Mutual Aid Society

On the first day of August, Chen Chuan arrived at Wu Yi University early, pushing his bicycle through the gate.

As before, he entered through the side gate. Every now and then, a car drove in through the main gate and went straight down the avenue to the steps of the Great Hall.

There were more people on the paths than he had seen last time. After all, those who had come on application day were only one group of applicants, and they had all been local.

In fact, more than a hundred thousand eligible students from the city and elsewhere applied to the university every year. Many gained admission through application centers the university had set up in various counties and towns. They accounted for at least half of the incoming students, and that proportion seemed to be growing each year.

Following the signs along the road, Chen Chuan joined the other students heading toward the old building where he had applied.

This time, a senior student standing outside directed him straight into what had once been a training ground. He registered and filled out a form there, and soon after handing it in, he received a reddish-brown student ID.

He opened it. Inside was the photo he had submitted last time, along with his provisional student number. With this ID in hand, he could tell anyone he was a student at Wu University without stretching the truth.

He had not passed the second-round exam yet, but getting the ID still lifted his spirits. A cheer rang out behind him. He turned to see another student who had received an ID shouting with excitement, and he understood.

That ID meant they had set one foot on the steps leading upward. No one could say how far they would climb, but at least there was a path beneath their feet.

According to the booklet the university had given him, the ID allowed him to apply for a dorm room. The accommodation was temporary, meant for students from out of town and others with nowhere to stay. After the second-round exam, rooms would be reassigned based on the results.

He had originally planned to move out right away, as he had agreed with Nian Fuli. But now that no one at home was pressing him, he reconsidered. He might still need to train with Yu Gang over the coming month. Living on campus would put him farther away and subject him to university rules, making things less convenient. He decided to wait until after this month's second-round exam.

What he needed now was a clearer idea of what that exam involved.

After leaving the registration desk, he spotted a sign on the wall beside the concrete staircase: "Second-Round Entrance Exam Guidance." The other students were heading upstairs, so he followed them to the second floor.

Upstairs, partitions divided the former training ground into sections. A student had just left one of the seats with some materials in hand, so Chen Chuan sat down. Across from him was a senior student with glasses and a gentle face. "Please show me your student ID."

Chen Chuan handed over the ID he had just received. After checking it, the senior asked, "Student Chen, if you don't mind my asking, would you have trouble paying tuition?"

Chen Chuan looked at him. "Why do you ask?"

"Every year, quite a few students at Wu Yi University struggle to pay tuition because their families can't afford it," the senior explained. "Some fall far behind on payments, while others have to take out loans or fight in underground rings. That's why the university's student council organized a Mutual Aid Society."

He smiled. "Once both sides sign an agreement, the Mutual Aid Society provides funding. Students can repay what they owe after graduation. That helps them stay in school and focus on their studies."

Chen Chuan understood. It was a funding organization, a familiar feature of the Great Shun Republic. Such groups provided money or other support to promising individuals or organizations in exchange for a return.

It sounded good on the surface, but in most cases, those receiving support ended up as tools for their backers to profit from. Best to avoid it if possible. Besides, once he passed the second-round exam, tuition would no longer be a problem.

"Thank you," he said politely, "but I don't need it for now."

The senior smiled and did not press the matter. He looked down, leafed through a stack of brown paper envelopes, and slid one across the table. "These are the profiles of senior students you might face in the second-round exam. Have a look."

Chen Chuan thanked him and opened the envelope. Inside were five mimeographed sheets, one for each senior student. They outlined the students' strengths and preferred techniques.

Something bothered him. He looked up. "Five people?"

Only one student would actually face him. Why give him five profiles? Previous candidates could hardly have studied all five, and even if they wanted to, they would not have had time to train against each one. The profiles were so broad that they offered little useful information anyway.

"That's right, five," the senior said with a nod. "The university won't tell candidates who their opponent will be. You have to work that out yourselves. However..."

He smiled faintly. "If you accept funding from the Mutual Aid Society, we can help identify the senior student you're most likely to face. I can't promise we'll be right every time, but the society's members are experienced seniors. Our predictions have always been highly accurate."

When Chen Chuan said nothing, the senior continued in a voice that sounded earnest. "I understand why you're hesitant to accept funding. You're afraid it'll cost you more in the end. But the agreement isn't that restrictive. We won't force you to do anything. And the society offers more than money—we can also give you advice and support with your studies. You'll see the benefits once you join."

He smiled again. "Of course, the second-round exam is meant to select students with real ability. If you're confident you can pass without the Mutual Aid Society, you're free to decline."

"I need to think about it," Chen Chuan said.

"Of course." The senior nodded. "You should think it over carefully. If you decide you're interested, come find me. Here's my contact information."

He slid a prepared slip of paper toward Chen Chuan. "Oh, and could you sign this receipt?"

Chen Chuan glanced at the form, picked up the pen, and signed it. After sliding it back, he put the slip of contact information into the brown envelope with the five sheets. He gathered his things, stood, nodded to the senior, and headed downstairs.

Meanwhile, on one side of the Great Hall, Dan Xiong, Liu Cai, and several other second-year students stood in a row, each beside a waist-high black registration machine.

Before long, well-dressed young men and women climbed the steps to the hall, entered through its wide-open doors, and approached them.

One student stopped in front of Liu Cai and handed him an elegant card. "Sorry for the trouble, senior."

