Back to 1997, I became the originator of online literature

Chapter 499 Did you ever like me?

Upon arriving at the elevator, Cao Sheng pressed the up button, then clasped his hands together in front of his lower abdomen, waiting for the elevator to arrive.

Qian Zhenyu stood beside him, waiting for the elevator with him while glancing at him.

At this moment, there was no one else around, just the two of them, and the air seemed to quiet down.

She could only catch a glimpse of his profile.

He looked at the elevator, not at her, so she could quietly observe him.

In an instant, many images from her senior year of high school flashed through her mind.

She remembered the first night of her senior year when she was divided into three classes. During a break in evening self-study, she got up from the front row of the classroom to talk to a girl sitting in the last few rows. She noticed a boy staring at her intently, and she couldn't help but glance at him a few more times.

Later I learned that this guy's name was Cao Sheng. He was usually quiet and a bit introverted. He was good at Chinese and math, ranking among the top in the class. He especially got the highest score in Chinese.

She remembered that during her senior year of high school, every time she turned around, she would find him staring at her at least seven out of ten times.

Does this guy like me?

She was almost certain of his feelings for her.

But she wasn't interested in dating at that time.

Moreover, almost every boy in the class looked at her strangely back then, but Cao Sheng especially liked to stare at her from behind.

She didn't dislike him.

After all, out of the twenty-odd boys in the class, he was the most handsome.

But she knew very well that there was no possibility between them. She was good enough to get into a top-tier university, but what about him? He often failed English, and his scores in politics, history, and geography were only average. Forget about getting into a top-tier university, he might not even get into a regular university.

So, throughout her senior year of high school, she simply watched him gaze at her with indifference.

Sometimes, when she wasn't studying, she would think: Will he study hard and improve his grades so that he could apply to the same university as me in order to pursue me?
Sometimes she would think: If he really could get into the same university as me, could I give him a chance once we got there? His family seems to be from the countryside, and we don't seem to be a good match.

and many more.

Later, the college entrance examination results came out.

When she picked up her report card at her homeroom teacher's house, she noticed his total score, which was slightly below the undergraduate admission line.

She seemed to feel a little regretful at the time.

After leaving my homeroom teacher's house, I looked at the blue sky and white clouds outside, smiled, and felt that my future lay in the distance, in a vast world waiting for me to meet and explore. I knew that there would be many outstanding people waiting for me to meet in the future, my university classmates, and that everyone's college entrance examination scores would be much better than Cao Sheng's. Ultimately, Cao Sheng and I were not from the same world.

He was just a passerby in my life, and I probably won't have the chance to see him again.

She still remembers when she entered Fudan University.

Standing in front of the school gate, looking at the gate of Fudan University, Cao Sheng flashed through my mind, and I imagined what he would look like standing at the gate of some college.

His score wasn't high enough for a bachelor's degree. Coming from a rural area, he didn't have the money to attend a private third-tier university. He could either repeat his senior year of high school, go to a junior college, or... go straight into the workforce to learn a trade or work in a factory as a factory worker on an assembly line.

She entered Fudan University with aspirations for the future.

She even secretly hoped to have a romantic relationship on the university campus.

but……

Before she met anyone she liked, she happened to see a news report about Cao Sheng on the cafeteria TV while eating in the school cafeteria.

She remembered that on television that day, a group of reporters stood in front of Cao Sheng, their microphones pointed at him like long guns and short cannons.

I still remember him calmly answering the reporters' questions one by one.

She still vividly remembers one of his remarks on television that day: "I'll enjoy the good times and bear the bad. Since he's getting old, we should pay more attention to his blood pressure, blood sugar, and cholesterol..."

Did he get into Fudan University?

That thought flashed through her mind at that moment.

She got into Fudan University, and he, who had gone to a junior college, reappeared in front of her on television.

That day on TV, he was bathed in the flashes of a bunch of cameras, and he seemed to be glowing. It was the first time she realized how handsome he was.

later?

For as long as she studied in college, he continued his flamboyant lifestyle, appearing in the news every now and then, either in her sight or in the conversations of others.

Even though he wasn't in the same university as her, it seemed like he was right next to her.

Over the years of university, she not only did not forget him, but her impression of him became more and more profound.

