Jiang Ruotang felt he could pull off a “borrowing arrows with straw boats” scheme. As for the straw boats… of course, that would be the resources of Cheng Tan in his hands.

Lin Chengdong received news from Geng Yu’s father: apparently, the higher-ups had earmarked a plot of land to build a large building there, and that area was expected to become extremely valuable within the next decade. 

Lin Chengdong immediately set out to investigate the area and discovered it was the fishponds of Hejia Village. 

The young adults of this village felt that fish farming was too slow to make money, so they had all left Cheng Tan. The ponds were originally going to be abandoned, but over a month ago, someone bought the entire area. 

He didn’t know if they planned to restart the fish farming business.

Further inquiry revealed that these extensive fishponds had been purchased by a Mr. Zheng, so he tried to contact him, willing to pay 30% more to buy that area of fishponds. And this Mr. Zheng was Zheng Huasheng.

Upon receiving the news, Zheng Huasheng immediately informed Jiang Ruotang and asked him: “With an additional 30%, you can also earn 2.4 million yuan. Will you sell?”

Jiang Ruotang thought for a while, “Mr. Zheng, let’s talk tonight?”

Mr. Zheng knew he was going to bring up Little Sweet Fruit again. Although he didn’t agree with it, he thought about how advanced and accurate this child’s predictions for Cheng Tan’s development were. Perhaps regarding the direction of media industries like Little Sweet Fruit, Jiang Ruotang, as a younger generation than Zheng Huasheng, might have more foresight and judgment.

“Alright, then let’s talk,” Mr. Zheng said while playing with his pet bird. “I haven’t had a drink in a long time either, little friend Ruotang, where would you like to have dinner?”

“Then let’s go somewhere trendy.” Jiang Ruotang sent Zheng Huasheng the address of a restaurant popular for young people’s dates.

Since it wasn’t for business, Zheng Huasheng didn’t have Lu’s father drive him, but took a taxi himself. 

The restaurant’s environment and atmosphere were very romantic, with a medieval style, antique pendulums, elaborate display stands holding various sculptures and knight armor models, and rose vines climbing up trellises to separate the dining tables, all very thoughtfully designed.

Mr. Zheng leaned on his cane, following the waiter, and as he walked, he saw young couples taking photos with their phones, some even cosplaying as princesses and knights to film videos. Mr. Zheng watched these young people with great interest, as if passing through one small world after another.

Jiang Ruotang chose a seat by the floor-to-ceiling window, from which he could see the electronic screen of the Jinshang MALL Twin Towers, playing an advertisement for an animated film. Below the building, many young people were taking photos with the movie scenes, and even at the table next to them in the restaurant, someone was calling out anime character names and posing for “empty-space” photos. Mr. Zheng clearly stood out in this atmosphere, yet he enjoyed observing these young people, as if he himself was becoming younger.

Jiang Ruotang arrived, still wearing his Beicheng Guangyao school uniform. He sat opposite Mr. Zheng and said with a chuckle, “Uncle Zheng, isn’t this place quite interesting?”

Zheng Huasheng laughed, “You think I don’t know why you asked me to come here?”

“Oh, why?” Jiang Ruotang propped his chin, smiling, his eyes crescent-shaped like a little fox.

“You want me to see young people’s reliance on their phones. They not only use phones to take pictures, but also to record videos. They put on makeup and nice clothes for these videos, and probably do special effects and editing later. Of course, they won’t be satisfied with just posting them where only their friends can see; they need a bigger stage. Little Sweet Fruit is a place like that.”

“Mm.”

“While waiting for food, they’ll also use their phones to watch TV shows. Although I’m not sure if they’re legitimate, it shows that phones have become a more convenient mobile entertainment facility than computers,” Zheng Huasheng replied.

“Hehe. Now it’s still a bit troublesome for everyone to open web pages and adapt to phone screens. Where there’s a market, there will be development. I think many video websites are already developing applications to adapt to mobile interfaces. And these applications might be something pirated websites don’t have the financial resources to develop or the channels to list.”

Zheng Huasheng smiled, “It seems you’ve done a lot of homework to convince me.”

