6. Criteria for Maturity

"Can't say I'm bullshitting this time, huh?"

Near the 538 bus stop, the two of them held the same sunshade umbrella and stopped in their tracks.

"Besides, I don't have much to teach you, just stand at the bull market's gust, even a pig would fly."

"The market is coming soon, don't be so cautious, be a bit bolder."

As the saying goes, the law is not handed down lightly, the Way is not to be sold cheaply, a master does not offer advice unasked, and a doctor does not knock on doors uninvited.

You think you can get rich just by following me in a few words?

Why should you?

Because you're good-looking?

"I'm heading back to school, if fate allows, we'll meet again, bye."

Mr. Lu never chases rabbits without seeing them or entices girls with empty promises.

He returned the umbrella to her and waved his hand.

A crowded 538 bus sped toward them, and before the bus even arrived at the stop, a seemingly endless line had already formed at the platform.

"538... Aren't you getting off at Chashan Liu? Let me give you a ride, it's on the way!"

The girl pointed to the exchange parking lot not far away, her bright and sparkling eyes filled with anticipation.

Pretty clever, huh!

"Back to school" + "538", two keywords enabled her to quickly deduce Lu Jincheng's destination.

Starting from Light Valley, taking the 538 bus, only the two schools at Chashan Liu Station fit the bill.

Jiangcheng University of Finance and Economics, as well as Nanhu University, are just across the street from each other.

"On the way?"

"Yes, I go to school at Chashan Liu too."

"Alright."

Lu Jincheng frowned, surrounded by the long queue of people waiting for the bus, overwhelmed by the pungent smell of sweat, dust on the students' luggage returning to school, and a mixture of various street stall aromas that crowded in with the surge of people.

Oh well, who'd take the bus when you could hitch a ride?

...

"Beep beep!"

In the parking lot, a white-topped red Mini Cooper lit up, responding to its master's call.

This model, due to its petite and cute shape and the ultimate matching of interior colors, is one of the most beautiful small cars in the world and was later joked to be a "mistress car."

But at this time, it seems that term didn't yet exist.

On the way, Lu Jincheng and the girl named Zhou Sinin finally exchanged basic information.

She's from Shanghai City, just started her freshman year, but Finance University in Jiang City starts a few days later than the other schools, so she hasn't begun military training.

After getting her driver's license, this car was shipped to Jiang City as a small gift to celebrate her high school graduation, for her to use as a means of transportation.

Comparison is the thief of joy.

Both high school graduates, girls who are only children from the provinces of Jiangsu, Zhejiang, and Shanghai are in a completely different world compared to average guys from lower-tier cities.

A graduation gift is an invisible boundary that sets them both on their own trajectories, operating independently.

Even though in their past lives they lived and studied in the same city, Lu Jincheng, who would squeeze onto buses and hang out in internet cafes, had a completely different lifestyle from Zhou Sinin, who got involved in the financial markets early on.

At eighteen, the two of them seemed as distant as if they lived in different dimensions, never destined to meet.

"Nice taste, suits you well."

Lu Jincheng heartily pulled the car door open and sat down on the passenger's side, settling into the most comfortable position.

Inside the private space of the car, he faintly caught whiffs of the girl's fragrance and took a deeper breath through his nose.

The top notes were raspberry and pear, the middle ones seemed like jasmine, fresh mint leaves for the base notes.

Indeed, it was Saint Laurent's quintessential man-cutter fragrance, Mon Paris.

"Huh?"

Zhou Sinin started the car, turned her head to look at Lu Jincheng, her eyes wide and questioning, not quite understanding his point.

Their gazes met, and the sunlight evenly illuminated the girl's profile, her neck slender and fair, reminding Lu Jincheng of the old Yardley's soap commercials where the lady would say her skin was "smooth as a peeled egg."

She had a petite frame, thick hair over her right-angled shoulders—just a silhouette from a distance made people want to exclaim "wow, beauty."

Up close, it was even more certain—Zhou Sinin was genuinely a great beauty.

