Chapter 29: Make a Slingshot to Break Your Window (Seeking Collections and Recommendations)

Imperial Capital

The yellow and black taxi turned onto the Third Ring Road, then headed west, making its way toward the Haidian District.

Qi Hui sat in the back row, resting his chin on his hand and looking out the window, his gaze filled with a hint of astonishment.

He had thought that having experienced the barrage of big data before his transmigration, he wouldn't be surprised by any so-called first-tier metropolis, but... the prosperity of the Imperial Capital was far beyond his imagination.

Whether before or after his transmigration, he had never witnessed such an incomparably prosperous city with his own eyes.

Once you enter the world of construction, the mortal world becomes a stranger.

Before he transmigrated, he was either at a construction site or on his way to one.

Even when he had time off, he would return home—to his own eighteenth-tier small city—and every time he arrived, he was so exhausted he just wanted to collapse and sleep; he had absolutely no interest in going out.

This kind of prosperous world, Qi Hui had only ever seen on a mobile phone screen.

Even though he had followed his company to build many high-rise buildings, he had never gone back to see those buildings after they were completed.

Nor could he afford to buy any of the houses he had helped build.

"Covered in silk..." what was the rest of that line again?

Qi Hui scratched his head; reciting poetry was too difficult for an engineering student like him.

"Young man, is this your first time in our Imperial Capital?" The driver glanced at the rearview mirror and said with a smile, "You don't have scenery like our Imperial Capital in other places, right?"

Qi Hui smiled and said, "You’ve got the wrong impression there; I actually went to university right around here."

"Oh my, look at my brain," the driver exclaimed. "You went to the Beijing Film Academy, I didn't react in time."

"Hahaha, you flatter me..."

"Master, you drive a taxi, you must have been all over the Imperial Capital, right?" Qi Hui casually found a topic.

Hearing this, the driver became energized, and his chatterbox opened up: "That goes without saying. I dare say there isn't a place in the entire Imperial Capital I'm not familiar with; I've been everywhere..."

For a time, the Beijing accent echoed in Qi Hui's ears as the driver talked incessantly, from the south of the city to the north, from the east to the west.

Having finished with space, he started chatting about time.

He spoke from the Yongle era to the Chongzhen era, from the Yongzheng era to the Gengzi year, and even mentioned Dagu Fort in passing.

As expected of an Imperial Capital driver; you have to admit, that was truly authentic.

Haidian, Tucheng Road.

Qi Hui had wanted to get off at the school gate, but rows of luxury cars had almost blocked the road.

He simply got out and walked the rest of the way to the gate.

At the school entrance, a red carpet had already been laid out, and two rows of beautiful ceremonial guards stood on either side, looking quite grand.

Today was the school's fiftieth anniversary celebration, so a bit of grandeur was normal.

Qi Hui walked to the registration desk and handed over his invitation.

"Huh? A senior from the 2005 Acting Class?" the student union member said in surprise.

"That's Yang Mi's class!"

Hearing this, a girl nearby immediately leaned in: "Is it Tang Xuejian's class? Let me see!"

Whenever the 2005 class of the Beijing Film Academy was mentioned, it was always Yang Mi's class.

It wasn't just them; directors and producers like Zhang Jian and Jiang Wei were the same.

There was no helping it; "Paladin 3" was too popular. Even if people across the country hadn't watched the show, they knew the two characters Jingtian and Tang Xuejian.

"Senior, please go in." The student from the student union handed the invitation back and gave Qi Hui a seat number.

Qi Hui waved his hand and turned to walk inside the school gate.

The girl looked at Qi Hui's back, lost in thought, and a moment later, she had a realization: "Oh my, isn't this that senior who caught the fugitive?"

"He looked so cool with the bayonet!"

The boy beside her widened his eyes, hurriedly got up to look for Qi Hui, and said with some annoyance, "I didn't recognize him."

"Ah, if I'd known, I would have asked for his autograph."

The girl said with disdain, "Didn't you say all day that he was handsome? You didn't even recognize him?"

The boy gave an awkward smile: "I was too busy looking at the gun and the bayonet; how could I notice his face?"

