“Registration and the class meeting will be held this morning. They should be over before noon, so you can wait for me here around eleven, Uncle Li.” Zhang Yanyan picked up her backpack and pushed open the car door.
“All right, Miss. Take care, and call me anytime if you need anything.” Mr. Li nodded.
Zhang Yanyan closed the car door and took the elevator up to ground level. When the doors opened, she found herself facing the main building’s lobby.
The lobby was bustling with people, most of them freshmen. Some were huddled together over campus maps, trying to find their classrooms, while volunteers in red vests moved through the crowd, helping direct people. A group had gathered in front of the bulletin board, studying the newly posted class assignments and classroom locations.
Zhang Yanyan squeezed through to the bulletin board and quickly scanned the class listings for the Department of Financial Management. She soon found her name at the top of Class One and confirmed that their classroom was Room 302 in the main building.
She glanced at the bottom of the list and, sure enough, saw the names of Lin Yue, Zhou Yutong, and Chen Sisi. They were all in the same class as her.
Just as she turned away from the bulletin board and headed toward the stairs, a hesitant voice came from behind her.
“Zhang Yanyan?”
Zhang Yanyan paused and turned around.
The person who had called out to her was a round-faced girl with a high ponytail and bright eyes. She was wearing the same school uniform as Zhang Yanyan, and two other girls stood beside her. They looked quite familiar as well.
Zhang Yanyan quickly searched through the original owner’s memories and soon recognized them.
Lin Yue had been the original owner’s classmate in high school. She had excellent grades and had also been admitted to Tengyuan University through her own hard work. The two girls beside her were Zhou Yutong and Chen Sisi, who had also been in the same class.
“It really is you!” Lin Yue’s eyes lit up when Zhang Yanyan turned around, and she hurried over. “I recognized you from behind, but I thought I might be mistaken! We haven’t seen each other since graduating from high school. I can’t believe we ran into each other here. You got into Tengyuan too?”
“Yeah. The Department of Financial Management.” Zhang Yanyan nodded.
“What a coincidence! I’m in Financial Management too!” Lin Yue was thrilled and immediately pressed on. “Which class are you in? I’m in Class One! I spent ages looking for my name on the bulletin board. My eyes were practically going cross-eyed.”
“Class One.” Zhang Yanyan gave a slight nod. “I just checked the list. Our classroom is Room 302.”
“Oh my gosh! We’re in the same class!” Lin Yue nearly jumped for joy. She turned and waved to Zhou Yutong and Chen Sisi. “Come over here! Yanyan’s in our class! What are the odds?”
Zhou Yutong and Chen Sisi hurried over with smiles, greeting Zhang Yanyan all at once.
“Yanyan, it’s been ages! You’ve changed so much—I almost didn’t recognize you!”
“You were always near the top of our grade in high school, so it’s no surprise you got into Tengyuan. Unlike the rest of us—we barely scraped past the cutoff. We nearly died of fright when we checked our scores.”
“I was just telling Yueyue that I was worried we wouldn’t be able to find the classroom. Now we can all go together!”
Chatting and laughing, the four of them made their way up the stairs to the third floor. Lin Yue chattered the whole way about funny incidents from high school and her hopes for university, while Zhang Yanyan responded every now and then.
Fortunately, she had the original owner’s memories. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have known how to join in the conversation.
When they reached Room 302, more than half the students had already arrived. They sat in small groups, chatting quietly with their newly acquainted classmates, youthful smiles on their faces.
Zhang Yanyan glanced around the room and chose a seat by the window in the back row. Lin Yue and the other two naturally took the empty seats beside her.
Only a few minutes after they had put down their bags, a middle-aged woman wearing black-rimmed glasses and a simple business suit entered the room. She carried a class roster and a folder and walked straight to the podium.
The classroom fell silent at once, and everyone’s attention focused on her.
“Good morning, everyone. I’m Liu Min, the counselor for Class One of the Department of Financial Management. Over the next four years, I’ll be accompanying all of you on this journey.”
