12. The first month's manuscript fee for The Divine Book_1

Upon leaving the Academic Affairs Office, Ren He was shocked when he returned to class. To his surprise, Yang Xi, whose name he had just asked about, was already sitting beside Duan Xiaolou, having become her new desk mate.

They're in the same class? A transfer student? But once in class, Ren He didn't say anything more to Yang Xi and obediently returned to his own seat.

Little Fatty, Xu Nuo, hurried over: "What did the Academic Affairs Office say? They didn't expel you, did they?"

As Xu Nuo asked, all the classmates pricked up their ears; they all knew about Ren He's bold deed and were curious to see how the school would handle such wild behavior.

Everyone was saying Ren He was finished, that the school was surely going to expel him. Xu Nuo had lost his temper with more than one person in class. No one expected the usually gentle and low-profile Xu Nuo to lose such a big temper.

"No, the teacher said I just need to practice more on the sports field," Ren He said with a nonchalant air.

No way? Just that? Just practice on the sports field?

Isn't that a bit too easy-going? Last time someone got detention for climbing over the wall, but you jumped off a building and got off scot-free?

Stunned, Xu Nuo said: "I'm not very learned, but don't try to fool me! You did such a big thing and didn't get any punishment? Did you get Uncle Ren to pull some strings?"

Only then did Ren He remember, ah, this Little Fatty was acquainted with his dad, had been to his house, and had even shared a few meals with them, so he didn't keep it a secret: "Yeah, I called his secretary."

Xu Nuo released a long sigh: "That's good, that's good." Now that his worries were alleviated, Little Fatty's mind grew active again: "Hey, have you heard? There's a new girl who transferred in, the one who's Duan Xiaolou's desk mate! She introduced herself as Yang Xi. The homeroom teacher said she transferred from the Capital. Now all the boys and girls in class want to get to know her, she's really beautiful!"

The Capital? Ren He was a bit surprised: "Isn't it good to study in the Capital, with lower cut-off scores and easier exams? Why come to Luo City?"

"I don't know about that," Xu Nuo shook his head.

Ren He's mind began to spin. He always felt that Yang Xi's father must have a notable background, and coming from the Capital made it all the more interesting. He took out his phone to check the news about the Capital from the last month or two. After spending a whole two hours, he finally saw a familiar yet foreign face: The Minister of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs stationed in Angola, Yang En, had resigned from his post!

So he was a diplomat. That was no big deal then...

...

When Ren He got home in the evening, the first thing he did was to write. The editor had already informed him that his work would be featured next week, and before that, he would be given a recommendation, so he didn't have to worry.

This was probably the fastest Ren He's work had ever gone live, ready in just three weeks. He didn't even know what kind of recommendation it would get next week.

He opened the author dashboard to check his earnings details, for today was the day the manuscript fees were calculated, and he hadn't had time to check during the day.

42,700 yuan! All this without even being featured, two Alliance Leaders and a week of extra updates from a Drunkard's tips—not to mention, it was the first time Ren He had seen such a high monthly fee. He was so excited, he didn't quite know what to do with himself.

Now that his hit book was on the right track, he didn't need to worry too much about anything. As long as he didn't mess up the writing later, making money was a sure thing.

However, just as Ren He was preparing to rejoice, the Divine Punishment System suddenly issued a new mission!

"Complete a bungee jump at White Cloud Mountain in Luo City within half a month, and receive a reward upon completion."

Fuck, Ren He was dumbfounded: "Wasn't it said that tasks would only appear at the end? This is outright deception!"

Although he had started to enjoy the thrill of leaping off the teaching building today, he wanted to take a break. This second task was coming way too fast, wasn't it? He had asked the Divine Punishment System before how it would handle ongoing series, and they had said it themselves, from the day it ends, so how come they issued a task the moment he received his manuscript fee? Didn't that mean as long as it was ongoing, there would be a task every month?

Why the hell didn't you say so earlier?!

The Divine Punishment System calmly said in his mind, "All interpretation rights belong to the Divine Punishment System."

As shameless as ever... Ren He immediately felt a pang of frustration. The statement that all interpretation rights belonged to the Divine Punishment System was downright rogueish; it pretty much meant they could do whatever they wanted.

It seemed like there would always be a punishment mission whenever he made any profit using his experience from his past life... One manuscript fee settlement per month meant there would be a Divine Punishment Mission every month!

But bungee jumping wasn't too big of a deal; it looked scary, but the risk was relatively low compared to leaping off the teaching building without any safety measures.

Of course, bungee jumping wasn't without its dangers. In his past life, Ren He had often heard about news of bungee cords snapping and people falling. However, he didn't take it to heart since those were low-probability events. Now that he had this $2,700 manuscript fee, he could afford to splurge a little.

He phoned Xu Nuo, "Hey, Little Fatty, how about we go to White Cloud Mountain for the National Day holiday? It's on me, let's go bungee jumping."

There was silence on the other end for 2 seconds before Xu Nuo said, "Our class activity has already changed from going to Chongdu Gully to White Cloud Mountain…"

Ren He was startled, "What the heck, why is it changed to White Cloud Mountain?"

"A lot of people said they went to Chongdu Gully to cool off this summer, and now this season is suitable for watching the sunrise at White Cloud Mountain..."

"Forget them," Ren He cajoled, "We'll go by ourselves. Cigarettes, water, food, tickets, accommodation—I'll cover it all."

Exclaimed Xu Nuo over the phone, "Did you strike it rich, man?!"

"Of course, come on, is it a deal?" Ren He didn't want to mingle with those classmates; it wasn't liberating. Little Fatty had treated him so many times, so now that he had the money, he wanted to return the favor, it's only polite.

"Deal, when do we set off?"

"Next week, October 1st!"

While running in the evening, Duan Xiaolou took the initiative to ask Ren He, "Do you know about the new girl who transferred to our class?"

"Of course, I'm not blind," replied Ren He.

"I've invited her to join our class's National Day activity. The location has been changed to White Cloud Mountain," Duan Xiaolou said, "She's pretty cool, not pretentious at all, quite straightforward."

Wait, Yang Xi is also going to White Cloud Mountain? Ren He started to ponder. Would they meet each other? Should he just join the group activity with Little Fatty?

Forget it, there will be plenty of time in the future. The main purpose of going to White Cloud Mountain this time was to complete the mission.

He wasn't quite clear about his feelings for that girl; he just couldn't forget the moment when they made eye contact in the air.

That's why he had asked for her name in front of so many teachers at the Academic Affairs Office, although his classmates didn't know about it. If they did, it would probably become big news the next day.