"Tch~" the girl scoffed; why look at wood and iron instead of such a handsome face?

Inside the campus, Qi Hui looked left and right, wandering around aimlessly.

The seat number was for the playground, in the alumni seating area.

He was here just to be part of the atmosphere, to listen to the leaders speak and shout "666" on cue.

Of course, there were also alumni representatives speaking, but only the outstanding alumni would go on stage.

"Huh? You kid came back too?" Just as Qi Hui was wandering, a voice rang out.

Turning his head, he saw a short old man with a round face.

Wang Jinsong.

He had the same name as Uncle Dong from *The Thunder*, but he wasn't the same person.

He was the vice dean of the Beijing Film Academy's School of Performing Arts and had taught Qi Hui's class.

Not only had he taught them, but he had also directed their class's graduation play.

However, the impression Qi Hui had of him was deepest from the role of the mental patient he played in the movie *Who Says I Don't Care*.

The line "Pull out a rubber band to make a slingshot and break your window" made people burst into laughter, and even a professional actor like Wang Zhiwen couldn't hold back and broke character.

It was only a professional comedian like Feng Gong who was impressive enough to keep a straight face.

It was a legendary scene.

"Yo, Dean Wang, you still remember me?" Qi Hui laughed.

Wang Jinsong laughed heartily: "How could I forget? You all were the best class of students I ever taught."

"And it hasn't been that long since you graduated, has it?"

In truth, he had long forgotten; he had too many things to do every day, handling school affairs, balancing teaching, and having people come to him for acting roles.

How could he remember a student like Qi Hui, who had no special traits other than being handsome?

The Beijing Film Academy lacked nothing except handsome men and beautiful women.

But hadn't Qi Hui done a big thing?

Plus, in front of the cameras, the three Beijing Film Academy students had been humble and respectful to each other, with a relationship that was incredibly good.

You have to know this was the entertainment industry, a vanity fair where everyone was desperate to get famous.

But with the three students from the Beijing Film Academy yielding the spotlight to each other, who wouldn't praise the school after seeing that scene?

It even improved the reputation of the Beijing Film Academy, and he, as someone who had taught Qi Hui, shared in the honor.

"Is that so?" Qi Hui expressed doubt: "That's not what you said when you were directing our graduation play."

"What did I say?"

"You said we were the worst class of students you had ever led." Qi Hui relentlessly brought up the past.

Old Wang coughed into his fist: "Cough... wasn't that just to make you more serious?"

He said that every year; he was used to it.

"Alright, since you're back, eat well, drink well, and have fun," Wang Jinsong said, patting Qi Hui on the shoulder. "If you have time, teach the juniors some work; didn't you often run over to the 2007 class to teach little Zhang?"

"Oh, remember, don't mess with the junior girls, or I won't spare you!"

Saying this, he walked away quickly, afraid that Qi Hui would bring up more old accounts.

Watching the little old man leave, Qi Hui shrugged helplessly, preparing to walk around the Beijing Film Academy.

He had no interest in listening to the leaders speak and didn't want to go to the playground so soon.

Before graduation, he had to listen to leaders speak and couldn't walk around freely; after graduation, he still had to listen to leaders speak and couldn't walk around freely—wouldn't that mean he graduated for nothing?

The Beijing Film Academy wasn't actually big, just over a hundred acres; he finished walking it in a few steps.

The engineering university Qi Hui attended before his transmigration had a total area of over four thousand acres; he even had to take a bus just to pick up a package.

Compared to that, the Beijing Film Academy looked like a small, old, and broken place.

"Senior!" Just then, a female voice came from behind.

Qi Hui was stunned; was she calling me?

He immediately turned his head and saw a very beautiful girl with bright, sweet features, a tall and slender figure, and a lot of charisma.

Jing Tian!

Qi Hui recognized her at a glance.

I don't think I know her... Qi Hui couldn't help but raise an eyebrow.

"Senior, it's me, Jing Tian." The girl looked delighted, seeing Qi Hui's slightly confused expression, she said:

"Don't you remember me? Last time you came to our class, I even asked you for advice on a problem!"

Qi Hui: "..."

This conversation felt so familiar; it felt like he had seen it somewhere before...