China's 2026 Gaokao college entrance exam drew 12.9 million students. In some cities, students touched police badge numbers and license plates marked with "985" and "211"—a nod to China's top universities—for a little extra luck before one of the biggest exams of their lives. 211 refers to a construction project of 100 universities in the 21st Century and 985 refers to China's world first class university project.