The Nerd Who Conquered The World

Tap,tap,tap..

The sound of keyboard clicking filled the room as Lin Chen typed furiously, writing code after code continuously.Finally, with a sigh of relief, he clicked the last key and sent the file to the company.

"Payment should be arriving soon," he muttered, monitoring his phone for notification.

His phone pinged.

Your account xxxxxx in Agricultural Bank of China just received ¥10,000

He checked his balance, it was ¥15,461. It was more than enough for what he had planned tonight. Today was Su Xiaowan's birthday, and he had a big surprise ready for her..

Just then his stomach growled, he rubbed his stomach as he was about to order takeout when the door burst open. Liang Hao, his best friend, marched in, he had a chubby body that got him the nickname Fatty Hao l, stuffed into skinny jeans and a skin-tight shirt, with his bob cut he looked ridiculous but he was completely unbothered about it. He always said girls liked that look and Lin Chen had long given up arguing about it.

"Guess what I brought?" Liang Hao held up a nylon bag stuffed with instant noodles. "I knew you'd be glued to that keyboard and forget to eat."

Lin Chen grabbed a cup without a word as he was already hungry. They set it up and sat down slurping noodles together.

"Ah." Lin Chen sighed in relief "What would I do without you."

Liang Hao tapped his shoulder proudly. "Just follow me your father here, and I'll lead you to success." He grinned. "Unlike you study god, with a 4.0 CGPA. I only have money but money is enough for me to survive."

Lin Chen pushed him playfully as he mocked. "Money without knowledge is useless. You wouldn't even know how to use it properly."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah." Liang Hao waved him off. "So what are your plans after graduation?"

"I don't know yet. But tonight is Su Xiaowan’s birthday" Lin Chen reached into his bag and pulled out a small velvet box, his expression shifting to something secretive.

Liang Hao's eyes went wide. "No way."

"I've already booked the restaurant."

"Are you sure she'll say yes?"

"Of course." Lin Chen said it without hesitation.

Liang Hao was quiet for a moment. Then he pulled out his phone. "Have you seen the video on the campus platform?"

"Which one?"

He turned the screen around to show him. On it was Wang Hao, a rich second generation heir. He was tall, broad-shouldered with gelled hair. He carried himself with confidence brought by his wealth as he went down on one knee, surrounded by a hundred red roses, asking Su Xiaowan to be his girlfriend. She took the flowers, but didn't give an answer as students around her cheered her on.

Lin Chen handed the phone back. "It's nothing. Our relationship is strong. I trust her."

Liang Hao opened his mouth to talk.

"Liang Hao. Stop."

"Okay, okay." He held his hands up. "But you can't propose looking like that. Come on, trust me with my many years of experience picking up girls. Just follow my lead.."

He dragged Lin Chen out before he could argue. He took him to get a haircut first. The barber gave Lin Chen a clean fringe, sharp and modern cut then Liang Hao made him remove his glasses.

"I can't see properly without them." Lin Chen complained.

"You think you're proposing with library glasses on? Take them off."

Lin Chen removed them, as he squinted at his reflection. Even blurry, he could tell something was different.

Then Liang Hao produced a blue suit, one he'd bought that never fit his own frame. He had Lin Chen put it on. Then they looked at his reflection in the mirror.

He looked particularly handsome like one of those business elites.

"I never knew you were this handsome," Liang Hao said finally.

Lin Chen laughed, scratching his head. "It's the suit."

"No. It's you." Liang Hao straightened his collar. "Now you're ready, let's go. It's almost six, I'll drive you."

In the car, Lin Chen kept checking his phone. He had texted Su Xiaowan about the restaurant but she hadn't replied.

She's probably already there.

They arrived at six-thirty. Liang Hao gripped his shoulder at the entrance. "Go in, comrade, while I wait here. The moment I hear cheering, I will step in to congratulate you."

Lin Chen stopped at the restaurant door, taking a deep breath, then he walked inside.

Lin Chen looked around but he couldn't find her at all. She wasn't there, he asked the waitress to prepare the cake and set the table as she would be here any moment from now

Then he sat down, thumbing his legs as he checked the time. It was already 6:30 but she wasn't here, so he waited till 7:00 and called her number. It kept ringing but she wasn't picking. By 7:30 he called again but it went straight to voicemail.

By this time the candle on the table had burned a third of the way down. He stared at the door every time it opened, but every time, it was someone else.

