Rebirth 08: A Happy Life Begins in Elementary School

He Shuyao has always wanted to get into New Taipei First Senior High School.

But in her previous life, she chose New Taipei Experimental School.

"What if," Li Zhao thought for a moment, "I want to apply to New Taipei Experimental High School?"

"Then I want to take the entrance exam for New Taipei First Senior High School too," He Shuyao said.

After walking a few steps up the stairs, He Shuyao stopped. "Wait, are you serious?"

"Of course not."

"Phew..." He Shuyao patted her chest. "I knew it! Someone as amazing as you wouldn't possibly apply to New Taipei Experimental High School. My dream has always been New Taipei First Senior High School, and that's what my dad has always insisted on. We just made a pinky promise; if we go to different schools, our friendship will easily fade!"

Why did you choose New Taipei Experimental School in your past life?

Because of me?

Li Zhao laughed, "It's already faded so easily, it's too fragile!"

I'm stating objective facts!

"Okay, okay, then see you at New Taipei First Senior High School."

"You're not going to a better school, are you?" He Shuyao suddenly asked.

"What if I get picked first prize? I'm a shoo-in for first prize in our national competition."

He Shuyao laughed first, then looked at Li Zhao with a strange expression.

"What's wrong?"

"You don't seem so boring, rigid, or cold anymore."

"You don't have to say three words in one breath," Li Zhao said with a helpless smile. "Alright, you can go back to your classroom and rest now. I need to talk to the teacher about something."

After parting ways with He Shuyao, Li Zhao went into the teachers' office again.

Huang Keyun was indeed still there.

"Teacher Huang, are you sure you don't need to take a lunch break?"

"Huh? Li Zhao? What's up?"

The office is unusually quiet today.

"I'm using the computer to look up some information."

"You silly child, didn't you say you didn't need it before?" Huang Keyun said this, but her face was full of suppressed laughter.

It's too obvious, teacher. Restrain yourself, you must restrain yourself.

Li Zhao had expected to hear the three Chinese language teachers discussing his article over the coffee table, but the coffee table was empty.

"Teacher Huang," Li Zhao asked while waiting for the computer to boot up, "Aren't the Chinese teachers here today?"

A completely random question.

However, Huang Keyun still answered seriously, "We had a very heated discussion during dinner. They said that the South China Weekly, that guy named Dao, published another article, a whole page of it. Apparently, he got into a fight with the director of the planning institute..."

It's clear that Huang Keyun doesn't care much about these things anymore.

"They were just arguing here, and the math teacher from Class 3 thought they were being too noisy, so they left."

Was it really that intense?

Why are you asking this?

"curious."

Li Zhao opened a webpage, entered the title of his article, and wanted to see if it was being discussed online.

In 08, the internet was still dominated by forums and online communities. Smartphones were not yet popular, and the concept of "netizen" was still limited to computer users.

For news, the four major portal websites are the main battleground for public opinion, while Baidu Tieba and Tianya Community are the main platforms for communication.

The downside is that it is very difficult for public opinion to ferment, individuals have relatively little power to drive it, and the channels for dissemination are not wide. "Self-media" is not a concept yet.

The advantage is that the topics people discuss are not as trivial as entertainment; they are willing to talk about serious and profound things. So once things start to ferment, the intensity may be even stronger than in later generations.

Back in Li Zhao's previous life, news was almost completely unreliable... Whether it was the media or individuals, they would stop at nothing to grab attention. "Entertainment to the death" had gone from being a topic of discussion and satire to becoming an explanation.

Of course, this is a very complex issue, involving all aspects of society, and it cannot be viewed simply as good or bad.

For example, the reason why the online environment in 08 was still relatively sincere was largely due to the limitations of narrow communication channels, so various effective means of attracting attention had not yet been developed.

Even so, there are all sorts of rumors circulating on Tencent's QQ Space, such as it being Pony Ma's birthday, a certain celebrity being unpatriotic, and a certain host crying...