Unlike the student IDs issued to those admitted through exams, the IDs for students admitted by recommendation took the form of name cards. They had received them well before enrolling.

"Not at all," Liu Cai said quickly. "It's no trouble."

He set the card in the machine's slot and entered a string of numbers according to the intensity of the colored marks on its face. Then he turned the handle, and a smooth, stiff sheet of paper slid out from the opening below.

It contained the detailed file of a senior student: height, weight, speed, blood type, heart rate, striking power, movement habits, limb measurements, body proportions, and a host of other particulars.

Liu Cai picked up the sheet, placed it in a document envelope printed with the university's name, and handed the envelope and metal card to the student with both hands.

"Thanks, senior." The young student took them with a smile, gave him a wave, and walked farther into the hall.

Liu Cai had finished, but Dan Xiong, standing beside him, was distracted today and moved a little slowly. The student facing him immediately grew annoyed. "Why are you so slow? Do you know what you're doing?"

Dan Xiong cursed inwardly, but he could not let his anger show. Each of these students admitted by recommendation had powerful people behind them. Though they had only just enrolled, they were already beyond his ability to offend.

His facial muscles twitched as he hurriedly packed the paper and card and handed them over. The student shot him another dissatisfied look, snatched the items, and strode inside.

Liu Cai glanced at Dan Xiong and warned him quietly, "Keep your temper in check. These well-connected students are trouble. There are only a few dozen of them. Just bear with it."

Dan Xiong snorted. If he had known taking part in the entrance exam would get him assigned here, he would never have done it. Speaking of that exam, his brothers outside had said they had found that kid. Yesterday, they had promised to give him an answer and told him to wait. Why had he heard nothing all day? Had they failed to catch the kid, or had something else held them up? Elsewhere, Chen Chuan left the old building and walked out of Wu Yi Academy. At a phone booth across the square, a student was on the phone, apparently asking his family for money. Chen Chuan waited a long while before the student came out, looking as though he had been turned down.

Once the student had gone, Chen Chuan stepped inside, picked up the receiver, and took a dozen or so coins from his shoulder bag. He fed them into the phone one after another and dialed a number. A sweet female voice soon answered. "Mi's Litigation Firm. How may I help you?"

"I'd like to speak to assistant lawyer Gao Ming," Chen Chuan said. "No, I don't have an appointment. I'm his cousin."

"Please hold."

After a moment, a languid voice came through the receiver. "Cousin Chen Chuan? What made you call me?"

"Gao Ming, it's me," Chen Chuan said. "I got into Wu Yi University two months ago. The second-round exam is next month."

There was a pause on the other end. Gao Ming clearly knew he was not calling to boast; his voice grew much more serious. "Go ahead, cousin. I'm listening."

Chen Chuan turned slightly. "There's a student Mutual Aid Society at Wu Yi University that offers funding. It seems they can also offer advice about the second-round exam and help narrow down who we'll face. I thought you might know something about the society."

Gao Ming laughed. "Mi's Law Firm is one of Wu Yi University's partners, so I can look up its records. But I'm an assistant lawyer, and my consultation fee is ten yuan a minute. Are you sure, cousin?"

"Absolutely," Chen Chuan said.

A click sounded on the other end, then Gao Ming spoke again. "Billing starts now. According to the firm's files, the Mutual Aid Society at Wu Yi University in Yangzhi City originated in the university's student council. It was established under the leadership of several influential students.

"The society helps funded students with the second-round exam and their later studies. When someone proves especially talented, it uses the agreement to recruit them into serving the influential students, their teams, or even the powers behind them after graduation.

"As for those whose performance is mediocre, or who refuse to fall in line, the society transfers their agreements through intermediaries to various companies and major law firms, which take over from there."

Chen Chuan listened in silence. He did not ask what happened after that. An individual would have little chance of standing up to such companies or firms anyway. After a moment's thought, he asked, "What's Wu Yi University's position?"

Gao Ming's answer was brief. "Only students with exceptional value are worth the university leadership's attention."

Chen Chuan nodded. "I remember Wu University has its own funding for students?"

He heard pages turning on the other end. After a while, Gao Ming said, "It does, but students have to apply in advance through the university's Affairs Office, and at least three members of the university board have to approve it. The review can take a long time, and very few applications succeed. I can't find any in the records here, so that funding exists only in theory."

"Understood," Chen Chuan said. "That's all I needed to ask."

Another click sounded, followed by Gao Ming's voice. "Consultation over. Ninety-two seconds, rounded up to two minutes. The firm's fee is twenty yuan, but since this is my first consultation, I can give you a fifty-percent discount, cousin."

"Thanks, Gao Ming." Chen Chuan knew that information was not something a few yuan could ordinarily buy.

Gao Ming laughed. "You got into Wu University and didn't tell me? Next time I'm back in Yangzhi City, you're buying me a meal."

Chen Chuan smiled. "Definitely. Oh, there's one more thing I'd like you to look into. I'll tell you when we meet. I won't keep you from work any longer." They said goodbye, and he hung up.

He stepped out of the phone booth and stood in the open square with his hands in his pockets. The gates of Wu Yi Academy stood across from him.

People were coming and going through them.

Clearly, the Mutual Aid Society expected a substantial return on its support. If he did not want to be at its mercy, he would have to pass the second-round exam on his own strength.