Reborn as a high school freshman with an awakened system, a fat boy transforms into a male god.

"But I happen to have seen that limited edition item you mentioned. How about this, we go to the academic affairs office and have a teacher authenticate it? If it's genuine, our class will compensate you 1200 yuan. If not..."

Lin Bei didn't finish his sentence, but his meaning was already very clear.

People around started whispering among themselves.

"Holy crap, this fat guy is brave."

"What he said seemed to be true; the logo really did look like it was printed on."

"..."

Zhao Pengfei's expression changed several times. He glared at Lin Bei fiercely and said, "Fine, you fatso, you're ruthless."

He turned and strode away, his sleeves still dripping wet, but he never mentioned the matter of paying compensation again.

Li Xiaoyu stood there, tears finally streaming down her face. She wiped her eyes hard and said to Lin Bei, "Thank you... thank you..."

Lin Bei scratched his head: "It's nothing, just a small favor. Besides, his clothes were fake anyway, I was just telling the truth."

Li Xiaoyu shook her head, her voice still trembling with tears: "It's not about the clothes... it's... it's that you were the first to stand up..."

Lin Bei was taken aback.

The first one to step forward.

These words touched a nerve somewhere deep inside him.

He recalled that in his previous life, he was also the one who, when "no one stood up," huddled in the crowd pretending not to see anything.

Just then, a crisp notification sound rang in Lin Bei's mind.

Ding!

[Task Completed: Your classmate Li Xiaoyu is deeply impressed with you and thinks you are a good person.]

[Task Evaluation: Well done. The first task was completed so well; the system is very satisfied.]

[Rewards: +5 attribute points, 10 RMB, superpower "Mind Reading" (000-day validity), bonus item "Stamina Recovery Pill" +1 (instantly eliminates fatigue with no side effects).]

[The cash has been transferred to your linked account. Please check. Note: System funds are legal and compliant, and taxes have been paid. Please use them with confidence. If this money is investigated, the system will compensate you tenfold.]

[Attribute points have been credited and can be allocated in the attribute panel at any time.]

[Ability Description: Can read the surface-level thoughts of any target, i.e., what the target is currently thinking. Note: Can only read what is being thought; cannot read memories, subconscious thoughts, or things the target "does not want to think about." Valid for seven days; please use it wisely.]

[Note: Eavesdropping on others' thoughts is unethical, but since the system provided it, might as well use it. It's advised not to eavesdrop on your homeroom teacher's thoughts; you'll bear the consequences.]

Lin Bei felt the strange energy surging into his mind.

However, he didn't rush to try out this new ability; instead, he opened the attribute panel first.

He silently thought to himself: Put all 5 attribute points into charm.

The properties panel has been refreshed.

Charm: 13/100. Available attribute points: 0.

Now, she's at least more attractive than before.

After allocating his attribute points, Lin Bei turned his attention to his newly acquired superpower. His gaze passed over Li Xiaoyu's shoulder, through the bustling crowd in the cafeteria, and landed on the girl in the corner who was eating with her head down.

Su Wantang.

She was eating, taking small bites one at a time, her face expressionless, but the movement of her chopsticks slowed down more and more, until it almost stopped.

Suddenly, the screen of Su Wantang's phone on the table lit up. She looked down at it and felt as if she had been hit by something. Her chopsticks slipped from her hands and fell onto the plate with a thud.

She stared at her phone screen, her face gradually turning pale.

Lin Bei frowned. He couldn't see what was on the screen, but Su Wantang's reaction made his heart skip a beat.

He took a deep breath and silently recited in his mind: Use "mind reading" to target Su Wantang.

The next second, fragmented sounds flooded his mind. They weren't complete sentences, but more like the soliloquy of someone in extreme anxiety.

"Dad said he won't give it to us anymore... So what are we going to eat next week...?"

"I only have three hundred left in my card... no, two hundred... after paying the utilities, how much is left...?"

