Xu Hu tried his hand at both Subject 2 and Subject 3 tests.

He passed them all on the first try.

Li Shi gave him a thumbs up admiringly: “Not bad, Mr. Xu! Your skills are still sharp!”

Xu Hu chuckled: “I’m a gold medal instructor at my own driving school. How could simple things like Subject 2 and Subject 3 give me any trouble?”

“However, Mr. Li, this simulator feels completely different. It’s not at all like the batch I purchased. I’ve been badly swindled!”

The difference between the two simulators was visibly apparent even from the outside.

The simulators Xu Hu had previously purchased were ugly in appearance, easily reminiscent of those early bulky computer monitors—clearly full of compromises and dating themselves;

Whereas the Safe and Civilized Driving simulator, from its three-screen LCD display to its square direct-drive steering wheel base, the steering wheel that felt like a racing car’s, and the all-metal pedals and gear shift… everything exuded a sense of modernity and technological advancement.

They weren’t products from the same era at all!

And the differences were even more substantial when actually using them.

Xu Hu said: “I’ve had many complaints about the batch of simulators we purchased for our driving school!”

“The steering wheel has no power assistance, just a belt drive inside that can barely center itself but nothing else; the pedals are loose with no resistance whatsoever; the gear shift breaks frequently, comes loose easily, and gives no sense of actually shifting gears; the seat having no G-force simulation is one thing, but the simulator’s software is also poorly made, looking worse than games from over a decade ago!”

“I wanted the manufacturer to make improvements, but they said it wasn’t possible—this was the best they could do, and making changes would require too much investment and be too troublesome.”

“I thought it was a technical limitation that only allowed for this level of quality. I looked online and saw that other driving test simulators were at about the same level, so I had to let it go.”

“Now I realize it wasn’t because of high investment costs or difficulties—they simply weren’t willing to spend the money, and they absolutely didn’t want to provide after-sales service for machines they’d already sold!”

Li Shi smiled slightly: “Mr. Xu, I think you might be wrongly accusing them.”

“They may simply lack the capability.”

“The teams making these simulators are small operations. How could they produce good products?”

“Can they order in bulk to reduce supply chain costs? Can they hire professional designers for their products? Can they thoroughly analyze driving simulation equipment on the market and provide optimal solutions? Can they, like Tenda, have a team of top-tier game designers to create a game with refined graphics and realistic physics engines?”

“Obviously, they can’t!”

“How can these small teams compare with Tenda? They’re just workshops, while Tenda is a regular army. When Tenda enters the field, it’s like fighting across dimensions!”

“Actually, all the components on this simulator can be produced domestically, but the question is whether anyone has the ability to integrate everything, stockpile in bulk with substantial funding, use a dominant position to make suppliers and contract manufacturers conform to their specifications, and develop the corresponding software to perfectly leverage the entire hardware setup.”

“Take the force feedback and simulated vibration built into the simulator—these all need to be coordinated with the game content!”

“At present, this equipment and game combination is unique to Tenda. Some top-tier driving simulation games abroad certainly have force feedback and vibration response, but the problem is they’re all driving and racing simulations. Even if they serve reality, they’re developed specifically for race car drivers and completely lack driver’s license test functionality.”

“So, not just in the short term, but conservatively estimated, within the next two years, no new product will surpass this equipment!”

Xu Hu was delighted and asked: “What about after-sales service…?”

Li Shi smiled: “You can rest assured about after-sales service. Tenda’s service has always been top-tier! Currently, Tenda’s Slackin’ Internet Cafés and Headwind Logistics are spread across many cities nationwide, making on-site repairs or free replacements very convenient.”

“Most importantly, the game ‘Safe and Civilized Driving’ will continuously release new content, such as new vehicle models and region-specific driving test rules…”

Xu Hu’s eyes lit up: “Oh? That’s excellent!”

One of Xu Hu’s biggest headaches had been that the test content in the simulator didn’t match reality very well.

Of course, this wasn’t entirely the simulator’s fault, as test content and methods do indeed vary slightly across the country.

Subject 1 and Subject 4 were just theory tests with the same question banks nationwide.

But Subjects 2 and 3 could differ greatly between cities—a historical legacy issue.

Some cities had advanced equipment but outdated test content: they might have fully electronic testing systems with no safety personnel in the car, relying entirely on students to drive back to the endpoint themselves, yet not requiring any specific speed. Apart from completing one gear shift operation, crawling through the entire course at idle speed in second gear was acceptable. Other cities required completing the course quickly, with third gear as the minimum, and fourth or fifth gear reaching 60-70 km/h being quite normal.

Even the order of Subject 2 tasks varied, with differences between new and old testing grounds in the same city. Most testing sites had reverse parking as the first task, but some had it as the last.

For chain operations like Hengyuan Driving School, they needed to understand local testing rules before opening in a new city. Whether building new testing grounds or setting teaching standards, they had to adapt to local conditions.

