Chapter 37 - 1: Going Abroad

Chapter 37: Chapter 1: Going Abroad

The Boeing 777 landed smoothly at Malpensa Airport. Outside, the sky was overcast. As the in-flight announcement sounded, passengers began to disembark in an orderly fashion.

Inside the cabin, it hadn’t felt much different from being back home—at least, most of the passengers were from Hua Country. But once they reached the terminal and his countrymen scattered in all directions, the feeling of being in a foreign land hit him all at once.

"Little Wu Shi, are you okay? We still have a two-hour drive ahead of us," Martina said in Chinese. Her home was in Formigine, a town in Modena about five or six kilometers from Maranello.

"Yeah, I’m fine," Wu Shi nodded.

"Are you still living in the same place?" Wu Zhenlin asked.

"Yes. Little Louise, what’s wrong? You look so tired," Martina said, nodding, then patted her daughter’s back.

The little girl had gotten almost no rest on the plane, so of course she was exhausted!

"I want to go back and rest," Louise said, rubbing her eyes.

The group of four walked out of the airport and got into the taxi they had arranged for in advance.

This wasn’t Wu Shi’s first time in Italy, but it was his first time here in the year 2007.

Perhaps because he already lived in a big city, he wasn’t particularly amazed by these foreign cities. ’Aren’t all metropolises the same all over the world?’

After they got into the car, Martina spoke, switching to English. "I’ve already contacted a school for you. I’ll take you and Louise to register tomorrow."

"Okay."

Wu Shi nodded. As Aunt Martina switched to English, that little bit of security that came with familiarity completely vanished, replaced by a strange sense of unease.

It was a subconscious feeling that arose when one arrived in an unfamiliar place—the inevitable sensation of leaving one’s comfort zone.

Different people had different opinions about this feeling. Wu Shi found that it made him feel both a sense of novelty and anticipation, as well as the urge to retreat.

He watched the scenery flash by the window, and before he knew it, they had arrived at Aunt Martina’s home.

It was a simple apartment, and the furnishings inside were also very minimalist.

Wu Zhenlin spent the afternoon helping Wu Shi get his room in order and showing him around the neighborhood.

"Son, after I take you to school tomorrow, I have to go back," he said.

"Yeah," Wu Shi nodded, his spirits somewhat low.

"Call me if anything comes up. As for Martina, whether you want to call her ’Mother’ or ’Auntie’ is up to you. It’s fine either way," Wu Zhenlin said.

Before coming to Italy, Wu Zhenlin and Martina had held a simple wedding ceremony in a local church. However, due to administrative issues back in Hua Country, they hadn’t officially registered their marriage.

"I’ll stick with Aunt Martina. I’m already used to it," Wu Shi said.

"Okay. Your English is pretty good, so I’m not too worried about that. But the people here are different from back home. It’ll be up to you to figure out how to adapt," Wu Zhenlin said.

"Yeah, I know."

"Your first time living away from home and I’m sending you this far away... Sigh. To be honest, I didn’t want you to have to live abroad at such a young age."

"But if it’s for the sake of becoming a professional driver, this is the best choice," Wu Shi said.

There was certainly no shortage of talented people in Hua Country, so why did so few of them make a name for themselves in world championships?

For one, motorsports were incredibly expensive. Most people couldn’t afford it, and they were often forced to give up on their dreams due to financial realities before their talent ever had a chance to shine.

On the other hand, the racing environment in Hua Country was average at best, making it difficult for most talented drivers to develop, and thus, hard for them to break through.

Time flew by. After Wu Shi was enrolled in school the next day, Wu Zhenlin left that same evening.

His classmates were quite interested in the new foreigner, running over to ask him all sorts of questions. If Louise hadn’t been there acting possessive and shooing them away, Wu Shi would have been completely overwhelmed by the crowd.

"Wu Shi, you need to learn Italian quickly. I’ll teach you!" Louise said enthusiastically. She was worried that Wu Shi would get bullied because of the language barrier.

"Okay." Wu Shi nodded. He understood Louise’s concern, but it wasn’t like he was some timid character who would tuck his tail and run back home just because his foreign language skills were poor.

Compared to what happened in the classroom, he was more concerned about the upcoming weekend.

He had learned from Aunt Martina that the team Sid belonged to was called Laya, a team with a deep and rich history in the world of karting.

They had already arranged to meet this Saturday at the Salerno karting circuit for a simple test drive.

After school, Wu Shi and Louise walked straight home, with one of Louise’s little friends tagging along.

"Can he understand what we’re saying?" the little friend asked in Italian.

"He can understand English, but not Italian," Louise said.

"Oh~ I heard that Hua Country People have long, narrow eyes and always grin while baring their teeth. That they’re really ugly and awful to look at," the little friend continued.

"That’s a misconception! Do you think he’s ugly?" Louise retorted.

The little friend shook her head. It was precisely because she didn’t think Wu Shi was ugly—in fact, she found him rather good-looking—that she had sidled up to chat with Louise.

"I think his skin is so nice. No freckles, no redness. Even though he’s pale, it feels like a warm kind of pale," the little friend said.

"Yeah, I just got back from Hua Country. A lot of people there are very pale, not the waxy yellow color you see in BBC photos," Louise explained.

"Ooh, can he be my friend?" the little friend asked.

Louise grew wary and whispered, "He can’t speak Italian yet, so it would be hard for you two to communicate. Let’s wait until he learns. Besides, there are some of their customs you don’t understand, and you might offend him."

"Oh, I see!" the little friend said, only half-understanding.

Wu Shi’s eyelids twitched as he listened. ’This Louise is quite the little trickster!’ ℴ

’When it comes to being offended, people from Hua Country probably have the fewest taboos.’

’I can eat both sweet and savory tofu pudding. Could you, Louise, eat pineapple on pizza?’

The weekend arrived as scheduled. As soon as school let out, Aunt Martina drove to the school, picked up the two of them, and headed straight for Salerno.

The drive from Formigine to Salerno was a full six hours, basically taking them out into the countryside.

"Mamu, are we going to have to do this every weekend?" Louise asked.

"If Wu Shi successfully joins the Laya team, I’m afraid this is how it will be," Martina said.

Wu Shi pressed his lips together. This was a debt of gratitude.

The car sped along, but by the time they reached Salerno, it was already late at night. The three of them hastily checked into a hotel.

Early the next morning, Wu Shi arrived at the Salerno karting circuit.

This circuit was one of the most important karting tracks in Italy. It had hosted rounds of the European Karting Championship, various regional championships, and even the WSK Series, which would be established in a few years.

"Hello, welcome to Salerno," Sid greeted them, holding a cup of coffee.

"Hello," Martina said with a nod.

"This is our boss, Mr. Raul Evans. If you’re ready, would you like to test the kart first?" Sid said.

"He’s a foreigner?" Before Wu Shi could even nod, Raul Evans, who was standing to the side, suddenly spoke up.