The Protagonist's Money-Making Plan

Just as Wen Jing was immersed in her thoughts, an annoying voice interrupted from beside her.

"Wen Jing, I don't get this math problem. Can you teach me?"

Wen Jing turned and saw a round-faced boy.

His name was Chen Zishi. He was a big, fat guy, plain-looking, and not great at his studies either.

Wen Jing didn't really want to deal with Chen Zishi. She just wrote down the solution, handed it to him, and told him to figure it out himself.

Then she dropped a line: "I need to study."

Chen Zishi didn't have the nerve to keep asking questions. He took the hint and walked off.

He trudged back to his seat, dejected.

"Fatty, you like her?" his deskmate Chu Bai teased.

"No way, don't talk nonsense." Chen Zishi denied it on the spot.

"Stop pretending. I can tell."

"You have to keep it a secret. Don't go blabbing it around."

"Relax. I'll tell you a secret too—I like Xu Muyan. Now we're even."

"Looks like we're in the same boat." Chen Zishi sighed.

"I'm nothing like you. I'll win Xu Muyan over sooner or later. She'll be my woman." Chu Bai was brimming with confidence.

"Look at Wang Haoran and Xu Muyan, always studying together, laughing and chatting. Who knows, maybe sparks are already flying. What chance do you have?" Chen Zishi glanced at the handsome guy and pretty girl sitting far away.

"That Wang Haoran is just a coward who dares to act but not own up. I'll expose his true colors eventually. Then Xu Muyan won't give him the time of day." Chu Bai's voice was bitter.

"Wang Haoran really is annoying. He's always making Wen Jing give up her seat and messing with her studying. You go for it—win Xu Muyan over. I'm rooting for you." Chen Zishi was equally fed up.

"Thanks for the good wishes. If Xu Muyan becomes my girlfriend, I'll definitely have her put in a good word for you with Wen Jing. With how close they are, you might actually have a shot at Wen Jing too." Chu Bai patted Chen Zishi's shoulder.

"Good brother, you said it. Remember that!" Chen Zishi got excited on the spot, his fondness for Chu Bai skyrocketing.

Men's friendships sometimes came together that fast.

Xu Muyan and Wen Jing weren't just deskmates—they were close friends, practically inseparable on campus.

Xu Muyan's words carried serious weight with Wen Jing.

"You have to pay Fan Jian, Fan Tong, and Qin Shou Sheng—those three idiots—thirty thousand in medical fees. That's no small amount. Your parents are going to be furious. Have you figured out what to tell them?"

With his and Chu Bai's bond now tighter, Chen Zishi started worrying about Chu Bai's troubles.

"Tomorrow's a day off. I'll handle it myself." Chu Bai said quietly.

"Huh, you're not planning to rob someone, are you?" Chen Zishi was shocked.

He remembered Chu Bai's family was dirt poor.

"Of course not. I'm planning to... win it." Chu Bai said mysteriously.

"Gambling? That's way too risky. Haven't you heard that nine out of ten gamblers lose?"

"Nine out of ten lose, but there's still that one winner. I'm that one in ten. And I'm absolutely sure of it. I just don't have enough capital." Chu Bai's eyes flicked to Chen Zishi, and he suddenly asked:

"Do you have any money? Lend me some."

"I've got a thousand."

"No way, you're that loaded?"

"What are you talking about? My family's pretty average. I saved that up by scrimping for over half a year. I was planning to buy Wen Jing a nice birthday gift this month."

"Lend me the money to tide me over. I'll pay you back before Wen Jing's birthday."

"Alright, fine. But you have to return it on time."

"Relax, I'll pay you back for sure. If I don't, you can chop my head off and use it as a stool." Chu Bai swore solemnly.

--

The day's classes finally ended.

At the school gate, students headed home one after another.

Their ways of getting home were just as varied.

Some rode bikes, some took the bus, and others had private cars picking them up.

A Cullinan parked at the school gate, drawing every eye.

Under the envious, jealous gaze of countless boys and the adoring, infatuated stares of girls, Wang Haoran slipped into the Cullinan.

"Young Master, straight home?" the middle-aged male driver asked respectfully.

"First, go to the nearest Private Detective Agency." Wang Haoran said.

The driver was surprised but didn't ask questions. He just started the car.

If it wasn't his place to ask, he didn't ask.

He'd been the Wang family's driver for nearly ten years now. He knew that much.

Soon enough, the Cullinan stopped outside a mid-sized detective agency.

Wang Haoran walked into the agency alone.

He found the person in charge and handed over a simple dossier.

The dossier was, of course, about Chu Bai. It contained a photo and his home address.

The photo had been taken secretly by one of Wang Haoran's underlings.

The home address was copied from the student registration records.

"Tail Chu Bai and report his whereabouts in real time."

That was Wang Haoran's request.

At first, the agency refused.

Their reason: they were a legitimate detective agency, not paparazzi.

But the moment Wang Haoran offered triple the price, their attitude flipped, and they took the job.

Triple the price was only thirty thousand yuan anyway.

For a rich second-generation heir like Wang Haoran, that was pocket change.

After leaving his phone number, Wang Haoran walked out of the agency.

And the agency immediately got to work.

--

Night fell.

The Wang Family Villa.

In the resplendent dining hall, Wang Haoran ate alone.

Over a dozen dishes sat on the table, lavish beyond compare.

The cooking was at the level of a Five-Star Hotel chef.

The flavor was hard to fault.

A few Servants stood by, ready to attend to any need Wang Haoran might have.

Wang Haoran sighed with emotion.

In his past life, he'd been a penniless nobody. This life of a wealthy Young Master was nothing short of a dream's wildest hope.

And now, that dream's wildest hope had become reality.

His cheap parents weren't home.

But that was fine. For now, Wang Haoran didn't know how to face them anyway.

After all, in his past life, he'd been an orphan. After transmigrating, he'd landed straight into the present, with no real emotional bond to them.

His cheap father was a big boss, managing the Wang family's various enterprises, busy every day.

Going a month or two without seeing him was common.

His cheap mother was a socialite from a wealthy family, who also ran a company, equally busy every day.

Any rare free time she had went to high-end beauty salons for maintenance.

From what he remembered, Wang Haoran had precious few chances to spend time with these cheap parents.

As parents, they felt guilty. To make up for it, they spoiled their child unconditionally.

Whatever the child wanted, they would surely provide.

In the original plot, Wang Haoran started out fighting the protagonist on his own, but in the end, the entire Wang family—even his mother's maiden family—joined in against the protagonist, all because of that unreserved doting.

But then again, a villainous rich second-generation being spoiled by family elders—wasn't that just standard formula?

Think about it: the villainous rich second-generation tries to persecute the protagonist, and the parent says, "You Rebellious Son, how could you do such a bad thing? Shut your mouth. Say one more word, and you're no son of mine!"

If that happened, how would the plot even move forward?