Study System: I'm a 38-Year-Old Student-Chapter 87 - 80: An Old Steed in the Stable, Aspires to a Thousand Miles
"Sister Luo, do you have the contact for Mr. Shen?"
Zhou Ruolin asked.
"Yes, I do."
"Ruolin, you’re not planning to interview him, are you?"
Luo Meimei quickly caught on to Zhou Ruolin’s intent.
"I’ll chat with him first."
"I think it’s a good topic."
As a reporter, Zhou Ruolin has the required journalistic instinct. She felt it was a promising topic, but whether it was suitable for broadcasting had to be determined by talking to the person involved to see if there was more to uncover.
Additionally, once the topic is selected, it also depends on what the leadership thinks.
If the leadership finds it unsuitable, she couldn’t do anything about it.
"Sister Luo, could you give me his contact info?"
"I need to give him a heads-up. If Younger Brother Shen doesn’t want to be interviewed, he might blame me."
Luo Meimei said as she sent a message to Shen Qiushan.
"Sister Luo, your daughter is at Sanjiang High School, right?"
Zhou Ruolin asked again.
"Yes."
Luo Meimei nodded: "My daughter is in Class 2 and is good friends with Younger Brother Shen’s daughter!"
"Which class is Mr. Shen in?"
"Class 5."
Luo Meimei laughed: "He’s in the same class as his son. Younger Brother Shen is there mainly to keep an eye on his son!"
"What’s up with his son?"
"Is his academic performance poor?"
Zhou Ruolin was already planning for the interview and wanted to understand Shen Qiushan’s situation from another angle.
"Uh..."
Luo Meimei frowned, regretting her loose talk a bit.
But she mustn’t talk about the kids’ dating matter, so she nodded: "Younger Brother Shen’s son’s grades aren’t very good."
As they were speaking, Luo Meimei’s phone chimed; it was a message from Shen Qiushan saying he didn’t want to be interviewed by a reporter.
"Ruolin, Younger Brother Shen isn’t very keen on being interviewed."
"See for yourself."
Luo Meimei showed Zhou Ruolin the content of the reply she received.
"No problem."
"Then I’ll go find him directly, Class 5 of senior year at Sanjiang High School, right?"
"Right!"
"Sister Luo, I’ll be off then."
As a reporter for the lifestyle channel, Zhou Ruolin had a broad network, and contacting the leadership of Sanjiang High School wasn’t difficult.
After leaving the aesthetic center, she used her connections to get in touch with Principal Wang Guangqing of Sanjiang High School.
Upon hearing that a reporter, especially from the lifestyle channel of Sanjiang TV Station, wanted an interview, Wang Guangqing was naturally delighted.
Being just a high school principal, he rarely had opportunities to appear on TV, so he immediately agreed to Zhou Ruolin’s interview request.
At 2 PM.
Zhou Ruolin arrived at Sanjiang High School with a cameraman.
She had already reported Shen Qiushan’s circumstances to her leadership, who also thought it was a promising news topic, allowing her to proceed with the interview to see how it went.
Wang Guangqing warmly welcomed Zhou Ruolin in his office.
After a brief exchange, Zhou Ruolin got straight to the point: "Principal Wang, I’ve heard we have an older borrowed student in our senior year who achieved excellent scores in the mock exams, even surpassing half of the students."
"I want to meet him and chat for a bit, would that be convenient for you?"
Upon hearing this, Wang Guangqing realized she was there for Shen Qiushan.
However, he hesitated, uncertain about what kind of impact this matter would have on the school once exposed.
If it was a positive impact, that would be fine, but if it turned negative, he might face criticism from above.
"Principal Wang, here’s the situation."
"I’m working on a special program exploring diversity in education, and Sanjiang High School has made bold attempts in this regard."
"You’re a very forward-thinking principal, daring to be the first, to break the norm. Later on, I’d like you to talk about the thought process behind this attempt and the teaching philosophy of Sanjiang High School."
Having dealt with many similar leaders like Wang Guangqing, Zhou Ruolin knew what they wanted.
While her main target for this interview was Shen Qiushan, Principal Wang had to make an appearance, giving him a chance to display his accomplishments.
And Zhou Ruolin had already thought it through for him.
Diversity in education, breaking the norm, trying new modes...
These phrases could all be attributed to Principal Wang as a "forward-thinking" leader.
Wang Guangqing rhythmically tapped his fingers on the desk, pondering the pros and cons.
Yu Zhou’s words reminded him of the "three transformations" mentioned in a speech during a city meeting: educational diversity, educational flexibility, and educational personalization.
But such so-called educational reforms have been talked about for many years, generally amounting to much ado about nothing.
As long as the college entrance examination system remains unchanged, the current educational model won’t genuinely transform.
Nonetheless, slogans must be chanted, and façades must be maintained.
With this premise, Wang Guangqing found discussing Shen Qiushan was indeed feasible.
Moreover, Shen Qiushan had achieved commendable scores in this exam.
And during the previous English vocabulary competition, Shen Qiushan also played a catalytic role.
"Alright, I’ll have someone call him."
Wang Guangqing immediately phoned Xu Decai and explained the situation briefly.
Once he put down the phone,
Zhou Ruolin smiled and said, "Principal Wang, let’s do a brief interview with you first."
"Sure!"
Instinctively, Wang Guangqing adjusted his shirt collar and slicked back his hair at the temples.
"Principal Wang, let’s begin then."
Zhou Ruolin signaled the cameraman, smoothly starting the interview with Wang Guangqing.
Meanwhile, on another front.
The senior class five is currently in a math lesson.
Sun Xing sat behind the desk, vigorously explaining the test paper.