Liang Hao slipped inside and sat across from him, as he whispered.

"Where is she?"

"I don't know." Lin Chen's voice was calm as he checked his phone "She's not picking up."

"Let's wait a little more. It could be traffic."

They waited till 8:00 pm but she never came.

Just then his phone lit up, Lin Chen smiled thinking it was Xiaowan but it was a notification from the class group chat.

Guys, come to the top floor of the Supreme Hotel. Wang Hao booked a room for Su Xiaowan's birthday. Let's go!!

The messages kept coming. We're here already. Come now. It's amazing.

Lin Chen stared at the screen in shock while the candle was still burning.

Liang Hao was already on his feet in anger. "Fuck let's go, we have to check what happened."

Lin Chen was still calm but his shaking hands betrayed his thoughts. “Calm down Liang Hao, maybe she didn't get the message.”

They drove in silence. By the time they reached the Supreme Hotel and stepped out of the elevator onto the top floor, they could already hear the music and laughter. Liang Hao kicked the door open.

Su Xiaowan was there in a white dress, her dark hair and a cute face that drew envy from other girls. She was in the middle of the room surrounded by her friends, all cheering and filming. Wang Hao was on one knee in front of her, his designer watch catching the light around, red roses spread across the floor around him like he'd planned every detail for weeks.

Lin Chen walked straight toward her, not minding the crowd.

"Xiaowan." He said as he tried to stay calm "Why are you here?"

She turned around to see him, not looking surprised to see him. If anything irritated, like he was the one who had shown up somewhere he didn't belong.

"I should be asking you that."

"What do you mean? I texted you. I booked a restaurant for your birthday" Lin Chen said as his voice was rising at this point.

"Even after three years of dating," she said clearly, making sure everyone in the room could hear every word, "you couldn't book somewhere like this."

She gestured around her. "I knew you were going to show up tonight, Lin Chen. That's why I didn't reply. I was hoping you'd get the message." She paused. "Let me just say it directly so there's no confusion. I'm breaking up with you."

The room went quiet at that, phones came up as they recorded it.

"What?" Lin Chen said softly as he staggered back in shock.

"You may be smart. But smart doesn't pay rent. Smart doesn't get me a house. Smart doesn't buy me a future." She held his gaze without flinching. "Do you even have money for a deposit? You think I'm going to wait years while you slowly climb some company ladder?" She shook her head. "I've been patient, Lin Chen. But patience has a limit."

Wang Hao stood up and put his arm around her waist, looking at Lin Chen with unbothered eyes, and a mocking smile on his face. His plain face is enhanced by his designer suit and watch.

"Wang Hao gave me a brand new Mercedes-Benz just to agree to be his girlfriend," Su Xiaowan continued. "Not to marry him. Just to be his girlfriend. So I'm sorry. I wish you well finding another girl."

Wang Hao looked at Lin Chen with a condescending look. "Smartness is not everything, brother. She knows what she wants. You can't expect a girl like her to suffer." He said as if giving him useful advice.

"Knowledge without wealth is just a hobby."

Lin Chen still had the velvet box in his hand as he trembled at their words

Liang Hao who was already shaking in hanger suddenly lunged forward, throwing a punch at Wang Hao's face but people around grabbed him before it landed, but Wang Hao stumbled back anyway, screaming for them to be removed. The whole room was filming as they laughed pointing at Lin Chen and Liang Hao.

"Get them out! They can't handle their loss so now it's violence!"

Security dragged them both to the elevator, as the door closed behind them.

Outside, Liang Hao was still breathing hard. "Don't worry, Lin Chen. There are far better girls out there."

"I'm okay," Lin Chen said. "Go rest. I just need some time alone."

Liang Hao looked at him for a long moment, then nodded slowly as he knew Lin Chen needed some time to process it

Lin Chen walked back to the dormitory alone. He sat on the floor surrounded by his books and opened a bottle of alcohol as he drank slowly, staring at the stacks of books around him.

'Is all this knowledge really useless?, is wealth everything?'.

'I guess in this world, without wealth and power you can't do anything. Even what little you have gets taken from you.'

He drank until his vision blurred. When he finally slumped sideways, his arm knocked the laptop off the desk spilling alcohol on it as it sparked, lighting the books nearest to it as it began to smoke.

Just then a bright light bloomed from the books and entered him.