Xue Tao Just a country bumpkin. Su Bai is the real rich one

It was the travel group they had agreed on yesterday.

As Su Bai expected, the group chat was created by Xue Tao.

After all, he was the team leader.

And he was extremely invested in this trip.

With campus beauties like Chen Yusheng and Jiang Qiuran, plus the twin lolis with their doll-like faces and, well, impressive assets, such a luxurious lineup was bound to trigger the locals' strong urge to show off.

Of course, the "Shanghai big shot" wouldn't lag behind either...

This was going to be entertaining.

A pleased smirk curled at the corners of Su Bai's lips.

While ordinary classmates were still criticizing Xue Tao for flaunting his wealth, Su Bai and Wang Haoran had already started enjoying the show.

[Xue Zhi Tao: Ladies, I plan to stock up on supplies for the trip in advance. If you have any requests, feel free to DM me. I’ll do my best to accommodate [smiley][smiley]]

[Xue Zhi Tao: [selfie wearing sunglasses, leaning against a Magotan 330]]

To be fair, the car this local guy drove wasn’t bad.

According to national statistics, most privately owned vehicles fall within the 100,000-yuan price range.

Let alone college students, who are generally so broke they can’t even afford to eat freely in the cafeteria.

But every time Xue Tao flaunted his wealth in the group, it gave off such a villainous vibe—like he was just begging to be punched...

The kicker? He actually managed to land Liu Yuanyuan thanks to his car and generous allowance.

Plenty of guys resented him but avoided direct confrontation because Xue Tao would just dismiss them as "jealous losers who can’t get girlfriends."

In engineering majors, even by freshman year, only a minority had managed to escape singlehood.

Not long after Xue Tao’s message, one of the twins, Wan Xinyan, responded:

[Red Bean Mochi: Really? Xue Tao, you’re so thoughtful~]

[Red Bean Mochi: Could you prepare some snacks for us? Hehe, my sister and I have a sweet tooth—we might munch through a lot on the way.]

[Green Bean Mochi: [shy]]

[Green Bean Mochi: Uh, not too much though.]

[Red Bean Mochi: Thanks, Big Bro Xue Tao [praying hands]]

[Xue Zhi Tao: [excited][excited][drooling]]

[Xue Zhi Tao: Mission accepted!]

[Wang Haoran Ate Agile Inspiration Mushrooms Today: (Click link for Genshin Impact livestream rewards XWS34YU…)]

[Wang Haoran Ate Agile Inspiration Mushrooms Today withdrew a message]

[Wang Haoran Ate Agile Inspiration Mushrooms Today: Wrong chat, my bad.]

[Xue Zhi Tao: …]

[Xue Zhi Tao: Genshin brainrot [eye-roll]]

[Hokkaido Snow: (Sennheiser Autumn New Product Review - Part 2)]

[Xue Zhi Tao: Shanghai big shot, stop spamming your headphone reviews. No one cares.]

[Hokkaido Snow: @Jiang Qiuran-25th Level Broadcasting]

[Jiang Qiuran-25th Level Broadcasting: What’s going on? Why am I being tagged? [confused]]

[Hokkaido Snow: …Never mind, it’s nothing.]

Su Bai lurked with great amusement, watching the group’s antics unfold.

So entertaining.

But just as he was enjoying the show, the local guy suddenly remembered him.

[Xue Zhi Tao: @Crispy White Goose, where you at? Come back and help me haul stuff from the supermarket.]

Seriously?

You want to splurge to impress the girls and drag me along as your pack mule?

At that moment, Su Bai was still wrapped in a bathrobe.

He stood up and snapped a selfie in the mirror.

A tall figure with subtly defined muscles, set against the backdrop of a lavishly decorated bathroom.

He selected another photo from his album—this one taken during his recent workout.

Both pictures were promptly posted in the "510 Mid-Autumn Festival Food & Fun with the Beauties" group chat.

【Crispy White Goose: [Photo][Photo]】

【Crispy White Goose: Busy. Go by yourself.】

【Xue Tao: ……】

Meanwhile, in the school parking lot.

Xue Tao, about to head out, saw the photos Su Bai had sent and immediately grimaced, his expression twisting in irritation.

Truthfully, he’d only asked casually—mostly to reinforce his image as the group’s leader, the one who called the shots.

That’s how you play the game with girls: establish yourself as the alpha of the pack, and they’ll naturally gravitate toward you.

Of course, it would’ve been ideal if Su Bai had agreed to help him haul groceries from the store.

Xue Tao wasn’t planning to hit up the tiny campus convenience store. No, he was headed to Walmart for a full-on shopping spree—imported snacks, fancy drinks, the kind of stuff girls loved.

And then Su Bai had the audacity to post two gym selfies.

The background looked like a luxury hotel… or maybe not? There was something off about it.

Xue Tao couldn’t quite place it.

The uncertainty gnawed at him. Since when did Su Bai frequent places even he couldn’t recognize?

According to Su Bai, he’d recently come into some money and was indulging in the finer things.

Now here he was, flexing in the group chat—clearly because there were a few stunning girls in it. A total departure from his usual low-key demeanor.

Xue Tao smirked. Pathetic. Su Bai’s being so obvious.

The four campus belles in the chat were worldly women. Girls these days weren’t easily impressed—you couldn’t just book a room at the Hilton and expect them to fall into bed with you.

Such clumsy tactics would never work.

Yet, against all expectations—

In a classroom elsewhere on campus.

A pair of adorable, doll-faced twins sat side by side at the back, pretending to pay attention while secretly scrolling through the group chat.

Their features were nearly identical, but their auras couldn’t have been more different: one quiet and shy, the other lively and mischievous.

“Whoa, sis! Look at Su Bai—he’s staying at The Ascott!” Wan Xinyan suddenly gasped.

Her sister, Wan Xinyue, whispered back, “The Ascott? What’s that?”

“It’s this super expensive serviced apartment. Only rich people or high-earning professionals live there. Su Bai’s a freshman like us, so his family must be loaded.”

“…How do you even know all this?”

Wan Xinyue blinked at her sister’s confident analysis. How could she deduce so much from just a photo?

All Wan Xinyue could tell was that Su Bai was tall, undeniably handsome—the kind of guy you’d sneak a second glance at if you passed him on the street.

“Easy. His bathrobe has The Ascott’s logo, and in the other photo—the gym one—you can kinda see the view outside. It’s definitely the riverside Ascott near campus.”

Wan Xinyan wore a smug, detective-like expression as she pinpointed the exact location on her phone’s map.

Her sister stared, awestruck.

“Yanyan, you’re wasting your talents not becoming a detective.”

"Of course, I'm brilliant!" Wan Xinyan said smugly. "And look at the watch Su Bai is wearing—I don’t recognize the brand, but my gut tells me it’s definitely not cheap… Hang on, let me run an AI image search…"

Watching her younger sister bustling with excitement, Wan Xinyue couldn’t help but feel impressed.

She murmured, "Wow, there’s so much to it. I thought Xue Tao was the rich one."

"Xue Tao? Pfft, he’s just a clueless bumpkin, a total side character."