Chapter 24
Gao Ming was completely infuriated by Shi Yu’s calm yet faintly disdainful attitude. “Who wants that crap?! Mind your own business. All you’ve got going for you is your grades. Once you’re out in the real world, what are you even worth?”
Shi Yu tugged at the corner of his lips and gave a soft laugh. “Thanks.”
Lin Chuan couldn’t take it anymore. “Your attitude is seriously nasty. Can you look in a mirror, man? Anyone who didn’t know better would think your family’s the richest in Jiangcheng. My god.”
Gao Ming slung his backpack on and turned to leave, but Lin Chuan called out: “Can you at least have a little class? You kicked over the trash bin—how about picking it back up before you go? We all share this dorm, okay?”
With a dark face, Gao Ming gritted his teeth, picked up the spilled trash, and slammed the door behind him as he left.
Xu Zhiqiang didn’t want to face Shi Yu and Lin Chuan alone—he was afraid of the awkwardness—so he followed Gao Ming out.
“It’s nothing, don’t let it get to you,” Lin Chuan comforted Shi Yu. He only knew Shi Yu was trying to make money, but didn’t expect him to have that kind of background. “Don’t listen to his crap. He’s just jealous—he can’t compare to you in anything, so he’s trying to find your weak points to tear you down.”
Lin Chuan knew that fate deals different hands—not everyone gets a shot at soaring to the top—but that absolutely isn’t determined by background alone. No one is born despicable just because they come from humble beginnings. If Shi Yu had been born into his family, he’d probably be ten times more outstanding than he was.
“Mm.”
Shi Yu responded faintly as he rolled up his sleeves. His long, slender fingers flew across the keyboard. Rather than wasting energy getting angry over irrelevant people, he cared more about doing a good job on the project in front of him.
When he had been poor and had nothing, maybe he would’ve felt humiliated by someone bluntly exposing his background. But now he had much more. In both academics and career, he had received countless positive feedback and recognition.
When you have real achievements validated by the world, your heart is no longer empty or fragile—because you know you have the ability to create everything all over again.
When facing someone like Jiang Shangwan, she was so good, so noble, that he would occasionally feel intimidated or inferior just observing her life.
But someone like Gao Ming?
To him, that kind of person was nothing more than an ordinary NPC.
An NPC with no power to threaten him.
Lin Chuan suddenly chuckled sneakily. “There’s a seminar in a few days, did you know? Some boss who once donated a building to our school is coming again to donate research funds to our econ department. Maybe there’s some insider connection in our faculty or something. I heard they’ll also be recognizing outstanding students and giving out scholarships. You have to go. I bet it’ll piss Gao Ming off to death.”
Then he added a little regretfully: “My mom wanted to donate too, but I talked her out of it. I don’t want to stand out too much—just want to live a normal college life. But if she had gone through with it and showed up, I could’ve helped you rub it in even more.”
Shi Yu’s fingers paused briefly on the keyboard as he subconsciously thought of Jiang Yingtin. But he quickly pushed the thought away—there were plenty of wealthy kids at Jiang University, it was unlikely so many coincidences would happen around him.
After a moment, he sent a message to Jiang Shangwan:
【Do you have any wishes you want to fulfill?】
—
At the heart of Jiangcheng’s CBD stood the Jiang Corporation building. Jiang Shangwan was busy handling a chaotic work contract when that somewhat unexpected message popped up—
Shi Yu: 【Do you have any wishes you want to fulfill?】
She found the question a bit strange. How could she have wishes she wanted to fulfill? Everything she wanted was easily within reach.
That sudden message unexpectedly eased her irritation. She took a sip of the hand-ground coffee on her desk, thought about his words, and replied with a question: Why? Do you have any wishes you want to fulfill?
Shi Yu: 【I made a platform called ‘Wish Come True’.】
Jiang Shangwan: 【A platform? You study finance, how did you get into programming?】
Shi Yu: 【Minor.】
Jiang Shangwan: 【Tell me about it.】
Jiang Shangwan’s interest was piqued, but the reply came slowly. After a long wait, he sent a voice message over 50 seconds long.
Shi Yu’s voice was clear and crisp, and when converted to mechanical audio through the phone, it sounded cold yet gentle, soothing her slightly irritated mind.
【If you are an ordinary user who has a wish you want to fulfill but find it hard to achieve on your own, you can post your wish on the platform. You can ask for help from other users, waiting for others to assist your wish, or set stakes to post special wish points to attract more helpers. You can also help other users’ wishes, speeding up your own wish’s progress bar while contributing to others’ dreams.】
【On this platform, you have the chance both to seek help and to be redeemed. Just click ‘post wish’, and you might have your dream come true.】
Interesting.
This idea was indeed very novel. Jiang Shangwan was genuinely intrigued as she listened. It actually played into people’s desire to dream—could wishes that one couldn’t fulfill on their own be realized through the hands of others?
Some people lacked the channels, while others had the will but not the means. This platform offered an opportunity for users to exchange that gap in information and resources.
