Xu Xiuwen put down his bag, took off his scarf and neck warmer, and hung them neatly in the wardrobe.
He turned to his roommates and asked, "How's your studying going? Are you confident about passing?"
Except for Jin Haonan, everyone else complained bitterly.
Xu Xiuwen just smiled and said nothing.
Seeing his silence, Yang Baishan asked, "Xiuwen, you go to the library every day to study. How are you doing?"
Xu Xiuwen always preferred to keep a low profile, but since Yang Baishan asked, he didn't hide it.
"I've mastered everything. I'll score at least 90 in every subject."
Yang Baishan immediately said, "Alright, Xiuwen has gone crazy from studying. Let's not give him any more pressure."
Liu Zhihao nodded in agreement and said, "Poor Xiuwen, he's gone silly from all that studying."
Xu Xiuwen didn't know whether to laugh or cry, "Why don't you believe me?"
Seeing his roommates turn back to their books, Xu Xiuwen couldn't be bothered to explain further. Anyway, once the exam results came out, they'd have to believe him.
After a quick wash, Xu Xiuwen was about to send a message to Cheng Lu to chat with her when he received a call from Hang Fei.
Hang Fei had completed the editing, music, and other post-production work by early December, and Xu Xiuwen had found time to watch the final cut. It exceeded his expectations.
Once the final cut was ready, the next step was approval, which took nearly a month. To get the approval, Xu Xiuwen had to provide documents to the partnering company, which kept him busy. If it weren't for preparing for the freshman welcoming party, this alone wouldn't have exhausted him so much.
Fortunately, the result didn't disappoint Xu Xiuwen. The approval was granted three days ago, allowing the drama to be officially released. Hang Fei had been taking action since then.
Seeing Hang Fei's call, Xu Xiuwen guessed it was about the drama's sale. He took the call on the balcony, closing the door behind him.
Hang Fei's voice was extremely excited. After listening, Xu Xiuwen was also thrilled. Hang Fei had managed to meet with a minor leader from the Jiangsu TV procurement team through connections. The leader had watched the drama and was very pleased with it, willing to purchase it. They invited Hang Fei and Xu Xiuwen to discuss the price tomorrow.
Xu Xiuwen had taken a two-month leave and invested over a million yuan in the drama. He was now eagerly awaiting a return on this investment, making the upcoming meeting far more important than his exams.
Xu Xiuwen told Hang Fei he'd join him for the meeting tomorrow. Hang Fei had scheduled it for 3 PM at a café near Jiangsu TV.
Hanging up, Xu Xiuwen was elated. He leaned out of the window and shouted into the night. Everything was going according to his plan since his rebirth, and it felt great.
After the shout, he quickly pulled his head back in. Shouting at night once was enough; any more, and the dorm supervisor might come knocking.
Back in the dorm, his roommates asked why he had shouted.
Xu Xiuwen excitedly announced, "I'm meeting with Jiangsu TV's procurement department tomorrow. If all goes well, the drama will be sold soon."
His roommates congratulated him and then eagerly asked how much the drama might sell for.
Xu Xiuwen, unfamiliar with the industry, guessed it might fetch a few million yuan.
Hearing this, his roommates were stunned. Yang Baishan, always excitable, was even more thrilled than Xu Xiuwen. Shi Xiangming, however, was thinking about one thing: if the drama sold to Jiangsu TV and aired, wouldn't Bai Yue'er become a star?
His first reaction wasn't joy but concern. Since their argument, his relationship with Bai Yue'er had become delicate—neither close nor distant. Occasionally, she'd agree to meet him but wouldn't stay long before returning to her dorm.
Shi Xiangming disliked their current state but had no good way to improve it. He knew there was a gap between them. A girl as outstanding as Bai Yue'er wouldn't have been engaged to him if not for the bride price her father received from his family.
So, he didn't want Bai Yue'er to become a star, but he couldn't stop it. All he could do now was wait. As long as her father was around, they could marry after graduation.
Xu Xiuwen, still excited, quickly texted Cheng Lu about the news. Cheng Lu replied with just one sentence, "I want to go too tomorrow."
Xu Xiuwen was puzzled and asked, "Why do you want to go?"
Cheng Lu replied, "I don't trust you. What if you get cheated?"
Realizing she was worried, Xu Xiuwen wanted to reassure her but then thought it wouldn't hurt for her to come along, so he agreed.
"Alright, you can come with me tomorrow."
Cheng Lu immediately responded, "Hehe, I didn't expect my pig to have such skills, selling a drama to the provincial TV station."
Feeling even more proud, Xu Xiuwen replied, "I'm very capable. Don't you want to know how much I spent on the drama and how much I earned from writing?"
Xu Xiuwen hadn't had the chance to tell Cheng Lu about his earnings. As expected, Cheng Lu asked, "Then hurry up and tell me. Don't keep it from me."
Xu Xiuwen briefly summarized how he wrote novels and earned money to fund the drama, then sent the message to Cheng Lu.
She didn't reply for a long time. Xu Xiuwen stared at his phone, wondering about Cheng Lu's expression—excited, happy, or proud?
After about five minutes, Cheng Lu's message arrived.
"My pig is very capable, earning a lot of money, but not very smart."
Xu Xiuwen immediately asked, "How am I not smart?"
Cheng Lu explained, "You earned over a million from writing and invested it all in the drama. You call that smart? What if the drama didn't turn out well? Your money would have been wasted."
Xu Xiuwen retorted, "I earned more than 1.5 million from my last book. That over a million wasn't a big deal."
"You're not smart. You hadn't written the last book yet, and you said you were worried about not having enough money, so you wrote another one. What if the last book didn't do well and you couldn't earn enough? You'd fail on both fronts. I couldn't manage you before, but now, if you want to do anything, you must tell me."
Xu Xiuwen couldn't tell her he was reborn, with a head full of classic novels, dramas, and movies. Whatever he wrote would succeed. Moreover, Cheng Lu was concerned for him, and Xu Xiuwen appreciated that.
He replied, "Got it. You're my good wife, giving me advice."
Cheng Lu typed, "Who's your good wife? If you want to marry me, you must get past my parents first."
"With my ability to make money, you're worried I can't win over your parents?"
Cheng Lu thought seriously about it and found it made some sense. Although she was rational and not blinded by love, her parents' approval was the biggest challenge between them. Fortunately, they had four years before needing to worry about that.
But now knowing Xu Xiuwen was particularly good at making money, she felt more confident about their future.
Cheng Lu couldn't help but smile. As the dorm lights were off, she quickly stopped herself, lowered her head, and typed on her phone.
"Xu Xiuwen, do you want to marry me?"
"Yes! A thousand times yes! Ten thousand times yes!" Xu Xiuwen responded without hesitation.
Seeing his message, Cheng Lu thought, if only Xu Xiuwen were in front of her now, she'd rush to hug him and kiss him herself.