“Little Sweet Fruit currently has 520,000 active users. According to user surveys, half of the users are willing to pay an annual fee to keep Little Sweet Fruit alive. Assuming an annual fee of 60 yuan, which is only 5 yuan per month, that would generate over 15 million yuan in membership revenue. Even if the remaining 260,000 users are unwilling to support copyrighted animation or TV dramas, as long as they still use Little Sweet Fruit to post videos sharing their lives and opinions, they still have value—the website can also sell ads, and they are still contributors to clicks.”

Zheng Huasheng showed no emotion, but his heart was already 30% convinced by Jiang Ruotang.

“Furthermore, the two major video websites are cultivating and establishing legitimate consumption habits for users. When industry giants do this, more and more followers will emerge, meaning legitimate charging will gradually become the mainstream of online society. It will be an inevitable trend for Little Sweet Fruit to collect membership fees as well.”

Zheng Huasheng lowered his head and took a sip of tea. He was already 50% convinced by Jiang Ruotang.

“As for the later investment in introducing copyrights, it doesn’t necessarily have to come from me, the major shareholder. We definitely need to bring in more partners.”

“Anything else?” Zheng Huasheng asked again.

“And… the most important point… Uncle Zheng, I believe you’ve also felt it, TV stations are gradually losing their influence among young people. And platforms like Little Sweet Fruit will replace TV stations, gradually becoming the primary clients for TV dramas, variety shows, and even movies, gaining decisive power in the entertainment industry.” Jiang Ruotang looked into Zheng Huasheng’s eyes and said, “We need to act first.”

Just then, their ordered dishes arrived. They were some creative dishes Zheng Huasheng had never heard of. Although the taste was somewhat indescribable, their presentation made Zheng Huasheng very curious. The point about industry discourse power convinced Zheng Huasheng by 70%.

“I will contact the founder of Little Sweet Fruit and also find a professional team to analyze their user base to see if it can achieve the effect you want. As for the funding, are you sure about selling those fishponds? That’s the largest fishpond in Cheng Tan.”

Jiang Ruotang smiled, “Only making 30% profit? Of course not selling. Mr. Lin Chengdong is very rich; we have to make him loosen his purse strings.”

Zheng Huasheng found it amusing, “He’s your father’s friend. I thought you’d give him a friendly price.”

“There’s no friendship between him and me.” Jiang Ruotang raised his eyes, a rare chill in his gaze towards Zheng Huasheng.

Zheng Huasheng had actually heard of Lin Chengdong’s style of doing things before. This person wasn’t very ethical. Originally, out of respect for Director Jiang, Zheng Huasheng didn’t want to go too far, but since Jiang Ruotang said he wanted to make him bleed, Zheng Huasheng naturally had to manage it well.

“Alright, the eight million yuan you used to buy those fishponds will be your capital investment in Little Sweet Fruit. No more than that.” Although Zheng Huasheng agreed with Jiang Ruotang’s concept, everything was Jiang Ruotang’s speculation, and no one knew what the future would hold. Any venture capital investment must have limits, and Jiang Ruotang hired him to manage the company precisely to be the one who controls the risk.

“Mm, I trust you, Uncle Zheng.”

Zheng Huasheng added, “This dish isn’t tasty.”

Jiang Ruotang covered his mouth and chuckled, “How about we have another meal downstairs at your place later?”

“That’s more like it.”

---

Jiang Ruotang’s vision was advanced, but in practical operation, the old ginger was spicier. Zheng Huasheng played it subtly, but he cranked up the price surge for Lin Chengdong.

First Kill: Mr. Zheng first used Lawyer Dai’s connections to release news that more and more capital was interested in the fishponds, and naturally, the price of the fishponds soared. Lin Chengdong’s initial offer of 10.4 million yuan was already surpassed by a big shot offering 15 million yuan in less than a week. Lin Chengdong was fuming with a headache. When he approached Mr. Zheng, he clearly stated he wanted to develop aquaculture, and never mentioned the provincial government’s plans. How did it spread everywhere? For this, Lin Chengdong even confronted Geng Yu’s father, suspecting that the Geng family had leaked the news, which led to Geng Yu’s father getting very angry with Lin Chengdong.