"I mean, your 'reverse Paris.'"

Lu Jincheng smiled and gestured in the air with his hand, as if drawing a circle with implied meaning.

Such a fragrance would naturally bring sweet moments of life to mind with one's eyes closed.

Like the meaning of this perfume, free, romantic, and intense.

"Thank you."

Zhou Sinin felt shy being praised from such an angle by a man for the first time, she turned her head to focus on driving seriously, her cheeks reddening.

Ever since she was young, pursuing her could line up from Huaihai Road to the Bund, but this was the first person who could identify the perfume in seconds and compliment so naturally.

"Are you also interested in trading, so you chose to study finance?"

The car cruised smoothly along Nanhu Avenue, the passenger playing with his phone, Zhou Sinin took the initiative to break the silence, changing the subject.

If she thought the ninety percent surge in her stock picks was an accident, then after some conversation, Zhou Sinin had made up her mind that he truly was a master of investment.

At least he seemed more confident and knowledgeable than the teachers at home by a good measure.

"No, I study business administration; it doesn't relate to finance."

Lu Jincheng shook his head.

"Then what about the trading philosophy you were telling me..."

Along the way, Lu Jincheng maintained that the law should not be passed on lightly and never loosened up to agree to teach Zhou Sinin how to trade stocks.

But as a boss, his words were always one set after another, leaving Zhou Sinin stunned.

For instance, the ordinary person when speaking of boiling noodles means just that, but Lei Busi would say it's about "3000 engineers spending 300 nights to come up with noodles that increase the feeling of fullness by 73%."

Mr. Lu was similar, he would encourage Zhou Sinin to develop a unique trading philosophy, like breakthrough trading principles, three-wave structure trading principles, right-side trading principles... blowing it up gloriously.

"Paper talk is shallow; does studying finance guarantee understanding of investment? Would that mean teachers would have already achieved financial freedom?"

Lu Jincheng crossed his arms, propped up his legs, and relaxed.

"Of course, there's a very simple reason I studied business."

"What?"

Zhou Sinin focused, eyes wide.

"My scores weren't high enough."

"Hahaha..."

Zhou Sinin giggled, teeth gleaming white.

"Do you really just start your freshman year? It doesn't feel like it..."

There's a line in "Those Years, The Girls We Chased Together": "The pain of youth is that girls will always be more mature than boys of the same age.

Especially well-off girls, cultured and nurtured from young in various ways, their breadth of thought and depth of understanding often mean they disdain their juvenile male peers.

Lu Jincheng, who had lived twice, spoke just right and was heartwarming, capable without arrogance, witty without a hint of sleaziness.

Most crucially, he seemed to show no interest in herself...

Repeated requests to learn from him were politely refused; only during discussions would he throw out some unique insights.

Zhou Sinin couldn't help but grow curious.

"Your tone makes it sound as if you've met countless people."

Lu Jincheng raised an eyebrow and slapped the armrest next to him, mischievously saying,

"There aren't many freshmen at your school who drive a car like this and go trading at the exchange on their own, right?"

"Ah, that's not what I meant!"

Zhou Sinin took a turn, parking the car near the university gates as she explained,

"I mean, you're only a few months older than me, but it seems like..."

She rubbed her temples, unable to articulate exactly what it seemed like.

Lu Jincheng read the unspoken words, smiling as he unbuckled his seatbelt and opened the car door.

"Being young doesn't mean much, a teenager who has been through trials may be more mature than an elder who has had a smoother life."

"Frankly, it's the breadth of vision and experience that determine maturity."

"Alright."

Zhou Sinin blinked, staring at Lu Jincheng's silhouette for a few seconds, dumbfounded.

How did he know what I wanted to ask?

Does he mean... he has rich experiences?

Midday is when the sun is closest to the earth, its rays magnifying the man's shadow, casting him as if he stood towering in the deep sea.

"Hey!"

"Lu Jincheng!"

The girl slammed the car door and trotted to catch up with the man not far ahead,

"Can we add each other on WeChat, please?"