Chapter 11: The School Heartthrob's Troubles

At the chip exchange counter, Chu Bai's face flushed with excitement, barely able to contain his emotions. He had just counted his chips and realized he had won 35,000 yuan. With this amount, his medical bills could be settled, and he'd still have a few thousand left as pocket money.

In fact, Chu Bai wanted to win even more, but his cautious nature made him worry about attracting unwanted attention. Despite his initial success, he had no intention of stopping. He was already planning to move to another casino to continue his winning streak. With his x-ray vision ability, casinos were nothing more than cash machines for him—getting rich was as easy as pie.

"I'm done playing, cash out all of these for me," Chu Bai said, handing his chips to the attendant. But before she could count them, seven or eight young men with unfriendly expressions surrounded him.

A scarred man approached as well, his voice cold and menacing: "Kid, you dared to cheat in my casino? You must have a death wish."

"Cheat? How did I cheat? Go ahead, show me how I did it!" Chu Bai retorted, though he felt a pang of guilt. He tried to keep his composure, knowing they wouldn't be able to prove he had cheated.

"That's my line," the scarred man sneered, signaling his men. "Tie him up."

"Screw you!" 

Chu Bai, who wasn't weak, realized the situation was turning bad. He swiftly kicked the scarred man in the groin, sending him to the ground. The other thugs were shocked and rushed to help their boss. The scene quickly descended into chaos.

Chu Bai threw a few more punches, knocking down two more of the men blocking his way, before making a dash for the exit.

"Boss, are you okay?" a group of the thugs hurried to pull the scarred man up. He was clutching his groin, his face contorted in pain. He hadn't expected such a brutal attack from a young man who looked to be under twenty.

"Chase him! Hurry up and catch that brat!" the scarred man roared. Just the fact that Chu Bai had cheated meant he'd have to lose a hand, but now, after being attacked, the scarred man was determined to take a leg as well.

---

In a corner of the street outside the casino, Wang Haoran sat in his Rolls-Royce Cullinan, watching as someone bolted out of the casino. The disheveled figure was none other than Chu Bai, with seven or eight men chasing after him, shouting threats. Before long, they all disappeared from view.

About five minutes later, the group of men returned empty-handed. It was clear that Chu Bai had managed to escape.

Wang Haoran wasn't surprised. "Even with his protagonist aura reduced, he's still the main character. No way he'd get caught so easily," he thought with a smirk.

[Ding! The host has successfully prevented the protagonist Chu Bai from earning his first bucket of gold. Chu Bai's protagonist aura -20, host's villain aura +20, and 200 villain points awarded.]

After all the effort, and spending 500,000 yuan, Wang Haoran was pleased with the result. He checked his status panel:

**Host: Wang Haoran**

**Combat Power: 89**

**Charm: 268**

**Villain Aura: 169**

**Villain Points: 500**

**Skills: None**

Wang Haoran was tempted to use his 500 villain points for a draw but decided against it. Spending all his points now would leave him with none in case he needed to check information on a potential heroine or important supporting character. It was better to save up a few hundred more points before trying his luck.

---

The rest of the weekend passed, with Wang Haoran keeping tabs on Chu Bai. After fleeing from the scar-faced man's casino, Chu Bai didn't dare visit any others, especially after the scar-faced man had alerted his peers. By Monday morning, Chu Bai was back in school.

Wang Haoran, whistling cheerfully, entered his classroom and found his desk drawer stuffed with letters. Opening a few, he discovered they were all love letters from female students confessing their feelings. This was one of the downsides of being the school heartthrob. But he couldn't deny the pleasure of reading them, knowing that each girl had poured her heart out, hoping to win his affection.

However, after skimming through a few, none of the girls stood out in his memory. Only one letter, unsigned, left a lasting impression. The handwriting seemed oddly familiar, though Wang Haoran couldn't place it immediately.

Without overthinking it, he read the unsigned letter and tossed it back into the drawer.

---

Meanwhile, Chu Bai also arrived at school, looking unusually troubled. It was clear something was weighing on his mind. Sensing this, Chen Zishi pulled Chu Bai aside for a private conversation.

"Did you win any money over the weekend?" Chen Zishi asked, a hint of worry in his voice.

"I was up by over 30,000, but something went wrong, and now... it's all gone," Chu Bai admitted, his face twisted in frustration.

"Weren't you bragging about guaranteed wins? What happened? And when are you going to pay back the 1,000 yuan you borrowed? I need it by the end of the month for Wen Jing's birthday gift!" Chen Zishi snapped, his anxiety rising.

"Don't worry, there's still time before Wen Jing's birthday. I'll find a way to pay you back," Chu Bai assured him.

"You'd better!" Chen Zishi grumbled, clearly displeased.

For men, feelings can come quickly, but they can just as easily lead to conflicts, especially when it involves women. Chen Zishi was deeply infatuated with Wen Jing, having spent over six months saving up 1,000 yuan, often skipping meals to save money. All this effort was to buy Wen Jing a decent birthday gift. If Chu Bai's actions ruined his plans, it was easy to imagine how angry and frustrated Chen Zishi would be.

---

"Boss, Chu Bai and Chen Zishi almost got into a fight," a lackey reported to Wang Haoran, who had instructed his men to keep an eye on Chu Bai and report any unusual activity immediately.

"What did they talk about?" Wang Haoran asked.

The lackey relayed the conversation between Chu Bai and Chen Zishi in detail.

"So, Chu Bai's 1,200 yuan starting capital included 1,000 yuan borrowed from Chen Zishi. They seem pretty close," Wang Haoran mused. "This Chen Zishi could be one of those important supporting characters from the protagonist's camp."

Based on the typical urban novel formula, most protagonists had a loyal, often chubby sidekick. Chen Zishi's appearance fit the bill perfectly.

"System, check Chen Zishi's details," Wang Haoran commanded, wanting to confirm his theory.

[Checking will consume 100 villain points. Proceed?]

"Yes."

The system quickly displayed the information:

**Important Supporting Character: Chen Zishi (Protagonist's Camp)**

**Combat Power: 69**

**Charm: 57**

**Supporting Character Aura: None**

**Skills: None**

"Just as I thought," Wang Haoran confirmed, then asked, "System, if I were to drive a wedge between the protagonist and his important supporting characters, would I gain villain points and aura?"

[Yes, such actions would disrupt the original storyline and reward you with villain points and aura.]

"Understood," Wang Haoran nodded to himself, beginning to plot.

Currently, there was some tension between Chen Zishi and Chu Bai, with the key issue being Wen Jing. This could be his angle of attack. But how to go about it?

Wen Jing...

As Wang Haoran pondered, something suddenly clicked. He picked up the unsigned love letter from earlier, and a smile played on his lips. No wonder the handwriting looked familiar—this was Wen Jing's handwriting!

She often left little study notes on her desk, and since Wang Haoran and Wen Jing often switched seats, he had seen her handwriting before.

"Secretly in love with me? That makes things much easier."