Doing It Over Again

Shen Shao got up from the ground, dusting off his pants, feeling too embarrassed to look back. Falling in front of so many teachers was utterly humiliating!

Shen Zhengyang walked up to him with a hint of schadenfreude, dropped a "serves you right," and strode away, feeling like he'd gotten his revenge.

Shen Shao wanted to touch his face but noticed his hands were still dusty. He could only helplessly pat his hands a few times before hurrying back to his classroom. He really didn't want to see the teachers' expressions, okay?

"Holy shit, did Shen Zhengyang's family rough you up?!" When Shen Shao returned to the classroom, his deskmate Yang Hongqiang noticed the dust on him and immediately slammed the desk, saying, "Come on, let's go teach them a lesson!"

"I just fell by myself, it has nothing to do with anyone else," Shen Shao coughed awkwardly. He had washed his hands before entering the classroom, though his palms were a bit raw, and now that the shock had worn off, they were starting to hurt. "Class is about to start, where are you going?"

Unfortunately, none of the classmates around him believed this honest explanation. In their minds, Shen Zhengyang's family had become the villains who bullied Shen Shao, a deeply rooted perception that would likely persist for decades, difficult to change even in adulthood.

Shen Shao was unaware that he had inadvertently caused trouble for Shen Zhengyang, but after this incident, Shen Zhengyang stopped bothering him. With studies becoming increasingly intense and fewer girls sending him love letters, he could focus entirely on his studies.

By now, he was certain his brain functioned better than in his previous life. He could read extensively without getting dizzy and could remember almost everything he read, as if heaven had suddenly boosted his IQ from around eighty to one hundred and twenty.

About two to three months before the high school entrance exam, all the houses Shen Shao had bought were included in the demolition and relocation plan. The official notice had been issued, though compensation terms hadn't been settled yet. After all, every demolition project had its share of stubborn holdouts.

At the beginning of his third year of junior high, Shen Shao had asked his calligraphy teacher from the enrichment class to help transfer his household registration from Shen Family Village to one of his purchased properties. He had also managed to add two years to his age - it wasn't unusual for some rural children to start school late, so the age adjustment wasn't suspicious. Most importantly, he could now get an ID card, which would make many future matters more convenient.

The Residents' Committee began notifying households to sign the demolition agreement if they accepted the terms. Although residents excitedly discussed the matter, none were willing to sign, many hoping to delay for better compensation.

After observing for several days and seeing little interest in signing, Shen Shao sighed inwardly. He remembered that during the original demolition, indeed no one wanted to sign at first, until the government issued an ultimatum suggesting they might abandon the project if residents didn't agree. Within a week, almost everyone had signed the consent forms, no longer minding even if the compensation was slightly less than initially discussed.

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Not wanting to wait until things reached that point, he specifically took a half-day leave from school and went to the demolition team at the Residents' Committee with his property certificates, ID card, and household registration book.

The demolition team leader from the Planning Bureau had been anxious seeing no one come to sign over the past few days. So that Friday, he just sat at his desk reading the newspaper at the committee office, expecting another day without signatures, at most just some old ladies coming to lament about their attachment to their homes and the excellent location near schools.

So when he saw a young man standing before him, he didn't even lower his newspaper and simply asked, "What can I help you with?"

The youth placed his property certificates and household registration book on the desk and said, "I'm here to sign."

"Sign?" The officer excitedly folded his newspaper, and his two assistants perked up as well. However, after looking the youth up and down several times, the officer hesitantly said, "Kid, these matters need adult approval. Your word doesn't count."

"I'm the only one in my family," Shen Shao took out his property certificates from his bag, "so I'm the only one who can make the decision."

After checking the property certificates, ID card, and household registration book, the officer was surprised to discover that this child owned four properties. The square footage compensation would amount to quite a sum.

Given that the household registration book only listed Shen Shao as the head of household, and noting it was newly issued just a few months ago, the officer, though eager to get the signature, still felt compelled to ask the necessary questions: "Where are the adults in your family?"

Shen Shao shook his head: "I don't have parents."

The assistant took Shen Shao's household registration book and began checking the computer. Although the internet wasn't advanced at that time, the government had equipped the demolition team with computers for such matters.

"Director Yang, his parents' status is listed as deceased," the assistant whispered to the officer, "It seems this child really doesn't have anyone else."

Though the assistant spoke softly, Shen Shao still heard him. He was surprised - hadn't his irresponsible father run off with another woman? Why was he listed as deceased?

Then it dawned on him. During these years, household registration management wasn't particularly strict. Shen Jianbing and that woman probably worried about him finding them, so they had their old registrations marked as deceased and created new ones in another location.

No wonder Shen Jianbing had left so decisively - that woman's family must have had some influence. This also explained why in his previous life, when he met his nominal father Shen Jianbing, the man was driving a BMW and wearing designer clothes.

Director Yang noticed Shen Shao's expression change and thought the assistant's words had upset him. He kicked the assistant under the table and smiled at Shen Shao, "We were just trying to understand the situation, nothing else. Which compensation option would you like to choose?"

There were options: a one-to-one exchange of residential space for commercial space, a one-to-two-and-a-half exchange for new residential space, or monetary compensation based on the property area.

Among Shen Shao's properties, the cheapest was the old tile-roofed house, but it actually had the largest area, measuring nearly 200 square meters. Adding the other three houses of about 100 square meters each, the total demolition area was over 500 square meters. With this compensation, Shen Shao would certainly qualify as a wealthy young man.

