"I say, kid, when did you manage to win over the school belle?"
Yang Mo, who had been lost in thought, was suddenly jolted back to reality. He turned to see Guo Fat standing beside him with a smug grin.
"Where the hell did you come from?" Yang Mo asked, raising an eyebrow. "Didn't you say you were going to grab a seat? Where have you been this whole time?"
Guo Fat chuckled, crossing his arms. "Oh, I was around… but then I saw you and Ling Luo chatting so happily, and I just couldn't bear to interrupt. So? How was it? How did it go?" He gave Yang Mo an exaggerated thumbs-up.
Yang Mo sighed in exasperation. "What are you even talking about? We were just having a casual conversation. Nothing special."
"Casual conversation?" Guo Fat smirked. "Come on, don't play dumb with me. I saw it with my own eyes. You kissed her, didn't you?"
Yang Mo was stunned. "What nonsense are you spewing? I haven't even held a girl's hand, let alone kissed one!"
After several minutes of explaining, Guo Fat finally realized it was all just a misunderstanding. "Ah… what a pity! That would've been an amazing love story," he sighed dramatically. "Honestly, I think you and Ling Luo make a great match. You're good-looking, she's the school's top beauty—it's a perfect pair!"
Yang Mo rolled his eyes. "Pull back. I'm not in the mood for a relationship right now." He stood up, gathered his test papers, and prepared to leave.
"Wait, wait, wait! I'm serious," Guo Fat persisted, keeping pace with Yang Mo as they walked out. "If you're interested, I can have Jiang Jia put in a good word for you with Ling Luo. You never know, she might actually like you."
Yang Mo groaned. "Mind your own business, will you?"
"Who says I can't meddle? A brother's business is my business! As they say, in war and in life, we have to stick together!"
Before Guo Fat could ramble on, Yang Mo quickly picked up his pace and walked away. He had never realized before that Guo Fat had such a talent for storytelling. Maybe he should consider becoming a novelist instead of bothering him all the time.
"By the way, I've made up my mind!" Guo Fat suddenly declared. "I'm going to apply to Qingbei University."
Yang Mo nearly tripped over his own feet. "You? Qingbei?" He stared at his friend in disbelief.
Guo Fat nodded confidently. "Yep! Jiang Jia is applying there, and I can't let her go alone. So, I have to go too."
Yang Mo chuckled. "And how exactly do you plan on pulling that off? You're at the bottom of our grade rankings."
"That's why I need your help!" Guo Fat clapped his hands together in a pleading gesture. "You're a top student—tutor me!"
Yang Mo sighed. "It's not that I don't want to help you, but there's less than a month left before the college entrance exam. Do you seriously think you can improve that much in such a short time?"
Guo Fat's face fell. "Damn, you're right…" He pondered for a moment before his expression suddenly brightened. "I've got it! I'll go home and talk to my dad. I'll tell him I refuse to inherit the family business unless he helps me get into Qingbei."
Yang Mo was speechless. "You're telling me… you have the option to inherit a family business, and yet you still want to struggle with college applications?"
"Well, yeah." Guo Fat shrugged. "But I think my dad will understand. He has connections. Maybe he can pull some strings and get me in."
Yang Mo was skeptical. "Qingbei is the number one university in the country. You think connections alone can get you in?"
"Why not? Worst case scenario, my dad donates a building. That should do the trick, right?"
Yang Mo nearly choked on air. "A… a building? Dude, what exactly does your family do?"
"Oh, didn't I tell you?" Guo Fat said nonchalantly. "My family owns the Zinuo Hotel chain."
Yang Mo's jaw nearly hit the floor. "You're joking."
Guo Fat grinned. "Nope. It's true."
Yang Mo was in shock. The Zinuo Hotel was one of the top luxury hotel chains in Jinghai City, with a market value exceeding ten billion dollars. And all this time, Guo Fat had been living like an ordinary high school student?
"Wait, wait, wait," Yang Mo said, still processing the information. "You're telling me you're the young master of Zinuo Hotel?"
Guo Fat nodded. "Pretty much."
"If you're that rich, why are you even attending this school? Why didn't your parents send you to First Middle School? It's the best in the city, where all the elites send their kids."
"My dad says expensive schools are too flashy," Guo Fat replied. "He wanted me to keep a low profile. Besides, I don't really like hanging around those so-called rich kids. They're too pretentious."
Yang Mo looked at his friend with newfound admiration. "Damn, I misjudged you. I thought all you cared about was eating and sleeping, but you actually have some wisdom."
Guo Fat puffed out his chest. "Of course! I have first-class awareness, my friend."
Yang Mo laughed and patted his shoulder. "Looks like I need to go back and rethink my opinion of you."
"Anyway, which university are you applying to?" Guo Fat asked.
"Most likely Qingbei as well," Yang Mo answered. "Let's see how the results turn out."
"That's great! Then we'll be at the same school. We can look out for each other."
By then, the two had reached the school gate. After exchanging farewells, Yang Mo got on the bus, already deep in thought.
He had been considering buying a house over the weekend. A three-bedroom apartment would be perfect. But the real question was—how would he explain where the money came from?
If his adoptive parents suddenly found tens of millions of dollars in his account, they'd probably faint from shock.
Yang Mo sighed. He would have to think of a good excuse…