Time flew by, and it was already the final exam period.
The idol group that the original host was fond of had also officially announced their concert, which would be held in two months.
That was the week at the end of summer vacation.
The exams were not difficult.
Ding Yun didn't worry about this at all.
The only thing that bothered her was the concert ticket and the travel expenses. She calculated that it would cost around three thousand yuan, at least.
This was assuming she could get tickets at face value.
If she had to buy from scalpers, the cost would be even higher.
However, she only had three hundred yuan in hand, which was all she and the original host had managed to save through diligent saving during this period. Not a single cent more.
Although the concert was two months away, ticket sales would begin in a month. Therefore, Ding Yun had very little time to save money.
Because of this, as soon as the final exams ended, Ding Yun temporarily set aside her studies and began to consider how to make money. Her requirements were not high; earning around ten to twenty thousand yuan would be enough, not only to afford the concert but also to learn makeup, buy cosmetics, and have a photoshoot done. After all, these three things were relatively easy to accomplish with a bit of money, so she decided to do them all at once.
Initially, Ding Yun had considered quickly finishing the novel she planned to write for her own amusement and submitting it for income. But after some thought, she gave up on the idea.
As a newcomer, she wasn't sure if her submission would even be accepted. Even if it were, the payment wouldn't be high, and the entire process, from submission to payment, would likely take a long time. If the payment only came in after a month or two, it would be useless.
It wouldn't be in time for her to buy the ticket.
Furthermore, using her good exam results to ask her family for money was unrealistic. She could ask for money for study materials, but definitely not for concert tickets, so that option was immediately dismissed.
But in the end.
Ding Yun actually found a very simple and straightforward way to earn money without much effort.
She sold the items inside the basic Poké Ball.
This wasn't about the magazines the original host collected, as those wouldn't fetch much money. It was about the items that came with the basic Poké Ball itself, such as the bed, toys, and even the most expensive item, a large projector. In any case, the technology in those items was ordinary and could be manufactured with the current technology of this world. Thus, she didn't have to worry about anyone discovering that these items weren't from this world.
The bed and toys, along with other items, sold for a total of two thousand yuan. The large projector, at that time, was a difficult item to acquire and quite expensive. Even though Ding Yun was selling it secondhand, she ultimately sold it for a high price of eight thousand yuan.
Overall, it was definitely a loss. However, the items were second-hand, and in a small town, selling at a high price wouldn't be feasible. It was better to buy something slightly inferior but new.
So, that was how it had to be. At least she made ten thousand yuan. With this money, if she was frugal, it should be enough to fulfill three wishes. As for other particularly expensive wishes, she would deal with them after her college entrance exams.
For now, she didn't have the energy to focus solely on making money.
As Ding Yun sold her belongings and acquired sufficient funds, the final exam results were also released. Unsurprisingly, Ding Yun achieved first place.
First place in the entire grade.
This was about a fifty-rank improvement from her previous position.
Because her grades were already good and she always appeared to be diligent, there was no suspicion of cheating from anyone. Her homeroom teacher even praised her multiple times as an exemplary student.
She urged her classmates to learn from her.
Fortunately, after the final exams, it was time for the holiday break.
Everyone's minds had already wandered, with them thinking about where to go and what to do during the summer vacation. Therefore, the homeroom teacher's praise didn't incite much resentment.
The focus of everyone's complaints and laments.
Was mainly concentrated on the mountain of summer homework.
Afterward, it was the holiday, and everyone went home. This was the only normal summer vacation they would have during their three years of high school. After this summer break, they would start their second year of high school, not only losing two days of vacation each week but also never having a full summer vacation again.
Because at their school, according to convention, starting from the second year of high school, there would only be one day of vacation per week. Midway through the summer vacation, they would have to return to school for remedial classes.
What was even more outrageous was that it was free.
If they charged money, perhaps some parents would be unwilling.
Since it was free, which parent would be unwilling?
This was just for the second year of high school. In the third year, they wouldn't even have a full day of vacation per week; it would only be half a day, specifically Sunday afternoons. Even the winter break wouldn't be complete, as they would have to return to school on the sixth or seventh day of the Lunar New Year.
Of course, it was too early to talk about these things now.
After all, they had just finished their first year of high school. Even with a lot of summer homework, everyone went home relatively happy. Even those who ranked at the bottom weren't in a bad mood.
Because most of them were accustomed to it.
As long as there wasn't a significant drop in their grades, everyone could accept it, and most parents could too.
...
As the holiday began.
Ding Yun quickly spent about ten days completing all her summer homework. Then, she finally had free time. First, she went and bought a set of cosmetics, did her makeup beautifully, and then found a studio to have a photoshoot done.
Initially, the photographer wanted to shoot in a studio. However, Ding Yun found the props and backdrops he had prepared to be too ugly, cheap, and old-fashioned. Therefore, Ding Yun absolutely refused.
She insisted on going out to find a park to shoot.
The two of them even argued to the point where the photographer felt his professionalism was insulted, and he said, "If you think you can do better, then do it." And so, Ding Yun did.
Since the other party had made such a request.
How could she refuse!
After the photographer saw the few photos Ding Yun took, he had nothing more to say. From then on, he didn't stop Ding Yun from doing whatever she wanted. He just waited for the photos to be taken and occasionally exclaimed in amazement, praising how wonderful the angle was, how much texture the photos had, and how Ding Yun was exceptionally talented.
He even said it would be a shame if she didn't study photography.
Of course, this was because photography no longer used film at this time. If it were still the era of film, the photographer would have gone crazy and wouldn't have cooperated with Ding Yun.
After the photoshoot, Ding Yun didn't ask the photographer to turn the photos into a photo album immediately. Instead, she took the negatives and spent a few days at an internet cafe retouching all the photos herself. Only then did she hand them back to the photographer, asking him to help her compile them into a photo album.
Then, Ding Yun got a part-time job.
A job retouching photos.
There was no base salary, and she was paid by piecework. The work wasn't available every day, but since it wasn't much effort, Ding Yun agreed and provided her contact information.
With this, her wishes of having a photoshoot and buying cosmetics were largely fulfilled. As for applying makeup to see relatives during the Chinese New Year, that would be even simpler.
So, Ding Yun then began to preview the content for her second year of high school while waiting for the concert tickets to go on sale.