The war came so suddenly.
The long period of peace and enjoyment had numbed people's hearts. When the Bauhinia Federation suddenly declared war, the defense line at the border collapsed almost immediately. The powerful air defense network was easily taken down without a single shot, allowing the armored airships to invade. This brought a deep shock to the kingdom.
Of course, this also included the city where Wu Ming lived.
His first feeling towards the arrival of the war was hatred. After all, in this chaotic world, it was too difficult to ensure the survival of a three-year-old baby. His second feeling was helplessness.
For people like Wu Ming, the war might be an opportunity, but this war came too early! He couldn't do anything at all, and he had to entrust his safety to the Sterling couple. For someone like him who was used to controlling everything, this was really unbearable.
Although the armored airships didn't drop the cruise missiles in the end, which proved that it was a false alarm, the outbreak of the war had a huge impact on the Sterling family.
First, James lost his job.
He was a very successful salesman. Every year, the commission he earned from his business was enough to support a large family, and he could buy a car and an apartment. Unfortunately, his company only produced products that leaned towards luxury. During the war, due to material control and the fact that everything was in service of the war, his business suddenly plummeted and the company went bankrupt. Naturally, as a salesman, he was also laid off.
To make matters worse, although James had made a lot of money before, most of it was thrown into the stock exchange and the futures market for high profits.
Originally, there was no problem at all, but now, with the war, the stock completely collapsed, and almost all of them fell to the limit. Not only was there no hope for the dividends, even the certificate of shares had become scrap paper — many of the companies that James bought had collapsed, and the shares were naturally worthless.
To make matters worse, James first sold his car, and then the family moved out of the villa, renting a duplex apartment.
Mrs. Sterling also had to bear the pain of selling a cabinet full of expensive clothes. She wore coarse clothes and began to calculate carefully for the family's livelihood.
Wu Ming looked at all of this in silence. Right now, he wasn't much different from an ordinary baby. He didn't have the power to change his fate at all.
The only thing he could do was to make his appetite more 'normal' and take care of his two younger siblings to reduce the family's burden.
With their current financial situation, they naturally couldn't afford a nanny, so Jenna was fired.
Fortunately, James was an optimist and did not become dispirited. He had a family and three children waiting to be fed, so he had no time to be dispirited.
Every day, he diligently went out to submit his resume. Perhaps it was because of his professional experience, but he successfully sold himself and got a job as a mail sorter in the post office. He was responsible for sorting mail and parcels from all over the country. Although the salary was meager, it was a great victory compared to the many unemployed people.
On the day he got the job, James held his head high like a general who had just won a battle. Mrs. Sterling even added a piece of ham and a bottle of wine to her dinner.
After a period of hardship, when Wu Ming was five years old, good news came one after another.
First, the two countries had stopped fighting. The Bauhinia Federation had voluntarily retreated and seemed to have signed a 20-year non-aggression agreement with the kingdom. The long-awaited peace had arrived, and the entire country was cheering.
With the recovery of the economy, the items in the shops had become more and more abundant, and there were more choices on the dining table.
At night.
The gas lamps emitted an incandescent glow. At the dining table, the Sterling family of five sat in a circle.
Wu Ming held a spoon and could already eat independently. He could take care of himself, so Mrs. Sterling didn't have to worry too much.
On the other hand, his younger siblings, who were four years old, were also crying in their prams. From time to time, they would spill soup or tear the tablecloth. Mrs. Sterling had to go up and correct them several times.
"The war has stopped, and the stock market is starting to recover. Although a few of those companies went bankrupt, one managed to survive …"
James was holding a large glass of beer. He was obviously very talkative. "I have a feeling that it will definitely rise, dear. Everything will get better … After we save up some money, I want to start a business and get our lives back on track."
Mrs. Sterling was feeding Brandon a milkshake. This guy always spilled some maliciously all over his body.
Hearing that, she turned around and said in a firm tone, "Dear, you forgot one thing. Little Steven is already five years old. We need to prepare him for school!"
"Yes, that's right!"
James nodded solemnly. "Knowledge can change one's fate. All three of our children will have to go to school in the future. They can't be like the Wade family next door, who will all go to factories when they grow up. You and I both know that it's a monster that eats people without spitting out their bones. Ordinary workers will have to thank God if they can live past 30 …"
He looked at Wu Ming. "Steven, you must remember that you must become a respectable person in the upper class!"
