After a few minutes, things improved. David's headache subsided, and his mind stopped racing like a computer, returning to normal.
"Damn, that hurt," David muttered as he rubbed his head. After a while, his mind felt clearer than ever, like a refreshing breeze blowing through his thoughts.
Curious about the effects of the brain booster he had taken, David grabbed a language arts book he was currently studying. He flipped to a random passage and started reading. To his surprise, he could remember the gist of the paragraphs he read, even if not every detail. But he couldn't blame the brain booster entirely; his memory score was only 30, and even with a 15-point boost, it was just 45. He could only blame himself for that.
After testing with the language arts book, he picked up his least favorite subject, math. Math had always been a struggle for him, with its complex formulas and calculations. He usually scored in the 30s or 40s on exams. But now, the formulas seemed easier to remember, and solving the problems felt more intuitive.
Next, he tackled his dreaded English book, memorizing vocabulary with just a glance. To further test the brain booster, he took out a mixed exam booklet from school. Most of the questions in the front were copied, but a few were his own work. When he opened it to the page he had worked on, he started solving the problems with clear thinking, barely needing to pause. He was thrilled, confirming that the brain booster was indeed effective.
He organized his thoughts for the language arts questions, tackled the challenging math problems with ease, and breezed through the English questions after memorizing the vocabulary. Even the tougher questions in all subjects were solved with his understanding, and when he checked the answers, he found his logic was correct, with only a few minor errors.
While David was deeply engrossed in his studies, Wendy called him for dinner. She knocked on his door, but there was no response. She knocked again, still no answer. David was so absorbed in his work that he didn't hear his mom's knocking.
Wendy assumed David was lost in his computer games, so she opened the door, only to find him intensely focused on his studies. Curious, she walked over and saw him flipping through books and writing with a fervor, completely immersed in his work.
She smiled with satisfaction, realizing David's promise wasn't a joke. She watched him for a few minutes, captivated by his dedication, before remembering she was there to call him for dinner. She gently tapped David's shoulder. He was slightly annoyed, thinking, "Who's interrupting my study groove?" But when he turned and saw his mom, his face lit up with a smile. "Mom, what's up? Can't you see your son is studying?"
Wendy chuckled, "Studying is great, and it makes me happy! But you need to eat too, right?"
David said, "Oh, I forgot! Let's go eat now. I got so caught up with my homework that I forgot how hungry I am." With that, he hurried out the door. Wendy chuckled, shaking her head, "This kid is always in such a rush," and followed him to the dining room.
At the table, David's increased memory seemed to make the food taste even better, and he ate heartily. Wendy watched him with a smile, but her mind wandered back to the issues at the factory.
After a moment, she turned to David and said, "Dave, can I talk to you about something?" David looked up from his plate, "Sure, Mom. What's up?"
Wendy said, "I need to borrow some money from you. You know, you have that million, right? There's a problem at the factory." At first, David thought his mom wanted to buy something, but when she mentioned the factory, he realized it must be serious.
"Mom, what's going on at the factory?" Wendy explained, "We can't sell our products right now. Only a few small business owners are buying, but they can't buy much. We're losing money. We tried to develop new cosmetics, investing over two hundred thousand, but there's been no news yet."
"I can't even pay the workers now. If I can't find a solution, the factory might close in three months. That's why I need to borrow some money to handle the current situation."
David thought about it. With so many new cosmetics out there, small factories like his mom's need to find ways to stay afloat, or they'll eventually close down.
Suddenly, he had an idea. He had that super-rich tech system, right? He could ask it for help later. For now, he decided to lend his mom some money. "Mom, how much do you need?" Wendy hesitated, "How much can you lend?"
David sensed his mom was worried about asking for too much, so he pulled out his phone and transferred the money to her. "Mom, I've sent the money. Check your account."
Wendy was about to ask how much he had sent when her phone buzzed with a notification. She checked the message and saw a lot of zeros. She counted: ones, tens, hundreds, thousands, ten thousands, hundred thousands, millions. A full million! Her son had transferred a million to her, but her joy quickly faded.
David noticed her change in mood, "Mom, a million, right? What's wrong?" Wendy replied, "It's a million, and I'm happy, but it's only a temporary fix. It'll be gone in a few months. Without a real solution, money alone won't help."
David reassured her, "Don't worry, Mom. I'll graduate in less than two months, and then I'll help you find a solution. For now, let's enjoy our meal."
When Wendy heard David's words, she thought he was just trying to comfort her. She decided not to dwell on it and focused on figuring out how to produce the new medicine. Then she stopped thinking about it and went back to eating.
Half an hour later, David finished his meal and told his mom he was going to use the computer. She reminded him to go to bed early since he had school the next day. He nodded and went to his room, where he sat on the bed and asked the system, "Do you have any cosmetics or something like that?"
The system's mechanical voice replied, "Yes." David was excited and asked, "What is it?" The system responded, "Lingyang Tea." "What does it do?" David inquired. The system explained that it reduces fat, aids digestion, removes facial scars, acne, and rashes, whitens and smoothens the skin, treats insomnia, and purges impurities from the body.
After hearing the system's explanation, David was thrilled. With so many benefits, his mom's factory would finally have a solution. "Do you have any samples now?" he asked. "Sorry, this system doesn't have samples, but it has the ingredients and the method to make it," the system replied. David was pleased and asked, "How many task points do I need?" The system said, "Since it's both the ingredients and the method, it requires three hundred task points to exchange."
Hearing that it required three hundred task points, David realized he had a long way to go. He knew he needed to work hard on tasks over the next couple of months to fulfill his promise to his mom.