Reborn in 1999: Starting as a black marketeer

Everyone was young and eager to leave their families and try their luck in the big city. So they quickly put aside the sadness of parting and started laughing and joking about their upcoming study abroad experience.

"I heard that the science programs there are quite strong. I plan to study physics in college, get my doctorate, and then come back and become a university professor." Zhang Liang was really bold to say that, and his tone made it sound like he already had his doctorate.

This is before they've experienced the "brutal beatings" of Russian universities...

Wang Feiyang knew that the school there was a typical case of easy to get in but difficult to graduate from. In his previous life, he studied business management, a major that was relatively easy to graduate from. There were 32 international students in his freshman year, but only 12 of them successfully obtained their diplomas by the time they graduated. The rest had failed too many courses and couldn't continue their studies.

The university there really does have the concept of repeating a year. As long as you pay your tuition on time every year, you can keep studying without any problems!

As for the science subjects Zhang Liang mentioned, such as physics, chemistry, and mathematics, they are not easy for Russian students to graduate from, let alone a foreign student like you. Russian is a relatively difficult language to learn. Even if you study very hard after a year of preparatory courses, you can only barely have a daily conversation with the locals. You still won't understand anything in class!

In this situation, how do you compete with Russian students?

Not to mention that the Russian students at Moscow State University are elites selected from across Russia...

However, he didn't want to dampen Zhang Liang's enthusiasm at this point. Anyway, once they got there and had been there for a while, they could ask the previous Chinese students and they would understand everything.

Ultimately, the vast majority of Chinese students end up obediently studying easy-to-graduate majors like business administration, sociology, or journalism; they're just there to get a degree. You really think you're something special...?

Hu Xiaoyun and Guo Juan were more rational. Both of them planned to study humanities. Hu Xiaoyun wanted to study journalism, while Guo Juan, perhaps having researched the situation there, directly chose the easiest major, sociology.

Wang Feiyang hasn't decided what major he wants to study yet. In any case, it doesn't matter to him which major he chooses; it's not a bad thing if he doesn't study it.

However, I still need to attend university for the sake of that student visa, which is also a way of giving my parents an explanation.

…………

The provincial capital is not too far from the capital, and the journey takes about seven hours on the highway. They set off early in the morning, ate some of the food they brought at a service area for lunch, rested for a while, and then continued on their way.

We arrived at Beijing Capital International Airport around 4 p.m.

Carrying our luggage, we arrived at the international departure hall from the parking lot. Under the guidance of the staff member, we checked in our luggage in an orderly manner, and our tickets were distributed to everyone.

The agent clapped his hands, gathered the four people together, and said with a smile, "It's almost time. Everyone, please make sure you have your documents and go straight through security. After security, find a place to rest for a while, or grab a bite to eat. Boarding will be soon. Have a pleasant journey and success in your studies!"

"Thank you, teacher."

"Thank you for your help today."

"Goodbye, teacher..."

The four responded in unison, smiling as they said goodbye to the real estate agent.

After passing through security and finding their boarding gate, with about half an hour left before boarding, the group took out their phones to call home and let their families know they were safe.

Wang Feiyang didn't call his parents because he hadn't told them about buying the phone, and he had also told them he would call them after he arrived there.

He didn't call Su Ying or Song Yi either. He had been staying in a hotel room by himself last night and had already called both women. The calls lasted quite a while, especially with Su Ying, who didn't want to hang up. It wasn't until Wang Feiyang's phone was disconnected due to unpaid bills that the call ended...

I took out my wallet and saw that I still had about two thousand yuan left. Since I couldn't spend it there anyway, I decided to go to the airport duty-free shop.

After going inside and looking around, I went straight to the cigarette counter and bought six packs of Zhonghua cigarettes. Each pack cost 300 yuan, which was much cheaper than outside!

However, as a long-time smoker, he knew that the Zhonghua cigarettes sold in duty-free shops tasted completely different from the domestic version, with a strange flavor, probably to cater to foreigners' tastes.

He himself didn't like smoking this kind of cigarette, but it would be a very good gift to give to someone else, since there are a lot of smokers in Russia.

Perhaps because of the cold weather, even many girls smoke.

I wrapped the six packs of cigarettes in a plastic bag and stuffed them directly into my backpack; they didn't take up much space.

I had just finished buying cigarettes when I heard the airport announcement.

"Dear passengers, boarding is now commenced. Passengers traveling to Moscow on Air China flight CA909, please take your carry-on items, present your boarding pass, and board in an orderly manner at gate 15. Have a pleasant journey."

It was the flight that Wang Feiyang and his group were going to take, and boarding had begun.

…………

After queuing up and boarding the plane, I found my seat and sat down.

Because the four of them checked in together, their seats were next to each other, but Wang Feiyang and Zhang Liang were in the front row, and the two girls were in the row behind them.

To be honest, this was Wang Feiyang's first time on an airplane.

Of course, in his previous life, he had already been flying so much that he was sick of it; he was one of the earliest Black Diamond members on Ctrip!

Because it was in economy class, the space was cramped and the seats weren't very comfortable. Passengers were still getting on the plane one after another.

Wang Feiyang was sitting there looking around when a man in his thirties walked over in a hurry, checked his boarding pass, stuffed his bag into the overhead luggage compartment, and sat down next to Wang Feiyang.

When he turned to look at Wang Feiyang, Wang Feiyang smiled and nodded at him as a greeting.

The man then chuckled and asked, "Young man, are you also going to Moscow?"

"Yes," Wang Feiyang said casually.

"Judging from your age, you're probably not going there to do business. Are you an international student?" the man guessed.

"Big brother guessed quite accurately, he is indeed an international student," Wang Feiyang said with a smile, there was no point in hiding it.

The man was a little puzzled and asked, "Why is it so late? It shouldn't be holiday time yet. Besides, the Russians don't have a Spring Festival, so it's not winter break time yet."

Winter break in Russia is relatively short, usually only two weeks, typically from the end of January to the beginning of February. The timing is arranged by the school and is not fixed.

Wang Feiyang briefly explained the situation, and the person suddenly understood.

Both men were outgoing and cheerful, and they quickly started chatting. Wang Feiyang also learned that the man's name was Liu Jianjun, and that he was a wholesaler of bags and suitcases at the Moscow Grand Market, which is commonly known as a "scalper"!

As we were chatting, all the passengers had arrived. The flight attendants began asking everyone to be seated and fasten their seatbelts. The plane slowly began to taxi to the runway, ready for takeoff...