“I’m not the only secretary around the leader. Even if I didn’t say anything, it doesn’t mean other secretaries wouldn’t leak it, nor does it mean the leader wouldn’t say it himself! If you’re unwilling to spend the money, then don’t get involved in this!” Lin Chengdong apologized for half an hour to appease the Geng family’s anger. He had been in the entertainment industry for so long; 15 million yuan wasn’t a huge sum to him, but the sudden, much higher price than expected made Lin Chengdong uncomfortable.

Double Kill: Just as Lin Chengdong decided to take down the fishponds, Mr. Zheng informed him that someone had already bid 20 million yuan! Lin Chengdong’s forehead veins throbbed. Who was competing with him for the fishponds? Who knew, in the elevator, he overheard Jiang Huaiyuan on the phone with Zhao Yunshu: “20 million yuan is nothing. If the higher-ups ultimately don’t acquire this land, we’ll just raise fish. It’s said that aquaculture is quite profitable now. Whitefish from Chengjiang can sell for hundreds of yuan per fish in other provinces!”

Lin Chengdong genuinely felt like strangling Jiang Huaiyuan. He never expected Jiang Huaiyuan to be causing him trouble!

“Huaiyuan, are you buying fishponds?”

“Ah, yes. Do you know the Cheng Tan area? Yunshu has a university classmate who works in financial budgeting for the new district planning team. It’s said that the higher-ups are going to designate that area as a new economic development zone. Hejia Village in Cheng Tan is pretty good; the offices might even be built there. Yunshu went to take a look, and that village has a large area of fishponds! While everything is cheap there, it’s a good idea to buy and hold them.”

Jiang Huaiyuan had a “I listen to my wife for everything” look, making Lin Chengdong wonder, what was this? Was it the luck of fools? So, was it Zhao Yunshu who raised the price of the fishponds to 20 million yuan? Lin Chengdong’s personality was such that he could give up the fishponds, but he absolutely wouldn’t let Jiang Huaiyuan get them cheaply! So, he bid 23 million yuan, stating that anything higher was impossible, and gave Mr. Zheng only three days to consider, after which the offer would expire.

Mr. Zheng asked Jiang Ruotang, “Is 23 million yuan enough?”

Jiang Ruotang smiled, “Uncle Lin is very rich.” Not only was Lin Chengdong rich, but the big shots behind Lin Chengdong were also very rich.

Mr. Zheng thought for a moment, “Alright, let’s squeeze a bit more, there might be more.”

Triple Kill: When Mr. Zheng was young, he once served as a financial manager for a young man in the fishery industry. They had a good relationship, and this young man was now a wealthy aquaculture magnate. He specifically flew over to investigate. The water quality in Chengjiang was excellent, and the whitefish were delicious and had a market. The fishponds in Hejia Village were most suitable for raising whitefish. If managed well, they could be shipped directly from Chengjiang. Wasn’t this a one-stop service of aquaculture and transportation?

Therefore, three days later, Lin Chengdong was going crazy because the price of those fishponds had soared to 25 million yuan. It was said that not only that boss, but other large-scale aquaculture farmers were also planning to come and inspect Hejia Village’s fishponds, possibly to establish a whitefish aquaculture base. Lin Chengdong gritted his teeth and shouted 30 million yuan.

Upon hearing Mr. Zheng’s quote, Jiang Ruotang smiled, “That’s enough. Any more, and my Uncle Lin will truly be reluctant.” After all, he had lost so much money investing in Ark Mobile before, and he probably still owed loans to the bank. This 30 million yuan was likely all the cash flow Lin Chengdong and his friends, possibly including Bai Yingchuan’s mother, Bai Yue, could muster.

“Actually, if you wait for the provincial government to negotiate, you might get even more,” Mr. Zheng said.

“No, the office area chosen by the higher-ups is not there.” Jiang Ruotang lowered his eyes and smiled, “What if I told you I asked you to help me buy the fishponds in Hejia Village precisely because I wanted to wait for the right people to cooperate on whitefish farming?”

