Chapter 36: I’m Home
Chapter 36: I’m Home
Shocking! Fantasy Treasures Auction House’s Incredibly Lucky Winner, the Wronged Zongwu Academy’s Top Genius, Turned One Yuan into 11.7 Billion!
——Capital City Entertainment News.
Wronged Zongwu Student’s Luck Turns Around, Fantasy Treasures Auction House One Yuan for Ten Billion, But He Donated Six Billion Immediately!
——Capital City Evening News.
Young Genius’s Surprise Windfall, Gains Ten Billion, Donates Five Billion to the Military, and Uses Another Billion to Set Up a Fund Specifically to Support Talented Students in Need. Fellow Wealthy Attendees Also Opened Their Wallets, Adding Their Share to Building a More Beautiful Great Qin…
——Capital City Youth News.
Early the next morning, almost everyone in the entire Capital City was shocked by a piece of news.
Many people knew the high-end brand Fantasy Treasures, but they had never heard of Fantasy Treasures Auction House.
Suddenly, because of this news, Fantasy Treasures Auction House became the talk of the town!
The impact of this news was simply too great!
So great that even the media controlled by the Ministry of Truth had to report on it.
This kind of massive news simply could not be suppressed!
Because ever since last night, the internet had been buzzing.
People marveled: what kind of luck did it take to turn one yuan into a return of ten billion?
While people felt envy, they were even more impressed by Ling Yi’s generosity!
Was five billion a lot for the military?
Actually, not really.
But it wasn’t little either.
For an individual, that was truly an immense fortune!
To donate such a huge amount of wealth just like that?
And it wasn’t just those five billion; another billion was specifically for supporting talented students with difficult family conditions!
This kind of broad-mindedness, this kind of spirit, was enough to calm down the vast majority of those who were jealous of his luck.
Because if it were them, they simply couldn’t have done it!
Forget donating six billion; they would even feel pained donating six thousand yuan!
Having them badmouth others for free on the internet was no problem, but donating money? Why should they?
The key was that Ling Yi wasn’t some nobody who appeared out of thin air; the much-talked-about “Ling Yi incident” from a while back was still mentioned by many people now.
Who would have thought that a young man who had suffered such great wrongs, after his luck finally turned and fortune fell from the sky, still possessed such broad-mindedness?
“I had no feelings about this person before; talk of genius or not was too distant from me. But now, I’ve become a fan!”
“I’m actually a troll; with a keyboard in hand, I rule the world. But this kind of person… I just can’t troll. I can’t find a point to pick on! Forget it, I’ll follow my heart. Ling Yi, I respect you!”
“That’s just so lucky. Is this news fabricated by the auction house itself? How can there be such a huge opportunity to just pick up? Why do I never encounter such good fortune? But no matter what, those six billion were genuinely donated. For that, I can only say I respect him!”
“Public welfare and charity—as long as you do it, you’re a good person. I’m a fan now!”
Similar comments were countless on the internet.
Of course, there were a few extremely sarcastic and sour remarks, but they couldn’t gain any momentum.
Once a general trend formed, it was like a mighty flood—unstoppable and irreversible.
Inside a very luxurious but extremely messy house, the pungent smell of cigarettes and the strong odor of alcohol filled the air. Cigarette butts, waste paper, and liquor bottles were scattered all over the floor.
Liang Shanming lay on the sofa. Awakened by the ringing phone, he felt a splitting headache.
He picked up the phone and answered impatiently, “Who is it?”
“Brother Liang, it’s Yang Tie. Something big has happened! Hurry and check the news. Ling Yi is incredible now!”
From the other end came Yang Tie’s somewhat panicked voice.
“What’s so incredible about him? He’s just a lousy kept man for some rich woman!” Liang Shanming mumbled in his daze.
“Are you stupid? With assets of ten billion, he needs to be someone’s kept man?” Yang Tie couldn’t help but retort on the other end.
“Damn it, how are you talking to me?” Liang Shanming cursed, then paused. “Wait, what did you just say? Who has assets of ten billion?”
