The university had several volunteer activities available.
To build up her courage, Ji Zhaoxi frequently signed up for them. Recently, she had registered for an activity to organize past materials for the Canton Fair.
She had actually asked Su Manzhen about this specific activity; there were so many options that she hadn't known which one to choose.
"I think you should choose volunteer activities related to the Canton Fair or foreign trade. If you perform well, you might get the chance to do practical work later on."
Qi Zhenzhen, lying on her stomach on the bed, popped her head out. "Ji Zhaoxi, go with the Canton Fair. The university sends students there to work as temporary translators. My mom is from Guangdong, so when the time comes, I'll take you out to have fun."
"Make sure you don't just bury your head in work when you're there, okay? Sometimes the teachers will suddenly test you, and there might be some in-class simulations. If you prepare carefully, the teachers will definitely remember you."
Ji Zhaoxi listened very earnestly, and she obediently prepared exactly as Su Manzhen and Qi Zhenzhen had advised.
Sure enough, during the volunteer activity, the teacher suddenly began to simulate foreign merchants negotiating business and various foreign-related emergencies.
While the other students were still struggling to hit the main points, Ji Zhaoxi stepped up. Her answers were highly professional and perfectly fluent.
The teacher suddenly became curious about her. "Does someone in your family work in foreign trade?"
Ji Zhaoxi shook her head, her throat feeling a bit tight. "No, teacher. I'm just very interested in foreign trade, so I've read up on it in my spare time."
The teacher nodded thoughtfully.
Looking at the teacher, Ji Zhaoxi's heart pounded relentlessly.
If the teacher had asked a few more questions, she probably wouldn't have been able to answer. She had prepared for that previous question a long time ago, and she only remembered a few key points.
Fortunately, the teacher didn't press further and simply told them to continue working.
But to her surprise, the very next month, the university opened registration for temporary volunteer translators for the Canton Fair.
This was a resource the university had fought hard to secure, primarily to give its students practical experience.
As soon as the university sent out the notice, Qi Zhenzhen started urging her, "Ji Zhaoxi, hurry up and sign up! I want to go to Guangzhou and hang out with you."
When Ji Zhaoxi arrived at the registration desk, the teacher in charge was the exact same one from her previous volunteer activity.
Seeing her, the teacher smiled. "I knew you'd come to sign up. I just ran into your oral English teacher, and she said your spoken English is excellent as well."
A teacher next to her also looked at Ji Zhaoxi. "What year is this student in?"
The volunteer activity teacher handed her a form. "A freshman. Young people these days are truly impressive."
Before long, the office was packed with students coming to register.
"Have you ever been to Guangzhou?" the volunteer teacher asked, looking at Ji Zhaoxi.
Ji Zhaoxi shook her head shyly. "I haven't been there yet."
The teacher's eyes crinkled in a smile, but she didn't speak. The teacher next to her chuckled, "Well, that's perfect. If you get selected this time, you can go have some fun in Guangzhou."
Ji Zhaoxi didn't know how to describe her feelings at that moment.
She was definitely going to be selected—that was the message they were giving her.
From childhood until now, she had received many such signals, some small and some big.
As small as adults giving her more candy than other children, to as big as her older sister choosing to take only her away from a house full of kids—and now this.
As she left the office, she glanced back. The teacher was still smiling, but it was a different kind of smile than before.
Ji Zhaoxi liked this feeling. She deserved it; she had put in so much effort.
The day to leave for Guangzhou finally arrived.
It was another unfamiliar city, but Ji Zhaoxi was no longer afraid.
During the trip, the most excited person wasn't Ji Zhaoxi, but Qi Zhenzhen.
"It's already really hot in Guangzhou. We can wear dresses together when we get there."
"Did you bring enough money? I want to pick out clothes for you. If you didn't, big sis here will pay for you."
"Ji Zhaoxi, how come you're not excited at all? You're such a nerd!"
The teacher sitting opposite them laughed. "Qi Zhenzhen, I heard you have family working in foreign trade. How come you didn't sign up this time?"
Qi Zhenzhen shook her head. "I don't want to do this kind of hard labor. It's too exhausting."
If she was going to do anything, she would just go straight into doing business.
They soon arrived in Guangzhou. The teachers and students were arranged to stay in a designated foreign-related reception hotel for the Canton Fair, in double rooms.
These conditions were already quite good, but Qi Zhenzhen still felt the university was being incredibly stingy. She wanted to drag Ji Zhaoxi to stay at her family's home, but the teacher stopped her.
The next day, Ji Zhaoxi and the others followed the teacher to the main hall of the Canton Fair. There were many volunteers, and it was obvious that a lot of them were students.
The central hall had a ceiling over ten meters high. Although Ji Zhaoxi had mentally prepared herself, she still couldn't help but feel a little nervous standing right in the middle of it.
Surrounding her was a cacophony of incomprehensible chatter, broken English, and French. The air was a mix of various cigar smoke and perfumes. Thousands of booths were spread out, and everyone wore expressions of excitement.
In a corner exhibition area, a British businessman was speaking emotionally about something. He kept shaking his head, his face flushed red.
The boss in front of the booth loudly explained with a heavy accent, "Ship! Big boat!"
The boss even made a gesture imitating a steamship.
The British businessman grew even angrier. "It's not about the ship! It's the sheep!"
Seeing the boss still gesturing, he became so angry he could barely breathe. He grabbed his bag, ready to leave.
Ji Zhaoxi had been listening from the side for a while and had more or less figured it out. She quickly walked over. "Excuse me, sir. Are you talking about the raw material, the wool?"
The British man nodded eagerly, as if he had found a lifesaver. He was being driven crazy by this man.
Ji Zhaoxi turned to the boss. "Boss, he's not talking about a 'ship'. He's talking about 'sheep', as in wool. He means the wool purity of your tapestries isn't high enough; he's not talking about the shipping schedule."
The boss suddenly understood and laughed. "I was wondering what he kept going on about."
"Little student, please help me tell him that I can take him to the sample room on the second floor. They definitely have the purity he wants up there."
Ji Zhaoxi translated the boss's words for the British man. The British man thanked Ji Zhaoxi and then followed the boss to the sample room.
The Canton Fair lasted for a long time, and Ji Zhaoxi didn't have time to go out and play with Qi Zhenzhen. She had to stay in the exhibition hall during the day, and when she went back at night, she had to memorize specialized terminology.
The workload was heavy, and Ji Zhaoxi went from her initial excitement to feeling increasingly exhausted as time went on.
Fortunately, the university didn't overwork them. They sent a second batch of students over, allowing Ji Zhaoxi and her group a day or two to explore Guangzhou.
When Qi Zhenzhen heard the news, she immediately had Ji Zhaoxi move into her house, determined to make sure she had the time of her life over those two days.
