He really was short on money, because without it, nothing could get done. But to manipulate a naive young girl into stealing from her own family? What the hell kind of person does that?

"You’re not borrowing it?" Ethan Foster looked a bit confused.

"I’m afraid you’ll get scolded when you go home, so forget it."

Ethan Foster shook her head coolly. "No, I won’t. My dad has a lot of cards. He won’t notice if one is missing."

William Carter still waved his hand. "If it were your own money, I’d borrow it. But taking without asking is stealing."

"Will you pay it back?"

"Of course I will."

"If you’ll pay it back, then it’s borrowing." Ethan Foster said with certainty.

Hearing this, William Carter hesitated.

At this moment, it was as if a little devil was sitting on his left shoulder, constantly urging him to just take it. As long as he put the money back before anyone noticed, it’d be fine—he wasn’t going to run off with it.

William Carter, oh William Carter, have you forgotten why you had so many regrets in your previous life? That’s just how the rules of this world work: fortune favors the bold, the timid starve.

Besides, borrowing money isn’t stealing. At least it’s aboveboard, and has nothing to do with your own moral standards.

William Carter convinced himself, picked up the card again, and took Ethan Foster to the bank.

Since Ethan Foster didn’t even know how much money was in the account, she was completely clueless, but William Carter felt that since she was the creditor, she ought to know the exact amount.

But then again, what on earth was this girl thinking?

Wasn’t she afraid he’d cheat her—say there was only fifty thousand when there was a hundred thousand, or thirty thousand when there was fifty thousand, and pocket the rest, leaving her with nowhere to cry?

William Carter stood in front of the ATM, inserted the card, selected balance inquiry, and suddenly held his breath.

You rich people really don’t treat money as money, do you?

Over six million, all in one bank card, and the password is six eights. What if you lose it—wouldn’t that be a huge loss?

Meanwhile, Ethan Foster was also looking at the screen, her expression cool and calm, as if she wasn’t surprised at all. She really gave off the vibe that money was just a number to her.

After returning from the bank, William Carter sat silently at his desk, feeling that today’s experience was even more absurd than being reborn.

What does she want from me? Could she know that I’ve come back from a previous life?

Just then, Ethan Foster suddenly put down her book and looked at him with clear eyes, as if she had something to say.

William Carter snapped out of it a little. "What’s up?"

"I want to be friends with you. I hope you won’t refuse my goodwill." Ethan Foster said very seriously.

"?????"

William Carter was stunned for a moment, unable to figure out what was going on.

But then, he saw the title of the book he’d helped Ethan Foster carry—"How to Quickly and Effectively Make Good Friends."

William Carter’s mind froze for a second. He glanced at the slightly nervous Ethan Foster, then slapped his forehead, suddenly feeling like everything made sense.

Who the hell started the rumor that she was cold and aloof?

This girl was clearly a natural airhead with social anxiety!

"Actually... we’re already friends."

"Then when will you take me out to have fun?"

"..."

Chapter 11: Let’s Make Money Boldly

Doing business always carries risks. In other words, there’s no such thing as a guaranteed profit in this world.

But William Carter was someone who had been reborn.

He already knew the outcome of many things that hadn’t happened yet, so making a sure profit wasn’t hard for him.

Especially now that he had Ethan Foster’s financial backing, William Carter decided to go all out and make some serious money.

The old city renovation in Jizhou City was about to begin, covering a huge area, with quick and generous compensation. Naturally, buying up houses slated for demolition became William Carter’s first target.

Lately, he’d been roaming the streets with David Harris, posting notices in every neighborhood that was going to be redeveloped.

[High-price purchase of houses in this area. Contact: XXXX]

Fanhuali, Rongcheng, Xingfu Community, Hongyun Community—these residential areas were all famous old, run-down neighborhoods. There were plenty of residents who were fed up and wanted to move, and even more who wanted to sell their homes.

They didn’t know the area was about to be demolished, so as soon as they heard someone was buying at a high price, they immediately called William Carter.

Of course, William Carter couldn’t buy every single one.

The old city renovation was an official project and strictly confidential. If, right before the official notice was issued, someone suddenly started buying up large numbers of houses in the demolition area, what would that mean?

William Carter might not even get the compensation before his entire family history was investigated.

So, no matter which old neighborhood it was, he would only ever buy one unit.

People can be greedy, but before you get greedy, you have to consider whether you can actually swallow what you’re after.

Of course, picking the right clients was also an art.

Houses that were still occupied—no.

Houses with elderly residents—no.

Houses of families in financial difficulty—no.

So what’s the ideal target?

It’s those with money, who couldn’t stand living in old, run-down places, had already moved out long ago, and whose houses had been vacant for a while.

Because transactions for these houses went smoothly, with no endless delays.