Stop Chasing the School Belle, My Shy Deskmate is Sweet and Soft - Chapter 19

That evening, Xia Tian returned home.

He stuffed the freezer with ice blocks.

Then, he retreated to his room, pulling out his science exam papers to dive into some immersive study time.

Last night, he had attempted a full science exam set and realized that he could barely scrape 90 points.

He was still a long way from his 180-point target.

And with just over 90 days left until the college entrance exams, boosting his score by 100 points seemed like an almost impossible task.

“Good thing I’m invincible in Chinese, Math, and English. Otherwise, there’s no way I could get into the same university as Little Ye…”

Xia Tian muttered to himself before turning his focus back to his science problems.

At the same time, Chen Meijuan and Xia Zhengguo were quietly standing by his door.

“Old Xia, do you think something happened to our son? He’s never taken studying seriously before, and now he’s working so hard all of a sudden?” Chen Meijuan was initially thrilled that Xia Tian had started putting effort into his studies.

But the more she thought about it, the more worried she became.

Even though she often said she wanted Xia Tian to get into a good university, what she really wished for was for her son to be healthy and happy.

Grades were secondary.

Now, she couldn’t help but worry about Xia Tian’s mental state.

Xia Zhengguo, however, remained calm. “Don’t worry. There’s nothing wrong with him. We just need to quietly support him.”

“Support, my foot! You’ve been smoking too much lately. The dust at your factory is harmful enough, and if you keep smoking, you’re going to end up with lung cancer!”

“Alright, alright, I hear you.”

Xia Zhengguo waved dismissively, not taking her words to heart.

Little did he know, his wife’s warning could very well become a terrible prophecy in the future.

—

The next day, around noon.

Xia Tian finished his lunch early.

He took the borrowed storage box and loaded it up with the fruit platters he and Fang Yu had prepared the previous night.

He also poured the ice blocks he’d frozen overnight into a large metal bucket.

With everything packed and ready, he hurried out of the house.

Soon, he arrived at the designated meeting spot, Qingshui Park, where Fang Yu was already waiting.

“Fang Yu, did you bring everything I asked for?”

“Yeah, I brought it all. But Little Tian, why do I need to bring this stuff? We’re running out of time, so stop keeping me in the dark already!”

Fang Yu grumbled as he unloaded a small chalkboard and two pairs of dice from his bike.

He still had no clue what Xia Tian had planned.

Seeing that everything was in order, Xia Tian didn’t offer any further explanation.

He simply grabbed the chalk from Fang Yu and quickly wrote a sentence on the board:

[Fruit Platters: Play dice with the boss. Win, and it’s free. Lose, and you buy a box (5 yuan/box).]

Xia Tian made sure to emphasize the word “free” in large letters.

“Here, take a look.”

Xia Tian flipped the chalkboard around for Fang Yu to see.

Fang Yu squinted at the board and read it over twice, his face full of surprise.

“This is the special method you were talking about for selling the fruit platters? Sure, it’s creative, but do you really think people will want to buy fruit platters this way?”

“Besides… we’re not selling any rare fruits. There’s nothing particularly attractive about what we’re offering.”

Fang Yu stared at the board, feeling doubtful.

He didn’t believe this strategy would help them sell all of their fruit platters.

Xia Tian immediately countered:

“Your vision is too limited!”

“Fang Yu, let me ask you—what is the one thing this society doesn’t lack?”

Fang Yu blinked in confusion before responding instinctively, “Rich people?”

Xia Tian shook his head slightly.

“Wrong! In today’s society, what’s most abundant are people who love getting things for free.”

“First off, you need to understand that our selling point isn’t the fruit platters themselves—it’s the fact that we’re offering them for free.”

Xia Tian pointed to the large “free” on the chalkboard. His face was full of confidence as he continued:

“Secondly, like I just said, the world is full of people who love freebies. So what we’re really selling is the chance to win a free fruit platter. When people see the word ‘free’ on the board, they’ll be intrigued.”

“Once they realize that all they have to do is win a simple dice game to get a free fruit platter, they’ll jump at the chance to play.”

“For most people, even if they lose, they’re only paying five yuan for a fruit platter. It’s not like they’re throwing their money away. In their minds, they’re getting something in return, so they won’t feel like they’re losing much.”

