After Rebirth, I Married My Rival - Chapter 19

Chapter 19: I’ll Work Hard to Earn My Dowry

« I thought you weren’t coming back. » Shen Yueshu’s face was slightly flushed as she wrinkled her delicate nose.

Xu Yuan didn’t speak, silently helping the already drunk Li Rui and Zhang Long to their feet alone.

Old Qian will be your responsibility.

« Fine, who told you to treat us to such expensive drinks today? » Shen Yueshu supported Qian Jialun, and truth be told, the girl could really hold her liquor.

Finally managed to get these three drunk guys back to school. Xu Yuan’s arms were sore—these two were way too heavy.

Your friends are pretty considerate, deliberately choosing cheaper drinks. They’ve already stored away the rest.

Perhaps because they hadn’t spoken much during the trip, Shen Yueshu wanted to strike up a conversation.

« Mhm. » Xu Yuan responded softly.

Shen Yueshu pouted her lips. She knew she was quite pretty, so why didn’t Xu Yuan even glance her way?

A woman aware of her beauty carries pride in her heart. Even if she didn’t like Xu Yuan at all, that proud heart still wanted him to look at her twice.

Junior, spending so much money yet gaining nothing in return—you’re truly the dumbest rich second-generation I’ve ever met.

« I’m not a rich second-generation, just a lucky guy. » Xu Yuan denied being from a wealthy family, guessing Shen Yueshu must have misunderstood because she saw him stepping out of that Maybach.

« Come on, who would believe that? Over 200,000! You didn’t even blink! » Shen Yueshu curled her lips dismissively—there was no need to be modest about this, was there?
« Who says I didn’t blink? I obviously felt the pinch, okay? » Xu Yuan shook his head. If he hadn’t kept that 15 million system loan, he really wouldn’t have known how to handle the situation.

Besides, spending so much money on just the first day of school—who wouldn’t feel the sting? Even a rich kid would wince!
Shen Yueshu didn’t buy Xu Yuan’s excuse for a second.

I think you’re feeling sorry for that girl named Li Xinran.

How infuriating. She has such an enviable soul and even met someone as wonderful as you. What a lucky girl.

Why haven’t I met someone as good as you? »

Xu Yuan suddenly stopped in his tracks, turned to look at Shen Yueshu, and said, « But she often says she has bad luck. »

Shen Yueshu, you did that on purpose today, didn’t you? Purposely mentioning how expensive those wines were, just waiting for her to ask you.

« Chen Yuhang is just a fool, being used without even realizing it. »

Shen Yueshu was slightly taken aback—she hadn’t expected Xu Yuan to confront her. She had indeed harbored such thoughts initially. Chen Yuhang, who fancied himself a high-class hunter, couldn’t hide his intentions from her at all.

With just a little guidance, he would easily fall into Shen Yueshu’s verbal trap. Some words only achieved their best effect when spoken by Chen Yuhang himself.

« You’re being very unchivalrous. It was just a slip of the tongue, » Shen Yueshu naturally refused to admit it.

« Don’t let it happen again, or I’ll be even less chivalrous, » Xu Yuan warned coolly.

Li Xiran’s nervous expression at that time might have gone unnoticed by the simple-minded Ye Sisi, but how could Shen Yueshu, sitting right beside her, not notice?

Xu Yuan initially didn’t want to bring this up, given their past entanglement in their previous lives, but Shen Yueshu was pushing her luck.

Shen Yueshu frowned. Xu Yuan seemed to understand her too well—how could he be so certain she was doing it on purpose? They’d barely known each other for less than a day.

She had originally planned to keep teasing Xu Yuan, even preparing to spout some nonsense about love at first sight at the right moment. But now she knew—Xu Yuan wouldn’t believe it.

« It’s clearly my luck that’s worse… » Shen Yueshu murmured in a voice only she could hear.

..

[Awake yet? Still feeling unwell?]

The next morning, the first thing Xu Yuan did upon waking was send a message to check on Li Xinran’s condition.

[I got lucky yesterday—that shop was running a promotion and gave me an ultra-low discount.]

After sending this message, Xu Yuan let out a long sigh. He knew Li Xinran probably wouldn’t believe it, but it was still better than saying nothing at all.

Even the most fabricated lie retains a sliver of belief. That’s far better than having no lie at all—and not even that sliver of trust remaining.

[« I’m fine. Sorry, Xu Yuan, for causing you trouble again. »]

[Transfer: 34,000 yuan]

Xu Yuan looked at the notification on his phone and couldn’t help but feel helpless—Li Xinran was just too considerate.

How should he reply?

[Refund: 34,000 yuan]

After struggling with it for a long time, Xu Yuan still didn’t accept the money. He had originally intended to take it, thinking it would make Li Xinran feel better.

However, Xu Yuan now had other ideas.

[Why won’t you accept it?]

[Consider it a betrothal gift. Since the gift is already given, little girl, don’t even think about escaping my grasp in this lifetime!]

Li Xinran’s face flushed crimson as she read Xu Yuan’s message. They weren’t even in a romantic relationship yet—what betrothal gift was he talking about?
Xu Yuan waited for a long time without receiving a reply, thinking that Li Xinran was overthinking things again.

[I’ll work hard to earn my dowry!]

Holy shit!

