Chapter 15: A Heavy Message from Home

The dorm room was quiet.

Lin Feng perched on the edge of his bed, the system interface still lingeringfaintly on his phone screen. The lightof the BYD stock reward slowly faded as the window closed. He stared at the black screen for a bit, lost in thought.

For the first time since the start of the semester, he felt… stable.

Not desperate, not comfortable—but not secure either.

He opened his tattered notebook and turned to a clean page. His pencil skritched across the paper as he began to tally it all up.

[NET WORTH – LIN FENG]

Cash Balance: ¥7,940

Stock Holdings (BYD Co. Ltd – 1 Share): ¥205

Passive Income (upcoming): ~¥400–¥500/month from café investment

Total: ¥8,145

He looked at the numbers.

A month before, he was living offinstant noodles, counting coins to purchase clothes to wash, and quietlyskipping group meals and birthday invitations. Now—he had over eight thousand yuan in his bank account. It wasn't riches. Not yet. But it was the start of something.

If he managed it well, he could begin investing more loosely. Dabble in high-yielding stocks. Maybe even start a small side business on campus.

For the first time, he wasn't choking.

And then his phone buzzed.

[1 New Message – Mom]

"Feng'er, when you can, call home. It's urgent."

Sent: 7:21 PM

He stared at it. His mother did not text often. Never casually. Her words werealways gentle but guarded, the way rural parents were—loving but in silence, with worry.

He called immediately.

The ringtone buzzed twice before her voice came through.

"Hello? Feng'er?"

"Mom," he said. "What's wrong?"

She hesitated. And in that instant, Lin Feng felt the air become colder.

"It's your father," she said finally. "He… he fainted in the field yesterday."

His chest tightened.

"He's at the county hospital now. The doctor says it's his lungs again. They're keeping him for treatment this week."

He didn't say anything, letting her go on.

"They say the treatment and medicine will be around ¥8,000," she whispered. "The one in the village gave me a small discount, but… even so…"

She stopped.

She didn't need to.

They didn't have that kind of money. Not after the poor harvest last year. Not after they borrowed for his education just a few months ago.

She was waiting for him to volunteer to say it.

".I have it," Lin Feng said finally, voice low. "I'll send it tomorrow."

"Really?" she whispered, shaking. "Feng'er, don't put pressure on yourself—if you're having trouble—"

"I'm fine," he lied. "I've been saving."

There was a silence—a one of disbelief, relief, and quiet pride.

"We'll repay you, Feng'er. Slowly. Your father would never let you—"

"It's okay. Tell him to focus on getting better."

Emptying the Chest

He hung up and sat there in silence for a few minutes.

Then he opened his banking app and typed in the transfer amount.

¥8,000.

The figures glared up at him.

Confirm Transfer?

He hesitated.

Eight thousand.

All. Almost all of his progress, drained away in an instant.

And yet… what was the alternative?

Letting his father choke to death in some rural clinic?

He clicked confirm.

The screen went white for an instantbefore finishing the transfer.

Remaining balance: ¥145

Silence

The weight in his chest didn't go away.

If anything, it dug deeper.

The room began to chill again. Distorted shadows from the lightsoutside danced on the wall. Distant laughter of students far down the hallwas like a foreign language—like the world was moving forward and he was being left behind.

His eyes roamed to the BYD stock window still open on his console.

¥205, virtual funds. Not real until he sold all his shares.

That was all he had left.

From zero, to eight thousand, and back to zero.

But this time, there was a difference.

He lost the money—but he hadn't lost the knowledge, the momentum, or the system.

And that was what made all the difference.

New System Notification

At midnight, the system beeped once again.

[NEW QUEST – "Blood Runs Deep"]

Objective: Make a meaningful sacrifice for family.

Status: Completed.

Reward: Hidden Quest Chain Unlocked.

Bonus Reward: Gold-tier Stock Draw x1

Lin Feng blinked.

He hadn't expected a reward. He hadn't done it for that.

But now—having decided to help his father had set something deeper in motion within the system.

A golden icon began to turn on his screen.

[Click to Draw Gold-tier Stock]

He hesitated, then clicked.

The wheel rotated—faster than ever. Emitting with more sharp light.

It slowed, passed tech stocks, tourism, pharma… and landed on—

**[5 Shares – CATL (宁德时代新能源科技股份有限公司)]

Total Market Value: ¥1,280

His breath was taken.

CATL. A battery giant. A stock worthwatching.

This wasn't luck.

The system wasn't oblivious.

It paid for integrity. Sacrifice.

Lin Feng slowly smiled.

He was flat in cash again—but not broken.

The game was just beginning