The woman smiled as she spoke. Her voice was warm yet crisp and efficient. “First of all, welcome to Tengyuan University. You’re now members of the Department of Finance.
“Since today is the first day of school, we won’t be having any classes. We’ll mainly get to know one another and go over the arrangements for the beginning of the semester.”
Teacher Liu first gave them a brief overview of the university’s rules and regulations, the schedule for freshman military training, and important academic matters. She explained everything in meticulous detail. Only after she had finished did she close her folder and smile at the class.
“Next comes a regular feature of every class. In the order listed on the roster, each student will come up and give a brief self-introduction.
“There’s no need to be nervous. Just tell everyone your name, where you’re from, and what your interests or hobbies are. This is a chance for everyone to get acquainted.”
The introductions proceeded one after another.
Some students were lively and outgoing, making the entire class burst into laughter with just a few sentences. Others were shy and reserved, blushing as they hurriedly gave their names before scurrying back to their seats. A few spoke confidently and at length about their understanding of finance and their plans for the future.
Soon, it was Zhang Yanyan’s turn.
She rose and walked to the podium. Standing in front of the microphone, she swept her gaze across the dozens of curious faces below and spoke in a calm, clear voice.
“Hello, everyone. My name is Zhang Yanyan, and I’m from Rongcheng. I’m very happy to become classmates with all of you. I hope we can look out for one another over the next four years.”
There was nothing particularly unusual about Zhang Yanyan’s introduction compared with anyone else’s, but she carried herself with a calm confidence that set her apart. When she finished speaking, the room fell silent for two seconds before erupting into enthusiastic applause.
Lin Yue clapped as hard as she could and leaned toward Zhou Yutong to whisper, “As expected of the provincial science-track Gaokao top scorer. Her presence is incredible!”
Zhang Yanyan gave a slight bow and turned to leave the podium. Just as she returned to her seat, Teacher Liu added with a smile, “By the way, I’d also like to tell everyone that our classmate Zhang Yanyan is this year’s provincial science-track Gaokao top scorer. She’s also the university’s freshman representative and will be giving a speech on behalf of the entire freshman class at this afternoon’s opening ceremony.
“When the time comes, be sure to give our classmate plenty of encouragement and applause.”
The announcement instantly caused an uproar. Every student turned toward Zhang Yanyan, their faces showing surprise, admiration, and unmistakable curiosity.
Lin Yue and the other two looked especially proud. They leaned over and whispered excitedly, “Oh my gosh, Yanyan! You’re amazing! You’re the university’s freshman representative! We’re actually classmates with the Gaokao top scorer. That’s so impressive!”
“Keep it down, keep it down.” Zhang Yanyan smiled and gestured for them to be quiet.
At that moment, she happened to meet Teacher Liu’s gaze. Teacher Liu gave her a warm nod before continuing to organize the remaining students’ introductions.
The entire morning passed amid lively self-introductions and the class meeting.
As noon approached, Teacher Liu instructed everyone to gather in the classroom at two o’clock that afternoon. They would then proceed as a group to the main auditorium for the opening ceremony. After that, she announced that the meeting was over.
“Yanyan, want to go to the dining hall together?” Lin Yue asked after packing up. “We already discussed it. We’re going to try the university’s famous dining hall and see if the food is really as good as people say.”
“Sure.” Zhang Yanyan nodded and sent Mr. Li a message, telling him that she would be eating at the dining hall with her classmates. Then she picked up her bag and left the classroom with Lin Yue and the others, heading toward the dining hall.
On the way, the girls continued chatting with her about her speech that afternoon. Chen Sisi looked full of anticipation. “When you go up onstage later, we’ll all sit up straight down there and applaud as hard as we can. We’ll make sure you get the biggest possible reception!”
Zhang Yanyan laughed at their teasing and agreed. Laughing and chatting, they soon arrived at the cafeteria.
After lunch, they wandered around campus for a while, familiarizing themselves with the locations of the teaching buildings, library, and sports field. As it neared two o’clock, they headed back to Classroom 302 together.