At this time, people didn't value commercial spaces much, which was why the demolition team dared to offer a one-to-one exchange of residential for commercial space. In seven or eight years, no one would be so generous.

Knowing this area would become the county's central district and commercial spaces would become impossible to buy, Shen Shao unhesitatingly exchanged for five commercial spaces of 70-80 square meters each, and took monetary compensation for the remaining hundred-plus square meters. Although this was the least profitable option, he needed sufficient capital for his plans in the coming years. A small loss now for greater benefits later seemed worthwhile.

Director Yang was surprised by Shen Shao's choice of so many commercial spaces. After a moment's pause, he stamped the contract and added, "Today, we received a new incentive policy - the first eight households to sign will each receive a bonus 96-square-meter apartment. You're the first to process the demolition paperwork, so sign this incentive clause, and you'll get an extra apartment when the area is developed."

After the assistant entered Shen Shao's demolition information into the internal network, Director Yang pulled out an incentive agreement from his drawer and said with a smile, "Young man, you're lucky. We were just about to post this notice when you came in. If you'd been a bit later, you would have missed out on this bonus."

"All thanks to the great national policies. Thank you, uncles," Shen Shao said with a smile as he packed up all the signed contracts and repeatedly thanked the members of the demolition team before leaving with his bag. As for why the reward policy hadn't been posted yet, that wasn't his concern anymore - after all, not everyone had relatives who could provide insider information.

Just as he walked out, he saw several people hurrying past, probably all coming for the rewards.

Director Yang hadn't deceived him; instead, he had given him one of the reward slots, which was quite decent of him.

Sure enough, after the reward policy was announced, many people were filled with regret. If they had signed earlier, they could have gotten an extra 90-square-meter apartment. Later, when rumors spread that if people didn't sign soon, the government would abandon the demolition plan for this area and move to demolish West City instead, everyone rushed to sign, worried that their sure thing might slip away.

Amidst all this demolition excitement, Shen Shao finally faced his middle school graduation exam.

The exam was held in a primary school in the county town. Even before the exam ended, numerous parents had gathered outside the school gates.

When the exam finished and Shen Shao walked out of the exam room, the school entrance was already packed with people. As he made his way through the crowd, he hadn't taken two steps before Yang Hongqiang grabbed him: "Shen Shao, how did you do?"

After being tortured by exams for two days, Yang Hongqiang had finally revived with full energy, and there was excitement in his voice as he spoke to Shen Shao: "Thank goodness you helped me with that last-minute revision. So many of those key points showed up in the exam. I really owe you one, buddy."

Seeing his excited face, Shen Shao patted his shoulder: "We're brothers, no need for thanks."

"Hehe," Yang Hongqiang grinned, rubbing his hands together. His father, Yang Zhian, was genuinely grateful to Shen Shao, as he knew exactly how capable his son was. After finishing the first exam yesterday, his son had told them that many of the topics had been covered in Shen Shao's advance guidance. After several exams, he clearly understood that Shen Shao had genuinely helped his son without holding anything back, otherwise his son wouldn't be so excited after the exams.

Yang Zhian walked up to Shen Shao and said very seriously: "Shen Shao, thank you for helping my good-for-nothing son. Now that the exams are over, if you're free, why don't you stay at our place for a few days? My wife may be loud, but she's a good cook. You've all been working hard studying lately, you need some proper nourishment." He knew Shen Shao was an orphan, his rented house was about to be demolished, and with many class gatherings after graduation, it would be inconvenient if he went back to the countryside.

"Thank you, Uncle Yang, but my rental contract still has more than a month left, and the demolition won't start until October, so it's fine," Shen Shao said with a smile. "However, I'll definitely come by occasionally to taste Aunt Luo's cooking. Just don't complain if I eat too much."

"Hey, growing boys need to eat plenty to put on weight," Yang Zhian didn't insist, but shared some cold drinks he'd bought, giving one bottle to Shen Shao. "Then come have dinner at our place tonight, to celebrate your successful graduation from middle school."

With Yang Hongqiang also eagerly inviting him, Shen Shao, sipping his cool drink, eventually found himself being dragged into Yang Zhian's new car.

As soon as they entered the Yang household, they saw the table laid with numerous delicious-looking dishes still steaming hot, while sizzling sounds came from the kitchen where someone was still cooking.

Hearing the door open, Luo Qiong put the food she was cooking onto a plate and came out. Seeing Shen Shao had come, she warmly welcomed him to sit down, bringing out fruits and sunflower seeds and candy. "Little Shao, have some grapes first. The food is ready, I'll go get the soup."

When Shen Shao tried to help, she pushed him back down. Only after all four of them were seated at the table did Luo Qiong say, "Little Shao, I'm not good with words, but you've helped our Hongqiang so much this time, our family really doesn't know how to thank you enough."

"Aunt Luo, please don't say that," Shen Shao said with a shy smile, rubbing his nose. "Hongqiang and I are brothers, helping each other is natural. He's always looked out for me in class too."

Seeing Shen Shao's bashful expression, Luo Qiong knew the boy was feeling embarrassed and said, "Alright, alright, I won't say more. Please help yourself to the food." She knew teenage boys could be shy, so she'd better stop making him uncomfortable, but they would remember this kindness - one shouldn't be ungrateful.

After dinner, only after Aunt Luo had forcefully stuffed a bag of grapes into his hands did Shen Shao finally manage to leave the Yang household. Walking along the street as the evening lights came on, watching the people out for their evening strolls, a big smile spread across his face.

His middle school life had finally come to an end.