240: Ways to make money

Time Book House, by the shores of Taigong Lake.

This was one of the most popular scenic spots in the academy.

Legend says it was established by a supreme being who caught a glimpse of a True God by chance; it possessed incredible, miraculous power.

When one's studies or research hit a bottleneck, coming here to fish offered a certain probability of catching 'inspiration'.

At this moment.

Inside a pavilion by the lake, a man and a woman stood at a distance from each other, their temperaments ethereal, like a beautiful painting.

"Junior, I didn't expect you to contact me of your own accord."

Seventh Princess Fang Qingran seemed somewhat pleasantly surprised. She lightly brushed her hair, inadvertently revealing half of her carefully made-up, elegant face. Paired with her plain-colored clothes, she looked exceptionally pure.

"Senior."

Zhang Huaiyuan was currently thinking about how to open the conversation, so he had no time to notice her painstaking efforts.

"Um... there's something I wanted to ask your advice on."

"Could it be that everything written in the books is fake?"

Fang Qingran sized herself up with some doubt.

She had specifically sought out some best-selling classics from across the realms, such as 'How to Make a Domineering CEO Fall in Love with You', 'Ten Little Tricks to Handle STEM Students', 'From Green Tea Bitch to Soul Sister', and so on.

"Senior?"

"Ah? What did you just say, Junior..."

Hearing another call, Fang Qingran snapped back to her senses and spoke hurriedly.

"It's nothing, I just wanted to ask you if there are any good ways to make money quickly. As you know, I come from a lower plane and don't have any savings..."

Zhang Huaiyuan said in a low, somewhat embarrassed voice.

"Isn't that easy—cough, Junior, how much do you need?"

Fang Qingran had almost blurted out that it was simple: if he married her, the Empire would provide as much as he wanted.

But she suddenly remembered the books saying that when facing a genius like this, one must protect his self-esteem and proceed step-by-step, otherwise it's easy to cause resentment. She immediately changed her tune:

"If it's not much, there are some commissions at the academy's Mission Center, such as organizing the library or assisting a tutor. The rewards mostly range from 1,000 time coins to 100,000 time coins."

"One thousand to one hundred thousand..."

Zhang Huaiyuan frowned. This amount was far too little; it would take forever to gather 500 billion.

"Is there a faster way?"

"Those are the most conventional routes. Since you've just enrolled, Junior, you aren't allowed to leave the school during your first academic year, so you can't take on high-paying commissions yet. However..."

Seeing the disappointment on Zhang Huaiyuan's face, Fang Qingran couldn't help but add:

"If you're in urgent need, I can lend it to you, and you can just pay me back later..."

"No need, thank you for the kind offer, Senior. I'll think of another way myself."

Zhang Huaiyuan waved his hand.

He needed a full 500 billion time coins! Even if the other party was a princess of the Silver Splendor Empire, she couldn't possibly produce that much money all at once.

Moreover, their relationship wasn't that close yet.

"As expected... the books were right. Geniuses like him have very high self-esteem."

Fang Qingran sighed inwardly. She moved a bit closer and said hesitantly:

"If I have to say, there is indeed a way to make money... but it technically violates school rules to an extent... Well, with your status it shouldn't matter, since the Academy Principal is from the Virtual Tower."

"Oh? What is it?"

Zhang Huaiyuan's brow quirked up slightly.

"Every academic year, many seniors get stuck on the graduation requirements. To graduate from the academy, even in the Ordinary District, one needs at least 100 grade points and must submit a valuable research result."

Fang Qingran lowered her voice and said:

"As you know, many in the academy are scions of families from major powers. Most of them have plenty of wealth. If you can solve this problem for them, they are very willing to pay a large fee."

"Isn't that just ghostwriting papers?"

Zhang Huaiyuan blurted out.

He was all too familiar with this.

In the world before he transmigrated, every graduation season, he would receive many requests from juniors. With his level, finishing one undergraduate paper a day was easy, and charging 1,500 to 2,000 per paper made him a fortune.

"Oh, Junior, you actually know about this?"

Fang Qingran smiled with some surprise. "Could it be that your academic reputation has spread so far that someone has already contacted you?"

"Not really, I've just heard of similar things. Senior, I wonder how much one can usually charge for this?"

"If you find those scions of major powers who aren't short on money, you can charge around a million."

Fang Qingran thought for a moment and said:

"Junior, if you don't mind, shall I contact them for you?"

"Then I'll have to thank you, Senior. I'll give you a cut of the reward when the time comes."

Hearing this, Zhang Huaiyuan was somewhat excited.

He had looked at the graduation standards; producing results that merely met those standards was child's play for him with his True Sight.

"You're welcome, and there's no need for a cut. However, next time I have something I don't understand and ask you for help, you can't refuse me, okay?"

Fang Qingran blinked, her lips curling into a beautiful arc.

According to the instructions in the books, this would provide an excuse for long-term contact. What a great start!

"Alright, as long as it's something I know."

Zhang Huaiyuan nodded and agreed without suspicion.

While neither of them was paying attention.

A student not far away who was focused on fishing suddenly packed up his rod and left quietly... "What were they talking about?"

On the other side, inside Dormitory No. 23, a man asked with a dark expression.

Looking closely, the skin exposed outside his school uniform was covered in fine scales.

"Boss, they were too close together. I was afraid the Seventh Princess would notice, so I didn't dare get too close. I only heard the gist of it."

The other student recalled and said:

"It seemed to be about making money, ghostwriting, and things like that."

"Hmm? Making money? With their statuses, they're short on money?"

The man looked stunned.

He had immediately had the power behind him investigate Zhang Huaiyuan's identity, so he naturally knew he was the disciple of two Tower Masters from the Association.

No matter how unwilling he was, he had to extinguish his thoughts of revenge.

After all, given the status of a Tower Master of the Time Association, they wouldn't even need to act personally; a casual word could destroy his entire Myriad Spirit Grotto.

However... his feelings from years of unrequited love weren't something he could just let go of.

That was why, even though he knew he shouldn't, he still couldn't help sending someone to eavesdrop.

He hadn't expected to hear such extraordinary news.

"Ghostwriting... making money... hmm... could it be? Go do something for me. Remember to find someone trustworthy, and absolutely do not reveal your identity."

The man's eyes flickered as he suddenly gave the order.

"Hmph... although I can't do anything to you, causing a little trouble is no problem. Otherwise, I won't be able to vent this frustration."

...