Although Mr. Zheng didn’t understand how Jiang Ruotang was so certain that the office area wouldn’t be chosen there, whitefish farming was indeed quite profitable.

“Uncle Zheng, don’t worry, investing this money in Little Sweet Fruit should be even more profitable than whitefish farming.”

Zheng Huasheng helplessly pinched the corner of his eye: “Since those big fish farmers are already here, I’ll take them to see the fishponds on the west side of Cheng Tan. Anyway, those are yours too. Instead of just leaving them idle, why don’t we cooperate and get rich together?”

“Okay, I’ll listen to Uncle Zheng.”

Bought for 8 million, sold for 30 million. In just over a month, he netted 22 million yuan. Jiang Ruotang was very satisfied with this return on investment. And he knew that if Lin Chengdong wanted to resell those fishponds for a price higher than 30 million, he would have to wait at least three to five years. However, the development of smartphones could make Little Sweet Fruit profitable at a faster rate. Comparing the two, Jiang Ruotang using Lin Chengdong’s money to operate Little Sweet Fruit… he was absolutely winning.

---

December 2025 arrived, and the results of the provincial art joint examination were released. When Jiang Ruotang checked his results, Jiang Huaiyuan, Zhao Yunshu, and Sister Juan stood behind him. Even Zhao Changfeng, who had just finished playing basketball, ran up panting, standing on his tiptoes at the back asking, “Are they out? Are they out? What score did you get?”

“What score did you get!” Jiang Ruotang really wanted to press the cactus on the windowsill onto Zhao Changfeng’s face.

Jiang Ruotang opened the official website of the provincial education examination authority, entered his examination ticket number and ID card. The page loaded, and the whole family was on edge. At that moment, Jiang Ruotang was too nervous to look, closing his eyes.

Five or six seconds passed, and then he heard Zhao Changfeng exclaim loudly, “My goodness! Miracles from great effort!”

Jiang Huaiyuan suddenly hugged Jiang Ruotang’s neck, “Son! Son, you’re amazing!”

Zhao Yunshu stroked Jiang Ruotang’s head: “Ruotang, look quickly! You really did well!”

Hearing this, Jiang Ruotang opened one eye. Sketch: 96, Color: 93, Quick Sketch: 95, Total Score: 284.

“Ow—” Jiang Ruotang shot up from his seat. With this score, he had one foot already across the threshold of a 985 university. In his major, he also felt more confident about taking the capital’s fine arts academy entrance exam.

At that moment, Jiang Ruotang was overwhelmed with emotion. He remembered in his previous life, how he, guided by Lin Lu, showed his sketchbook to Bai Yingchuan, and Bai Yingchuan’s disgust caused him intense psychological trauma, leading to fear whenever he picked up a paintbrush. In his previous life, his joint examination score was only 232, and coupled with his father’s accident, his academic performance was a mess, and he almost failed to get into university in the end.

“I am absolutely, absolutely, absolutely a genius.”

He had let it go for ten years, and picked it back up in three months.

“Go on, boast!” Zhao Changfeng, though verbally unsparing, immediately turned to show off to his teammates. “Do you know? My brother scored over 280 points in the art joint exam! He’s super amazing!”

“With this level, he’s absolutely got the capital’s fine arts academy entrance exam in the bag!”

“My brother will definitely become a painter in the future! The kind who holds exhibitions abroad!”

Jiang Ruotang and Zhao Yunshu followed behind him, exchanged glances, and then couldn’t help but chuckle.

“Zhao Changfeng, what about you?” Jiang Ruotang asked.

“Me? What about me?” Zhao Changfeng asked, looking puzzled.

“No news from Capital Sports University yet?” Jiang Ruotang asked.

“No coaches from Capital Sports Universityhave come to watch our games… After the New Year, when the national competition starts, I’ll definitely make those coaches in the capital look at me with new eyes!”

Seeing Zhao Changfeng so full of ambition, Jiang Ruotang was also very happy for him. Jiang Ruotang’s high score of 284 in the provincial joint examination immediately spread back to the school, and the grade office was filled with joy.