Furthermore, during their years of university, she not only didn't become a stranger to him, but instead knew everything about his current situation. She knew what books and screenplays he had written during his university years, roughly how much money he had earned, the extent of his fame, and... which beautiful women he was dating and which women he had been rumored to be dating...

Several years have passed since they graduated from high school.

She hadn't become a stranger to him.

But at this moment, a thought flashed through her mind: I still know him well, but he must have become a stranger to me. He doesn't know how I've been these past few years.

"Ding……"

The elevator doors opened, and Cao Sheng turned around, smiling as he extended his hand. "You go in first!"

"it is good!"

Qian Zhenyu gathered her scattered thoughts, smiled, and stepped into the elevator. Cao Sheng followed her in and pressed the button for the 5th floor.

The elevator is moving upwards at a constant speed.

Qian Zhenyu started a conversation, "Hey! What made you decide to write novels? Did you write any in high school?"

Cao Sheng turned to look at her and smiled, "I didn't write it in high school."

Qian Zhenyu: "So after you entered university, why did you suddenly decide to write novels? What inspired you?"

Cao Sheng glanced at the elevator doors and casually said, "No! I just want to find a way out for the future."

Qian Zhenyu asked, puzzled, "Oh? What do you mean?"

Cao Sheng was still looking at the elevator door, his tone calm. "The college entrance examination has six subjects: Chinese, Mathematics, English, Politics, History and Geography. My college entrance examination scores show that I can't beat you in terms of total scores across all six subjects. So I can only look for my strengths and try to compete with you in individual subjects. Writing novels should be the best way to showcase my strengths in Chinese, so I want to give it a try."

This idea didn't actually come to him when he first entered university.

In the original timeline, the idea of ​​writing novels arose after he entered society.

At that time, he felt that he was far behind many people in terms of education, which destined him to have a bleak future in the workplace.

But when it comes to writing novels, he doesn't feel that his language skills are much worse than those of his peers.

So, I wanted to try writing online novels.

Make the most of your strengths in Chinese language and literature.

This is undoubtedly a risky and unconventional choice.

Once you make a mistake, there's probably no going back.

But deep down he was unwilling to remain at the bottom of society for the rest of his life and wanted to take a gamble.

He was afraid that if he didn't take this chance, he would regret it when he got older.

later?

Although his online writing performance fluctuated, he knew he had won when he earned over 10,000, 20,000, or 30,000 yuan a month.

Although writing online novels turned him into a homebody, it also made his love life very bumpy. When his works flopped one after another, he always faced being dumped.

When he wanted to get married, women always thought he was unreliable because his income was very unstable, and no one was willing to walk down the aisle with him.

And then what?
Now that his income was relatively stable and he had the freedom to be selective about his marriage partner, he found himself unable to find a satisfactory one. At that time, every woman he knew, regardless of age or profession, seemed unsuitable for marriage.

And at this moment.

Qian Zhenyu was taken aback by his words.

Did he write novels to compare his scores in a single subject with others?
In an instant, she thought of many things, such as: Every year, many students across the country who excel in one subject but are weak in another get into junior colleges, so why don't other students with similar strengths have this idea? Why is it that Cao Sheng thinks of writing novels to make use of his strength in Chinese language?

As a graduate of Fudan University, she had an absolute psychological advantage over Cao Sheng in terms of academic qualifications.

However, she had no psychological advantage whatsoever in the subject of Chinese.

This is not only because of Cao Sheng's current achievements in writing.

The main reason is that when they were in their senior year of high school, his Chinese score was always higher than hers.

"Ding……"

The elevator reached the 5th floor, the doors opened, and Cao Sheng gestured for her to go first.

This time, Qian Zhenyu did not go out first, but gestured for him to go first.

"Cao Sheng! It's been a long time since we last met. Why don't you come to my room and sit for a while? I have something I want to tell you."

As Qian Zhenyu spoke, her eyes remained fixed on Cao Sheng.

Cao Sheng looked at her, smiled and nodded.

After a while.

He went into her room.

Qian Zhenyu walked quickly forward, went to the closet, took out two bottles of mineral water, turned around and handed one of them to Cao Sheng, "Have some water!"

"Thank you."

Cao Sheng took the water, and Qian Zhenyu invited him to sit on the sofa.

Cao Sheng walked over and sat down, casually looking around the room, and then unscrewed the cap of a mineral water bottle.

