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Gu Chen was woken up by his alarm the next morning. He still had a hangover headache when he came to. The dorm was empty, so he washed up and headed to the cafeteria. Along the way, he felt as if people were pointing at him and whispering. Fragments of conversation like "drunk" and "cell phone" drifted into his ears from time to time.

Fine then!

Gu Chen kept a blank expression. He didn't need to hear the full context to know what these people were gossiping about.

He stood in line at a window to order breakfast, then took his tray and picked a random empty seat. Just as he lowered his head to take a sip of porridge, he heard someone behind him laugh, "Ordering mung bean porridge and a banana-pear salad after getting drunk—you certainly know how to look after your health."

Gu Chen turned back and nodded to the newcomer, "Senior Zhou."

"I've heard everything." Zhou Xiaoting set her tray down and sat across from him. "You landed a forty-million deal on your first day of work, selling the most expensive unit in the new development. The commission alone is nearly 120,000. It's been spreading through all the WeChat groups in the Great Zhou World sales department."

Zhou Xiaoting didn't intentionally lower her voice when she spoke. The students sitting nearby heard her loud and clear, and they all turned to look with expressions of astonishment.

Even the golden children of A University couldn't remain unmoved by money, especially since 100,000 yuan was worth quite a lot ten years ago. Yet, Gu Chen had earned that much in a single day just by selling a house.

"What did you talk to that big client about? I heard they were extremely satisfied. Not only did they pay the full amount in one go, but they even specifically gifted you a cell phone." Zhou Xiaoting asked curiously, "I never realized you were so good at business negotiations."

It was no wonder Zhou Xiaoting was curious. Gu Chen's usual gloomy image—the type who couldn't even squeeze a fart out after three pokes—made it very hard to associate him with a silver-tongued sales elite.

The surrounding students were also in a stir.

Gu Chen only had to pay a little attention to the reactions of his classmates to realize that Zhou Xiaoting was helping him clarify the inexplicable rumors that had popped up out of nowhere.

Although Gu Chen was already accustomed to being the subject of such flying rumors, he was still grateful that someone was willing to stand up and help him clarify and explain things.

"I didn't really say much." Since it involved a multi-billion dollar project like Tiansui Capital acquiring Haoyang Technology, Gu Chen couldn't go around blabbing about it, lest he accidentally disrupt Zhongli Sui's plans. "The client was a nice person and very decisive. When they found out I didn't have a phone and only worked part-time on weekends, they gifted me one so it would be easier to stay in touch while processing the property deeds and paperwork."

Hearing Gu Chen's vague summary, Zhou Xiaoting knew there was definitely more to the story. But since Gu Chen didn't want to say, she wouldn't dig for details. She had only come over to do him a favor, not to put him on the spot. "That's true. For wealthy people, time and work efficiency are always more important than money. Since they could pull out forty million for a property, they wouldn't care about a phone worth a few thousand. You should be smart about this too—keep your phone on at all times and don't delay the client's important business."

Gu Chen nodded. "I understand."

A classmate sitting nearby was itching with curiosity and couldn't help but interject, "Is sales really that profitable? You can make over a hundred thousand by selling just one house?"

"That's only if you actually have the ability," Zhou Xiaoting said with a smile. "Many people work at the sales office for two or three months without selling a single unit, and eventually, they have no choice but to resign."

"If you can't sell a house in three months, wouldn't that mean you're incredibly stupid?" The person curled their lip. "I think those of us who made it into A University are pretty smart."

Zhou Xiaoting just smiled without a word.

Someone said sourly, "Isn't Senior Zhou being a bit too good to Gu Chen? Introducing him to such a lucrative part-time job, while the rest of us only have tutoring gigs that pay one or two hundred an hour."

"You could also find part-time jobs handing out flyers at the mall or working at fast-food restaurants," Zhou Xiaoting retorted softly. She added, "Don't always envy Gu Chen and think it's just good luck. When Gu Chen went to report for duty at the sales office yesterday, he recited the seventy-plus pages of internal training materials backward during the interview and assessment. I mean truly backward. He had every contract clause, all the mortgage-related procedures, and the tax rates down perfectly. That's how he earned the chance to handle clients himself."

Zhou Xiaoting paused slightly. "You people who spend all day envying others—have you even memorized your own major's textbooks, let alone recited them backward?"

Who would do something so boring!

The surrounding students looked at each other and fell silent. Although they were still a bit unconvinced, Gu Chen's capability was right there; even if they wanted to find fault, they couldn't.

The atmosphere grew somewhat quiet for a moment.

Gu Xiu and his two roommates had finished breakfast and were just about to leave the cafeteria when they happened to see Gu Chen and Zhou Xiaoting.

Gu Xiu thought for a moment, then walked over and asked Gu Chen, "Brother, are you feeling better? You looked like you were suffering quite a bit from being so drunk last night, so I didn't wake you up this morning. I wanted you to get a good sleep, especially since there are no classes today."

He then asked, "Why are you up so early?"

Gu Chen replied, "I have to go to work in a little while."

Gu Xiu realized, "I forgot about your part-time job. I almost made you late."

As he spoke, Gu Xiu seemed hesitant. Finally, he couldn't help but say with concern, "Brother, if you're going to work, try to drink less in the future. You don't even know how to hold your liquor. And those clients, why do they have to force you to drink?"

The classmate who had just been complaining about Zhou Xiaoting's special treatment of Gu Chen suddenly spoke up upon hearing this, "Wait, you have to drink with clients to sell a house? Forget it then. I really can't do that kind of job."

"..." Hearing this, Zhou Xiaoting was almost too angry to laugh. "Our Great Zhou Group is a Global 500 company. Our sales department has very formal procedures. We don't force employees to drink with clients just to sign a deal. Gu Xiu, could you please stop talking about things you don't understand?"

Gu Xiu hadn't expected his words to upset Zhou Xiaoting. He hurriedly explained, "That's not what I meant. I just saw my brother come back dead drunk last night and I was worried about him—"

"I was only drinking because it was my first day and my colleagues at the sales office were very welcoming. We just had a meal and went to sing some songs after work to get to know each other," Gu Chen interrupted, feeling truly helpless.