Mi Xue and Gu Cheng exchanged glances, both wearing smiles. Zhang Yang had secured a staggering one hundred thousand in sponsorship for the Third Hospital, so fifteen hundred was truly nothing to them.

"Zhang—Zhang Yang, are you serious?"

Minister Liu was the first to speak, his face clouded with suspicion. Everyone knew that the External Relations Department was the poorest department in the Student Union; the others had some allocation, but External Relations had absolutely nothing.

How could a department lying vacant for months suddenly possess funds?

"Zhang Yang, what do you mean by this? This is a joint meeting, not a place for you to make frivolous jokes!" Zhou Yichen asked coldly, though a flicker of unease stirred within him.

Ever since learning about the reward and penalty system for the External Relations Department, he felt a thorn perpetually lodged in his side. He had also instructed his lackeys to keep a close watch on Zhang Yang's movements to guard against anything.

Unfortunately, his minions could only monitor Zhang Yang while school was in session. When the weekend arrived, no one knew where Zhang Yang went; after all, they were just students and couldn't tail him every single day.

"I'm not joking. Mi Xue, tell them about the work results of our External Relations Department these past few days!"

Zhang Yang smiled slightly. He had intended to settle this matter today, and Minister Liu's request for funding provided the perfect opening. As for Chairman Zhou Yichen, starting today, his easy times were over, and his era of absolute authority was about to end.

After speaking, Zhang Yang turned back to Mi Xue, smiled, and gave a small nod. Mi Xue was momentarily stunned, then immediately stood up.

As Mi Xue rose, she instantly captured the gaze of most people. The boys’ eyes shone with admiration, while the girls regarded her with concealed jealousy. Mi Xue had instantly become the focal point once more.

Looking at Mi Xue’s captivating face, the fires of envy began to burn in Zhou Yichen’s heart again.

Zhang Yang, damn Zhang Yang. It was all this Zhang Yang, always opposing him—defying him in the Student Union, and now trying to steal his woman. Sooner or later, he would utterly crush Zhang Yang, driving him down to the lowest rung.

This self-centeredness of Zhou Yichen’s had resurfaced.

"Last week, to be precise, yesterday, Changjing City's Third People's Hospital agreed to sponsor our school's Student Union with two hundred thousand in cash for activity expenses. We can withdraw this money at any time!"

Looking at everyone, Mi Xue cleared her throat lightly and stated softly.

As she spoke, a sense of pride accompanied her words. This was Zhang Yang’s doing, his achievement. Having been the head of External Relations for only a few days, he had completed the task, and over-completed it at that. They had grounds for arrogance.

Two hundred thousand in sponsorship! This amount could dwarf the entire sponsorship efforts of every other school's Student Union combined. Those other schools hadn't raised nearly this much put together.

"What? Impossible!"

"The Third Hospital is like the City Hospital; what major connection do they have with our school to sponsor us?"

"Two hundred thousand? Are we dreaming?"

As soon as Mi Xue finished speaking, the ministers seated around the conference table, along with other student union members nearby, erupted into murmurs. Except for Zhang Yang and the few insiders like Xiao Bin, everyone held the same view: impossible.

No one believed the External Relations Department had actually secured two hundred thousand in sponsorship. If it had been two thousand, maybe someone would have believed it. Two hundred thousand, and not even from a corporation, but a municipal hospital—it was essentially inconceivable. To them, this news was no less shocking than an asteroid collision.

Zhou Yichen suddenly laughed, a hint of relief in his expression. "Zhang Yang, do you think the required target was too high and you're deliberately messing with us? But you must remember, you set that target yourself!"

Hearing Mi Xue mention the two hundred thousand sponsorship, Zhou Yichen actually felt his tension ease. He smiled benignly at Zhang Yang.

If it were a few thousand, or even tens of thousands, Zhou Yichen might have believed it. His uncle, known as Zhou Qianwan, wouldn't mind producing two hundred thousand, but handing it out without cause would sting; even as an allowance, it wouldn't exceed ten or twenty thousand. A hospital doing so was even more impossible.

Furthermore, why on earth would a hospital sponsor them? Zhang Yang couldn't bring them any economic benefit. Unless the responsible head of that hospital was completely insane, Zhou Yichen’s mind completely settled.

He even suspected Zhang Yang was deliberately staging this: setting himself up with a grand claim first, and then using some other excuse later to say the money hadn't materialized, allowing him to claim later that he had tried hard and secured a huge sponsorship, even if the funds hadn't arrived. If it were him, he might have done the same—a necessary tactic out of desperation.

Seeing so many people doubt Zhang Yang, Mi Xue grew anxious and immediately called out loudly, "No, we aren't deliberately tricking you! Zhang Yang agreed to intern at their hospital; that was the condition used to secure the sponsorship for everyone. I have the contract signed between the hospital and Zhang Yang here. Everyone can see it!"

Zhang Yang didn't pay much attention to the reactions. He knew these students wouldn't believe it right away, but that was fine. Once the money was produced and they saw it, they would naturally believe.

As Mi Xue spoke, she pulled Zhang Yang's contract out of her bag. After it was signed, Zhang Yang had left it with her, and he had forgotten to retrieve it when he went home, so Mi Xue used it as proof.

Gu Cheng took the contract first and handed it to Minister Liu. Minister Liu scanned it quickly, his eyes growing wider with every line. He wasn't from the Medical College, but that didn't mean he didn't understand what such a contract signed between a hospital and an individual signified.

The contract circulated among the hands of various ministers, deliberately skipping Zhou Yichen. As Gu Cheng finally took the contract back, he shot Zhou Yichen a strange smile—a gesture that nearly made Zhou Yichen’s lungs explode with rage.

Zhang Yang observed all this, merely smiling without saying a word.

"Zhang Yang, is this contract real? Then where is the money?"

Ouyang Yu, the Minister of Finance, seated directly opposite Zhang Yang, was now anxiously looking at him. The student union at Changjing University wasn't flush with cash. As the Finance Minister, though seemingly in charge of money, his life was actually quite hard. Department heads constantly badgered him for funds, yet he had very little on hand. He had grown weary of this poverty.

He had seen the contract too, and he had seen the official seal of the Third Hospital. In this era, the credibility of an official seal was still quite high. But what concerned him most was the two hundred thousand sponsorship. If this twenty thousand truly entered the accounts, he could finally stand tall; twenty thousand—it was a figure he hadn't dared to dream about before.

"The money is with me, ready to be deposited at any time. But before it’s deposited, shouldn't we discuss something else first?"

Zhang Yang chuckled, pulling a check directly from his pocket—a cash check issued by the hospital. When the contract was signed, Zhu Zhixiang had already prepared this money for him. To Zhu Zhixiang, it didn't matter who received the money; handing it directly to Zhang Yang was sufficient.

………… Thanks to friend TAS for the tip. Special thanks to friend Yan Hui Man for two consecutive 1888 Qidian coin tips over two days. Xiao Yu thanks everyone for their support! C