Back to 1993: The family splits up at the start, and the ingrates regret it so much they cry.

Rental housing in the county town.

The siblings ate beef with chopsticks and drank wine from large, rough porcelain bowls.

Wang Peng drank a bowl in one gulp, his face turning red and his neck thickening, then he took out his household registration book and kissed it.

Li Fang chuckled, "It's just a household registration booklet, you've kissed it three times already."

"Sister Fang, you don't understand. If I were Sun Wukong, my household registration would be the golden headband on my head."

Wang Peng shook his head and said, "With my own household registration book, I can buy a house, go to university, and get married."

"Your skills are no less than Sun Wukong's." Li Fang was happy for him and took a small sip of wine.

After eating and drinking his fill, Wang Peng stretched and locked his household registration book in the cabinet.

"Sister Fang, let's go to the market to buy ingredients. We'll have a trial run at the school gate tomorrow."

"Huh? Tomorrow's registration day." Li Fang shook her head. "Didn't you say we'd start a trial run after registration?"

"I'm so happy today, I've decided to start the trial operation ahead of schedule. Let's go!" Wang Peng hummed a little tune as he went to get the money.

Tomorrow, 500 new first-year high school students will come to the school to register, and their parents will also come along, resulting in a very large flow of people.

"Won't this delay the registration?" Li Fang asked worriedly. "Registration is a big deal; we can postpone the business for now."

"Don't worry, it's just registering, it won't cause any problems," Wang Peng said.

The siblings tidied up the table and took their snakeskin bags to the farmers' market.

Outside the large market, many farmers who came to the city to sell vegetables appeared.

Wang Peng bought carrots, spinach, green onions, and other ingredients for fried rice, as well as oil, salt, chopped green onions, and other seasonings.

Li Fang's incessant chatter with the vegetable farmer about dividing the money made Wang Peng laugh for the first time.

When buying eggs, she always picks the smallest ones.

The old man selling eggs was bewildered. "Everyone else picks the big eggs, why are you only picking the small ones?"

Wang Peng was amused by his cousin for the second time. She said that one egg should be added to every serving of fried rice, and the smaller the egg, the more cost-effective it would be.

At dawn the next day, Wang Peng was awakened by the sound of chopping vegetables.

I got dressed and went outside, and saw the kitchen light was on. My cousin was chopping carrots into cubes.

"No need to get up so early, it's just registration." Wang Peng scratched his head.

“Early to bed and early to rise makes you healthy,” Li Fang said with a smile. “Go back to sleep for a while, and I’ll call you for breakfast later.”

Ta-da! A kitchen knife is cutting into a cutting board. How can I sleep like this?

Wang Peng went to the toilet, washed his face with a basin of water, and then went to the main room to offer incense to the gods.

Below the main hall is an eight-immortal table, on which are enshrined three deities.

The God of Wealth Zhao Gongming and Guan Yu, the Second Master Guan, were left by the landlord.

Wang Peng also invited Manjushri Bodhisattva, whose mount is the green lion from Lion Camel Ridge in Journey to the West. He is known among the people as the "Buddha Who Passes Every Exam".

Respectfully offer three sticks of incense and kowtow three times.

"Disciple Wang Peng humbly begs Second Master to protect my safety, Master Zhao to ensure the success of my business opening, and Bodhisattva to protect my studies."

In his past life, he didn't believe in ghosts and gods, but now he does.

After breakfast, the siblings pulled the food cart to the school gate and saw a huge crowd.

Parents brought their children to register, and the school was filled with tractors, tricycles, and other vehicles.

The truck was carrying various daily necessities such as quilts, washbasins, and food.

There are stalls selling roasted sweet potatoes and sesame cakes on the north side of the school gate, and Wang Peng also puts his food cart on the north side.

"I'll go register first, wait for me." Wang Peng took off his fanny pack and handed it to his cousin.

"Pengdi, I...I'm scared." Li Fang blushed nervously.

When she was selling watermelons before, she was in charge of guarding the watermelon field. Now that she's out in public, she's not used to the crowds.

"Don't be afraid, they can't eat you, can they?" Wang Peng patted her hand. "I'll be back soon, everything will be alright."

