Chapter 126: Self-interest as the Core

  As the situation seemed to be deteriorating, Tan Shengge walked over and said, "We meet again." He stretched out his hand and shook hands with Li Xueyu, Yin Kuang and others, naturally exchanging pleasantries before saying, "Right, I forgot to introduce you all yesterday in the rush." Then he pointed to a boy beside him and said, "This is Bei Dao. Hmm...he's like our class strategist. Heh heh, the method of following the Grim Reaper's design was his idea."

  Still wearing a pair of reddish-brown glasses and silver headphones, the boy stretched out his hand and smiled: "Hello, I'm Bei Dao." He was holding out his hand to Yin Kuang. Yin Kuang shook hands with him and smiled: "Hello." Tan Sheng Ge, who was standing on the side, chuckled and said: "Yin Kuang, you and Bei Dao are both intellectual types, I think you two will have a lot of common topics to discuss in the future." Yin Kuang and Bei Dao exchanged a glance, nodded with a smile. While Zhu Tong, who was on the other side, said: "Are you done? Can we get started now?"

  "Haha, Zhu is really impatient. Since that's the case, let's not waste any more time. Finishing our task early and going back to sleep sounds much better than this troublesome job. By the way, Li Shuangmu, if you guys don't have enough manpower, there's no need to leave someone to guard the stairs, just hand it over to us."

  Zhu Tong was about to object, but Li Shuangmu had already beaten her to it, saying: "Obedience is better than respect." As she spoke, Li Shuangmu smiled and glanced at Zhu Tong, causing Zhu Tong's face to flush bright red. It turns out that Li Shuangmu sometimes has a bit of a petty side too.

  The crowd of people in Class 1237 walked along the corridor, some were nervous, some were excited, and some were silent. Suddenly, when they turned a corner, Yin Kuang and Li Shuangmu stopped at the same time. Bai Lü, who was eager to bully others, curiously asked: "What are you stopping for?" Yin Kuang and Li Shuangmu exchanged a glance, and Yin Kuang said: "It seems we've thought of the same thing again." Li Shuangmu smiled lightly and nodded, "You say it, or should I?" "I'll do it, how about that?" "Whatever you like."

  "Hey, hey, what are you two talking about?"

  Yin Kuang turned around and said, "Bai Jue, and everyone else, be honest with me, are you also thinking of using strong-arm tactics to extort academic points from the ordinary class?" As soon as Yin Kuang finished speaking, everyone looked at him in unison. Zeng Fei let out a sigh and said, "To be honest, I never really agreed with this matter. But I also know that we have no choice but to do it." Bai Jue was taken aback for a moment, seemingly understanding something, his face suddenly turned gloomy, "Yin Kuang, you'd better think carefully. If we don't extort their rewards, what will we give to Xiong Ba and the others? Do we have to use our own hard-earned rewards to hand over?" Yin Kuang rolled his eyes, "Do I look like a fool to you?" "Then what do you plan to do? Time is running out, stop beating around the bush and speak directly!" Bai Jue scratched his head and said.

  "Alright, I'll say it straight out," Yin Kuang said: "Later on, those who are willing to pay will pay, and those who aren't can do as they please." At this, not only Bai Jue's eyes widened, but everyone else's did too. Tang Rou then spoke up, saying: "Yin Kuang, don't you have a fever or something?" Wei Ming also chimed in, saying: "No need to think about it, of course they won't be willing to pay." Pan Longtao said: "Later on, we'll probably end up being laughed at." Wang Ning, who had been quietly following behind everyone without making a sound, let out a cold laugh. Yin Kuang then said: "Don't rush for now, just listen to me finish speaking, okay?"

  Everyone quieted down, and Yin Kuang continued: "Don't forget our main purpose this time. It's not about getting reward points, but to find some suitable people to join our class. Don't forget, our class only has 12 people, while the other two special classes have 30 each. In 20 days, there will be a class competition, and just from the number of people, we're already at a disadvantage. If we offend all the ordinary classes this time, who would still want to join us? Even if someone joins for the benefits of being in a special class, can we trust them? It's better to just stick with our 12 people."

  "But even if we don't offend them, can the people who come in be trusted?" Bai Jue asked. Yin Kuang said: "However, at least we have the initiative. As long as there is this common interest, we can unite together without absolute dead feuds and suspicions. There are risks, but we must take them." As he spoke, he glanced at Wang Ning, who snorted and shrugged with a keen sense of awareness. Then Yin Kuang said: "Moreover... if we can't hand over the full amount of rewards, even if the sophomores are dissatisfied, they won't move us. Because we are a special class, not only protected by the principal but also by the 'university tradition' that has been around for a long time. So, the sophomores can only directly ask the freshmen for rewards. And we? Nothing to worry about. At the same time, the more people who are oppressed, the more people will sharpen their heads and drill into our class 1237. What we need to do is just select the excellent ones to come in."

