Chapter 16: Past Miss Hong Kong Pageants
At this moment, in the staff office of Zengding Baosu Middle School, a large group of people were closely watching the release of the HKCEE results. In addition to their complicated feelings, they also felt a sense of tension and excitement as the outcome of the gamble was about to be revealed.
The new school system for the Hong Kong Certificate of Education Examination (HKCEE), which previously allowed a maximum of nine subjects and now allows a maximum of ten, is only a recent reform. According to this year's results, there are currently five "Top Ten Students" who achieved A grades in all ten subjects in this year's HKCEE. They are from Hong Kong Wah Yan Secondary School, Diocesan Boys' School, and Maryknoll Convent School—all of which are long-established and prestigious secondary schools in Hong Kong.
Will Li Sishi, a student from their school, be able to become the sixth person?
"Don't be too nervous, stay calm and you'll have money left over. Stay calm in everything you do..." Liang Shao'e held Li Sishi's hand and kept repeating to herself.
"Oh dear, Mom, you've pinched my cousin's hands so hard they're all red!" Zhou Huichang and Zhou Huiguang exclaimed.
Liang Shao'e was startled upon hearing this. She quickly let go of Li Sishi's hand and looked at her with concern: "How are you? Are you alright, Sishi?"
"It's okay, actually I'm a little nervous too." Li Sishi moved her slightly red hands, and she could roughly understand Liang Shao'e's feelings at this moment.
"Don't worry, Sishi. I've looked at your homework and grades recently. As long as you perform normally, your grades won't be too bad." Zhou Jiaxian was also admitted to university back then, although she dropped out for some reason, but she still has a solid foundation.
"I understand. You should go sit and rest with your uncle over there." Li Sishi hurriedly urged her mother to go to her uncle's side—among all the people who came together, her uncle Zhou Jiayun was the one with the most severe "reaction." He hadn't been here long before his arms and legs went weak and he had to be led to sit down to the side. Anyone who didn't know better would think he was waiting for his exam results...
"The results are out!" Just as Li Sishi had finally gotten Zhou Jiaxian to her seat, a tall, long-legged male teacher rushed in from outside, looking completely out of breath, "Ten, ten..."
"What..." Before Principal Jia and the others could even speak, a group of reporters carrying various kinds of equipment, following behind the male teacher, had already arrived.
"Principal Jia, what is your opinion on Li Sishi from your school achieving the highest overall score in Hong Kong this year's HKCEE?"
"Principal Jia, is Li Sishi here? We'd like to do an exclusive interview with her..."
"Principal Jia, could you please tell us how your school nurtured Li Sishi?"
A bunch of random people and
The questions suddenly came flooding in, even for someone who was used to big events.
7
I couldn't help but be shaken by it.
Fortunately, Principal Jia was a seasoned veteran who had dealt with the board of directors for many years. After calming down, he quickly used his authority as principal and led the surrounding faculty and staff to temporarily subdue the group of reporters who had come after hearing the news.
Once the situation calmed down, Principal Jia proudly called Li Sishi, who had been sheltered in a corner by her family, over to join him for interviews and photos with reporters.
"Wow—" A faint gasp of surprise rippled through the group of reporters carrying various equipment as soon as they saw Li Sishi.
It's no wonder they couldn't help but be surprised: the top students they usually interviewed, even if they weren't bookworms, were all well-behaved and scholarly. And Li Sishi, who ranked first in total score this time, came from Bnad3 Middle School, which is far inferior to prestigious schools in terms of natural conditions. So many people subconsciously imagined a glass-bottomed academic genius who was obsessed with studying.
The top student who could defeat so many top students from prestigious universities under such circumstances, this year's true "champion," even if not a bookworm with glasses, should at least be a shy, awkward bookworm in front of the camera...
Who would have thought that the top scorer in this year's Hong Kong Certificate of Education Examination and the recipient of the "Feng Lin Scholarship" from the Hong Kong-China Scholars Foundation would be someone like this... someone who could wear that plain blue school uniform dress with such poor quality and workmanship and look as stunning as any celebrity, model, or haute couture model.
Is there any fairness left in this world?!
Despite their inward lamentations, the reporters didn't slow down at all, snapping a bunch of photos and asking a ton of questions before finally leaving satisfied with their firsthand information.
It's no longer news that top schools produce ten top scorers; what's truly eye-catching is that Bnad3 Middle School produced the top scorer overall, and on top of that, he's also incredibly good-looking!
In no time, the group of reporters had already come up with a whole bunch of articles about "beauty and intelligence" and were just waiting to get back and start working on them.
Meanwhile, Li Sishi and her entourage, beaming with joy, returned to the tea restaurant and were receiving blessings and praise from the neighbors who had come to hear the news.
They achieved the highest overall score in Hong Kong! It's incredible that such a scholar could emerge from such a grassroots background!
The older generation's thinking was mostly like Liang Shao'e's: all other pursuits are inferior, only studying is noble. But unfortunately, due to environmental factors, people around Liaojie could never leave.
What an amazing achievement! To suddenly hear that such a promising student has emerged in our own area fills me with immense pride!
“Since Sishi is both academically gifted and beautiful, she will be our ‘Flower of Liaojie’ from now on!” someone suggested.
“Cai, this nickname is no good, let’s change it again!” Someone immediately objected. Liaojie is a mixed bag, and naturally there are some shady businesses hiding in the shadows and corners. Such a name, which sounds a bit ambiguous, is definitely not suitable for a young student like Li Sishi.
So the group of elderly people argued again before finally awarding Li Sishi the title of "Light of Liaojie".