“Ling Yi! Yesterday at Fantasy Treasures Auction House, he used one yuan to win the warm-up auction item, which turned out to be a huge Supreme Spirit Stone. It was bought by a mysterious buyer for 11.7 billion…”
Clatter. The phone fell from Liang Shanming’s hand to the floor. Ignoring Yang Tie’s “Hello? Hello?” from the other end, he immediately turned on the television.
Sure enough, the TV was broadcasting the related news.
“He was once a genius student of Zongwu Academy, but due to certain reasons, he was nearly expelled from the academy. He is also this year’s luckiest person in Great Qin, turning a one-yuan auction item into a ten-billion return. His heart is filled with concern for the country and the people…”
“Damn it!”
Liang Shanming turned off the TV, picked up his phone, and started searching online.
After a long while, he sat there, devastated.
He finally understood why that fat old woman was smiling and chatting with that kid as they came out together yesterday.
So… he had become a billionaire!
No, not a full ten billion—that idiot actually donated six billion. What a damn fool!
Why wasn’t it me?
Why?
Liang Shanming was so sad that tears streamed down his face.
The impact of this incident went far beyond just what was visible on the surface.
Too many things were affected behind the scenes!
At this moment, Zhao Tianping was in a powerful figure’s office, not daring to breathe too heavily.
Even though he was at the peak of the Fourth-Order Golden Body realm, the old man across from him wasn’t even a First-Order skill cultivator. But the power the old man wielded could easily reduce his Fourth-Order Golden Body to nothing.
“This matter wasn’t handled well by you.”
“Since you targeted him back then, why didn’t you finish him off completely?”
“Now even our own mouthpieces have to speak for him!”
“I heard Ling Yi originally had a peaceful, indifferent nature, was very lazy, and his greatest wish was just to teach at Zongwu?”
The old man looked up at Zhao Tianping. “Why didn’t you just let someone like that have his wish?”
Zhao Tianping lowered his head. “At the time…”
“Enough, I don’t want to hear your explanations. His action yesterday wasn’t just about winning over a group of previously rootless wealthy individuals to the Military’s side. The key is the momentum it generated among the common people… This gave those at the Military Headquarters a huge boost of confidence! Do you understand?”
Zhao Tianping nodded and said softly, “I will think of a way.”
“Forget it. Delay the plans that were set before. We can’t act at such a time. Remember, I absolutely will not allow any more trouble at the Graduation Ceremony in two days! Otherwise, you won’t remain the principal of Zongwu.”
The old man waved his hand, dismissing Zhao Tianping.
Bowing and stooping, Zhao Tianping withdrew from the office.
Once outside, he felt a chill all over his body. His entire back was soaked with sweat, his shirt clinging to his skin!
Only after getting into his car, as the driver started the engine and drove away, did Zhao Tianping’s face finally turn completely dark. He clenched his hands tightly, then finally released them weakly and leaned back into the comfortable seat.
He had thought that with Shen Xiaowu dead, he could easily control everything.
Only after truly sitting in that position did he understand how difficult it was to be there.
He wasn’t allowed to cause trouble at the Graduation Ceremony, which was fine. Even without being told, he wouldn’t have caused any trouble anyway.
But what about others?
Those lawless young people, would they be that obedient?
Zhao Tianping, who had been full of confidence, suddenly felt that everything had become particularly unlucky.
When did it start turning out like this?
This couldn’t go on anymore!
…
Ling Yi was cleaning the house.
Actually, Su Qingqing was quite tidy herself, and the room wasn’t messy.
But in Ling Yi’s eyes, it was somewhat unbearable.
After tidying up, he finally felt satisfied.
Last night, Sister Zhao’s driver first took Qin Jiuyue to a hotel, then brought him home. He told Su Qingqing and Xiaomei about what happened at the auction, and both of them became very excited.
This should be the happiest thing for everyone recently.
For Su Qingqing, this meant Ling Yi finally didn’t have to worry about cultivation resources anymore and could focus on cultivation from now on.
Actually, after buying cultivation resources with this money, they would all end up as food in the Enchantress’s stomach.
Speaking of which, the Enchantress had been quite fair.
She didn’t mind Ling Yi donating a huge sum of money.
