Chapter 347 282: You're also from Jiao University?

"He can talk? So he's a scammer?" Qin Wanqing stared at Xue Rui in admiration. She had no idea how he'd seen through the act.

"See? I told you he was a scammer," Qin Wanqing's father said, but he didn't receive the admiring looks he was expecting.

The male university student instantly regretted the twenty yuan he'd lost. He shook his head in resignation and walked away.

Xue Rui clicked his tongue twice, pulled a bottle of mineral water from his bag, and handed it to Gu Muxue. "Let me wash my hands. I feel gross after touching him."

The young woman obligingly poured water for Xue Rui to wash his hands, a smile playing at the corners of her eyes. She had felt so safe when he stood in front of her just moments ago.

She asked softly, "How did you know he was faking his disability? That certificate looked so real."

Xue Rui shook his head. "I didn't. What they're doing is illegal regardless. Whether he's actually disabled or not is irrelevant."

"Think about it," he said. "Mei Lili works 28 days a month and only makes 1,500 yuan. These guys just hold up a sign, guilt-trip people into donating, and pocket all the cash. They only need to find fifteen little rich girls like you in a day to make what Mei Lili earns in an entire month."

"Getting rewarded for doing nothing? Why should they?"

Gu Muxue sighed. She had always been so sheltered; she'd never imagined the world was like this.

"Hmph! Who are you calling a little rich girl? You owe me another hundred yuan now," Gu Muxue grumbled.

Xue Rui chuckled. "You already owe so much, what's another hundred or two?"

Watching Xue Rui and Gu Muxue chat and laugh together, Qin Wanqing felt an inexplicable sense of disappointment. She had thought she'd found someone from her hometown, but it seemed he already had a girlfriend and would surely be heading to the university with her.

Just then, Qin Wanqing's father hailed a taxi. "Wanqing, come here. And call that classmate, Xue Rui, over too. We can all go together."

"Xue Rui, bring Muxue over here," Yang Xing called out, having pulled his car up to the curb.

Xue Rui glanced up and pulled Muxue toward the curb.

"Thank you, Uncle Qin, but there's no need to trouble you. I'll ride in my girlfriend's car." Xue Rui's eyes widened in astonishment as he looked at the car Yang Xing had pulled up in. It was a black Maybach 62S with a yellow Jiangnan license plate—and an extremely rare one with repeating digits.

"Muxue, I'm done trying," Xue Rui said, opening the car door for Gu Muxue like a doorman.

Gu Muxue suppressed a laugh. "Get in."

"You got it."

Qin Wanqing's father gulped. A moment ago, he had felt a pang of pity for Xue Rui, thinking the boy had no one to look after him. But how was it that he was being picked up by a luxury car the moment he stepped out of the station?

'Why would someone like that be riding in a second-class seat?'

Combined with Xue Rui's slick maneuvers earlier, he was convinced that not a single word the kid said could be trusted.

Qin Wanqing stared blankly at the luxury car. She didn't recognize the make, but one look was enough to tell her it was incredibly expensive.

After the car drove off into the distance, she murmured, "What kind of car was that? Why was the license plate yellow? And what was that hood ornament?"

Holding her phone, she had no idea what to even search for.

"Wanqing, you should stay away from that kid in the future. You could get swindled by him and not even realize it," Qin Wanqing's father warned her earnestly. 'If a girl that wealthy can be fooled by him, what chance does my own daughter have?'

...

「Inside the Maybach.」

"Now this is what I call an upgrade." Xue Rui clicked his tongue in amazement, looking around at the spacious interior and the soft, high-quality leather upholstery.

'So much for being low-key. How come the cars are getting more and more expensive the moment we leave Hedong?'

What's more, Yang Xing had changed into a sharp suit and was even wearing fucking white gloves. He was never this formal.

He noticed, however, that Gu Muxue didn't seem surprised at all, as if she were completely used to this kind of treatment.

"Chairman Zhao said that Muxue had to put up with a lot in Hedong. Now that she's starting university, he wanted to make it up to her. This car is a gift from him," Yang Xing explained.

'Chairman Zhao?' Xue Rui thought it didn't sound like something Zhao Lizhen would say.

Gu Muxue spoke up, "That's my maternal grandfather."

Xue Rui's brow furrowed. "What do you mean, *your* grandfather? He's *our* grandfather."

Yang Xing's eye twitched, but as a professional driver, it wasn't his place to comment on such matters.

Gu Muxue reached out and pinched Xue Rui. "You jerk, taking advantage of me again."

Then she blushed and mumbled, "...I'll take you to visit Jiangnan... someday."

'What does he mean, "put up with a lot"?' Xue Rui thought. 'Riding around Hedong in a car worth millions is considered a hardship?'

'The gap between worlds is just too vast...'

In truth, to accommodate Gu Qingshan's job, Zhao Lizhen had reined in her spending considerably. Now that they were out of Hedong, she no longer needed to be so discreet, so a luxury car pickup was to be expected.

Xue Rui gazed at the familiar scenery outside, which slowly began to merge with his memories. He had come to Chang'an over the summer break to take care of some paperwork and rent a warehouse.

Returning now, however, he didn't feel particularly emotional. He just found himself wondering what the little girl back home was making for dinner.

He lightly slapped his cheeks. 'What's wrong with me?'

'Why do I always think of Lin Ruoxi when I'm with Gu Muxue, and always think of Gu Muxue when I'm with Lin Ruoxi...?'

Just then, Muxue started pulling things out of her bag: her acceptance letter, various documents, ID photos...

Xue Rui picked up her acceptance letter and glanced at it. 'So she's a finance major at the Yanta Campus,' he thought.

"Finance is a good major," Xue Rui nodded.

Most second-generation rich kids chose finance. With their backgrounds, connections, and resources to manage, it was easy to make a fortune in an industry so close to the money.

As for kids from ordinary families in this era, he'd recommend the tech industry. The internet was the best at spinning a good story and could justify high premiums. He had advised Qiu Mengze before to go into IT...

It was one of the few high-income professions available to ordinary people.

'Hopefully not like my past life, where I majored in management at a second-rate university and ended up doing little more than babysitting the water cooler and the printer after graduation.'