fictionpage Chapter 24: Where there is a Crouching Dragon, there will surely be a Young Phoenix [Please add to y
Chapter 24: Where there is a Crouching Dragon, there will surely be a Young Phoenix [Please add to y
Lin Bei took out his wallet from his pocket, pulled out ten hundred-yuan bills, and handed them to the shopkeeper.
After taking the money, the shopkeeper quickly counted it, then took out a receipt book from the drawer, tore off a stamped receipt, and handed it to him.
"Okay, you can start practicing driving now. We'll let you know when it's time for the test."
Lin Bei folded the receipt, put it in his pocket, and went out.
It's true that having connections makes things easier. The original price was over 2000 yuan, but after talking to Lao Gao, the cost was reduced by half.
Seeing that there was still time, Lin Bei did not leave the driving school immediately, but instead went to check out the practice area.
The driving school's training ground is a flat open space with white paint markings for parking spaces and S-curves, and several stacks of old tires piled up at the edge.
A white Santana training car was parked in the center of the field. The passenger-side rearview mirror was wrapped with several layers of transparent tape, indicating that it had been hit more than once.
At this moment, there are students practicing in the training car, and four students, two men and two women, are waiting in line next to them. They all look to be in their early twenties.
After the students got out of the car, a male instructor was sitting in the passenger seat, his arm resting on the rolled-down window frame, with half a cigarette in his mouth.
The coach was a bald man in his forties, wearing dark blue overalls, his belly straining against the zipper.
He saw Lin Bei walking over and raised his chin: "New here?"
"Yes, I just registered."
"If you want to practice, then line up at the back and wait until the people in front have finished practicing."
Lin Bei nodded, walked to the shade of a tree, took out a cigarette from his pocket and lit it.
He exhaled smoke rings, leaned against a tree trunk, and gazed at the training field in the distance.
Soon, a girl started reversing into the parking space, with the instructor giving instructions from the passenger seat. His voice could be heard even halfway across the parking area.
"Fire to the right, all the way!"
"Damn, are you deaf?"
"I told you to play the full game, don't you understand what 'playing the full game' means?!"
The car wobbled backward, the left rear wheel went over the white line, and the right rearview mirror almost scraped against the iron pole next to it.
The instructor reached out and yanked the steering wheel, and the car barely managed to get into the parking space.
When the girl got out of the car, her face was pale. It was hard to tell whether she was too nervous or frightened by the instructor.
The next one was a boy, who became noticeably more nervous after getting on the bus.
The instructor told him to fasten his seatbelt, and he looked down and searched for the buckle for a long time.
The instructor pointed to the accelerator and brake pedals and asked the boy to identify them. He nodded and said he remembered them.
As soon as I stepped on the gas, the car shot forward half a meter with a "whoosh!"
"Damn!" The coach was startled and quickly stomped on the auxiliary brake.
The car suddenly stopped, leaving two black marks on the ground from its tires.
"Bang!" The boy's forehead slammed directly onto the steering wheel.
"Are you out of your mind? Did you even hear what I just said?!" The coach flicked his cigarette butt out the window and cursed several times.
Lin Bei watched from a distance, a slight smile playing on his lips, as he flicked the ash from his cigarette.
Sure enough, no matter the era, when practicing driving, wherever there is a master, there will surely be a promising talent!
Lin Bei looked at the right front bumper of the white Santana, where there was a clear impact mark and the paint was cracked like a spider web.
This car has been hit countless times, yet it's still not totaled.
Soon, the four students in line had each practiced two rounds.
As a result, no one was able to drive in smoothly; they either crossed the line or hit the pole.
One of the girls, in particular, stepped on the wrong pedal while reversing into the parking space, causing the car to veer off course and crash into the low wall of the training ground.
The coach realized something was wrong and tried to pull the handrail, but it was too late.
The front right bumper hit the wall, a large chunk of plaster fell off, and several bricks were exposed, almost causing it to collapse.