Because she also understood that Ling Yi’s way of handling it was the most suitable.
But the remaining money had to be all hers.
At yesterday’s auction, Ling Yi originally wanted to buy a good piece of jade to make a Jade Box, but unfortunately, he didn’t come across one.
After finishing the cleaning today, he remembered this and gave Old Lin a call.
“The money has been transferred to your account! Please check!” Old Lin got straight to the point as soon as the call connected.
“Uh, that’s not why I called,” Ling Yi said.
“Oh, oh, what’s up, little brother? Just say it!” Old Lin’s attitude was even more enthusiastic and polite than yesterday.
No choice, the impact of this matter was just too powerful!
In one night plus half a day, it had completely spread across the entire continent!
The reputation of Fantasy Treasures Auction House had almost instantly soared, unquestionably surpassing several other established auction houses.
Several major bosses behind the scenes called to praise him.
How could Old Lin not be excited?
“It’s like this, I want a good piece of jade. The size, at minimum, should be one square foot…” Ling Yi said.
“Huh? One square foot? Brother, are you making a jade carving? Such a large, top-quality jade isn’t cheap! If it’s truly excellent top-grade jade, as big as you said, it definitely won’t cost less than a few hundred million.”
“Mmm, it’s fine. Please keep an eye out for me. If there is one, notify me. I’ll go see the actual piece, and if it’s suitable, I’ll buy it,” Ling Yi said.
“Alright, no problem,” Old Lin agreed readily.
After hanging up, Ling Yi called Luo Xue to arrange meeting her to visit the Old Principal.
This was something Luo Xue had mentioned to Ling Yi before, wanting to pay her respects.
Ling Yi hadn’t had time to visit since his Adoptive Father was buried. Now that many things were settled, he should go and tell the old man.
When going downstairs, Ling Yi glanced out of the corner of his eye at the building opposite. He noticed one room really had its curtains drawn during broad daylight. That should be the people Su Qingqing said were watching.
Let them watch. Even if this group could be dealt with, new, more hidden ones would appear.
He went outside, hailed a taxi, first picked up Luo Xue, then headed to the suburban cemetery.
The Old Principal was eligible to be buried in the exclusive cemetery for important figures of Qin State, but he had requested Ling Yi to bury him in an ordinary cemetery.
He said he had never left the grassroots in his life, so it was better not to go to such a high-end place, lest he feel lonely.
Actually, Ling Yi knew the old man disliked that place because more from the Academic Faction were buried there…
When he picked up Luo Xue, she was holding a bouquet of flowers, standing at the flower shop entrance. After getting in the car, she looked at Ling Yi, who had nothing in his hands. “Are you visiting the Old Principal like this?”
Ling Yi pulled out a small bottle of wine from beside him. “My dad only needs this.”
Luo Xue looked speechless, then said, “I heard you made big news again last night?”
“Mmm, I became a billionaire,” Ling Yi said.
The driver couldn’t help but glance up at the rearview mirror, thinking to himself, In broad daylight, if only he had a peanut to snack on, he wouldn’t be this drunk.
Luo Xue chuckled lightly and said, “This counts as the tide turning after extreme adversity. Things will get better and better from now on!”
The driver was even more amazed. This girl is as beautiful as a fairy. It’s rare to find someone so kind-hearted who’s also willing to play along with this guy’s act… Why don’t I ever meet such a perfect woman?
Just then, the car radio started broadcasting news about what happened last night at the Fantasy Treasures Auction House.
The driver was instantly bewildered. He listened to the news for a bit, looked at the man and woman in the rearview mirror, listened some more, looked again… He drove them to the cemetery in a distracted daze the whole way.
After Ling Yi paid, he smiled at the driver. “Thank you, sir. I’m home.”
The driver froze for a moment, then slowly widened his eyes, his face pale. “Holy crap!”
Watching the taxi speeding away, Luo Xue said, torn between tears and laughter, “You scared him off. How are we getting back?”
Ling Yi glanced at a car that had just stopped not far behind them. “It’s fine. Someone will take us back.”
With that, he walked up the steps toward the cemetery.
Dad, I’m here to see you!