002 Mild mental retardation_1

"Moonlight, get up, get up and start browsing Weibo!"

Wang Xueya was prodding her as she lay in bed, her voice louder than an alarm clock.

Chi Yue, half-asleep, turned over. "What Weibo?"

"Qiao Dongyang's!" Wang Xueya exclaimed in shock. "To celebrate the Moonlight Deep Space Explorer's successful entry into Mars orbit, Qiao Dongyang is doing a prize draw on Weibo. Holy crap! The first prize is 1.16 million yuan, and you could even have dinner with him ... Oh my God, they're going crazy, Weibo is about to crash—Moonlight, hurry up, let's get all our burner accounts going!"

"..."

Chi Yue pulled the covers over her head and continued sleeping.

"Dear lady, you're still sleeping? The retweets have already topped ten million."

Wang Xueya vigorously pulled her quilt, and Chi Yue finally couldn't stand it anymore, poking her head out to glare at her. "Honey, let's not be silly. Do the math, random draws are deceptive. Our shop has done these kinds of marketing events before. The odds of winning are even smaller than encountering Eddie Peng in the women's restroom…"

Wang Xueya's fiery enthusiasm was doused by her remarks.

"What if you win? Can't even 1.16 million yuan excite you?"

Chi Yue lazily replied, "Babe, can you mention something that would actually excite me?"

Wang Xueya: "..."

She glanced at Chi Yue and continued to browse Weibo on her alternative account while also changing to a prettier profile picture.

"I settled last month's merchandise payments and transferred your share to your account. Don't waste it, okay? At least save some for yourself..."

Chi Yue made a noncommittal noise, indifferent.

Wang Xueya switched to another Weibo burner account. "What's the point, working so hard to earn money only to fritter it away? Do you know what people are saying behind your back? Or have you gone deaf?"

"Everything you said is right."

"But you just won't listen."

"…'little raven', you may take your leave!"

Wang Xueya was Chi Yue's classmate, a wealthy second-generation who didn't want to live off her parents. In their freshman year, she teamed up with Chi Yue to start an online shop and began selling health products part-time.

Three years flashed by.

They hit a good streak with the online shop and made it prosper.

They earned quite a bit of money, but Chi Yue's share was always running out.

No matter how much she earned, it was never enough for her to squander!

Wang Xueya sighed when she spoke about this and changed the subject.

"Today, the press conference for 'Starwalker' is being held at our school, aren't you going?"

"I'm sleepy..." Chi Yue replied, too lazy to even open her eyes.

"Qiao Dongyang! The actual Qiao Dongyang is coming, my dear! Can't you show a little excitement?"

"What about Qiao Dongyang? If he comes, is he going to open my governor and conception vessels or donate a billion trees to me?"

"Damn it! Don't be so vulgar, okay? My dad says the stuff in Qiao Dongyang's head is at least a century ahead of human technology—aren't you curious?"

Wang Xueya's father was a heavyweight in the aerospace industry.

She had absolute faith in her father's words.

Chi Yue, however, could only laugh.

"A century ahead, he'd be ashes by then. Don't bother with such trifles!"

"You're such a buzzkill!"

In the eyes of her friends, Chi Yue was an oddity.

Frequently skipping classes, never failing any.

Coming from a poor area, yet not lacking in money.

Having the looks of the campus belle, yet not dating.

Approaching graduation season, not job hunting.

Earning so much money, not spending a dime.

Nasty remarks circulated around the school, but she didn't care.

"Freak!"

Wang Xueya sat for a long time, staring at her weakly.

When Chi Yue heard nothing from her for a while, she slowly opened her eyes, her gaze turning somewhat cold.

"Wake up babe! How could a slacker possibly turn into a top student overnight? Are those scholarly papers and research results truly the work of Qiao Dongyang's noble brain and his 250 IQ? Naive! Ever heard of wealthy caprice, huh? He could have a think tank writing papers for him."

"Are you going to the press conference or not?"

Wang Xueya started pulling her quilt again.

"No! Over my dead body!"

...

An hour later.

Chi Yue sat in the university's auditorium, yawning incessantly.

The sounds of "Elder Brother Qiao, Elder Brother Qiao" filled her ears, as if Qiao Dongyang was some close relative of theirs.

In fact, Qiao Dongyang was a stranger to most.

He had only attended the flight school for one year.

While there, he was a good-for-nothing playboy, a failing student with zero academic achievements.

Shortly after leaving school, his uncle, in a moment of joy, changed his image—publishing scholarly works on deep space exploration, taking over the Qiao-owned Corwn company, and in just one year, completing capital transformation. The smart companion robots he developed generated billions in sales, propelling him to become the wealthiest young entrepreneur in Asia.

Industry commentators called him a man with an "alien brain."

No one could match his intelligence.

An incredible story of an academic underachiever turning it all around!

Qiao Dongyang became a legend.

He also became the undying pride of their flight school.

Now, Qiao Dongyang's Dongyang Deep Space Exploration Tech Company in collaboration with Lemon TV was launching a national talent show called "Starwalker" with a press conference at the flight school, giving plenty of face to the school's leadership.

Several school leaders sat in the front row, beaming proudly.

The auditorium was abuzz with fervent enthusiasm.

A horde of adoring fans, eyes filled with anticipation.

Chi Yue, sitting among them like an outsider, showed no enthusiasm, yawning repeatedly, a clear sign of sleep deprivation, "Clearly a mental zero and yet they package him as a genius! 'Starwalker,' space exploration is nothing but commercial hype …"

"Shh! Dude, if you keep this up, you're going to get lambasted."

"Sis, Qiao Dongyang is just not obviously mentally challenged …"

Chi Yue didn't finish her sentence.

Two men, surrounded by journalists, walked in.

One of them, young and handsome, locked his penetrating gaze onto her face as if he had heard her comments.

Yet—

The two were at least ten meters apart.

If he could hear her, he was no ordinary human.

Chi Yue narrowed her eyes slightly, meeting his stare.

The flicker of hope from a second ago was crushed the next.

He had heard her.

Definitely.

And this Qiao Dongyang—

He looked familiar?

...

...