Just then, Wang Peng heard someone calling him and turned around to see the three members of the Du family.

They were driving an oxcart, which was loaded with snakeskin sacks full of things.

"Is it really you? Let's go register together." Du Lei immediately put his arm around Wang Peng's shoulder.

Wang Peng nodded, looking at the snakeskin bag on the car. "Master Du, what's in the bag?"

"Xiaomai, exchange the food coupons for Du Lei in the canteen," Du Geda said.

"Good heavens, the canteen still has food coupons?" Wang Peng shook his head and rode the Du family's oxcart to register.

The oxcart arrived at the canteen, and the two bags of wheat were weighed, totaling two hundred catties, which were exchanged for one hundred and fifty catties of grain coupons.

Wang Peng looked at the food coupons. They weren't issued by the government, but by the canteen. He could use the food coupons to buy meals at the canteen.

The school was bustling with traffic. Du Geda found a place to park, and Du Ming took Du Lei and Wang Peng to register.

Three desks were placed together, five female teachers were collecting money and registering students, and students and parents were all around.

"Comrade, I'd like to register my child." Du Ming took out his money bag.

"What's the student's name?" the teacher with a ponytail asked him.

"Du Lei, ranked 258th." Du Ming was a little nervous, clutching the money in his hand tightly.

The female teacher opened the workbook, found Du Lei's name, and confirmed Du Lei's ranking.

"Tuition fee is four hundred yuan." She took Du Ming's money and wrote a receipt with her head down.

A total of 500 new students were admitted, and there were also some students who did not get a place to study on a temporary basis.

The top 100 students in the high school entrance exam pay 200 yuan in tuition, while the rest pay 400 yuan, and are referred to as high-priced students.

The instructor next to him handed Du Lei a note: "Your class is Class 1-8, and your dormitory is 308. Go find your dormitory."

“Teacher, I’d like to sign up too. My name is Wang Peng.” Wang Peng took out two hundred yuan.

I silently told myself to keep working hard to make money, and not to lower my quality of life because of school.

Suddenly I sensed something was off, and when I looked up, I realized I was being watched.

The female teacher collecting tuition fees, the nearby students and parents, some secretly watching him, some openly watching him.

"You're Wang Peng, the top scorer in the high school entrance exam?" The female teacher looked surprised. "The principal asked us to check your household registration."

"Why?" Wang Peng asked, taking out his household registration book and handing it to her.

"I don't know." After checking the household registration book, the female teacher took two hundred yuan from him and wrote a receipt.

The teacher next to me said, "The principal only asked to verify your household registration, probably because he's worried that someone might impersonate you."

"Really? It seems the principal is quite interested in me." Wang Peng put away his household registration booklet. "I'm truly honored."

"Of course!" the female teacher laughed. "You were the top scorer in the high school entrance exam; in the old society, you would have been at least a scholar who passed the imperial examinations."

Laughter erupted all around, with parents displaying goodwill and students looking on with admiration.

Just then, Wang Song led Wang Cheng through the crowd.

"Comrade, I'd like to register my child. His name is Wang Cheng." He pulled out a wad of cash from his pocket.

"What was your ranking?" the female teacher asked routinely.

Wang Song's face darkened, and he said weakly, "The child is a temporary student."

"Extra students" are academically weak students who have connections with school administrators and have paid their way in.

—This is an open secret.

The female teacher's eyes showed contempt. She took out the roster of students transferring from the table and found Wang Cheng's name.

Students are judged solely on their grades, and most students and parents look down on students who attend school outside their registered residence area.

There was complete silence all around. Wang Song blushed and lowered his head, not daring to look at the faces of the crowd.

Wang Cheng stared intently at Wang Peng, his heart filled with jealousy.

Wang Peng also noticed his gaze, but seeing his still swollen face, he turned his head away and ignored him.

"Brother Peng, let's go to the dorm." Du Lei sneered.

He also recognized Wang Song and Wang Cheng, but ignored them and pulled Wang Peng out of the crowd.

Wang Peng looked at his note; his class was Class 1, Grade 1, and his dormitory was Room 100.