Not long after he hung up the call with Wang Tianqing, Director Che indeed came looking for him.

Such a high-ranking official didn't just notify Han Lie to "come to my office," but rather gave a heads-up: "Han Lie, are you in your dorm?"

Han Lie replied with a single word, "Yes," and Director Che personally came to visit.

Wow, such treatment! Han Lie himself was surprised.

In less than fifteen minutes, Director Che pushed open the dorm room door, stretching out both hands from afar.

Han Lie smiled reservedly but did not act slowly, extending his own hands to shake Director Che's.

"Director Che, please, have a seat. If there's anything you need, just let me know. Why be so formal?"

The real thoughts in Director Che's heart were not meant for outsiders. However, currying favor with Han Lie was a decision he had made long ago.

"Heavens!" he exclaimed dramatically, shaking his head. "I really can't afford to be impolite to Mr. Han... You, you're not only the face of our university now, but you've also made quite a splash in the entire industry!"

Han Lie raised an eyebrow and smiled faintly. "Oh? I haven't actually received any calls from outside..."

This attitude wasn't quite right, a bit aloof. The average person might not notice, but Director Che felt it directly. However, he had no objections.

Humanities University was a private institution lacking in true value.

What, after all, is the value of a university?

On a smaller scale, it's about the prospects of one's major, competitiveness in the job market, general reputation, and the initial label one carries when starting a career, among other things. On a larger scale, it encompasses the unspoken support within alumni circles and the influence of academic powerhouses on how disciplines are interpreted. It also includes widespread societal recognition and the tangible and intangible opportunities that tend to lean in one's favor.

Qingbei had it all, while Humanities had none of it.

Therefore, for Qingbei students, being punished by the university, disliked by mentors, or ostracized by their circle was an unbearable burden. The loss was too great.

But for Humanities students, expulsion was just expulsion; it meant nothing.

On the contrary, the university often had to coax students. "Oh, please don't drop out. How about this? Why not become the vice president of the Literature and Arts Department?"

In his past life, Han Lie had received such preferential treatment, even though he was just a nobody.

The university couldn't offer its students anything of substance; instead, it sought to profit from them—a classic case of inverted values.

Therefore, even though Han Lie was putting on airs, Director Che didn't feel humiliated. He even thought Han Lie had a certain charisma.

Yes, he seems like someone who can achieve great things!

Thus, Director Che smiled even more warmly. "Goodness, have you not been checking your email much? I'm not afraid to tell you, Da Zhihui and Tencent Finance have both contacted the university. They said they couldn't reach you by phone and you didn't reply to their emails, asking us if there was something wrong with your registered phone number... You've changed your phone number, haven't you? The number in your file isn't the one you're using now."

"Oh!" Han Lie feigned an epiphany, nodding. "Indeed, I filled in the old number. I forgot to update it."

In reality, Han Lie had done it on purpose; he had long known what would happen after his results were announced.

"See? See?" Director Che laughed heartily, then shook his head with a sigh. "But doing it this way is the right approach! Most of the people contacting you now... they're hardly legitimate companies..."

"Is that so? Let me take a look."

Han Lie casually opened his laptop, logged into QQ, and was immediately swamped with friend requests.

He then opened his email... My goodness, over 400 new messages!

All sorts of partnership invitations, too numerous to even skim through.

Director Che leaned over, glanced at the screen with him, and smirked proudly. "See? Didn't I tell you?"

Most of these collaboration offers could be dismissed as trash with a single glance.

The more blatant ones involved inviting "Mr. Han" to manage large funds worth tens of millions, to become a spokesperson for something, or to become a trading department manager at some company—all obvious scams. The more subtle ones were invitations to seminars, requests to judge small-scale live trading competitions, proposals for paid online sharing sessions, and lectures for major clients.

All of them were traps, nonetheless. The level of deceptiveness varied from one offer to another.

For example, that "online sharing" could potentially offer remuneration in the millions, or even higher, if the terms were negotiated well. The requirements weren't steep: join a few QQ groups, provide online guidance, share insights, and answer questions. Occasionally, one might attend an offline lecture and speak according to the other party's script.

It seemed too good to be true at first glance—such a quick way to monetize, wasn't it?

However, they wanted to use you as a figurehead, putting you out front to take the blame and be the scapegoat. No matter how comprehensive the contract, it would be useless. Once they've scammed enough people and decided to bail, they'd abandon you, and the entire team would vanish.

Whose reputation would be damaged in the end?

It was purely a case of exploiting your fame to help scammers monetize. If you encountered particularly ruthless individuals, you could even find yourself facing criminal charges.

Then take the seemingly most legitimate seminars as another example, often sponsored by well-known securities firms.

So, where did they hide their traps?

The most common tactic was to use your fame to elevate their own people. Grassroots champions who've proven themselves in the market are strong in practical application but often weak in theory. Their eloquence couldn't compare to that of analysts who dealt with clients daily. One wrong word, and they could exploit your vulnerabilities to get ahead.

Even if you were cautious enough to leave no loopholes, with the video editing rights in their hands, couldn't they manipulate it however they pleased?

Later, they could edit you to look clueless and foolish, then contrast it with someone else's highlight reel...

And just like that, another "expert" would be born.

A certain big shot had suffered a major loss this way in his early days. Although that securities firm's reputation in the circle was ruined, they still made a fortune from their dirty dealings.

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