  Yin Kuang's move was even used by seniors in the second year of university. It's like a group of sheepdogs driving a flock of sheep into a pen, same principle.

  "That's not... harming the ordinary class people?" Just thinking about it, if the sophomores directly exploit the freshmen, they can definitely peel off a layer of skin from the freshmen. "Moreover, I don't think the sophomores will let it go so easily." Ouyang Mu looked at Yin Kuang and said. Yin Kuang shook his head and said: "Firstly, the right to choose is in the hands of the ordinary class people. If they pay the full amount of learning points, then there's nothing wrong. If they don't pay, it's their own fault. As for us who are in the middle, we may not be liked by both sides, but we are indeed the ultimate beneficiaries. Because we won't offend the freshmen, nor will we be bullied by the sophomores, and we can also successfully absorb some talents. Of course, our reputation won't be very good, but for the sake of survival, I don't care about my reputation."

  Bai Lian suddenly understood the connection and exclaimed, "Yin Kuang, you really dare to...!" Yin Kuang said, "There's nothing I don't dare to do. And there's one more important point, which is also the main reason why I dared to do this. Because Bai Lian, you have a third-year senior brother as your backing. And behind your brother, there's the student council president Chong Ming and the entire 'Wolf Association'. They can't directly take action to help us, but their influence is not to be underestimated. Tell me, how could those second-year students dare to offend us excessively because of some trivial matters? Why not make use of this good 'influence'?" Bai Lian was speechless. As it turned out, the fact that Bai Lian had a third-year senior brother in class 1237 was no longer a secret.

  "And those other two special classes..."

  "Why bother about them?" Yin Kuang curled his lips and smiled, "As long as we prioritize our own interests, that's all that matters. Let them endure the anger of being a first-year student! As for us? We'll just sit back and reap the benefits!" At this time, Li Shuangmu also spoke up, "Although this method carries great risks, the gains are also substantial. It's worth a try. Moreover, have you guys considered that if we really follow the usual approach, our only outcome would be to become tools for the second-year students to exploit, and to put it bluntly, dogs? And the other classes in the first year will inevitably harbor resentment towards us. Just look at Xiong Ba and Long Ming, they're like sworn enemies! Of course, most importantly, I, Li Shuangmu, will absolutely not be anyone's dog! Hmph!"

  “……”

  "But won't we lose a lot of learning opportunities?" Wei Ming asked. Yin Kuang smiled and said, "Those are just sesame seeds. Talent is the watermelon! No matter where you are, talent is always the most important resource, isn't it?"

  Tang Rouyu thought for a moment, then smiled slyly and said, "I agree with Yin Kuang's proposal." Tang Rouyu's words almost represented the stance of several girls. Adding Li Shuangmu and Yin Kuang, even if they held a democratic vote, it was already decided. Bai Jue gritted his teeth and said, "Let's do it! Damn it! Coming to this place, when wasn't it a gamble with our lives? Yin Kuang is right, I've always only thought about relying on myself, catching up, even surpassing my brother, but now that I think about it, not borrowing such a good 'opportunity' to benefit the class, I'm simply stupid. And being a dog and all that, it's really ugly, really hard to hear! Let's go for it!"

  Yin Kuang said, "Moreover, I have another idea. Isn't there a special class joint exam 20 days later? My proposal is that 10 days from now, we first conduct a 'mock exam' to earn rewards and hone ourselves while testing the new recruits who may join us. What do you think? Not taking advantage of the benefits of a 'mock exam' would be a waste!"

  Indeed, one of the benefits of being in a special class is the simulated exams. Although there isn't a clear main quest, you can receive many side quests and even hidden quests. Of course, this is on the condition that your charm value is high - precisely why Qianqian from Class 1237 has an abnormally high charm value! More importantly, "simulated exams" don't have any penalties for death. Such a good thing is hard to come by, even with a lantern in hand. No wonder special classes are stronger than ordinary ones.

  When everyone heard Yin Kuang's proposal, they couldn't help but nod in agreement.

  Now that things have been decided, it's much simpler to get started. Yin Kuang and the others were in charge of classes 1226 to 1235. When they walked into class 1226, under the gaze of everyone in the class, Li Shuang first gave a speech-like announcement: "Everyone, we are the special elite class 1237. According to past rules, each person must pay at least 200 points of academic credits, and each class must hand over at least 3 F-level evaluations. You have two choices: First, buy peace with money. Hand over the full amount of rewards to us, and nothing will happen. Second, refuse to pay. Then we'll leave immediately, but you'll have to bear the consequences yourselves, we won't be responsible. Also, our special elite class 1237 currently only has 12 people, which means there are still 18 empty spots in my class. I don't need to explain further, do I? Listen up, we only want the best. Elites! Understand? Those who are interested can go to building 33, male dormitory room 28... or 29 also works. So now, everyone, make your choice."

  ……