Well, once the news spread, Good Luck Tea Restaurant experienced another business boom, especially with parents who hoped their children would become successful. They would often bring their kids to the restaurant, saying they wanted to catch a glimpse of the top scholar's talent...
To reward Li Sishi for her excellent results, Liang Shao'e planned to give her a graduation gift.
“That’s right. It’s time for girls of this age to buy some jewelry. Otherwise, it would be impolite to be too plain if they have to attend any formal occasions in the future.” Zhou Jiayun thought of how his parents had bought some jewelry for his older sister after she took her college entrance exams, and he agreed with his wife’s suggestion.
“Actually, I brought some with me, so there’s no need to spend so much…” Zhou Jiaxian said hurriedly.
“What’s yours is yours, and what’s Sishi’s is Sishi’s, how can they be the same?” Liang Shao’e immediately interrupted Zhou Jiaxian. “Besides, Sishi has brought us so much glory, and she even helped me, her aunt, realize my dream of attending a prestigious school—she deserves it!”
Because Zeng Dingbaosu only offers courses from Form 1 to Form 5, Li Sishi, who was going to study in the Form 6 preparatory class, was snatched up by Diocesan Girls' School, which did not produce any top ten A students this year.
The thought of her child being able to attend such a prestigious and long-established girls' school made Liang Shao'e wake up smiling from her dreams several times.
Moreover, since it is an all-girls school, her niece naturally cannot be as simple as before. She must acquire some gold and silver jewelry for occasional needs. Not to mention the student-organized social events, she also needs to wear some accessories on certain formal occasions to avoid appearing impolite.
Moreover, this can be considered as preparing some assets for the girl in the family in advance. In case something happens to her when she is out in the world, she can at least get some money.
Zhou Jiaxian probably understood this as well. After thanking her younger brother and sister-in-law again, she finally spoke with Liang Shao'e.
They headed to a nearby gold shop.
Normally, Li Sishi would probably be embarrassed to accept such an expensive gift, but this time it was both of extraordinary significance and she had a real reason to go, so she didn't act coy and followed her mother and aunt into the "Happiness Jewelry Shop" in a generous manner.
Along the way, Liang Shao'e had already explained why they didn't go to the old-established Tai Fook Jewellery, saying that the store was newly opened and often had promotional activities, and the styles were relatively youthful and more suitable for young girls like Li Sishi.
"Come on, Si Shi, these are all their new styles. Take a look and choose whichever you like!" After all, Liang Shao'e had been running a tea restaurant for many years and believed that her family had some savings. Moreover, Li Si Shi's good grades and the care she had given to her two children in the past two years were definitely enough for her to buy Li Si Shi some jewelry as a token of her appreciation as an elder.
Gold prices haven't been too high lately, and these kinds of youthful jewelry styles are generally delicate and exquisite.
And since the quantity is small, the price won't be too high. It can be a necklace, one gold and one silver, or a bracelet, one gold and one silver...
Li Sishi nodded, seemingly selecting styles carefully, but secretly she was focusing her attention on the area behind the counter on the other side.
The long-haired woman with a hint of melancholy in her eyes was her target – Chang Baoning, the 1987 Miss Hong Kong winner and currently the only Miss Hong Kong top three to have achieved success in an international beauty pageant.
Even with the emergence of many new talents later on, none of them have been as lucky and successful as Chang Baoning, who participated in both Miss World and Miss Universe at the perfect time. She even made it to the top twelve in the former and won the title of "Queen of Asian Beauty" in the latter, and also made it to the final five.
But such beauty pageant results were not Chang Baoning's ultimate glory. Her best achievement was co-founding "Happiness Jewelry" with others after retiring from the entertainment industry, making her one of the well-known female business leaders.
However, all of this happened after Chang Baoning had established a firm foothold at "Happiness Jewelry".
Her early ventures in the business world were not entirely smooth. Although her Miss Hong Kong background secured her positions as a shareholder and spokesperson, it actually made her seem less attractive to her co-founders.
In this era, women entering the business world are destined to face more restrictions than men. In addition, given Chang Baoning's background, she is seen as more of a "decorative vase" than a "partner."
In her past life, Li Sishi and Chang Baoning were considered to be...
She had some acquaintance with him, so she knew why Chang Baoning was eventually able to truly establish himself at "Happiness Jewelry".
As the saying goes, fortune and misfortune are intertwined. Chang Baoning encountered obstacles on her path to becoming Miss Hong Kong, but she was not defeated. Instead, she took this opportunity to discuss a collaboration with TBL TV station to sponsor the Miss Hong Kong crown.
As for why Chang Baoning came up with this cooperation method, she mentioned it briefly when Li Sishi was chatting with her. It came from when she was inspecting the stores in her early years and heard a customer say that the Miss Hong Kong crowns were all fake gold and diamonds, just for show.
Only the 20th Miss Hong Kong pageant in 1992 received more sponsorships because it was the 20th anniversary, and the winner of that year received an extra genuine diamond robe button worth 800,000 HKD. This gave Chang Baoning the idea of sponsoring the Miss Hong Kong pageant with a real gold and diamond crown to promote his own jewelry brand.
By collaborating with the Miss Hong Kong pageant every year, Chang Baoning successfully boosted the popularity of the fledgling "Happiness Jewelry" brand.
With its unstoppable momentum, it rivals the established "Ta Fook Jewellery" and has developed into one of the top four brands in the industry in the port city in just over ten years.
This is the "nominator" that Li Sishi truly wanted and needed to plan and arrange for an opportunity to approach early on.
Now she is about to bring this future business miracle to life... ahead of schedule.
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