Chapter 9

Hansel glanced at the zoo's signboard, utterly baffled but also deeply impressed. "Wait, you went to the zoo… and left with animals?"

"I didn't bring them in—I bought them. These are the chickens they feed to the tigers. At the market, one chicken costs eleven bucks. But since these are for feeding their tigers, they sell them at half price."

"Then… why didn't you feed them to the tigers?"

Kane's eyes flashed with indignation. " I got these half-price chickens with my skills. Why the hell should I feed them to the tigers?"

Hansel opened his mouth, hesitated for a moment, then muttered, "Isn't this basically scamming the zoo?"

"Cut the crap. Do you want it or not?"

"Of course I do—I love chicken!"

Hansel took the chicken from Kane, gripped its neck, and gave it a look. His expression turned complicated.

He could already picture the scene at the zoo when the keepers did their inventory checks, trying to reconcile the numbers:

The tiger's like, 'I didn't eat it, you dumbass! Stop framing me!

The keeper snaps, Quit whining—it's obviously you who ate it!

The tiger retorts, Oh, so you steal my chicken and blame me? I swear I didn't eat it.

The keeper grumbles, If you didn't eat it, did the dog eat it then?

"Kane, why'd you go to the zoo just to buy chickens?"

"I'm planning to buy them in bulk at half price, sneak them out, and sell them at the market for ten bucks each. I'd double my profit with every sale."

"Then why did you only buy two?"

"I sized up the security guard at the gate. He looked pretty tough. I don't think I could take him in a fight. That's why I called you—to test his combat skills."

"Hold on, Kane. I'm a total coward. I stutter even when I curse someone out, let alone fight!"

"Useless. All you care about is eating!"

Kane stuffed his chicken into a plastic bag, twisted open his water bottle, and took another sip.

Opportunistic schemes like this were quick ways to make money, but he knew better than to rely on them. He didn't want trouble; he just wanted to earn money standing tall. Besides, petty tricks like this were far beneath the grand goals he'd set after being reborn.

Standing up, Kane handed his chicken to Hansel, asking him to take it home. Then he hopped on his bike and headed to his next stop—Jade Isle City Library.

Lately, he'd been racking his brain for a way to earn his first pot of gold, but nothing seemed to work.

Damn it. Life's really tough without a cheat system.

Still, even with no clear plan, he refused to just sit at home. Laziness breeds more laziness—that was one of life's harsh truths he'd learned from his past life. So he decided to hit the library, maybe there's a golden house hidden in these pages.

"How to Become the Charismatic Man Rich Women Love"

"Effective Opening Lines When Meeting a Sugar Mama"

"15 Gentlemanly Traits That Attract Wealthy Women"

"The Glamorous Transformation of the Third-Generation Monk"

"Successful Case Studies of Dating Rich Women"

Kane Brook picked out a few books from the humanities and social sciences section, planning to study them carefully.

To be honest, given his current situation, he felt the only shortcut to earning his first bucket of gold was to latch onto a rich woman. A young man, strong and energetic, working hard to make money wasn't something to be ashamed of.

With a stack of books in his arms, Kane headed to the reading area. But before he could sit down, his gaze was suddenly drawn to a corner in the southeast.

There sat a young girl, wearing a fitted long dress. The small section of her arm resting on the table was fairer than snow, her eyes lively like water beneath thick lashes, her lips rosy and full, and her silky long hair cascaded over her shoulders, gleaming like pearls under the sunlight.

She was engrossed in a thick book, flipping through its pages with flickering eyes, her demeanor serene and well-behaved.

Kane froze for a moment, as if some distant memory had been triggered.

Nancy Foster—the top student from Class 1, Grade 12, a silent, aloof beauty, the true "white moonlight" of Southgate High School.

Rumor had it she was chauffeured to and from school in a car with wings, accompanied by a dedicated driver and bodyguards. Her family background was shrouded in mystery.

Some said her dad was an international tycoon, others claimed she was an exiled princess from Beijing's hidden aristocracy, and there were even whispers that she was an illegitimate child hidden from public view. The stories varied, but none seemed credible.

Yet Nancy Foster undeniably carried the air of a wealthy heiress—distant, cold, and friendless. Aside from answering questions in class, she'd never spoken a word to anyone.

It was precisely this frosty demeanor, coupled with the intimidating presence of her burly bodyguards, that kept her countless admirers from ever daring to confess their feelings.

Sophie Chase was the embodiment of many people's youth, but even she paled in comparison to Nancy Foster.

During his university days, Kane had met plenty of girls who could rival Sophie Chase in charm, but Nancy Foster remained an unforgettable figure who always left him awestruck whenever he thought of her.

Lu Xun wasn't lying—there truly were beauties hidden within the pages of books.

Although… was that really something Lu Xun said?

Kane thought about it but didn't care. As far as he was concerned, If I can't remember who said it, let's just assume it was Lu Xun. Problem solved.

At that moment, Nancy Foster seemed to sense his gaze. She lifted her eyebrows slightly and glanced his way.

The instant their eyes met, her lashes fluttered ever so subtly before she quickly refocused on her book.

Now that's some next-level coldness.

Kane gave her an honest evaluation, then stepped forward and sat at the table across from her.

Reading could be dull. When it got hard to concentrate, stealing glances at a beautiful girl wasn't a bad way to take a break. Reading is for making money, staring at beauties is to make reading bearable—at the end of the day, they're just tools. At the end of the day, they were both tools, perfectly aligned with his money-above-all-else philosophy.

He pulled out a book and set it in front of him, his gaze inadvertently drifting to the one in Nancy Foster's hands—"Mystic Eyes: Peggy Sue."

Huh?

Shouldn't a girl with such an icy, sophisticated aura be reading something like Kafka on the Shore, the kind of novel with an artsy, intellectual vibe?

Why was she reading a fantasy adventure book aimed at a younger audience?