Xu Yuan abruptly sat up in bed—had he accidentally advanced the main storyline?
Li Rui and the others, who were still asleep, were startled awake by Xu Yuan’s sudden exclamation.
« Yuan, what are you doing so early in the morning? » Li Rui rubbed his eyes and asked somewhat confused.

Good news, good news.

..

..

Perhaps they had drunk a bit too much the night before, as Li Rui and the others all seemed listless.

Xu Yuan was somewhat exhilarated—his romantic investment had finally paid off!

« Yuan’er, let me interview you. Is the life of a rich second-generation heir really as carefree as it seems? » Li Rui reached over, pretending to hold a microphone.

Xu Yuan raised his eyebrows and said, « Who said I’m a rich second-generation? I’ve already put last night’s drinks on your tab. You can pay me back slowly! »

« Brother Yuan, Daddy Yuan! Godfather! »

The three of them were getting anxious. It wasn’t that they didn’t want to pay—they genuinely couldn’t afford it. Last night, they had braced themselves for a financial blow, but the prices weren’t just painful—they were downright deadly!
« Look how scared you are. After all, this mess isn’t your fault—how could I make you pay for it? At least you’ve got some conscience, knowing to keep those expensive bottles stored away.

If any of you can find a way to sell off those bottles, recouping even a little is better than nothing. » Xu Yuan stopped teasing them.

Dropping over 200,000 in one night stung him too. Now, he needed to figure out a way to recover some of that loss.

« That’s easy to handle. Just take it to another bar and sell it to them. Most bars will buy it back. But as for the price… you probably won’t even get one-third of the original cost, since bar drink prices are always ridiculously inflated. » Hearing this, Li Rui patted his chest and took the task upon himself.

« Getting some money back is better than nothing. » Xu Yuan wasn’t in a position to be picky.

..

The entire morning’s military training consisted of either running or standing at attention.

The military training requirements at Finance University weren’t particularly demanding. Compared to the intensity at some regional universities, it was child’s play. Forget about advanced operations like live-fire shooting or infantry-tank coordination—those were out of the question.

The boys were mainly doing push-ups, while the girls focused on sit-ups—boring and monotonous.

The weather’s so hot—let me treat everyone to some water.

During the break, a tall, somewhat honest and straightforward-looking boy stood up and addressed the group.

As noon approached, the sun was scorching, and everyone seemed a bit listless. Many of the girls’ morning makeup had already smudged.

Everyone started clapping when they heard someone was offering to buy drinks.

« Instructor, can I take a few guys to buy water? » Zhou Yuntao said excitedly to the instructor.

The tall, straight-backed instructor glanced at him and nodded with a smile. Strictly speaking, military training follows military discipline, so such a request to buy water shouldn’t even be entertained.

But since the university had more female students and they were all just students—not actual soldiers who trained together daily—and would go their separate ways after two weeks anyway, the instructor didn’t want to be too strict.

With the instructor’s permission, Zhou Yuntao casually picked a few boys and headed to the convenience store together.

« Starting to win people over already? » Zhang Long immediately saw through Zhou Yuntao’s intentions.

In truth, everyone understood—after the military training ended, class committee elections would begin. Since no one knew each other well, it was necessary to build connections early and leave a good impression.

College class committee positions were completely different from high school class president roles—they offered priority for awards and Party membership applications.

« Yuan’er, don’t you have any thoughts? » Qian Jialun nudged Xu Yuan’s arm and said.

Xu Yuan shook his head. The benefits of being class monitor were obvious, but he didn’t care about those things anyway.

The class monitor is just the counselor’s little assistant, handling numerous tasks every day besides attending classes. He’d be better off spending that time figuring out which project to invest in next.
Before long, Zhou Yuntao and those few boys came back carrying several crates of water.

« Sorry everyone. The school convenience store is being transferred, and the fridge isn’t powered, so there’s no chilled water, » Zhou Yuntao said with an apologetic look at his classmates.

« It’s fine, someone’s treating us to water—we should be thanking them, not complaining. » Li Rui took the lead, his throat practically parched.

He was already a big guy, and with the scorching sun today, sweat was pouring down in buckets. He violently tore open the box, twisted open a bottle of water, and downed the entire thing in one go.

« Thanks, man! » Li Rui gave Zhou Yuntao a thumbs up.

« You’re welcome. » Zhou Yuntao scratched his head, quite pleased with his move—at least someone appreciated it.

Then Zhou Yuntao began distributing the water.

« Convenience store? » Xu Yuan stroked his chin. Although the rent for convenience stores on campus was high, college students’ spending power was quite formidable—daily revenue of two to three thousand was easily achievable.

Xu Yuan felt tempted, though he wasn’t counting on the convenience store to make a fortune. After all, he now had nearly 15 million in funds, enough for a substantial commercial investment.

What he was thinking was: if he took over that convenience store, what excuse could he find to get Li Xinran to work there?
The girl must be looking for a part-time job right now. The capital is nothing like Jiangcheng—it’s a mixed bag here, and he genuinely feels uneasy about it.

Truth be told, Xu Yuan has quite a strong controlling streak, though it stems more from his concern for Li Xinran.

From an innocent and naive young girl to the formidable female investor she would become in the future.

If possible, Xu Yuan would much prefer that Li Xinran remained exactly as he knew her now.