But simulator manufacturers couldn’t be that specific—they could only design based on local driving test rules or those of major cities.

For Xu Hu, he could only make do with what he had, and students practicing on the simulators was mostly for psychological preparation.

But “Safe and Civilized Driving” was different. It could make subtle adjustments to in-game tests based on different local testing rules and release versions for various cities. Players could simply select their corresponding city or be automatically located by IP, naturally following local rules for their tests.

This would better align simulator practice with real-world driver education!

Xu Hu immediately made his decision: “Excellent! Tenda’s equipment is definitely trustworthy! This is it!”

“Let me calculate how many units we need.”

“Currently, our group has over a thousand training vehicles and nearly two hundred stores and training grounds. We could place one or two units in each store and about a dozen at each training ground.”

“So that works out to… let’s order a thousand units to start!”

“Of those, two hundred will be deluxe packages with G-force seats, specifically for our stores to attract students; the other 800 can be standard versions, placed at various training grounds for students to use.”

“Is there enough inventory?”

Li Shi smiled slightly: “Inventory? Don’t worry, I’ve already asked CEO Chang from Outu Technology—the inventory is absolutely guaranteed!”

“Tenda has always been obsessed with maintaining stock. For these Safe and Civilized Driving simulators, they have inventory in warehouses across all major cities. The local inventory in Jingzhou is even more abundant—several large warehouses are already filled to capacity!”

“Pay the money, and they’ll ship immediately!”

“I’ll send you CEO Chang’s contact information right away.”

Li Shi patted his chest, clearly assuming the role of “Safe and Civilized Driving Simulator Sales Ambassador.”

After sending the contact information, Li Shi suddenly remembered something and added: “Oh, by the way, CEO Chang is currently suffering on a deserted island and won’t be back until the end of the month. Let me also send you the contact details for the person currently in charge of the driving simulator business at Outu Technology. You can reach out to them first, and I’ll introduce you to CEO Chang when he returns.”

Xu Hu was a bit confused.

Seriously? Still suffering on a deserted island?

What kind of bizarre company was Tenda—which was more important, work or suffering?

However, Xu Hu didn’t feel it appropriate to ask more questions. He stood up and warmly shook hands with Li Shi: “Thank you! Thank you so much! I’ve been out of the loop. If you hadn’t specifically informed me, I wouldn’t have known that technology had advanced to this level, with such excellent equipment available!”

As a driving school owner, Xu Hu had many responsibilities and didn’t pay attention to happenings in the gaming industry.

“Safe and Civilized Driving” was currently popular mainly within gaming circles and hadn’t yet made such a significant impact in the real world, so it was normal that he wasn’t aware of it.

Of course, as “Safe and Civilized Driving” gained popularity in the real world, he would eventually learn about it, but by then it would be too late—he would have missed the opportunity.

If he knew about it, other driving schools would naturally know too.

What first-mover advantage would there be then?

But now, by purchasing Safe and Civilized Driving simulators in bulk earlier, he could establish a reputation sooner, which would better attract the main target demographic for driving schools: young people.

Xu Hu said: “Mr. Li, you’ve done me such a huge favor, I can’t thank you enough. If there’s anything I can help with in the future, please don’t hesitate to ask—I’ll be more than willing!”

Li Shi smiled slightly: “Mr. Xu, let’s speak frankly—I do have a request.”

“I heard that Hengyuan Driving School is seeking to be listed on the stock market? Although I haven’t heard any follow-up news, given the current scale of Hengyuan Driving School, approval of the application should just be a matter of time. I’d like to facilitate connections, having both Fuhui Capital and Tenda’s Dream Fulfillment Investment make an investment. We could all profit together—what do you think?”

“After going public, Hengyuan Driving School would have ample funds to open more branches in cities across the country, and Outu Technology would naturally prioritize the supply and maintenance of driving simulators.”

“For Hengyuan Driving School’s students, they’d have access to better simulators; for us, we’d all profit together. Wouldn’t that be wonderful?”

Xu Hu was pleased: “That sounds great!”

If other investors had proposed investing, Xu Hu would likely have refused on the spot.

No joke—his company was about to go public. Why would he need their investment?

What, they saw the imminent IPO and came pretending to invest, planning to sell their shares after the listing and cash out without bearing any risks, just taking the fruit? Did they think he was stupid?

That’s not how you take advantage!

But Li Shi’s suggestion was difficult for Xu Hu to refuse.

On one hand, Li Shi, as an intermediary, was making connections, bringing in Tenda’s Dream Fulfillment Investment. Having both Fuhui Capital and Dream Fulfillment Investment involved was like bringing Hengyuan Driving School onto Tenda’s bandwagon—this certified identity was important as it would directly influence young people’s perceptions.

On the other hand, Li Shi and Dream Fulfillment Investment obviously weren’t just harvesting quick profits—they believed in Hengyuan Driving School’s post-IPO performance and would likely hold their shares long-term.

Since it was a win-win-win situation, there was no problem at all!