Chapter 517: Dongzi, Forgotten by the Whole Family

Chapter 517: Dongzi, Forgotten by the Whole Family

Nanning No. 3 High School.

The college entrance examination (Gaokao) had just concluded, and the teacher was helping the students estimate their scores.

Soon, the estimated scores were out. Dongzi performed exceptionally well, even better than his usual performance. He should be able to get into a second-tier university with some effort.

Dongzi was very satisfied with his performance and had a smile on his face the whole time. Those who didn't know any better might have thought he had aced the exam!

The reason for Dongzi's outstanding performance was quite simple: he felt no pressure at all about this exam.

As everyone knows, the Gaokao is one of the most important turning points in most people's lives, and the results can have a significant impact on the future.

This is why the Gaokao is often referred to as "a single exam that determines a lifetime."

For such an important exam, candidates with poor psychological resilience often get anxious during the test, fearing that poor performance will disappoint their parents, especially when parents place a high value on their children's Gaokao scores, which can create intangible pressure for the candidates.

Under immense pressure, some people can perform even better, and such individuals are destined for success.

However, these people are a minority. Most people, once they feel too much psychological pressure, will have their minds go blank. Even questions they can usually solve become impossible to answer during the most important exam of their lives.

This is the main reason why many students who perform well in regular tests often fail miserably in the Gaokao.

However, for Dongzi... psychological pressure?

What's that?

How much does it cost per pound?

Not only was his family financially well-off, but his family members truly gave him no pressure at all.

Thinking about this, Dongzi felt a bit gloomy.

When his sister took the Gaokao, the scene was grand, with the whole family mobilized to support her.

But when he took the Gaokao this year, he was completely forgotten by his family, especially his parents, who didn't even come back to accompany him or call to check on him, making him feel abandoned by the entire family.

Even his grandfather, who had forgotten about his Gaokao at first, didn't care once he remembered and disappeared without a trace, leaving Dongzi to take the exam alone in Nanning.

Just thinking about it made him want to cry!

It felt like he wasn't taking the Gaokao at all, but just a regular test.

In such a situation, where would he get any psychological pressure?

As a result, his excellent mental state allowed him to perform at his best.

Soon, Zhang Tiesheng also finished estimating his score and asked, "Dongzi, what score did you estimate?"

Dongzi composed himself and said, "About the same as my usual scores. How about you? Do you have a chance at a 985 university?"

Zhang Tiesheng shook his head and said, "I should be able to get into a 211 university, but a 985 is probably out of reach."

At that moment, Wei Jianlin also joined in and said, "I'm about the same. If nothing goes wrong, I'll end up in a 211 university."

Dongzi gave them both a light punch and said, "If you can get into a 211, you should be satisfied. After all, in the whole of Guangxi, we only have Guangxi University as a 211 institution."

"That's true."

Zhang Tiesheng chuckled and then sighed, "Speaking of Guangxi University, it's a real pity. My father once told me that Guangxi University used to be very prestigious. It was only after it was split up that it became what it is now."

Dongzi added, "I've heard the same from my second and third uncles. It's said that during the Republic of China era, Guangxi University was known as the Provincial Guangxi University, and its academic standards and educational quality were among the best in the country.

During the War of Resistance against Japan, it was renamed the National Guangxi University. At that time, the university's educational quality and academic achievements were even more remarkable, enjoying a high reputation in the country and even comparable to top institutions like Tsinghua and Peking University.

Unfortunately, after the split, its former glory was lost forever!"

Wei Jianlin, who had never heard this before, looked surprised. "No way, our Guangxi University was once that prestigious?"

Zhang Tiesheng nodded. "It was that prestigious back then."

Wei Jianlin asked, puzzled, "Why was such a prestigious university split up?"

"When my second and third uncles talked about this, they mentioned the reasons," Dongzi continued, recalling the conversation. "It's said that before the liberation, under Chiang Kai-shek's administration, the universities had a Western-style comprehensive structure. In the 1950s, to develop industry, concentrate resources, strengthen engineering and science education, and transition to a Soviet-style specialized structure, the government conducted a major restructuring of domestic universities.

Guangxi University was completely declined during this major restructuring!"

Zhang Tiesheng and Wei Jianlin both sighed, feeling sorry for Guangxi University and the people of Guangxi.

After all, this was a university that once rivaled Tsinghua and Peking University, and such an institution would have had a significant impact on the economic development of a province or autonomous region. If Guangxi University hadn't declined and remained as strong as it once was, perhaps Guangxi's economic development would be much better today.

After chatting for a while, Zhang Tiesheng asked, "Dongzi, do you have any plans for the summer?"

Dongzi replied, "Not really, do you have anything planned?"

Zhang Tiesheng shook his head. "What could I have planned? I haven't been to an internet cafe in three years, focusing on the Gaokao. If I have nothing to do during the summer, I plan to go to the internet cafe and play to my heart's content."

Wei Jianlin also said with some excitement, "I heard that a game called 'Chuanchuan' has come out, and it's really fun. I plan to try it out this summer."

