There was a time when Han Ning was nothing short of a goddess in Fang Yi's heart.
In his previous life, every time he looked back on those youthful years, he'd feel a pang of regret — all throughout high school, he never mustered the courage to confess his feelings to her.
But now that he had a second chance at life… would he let that regret follow him again?
With that thought, Fang Yi strode confidently toward the second row.
At that very moment, Han Ning was bent over her desk, immersed in practice questions. Suddenly, the light dimmed — and a popsicle appeared right in front of her eyes.
The abruptness of it made her freeze for a second.
By the time she came to, she slowly looked up, confused, only to see Fang Yi smiling at her.
"This is for you," he said with an easy grin.
"Th—thank you…"
Still a little dazed, Han Ning accepted the popsicle.
By now, Fang Yi's sudden move had already caught the attention of several classmates. Pens and notebooks were quietly set aside, and people were ready to watch the drama unfold.
But Fang Yi made no move to leave. Instead, he looked at her and said, "Oh right, there's something I wanted to tell you."
"What is it?"
Han Ning blinked her big, round eyes at him. Her voice carried a hint of confusion, and a trace of curiosity.
"I like you."
The moment those four words left Fang Yi's mouth, the classroom fell dead silent.
Boom!
An uproar followed almost immediately. The classroom exploded with noise, like someone had just thrown a bomb into a pot of boiling oil.
The girls' eyes sparkled with the fire of gossip, while the boys looked visibly tense — terrified that Han Ning might actually say yes.
To them, Fang Yi was a serious threat.
He was 180 cm tall, good-looking — easily scoring an 80 out of 100 on appearance alone. His grades weren't top-tier but they weren't terrible either. He had a bright, cheerful personality and was known for playing a mean guitar solo. In other words, a full package.
As for Han Ning, the center of the storm, she stayed surprisingly calm.
Fang Yi glanced at her small clenched fists and the faint red blooming across her neck. He couldn't help but curve his lips into a smile.
Why hadn't he noticed how cute she was before?
That forced calmness, paired with the subtle awkwardness… it was unexpectedly adorable.
Her long lashes fluttered once, twice, then she gave a slight nod and said softly, "I… I understand."
"Mhm."
Achievement unlocked: Confess to class monitor — check √
Fang Yi smiled and turned around to leave.
The onlookers in the classroom were stunned.
Wait, that's it?
You like her, and then… what?
Bro, I even pulled down my pants, and you're giving me this?
The girls were visibly disappointed, while the boys all collectively breathed a sigh of relief.
——
On his way back to his seat, Fang Yi casually took in all their expressions.
And then what?
Sorry, there is no "then."
"I like you" — that's all he needed to say to make sure this lifetime held no regrets. Nothing more.
As he passed Zhao Wanqiu's seat, she suddenly grabbed his arm, bewildered.
"Yi-ge, was that… seriously your idea of a confession?"
"What do you think?"
Fang Yi threw the question back at her, then returned to his seat at the very back row.
His confession had completely changed the classroom atmosphere — like tossing a bowl of cold water into a boiling wok.
And yet, Fang Yi himself was the very picture of calm. He had the carefree air of a man who'd just finished some grand affair and dusted off his robes.
And honestly? That dramatic exit?
God damn, it felt amazing.
After a deep breath, he opened to a blank page in his notebook and picked up his pen — time to plan his next move.
During lunch, while eating fried noodles, Shen Hao had inadvertently given him an idea — a way to earn his first pot of gold.
That's right.
He would be a content thief.
Since he wasn't sure how receptive this era's people were to online novels, Fang Yi decided to play it safe and start with a horror story.
Compared to fantasy or urban fiction, tales of the supernatural were much easier for people to accept — and get hooked on.
As for which novel to "borrow"...
After a moment of thought, Fang Yi decided on Ghost Blows Out the Light.
First off, the writing style wasn't overly complex. Second, he didn't need to memorize the entire plot. The story's core was about treasure hunting and adventure — as long as he remembered the general outline, he could fill in the details however he liked.
And most importantly — the story was actually good.
Once he earned his first royalties from Ghost Blows Out the Light, making more money would become much easier.
Whether it was flipping domain names or investing in side businesses, Fang Yi was confident he could make three million yuan in three months.
With that three million, next year, he could swoop in and secure the domestic rights to Legend of Mir before Shanda even realized the opportunity.
And with Legend of Mir as his personal goldmine, he'd have the capital to break into the electronics industry within just a year.
People often forget — back then, Chen Tianqiao of Shanda was down to his last $300,000 when he landed the rights to Legend of Mir. By 2005, just four years later, he had dethroned even the pig-farming mogul Ding Lei to become China's richest man, with a net worth of 15 billion yuan.
Just four years.
That damn game made him over ten billion.
It was like printing money — faster than robbing banks.
Even before Fang Yi's rebirth, Legend of Mir was still earning Shanda billions in annual revenue. That kind of money tree sitting in plain sight — if Fang Yi didn't grab it, he might as well go jump off a building.
To be precise, Legend of Mir had actually been developed by Korea's Wemade Entertainment back in 1995.
So why didn't Fang Yi rush to get it right now?
Simple. The environment wasn't ready yet.
Sure, there were internet cafés in the country now — but they were few and far between, and the hourly cost was sky-high. Regular people couldn't afford it.
It wouldn't be until next year that internet cafés began to explode across the country. Legal ones, shady ones — every city and town would be flooded with them. Only when the average person could access the internet would online games finally have fertile soil to grow in.
There's no such thing as a hero creating their own era.
It's always the era that creates its heroes.
In wild, lawless times, even a pig could take flight if it stood at the right gust of wind.
And Jack Ma's rise? That wasn't just talent — that was him catching the massive tailwind of a booming nation.
If it hadn't been Jack Ma, it would've been Jack Li, or Jack Zhang.