The two students in the first row under the desk held up their papers with an expression of resignation, using them as shields against Sun Xing’s verbal assault.
Shen Qiushan kept his head down, brushing up on his history book, reviewing at his own pace.
At this moment, Xu Decai knocked on the classroom door.
Sun Xing immediately stopped.
The students who were holding up the papers finally got to put them down, rubbing their sore arms as they looked towards the classroom door.
"Director Xu, is there something you need?"
Sun Xing, who was originally sitting, stood up promptly when he saw Xu Decai enter.
"I’m looking for Xiaoshen."
Xu Decai scanned the classroom and his gaze landed on Shen Qiushan in the last row.
Fully engrossed in his history book, Shen Qiushan passively detached from his study mode and followed Xu Decai into the hallway.
"Xiaoshen, there’s a journalist who wants to interview you."
"Principal Wang wants you to come over."
Xu Decai explained directly.
"They actually came to the school?"
Shen Qiushan didn’t expect them to be so persistent. Without surprise, it must have been the journalist who tried to contact him through Luo Meimei.
Shen Qiushan refused the interview simply because he didn’t want to waste time.
Besides, he hadn’t achieved anything noteworthy yet, so there’d be nothing to say in an interview.
It would be better to do the interview after the university entrance exam, if he gets into Sanjiang University, and brag a bit.
However, since the journalist had come, and Wang Guangqing had gotten involved, he couldn’t refuse anymore.
He followed Xu Decai to the principal’s office.
At this moment, Zhou Ruolin had just finished her interview with Wang Guangqing.
"Xiaoshen, this is Reporter Zhou."
As Shen Qiushan entered the office, Wang Guangqing immediately introduced Zhou Ruolin.
"Hello, Mr. Shen, sorry to interrupt you."
"I’m Zhou Ruolin, a reporter from Sanjiang TV Station’s Life Channel, and here’s my business card."
Zhou Ruolin politely greeted him, presenting her business card with both hands, displaying good manners.
"Hello, Shen Qiushan."
Accepting the card, Shen Qiushan stated his name.
"Mr. Shen, I’m here to do a special interview on the diversity of education, can we chat for a bit?"
"Feel free to ask, Reporter Zhou."
Shen Qiushan shrugged slightly, though thinking to himself: It’s not convenient, but you’re here anyway!
In his younger days, Shen Qiushan would have directly retorted with what he was thinking.
But at this age, he wouldn’t do such a thing anymore. 𝘧𝘳𝘦ℯ𝓌𝘦𝒷𝘯𝑜𝑣𝘦𝓁.𝒸𝘰𝓂
Principal Wang Guangqing obviously valued this interview, and Director Xu Decai spoke positively about it on the way over.
If he didn’t cooperate, it would be like offending both Wang Guangqing and Xu Decai at once.
Although it wouldn’t matter if he did offend them, there’s just no need for such a trivial matter.
Besides, since the journalist had already set their sights on him, even if he didn’t give the interview, the story would still come out. So he might as well appear, brag a bit, and at least make a TV appearance.
At 38, Shen Qiushan had never been on TV!
"Mr. Shen, why don’t you have a seat here, the light is better on this side."
Zhou Ruolin indicated the single sofa near the window in the guest area.
Shen Qiushan nodded and cooperatively sat down.
Then, the interview officially began.
Zhou Ruolin: Mr. Shen, may I ask how old you are this year?
Shen Qiushan: 38 years.
Zhou Ruolin: At this age, you returned to high school. Why did you decide to do that?
Shen Qiushan: Because I want to go to college!
Zhou Ruolin was taken aback; this did not align with the information she had beforehand.
Luo Meimei said he was just accompanying others to study, to supervise the kids’ studies.
Earlier, Wang Guangqing also didn’t mention his plans to attend college.
Zhou Ruolin: College? You mean you will also take the university exams and attend college if accepted?
Shen Qiushan nodded: Yes.
Zhou Ruolin: Why do you want to attend college at this age?
Shen Qiushan: To make up for the regret of not having gone to college before!
Zhou Ruolin: Do you have a target in mind? Which university do you want to attend?
Shen Qiushan: Sanjiang University!
Zhou Ruolin was shocked: Sanjiang University? Are you sure about Sanjiang University? It’s the top university in our province, and ranked among the top ten nationally!
Actually, at this point, not only was Zhou Ruolin shocked, but Wang Guangqing and Xu Decai were both stunned.
Sanjiang University is a top 985 institution in the country, with several programs that are the best domestically!
Nevertheless, Shen Qiushan actually said he wanted to get into Sanjiang University, and he said this during an interview.
This left both Wang Guangqing and Xu Decai at a loss!
The two exchanged a glance, both looking dumbfounded.
Then, they heard Shen Qiushan cheerfully ask: "Reporter Zhou, do you know who my favorite historical figure is?"
Zhou Ruolin instinctively asked in return: "Who?"
With a smile still on his face, Shen Qiushan replied: "Emperor Wu of Wei, Cao Cao."
Zhou Ruolin raised an eyebrow, internally thinking: As everyone knows, Prime Minister Cao had a reputation for having a fondness for women!
This has become a significant part of his image, so whenever a man cites Cao Cao as an idol, it tends to come across as somewhat unseemly.
As Zhou Ruolin pondered how to continue the conversation, Shen Qiushan went on: The old horse in the stable still aspires to gallop a thousand miles; the hero in his twilight years does not wane in ambition!
Prime Minister Cao wrote "The Tortoise’s Longevity" at the age of 53, and he still had such aspirations.
And I’m only 38!
Aiming for Sanjiang University isn’t excessive, is it?