The instructor got out of the car, took a few deep breaths, pointed in the direction of the girl, and seemed about to say something.
In the end, he simply waved his hand, telling her to come down first.
The girl, with red eyes, slowly got out of the car and sat on the steps next to it without saying a word.
A male student nearby jogged over to comfort her, but she pushed him away.
It was finally Lin Bei's turn.
The coach was already a bit tired. He glanced at Lin Bei's file, tucked the notebook under his arm, and said, "Get in the car."
"First, reverse into the parking space, then do the S-curve. If you also hit the wall, then we're calling it a day."
Lin Bei opened the car door and got into the driver's seat.
Unfasten and buckle your seatbelt, hold the steering wheel at the nine o'clock position with your left hand, place your right hand on the gear shift lever, and press the clutch and brake pedals with your feet.
Everything was so easy and effortless.
The instructor got into the passenger seat, tossed his notebook into the back, and glanced at Lin Bei: "Have you driven before?"
"We drove a little bit." Lin Bei nodded.
The instructor breathed a sigh of relief: "Okay, start by reversing into the parking space. I won't give you directions, you do it yourself."
Lin Bei shifted into reverse, released the handbrake, and turned the steering wheel one and a half turns to the right.
The car then moved smoothly backward, keeping the distance between the car body and the white line at about half a fist's width.
Once the rear wheels were in the parking space, he immediately straightened the steering wheel and continued to reverse half a meter.
Then, park the car—all in one smooth motion!
The instructor got out of the parking space, walked to the back of the car, squatted down to take a look, and then stood up to check the distance to both sides of the car.
The left rearview mirror is 12 centimeters out of sight, the right rearview mirror is 10 centimeters out of sight, and the car is parked in the exact center of the parking space with no deviation in angle.
The other students fell silent.
The girl who had just bumped into the wall stood up from the steps, took two steps forward, and craned her neck to look.
The coach stepped back a few paces and kicked the marker cone at the start of the S-curve: "S-curve."
Lin Bei shifted into first gear and released the clutch.
Soon, the S-curve was easily navigated.
The coach's eyes lit up instantly after seeing Lin Bei's performance: "Not bad, you're pretty good."
Lin Bei remained silent.
"Where did you learn it?"
"I practiced it myself."
"Good talent." The coach took out a cigarette from his pocket and lit it. "I've been in this business for almost ten years, and there aren't many like you."
At this moment, the girl who had bumped into the wall went around to the instructor and whispered, "Did he know how to drive before?"
The coach exhaled a puff of smoke, somewhat impatiently saying, "If you know it, you know it; if you don't, you don't. Why are you asking so many questions?"
The girl fell silent.
The driving school closes for the day at 6 p.m.
Lin Bei left the driving school and walked back along the road.
He had only walked a short distance when the Nokia phone in his pocket started vibrating.
Lin Bei took it out and saw that it was a call from his mother.
"Hello, Mom."
"Xiao Bei," came her mother's kind voice on the other end of the phone, with the sound of a ship's horn in the background.
"Your dad asked me to tell you that we bought train tickets for the day after tomorrow, so we'll probably be home in three or four days."
"Take good care of yourself while you're home alone, and don't eat instant noodles every day."
"Okay, okay," Lin Bei nodded in response.
At this moment, Lin Bei's father's voice also rang out: "Tell him to wash the dishes, don't let them pile up in the sink. The last time I went back, the bowls were almost moldy."
My mom repeated, "Your dad told you to wash the dishes."
"I heard you." Lin Bei switched hands to hold the phone. "You guys can stay out there and have fun for a few more days. No need to rush back."
"Who told you we were just playing around?" Mom said righteously, "We're on a business trip, we're here to do business."
"Yes, yes, yes, business trip." Lin Bei lit a cigarette and took a puff.
"Who in their right family goes on a business trip and works on a cruise ship?"
There was an instant silence on the other end of the phone.