“Pretty lady, want to buy one?”

Xia Ziyu dropped some coins and bought a newspaper before leaving.

Du Zhaohui was actually in Hong Kong too, but he absolutely wouldn’t meet her. Though she would live alone now, Du Zhaohui had certainly arranged for people to watch her.

Following the address, she moved into a small apartment.

Not only had her appearance changed, but her background story also needed careful fabrication.

Complete lies wouldn’t work – some facts needed to be mixed in. Being from mainland China couldn’t be changed, but she couldn’t be a fugitive – she would be someone searching for relatives.

Failed to find relatives, abandoned her mainland identity, and naturally needed to find work.

Du Zhaohui’s fabricated background was quite interesting.

Saying she grew up in Hong Kong would be easily exposed without traces of life here.

Claiming overseas upbringing wouldn’t hold up to questioning – a few months wasn’t enough to create someone with foreign experience. Coming from the mainland to search for relatives was normal – illegal immigration was common these days. With difficult communication between Hong Kong and the mainland, would Du Chengrong investigate which mainland village every woman came from?

The smartest approach was mixing truth with lies.

The rest was fake, but Beijing Institute was something Xia Ziyu had attended – she wasn’t pretending to be educated.

Though Hong Kong didn’t recognize mainland credentials, she was young and beautiful and had recently crammed English studies – getting an ordinary position at Chengrong Group wasn’t difficult.

This time it wasn’t Du Zhaohui’s manipulation – Xia Ziyu got the job on her own merits.

Only after joining did she learn Du Chengrong was away on business – even company employees rarely had contact with the chairman.

How could she climb to a position close to Du Chengrong?

Xia Ziyu could only wait for Du Zhaohui to create opportunities!

Second Young Master Du’s presence was strong in the company – everyone talked about him, seemingly forgetting the eldest young master was now stationed in the mainland developing markets.

So she was anxious, but Du Zhaohui would be even more anxious. Xia Ziyu contained her impatience.

…

Hong Kong’s undercurrents surged – the Du family was a microcosm of Hong Kong’s great era.

In Beijing.

As soon as Xia Xiaolan returned to school, she was called to the department again.

The department head naturally congratulated her: “Old Master Mao put in great effort, arranging your exchange school – Cornell University! The Ministry of Education has confirmed the timing – departing February 12th next year for one year. Your accommodation and living expenses in America will be publicly funded. Do you have any other questions?”

Xia Xiaolan already knew about Cornell University – it wasn’t a surprise.

But February 12th was a good departure date. Xia Xiaolan had checked the calendar – it was a few days after the Spring Festival, so she could still spend the holiday with family.

Leaving mid-February would be tight for matters in Pengcheng, but still manageable!

The department head brought all the good news, and Xia Xiaolan was naturally pleased:

“Besides Teacher Mao, the department also helped secure this – thank you for your care and support!”

Xia Xiaolan bowed in thanks to the department head, who was naturally satisfied.

“Cornell may not be as famous as Harvard in China, but it’s still part of the Ivy League. Its undergraduate architecture program is very strong. You must cherish this year – the country is spending money to send you for exchange studies. The living standard won’t be very high, but we’re not competing with foreign students in luxury – we compete in knowledge gained!”

The department head spoke seriously.

Though he knew Ji Ya and the truth, he hadn’t shown favoritism. Hearing him earnestly advise her to cherish the exchange opportunity and not complain about living expenses, Xia Xiaolan didn’t feel he was being pompous… The department head certainly had a leadership style, but he probably truly thought this way.

Just like Old Comrade Mao said, “Time is as precious as gold.”

Everyone thought that way.

When the country provides money to study abroad, how could one not cherish it?

An opportunity others couldn’t get!

Cornell’s undergraduate architecture program was indeed strong. As Mao Kangshan said, through regular application channels, Xia Xiaolan might not have gotten in.

They accepted fewer than 300 undergraduate and graduate students combined each year – how low was the acceptance rate? These spots were open to global applicants. Even after graduating from Huaqing, getting into their graduate program would be difficult.

But now, with her first place in the National College English Competition, the Ministry of Education’s involvement, Mao Kangshan’s mediation, and Huaqing’s Architecture Department’s efforts, they managed to place her in Cornell’s Architecture Department for a year of study. Though exchange studies wouldn’t earn a degree, with this experience, staying at Huaqing after graduation would be easier.

Of course, she still had no plans to stay at the university, nor did she expect the foreign experience to get her a better job assignment, but this was truly a good learning opportunity. For nearly a year, she would access the best educational resources available to architecture undergraduates – just for this, the opportunity was extremely valuable.

“Don’t worry, I can’t wait to cherish this opportunity – how could I quibble about living expense standards? That would be missing the point, wasting precious time!”

The department head repeatedly praised her and advised maintain composure:

“Though you leave in February, you can’t slack this semester. I know you’ve won scholarships two semesters in a row – keep up that diligent study attitude in your sophomore second semester!”

Don’t get carried away just because of studying abroad – with that attitude, even the best school would be wasted.

Xia Xiaolan obediently listened, leaving the office with a smile.

Why worry about living expenses?

The South Sea Hotel renovation project had just earned her 700,000 yuan – over 70,000 US dollars at black market exchange rates.

Even ordinary American families couldn’t produce such money – wouldn’t it be enough for a year in America?

Of course, Xia Xiaolan wasn’t going just to enjoy herself – she hoped to gather some American wool. Large amounts of dollars couldn’t be carried across borders – she needed to make arrangements.

Back at the dormitory, hearing the department had announced the departure time and confirmed the exchange university, Room 307 erupted in screams.

This time, even the frugal Yang Yonghong demanded Xia Xiaolan treat them.

Girls from the whole floor came to inquire – publicly funded exchange studies weren’t something everyone at Huaqing could get.

Going to Cornell’s Architecture Department – this was enough to make classmates envious.

Laughter carried into neighboring Room 305. Ning Xue put down her pen.

Xia Xiaolan was going to Cornell as an exchange student.

If she had known winning the English competition could lead to being an exchange student at Cornell, would she have participated?

Ning Xue felt she would have.

But would participating have guaranteed first place?

When first entering school, Ning Xue hadn’t imagined Xia Xiaolan would advance so quickly. National college entrance exam third place versus her first place was just a few points difference – not really about catching up.

What Xia Xiaolan was catching up to was Ning Xue’s originally far-leading professional skills.

“…Cornell University, huh?”