Wenhao 1979, starting with contributing to Story Club

Chapter 88 Overturns Three Views

The conversation among the freshmen was lively, and Yu Zhen himself, because of his so-called special mission, paid special attention to the unusual "special treatment" given to computer science freshmen.

We are all young people from all over the country who bravely crossed the single-plank bridge and emerged victorious.

Especially now, he has left his hometown to come to the capital and study at the country's top university.

When leaving their hometown, there were always moments of celebration, with people dressed in red and flowers, banging drums and gongs, and lining the streets to see them off.

The idea of ​​someone being a chosen one of heaven is not very popular these days.

But everyone knows that in their future, they are all destined to have a secure job, to be highly educated and knowledgeable people, and to be the future builders of their own identities.

In ancient times, the path one would take would be to become a student of the Imperial Academy, the Hanlin Academy, or the National Academy. Even if one could not be appointed as an official in a certain region, one could still become a leading expert in a certain field of modernization.

In short, the future is destined to be infinitely bright and wonderful, with many good days beckoning ahead.

To put it in plain language...

The freshmen are inherently arrogant, thinking they're the most important people in the world, and that they'll eventually become the third most important person in the future, right?

Just as my thoughts were wandering aimlessly, an excited male voice suddenly rang out.

"Classmates, I have a secret to tell you."

I heard that starting this year, our school will have a significant number of government-sponsored study abroad opportunities.

And most importantly, unlike in the past when they were sent to Eastern European countries, they were sent directly to the most developed Western capitalist countries in the world, such as the United States, Britain, Germany, and France, to study and pursue advanced studies.

"Tsk tsk, it's still not quite clear what conditions need to be met for us freshmen to qualify as a member!"

There were new students, who seemed to have relatives or elders working in foreign affairs departments. So, when everyone was chatting enthusiastically, the topic of government-sponsored study abroad was suddenly brought up.

The moment this topic was brought up, the enthusiasm for discussion abruptly faltered.

After all, it was a sensitive topic to talk about established Western capitalist empires like the United States. New students were cautious about openly discussing the developed Western world, but it was also obvious that this was a topic that everyone was eager to learn more about.

The freshman who brought up the topic grinned and chuckled upon seeing this.

"Alright, alright, look at you all, acting like thieves. Don't forget that we've already established formal diplomatic relations with the United States and become a country with normal international relations."

If you read books and newspapers regularly, you should have noticed that for the past six months or so, the government has been calling for strengthening interaction and exchanges between China and the United States in areas such as culture, science and technology, and business cooperation.

Furthermore, let's not forget that in the field of cultural exchange, we already have "predecessors" in China who have paved the way for us...

Why are you still pretending to be confused and not understanding what I'm saying?

The legendary feat of Yu, the science fiction writer, who is expected to generate $150 million in foreign exchange for the country over the next five years—don't tell me none of you have ever heard of it…

With the topic brought up to this point, the other freshmen suddenly realized what was going on.

The discussion immediately became much more lively.

That makes sense, relations between countries have already been normalized, and the relevant departments have never prohibited or forbidden people from discussing topics related to the Western world.

Furthermore, they are now all about to enter the next generation of university students.

On their first day together, the college students focused on the topic of government-sponsored overseas study.

Everyone is seeking positive and proactive channels and methods!

Those who successfully navigated the narrow bridge to enter university in this era could not possibly be described as the so-called university students of later generations being generally naive, foolish, and simple-minded; they were all the cream of the crop among their peers.

Those who can get into Tsinghua and Peking University are definitely top-notch in intelligence.

Yu Zhen also engaged in a lively discussion with everyone about government-sponsored overseas training programs.

No one knew better than him that throughout the 1980s and 90s, the hottest topic in China, especially in the university circle, among top-tier universities like Tsinghua, Peking University, and Yenching University, was undoubtedly "how to successfully board the most beautiful international bus for government-sponsored overseas study".

Even in society at large, the trend of going abroad remains consistently high.

It wasn't until more than two decades into the new century that the notion of studying abroad as a prestigious and glamorous career path began to reverse.

However, as they were talking, he suddenly started to shiver.

To be honest, when graduation season arrived, this year's students just happened to catch the first wave of the trend of going abroad!

In other words, almost 90% of the freshmen he was chatting with, who were as close as half-brothers, would all become successful people who would eventually embark on the "broad road" of studying abroad.

If we extend the timeline further, nearly 90% of his half-brothers will inevitably become members of his international family and friends group in the future.

Hey~ damn it!

"Dear students, regarding the future, I have a suggestion on how to successfully secure a government-sponsored overseas study opportunity. You can listen to it for now, and decide for yourself whether to believe it or not. But after listening, please don't gossip about us behind our backs..."

The same freshman, seeing the topic he had raised being widely discussed, felt a sense of pride and accomplishment growing within him, and his desire to share reached its peak.

Sure enough, his attempt to play hard to get immediately garnered enthusiastic encouragement.

"Li, as everyone already knows, you have an uncle who is an official in a foreign affairs unit. You are well-informed and everyone truly admires you. So stop keeping us in suspense and share this with everyone."

Don't worry, if anyone dares to talk behind our backs, we'll all gang up on them and spit on them until they're drowned in our saliva..."

"Yes, yes, yes..."

"That's right. Li is willing to share her experiences. Any heartless person who dares to gossip behind her back, we'll teach them a lesson they won't forget!"

"Being able to study abroad and see the world will undoubtedly play a crucial role in the future growth of each of us. Anyone who makes a foolish mistake in this matter and tries to forcibly constrain everyone with the old set of empty rhetoric."

Ha, this kind of trash shouldn't even be allowed to study at Tsinghua or Peking University!

"right!"

"Well said!"

"Ha, as expected, you all got into Tsinghua and Peking University, the top universities in China. Your vision and knowledge are basically on the same level!"

"Haha, all that empty rhetoric and grandstanding, all that striving for the public good—I've been sick of hearing these kinds of dogmatic pronouncements since I was a kid. I'm not afraid of being seen as an oddball. I just believe in one old saying carefully chosen by our ancestors: 'If a man doesn't look out for himself, he'll be doomed.' If a person can so easily sacrifice his own interests in his entire life, ha..."

Yu Zhen's worldview was about to be overturned.

These freshmen must be feeling incredibly repressed; they've even resorted to sayings like "Every man for himself."

However, the true meaning of this saying, the "self" in the old saying "If a person does not act for himself," refers to self-cultivation and improvement. The original meaning is that if a person is favored by heaven but never pays attention to self-cultivation, does not strive to do well, and improves himself, then heaven and earth will not tolerate it.

It means that as human beings, we should not live in vain.

With your comprehension skills, you've managed to interpret the ancient sayings about self-cultivation as meaning that in everything you do, you should prioritize yourself.

Most importantly, everyone else who heard this showed a strong tendency to follow suit.

"Alright, alright everyone, let's not go off-topic. Let's all listen to Li share his advice on how to secure a spot to study abroad!~~"

Too lazy to correct anyone's mistakes regarding the profound meaning of the ancestral wisdom, he quickly steered the conversation back to Li's train of thought.