Chapter 9: Work

The school bell had barely rung when...

In the mess hall...

Zhang Yu, Zhou Tianyi, and Bai Zhenzhen were seated together, partaking in their evening meal.

Bai Zhenzhen, as was her wont, remained taciturn, a glacial expression on her face as she steadily decimated the mountain of food before her.

Zhou Tianyi, casting a sidelong glance at Zhang Yu, remarked, "Your recent financial situation appears to be rather dire."

"Is it that obvious?"

Zhang Yu was momentarily taken aback, wondering if the debt collectors had already started harassing his classmates. Was his seventy-thousand-yuan debt about to become public knowledge in the school?

Zhou Tianyi, his gaze shifting from Bai Zhenzhen's opulent dinner, a veritable feast of chicken, duck, and fish, to Zhang Yu's humble five-yuan pauper's platter, stroked his chin thoughtfully.

"Based on my meticulous three-month observation of the canteen's ecosystem, a person's choice of repast is a reliable indicator of their economic standing, nay, even their cultivation prowess, during that period," he declared.

"For instance, a cultivator who devours ten jin of food in one sitting would never deign to share a table with one who merely consumes three jin."

"For they are not of the same stratum, occupying opposing ends of the campus's food chain."

"So, you noticed how little I'm eating." Relief washed over Zhang Yu; he had feared his identity as a super-pauper was about to be exposed.

Turning to Bai Zhenzhen, his gaze fixed on the dozen or so chicken drumsticks nestled within her rice bowl, he inquired with a hint of curiosity, "Ah Zhen, those drumsticks look quite unique. Might I trouble you for a taste of one?"

Without so much as a glance, Bai Zhenzhen retorted, "Scram."

Zhou Tianyi, chuckling softly, plucked a duck leg from his own bowl and extended it toward Zhang Yu. "Zhenzhen's been exerting herself greatly today; one can tell she's ravenous. Try mine instead."

"Good brother!" Zhang Yu exclaimed, giving Zhou Tianyi a thumbs-up before seizing the duck leg and devouring it with gusto.

Watching Zhang Yu's ravenous consumption, Zhou Tianyi offered with a gentle smile, "Should you find yourself in financial straits, I could lend you a bit."

Zhang Yu waved his hand dismissively. "No need, I'll manage on my own."

Despite being buried under a mountain of debt, Zhang Yu had no intention of borrowing money from his classmates. Moreover, such a loan would hardly suffice to alleviate his seventy-thousand-yuan burden. He needed a sustainable method of earning and repaying.

"At the very least, I must cover the monthly interest to prevent the collectors from escalating their tactics."

Zhang Yu understood that as his delinquency dragged on, the collection agency's methods would only become more aggressive, escalating from online harassment to real-world intimidation, each step more menacing than the last.

"And then there's the rent, utilities, food..."

Thinking of all that, Zhang Yu felt a headache brewing.

After Zhou Tianyi had departed, Bai Zhenzhen suddenly spoke, "Based on my three-month observation of you and Zhou Tianyi, he is exceptionally kind to you."

Zhang Yu: "Is he?"

Bai Zhenzhen chuckled darkly. "A man smiling as he offers the duck leg from his own bowl to another man… In my sixteen years, I've only witnessed such a thing under two circumstances."

"One, they are father and son."

"The other… hehehehe…"

Zhang Yu raised an eyebrow. "Ah Zhen, you certainly peruse a diverse array of content."

Bai Zhenzhen: "Yu-zi, you needn't be afraid. Within these hallowed halls, you wield the true initiative."

With that, Bai Zhenzhen shoved her tray toward Zhang Yu, "Alas, I find myself unable to consume further. These scraps shall be your reward, for who am I to deny my beloved son?"

"Scram." Zhang Yu swiftly snatched the tray, his gaze immediately drawn to the meticulously arranged, untouched remnants of the meal.

As Zhang Yu raised his head to express his gratitude, he found only Bai Zhenzhen's retreating figure disappearing from the mess hall.