Zhang Tiesheng suggested, "Then let's start tonight by going to the internet cafe for the whole night. The price is much cheaper, Dongzi, do you want to come with us?"

Dongzi replied, "I'll call my sister when I get back to see if she has any plans for the summer. If she doesn't, I'll play games with you guys."

Zhang Tiesheng agreed, "Alright, Dongge, we'll wait for your call."

...

Taoshan International Hunting Ground.

Deng Shirong and his group had already entered the hunting area and began their hunting trip.

Xiaodong'er and the other five women each carried a hunting rifle, their faces beaming with excitement.

Deng Shirong, carrying a bow and arrows on his back, held a bow in his hand and asked with a smile, "Dong'er, what wild game do you want to eat tonight? Grandpa will get you whatever we catch."

Xiaodong'er laughed, "Grandpa, can we really choose? We'll just eat whatever we catch."

Chu Junsheng joked, "It seems Grandpa Deng's marksmanship is pretty good!"

Deng Shirong was not modest, "I guess so. After all, I've been a militiaman for many years, so hunting should be no problem."

Chu Jun Yao smiled, "Grandpa Deng, then it's up to you. Let's see if we can encounter a black bear. I've heard bear paws are quite delicious, but I've never had the chance to taste them!"

Deng Shirong chuckled, "If we encounter a black bear, we'll have to wait until tomorrow to prepare it. It takes a long time to cook bear paws, and it definitely won't be ready today. If we encounter a black bear tomorrow morning, we'll try the bear paws."

Liu Sancai couldn't help but remind, "Grandpa Deng, if we encounter a black bear, absolutely don't underestimate it. The black bear is the most ferocious and dangerous wild animal in the hunting ground, known as the 'All-Round Warrior.' It has immense strength and speed. Hunting a black bear is extremely dangerous unless you're a professional hunter."

"Xiaoliu, you're right. If you're not a professional hunter, run away as soon as you see a black bear. Don't think about hunting it; it's not something an ordinary person can handle."

Deng Shirong then changed the subject, smiling, "However, when I was young, I went into the mountains to hunt. I've hunted wild boars and even faced off against tigers, and I have methods for hunting black bears."

Upon hearing this, everyone was taken aback, even the professional hunter who was with them showed a surprised expression.

The ferocity of wild tigers is well-known, even to the most laymen.

Although in the Northeast region, there is a saying 'one boar, two bears, three tigers,' some people misunderstand this as a ranking of the combat power of these animals, thinking that wild boars are the most powerful, followed by black bears, and then tigers.

This is a huge misunderstanding. In terms of combat power, black bears can still compete with tigers, but wild boars are not even in the same league as tigers and black bears.

As the saying goes, 'names can be wrong, but nicknames are never wrong.' Tigers are revered as the king of beasts and the Forest King, a title universally recognized by humans. While there may be animals that can individually defeat tigers, they certainly are not wild boars or black bears.

The saying 'one boar, two bears, three tigers' actually ranks these three large wild animals based on the frequency of their attacks on humans, not their combat power.

Wild boars are the most common wild animals, and incidents of wild boars attacking humans are the most frequent, so hunters rank them first.

Next are black bears, which are more Common than tigers, and black bear attacks on humans are frequent.

As for tigers, they usually hide in deep forests and are relatively few in number, so human encounters with tigers are rare. Therefore, tigers cause the least harm to humans among the three, which is why they are ranked last.

Liu Sancai exclaimed, "So Grandpa Deng, you have such experience. I was overthinking it."

Zhao Dagang sighed, "I've only seen the trained Siberian tigers in the tiger park. I've never seen a true wild tiger. I wonder how powerful a real wild tiger is?"

Deng Shirong laughed, "The power of a wild tiger is beyond question. But ultimately, humans are the most powerful. With a good gun and marksmanship, there's nothing we can't hunt."

Chu Jun Sheng agreed, "Grandpa Deng is right. We humans truly stand at the top of the food chain."

As they were talking, Deng Shirong suddenly saw two pigeons on a tree ahead and couldn't help but smile, "Looks like we'll have some good luck today."

Saying this, Deng Shirong pulled out a slingshot from his pocket and bent down to pick up two small stones.

"Thwip..."

The two small stones were shot out simultaneously, splitting into two and accurately hitting the two pigeons on the tree. The pigeons then fell headfirst from the tree.

The process, though it seems long when described, actually happened in an instant. By the time the pigeons fell, everyone had just come to their senses.

Chu Jun Sheng immediately gave a thumbs up, "Amazing, Grandpa Deng, your slingshot skills are truly incredible!"

Liu Sancai was completely shocked, "Too amazing, Grandpa Deng, your slingshot skills are truly amazing! Hitting two pigeons at the same time, I've never heard of such slingshot skills!"

The others were also stunned, including the professional hunter, who was amazed by Deng Shirong's brief display of slingshot skills.

There are people with impressive slingshot skills, and some can hit targets with great accuracy, but hitting two targets simultaneously and accurately is not something a regular slingshot expert can do.

