Daily Intelligence: Forced to Save the Beautiful President at the Beginning

7: Chapter 5 This system is a ”cool and aloof” type.[The next piece of intelligence will refresh after 12:00 AM!]

[Remaining time until the next intelligence refresh: 42 minutes]

A cold, mechanical voice suddenly rang out, causing his hand to jerk and nearly dropping his phone on the floor.

He froze for a moment and tentatively asked, ”System, you can actually chat?”

No response.

”Besides providing intelligence, do you have any other skills? Like... conjuring up some money?”

Still no response.

Zhang Fan curled his lips. It seemed this system was the ”cold and aloof” type, only responsible for issuing tasks and not for small talk.

That was fine too; it saved him from being led around by the nose by the system like in those novels.

He looked at his phone again, but there were no messages, no missed calls, and even his WeChat groups were quiet.

That made sense! Today was Valentine’s Day, and everyone was likely busy on dates. Who would remember an ”unlucky guy” like him who had just been fired?

He opened his Moments, and the top post was still from Gu Feifei. The nine-grid photo layout was eyesore-inducing: the first was a seafood feast, the middle one featured 99 red roses, and the last was a selfie of her with a wide grin, captioned ”Thank you for the love, Brother Yuan. Please look after me for the rest of my life.”

Zhang Fan stared at her flower-like smiling face in the photo and suddenly felt nauseated.

He long-pressed her avatar and clicked ”Delete Contact,” then left all the work and department groups of Blue Whale Games.

”Out of sight, out of mind.”

Zhang Fan grabbed his phone and with a flick of his wrist, tossed it onto the pillow. The phone hit the pillow with a thud, and the moment the screen went dark, it felt as if a whole world full of miserable things had been shut off.

He collapsed onto the bed, letting out an involuntary ”Ooh” as his back sank into the mattress.

So comfortable.

The sheets smelled of fresh sunlight mixed with the light scent of laundry detergent, unlike the hard, old mattress in his rental room that used to make his lower back ache.

The mattress had just the right amount of firmness, supporting every bone in his body perfectly, and even the wound on his forehead didn’t seem to hurt as much.

He rolled onto his side and buried his face in the pillow, the softness of the fabric brushing against his cheek like the pillowcases his mother used to wash when he was a child.

So what if he didn’t have a job anymore?

So what if he had been cheated on?

He had a system now.

He would be able to get by in the future.

As soon as this thought surfaced, his eyelids began to feel heavy. A wave of exhaustion washed over him, sweeping away all those messy thoughts.

This sleep was dreamless.

He didn’t groggily open his eyes until the morning light shone through the gap in the curtains and onto his face.

Zhang Fan suddenly bolted upright in bed, the wound on the back of his head stinging from the sudden movement, but he didn’t even bother to rub it—the first thought in his mind was: Oh no! He had forgotten to check the intelligence the system refreshed at midnight!

Just as the thought occurred to him, a burst of deep blue light exploded before his eyes, and a virtual panel appeared like a curtain torn from thin air, floating clearly in mid-air:

[daily intelligence system]

[Level: LV1]

[One piece of basic intelligence can be obtained for free daily. Paid intelligence requires Intelligence Points (Current Balance: 1)]

[Today’s Intelligence: At the Jiangcheng Road lottery station, a ”Chinese New Year” scratch-off ticket with the serial number ending in 33 contains a 50,000 yuan grand prize.]

”Whew...” He let out a long breath, and the sweat on his back instantly dampened the thermal underwear inside his windbreaker.

A 50,000 yuan grand prize! Fantastic!

What he lacked most right now was money. Although it wasn’t a multi-million jackpot, it was at least enough to live on.

His gaze fell on ”Intelligence Points: 1,” and he paused.

It was 0 yesterday. Could it be because he completed the ”picking up the necklace” intelligence task?

He tapped the panel twice with his fingertips, but there was no response.

”Forget it, focus on the present first.” He shook his head. There was no point in overthinking this now. The priority was to turn the necklace into cash; otherwise, food and lodging would be a problem.

