Chapter Thirty-Five: An Unexpected Delight

Zhou Xuan spoke with certainty, "Teacher Li, I'm really not interested in this. There's no need to persuade me."

Seeing Zhou Xuan so resolute, Li Yunxi could only sigh in disappointment, "Alright then! Everyone has their own goals, I won't force you. With your grades, getting into No.1 High School is a breeze. If you work harder in high school, maybe you can get into Yanda or Shuimu. There's no need to waste time on sports."

Zhou Xuan noticed Li Yunxi's disappointment and said, "Teacher Li, you're a good teacher. Even though I won't join the sports meet or focus on athletics, we're still friends in private."

"Of course," Li Yunxi nodded.

Looking at Li Yunxi, Zhou Xuan suddenly wanted to challenge him, "Teacher Li, how about a race? Just one lap."

Upon hearing this, Li Yunxi couldn’t help but smile wryly, "Alright! Let me see the results of your month-long training."

"No problem, I'll give it my all."

"Three!"

"Two!"

"One!"

"Go!"

Both Zhou Xuan and Li Yunxi accelerated instantly, shooting forward like arrows released from a bow. They quickly passed the people running ahead of them, who felt a gust of wind sweep by, barely grasping what was happening before seeing two figures racing into the distance.

Some nearby teachers and students who were jogging or playing ball stopped in surprise, watching the two sprint.

It had to be said, Zhou Xuan was just a bit faster, beating Li Yunxi to the finish by a second.

"You're impressive! With this speed, you've reached the level of a professional athlete."

"Haha, Teacher Li, you're not bad yourself. You used to be top of the class, didn't you?"

"It's a pity; if you joined the sports meet, no one would stand a chance in the short or long-distance events for the junior high group."

"Teacher Li, you know I won't participate."

"Ah, such a great opportunity. Well, let's go eat."

"Alright."

Just as they were about to enter the cafeteria, another teacher approached.

Upon seeing Li Yunxi, he asked, "Teacher Li, I heard you bought a computer. How much did it cost? How’s it working?"

Zhou Xuan was surprised—Teacher Li actually bought a personal computer.

In '97, there were only 700,000 household PCs in Huaxia. Li Yunxi managed to get one, which was impressive. A good setup cost at least ten thousand yuan, equivalent to most people’s salary for half a year.

Who would have thought a PE teacher would be so well-off? Zhou Xuan’s mind became active. He had planned to go to internet cafes to type his manuscripts, but if he could use Teacher Li’s computer, he’d save a lot of money.

He just didn’t know if Teacher Li’s computer could access the internet. He decided to ask during lunch.

"Teacher Chen, I bought the computer a month ago. It’s pretty good. Cost me over ten thousand yuan. Are you thinking of getting one?" Li Yunxi replied.

"Over ten thousand, that's quite expensive." Computers were indeed costly at that time, not affordable for the average person.

"No choice, I had a friend in Beijing help me get it, all top specs, so of course it’s pricier."

"I see. I’ll look around a bit more. Thanks, Teacher Li."

"Alright, goodbye."

Inside the cafeteria, they grabbed some noodles and began eating.

Halfway through, Zhou Xuan asked, "Teacher Li, can your computer connect to the internet?"

"Yes! Why are you asking?" Li Yunxi looked up and smiled, "You’re not thinking about going online at my place, are you?"

Zhou Xuan nodded, "That’s right. If you let me use your internet, I’ll participate in the sports meet, and even the city meet next term."

To type his manuscripts, Zhou Xuan was willing to go all out. What’s a sports meet, after all? With his typing speed, hundreds of thousands of words would be finished in no time.

Moreover, Zhou Xuan planned not just to write on weekends, but also wanted to ask for leave during the week to write. Otherwise, finishing hundreds of thousands or even a million words wouldn’t be quick.

He wanted to earn his first bucket of gold soon and set the foundation for his career. After reincarnating, Zhou Xuan remembered neither lottery numbers nor any golden opportunities. So, earning his first bucket of gold had to be done step by step.

Li Yunxi was pleasantly surprised, "Really?"

Zhou Xuan nodded, "Of course! To be honest, Teacher Li, I want to use your computer to type manuscripts. I’m writing articles to submit for extra pocket money. And not just weekends, I’ll ask for leave during the week too."

"Manuscripts? Submitting to earn money?" Li Yunxi knew Zhou Xuan was good at essays, but he didn’t expect Zhou Xuan had reached the level of submitting to magazines.

"Yes! Teacher Li, you won’t refuse, will you?"

"But you don’t need a computer for that. Let me tell you, typing on the computer is slow, slower than handwriting." Li Yunxi thought even if Zhou Xuan was submitting articles, they’d be a few hundred or thousand words; no need for a computer.

After buying his computer, Li Yunxi found typing to be troublesome. He didn’t know Wubi input; he could only use the system’s Smart ABC. For someone new to computers, typing was quite laborious.

Zhou Xuan couldn’t help but laugh, "Teacher Li, I’m writing long works, tens or hundreds of thousands of words. If I handwrite, my hand would fall off. And my typing speed is fast—three or four thousand words an hour, no problem at all."

"Pfft..."

Li Yunxi nearly spat out his noodles, utterly stunned by Zhou Xuan’s words.

After taking a sip of soup, Li Yunxi laughed, "Zhou Xuan, are you joking with me? You want to write a long novel? And type three or four thousand words an hour?"

He kept shaking his head at Zhou Xuan, thinking the boy must be overblown lately, making up such stories just to get online.

Zhou Xuan knew Li Yunxi wouldn’t believe him at once, so he said, "Teacher Li, don’t doubt me. As for submissions, I’ve already sent several. A few short pieces, and a sci-fi novella with tens of thousands of words, currently serialized in 'Science Fiction World.' If you don’t believe me, I can show you the payment receipt and sample issues."

"As for typing speed, we can try it at your place."

Hearing this, Li Yunxi was shocked: Did I just hear Zhou Xuan has already earned several thousand yuan in manuscript fees?

Is that something a middle school student can do? Li Yunxi suddenly felt Zhou Xuan was extraordinary.

After a while, Li Yunxi finally digested Zhou Xuan's words and exclaimed, "I never expected you to be so capable—amazing. No problem on my side. As long as you win a few first places at the sports meet, you can use the computer as much as you like."

Zhou Xuan replied happily, "Thank you so much, Teacher Li!"

"But if you want to skip class to write at my place, you need to explain it to Teacher Liu!"

"Don’t worry, if Teacher Liu doesn’t approve, I’ll go straight to the principal." Zhou Xuan grinned.