“Even more so, many will think they have a good chance of winning, so they’ll be tempted to play. It’s a classic case of people taking a risk, hoping for a free reward.”

By the time Xia Tian finished explaining, Fang Yu had already pieced it together.

His excitement growing, he interrupted Xia Tian.

“I get it now! You’re capitalizing on people’s love for freebies!”

“And since we spent 120 yuan to make 200 fruit platters, each costing 5 yuan, even if we only win 100 rounds of dice, we’ll make 500 yuan!”

“Subtracting the costs, we’ll be left with a profit of 380 yuan!”

Seeing that Fang Yu had caught on, Xia Tian smiled and snapped his fingers.

“Exactly. That’s how we’re going to make money today. But there’s one thing I haven’t told you yet…”

“My dice-rolling skills are unmatched in Bei’an. I can guarantee that out of 200 dice rolls, I’ll win at least 150!”

Xia Tian finished by tossing a pair of dice to Fang Yu, signaling him to play a few rounds.

“Let’s just play a simple game—highest number wins. Wanna bet I can win all five rounds against you?”

“Don’t be ridiculous! Even if my luck is terrible, I should be able to win at least one round, right?”

“Heh, you’re too young to understand…”

Xia Tian gave him a knowing smile before shaking the dice confidently.

And just as expected, Xia Tian won all five rounds.

Fang Yu was dumbstruck.

“What?! How is that even possible? I refuse to believe it! Let’s go again!”

To his disbelief, after another five rounds, Xia Tian remained undefeated.

Fang Yu couldn’t help but exclaim.

“Holy crap! This is insane!”

“Xia Tian, are you cheating? These dice must be rigged! There’s no way you can win every time in a game of chance like this!”

Xia Tian shrugged. “You’re the one who brought these dice. Shouldn’t you know if there’s anything wrong with them?”

“Then how are you doing it?”

“Hah, it’s all in the technique. Even if I told you, you wouldn’t be able to learn it.”

Xia Tian chuckled.

During his university days in his previous life, Xia Tian had played dice games with his roommates countless times.

One of his roommates, a guy from a rural village, had been obsessed with dice since childhood and had even been taught by a master.

Xia Tian hadn’t learned much from him, but he had mastered the art of rolling dice.

Since then, whenever Xia Tian went out to bars or KTVs, there wasn’t a single person who could beat him in dice games.

All those so-called “prince of clubs” or “king of KTV” types stood no chance against him.

“With skills like yours, we’ll easily sell all 200 fruit platters!” Fang Yu was beyond excited.

Now he understood why Xia Tian was so confident.

Xia Tian’s plan was flawless.

After all, everyone loved the idea of getting something for free.

When people saw the word “free” on the sign, they wouldn’t be able to resist giving it a try.

Once they were drawn in, they would play the game, thinking they had nothing to lose. Whether they won or lost, they still walked away with a fruit platter.

If they lost, they’d only be out 5 yuan.

But if they won, they’d get a free fruit platter—what could be better?

Plus, Xia Tian’s fruit platters were priced at just 5 yuan, whereas a similar platter would cost at least 8 yuan elsewhere.

No matter how they looked at it, customers would feel like they were getting a great deal.

With these two irresistibly tempting factors, no one would pass by without wanting to give it a shot.

And the best part? Xia Tian’s dice-rolling skills were unbeatable.

As long as he didn’t intentionally let people win, they’d hardly ever give away a free fruit platter.

“Xia Tian, you’re a genius!”

Fang Yu gave Xia Tian a big thumbs-up, eager to set up their stand right away.

But Xia Tian stopped him.

“Setting up the stand isn’t that simple. We can’t just set it up anywhere.”

He pointed toward the nearby basketball court.

“We’ll set up over there. The guys playing basketball are super competitive. If they lose the first round, they’ll feel too embarrassed to walk away and will most likely play again.”

“And there are a lot of girls watching them play, too. In front of the opposite sex, their competitive streak will be even stronger. They won’t stop until they win at least one round.”

Fang Yu was stunned.

Xia Tian had thought this far ahead?

Holy crap!

Xia Tian’s plan was brilliant!

“Godfather, please accept your son’s knees!”