The sky collapsed, and in the blink of an eye, I found myself transported to Nanluoguxiang.

As soon as Zhou Zhiming jumped out of the car, Master Sun and another driver immediately greeted him with smiles.

"Congratulations, Comrade Zhou, you have passed the first round of driving practice."

Another craftsman immediately followed up with a thumbs-up:

"Comrade Zhou, your driving skills are truly exceptional, even better than some professional instructors."

"Thank you, thank you!" Zhou Zhiming replied politely.

But something felt off; these two examiners were being far too enthusiastic.

At this moment, Master Bai finished writing down the information on the list and walked over.

He chuckled and patted Zhou Zhiming on the shoulder: "Master Li's apprentices are all so skilled; truly, a great teacher produces outstanding students!"

Zhou Zhiming's doubts were suddenly resolved, but he still pretended to be confused.

"Esteemed examiners, do you know my master?"

"More than just acquaintances!" Master Bai chuckled. "I've been proctoring exams with your master three or four times already; we're old friends."

Upon hearing this, Zhou Zhiming quickly bowed again: "Greetings, esteemed masters!"

"Alright! Comrade Zhou, let's not delay any longer. Come with me over there and begin the second round of theoretical Q&A."

As Master Bai spoke, he turned and walked towards the place where three tables were set up.

Master Sun and another master smiled and nodded at Zhou Zhiming before following him.

Zhou Zhiming went very smoothly through the theoretical Q&A session.

The questions asked by Master Bai, Master Sun, and another master were so simple that he could hardly believe it.

After the exam, Zhou Zhiming was still a little dazed.

Master Bai ticked off Zhou Zhiming's theory grade and looked up to see that he hadn't left yet.

"What's wrong, Comrade Zhou? Do you have any more questions?"

"Master Bai, isn't the question you asked a bit too simple?" Zhou Zhiming couldn't help but ask.

Upon hearing this, Master Bai's expression immediately turned serious: "Comrade Zhou, we have been following the rules. Please respect the examiner's judgment."

"Oh, oh!" Zhou Zhiming immediately realized his mistake and quickly apologized, "I'm sorry, everyone, I misspoke just now."

"It's alright, it's alright!" Master Bai's expression softened, and he smiled again.

Master Sun and another master went up and politely saw him off from the testing area.

When Zhou Zhiming returned to the waiting area, Wu Tian, ​​Qian Dazhuang, Chen Long, and the others surrounded him.

"Congratulations, Zhiming! You're officially my master now." Wu Tian laughed and punched his arm.

"Keep it down, keep it down!" Zhou Zhiming raised his hand to suppress the smile, but he couldn't hide it. "Come on, Xiao Wu, call me Master Zhou first."

"Go to hell!"

Wu Tian gave him a shove. "You're showing off in front of me. If I pass the test later, will you still have to call me Master Wu?"

"But you have to pass the test first."

At this moment, Qian Dazhuang chimed in, "Zhiming, what do you think of these examiners? Were the theoretical questions in the second round difficult?"

"The examiners were all very nice. They only asked the most basic questions, like checking the wiring and maintenance."

Zhou Zhiming responded, as if he had thought of something, and reminded him, "However, I must have been a little lucky that the examiner asked such simple questions."

He still couldn't bring himself to say what happened in the exam room. He couldn't very well say outright that the examiners were only lenient because of his mentor.

Qian Dazhuang listened and nodded thoughtfully, without asking any further questions.

A moment later, Wu Tian's name was called out over the loudspeaker.

After taking a deep breath, Wu Tian walked towards the examination room.

Zhou Zhiming shouted from behind, "Brother Wu, don't be nervous! Don't come back to see me if you fail the exam!"

Wu Tian didn't even turn his head, he just raised his hand and gave him the middle finger.

Twenty minutes later, Wu Tian passed through smoothly as expected. When he walked back, his mouth was practically stretched from ear to ear in a grin.

"How was it, Comrade Zhou?" Wu Tian said to Zhou Zhiming in a deliberately affected tone, "Come on, call me Master Wu."

"Alright, alright, Master Wu, that's enough!" Zhou Zhiming said cooperatively.

As soon as he finished speaking, Qian Dazhuang, who was standing to the side, came over and grabbed Wu Tian's arm, asking the same question.

Wu Tian remained silent for a moment, but remembering that it was his good friend who had asked, he lowered his voice and told the truth:

"Dazhuang, let me be frank with you! Zhiming and I both benefited from our master's influence; the examiners treated us much better."

"What the hell!" Before Qian Dazhuang could react, Zhou Zhiming exploded, "Brother Wu, how did you guess I'm the same as you?"

"Is that even a question?" Wu Tian rolled his eyes at him. "Neither of our masters are here to proctor the exam. I'm already getting preferential treatment. Do you think you can escape?"

Upon hearing this explanation, Zhou Zhiming chuckled twice, which was taken as tacit agreement.

"No wonder Zhiming said the examiner's questions were easy, so that's why!" Qian Dazhuang suddenly realized.

Seeing this, Wu Tian quickly explained:

"Dazhuang, don't overthink it! We just found out ourselves, we didn't mean to tell you unintentionally."

"Yeah, yeah! Don't overthink it!" Zhou Zhiming chimed in.

"I understand!"

Qian Dazhuang nodded, showing no sign of disappointment whatsoever.

"Your assessments don't sound very challenging. Just wait and see what I'll show you—what real skill is!"

Zhou Zhiming and Wu Tian exchanged a glance and then laughed.

"Well done, Brother Dazhuang. You don't usually say much, but I didn't expect you to be so arrogant!" Zhou Zhiming teased.

"That's right!" Wu Tian chimed in. "Dazhuang, if you don't pass the exam, you'll really lose face today."

Chen Long and the others standing nearby looked on with envy.

It's understandable that Zhou Zhiming passed the test on his first try, after all, he's Master Li's apprentice.

I really didn't expect Wu Tian to pass.

All of them took the exam two or three times. Passing twice was considered quite impressive.

In the distance, Li Huaide, who was watching this side, clicked his tongue twice: "Old Xie, your apprentices are pretty good, they passed two out of two tests."

"This is nothing!" Director Xie said dismissively. "At least half of what I brought today will be enough."

"Wow, so confident? I think one of the people who passed is Kaixin's apprentice, right?"

Normally, the success rate for apprentices is around one in five.

If we can get past halfway, that would be truly remarkable.

"That's right!" Director Xie nodded. "This kid, if I hadn't coaxed and threatened him for a long time yesterday, he still wouldn't have come to take the exam!"

"Are you really trying to persuade me? There was no coercion or bribery?"

Li Huaide simply didn't believe that Li Kaixin's apprentice would be in such a hurry to take the driving test.

If a normal person had such a good master, they would be happy to stay as an apprentice and follow him forever.

"Old Li, I can't hide it from you after all," Director Xie replied, recounting what had happened in the office yesterday.

After hearing this, Li Huaide couldn't help but shake his head and laugh, "Old Xie, what you did was really despicable."

"So what if it's unethical? The station is short of experienced workers, and I have no other choice."

Director Xie sighed and turned his gaze back to the examination room.

......