Deng Shirong was able to do this because he had a "cheat." For a normal human, achieving such a feat would be incredibly difficult.

Seeing her grandfather's impressive display, Xiaodong'er was also extremely excited and immediately ran over with Tang Yun and the other women to pick up the prey.

Soon, the two spotted doves were brought back. Xiaodong'er picked up one of them and asked, "Grandpa, what kind of bird is this?"

Deng Shirong smiled and said, "If I'm not mistaken, these are spotted doves. We have plenty of them back home. There's a saying: 'Spotted doves in the sky, loaches on the ground.' This bird is great for making soup; it's not only delicious but also very nutritious and nourishing. I'll shoot a few more, and we can have a pot of spotted dove soup tonight."

It must be said that this hunting ground had a good number of wild animals. After entering the hunting area, they frequently encountered various kinds of wildlife.

However, apart from the spotted doves, Deng Shirong did not shoot at any other animals. Instead, he let his granddaughter and the other newcomers take some shots. Whether they hit the prey or not was not the key; the important thing was to let them feel involved and experience the thrill of hunting.

Before they knew it, it was already four o'clock in the afternoon.

The group had hunted quite a few animals. Apart from the 16 spotted doves Deng Shirong shot with his slingshot, the others had also managed to shoot three pheasants, five wild rabbits, and two roe deer. These latter animals were naturally hunted by Liu Sancai and the others.

As for Xiaodong'er and the other six women, although they had fired many shots, they were all first-time users of firearms and couldn't possibly hunt so quickly. Most of their shots were misses.

Deng Shirong, apart from using his slingshot to shoot the spotted doves, had not touched the gun or arrows on his back. With his "cheat," he could hit any target he aimed at, and hunting these wild animals presented no challenge to him, so he had not taken any action.

After all, with so many animals already, they had more than enough for dinner tonight. There was no need to hunt more, as that would be wasteful.

Seeing that it was getting late and they had enough prey, the group discussed and decided to head back to the hunter's camp in high spirits.

The hunter's camp had a professional chef. They handed over the prey to the chef and told him how they wanted it cooked. The chef would naturally prepare it as requested. Deng Shirong, not wanting to cook, simply instructed the chef to make a spotted dove soup and then left it to him.

While waiting for the meal, everyone sat around and discussed the excitement of the hunt.

Suddenly, Xiaodong'er's phone rang. She looked at the caller ID and said to her grandfather, "It's Dongzi calling." She then walked out to answer the call.

Dongzi's voice came through: "Sis, are you on break now?"

Xiaodong'er replied, "Yes, we're on break. You should be on break too, right?"

"..."

Dongzi's breathing became heavy: "Sis, why don't you guess what grade I'm in this year?"

Xiaodong'er was taken aback for a moment, then she remembered something and said, somewhat surprised, "Dongzi, you took the Gaokao this year? I'm really sorry, I didn't remember for a moment. Have you finished the exam? How did it go?"

Dongzi, fuming, said, "No one in the family remembered my Gaokao. You guys are really bullying me!!"

Xiaodong'er was a bit surprised, "Ah, Mom and Dad didn't know either?"

Dongzi, sullenly, said, "They didn't even know. They didn't come to see me during the exam or even call to check on me. They completely forgot about me. I just have poor grades, and the difference in treatment is too obvious!"

Hearing this, Xiaodong'er couldn't help but laugh: "Haha, Dongzi, I can't help it, hahaha..."

Hearing his sister's unkind laughter, Dongzi looked like he had lost all hope.

Xiaodong'er laughed for about half a minute before stopping, "Dongzi, I'm sorry. How did your exam go?"

Dongzi, resigned, said weakly, "It went okay, I performed at my usual level. Let's not talk about this depressing stuff. Do you have any plans for the summer, sis?"

Xiaodong'er replied, "I'm currently on a hunting trip in Heilongjiang with my dorm mates, and Grandpa is here too!"

Hearing this, Dongzi couldn't help but widen his eyes, "No wonder Grandpa rushed from home to Nanning and then left the next day. He was going to Heilongjiang to hunt with you!"

Xiaodong'er said, "This time, it's a group activity with my dorm mates, so we didn't invite you. We'll come together next time."

Dongzi said, "Alright, if you have any plans, remember to call me, sis!"

Xiaodong'er replied, "Got it!"

Dongzi said, "That's it for now, bye!"

Xiaodong'er said, "Okay, bye!"

Just as Xiaodong'er hung up the phone, the manager of the hunting ground personally led five new guests to the hunter's camp.

The hunter's camp was not just one house but had about a dozen houses of various sizes, capable of accommodating a hundred or so guests at once.

At that moment, the five new guests were being led by the manager to the neighboring camp.

Since the houses in the camp were close to each other, both groups could see each other clearly.

The five new guests were three men and two women. One of the men, who looked to be in his early twenties, saw Xiaodong'er and his eyes lit up. He pinched his thumb and middle finger together and blew a loud whistle, his demeanor and actions extremely disrespectful.

Xiaodong'er's face darkened slightly, but she ignored the rude man and turned to walk into the house.

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end