Qian Zhenyu sat down next to him, raised her hand to smooth a strand of hair behind her ear, looked at him, and started a conversation, "I really didn't expect you to own such a hotel now. This hotel is nice! Have you ever stayed in a room here yourself?"

Cao Sheng smiled and shook his head, "No! I only recently acquired the operating rights to this hotel. I came here to take a look, but I haven't stayed here."

Qian Zhenyu smiled and said, "Why don't you stay here tonight and see?"

Cao Sheng looked at her in surprise, and she smiled and pointed to the wall behind her, "I meant next door! You can try staying next door tonight."

Cao Sheng chuckled.

"Forget it! My place isn't far from here, and I don't like staying in hotels anyway."

Qian Zhenyu chuckled, "You don't like staying in hotels, yet you open one for others to stay in? You...you..."

Cao Sheng: "What's wrong with that? Do you think all fast food restaurant owners like eating fast food?"

Qian Zhenyu was amused, "That's really true!"

She started another topic, "Hey! Have you been back to your school in the past few years since graduation? I mean, our high school."

Cao Sheng shook his head, "No!"

Qian Zhenyu was a little surprised, "Why? You've never visited your hometown before?"

Cao Sheng: "What's there to see? I don't have many good memories there. During my three years of high school, I was never crazy. Apart from the classroom, the cafeteria, and the toilet, I hardly went anywhere else. Besides, you know our alma mater. You can't get in without a school badge."

Qian Zhenyu chuckled, "That's true!"

The high school they attended was very strict. Except for summer, students were required to wear school badges and uniforms in other seasons, otherwise they could not enter the school gate. Even in summer, students had to wear school badges, otherwise they could not enter the school gate at all.

"So, you haven't seen our old teacher in the last few years?"

Qian Zhenyu asked again.

The "old teacher" she mentioned refers to their senior year homeroom teacher, who was also the grade head for their year.

Cao Sheng shook his head again, "No."

Qian Zhenyu blinked. "So, in the years since you graduated, you haven't kept in touch with your former classmates much?"

Cao Sheng thought of some of his high school classmates in his phone's contact list, smiled and shook his head, "No, not at all! Actually, I've kept in touch with quite a few classmates over the years."

In recent years, at least a dozen of his high school classmates have somehow found out his phone number or email address and contacted him.

This is completely different from the original timeline.

In the original timeline, after he went to university, few of his high school classmates kept in touch with him. At first, he still kept in touch with a few close classmates, but as time went by, they gradually lost contact.

After his rebirth, as his fame as a novelist grew, more and more classmates took the initiative to contact him.

It's just that not many of his high school classmates came to Huizhou to find him like Qian Zhenyu did.

"Really? How did you contact each other?"

Qian Zhenyu was surprised.

Cao Sheng: "Mobile phone, email."

In recent years, as the number of QQ users has increased, several classmates have added him on QQ, all of whom obtained his QQ number through mobile phone or email.

Qian Zhenyu was taken aback.

She was curious to know which classmates had contacted him by phone or email over the years, because she remembered how difficult it was when she first tried to get Cao Sheng's contact information from her high school classmates.

Even Tan Lei, who was studying at Huizhou Teachers College like Cao Sheng, said she didn't know how to contact Cao Sheng.

She originally thought that Tan Lei and the others genuinely didn't know Cao Sheng's contact information.

I just heard Cao Sheng say that he has kept in touch with many of his high school classmates over the years, through mobile phones or email.

Therefore, Qian Zhenyu wanted to ask who was in charge.

But the words were on the tip of her tongue, and she swallowed them back.

She felt it was no longer important.

It's good to be a little oblivious in life; there's no need to get bogged down in these details.

The important question is—is there still a possibility between me and Cao Sheng?

"You used to like me, didn't you?"

she asked suddenly.

Cao Sheng looked at her, and she stared back at him without blinking.

Looking at her delicate face and impeccable features, especially her bright eyes, Cao Sheng suddenly didn't want to deny his past feelings for her.

After all, she had practically offered herself up.

In this life, we come into this world and ultimately take nothing with us. Therefore, he always believed that the most important thing in life is to experience it.

Experience the wonders of this world.

Try your best to make your life rich and colorful.

When you leave this world, if you have fewer regrets and feel that you have lived a worthwhile life, then you can say that you have not wasted your life.

With this in mind, he met Qian Zhenyu's gaze and smiled and nodded.

(End of this chapter)