subject One or something.”

In the bustling classroom, most people had gone out. After all, it was the ten-minute break during the second class of the evening, followed by three and four consecutive evening self-study sessions.

Throughout the entire process, Jiang Nian was almost the only one talking.

Li Qingrong just listened with her head down, seemingly doing problems. But her pen strokes were very slow, and upon closer inspection, there was no progress at all, effectively stagnant.

“So, have you signed up yet?”

At that, Jiang Nian’s voice abruptly stopped.

“No.”

So he babbled on and on, but in action, he was a dwarf.

“Ahem, the current difficulty is signing up without my parents knowing,” Jiang Nian said somewhat awkwardly, “Taking Subject One doesn’t really delay anything; you can just go and take it.”

“Mm.” Li Qingrong nodded, saying nothing more.

Just then, the class bell rang, and their conversation ended.

When Li Hua and the others returned from outside the classroom, Jiang Nian perked up again. After Zhang Ningzhi took her seat, he started chatting with them about other topics.

Zhang Ningzhi was in a good mood; she had already ordered the seat cushions.

But considering whether two packages would be too light to serve as an excuse, and her forcing the issue would seem too dramatic, she simply ordered six in one go.

Anyway, they were all friends, so she’d give one to Fangfang too.

Perfect.

She couldn’t carry six packages by herself, so a certain little thief would need to do a little “manual labor.” Of course, it wouldn’t be without reward.

He would get a brand new free seat cushion, and her praise.

As soon as she thought of this, her body was instantly filled with energy.

Returning to her seat, she suddenly became aware of the “drawback” of her deskmate. That is, he was too accustomed to her, often ignoring her directly.

He would rather chat with boys than with her.

But in less than a second, she dismissed that thought from her mind. She thought that it was a bit too selfish; don’t others have their own preferences?

With a sense of guilt, she unhappily pulled out her book.

But accidentally, it fell onto the desk with a thud.

Jiang Nian was startled, thinking, why was Ningzhi unhappy again? He hadn’t provoked her.

“What’s wrong?”

“Huh? Nothing.” Zhang Ningzhi blinked, then carefully picked up and placed things, saying miserably, “I want to go back to sleep, but there are still two evening self-study sessions.”

Under the stark white light, the noisy classroom was brightly lit.

“That’s true, I’m actually fine.” Jiang Nian thought for a moment, said “wait a moment,” and then got up and left his seat.

Zhang Ningzhi turned her head in confusion, her gaze following Jiang Nian’s retreating figure.

She watched him walk up to Cai Xiao, the disciplinary committee member, and say something, most likely making up another excuse.

“Disciplinary Committee, I’m going to the restroom.” Jiang Nian didn’t even try to hide it.

He had already thought about how to answer if Cai Xiaoqing asked him why he didn’t go during the break. He’d just say, “I didn’t feel like it right after class.”

However, Cai Xiaoqing merely glanced at him.

“Oh.”

Jiang Nian’s defensive words were already on the tip of his tongue, but Cai Xiaoqing’s single punch forced them back.

“Alright, thank you, Cai Xiaoqing.”

Yu Tongjie, standing nearby, was a bit annoyed and retorted,

“I need to go to the restroom too.”

Cai Xiaoqing ignored him and continued writing his homework.

The subtext was, I don’t know; if you’re really urgent, you can go directly. But if you get caught or the homeroom teacher asks, then it’s because you didn’t tell me.

Watching Jiang Nian leave the classroom, the neglected Yu Tongjie grew even angrier.

“Why can he go and I can’t?”

Click. Cai Xiaoqing stopped his pen and looked coldly at Yu Tongjie.

“When did I say you couldn’t go?”

“Then you should agree!” Yu Tongjie was also getting worked up.

He had been tormented these past two days, constantly on edge and furious.

Which bastard had dug up his real information in the cheating group? A knife had been hanging over his neck for half a day, yet it hadn’t fallen.

Damn it, it kept swaying, looking for an angle.

Everyone dies eventually; Yu Tongjie wasn’t afraid to blow up with that idiot. After all, they were in the same group to figure out the information, so what was he pretending for?

At worst, they’d die together; they’d see whose backing was stronger.

But he just couldn’t stand the knife constantly hovering at his neck, reminding him of this matter. He couldn’t let it go, yet the other party wouldn’t respond.

Damn it, he’d fallen into a dark forest.

He was in the open, the enemy in the dark, watching him.

The situation had developed to the point where he was the fish on the chopping block, just waiting for the other party to make a move, or perhaps it was just a prank, or truly preparing to strike.

Anyway, this kind of life was truly too painful.

It was precisely because of this that Yu Tongjie’s Dao Heart had been unstable these past few days. He was practically a powder keg, ready to explode at any moment.

Hearing this, Cai Xiaoqing was a bit displeased and frowned,

“You decide for yourself. If you want to go, go. You bear the responsibility.”

“After all that, you just don’t agree, right?” Yu Tongjie hadn’t endured so much frustration since before he entered this class, so much so that he almost forgot.

He wasn’t some honest, docile little lamb, but rather…

“Are you going to the restroom or what?” Cai Xiaoqing was getting impatient, “Does my agreement matter? I said if you want to go, go.”

“Then when Jiang Nian went, why did you agree?” Yu Tongjie’s temper flared.

“What did I agree to?” Cai Xiaoqing said.

“You said ‘Oh,’ wasn’t that agreeing?” His voice was also a bit loud, “When I said I wanted to go, you didn’t even bother with me. Isn’t this differential treatment obvious?”

The class members all turned their heads, watching the two argue.

“Why did they start arguing?”

“I don’t know, someone seems to be stirring up trouble.”

Li Hua couldn’t stand it anymore; he wasn’t afraid of this idiot Yu Tongjie at all.

“If you want to go, then go, what are you arguing about here?”

“What does it have to do with you?” Yu Tongjie turned and angrily spat at Li Hua. The two had met before and weren’t complete strangers, “Mind your own business!”

“Idiot, what are you talking about?” Li Hua was already preparing to get out of his seat and resolve it physically.

Ma Guojun stopped him, pulling him back and saying,

“A dog is biting, don’t go.”

Fortunately, it was just an argument. After about ten seconds, Yu Tongjie himself calmed down, realized he was stuck, and simply apologized to Cai Xiaoqing.

“I’m sorry, I was just a bit…”

Cai Xiaoqing naturally wouldn’t hold a grudge against a classmate; otherwise, he couldn’t be the disciplinary committee member.

“It’s fine.”

Not long after, Jiang Nian returned and immediately sensed the atmosphere was off.

Friendly book recommendation: “Lord of the Demonic Path”

Immortality is merely a cultivation method; the Demonic Path can also open the door to eternal life.

Born differently from mortals, he treads upon white bones to become the Lord of the Dao.

—

Born into the Demonic Path, how could he not achieve true enlightenment?

Since he experienced Rebirth into this great era where immortals and demons coexist, and gods and Buddhas preach the Dao, Ying Chen will ascend step by step, until he looks back and sees all realms bowing, respectfully calling him the Lord of the Dao!