Didn't they also fool a lot of people?

Li Zhao believed in this when he was a child.

The search results surprised and delighted Li Zhao.

Not only were people discussing it on Tianya and Baidu Tieba, but some well-known figures in the industry also reacted to Li Zhao's article, either expressing their opinions in news interviews or writing articles on their own blogs.

For example, Wang Zhi, Li Zhao's mentor in his previous life, highly endorsed "democratization of planning".

Although these are all niche topics that people would normally discuss, such as urban planning or newspaper articles, as long as there is discussion, a good foundation is laid.

An article published on Monday has already generated such a response today. If we strike while the iron is hot, it will surely spread even further.

After thinking for a while, Li Zhao registered a blog account for himself, but instead of calling it "Four Knives," he changed it to "Viewing the City from the Riverside."

We will then follow the route of reposting and commenting, providing further analysis and guidance on the viewpoints.

After reviewing the list, there are still quite a few voices urging the four knives to quickly write down the seven issues in detail.

Li Zhao nodded and shut down the computer with satisfaction.

He turned his head and found Huang Keyun staring at him with a smile on her face.

In just a moment, Huang Keyun turned her head away and continued writing her lesson plan, as if nothing had happened.

Li Zhao acted as if nothing had happened, said goodbye to her, and went back to his class.

It's easy to understand; teachers naturally like outstanding students in their class.

Even He Lin has been much nicer to Li Zhao lately. She's older and will say things like, "I wish you were my son."

Not to mention Huang Keyun, a young teacher eager to achieve results.

Li Zhao's sudden rise to power was more unbelievable than a dream for her.

Back in the classroom, Chen Nian was actually writing a test paper.

"Why don't you watch 'The Adventurers' anymore?"

"It's pointless." Chen Nian shook his head slightly.

Li Zhao's eyes widened in surprise.

"You're more interesting the way you are."

Oh? The young man has finally figured it out?

Chen Nian sighed deeply, "My cousin asked me the other day why I wasn't going to the internet cafe anymore. I told him I was participating in the national English competition, and now even he doesn't want to go to the internet cafe anymore."

You're already working, how can you be provoked by elementary school students?

"I suddenly realized that games are meaningless, and reading these extracurricular books is also meaningless."

"What's interesting?"

"Participating in competitions is fun, handing in the paper early is fun, being praised by everyone is fun..." Chen Nian put down his pen, looked at the podium, "I also hope that a girl can say I'm her god!"

Li Zhao clearly saw out of the corner of his eye that He Shuyao trembled.

"Alright, then you should focus on your studies. The exam is coming up soon, so get rid of the 'ninth brother' nickname first."

"Is there a secret formula?"

"There really is."

Chen Nian's lips trembled violently.

"Really...really?"

"Really, come here, let's whisper."

Chen Nian swallowed nervously, glancing nervously at his classmates around him, as if afraid someone might be eavesdropping.

"you say."

Li Zhao leaned closer and whispered:

Study hard.

After school that day, Chen Nian was so angry that he refused to walk with Li Zhao. Of course, when Li Zhao got to the bus stop, the kid was still sitting there waiting.

No wonder he's a good brother.

Before parting, Li Zhao told him, "You must get into New Taipei First Senior High School," which made Chen Nian's eyes light up with excitement.

Having grown accustomed to the superficiality and backstabbing of the workplace, Li Zhao, now back in elementary school, finds all interpersonal relationships, even those caused by troublemakers, therapeutic.

Another evening passed, and after finishing her homework in a flash, Li Zhao once again embarked on her creative work.

He pondered for a long time, took a deep breath, and wrote the title on the paper—

"Don't wait until disaster strikes to think of solutions: Reflecting on the shortcomings of urban disaster prevention planning through field surveys of mountain towns."

No one would have expected that disaster prevention would be the first of these seven topics to be analyzed.

Only Li Zhao knew why.