At the chip exchange window.
Chu Bai's face was flushed, and he could barely suppress his excitement.
He had just counted his chips and knew he had won thirty-five thousand.
That meant the medical expenses could be covered, with several thousand left over for spending money.
Actually, Chu Bai had wanted to win more, but cautious by nature, he feared attracting someone's attention and causing unnecessary trouble.
Of course, having gotten his first taste of success, he had no intention of stopping there.
He had already decided to switch to another place and keep fleecing the sheep.
With his X-ray Vision Ability, a Casino was practically his personal cash machine.
Getting rich could not have been easier.
"I'm done playing. Cash all of these out for me."
Chu Bai handed the chips to the attendant, but before she could count them, seven or eight unfriendly-looking young men gathered around behind him.
Scarface Man walked over as well and said darkly, "Kid, you dared to cheat at my, Sang Kun's, place? Are you tired of living?"
"I cheated? How did I cheat? Why don't you point it out?" Chu Bai felt somewhat guilty, but he still tried his best to remain calm.
Although he technically had cheated, there was no evidence. They could not prove it.
"That's what I should be asking you." Scarface Man glared at Chu Bai and barked at his underlings, "Grab him and tie him up first."
"Fuck you!"
Chu Bai's Combat Power was not weak either, and he was a ruthless fellow. Seeing that things were going wrong, he directly launched a flying kick at Sang Kun's lower body.
The kick sent Sang Kun sprawling to the ground.
The other underlings were startled and hurriedly went to help their boss up.
The scene descended into chaos.
Chu Bai threw another punch, knocking down two young men blocking his way before bolting straight for the exit.
"Boss, boss, are you okay?"
A group of underlings helped Sang Kun to his feet.
Sang Kun clutched his crotch, grimacing in agony.
He had never expected a kid who looked under twenty to strike so viciously.
"Go after him! Hurry up and catch him!"
Sang Kun roared at his underlings.
For cheating alone, Sang Kun would have chopped off at least one of Chu Bai's hands. Now that he had also been sucker-punched—
Sang Kun wanted to add another leg to the price.
On a street corner outside the place.
Wang Haoran sat in his Cullinan and saw someone fleeing from the entrance.
That disheveled figure was none other than Chu Bai.
Seven or eight young men chased after him, shouting and yelling.
Before long, the pursuers and the pursued vanished from sight.
About five minutes later, the seven or eight young men returned empty-handed.
Clearly, Chu Bai had escaped successfully.
Wang Haoran found that outcome perfectly normal.
Although Chu Bai's Protagonist Halo had weakened considerably, he was still the protagonist. How could he possibly be caught so easily?
Ding! The host successfully prevented protagonist Chu Bai from earning his first pot of gold. Chu Bai's Protagonist Halo -20, the host's Villain Halo +20, and 200 Villain Points obtained.
After all that work, and after spending five hundred thousand, there really had been some gains.
Wang Haoran happily checked his status panel.
Host: Wang Haoran Combat Power: 89 Charm Value: 268 Villain Halo: 169 Villain Points: 500 Skills: None
Five hundred Villain Points were just enough for one draw, but after thinking it over, Wang Haoran held himself back.
If he spent all five hundred Villain Points, he would be left with nothing.
If he encountered a suspected female lead or another important supporting character, he would not have any Villain Points left to check their information.
He would save up a few hundred more before drawing.
For the remaining day or so of the holiday, Wang Haoran kept a close watch on Chu Bai's movements.
After Chu Bai escaped from Sang Kun's Casino, Sang Kun spread word among his peers, so Chu Bai did not dare go to other Casinos to keep fleecing the sheep.
Classes resumed as normal on Monday.
Wang Haoran whistled as he entered the classroom. When he opened his desk, he found it stuffed full of envelopes.
Wang Haoran opened a few and found that they were all Love Letters from girls confessing to him.
These were the troubles of being the School Hunk.
Still, reading Love Letters really did feel pretty great.
Every girl who wrote one had poured out her affection, using all kinds of flowery language to express her feelings in hopes of getting a response from him.
Though Wang Haoran enjoyed reading them, after going through the lot, he barely remembered a single girl.
There was, however, one unsigned love letter that left a deeper impression.
And the handwriting looked somewhat familiar.
But Wang Haoran did not dig into it. After reading the unsigned love letter, he simply tossed it back into his desk.
Meanwhile.
Chu Bai had come to class as well.
Only, his expression was terrible. One look was enough to tell that something was weighing on his mind.
Chen Zishi called Chu Bai aside for a talk.
"Did you win any money over the holiday?" Chen Zishi asked nervously.
"I originally won over thirty thousand, but there was an accident, and it's all... all gone." Chu Bai frowned.
"Didn't you brag that you were guaranteed to win? How did you lose, then?! When can you pay back the thousand you owe me? I still need to buy Wen Jing a gift at the end of this month!" Chen Zishi immediately grew anxious.
"Don't be angry. Isn't there still some time before Wen Jing's birthday? I'll definitely find a way to pay you back," Chu Bai reassured him.
"It better be that way!" Chen Zishi was deeply displeased.
Men's friendships came quickly, but likewise, women could easily cause conflicts between them.
Chen Zishi was utterly infatuated with Wen Jing. He had saved one thousand over more than half a year, sometimes even going hungry and skipping meals.
He had suffered so much just to buy Wen Jing a decent gift.
If all of that went down the drain because of Chu Bai, one could imagine just how furious and frantic Chen Zishi would become.
"Brother Wang, Chu Bai and Chen Zishi nearly got into an argument."
Wang Haoran had people keep an eye on Chu Bai. Whenever anything unusual happened, they were to report it to him immediately.
Thus, after Chu Bai and Chen Zishi finished talking, someone promptly came over to tattle.
"What did they say?" Wang Haoran asked.
The underling relayed the contents of their conversation to Wang Haoran in full detail.
"Of Chu Bai's twelve hundred in capital, a thousand was actually borrowed from Chen Zishi. Those two have quite a good relationship, huh?"
"Then this Chen Zishi is very likely a supporting character from the protagonist's camp?"
Wang Haoran secretly speculated.
Following the usual urban novel formula, many protagonists had a fat best friend.
Chen Zishi's appearance fit that role far too well.
"System, check Chen Zishi's information." Wang Haoran wanted confirmation.
Checking requires 100 Villain Points. Proceed?
"Yes."
The interface quickly appeared.
Important Supporting Character: Chen Zishi (Protagonist Camp) Combat Power: 69 Charm Value: 57 Supporting Character Halo: None Skills: None
"So that's how it is." Wang Haoran confirmed it, then asked:
"System, if I ruin the relationship between important supporting characters in the protagonist's camp, can I obtain Villain Points and Halo Points?"
Replying to host: Such actions will affect the original plot and can earn Villain Points and Halo Points as rewards.
"Understood!"
Wang Haoran nodded to himself and began pondering.
Chen Zishi and Chu Bai already had a small conflict, and the key point was Wen Jing.
Then he could start there.
But how should he do it?
When Wen Jing came to mind, Wang Haoran suddenly realized something.
He picked up the unsigned love letter from earlier, and the corners of his mouth immediately curled into a smile.
No wonder the handwriting had seemed familiar.
It was Wen Jing's handwriting! Wen Jing often stuck little study notes on her desk, and they bore her handwriting.
Wang Haoran and Wen Jing frequently switched seats, so naturally he had seen them.
"She has a crush on me? That makes things easy."
Before you continue