Shen Qingling heard the continuous notifications of affection points echoing in his mind, all of which were being converted into system credits.
He opened his system panel to take a look.
[Name: Shen Qingling]
[Age: 18]
[Height: 188cm]
[Length: 25cm]
[Appearance Score: 93]
[Health Points: 60]
[Combat Ability: 65]
[Reputation Points: 21]
[Affection Points: 117]
[Credits: ]
[Special Abilities: None]
[Goddesses Pursued: 0]
[Expand]
- [Song Zhining Pursuit Progress: 85%]
- [Chu Jiaojiao Pursuit Progress: 30%]
- [Ruan Mingyi Pursuit Progress: 32%]
[Revenge Progress: 10%]
[Main Story Progress: 3%]
[Side Quests: Unlocked]
[Expand]
- [Side Quest 1: Obtain Chu Jiaojiao’s Regret Points]
- [Progress: 0%]
Shen Qingling originally had only a little over 3,000 credits, but thanks to yesterday’s trending hashtag and the affection points provided by the girls at school today, his credits had already surpassed 20,000.
To gain so much in just one day—maintaining long-term exposure was clearly necessary.
"Ordinary affection points are still useful. As long as I can keep up the exposure, I should be able to save up 100,000 credits soon."
"That’s right, Host. Once you’ve saved enough credits, you can unlock certain storylines and character endings. The system shop also has plenty of items—would you like to take a look?"
"Are these items… decent?"
"Of course they’re decent. Well, there are also indecent ones. As long as you have the credits, there’s nothing you can’t buy."
Shen Qingling browsed the system shop and, sure enough, it was filled with all sorts of things—even adult toys.
—Definitely not a decent system.
But with his current credits, he couldn’t afford anything. All he could do was window-shop.
Before long, the teacher entered the classroom, and Shen Qingling put away his thoughts to focus on the lecture.
Even though he had inherited the original host’s memories and knowledge, slacking off would still set him back. He couldn’t let himself fall from top student to slacker.
Meanwhile, Ruan Mingyi had woken up early to put on a full face of flawless makeup before heading to a café.
Upon learning that Shen Qingling only worked there on weekends, she couldn’t hide her disappointment.
"Qiaoqiao, he’s not here."
"I told you—today’s Thursday. Shen Qingling is a student at Jiangcheng University. He’s definitely in class right now."
"I heard he’s some kind of genius, too. I just saw him trending on Weibo this morning—it was actually him."
"I saw that post too. That photo was ridiculously handsome, no wonder you fell for him at first sight."
"Ugh, but he didn’t even accept my friend request. Maybe we should just go to his school and find him."
"Wait, aren’t you afraid he’ll ignore you?"
"I’ll just say I’m there to apologize. Then I’ll buy him a new outfit as compensation—it’s a perfect excuse."
Ruan Mingyi thought her plan was flawless. With a reasonable pretext in place, it all came down to whether Shen Qingling had the heart to reject her.
She was quite familiar with Jiangcheng University. The Ruan family had donated an entire building to the school, and she had even dined with the board members. Sneaking in would be a breeze.
But as she looked at the youthful faces on campus, she suddenly felt old—like she had lost that carefree, youthful aura.
Ruan Mingyi sighed. "They’re so young."
Ye Qiao chuckled. "Why the sudden existential crisis? You only graduated two years ago—you’re not middle-aged."
"It’s different. Two years out of school makes you a seasoned veteran. That naïve, clueless look in their eyes? We office drones can never reclaim that."
"Please, you call what you do ‘office work’? Sitting around for an hour or two sipping coffee, never even turning on your laptop—that’s not a job."
"Ugh, can’t I just be dramatic for once? If I had to live like that, I’d rather jump off a building."
As they chatted, Ruan Mingyi and Ye Qiao made their way to Shen Qingling’s classroom.
Ruan Mingyi immediately spotted the young man sitting upright in his seat.
Ye Qiao whispered, "How is he even this handsome in class? It’s like a scene from an idol drama."
Ruan Mingyi smirked. "None of those pretty-boy actors hold a candle to him. My ‘Ice Prince’ is in a league of his own."
("Ice Prince" was the nickname she had given Shen Qingling.)
Despite her eccentric personality, Ruan Mingyi knew better than to disrupt a lecture. So she and Ye Qiao leaned against the hallway railing, chatting quietly.
Even so, they still drew plenty of attention from the students inside.
Like the guy and girl sitting in front of Shen Qingling.
"Damn, there are two gorgeous women outside."
"Their figures are insane—so slim, fair skin, legs for days. I’m jealous."
"Which department are they from? With looks like that, they should be famous."
"Probably not from our school. Look at their outfits—clearly loaded. No way they’re students."
"I’m a peasant. I can’t even recognize those designer brands."
"I think that bag alone costs over a million."
...
Shen Qingling didn’t even glance their way, seemingly absorbed in his studies.
At least, that was the appearance he maintained. In reality, he already knew exactly who had arrived.
He remained expressionless, tuning out the surrounding chatter—earning silent admiration from the girls in class.
"Look at the guys in our class, practically drooling. Meanwhile, Shen Qingling didn’t even lift his eyes."
"Guess beauty doesn’t faze him. The allure of knowledge must be stronger."
"My idol doesn’t even spare a glance for the campus belle. To him, even the most beautiful woman is just a pretty shell."
A male voice sneered in response: "Or maybe it’s because he knows he has nothing going for him besides his face. What woman would put up with that icy personality?"
"Exactly. Can he even afford to buy his girlfriend clothes? A guy who has to work part-time just to pay tuition—what kind of rich beauty would stoop to date a pauper like him?"
"Ha! Those two women outside probably spend more in a day than he’ll earn in a lifetime. If anything, he’s too embarrassed to date."
"If you girls knew how stingy he really is in private, you wouldn’t keep idolizing him. His whole ‘aloof genius’ act would crumble."
"You—! Shen Qingling might be broke now, but that doesn’t mean he’ll stay that way! You’re just jealous!"
The boys burst into laughter, while the girls who had defended Shen Qingling flushed with anger.
Disgusting! Always attacking him for being poor—what a bunch of losers!
Before long, the bell rang. Students began filing out of the classroom, and a few even tried striking up conversations with Ruan Mingyi—but she remained aloof.
Speculations buzzed about who the two women were there to see.
"Who do you think they’re here for?"
"Cheng Chuan? Xie Zhiyao? Or… Shen Qingling?"
"No way it’s Shen Qingling. Who’d dare? Unless they want to be publicly humiliated."
"Then it’s probably Xie Zhiyao. Plenty of beauties chase after him anyway."
"There's no way Xie Zhiyao could land a beauty like that. I don't buy it."
"Well, maybe it's Cheng Chuan—he's pretty handsome too."
......
Shen Qingling stood up and walked out of the classroom, immediately spotting Ruan Mingyi.
Their eyes met for a moment before he turned to leave, but Ruan Mingyi blocked his path.
"Hey, Shen Qingling, remember me?"