Enduring wealth of a vast fortune.

Inside crouched a person who was shivering uncontrollably.

"Shi Gang, come out."

Even though the person was shielding his face, Zhou Sen recognized him as Shi Gang from the third year. Shi Gang moved his hands away cautiously, and upon seeing who it was, he was so relieved he nearly burst into tears.

"Wuwuwu, Teacher Zhou!" Shi Gang wanted to crawl out of the wooden cabinet, but the moment he saw Wen Jiu standing behind Zhou Sen, smiling at him, he instantly shrank back inside.

Seeing his behavior, Zhou Sen was left speechless. "Hurry up and get out. You’re coming with me to the Dean’s Office."

"Teacher Zhou, it hurts..." Shi Gang choked out. "Am I done for?"

Zhou Sen looked him up and down. "Quit the act and get out here."

Shi Gang wanted to report Wen Jiu's vicious behavior, but even the slightest movement in the cabinet caused him such intense pain that he broke into a cold sweat. Zhou Sen urged him impatiently; in his view, Shi Gang didn't have a single scratch on him, so how could he possibly be in pain? He didn't know that Wen Jiu had deliberately avoided leaving marks, striking instead at the most sensitive pressure points on Shi Gang’s body.

Seeing no other choice, Shi Gang endured the pain and climbed out of the cabinet. Every step was agonizing, and in the end, Li Shanyan had to support him as they slowly walked to the Dean’s Office.

"Speak. What happened?" Yu Ruman swept her gaze over them. "Don't even think about lying; the surveillance footage is being pulled up right now."

Just as Shi Gang was about to start complaining, Yu Ruman shot him a glare. She then pulled Wen Jiu—who had been keeping her head down—over to a soft sofa and poured her a cup of hot water to warm her up.

"Little one, tell sister what happened," Yu Ruman said, sitting beside Wen Jiu and crossing her long legs.

Wen Jiu whispered, "They were bullying me."

Shi Gang had always used his relative, who was a manager in the cafeteria, to throw his weight around. Yu Ruman had heard of these things before, but she had never found enough evidence to take action. She continued, "And then?"

"Then I fought back." Wen Jiu could have played the innocent victim, but she knew the surveillance footage would expose her. Since this was clearly self-defense, she had no intention of pretending.

After listening, Yu Ruman took a medical kit from the cabinet. She cleaned the blood off Wen Jiu’s wounds and applied a transparent ointment with gentle strokes. Wen Jiu watched as the ointment covered her wounds, which then began to heal visibly.

"Take this. Don't hurt yourself next time you get into a fight."

As soon as Yu Ruman finished speaking, Zhou Sen walked in. He pulled a metal sphere from his pocket and tossed it to her. She caught it steadily and pressed a switch, causing the sphere to open and project a beam of light that formed a screen, displaying the surveillance footage.

The recording documented everything from Li Shanyan finding Wen Jiu in the cafeteria to their arrival at the office. Yu Ruman pulled up a chair and yawned lazily. Up until the moment Wen Jiu walked out of the office, both she and Zhou Sen assumed Wen Jiu had been the one bullied by Shi Gang.

A few minutes later, they realized they were wrong. Watching Wen Jiu’s agile movements and precise strikes on the screen, Yu Ruman’s phoenix eyes grew brighter. She had truly found a diamond in the rough.

Once the footage ended, Shi Gang wailed, "Teacher Yu, you saw it, right? We really didn't do anything!"

Yu Ruman sneered at him. "Didn't do anything? You four teamed up to bully a freshman, and you call that nothing?"

Shi Gang shrank his neck, feeling aggrieved. Could this person who had beaten him until he couldn't move really be called a "freshman"? He didn't dare say it out loud.

"That's enough. Wen Jiu, go back to your dorm," Yu Ruman said, returning to her charming demeanor. "As for you lot, just wait for Teacher Wang to come and collect you."

Wen Jiu replied obediently and remembered to close the door on her way out. Just as she took a few steps, she heard the sounds of Yu Ruman beating the others. The force of the blows sounded much heavier than what she had used, and the screams from Shi Gang and the others were much louder.

Wen Jiu didn't linger and headed straight back to her dormitory. Her roommate, whom she had met earlier, was taking a nap, so Wen Jiu quietly shut the door and walked to her bed. She hadn't paid much attention to the environment earlier, but now she took a look around. The furnishings were simple, but it was sturdy enough to keep the wind and rain out.

The room was well-equipped. There were two sets of uniforms for summer and winter, along with bedding and daily necessities. Wen Jiu was quite satisfied. She glanced at her bedside table and found a small box with a freshman handbook resting on top.

She opened the box to find a bronze-colored smart ring inside. After reading the handbook, she realized the academy provided one to every freshman. Schooling was truly a wonderful thing.

Wen Jiu put the ring on her finger and immediately felt a faint current surge through her body. She tried to control it with her mind, and a small light screen popped up.

[New user detected. Bind user?]

A mechanical, cold voice echoed in her mind. Wen Jiu paused for a moment before tapping the screen, which changed the display.

[Binding user. Please set your personal information.]

Wen Jiu followed the instructions, feeling like an elderly person out of touch with the times. It took her a long time to finish the setup, followed by her personal image settings.

[Please set the StarNet personal image for user "Wealthy9".]

The Federation's universal network, StarNet, allowed users to set their nicknames and avatars freely, provided their real identity was verified. Wen Jiu didn't hesitate to enter the nickname "Wealthy9" and began happily customizing her avatar.

Just as she was browsing the available clothing, a notification popped up.

["3047 Zhou Sen" has requested to add you as a friend.]
[Friend request accepted.]

Wen Jiu thought Zhou Sen just wanted to add her, but he immediately sent a flurry of messages that caused her customization interface to crash back to the desktop.

["3047 Zhou Sen": Your matter with Shi Gang is resolved.]
["3047 Zhou Sen": You will be responsible for a single window in the cafeteria. After the academy deducts tuition, the rest of your earnings will be deposited into your StarNet account.]
["3047 Zhou Sen": I'll send you the specific cafeteria duties later. Working hours are 11:00-13:00 and 17:00-19:00.]
["3047 Zhou Sen": You know our academy uses a self-selected course system, right? Just avoid your working hours when choosing your classes.]

She hadn't expected Zhou Sen to be so talkative, but Wen Jiu replied politely.

["Wealthy9": Okay, Teacher Zhou.]
["3047 Zhou Sen": ...Nice name.]

After replying, Wen Jiu stopped tinkering with her avatar and turned back to the handbook, planning for her upcoming work-study life.

"Oh, you're back?"

The girl who had been sleeping soundly on the bed finally woke up, looking at Wen Jiu with sleepy eyes.