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

When they returned to the classroom, Zhou Ziheng and Wang Jun were already waiting at the door.

The two people stood on the left and right, like two door gods.

"How did it go? How did it go?" Zhou Ziheng leaned closer, his eyes gleaming behind his glasses. "What did Lao Gu say to you? Did he criticize you for dating?"

"He didn't criticize me."

"Was that a compliment?"

"It's not praise either."

"What's that?" Wang Jun took a bite of an apple he pulled out from who-knows-where. "Old Gu is chatting with you, neither criticizing nor praising you. So why is he talking to you? About life? About ideals? About what to eat for lunch?"

Lin Bei glanced at him.

He told me to keep working hard and get into the top five in the next monthly exam.

Wang Jun paused for a moment while chewing his apple, then laughed and patted Lin Bei on the shoulder: "Good for you, Brother Bei, you have ambition! My goal next time is... not to get hit by my mom's slippers again."

Zhou Ziheng pushed up his glasses and smiled.

noon.

As usual, Lin Bei sat down to eat with Su Wantang.

Today's dishes were braised chicken pieces and stir-fried lettuce. Su Wantang ate more slowly than usual, fiddling with her chopsticks in her lunchbox, as if she had something on her mind.

"What's wrong?" Lin Bei asked.

Su Wantang raised her head and glanced at him.

"My dad said he wants to invite you to his house for dinner after the parent-teacher meeting yesterday."

Lin Bei paused for a moment.

"Want to treat me to dinner?"

"Mm." Su Wantang lowered her head, her voice softening. "He said he wanted to thank you in person. He also said..."

"What else is there to say?"

"He also said that it was wrong of him to send you that text message before." Su Wantang's ears turned a little red. "He said he didn't know... he didn't know those things back then. Now that he knows, he wants to apologize to you."

Lin Bei remained silent for a moment.

When Su Yuan sent that text message, it was because she didn't want him to "meddle" in their family affairs. At that time, Su Yuan was still kept in the dark by Zhao Yumei, thinking that his daughter was just throwing a tantrum and that Lin Bei was meddling.

It's different now.

"Okay," Lin Bei said. "When?"

"This Saturday night."

"it is good."

Su Wantang looked up at him, her lips curving slightly, before lowering her head to continue eating.

The two ate in silence, neither speaking. But Lin Bei noticed that Su Wantang was picking up food faster than before, as if she was happy.

Lin Bei had just gotten home after school in the afternoon when his phone vibrated.

It was a message from Shen Qingzhi.

"Lin Bei, my dad asked if you're free tonight. He'd like to invite you over for a visit."

Lin Bei stared at the message for a few seconds.

Shen Wancheng wants to see him.

Is it about that data? Or something else?

He replied, "I'm free. What time?"

"Eight o'clock. The driver will pick you up."

"No need, I'll take the bus myself..."

"The driver will pick you up," Shen Qingzhi sent again, her tone leaving no room for refusal.

Lin Bei's lips twitched slightly, and he replied with a single word: "Okay."

It was already seven o'clock when we finished dinner.

When he walked out of the building, a black sedan was already parked at the entrance of the community.

It was the same car that picked up Shen Qingzhi at the school gate last time; it was gleaming, shimmering under the streetlights. The driver, dressed in a dark uniform and white gloves, stood beside the car and opened the back door when he saw Lin Bei get out.

"Lin, please."

Lin Bei said thank you and bent down to sit inside.

The car smoothly drove out of the residential area and merged into the evening rush hour traffic. Lin Bei leaned back in his seat, watching the street scene rushing past the window.

At 8:00 AM sharp, the car stopped in front of Villa No. 8 at Yunqi Mountain Villa.

The driver opened the door, and Lin Bei got out of the car.

The villa door was open, and warm yellow light poured out from inside, illuminating the steps at the entrance.

Shen Wancheng stood in the entryway, wearing a thin dark gray sweater with the sleeves rolled up to his elbows, looking much more casual than when I last saw him.

"Xiaolin, you're here?" His voice wasn't loud, but it was full of energy.

"Hello, Uncle Shen." Lin Bei changed his shoes and followed Shen Wancheng into the living room.

Shen Wancheng was the only one in the living room. The old man was not there, nor was Shen Qingzhi.

"My dad is resting upstairs, and Qingzhi is doing her homework." Shen Wancheng pointed to the sofa. "Sit down, don't be shy."

Lin Bei sat down on the sofa.

The nanny brought up two cups of tea and placed them on the coffee table. The tea was clear and bright, with a faint orchid fragrance.

Shen Wancheng sat down opposite him, crossed his legs, picked up his teacup, and took a sip.

He didn't speak immediately, but just looked at Lin Bei.

The gaze wasn't sharp, but Lin Bei could feel himself being scrutinized. Not the kind of scrutiny that says "I don't like you," but rather the kind that says "I'm evaluating you."

"That data," Shen Wancheng finally spoke, "was it compiled by you?"

"No. I have an uncle who works as a real estate agent. He's been doing it for over ten years, and he has access to some of the industry's consensus data. I found it to be quite detailed, and since Uncle Shen is busy with the project in the south of the city, I asked Qingzhi to pass it on to you."

Shen Wancheng nodded, picked up his teacup, took a sip, put it down, and his gaze fell on the brown folder on the coffee table.

"I've had someone verify your data."

Lin Bei's fingers tightened slightly.

Shen Wancheng didn't look at him and continued speaking in a calm and unhurried tone.

"I had someone find three industry consensus data from different sources. Your uncle's data is similar to these three."

He picked up the folder, opened it, and glanced at the numbers on it.

"But these figures differ significantly from the company's internal data."

He closed the folder and placed it on the coffee table. He tapped the cover lightly with his fingers a few times, very slowly, once, twice, three times.

This isn't the first time.

Lin Bei raised his head.

Shen Wancheng leaned back on the sofa, his gaze fixed on the chandelier on the ceiling, as if he were recalling something.

"Over the past six months, the preliminary research data for several of the company's projects has revealed some issues..."

The living room was quiet for a few seconds.

Shen Wancheng withdrew his gaze and looked at Lin Bei. His expression didn't change much, but Lin Bei noticed that his eyes were a bit more somber than before.

"It seems there might be a problem with the company's internal data."

Shen Wancheng spoke calmly, but Lin Bei noticed that his fingers, holding the teacup, tightened slightly.

Lin Bei picked up his teacup, took a sip, and said nothing.

But a thought slowly surfaced in his mind.

Shen Wancheng finally began to have doubts.

This data has played its intended role.

"Why would a high school student like you be interested in data about the demolition in the south of the city?" Shen Wancheng suddenly asked.

Lin Bei was taken aback.

"Because my home is on the south side of the city," he said. "I've passed through that old town area since I was a child, and I always felt it was a pity that it was being demolished. Later, when I heard that it was going to be demolished, I paid more attention to it."

Shen Wancheng looked at him for two seconds, then smiled, a very faint smile.

"Your data has come at just the right time."

"I'm glad it helps," Lin Bei said. "I just overheard you talking about this project, and I thought this data might be useful to you."

Shen Wancheng nodded and didn't ask any more questions.

He patted Lin Bei on the shoulder, then turned and walked back to the sofa.

"I heard you got ninth place in the class in the monthly exam?"

"Um."

"You've made great progress," Shen Wancheng said. "Grandpa Qingzhi talks about you every day at home, saying you play chess well and that you're a sensible child."

Lin Bei didn't know how to respond to that, so he just smiled.

Shen Wancheng glanced at him but said nothing more. He stood up.

"It's getting late, I'll have the driver take you home."