Outside the cafeteria, Bai Zhenzhen's demeanor once more turned placid. In her heart, she mused, "Yu-zi, there exists yet a third circumstance under which such a thing occurs."

Bai Zhenzhen turned her gaze toward the steps leading to the cafeteria entrance, where a mess hall auntie was pouring leftover food from a swill bucket into a bowl for a stray cat.

……

Leaving the school, Zhang Yu commenced his search for avenues of income.

"My rent is fifteen hundred, utilities are roughly two hundred each month, and the loan requires fifteen thousand in monthly payments..."

"Hiss…"

Thinking of this, Zhang Yu's head throbbed once more.

"I need to earn at least twenty thousand each month. A conventional job is clearly insufficient."

As Zhang Yu's thoughts coalesced, the Jade Tome unfolded before him.

Zhang Yu

Dao Heart: Level 1

Mana: 7.7

Physical Strength: Level 0.84

Martial Arts: Thirty-Six Forms of Body Strengthening Level 2 (17/20), Loose Hand Level 1, Basic High School Swordsmanship Level 0

Daoist Arts: Basic Breathing Method Level 1, Basic Heart Refining Method Level 1

Spotting the newly appeared "Basic High School Swordsmanship Level 0," Zhang Yu's mind flashed back to the day's martial arts class.

The so-called martial arts class was a course devoted to the study of various combat techniques and martial arts, with practical combat accounting for a hefty 80 points out of the total 100.

High school freshmen were required to master a martial art for unarmed combat and a weapon-based martial art.

The Basic High School Swordsmanship was precisely what he had learned in the day's martial arts class. However, perhaps due to his failure to truly master it, it still showed as Level 0.

But after a brief experiment, Zhang Yu discovered that this "Basic High School Swordsmanship Level 0" could also be dragged.

He estimated that if he specialized in this martial art, he could rapidly master and level it up based on his potential.

With these thoughts flashing through his mind, Zhang Yu continued to stare at his stats panel, pondering what kind of work he could do.

"Although I have only recently embarked on the path of cultivation, I am, after all, a formal student of Songyang High School..."

A moment later, Zhang Yu began contacting his former tutoring center via his phone.

Previously, Zhang Yu had enrolled in this tutoring center for a year after graduating junior high school before entering Songyang High School.

"The income from such tutoring centers should be decent. And since I am a formal student of Songyang High School, I should have an advantage."

However, after his inquiry, the teacher at the tutoring center informed him that they were fully staffed and suggested he try other tutoring centers.

Thus, Zhang Yu began contacting other tutoring centers.

"Hello, I would like to be a part-time tutor. I am a senior high school student at Songyang High School..."

"Where did you graduate from elementary school and junior high school, respectively?"

"No, I'm already a formal student at Songyang High School!""Apologies, it's just that there are quite a few tutors with key high school diplomas, and parents tend to heavily favor the first and second academic qualifications before high school when it comes to hiring a part-time tutor who is still a freshman like you."

After learning about Zhang Yu's elementary and junior high schools, the other party stopped replying.

After repeating the above conversation five or six times, Zhang Yu gradually understood.

"Damn it!"

"Are first and second academic qualifications really that important?"

"Has the competition for tutoring jobs become this fierce?"

Zhang Yu felt as though his elementary and junior high school diplomas were like two unsightly brands, deeply imprinted on his face, making it incredibly difficult to even find a part-time tutoring job.

Thus, Zhang Yu had to temporarily abandon the tutoring route and try another backup plan.

"I can only try odd jobs for now."

Regarding the path of odd jobs, the original Zhang Yu had actually gained some understanding in the three months since school started.

Of course, these temporary jobs weren't the kind of temporary labor that ordinary people sought. Rather, they were temporary jobs sought by those who had already embarked on the path of cultivation.

High school students made up a considerable portion of this group. After all, not every high school student was a rich young master. A significant number of high school students needed to earn money themselves to ease the burden on their families or to buy things they wanted.

And because high school students didn't have high school diplomas and mostly needed to attend classes, they could often only take on temporary jobs.

