Chapter 21: Seizing the Wind, Winning the Opportunity
Xincheng University, Dormitory 303
Fang Hong returned to his dormitory and retrieved a square-bottomed cash bag from his private locker. Inside were thirty-three bundles of hundred-yuan banknotes, each bundle containing no more than 10,000 yuan.
Knowing that today was the repayment deadline, Fang Hong had made an appointment with the bank in advance to withdraw the cash, as the lender insisted on a cash settlement.
Twenty minutes later, a knock sounded at the door.
Fang Hong opened it calmly, holding the bag in one hand. Standing outside were three young men, their appearances rough and unpolished. While their faces didn't explicitly label them as street thugs, the tattoos barely concealed beneath their sleeves suggested otherwise.
This was Xincheng University, a place of academia. They had likely chosen to appear restrained to enter the campus more smoothly.
Just as the tattooed man was about to step inside, Fang Hong blocked his path and said, "We'll settle it here. Do you have the IOU?"
The tattooed man raised an eyebrow, momentarily surprised by Fang Hong's directness. But what caught his attention even more was the phone in Fang Hong's hand—its screen openly displaying an active recording.
Fang Hong wasn't trying to hide it; he wanted them to see it.
The tattooed man's smirk faded as his expression darkened. "What do you mean by this?"
Fang Hong smiled, unfazed. "People's words can't always be trusted."
He knew this move carried the risk of provoking them, but he had chosen to handle the matter at the university for a reason. It was the start of a new semester, and students were frequently returning to campus. The likelihood of these men causing trouble in such a public place was low—they thrived in the gray areas, but even they had limits.
The tattooed man hesitated before his smirk returned, now tinged with amusement. He pulled out a folded piece of paper from his pocket. "This is the IOU. Now, where's the money?"
Fang Hong took the document, quickly verifying its contents against his memory, then unzipped the bag in his hand.
The tattooed man leaned in to take a look. Upon seeing the neatly bundled stacks of bright red banknotes, his eyes widened in shock.
"Where did you get this kind of money?" he asked, scrutinizing Fang Hong.
"That has nothing to do with our debt, does it?" Fang Hong replied calmly.
The tattooed man chuckled, seemingly impressed, and nodded. He handed over the IOU while simultaneously reaching for the money. His two companions stepped forward to count the bills.
After a moment, one of them confirmed, "Brother Li, it's all here—thirty-three bundles."
Hearing this, the tattooed man's demeanor shifted again. His previous hostility vanished, replaced by a warm smile, as if he had undergone a complete transformation.
"Brother, I don't know where you got this money, but in our business, credibility is everything. A debt repaid is a debt settled. If you ever need help in the future, you can always come to me," he said with a grin.
With that, he signaled to his companions, and the three of them left leisurely.
Fang Hong closed the dormitory door, tore the IOU into pieces, and tossed the scraps into the trash can. Gazing at the torn paper, he muttered to himself, "I hope this is the last of it. Otherwise…"
For him, settling the debt this way was the simplest and most efficient solution. In his eyes, 330,000 yuan was no different from 33 yuan. If a problem could be solved with 33 yuan, why waste time on unnecessary complications?
However, Fang Hong was well aware that just because he had paid off the debt, it didn't mean the matter was over. Greed was an inherent part of human nature. These men might see him as a potential source of easy money and try to push their luck further.
Still, he hoped this would be the end of it. He had no interest in wasting his energy on trivial matters like this.
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Outside the Dormitory
As the tattooed man and his companions walked away, he suddenly glanced back at the dormitory building.
After a moment's thought, he ordered, "Find out where that kid got all that money. We need to dig deeper. If he can pull out 330,000 yuan this easily, that means he's not at the end of his rope. There's more to squeeze from him."
A greedy glint flashed in his eyes. In this era, 330,000 yuan wasn't a small sum. More importantly, it hinted that Fang Hong likely had much more.
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Dormitory 303
About ten minutes after the debt collectors left, Fang Hong's phone rang. He glanced at the caller ID—Lin Ruoshui.
From his memories, he recalled that she was his girlfriend of one year. However, the two had been in a cold war for some time.
Without hesitation, he answered the call.
A crisp yet resentful voice came through the receiver: "Let's break up."
Fang Hong sat down at his desk, his expression calm. "Are you sure about that?"
The voice on the other end grew more agitated. "Do I need to think about it? Yes! I'm sure! We're breaking up!"
Fang Hong paused for a second before responding indifferently, "Alright, I agree."
Without another word, he hung up the call.
To him, this was a trivial matter, not something worth dwelling on. Right now, his mind was occupied with far more important concerns—specifically, his plans to establish a startup company once his roommates returned.
Last year, the iPhone's release had signaled the beginning of the mobile internet era. By 2011, Xiaomi's emergence would trigger an explosion in smartphone users across China, accelerating the rapid development of the mobile internet industry.
The window of opportunity was narrow—only two to three years at most. This was a golden period to seize the market.
Seizing the momentum, grasping opportunities, and staying ahead of the competition—those were the key.
Several of his roommates, including Xu Jingren, were eager to start a business. Fang Hong had already identified them as potential partners for his vision: forming a domestic tech startup.
With his guidance, they would establish a promising venture, and he would introduce Qunxing Capital as an angel investor to secure their first round of financing.
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Meanwhile, in the Girls' Dormitory
Lin Ruoshui sat in her dorm room, staring blankly at her phone.
She had returned to campus today, and after an entire vacation without a single message from Fang Hong, she had finally lost patience.
But things hadn't gone as she expected.
She had assumed that when she initiated the breakup, Fang Hong would panic—he would immediately try to explain himself, rush over to see her, and desperately beg for a second chance with countless apologies and promises.
Instead, he had barely responded. He hadn't even hesitated before agreeing, then coldly ended the call.
She was left stunned, at a complete loss.
Seeing her expression, her roommate and best friend, He Xuan, smirked and said, "Ruoshui, I think I get it now. Your boyfriend—oh, sorry, your ex-boyfriend—just played you. He wanted to clear himself of any responsibility."
Lin Ruoshui clenched her phone, her mind in turmoil.
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End of Chapter 21