The Power of Money to Win People's Hearts

A few days later, Lin Mo's current desk-mate, Tong Dong, finally came looking for him.

"Lin Mo, the shop owner said that person has returned. He can help me negotiate the price down to two thousand nine hundred," Tong Dong's voice carried a trace of irrepressible excitement, as if a heavy burden had finally been lifted from his chest.

Two thousand nine hundred was indeed under three thousand. The price was reasonable enough, not entirely outrageous.

If they were just making a profit this way, it wouldn't be a problem. So what if he let them earn a bit?

However, Lin Mo hadn't forgotten the words he had overheard. This was no simple transaction.

So he patted Tong Dong on the shoulder, signaling him to calm down. "No problem. I'll accompany you to buy that jade pendant after school this afternoon. Have the money ready, and try to bring it in smaller bills so people can't see through your financial situation at a glance."

Although Tong Dong didn't understand why Lin Mo was being so cautious, Lin Mo's tone inexplicably put him at ease, and he subconsciously nodded.

Just then, Jiang Yunlu looked over curiously and lowered her voice a bit. "What are you guys talking about? Being all mysterious."

Lin Mo glanced at Jiang Yunlu, his tone calm. "Tong Dong has some private matters to deal with. It's not convenient to talk about it with others."

"Others," naturally, included Chu Miaomiao and Xie Yuling sitting behind them.

Chu Miaomiao and Xie Yuling exchanged a glance. Seeing that Lin Mo had already put it that way, they didn't press the issue.

After all, everyone had their own little secrets.

After the bell rang, the class remained its usual self. Some students buried their heads in practice tests, while others were drowsy. The sunlight from outside the window spilled in lazily, making everything seem peaceful and uneventful.

The class livelihood committee member, Mai Zirong, holding a small notebook and a blue document bag, began his routine duty at the start of every semester: collecting the class fund.

"Classmates, time to hand in the class fund. The usual rule, ten bucks per person."

His voice wasn't loud, but it was enough for the students in the front rows to hear.

Soon, the jingling of coins and rustling of bills began to sound from the pencil case in his hand.

The whole process proceeded in an orderly manner until he reached the corner at the back of the classroom.

After all, it had to be collected once every semester.

"Ye Minghui, Zhou Nianqian, ten bucks for the class fund." Mai Zirong lightly tapped on Ye Minghui's desk.

Ye Minghui didn't even bat an eyelid. As if he had been waiting for him all along, he casually pulled out a stack of crisp red banknotes from his drawer and slapped them onto the desk with moderate force.

This crisp sound seemed particularly abrupt even amidst the noisy recess.

In an instant, dozens of pairs of eyes from all around darted over in unison.

That small stack of money looked dazzlingly red under the sunlight.

Only then did Ye Minghui slowly open his mouth. His voice wasn't loud, but it echoed throughout the entire classroom. "As a member of Class Eight, I'll cover all the class funds from now on. Return the money to the other students."

The entirety of Class Eight instantly fell into a dead silence. Even the sound of pen tips scratching against paper disappeared.

Mai Zirong was completely stunned. He looked down at the stack of money on the desk, then looked up at Ye Minghui, frowning slightly. "This... is against the rules, isn't it? The class fund is everyone's responsibility."

"What's against the rules about it?"

Ye Minghui twitched the corners of his mouth. "I'm happy to do it, is that a problem? Besides, I'm contributing to the class. Are you going to reject a classmate's enthusiasm?"

He paused and added another sentence, his tone carrying an unquestionable casualness.

"If the class fund is ever running low in the future, come find me anytime."

Simple and crude.

But after two seconds of silence, the classroom instantly erupted.

"Holy crap! Brother Hui is awesome!"

"Covered... all of it? For real?"

"Mom asked me why I'm attending class on my knees, it's because I've seen a true rich kid!"

"Brother Hui, do you still need lackeys? The kind that can cheer for you!"

Jeers and exclamations rose and fell in succession. The students who had previously handed in their ten bucks now had eyes full of expectation.

This was a benefit in cold hard cash; who wouldn't be happy about it?

This was exactly the effect Ye Minghui wanted.

He didn't need to preach any grand principles, nor did he need to build any superficial relationships. As long as he provided tangible benefits, these classmates would naturally treat him and Zhou Nianqian as one of their own.

This way, the people of Class Eight wouldn't be able to bear parting with them.

Because they had monopolized the perks of Class Eight.

This was also one of the reasons why Lin Mo had previously been revered as a big shot by the class.

Because the rest of them had truly benefited.

Mai Zirong's frown, however, deepened. He stared at the stack of money, remained silent for several seconds, and finally reached out to pick it up.

He didn't immediately pocket it. Instead, right in front of Ye Minghui, he began counting the bills one by one.

Ten crisp one-hundred-yuan bills. No more, no less, exactly one thousand bucks.

Expressionless, Mai Zirong wrote in his small notebook: "Ye Minghui, Zhou Nianqian, Class Fund, One Thousand Yuan."

Then, holding the notebook and the pencil case full of change, he turned around and started from the first row, refunding the money one by one.

"Your ten bucks has been paid for by Ye Minghui. Do you want it back?"

His attitude was very earnest, as if he were handling an extremely serious official duty.

"Yes, yes, yes! Absolutely! Old Mai, thank Brother Hui for me!" A boy didn't even think before snatching back his ten bucks, grinning from ear to ear.

There were also some who waved their hands. "Forget it, it's just ten bucks. Just consider it my contribution to the class."

The majority of the people, however, happily took back their money, constantly muttering "Brother Hui is so generous."

Before he could finish the round, the preparatory bell rang, so Mai Zirong had to return to his and Zhang Yuzhong's seats.

At this moment, his desk-mate Zhang Yuzhong was grading his own chemistry paper without even lifting his head, completely deaf to the commotion that had just occurred.

Mai Zirong sat down, put away the stack of one thousand bucks and his ledger, and sighed softly.

Seeing Mai Zirong return with a sorrowful expression, he couldn't help but ask, "What happened?"

Zhang Yuzhong had been engrossed in grading his paper just now, so he didn't know what had happened.

Mai Zirong explained how Ye Minghui had paid the class fund for the entire class.

Zhang Yuzhong shook his head. "I'll still pay my own share. It's his business if he wants to give more, but I can't just not pay."

At this time, Su Mingzhao walked back in from outside. His current seat was right in front of Mai Zirong, and he was among the first batch to hand in the class fund.

"Hey! Su Mingzhao."

"What?" Su Mingzhao sat down lazily in his chair.

"Ye Minghui gave a thousand bucks to cover the class fund for all the students. Do you want your ten bucks to stay in the fund, or do you want it back?"

Upon hearing this, Su Mingzhao immediately held out his hand. "Of course I want it back. Isn't it great to have a sucker paying for us? I can buy quite a few snacks with ten bucks."

"Alright then, but if that Ye Minghui suddenly takes his money back, you'll still have to pay this ten bucks for the class fund."

Su Mingzhao simply waved his hand. "What's ten bucks? If he takes it back, I'll just give another ten bucks along with a dose of disdain."

His words were crude, but the logic was sound.

However, Zhang Yuzhong still didn't take back his ten bucks.

As for the rest, Mai Zirong would have to ask them one by one all over again.

It felt like his workload had just increased.