Chapter 153: Poor?

Long after that basketball match, people on the school bulletin board were still buzzing with discussion.

"I can't believe the Morning Star duo goes to our school! My younger sister is a huge fan of theirs! She insisted I get Ming Han's autograph."

"My cousin loves them too! Sounds like she shares your sister's interests. Should we set them up?"

"Get lost..."

Becoming famous overnight was quite a headache for Ming Han! He had originally just wanted to be a quiet, handsome guy.

Now, whenever he walked down the hallway, people would point at him and whisper, "Look, it's the basketball star! He's so handsome!"

"Yeah! Look at those charming eye bags of his!" a female student exclaimed.

"Big sister, those are aegyo-sal..."

Ming Han suddenly felt like a giant panda in a zoo, surrounded and critiqued by countless onlookers.

No, it was worse than being a panda! Pandas at least got bamboo supplied to them. He was just being consumed and commented on for free.

It's hard being a person, harder still being a celebrity, and even harder being a young boy who achieves fame early!

To Wang Zhimin, Ming Han's sigh sounded like blatant showing off.

*I am a man who yearns for the spotlight and the stage, but why is there no space for me to showcase my talents?*

"Ming Han, brother was born in the wrong era. A man as uniquely and exceptionally chubby as I am should have been born in the Tang Dynasty, where I would have been the absolute idol of thousands of maidens."

"And then you would have become the most expensive gigolo of the Tang Dynasty?" Ming Han's retorts were always piercingly accurate.

"Vulgarian!"

They were currently on their way to the cafeteria, and many adorable girls were casting sidelong glances at Ming Han.

At least in the days of our youth, the world still handed out VIP passes to handsome guys.

Feeling the scorching gazes all around, Wang Zhimin couldn't help feeling even more miserable. Ming Han's figure was clearly as thin as a monkey's—how could he possibly compete with that?

Had this entire society gone blind?

Plenty of unfamiliar female students would greet Ming Han, saying, "Junior, if you ever run into any trouble, just let me know! Helping out a junior is an older schoolmate's unshirkable responsibility."

"Senior sister, I have trouble," Wang Zhimin raised his hand.

Ignored entirely!

Wu Xinhai patted him on the shoulder. "Can't you tell yet, Brother Wang? The handsome ones are called 'juniors,' while guys like you are just addressed as 'that student over there.'"

"Crap!"

Just as Wang Zhimin finished speaking, a sophomore girl behind them impatiently said to him, "That student, move aside, please. I need to get through."

Wang Zhimin sidestepped, and once the girl passed, she enthusiastically said to Ming Han, "Junior, haven't you bought your lunch yet?"

"That student"? "Junior"? Wang Zhimin felt he could no longer study in peace at City No. 1 High School.

Wu Xinhai was laughing so hard he couldn't even stand straight!

...

As they were standing in line for food, a voice drifted over from behind, "Heh, a third-rate little star actually getting this much adoration. Looks like this place is still full of country bumpkins."

These remarks immediately drew a wave of hostility, yet no one dared to talk back.

Because the person who said this was Lin Zhengming. His father had donated a library to City No. 1 High School the year before last, and he himself served as the vice president of the student union.

City No. 1 High School placed great emphasis on student initiative and organizational skills. Many activities were handed directly to the student union for them to manage.

Consequently, members of the student union held a certain amount of authority within the school.

Ming Han turned around, glanced at Lin Zhengming, and said, "My, you've lost quite a bit of hair. You're well on your way to becoming a Mediterranean! You really need to take good care of your health!"

Ming Han wore an expression of deep concern, as if he genuinely cared about Lin Zhengming's physical well-being.

"You guys know each other?" Wang Zhimin asked.

Initially, seeing that the punk's tone was less than friendly, he had intended to throw a few barbs back. But now it seemed the guy might just be sharing a friendly little joke with Ming Han.

Ming Han nodded. "I saw him a few months ago. Back then, he was in the prime of his youth, a picture of elegance. Who would have expected..." Ming Han sighed, wearing a look of profound pity. "Time is a butcher's knife."

"Sigh!" Wang Zhimin walked over and, with a sympathetic gaze, said to Lin Zhengming, "Brother, don't be discouraged. Use more conditioner, and your hair will grow back."

Huh? Lin Zhengming was stunned! What on earth was going on?

"Ming Han, take this seriously," Lin Zhengming said, his face flushing with anger.

Ming Han spread his hands. "I am being serious! In fact, I've already started brainstorming solutions for you. I have a classmate studying at the City Vocational and Technical College, and apparently quite a few of his friends study cosmetology and hairstyling."

Wang Zhimin looked envious. "You can even do cosmetology? That's amazing!"

The two of them began discussing cosmetology and hair styling right there, getting completely engrossed and leaving Lin Zhengming standing awkwardly to the side.

Lin Zhengming had never suffered such humiliation before; he was driven mad with rage. "Ming Han, I'll lay it straight here. Someone poor and powerless like you has no business associating with people like us. You'd better stay away from Chen Li."

Lin Zhengming's words were undeniably harsh and deeply damaging to one's pride.

Many students at City No. 1 High School came from ordinary backgrounds, and hearing those words stung deeply.

Wang Zhimin, in particular, felt as though he were about to burst into tears. "Is being rich all that great? Does having money mean you can mock other people's poverty? In this society, everyone is equal before the law."

Wang Zhimin spoke with ringing conviction, and many people couldn't help but start applauding.

"We all have a dream—a dream of living happy and prosperous lives in the future," Wang Zhimin continued.

Even Ming Han was moved; he never expected Wang Zhimin to utter such philosophical words.

"Do you know how much we sacrifice for our dreams? To pay for my high school tuition, my family had to sell a sheep just to scrape the money together!"

Many students felt a quiet pang of sorrow; this classmate had it so rough.

Even Lin Zhengming felt a twinge of guilt. "Chubby classmate, that's not what I meant."

"If that's not what you meant, then what did you mean? Your words have already wounded my fragile soul."

Lin Zhengming had no choice but to offer repeated apologies. As the vice president, if word of this got out, it would ruin his reputation.

"How about this? I'll buy this classmate the latest model of an MP4 player as an apology gift."

Sighing, Wang Zhimin slipped the MP4 player into his pocket. "Don't say things like that anymore, little Ming."

Lin Zhengming nodded frantically and hurried away from the cafeteria.

It was best not to provoke someone who was this emotionally volatile in the future.

Though Lin Zhengming had left, everyone felt a deep sense of pity for Wang Zhimin.

Ming Han walked over and patted Wang Zhimin on the shoulder. "Brother, don't be upset. We've got your back!"

Wu Xinhai also walked over to comfort Wang Zhimin.

"Sigh! The tuition at City No. 1 High School is pretty expensive too. Brother Wang's family had to work hard raising just a few sheep, and they had to sell one all at once."

"Yeah! It really is quite expensive," many sighed. "A thousand bucks a semester!"

Wang Zhimin scratched his head. "Um, my family has quite a few sheep, actually!"

"Could it be that they only had that one single sheep they sold?" Wu Xinhai felt even worse for Wang Zhimin.

"No way! My family owns several entire mountain ranges! We must have at least seven or eight thousand sheep!"

What?! The entire cafeteria froze in stunned silence!

What the actual...