Reborn in 2006, I met Mr. Zhou from the past.

"This gift is too precious, please accept it for now." Su Fengnan's tone sounded calm, but her lowered eyelashes betrayed the turmoil in her heart. How could she not understand the deeper meaning behind the old lady's actions? This was not just giving a piece of clothing; it was clearly an elder's subtle expression of approval and expectations.

Su Fengnan then opened the beautifully packaged gift box that Jiang Shaoqing had given her. Inside, nestled quietly, was a brand-new Noah's Ark color screen learning machine, its silver casing gleaming with a technologically advanced sheen.

"Wow! Sis, this learning machine is so cool, can I play with it?" Su Fengxia's eyes lit up instantly. She couldn't wait to grab the learning machine in her hand, examining it over and over, unable to put it down.

"Okay, it's yours." Su Fengnan shook his head helplessly at her greedy look and generously agreed.

Then, she picked up the card at the bottom of the box. It bore Jiang Shaoqing's neat and elegant handwriting:

Happy birthday, Su Fengnan! Wishing you academic success and a good balance between work and rest.

Looking at these words, Su Fengnan couldn't help but smile slightly. The tone was indeed as serious as a veteran cadre's, without a single superfluous word of pleasantries, yet it conveyed just the right amount of tact and sincerity.

In the afternoon, with no classmates asking Su Fengnan to do homework together, she stayed alone in her study, updating her new book for several hours. "The Three Daughters of the Duke's Mansion" has now reached over 500,000 words, and the plot remains captivating. The story blends elements of palace intrigue, court politics, and domestic power struggles; the female protagonist is far from a naive and innocent girl waiting to be rescued by a man. In the strictly regulated ancient world, she manages to live a remarkable life of her own: domestically, she is equally adept at social graces and domestic duties, offering advice to her father and husband; internationally, she performs many acts of kindness and benefit the country and its people, naturally winning their affection.

Su Fengnan updated her blog with over 30,000 words before realizing she was getting tired. She stopped typing, stretched her aching muscles, and glanced at her QQ account. It was a message from Song Jiaqi from yesterday: "The company will be making adjustments soon, so don't worry about anything, just focus on writing. If you can't log in to the backend, save your drafts and repost them later." She only glanced at it and didn't think much of it.

I got up and looked out the window, only to realize that night had already fallen.

……

Monday morning, the sunlight carried a hint of warmth. During the break between classes, Su Fengnan sat by the corridor railing, basking in the sunlight. Not far away, two male classmates huddled together, discussing the stock market in hushed but excited voices, their words mostly containing boasts like "investing now guarantees a profit."

Su Fengnan remained silent, listening quietly. In a daze, she suddenly remembered that the stock market seemed to be experiencing severe turmoil this year. Although she never paid attention to these things and couldn't even remember the specific dates, a heavy thought lingered in her mind—she had heard that many families had been ruined or even killed this year because of this turmoil.

This wasn't a random association she made; it was a past event that her boss had casually mentioned in her previous life. Back then, her boss was lamenting the fate of one of his friends, who had fallen to rock bottom in that stock market crash, ultimately ending up with his family ruined, his wife and children torn apart.

Just as she was pondering this, a light footstep approached, and Tang Qiuyue walked up to her side.

"Su Fengnan, here you go." Tang Qiuyue handed over a carton of milk with a smile.

"I'm not hungry, you can keep it for yourself," Su Fengnan said softly.

"Oh, fine, just take it." Tang Qiuyue shoved the milk into her hand without further ado, her tone a mix of coquettishness and familiarity. "What, haven't I eaten enough of yours before?"

Su Fengnan couldn't help but smile. She was always generous and magnanimous in front of her true friends, never calculating gains or losses. Since becoming friends, the two were practically inseparable at school.

Hearing Tang Qiuyue say this, Su Fengnan stopped refusing and accepted the kindness with peace of mind.

Tang Qiuyue stopped beside her, and the two leaned against the warm railing side by side. She turned her head and smiled, her eyes crinkling, "Qingming Festival is almost here, and my family is planning a big celebration this year. As soon as the ancestral worship is over, I'll sneak out to play with you."

Hearing this, Su Fengnan followed up on her words, feigning curiosity, and asked, "Why the sudden urge to have such a big celebration this year? Is there some major happy event in your family?"

Tang Qiuyue nodded vigorously, her tone brimming with excitement: "Yes! My uncles and aunts made a lot of money in the stock market with my dad, and they were overjoyed, so they suggested that the whole family get together for a celebration during the Qingming Festival." At this point, she seemed to remember something, her face falling slightly, and she couldn't help but complain, "Ugh, I hate these family gatherings the most. The elders all crowd together, asking about grades and all sorts of other things; it's so annoying!"

Su Fengnan frowned slightly, her expression remaining impassive. A sense of worry crept into her heart. Suppressing her inner turmoil, she turned her head and jokingly asked, feigning nonchalance, "Since it's a family gathering, how could you just run off like that?"

"Of course!" Tang Qiuyue raised her chin, a sly look on her face. "After the ancestral worship, I'll just find an excuse to sneak out and find you."

Looking at her unguarded smiling face, Su Fengnan said softly, "However, I'm not sure if I'll be in the county town by then. How about this, I'll leave you my phone number, call me before you leave."

"Okay, sure!" Tang Qiuyue readily agreed, and the two made their promise in the warm sunshine.

……

Ever since she overheard the stock market frenzy in the corridor, Su Fengnan had been preoccupied with it. She was eager to find an opportunity to hear Zhou Chenyu's opinion on the matter.

Moreover, she also wanted to know if her brother Zhou had also invested in the stock market.

This wait lasted a whole week. Only after Zhou Chenyu had completely settled his work in Zhucheng did he rush back to Zijiang. He planned to stay and tutor Su Fengnan during the time before her college entrance exam.

That day, the two were in the study discussing math problems. Su Fengnan successfully solved several challenging math problems that Zhou Chenyu had specifically chosen for her, and unsurprisingly, she received his gentle praise. Hearing the soft praise in her ear, her eyes crinkled with joy, and she couldn't be happier.

Taking advantage of the pleasant atmosphere, Su Fengnan put down her pen and, as if chatting casually, asked with feigned curiosity, "Brother Zhou, I heard from my classmates that the stock market is very profitable right now, is that true?"

Upon hearing this, Zhou Chenyu stopped what he was doing, looked up at her with a hint of inquiry in his eyes: "Nan'er, why are you suddenly interested in the stock market?"

"It's not that I'm interested, it's just that I find it a bit unbelievable." Su Fengnan shook her head gently, her tone carrying a hint of girlish innocence and confusion. "They say that investing money is as easy as picking it up from the ground up. But I just think, does a free lunch really exist? What in this world can be given to you for free without any effort? Only a fool would believe that."