Jiang Shangwan:【Interesting. This is the first time I’ve heard of a concept like this. What are “special wish points”? How do you get them?】
Shi Yu:【By paying real money.】
Jiang Shangwan:【I see.】
Some things might have once been unattainable, even with money, or had no clear path to purchase. But on this platform, the probability of making such transactions happen increased significantly—completely different from traditional e-commerce platforms.
Jiang Shangwan:【How’s it going? I want to invest in you.】
【Let me be the first user to support your wish.】
She tapped her desk lightly with a pen. So that’s what his earlier message meant. But this kind of subtle maneuvering wasn’t unpleasant—she appreciated clever people, and this project had indeed struck a chord with her.
Shi Yu replied quickly:【No need. I just wanted to share what I’ve been working on lately.】
Jiang Shangwan replied with a voice message. Her tone while working was no longer the lazy, sultry one she used when relaxed—it was sharp and serious:
【Your project is conceptually fresh, no doubt. But it also has an obvious flaw—this platform relies on visibility. It needs a large user base to function. If the users aren’t there, the ability to fulfill wishes will be extremely limited. Eventually, people will stop posting, and the platform will bleed users.】
【And based on what you’ve told me, I don’t think the technical side of this is that difficult to execute. While impressive for students like you, at its core it’s still just an information exchange platform. Its real appeal lies in its originality. But once it gets noticed and someone copies your model, the market will quickly eat away at your edge.】
Jiang Shangwan added:【That’s why you need me. With my endorsement, I’ll give you the funding to expand your publicity. With the Jiang Corporation as your backing, no one will dare to push you out or break your ground.】
Her tone was confident and firm:【And all I ask in return is shares. I have to admit, you’re full of ideas and talent. I wasn’t wrong about you.】
Shi Yu:【You can have as many shares as you want. I don’t need anything else. The platform still needs time to finish, but once it’s done, I’ll let you know.】
【Thank you for believing in my idea.】
Jiang Shangwan simply took it as him playing a bit of strategic push-and-pull. She didn’t think too much about it. If a project was suitable, she’d invest—who it came from didn’t really matter. It was just part of her job.
On top of that, she truly believed that Shi Yu was someone worth investing in.
After briefly discussing their ideas, they ended the conversation with an unspoken understanding. The final message came from Shi Yu—he asked if she had time, and whether they could grab a meal together.
Jiang Shangwan could tell that he wanted to see her, but she politely declined using work as an excuse. In truth, she had indeed been busy with a mountain of tasks lately.
What she didn’t expect was that their meeting would come so soon.
Two days later, at the auditorium of Jiang University’s A campus.
The university president and the dean stepped forward to shake her hand. “President Jiang, we meet again. Thank you for taking the time to come. We deeply appreciate Jiang Group’s strong support for our university and the School of Economics. You’ve made great contributions to our research projects and campus development.”
Jiang Shangwan gave a slight smile and walked with them toward the front-row seats. Each seat had a personalized nameplate with black characters on a red background. She found her seat and sat down. “You’re too kind. Jiang University’s foundation speaks for itself. Being able to contribute is Jiang Group’s honor.”
The dean added, “Last semester, our students performed exceptionally well in their final exams. In particular, Yingting stood out with outstanding results—you can rest assured. In a moment, the students will be joining to hear you share some business insights, which may give them some direction and advice for their future development.”
“We’ve also allocated part of the fund you sponsored to use as scholarships, which will be awarded to top-performing students shortly.”
Jiang Shangwan gave a slight nod, listening quietly as they briefed her. She was attending on behalf of her second uncle once again. He had gone to great lengths to ensure Jiang Yingting had the best possible learning environment.
After a while, more and more students arrived and took their seats, waiting for the seminar to begin. Jiang Shangwan casually took a sip of the tea placed beside her right hand. From the corner of her eye, she spotted a particularly familiar figure in the crowd. She smiled unexpectedly, then, on a sudden impulse, raised her hand and waved across the room: “Come here.”
Lin Chuan was walking while chewing on chocolate, ready to watch Gao Ming make a fool of himself. As he walked in through the door, he noticed someone in the very front row waving. It looked like they were motioning in his direction. “No way… why does it feel like the big shots are looking at us? Am I imagining things? Is it because I was secretly eating and ruined the school’s image?”
Next to him, Shi Yu also paused in his steps. His eyes immediately locked onto the elegant figure seated on the platform. His Adam’s apple moved slightly—he wasn’t sure if she was looking at him.
He didn’t expect to meet again so soon.
He instinctively glanced around, scanning the area to check if Jiang Yingting was beside him—maybe that’s why she was looking this way.
As Gao Ming and Lin Zhiqiang passed by, they noticed Shi Yu scanning the room and deliberately mocked, “People who haven’t seen the world are always like this—can’t even keep it together in front of the school leadership.”
Lin Chuan suppressed the urge to curse back, muttering to himself, stay calm, stay calm—when the scholarships are handed out, you’ll be the one jealous.
Jiang Shangwan had her hair pinned up neatly at the back of her head, making her appear rather formal and a bit stern. But at this moment, she made the effort to show a gentle smile and raised her voice:
Her meaning was now unmistakably clear: “Shi Yu, come here.”