"Got it!"
Wu Ming answered obediently. He had no interest in those ants, who worked from dawn to dusk every day, and finally gave birth to a large number of children. Most of them died, and the rest depended on luck to feed, and then repeated the life of an adult.
"Steven, you've always been smart. It's a pity that I could have sent you to the best aristocratic school …"
James sighed helplessly. "Only by winning from the starting line can you stand higher and see further than others. You'll get more opportunities!"
"Dear … Our little Steven is the best. He can even succeed in an ordinary school, right?"
Mrs. Sterling patted Wu Ming's head.
"Yes, I'm the best!"
Wu Ming drank the last mouthful of soup, his heart filled with anticipation. I should be able to come into contact with more things now, right? But in this world, why haven't I come into contact with Transcendents? Is it because they're too well-hidden? "
In the blink of an eye, it was already late at night.
Amidst the silence, Brandon and Angelina also fell into a deep sleep after a few bickering sessions.
Angelina was sleeping beside Wu Ming. He opened his eyes and looked at her sleeping soundly. There was some baby fat on her little face, and he sighed silently.
He slowly got up and got into a sitting position. Wu Ming immediately checked the situation in his sea of consciousness. The original chaos had been pushed aside, and light blossomed.
He slowly got up and got into a sitting position. Wu Ming immediately checked the situation in his sea of consciousness. The original chaos had been pushed aside, and light blossomed.
He slowly mobilized a thread of spiritual force to nourish his body. After that, Wu Ming checked the development of his body and nodded in satisfaction. "After so many years of nourishment, my muscles, bones, and organs are now comparable to a young man's. My strength is the same as well!"
At this stage, he could begin to train in physical combat and martial arts techniques.
"But … this world can't produce qi, much less train inner force. Do I still have to fumble around and train like in the Seer Continent?"
Wu Ming opened his eyes helplessly, and immediately saw a horrifying scene.
He didn't know when Angelina had woken up, but she was staring at her brother curiously with her eyes wide open.
"Hurry up and sleep!"
The training of spiritual force was in the sea of consciousness anyway. At most, Angelina would see her brother not sleeping in the middle of the night and doing a weird posture. It wouldn't be a big deal even if she told others, and people might even treat it as a dream.
Wu Ming rolled his eyes and pinched her cheeks.
"Wah …"
Who knew that Angelina wouldn't appreciate it at all, and started bawling at the top of her lungs.
As soon as she cried, Brandon was woken up. His shrill cries were extremely penetrating and could be heard from far away.
"What's wrong? What's wrong? "
Madam Sterling opened the door and saw Wu Ming rubbing his eyes, "Little sister cried just now and woke up little brother!"
Madam Sterling went up to comfort Angelina and Brandon helplessly. A few curses could be heard from outside the house. The old apartment's soundproofing wasn't very good, and Wu Ming had heard some unbearable sounds a few times. Now that he was woken up again, the neighbours who had to work the morning shift the next day couldn't help but be furious.
… …
In front of a large school.
Wu Ming carried a cloth bag and wore a cap, looking like a small adult. He followed James to the reception room.
"Greetings, mister. Who are you looking for?"
A fat man with a rosacea stuck his head out and asked loudly.
"I'm looking for Mister Kyle Wilford. I have an appointment to handle the child's enrolment procedures."
"Alright, please wait a moment!"
Wu Ming saw the fat man pick up an old-fashioned telephone from the side. It had a handle and had to be connected to a wire. He shook it violently, then picked up the receiver and said a few words.
"Are you Mister Sterling?"
"Yes!"
"Please come in. Mister Kyle is waiting for you in room 401 on the fourth floor of the office building!"
The fat man pulled open the railings and let James and Wu Ming into the school grounds.
A large field came into sight. Many students in uniforms sized them up curiously, but no one dared to follow them into the office building.
"Mister Sterling, nice to meet you!"
Kyle greeted James warmly the moment he saw him in a room on the fourth floor, "And you too, little mister!"
He smiled at Wu Ming and immediately said to James, "Our school's tuition fee is paid once a year. It's 50 yuan each time. If you agree, you can go through the procedures now. Your boy can enter school today."
"Sure!"
The moment he agreed, Wu Ming saw a hint of pain on James' face. After all, this was almost half a year's income for an ordinary person.
In this world, knowledge and education were never free.
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