Chapter 288: The Second Half of High School
Mei Fang immediately recognized the man as an uncle because Xia Xun had given him a very rare business card with a portrait design. The image on the card was strikingly similar to what Mei Fang remembered of his uncle, though this man was much younger, with abundant hair and a somewhat heroic demeanor.
However, his name was different from what Mei Fang knew in his previous life; he was now called Chen Rui, and his current projects were also different. He was a co-founder of Hunter Mobile, which explained why Mei Fang couldn’t find any information about his uncle.
While it was rash to conclude that this man was his uncle based solely on appearance, the similarity in names and work history gave Mei Fang about 70-80% certainty.
“How… Ah Fang, do you know him?”
Xia Xun was curious about Mei Fang’s reaction, “That’s his old business card. Now he’s probably a free agent.”
“Uh-huh, I understand.”
Mei Fang took the business card and asked Xia Xun, “How did Uncle Xia meet this uncle?”
“They are all co-founders of the same school. When they started Hunter Mobile, they invited me to invest. I put in around two hundred thousand yuan back then.”
“Oh… When was this?”
“It was three years ago. I’ve invested in similar industries since then. The internet still has great potential.”
Since Yuan Yuan hadn’t mentioned it, Mei Fang only knew that after Xia Xun sold the restaurant, he had been making investments and had made some money.
He didn’t know exactly how much.
Given the early investment in the internet industry, this father-in-law of his must have quite a background.
How could Uncle Xia make so much money without my help? That would be a blow to my face as a reincarnated person!
Mei Yue nodded in agreement,
“How did Uncle Xia get into the internet… If we had known earlier, we wouldn’t have sought funding from Tencent but would have approached you directly.”
“Hahaha… That would be difficult. Although I have some connections, they can’t compare to Tencent.”
Mei Fang was relieved that he hadn’t listened to Yuan Yuan and suggested his father join the funding plan. Otherwise, if he and Yuan Yuan broke up, Xia Xun, who doted on his daughter, might destroy his company.
After Mei Fang got Chen Rui’s contact information from Xia Xun, he planned to reach out to him but decided to inform Xia Xun first.
It wouldn’t be polite for a high school student to suddenly approach a former tech mogul as a subordinate. Moreover, Mei Fang might be the reason for Chen Rui’s bad luck.
Xia Xun saw them off at home. Seeing Mei Fang and the others start cleaning up as soon as they arrived, he felt redundant and decided it was time to leave.
His gaze lingered on Lin You Xi, feeling a mix of emotions—Yuan Yuan’s little follower had grown into an excellent woman. Though she wasn’t with Mei Fang, they were now solid partners, and their friendship seemed likely to endure.
“If there’s nothing else, I’ll head off. Yuan Yuan, take care of yourself here. Consult with Ah Fang and You Xi when dealing with things, don’t decide alone.”
“What are you saying? Like I can’t do anything!”
Mei Fang stepped forward to help Xia Xun with his briefcase, “Uncle Xia, let me walk you out.”
With good intentions, Xia Xun politely declined, “Don’t think you can escape your chores. This is a man’s duty.”
“Listen, Ah Fang! This is a man’s duty!”
Rarely agreeing with his father, Yuan Yuan’s interaction brought laughter to everyone.
Despite this, Mei Fang insisted on escorting Xia Xun to the elevator before returning to help clean with You Xi and Yuan Yuan.
Though the cleaning was extensive, the three of them finished quickly together.
Mei Fang sat down to rest, but You Xi and Yuan Yuan stopped him, “The sofa just got cleaned. Don’t dirty it again! Go take a shower!”
“So early? My luggage isn’t unpacked yet.”
“I’ve taken care of it.”
You Xi pinched Mei Fang’s shoulder, “Stop being childish. Get up and take a shower. If you don’t, I’ll help Yuan Yuan undress you.”
“No no no, I’m cold!”
Before You Xi could reach in, Mei Fang jumped up and ran to get dressed.
You Xi clapped her hands and smiled at Yuan Yuan, “Let’s prepare dinner. We need to go to the supermarket.”
“Do we have to cook? Let’s order takeout.”
“That won’t do. Ordering on the first day of living together would make Auntie look down on us.”
“That would be looking down on me, since I’m Ah Fang’s girlfriend…”
“…”
You Xi paused, then pinched Yuan Yuan’s cheek, “Yuan Yuan, are you getting addicted to being a public girlfriend, thinking Ah Fang only has you?”
“No no no, you misunderstand! I’m sorry!”
“You’re going to feel my wrath!”
After some playful banter, both laughed.
You Xi and Yuan Yuan lay on the couch holding hands, looking at the ceiling.
“Today marks the start of our new shared life. Should we do something memorable?”
“Memorable?”
“For example…”
You Xi whispered something into Yuan Yuan’s ear.
Jiangcheng was still quite cold at the beginning of the year. As Mei Fang showered, he thought about planning for the next one and a half years.
High school was halfway done, and time was running short. He needed to decide between continuing his career or enjoying his remaining high school days.
Mei Fang didn’t plan to join the others in the intense final year of high school, as it would waste his precious startup period.
This meant he would likely reveal his full potential in the second semester to attract schools interested in recommending him for early admission.
But that also meant his peaceful life was over, and his high school life was essentially coming to an end.
C Station’s live streaming business, Simire’s casual match-three game, and Yuan Yuan’s next album—these would be his main focuses over the next one and a half years.
Previously, he had considered that Yuan Yuan’s position wasn’t strong enough to be a major player in the industry, especially without capital backing her in entertainment.
But if she leveraged C Station’s platform, enhancing her value, and becoming the face of his company, could she rise to You Xi’s level?
Of course, this was contingent on her innocent and kind image.
Yet, no matter what, three-dimensional characters often faced criticism. Mei Fang didn’t want Yuan Yuan to become a casualty of public opinion for his ideals.
Then, if the three-dimensional approach was unsuitable, could the two-dimensional route—digital idol—be better for Yuan Yuan?
Just as Mei Fang was considering a better future for Yuan Yuan, a knock came at the bathroom door.
“What’s wrong?” Mei Fang asked outside.
“It’s so cold today. Let’s warm up together in there, Ah Fang?”
Yuan Yuan replied outside.
“Hey! Are you crazy? No way!”
“I don’t care! Me and You Xi are ready. What’s the shame? Hurry up and let us in!”
You Xi, more direct than Yuan Yuan, opened the door and walked in, “So, we’re coming in?”
“No means no! Get out!”
The bathroom had a sliding door. Mei Fang protected himself while struggling with You Xi and Yuan Yuan.
“You two are girls. Be a bit more reserved, okay?”
“Reserved is for outsiders… Ah Fang is our toy. Why should we be reserved?”
“I’m warning you one last time, no objectification of men!”
“Ah Fang… don’t you like having Yuan Yuan and me with you? We’re not doing anything.”
“Exactly… We used to bathe together all the time.”
“Well… it’s not that… it’s just that this place is too small, right?”
“Ah Fang, you don’t get it. It’s warmer when we’re all squeezed together!”
“There’s a chance!”
Splash—
In summary, Mei You Yuan and the others just had a clean, innocent bath together.
Tomorrow, I have colleagues coming over to play games at home, so updates might be delayed. My friend is currently busy, so there won’t be fanfiction either. Please use your imagination.
(End of Chapter)
