1 Zhang Fan lacks money (1/2)

Everyone has their own way of going through college life. Some people just go through the motions. Some people party and flirt with the opposite gender every night. Still, most people will properly finish their studies and graduate successfully.

It was currently midsummer in S Province. Although the temperature was 30 degrees Celsius, it was still rather cool under the trees' shade.

Zhang Fan, a clinical student in his fifth year, was unable to feel cool despite standing in the shade. He had been so anxious over the past few days that even his lips had become inflamed.

Everyone else around him was busy preparing their resumes. However, Zhang Fan couldn't focus on preparing a resume, because he had yet to receive his diploma.

Zhang Fan's parents were both ordinary blue-collar employees. He also had a sister who was seven years younger than him, so his family's economic situation wasn't the best. Back when Zhang Fan was accepted into college, many family members and friends had pooled their money together in order for him to afford the tuition.

After Zhang Fan entered college, he didn't want to have to rely on his parents to financially support him. Not only did he actively work part-time at school, he would also work at the market after he finished his studies, selling instant noodles, meat, eggs, and so on. This barely managed to help cover his tuition and living expenses, successfully seeing him through his first four years of college.

But in Zhang Fan's fifth and final year of college, it seemed as if the heavens wanted to give him a trial as incidents kept happening to his family.

Zhang Fan's father, who worked at a chemical plant, suffered a burn injury to his foot. His father stayed at the local city hospital for two weeks, but then the doctor uncaringly stated that the city hospital would be unable to cure the injury, and that his father needed to go to the better provincial hospital in the province capital.

So, all the time and money spent at the city hospital had been wasted.

Right after Zhang Fan's father left the hospital, his mother came down with acute appendicitis. Although her surgery was successful with no problems, Zhang Fan's tuition money all went to pay for her surgery.

Since Zhang Fan was no longer able to afford tuition, his college naturally would refuse to give him his diploma.

His relatives had helped out significantly over the years. Zhang Fan didn't want to be so shameless as to trouble everyone again, so he could only think of something by himself.

The school year was almost over, with graduation right around the corner. Classes were just about finished, with nothing but speeches from the school every day. Students were free to do what they liked in this free time.

Over the past twentyish days, Zhang Fan had been busy working a construction job at day and handing out pamphlets at night. As of now, he was still approximately 2,000 yuan short for his tuition money.

There was no helping it, as he was almost supposed to graduate. Zhang Fan gritted his teeth and returned to his dormitory. Of course, his roommates were also rather poor and unable to lend Zhang Fan any money.

However, the college was different from high school in a small town. There were many rich people here. Not to mention, since graduation was almost upon everyone, there were quite a few who were going wild.

There were some bored and gambling-addicted students that had started gambling sessions in the dormitory.

Although the amount they gambled wasn't much, those who were unlucky could still lose 200 to 300 yuan in a single day. Still, there were plenty of students who participated in this underground gambling.

Zhang Fan wasn't going there to try his luck. He had an absolute guarantee.

Zhang Fan's family came from a small village in the northwest. Just about everyone in the village had been farmers already for countless generations. Even the few factory workers in the village counted as relatively famous people.

In such a small village, there was a certain notorious person that everyone knew about—Zhang Fan's uncle.

Zhang Fan's uncle had been unemployed and up to no good ever since young. He would often steal a neighbor's chicken or dog. At any rate, nobody in the village liked him.

One day, Zhang Fan's uncle injured the neighboring village mayor's son in a fight. Zhang Fan's uncle thus left his hometown due to being afraid of revenge against him.

When Zhang Fan was a teenager, his uncle suddenly returned to his hometown. His uncle no longer acted in such ridiculous fashion like a hoodlum, just as if he had completely changed.