Zhang Yu had learned a bit about this in the past few days, and he immediately contacted an agent to ask if there were any jobs available.

"You're asking too late. Today's jobs have already been taken."

"Why don't you wait here? You can grab a new job as soon as it comes up."

...

Half an hour later, Zhang Yu arrived at a small plaza.

From a distance, he saw many people scattered across the plaza, sitting or lying down. These people were of all ages and genders. Some were casually lying on the ground, taking a nap, while others were wearing school uniforms and practicing their breathing exercises.

Following the address provided, Zhang Yu found a human resources company in the corner of the plaza.

The company wasn't large. The storefront looked like a real estate agency, with dirty glass covered in various crude job postings.

After taking a look at the old sign, Zhang Yu pushed the door open and was immediately hit by a strong smell of smoke, causing him to furrow his brow.

Behind a messy desk, a middle-aged man smoking a cigarette looked up and said, "Are you the high school student who just inquired?"

Seeing Zhang Yu nod, the man introduced himself as Old Wang, the agent here. He took out a few sheets of paper and said, "Fill out this resume, and I'll register you later."

Zhang Yu took it and saw that in addition to some personal information, he also had to fill in the martial arts techniques and levels he had learned, as well as his grades in school.

After handing the completed form to Old Wang, Zhang Yu asked, "How long does it usually take to find a job? What's the pay like?"

Old Wang scratched his messy hair and casually said, "The minimum is a few hundred yuan per hour... but it's hard to say how long it will take to find one. If you're unlucky, it's normal to go a week without any work."

Zhang Yu thought, "The pay for these jobs is so high? If that's the case, working two or three hours a day would be enough to pay off my loans and cover living expenses!"

Thinking of this, Zhang Yu was overjoyed.

But then he heard Old Wang say that jobs were hard to find, so he asked curiously, "Why is that?"

He emphasized his identity, "I'm in the top ten of my freshman class at Songyang High School. Is it really that difficult for me to find something?"

Old Wang smiled and pointed outside, saying, "Do you see those people in the plaza? Aside from high school students like you, the rest are all high school graduates."

Zhang Yu was shocked, then disbelieving, "How is that possible? They graduated high school, they're cultivators, why are they looking for temporary jobs here?"

Old Wang shrugged, "They didn't get into college. Not every high school student can get into college."

"If you don't get into college, you'll be stuck in the Qi Refining Stage for the rest of your life, unable to ascend to the second level of Kunxu. You can only wander around on this first level year after year..."

Zhang Yu was still puzzled, "Then they could find a full-time job on the first level, why are they doing temporary work?"

Old Wang explained, "They don't need to sleep. They finish their day jobs, and if their company doesn't have overtime, they come here to find some temporary work."

"Otherwise, how would they pay off their loans? How would they have enough money to maintain their cultivation?"

Old Wang's words stirred up a wave of emotions in Zhang Yu's heart. He didn't remember high school graduates being this hardworking.

He thought that after graduating from high school, even if you didn't get into college, you'd be sitting in an office in a skyscraper in the city center, enjoying air conditioning and drinking tea, earning a decent salary...

But damn, studying 24 hours before graduation, working 24 hours after graduation, suffering more and more, huh?

Old Wang looked at Zhang Yu's resume and laughed, "Oh, Songyang High School, so we're alumni. I also went to Songyang High School, but I dropped out in my junior year."

Zhang Yu asked, "Dropped out?"

Old Wang shrugged, "Couldn't get into college, so I figured I'd just not waste the money. I only just finished paying off the loans I took out in high school the year before last."

"Seeing as we're alumni, I'll give you a piece of advice."

"Do what you can in high school. If you don't think you can get into college, drop out early, lest you end up like some people, owing too much debt and ruining your life."

After Zhang Yu filled out the forms, Old Wang told him to wait outside and that he would notify him as soon as there was a job available.

Zhang Yu asked, "Competing with those high school graduates, will I even get a chance at a job?"

Old Wang said, "Don't worry, some jobs are specifically for high school students."