"I'm all alone now... Mom, if only you were here... if only you were here..."

"Forget it... what's the point of thinking about this... anyway..."

The last sentence was left unfinished, like a string stretched to its limit suddenly snapping. In its place was a blank, a blank of not wanting to think about anything anymore, as if all emotions had been forcibly suppressed.

Lin Bei stood in the middle of the cafeteria, surrounded by a tidal wave of noise, but he couldn't hear anything.

"System," he called out in his mind.

【exist. 】

Lin Bei: "Is what mind-reading technology reads... 100% accurate?"

[What I'm reading is the surface-level content of what the target is currently thinking, subjectively true, but not representing objective facts. Simply put, that's what she thinks, and that's what she thinks. As for the facts... that's your business, not mine.]

Lin Bei: "You're really good at shifting the blame."

Thank you for the compliment; this is one of the system's core skills.

Lin Bei: "..."

Although those fragments did not piece together a complete story, the meaning was clear enough.

Her father. Money. A person.

He pondered these words repeatedly in his mind, and then came to a conclusion that he himself was unwilling to believe: her father may have cut off her financial support, and she was now living alone with no one to rely on.

A sixteen-year-old girl. Her mother is gone. Today, on the very first day of her high school freshman year, her father tells her: From today onwards, you are responsible for yourself.

It wasn't because she wasn't strong, but because she felt she had nothing left to rely on.

The fragments did not reappear. Su Wantang lowered her head, stirred the rice in her bowl with her chopsticks, and then put them down, seemingly having lost her appetite.

She sat there, completely still.

Lin Bei quickly finished his meal and put his plate in the recycling bin. He stood on the steps at the entrance of the cafeteria and glanced at the time: 12:23 PM.

The countdown above her head was still ticking.

1: 21: 16

1: 21: 15

Less than an hour and a half has passed.

Lin Bei asked the system in his mind, "Can't you really tell me exactly what this countdown is?"

[System rule: No.]

Lin Bei: "Can you give me a hint? Just one character, or even just one stroke."

[System rule: No.]

Lin Bei: "Are you afraid I'll yell at you for giving away spoilers?"

The system is now offline. Please leave a message if you need anything.

Lin Bei: "..."

After leaving the cafeteria, Su Wantang walked straight towards the school gate. Lin Bei followed at a distance, watching her exit the school gate and walk along the sidewalk towards the bus stop. She didn't look back, not even once.

Lin Bei stood at the school gate for a while, then turned and walked in the opposite direction.

He knew she lived across the street; they were neighbors. If he rushed back now and waited at her door before she got home, there might still be a chance.

But he had nothing in his hands.

If you simply tell someone "Don't commit suicide," who will listen? If a chubby 16-year-old neighbor suddenly runs up to you and says, "I know you want to die," will you be moved? No, you'll call the police.

The fragmented information he had just read wasn't enough. He didn't know exactly what her father had said, nor did he know the specifics, but he knew one thing: a girl who had just started high school had had her only surviving relative cut off from her financial support, and what she needed most right now was...

money.

It wasn't some grand philosophy or a comforting statement; it was real money that would allow her to put food on the table.

Lin Bei strode towards the bank near the school. He inserted his bank card into the ATM, entered his PIN, and the screen displayed a balance of 20,050 yuan.

The system had already given him 20,000 yuan, plus the 50 yuan he originally had in his card.

He pressed the withdrawal button, took out twenty brand-new red banknotes from the cash dispenser, folded them neatly, and stuffed them into his school uniform pocket.

Two thousand yuan.

Not enough, far from enough. Two thousand yuan won't last long.

But what Su Wantang needs now is not a long-term solution; she needs a reason to "live today."

Lin Bei also needed a reason, a reason to accept the money, a reason to believe that "there is hope for survival".

Two thousand yuan, plus a sufficiently sincere lie, might allow her to survive a few more days.

That's enough. Given enough time, he can come up with more solutions.