In the hotel bathroom, hot water cascaded over him, washing away the smell of hospital disinfectant and the dust from the streets. Zhang Fan lowered his head to sniff his arm; the sour smell was finally gone, making him feel a bit more relaxed.

After lying in the hospital for a week and then being kicked out of his rental, his whole body was long overdue for a wash.

After drying off and standing in front of the mirror, he frowned at the person inside. The man in the mirror was unshaven with dark circles under his eyes.

He pulled out the disposable razor provided by the hotel and slowly shaved with water. Foam dripped down his chin, revealing pale skin that was finally clean.

After using a hair dryer to make his hair a bit fluffier, he turned to rummage through his burlap bag. Pressed at the very bottom was a plastic bag, which he opened to find a dark gray suit—the work uniform issued by Blue Whale Games.

Blue Whale Games was located in the Global Center in the Jiangcheng CBD. That building was ridiculously expensive. Rumor had it that the boss had a national-level background and was even a guest of the Thai royal family, with an insane number of rules.

From Monday to Thursday, formal attire was mandatory; otherwise, the security guards would stop you at the revolving doors and wouldn’t even let you touch the elevator.

The company had issued him a set when he first joined. He cherished this suit, always keeping it crisply ironed for fear of getting wrinkles.

He put on a white shirt, tied his tie, donned black trousers, and adjusted his collar in front of the mirror.

Surprisingly, once he put on the well-fitting suit, it emphasized his broad shoulders and narrow waist, making his features appear more distinct.

While packing his things, Zhang Fan specifically sought out Fat Auntie and pointed to the wooden box in the burlap bag. ”Auntie, these are my parents’ belongings. I’m going out to run some errands. Could I leave them in the room for now?”

Fat Auntie was wiping the front desk with a rag. Hearing this, her eyes lit up, and she smiled. ”Sure, leave them. My place is safe. If there’s anything truly valuable, though, carry it with you. Don’t be careless.”

She paused and added, ”As for staying longer, it counts as the next day after 2:00 PM. But if you’re an hour or two late, it’s no big deal. Check out whenever you get back; I won’t charge you extra.”

”Thank you!” Zhang Fan felt a warmth in his heart as he picked up the bag containing the necklace and headed out.

He couldn’t bring himself to buy breakfast and hurried toward A famous jewelry brand on an empty stomach. After all, items from A famous jewelry brand should fetch a higher price if sold back to A famous jewelry brand.

Passing a breakfast stall, the aroma of pancakes made him salivate. He felt the 16.42 yuan in his pocket but steeled himself and walked on.

The glass door of A famous jewelry brand chimed with a crisp ”ding-dong” as he pushed it open.

The young lady behind the counter was looking down, checking some invoices. Hearing the noise, she looked up, her smile revealing two dimples. ”Welcome! How can I help you, sir?”

”I’d like to sell this.” Zhang Fan carefully placed the necklace on the counter. ”It’s from A famous jewelry brand. Can you buy it back?”

The young lady picked up the necklace and turned it over with her fingertips. Her gaze swept between the tag and his face, and her brow gradually furrowed. ”Sir, our store does buy back gold, but we require the invoice or proof of purchase.”

”Huh?” Zhang Fan was stunned. He leaned forward half a step, his suit sleeve brushing against the counter. ”But the tags are all here. It’s brand new. Look at this hallmark...”

He pointed to the ”A famous jewelry brand” hallmark on the back of the pendant, his voice trembling slightly. ”Even if you can’t pay the original price, a discounted buyback is fine. Making a little less is better than nothing, right?”

”It’s really not possible.” The young lady pushed the necklace back toward him, tapping her fingertips on the counter, her eyes now filled with a hint of suspicion. ”If you had the invoice, we could buy it back at the original price, but without proof, it’s simply not allowed. It’s company policy.”

Zhang Fan was puzzled. This necklace was shiny, and the tags and brand were clear. Why couldn’t they take it?

He stared at the young lady’s face. Why did it feel like she harbored so much ill will toward him?

”Fine.” He grabbed the necklace, his fingertips feeling a bit cold, and turned to leave. Just as he reached the door, he heard a low murmur from behind. Though quiet, every word stung:

”As expected, a scumbag...”