A New Era

"But you're only a freshman." The counselor was at a loss for words. In the end, he decided to roll with it and started flipping through my thesis.

I knew he wouldn't be able to find any fault with the paper. After all, I'd basically copied and pasted my graduation thesis from my original world onto those stacks of paper. My original thesis had even been published in a journal.

The counselor let out a weary sigh and shot me a complicated look after reading through it several times. "You should focus your energy on your major."

"I understand." I nodded obediently.

However, I still needed someone to step in and help me smooth things over. After our conversation, I had a feeling that the counselor would do just fine.

So, I added, "I plan to publish this paper. When that happens, I'll put your name in the supervisor section."

"Published?" A glint flashed in his eyes.

It was challenging to publish a thesis in both worlds. After all, my paper had to be excellent, and I had to be lucky enough for the panel to find my paper pleasing.

I had lucked out in my last life. However, I was confident that my chances of getting this thesis published would be much higher now that I had the money reward buff.

The counselor was grinning from ear to ear before he dismissed me, telling me to focus on my studies while he would explain things to the board.

…

When I walked out of the office, I found Caleb leaning against the windowsill as he waited for me.

When our eyes met, he pressed his tongue against his cheek, let out a scoff, and started clapping. "I'm part of your control group, huh? How wonderful."

I didn't want to waste my time dealing with him. So, I walked past him and straight toward the library.

Alas, my bad luck caught up with me as I reached the corner of the second floor. I saw Janice walking together with Andrew, followed by their posse.

I had planned to avoid them. Sadly, a girl behind Janice saw me before I could do so and said, "Hey, you're Lily, right?"

The girl ran up and stared at me like I was some kind of rare specimen. "You made such a huge mess. I guess you're about to be expelled."

"Lily, I'm sorry." Janice stepped forward, lowering her head as she played the innocent lamb. "If I had known you cared so much about love, I shouldn't have… You wouldn't have caused such a big disaster."

Janice really was a master with words as she managed to twist every single word into a weapon against me.

"Your family worked so hard to raise you. How could it all be ruined over something like this? It's all my fault." As she spoke, she even squeezed out a couple of tears.

"It's fine." I gave her a cheeky smile. "This is a blessing in disguise. Who knows, the school might even commend me for my efforts!"

When Janice heard my words, she almost burst out laughing and thought that I was out of my mind.

"Commend you for what? For bravely pursuing love? Are they going to build you a statue on campus as well?"

I tapped on my chin as I mulled over her words before nodding. "That's not impossible."

This time, Janice really couldn't hold it in anymore. She laughed so hard that she started honking like a goose.

Andrew didn't say a single word from start to finish. He just stood there blankly like a wooden dummy.

I figured that this would happen. After all, this novel was written around 2007. Although people had started using the internet for business, it was still in its early stages. Most people weren't as involved in the Internet just yet.

So, the potential of social platforms wasn't realized until much later.

This was a golden opportunity.

I fell into deep thought as I browsed through the cluttered online shopping websites.

At this stage, people were more or less familiar with online merchant websites. So, I would have to take a different path if I wanted to succeed.

In that case, my only option was to focus on a niche by integrating existing resources. I would have to look into the consumers' food, housing, and transportation choices before developing a business plan that would attract them.

Then, I'd be able to turn their favorable impression of the service I provide into an instinctive and only choice.

A draft of my business proposal had been drawn up while I was still deep in thought. However, I quickly ran into a snag as I couldn't help but wonder whether my plan was achievable as of right now.

I was so immersed in my brainstorming session that I didn't notice someone had already come up behind me.

"How ambitious." The person standing behind me was a middle-aged man in his 50s.

He smiled as he examined the framework I had written and remarked, "However, ideas without a solid foundation often end up in shambles."

Sharing My Ideas With the Seniors

He shook his head and was about to leave.

"It is indeed unrealistic if we're relying solely on personal computers."

He stopped when he heard my reply.

I continued, "That's why I'm of the opinion that PC is only a transitional stage for cultivating user habits."

"What do you mean?" He spun on his heel when he heard my words, looking at me in disbelief.

"You heard me." I nodded.

When I caught sight of his name badge, I straightened up and said, "Mobile business is my endgame."

The man standing before me was Bruce Ryle, a professor who specialized in IT at Olhan University.

Although this novel was set around 2007, it also contained many of the author's bold speculations about the future. This was shown through their creation of the character Bruce, who was given considerable focus.

If I could get his help, then my business proposal wouldn't be that much of a pipedream.

Bruce and I talked at length about the future direction of the IT industry over the next few hours. I earned quite a bit of praise from him with my unique insights and foresight into future trends.

"Are you a graduate student at this school?" He narrowed his eyes and fiddled with his badge. "Are you interested in transferring under me?"

"You flatter me." I shook my head. "I'm just a freshman."

"A freshman?" Bruce widened his eyes in surprise. Then, he suddenly remembered he had a lecture to give. He leaned closer and asked quietly, "Would you like to share your ideas with your seniors? You could give them a wake-up call."

"Sure." There was no way I would miss such an opportunity.

…

During the lecture, Bruce barely spoke as he let me stand alone on stage and talked freely.

"Therefore, I believe we could link information and communication technology with social platforms to incorporate the internet with current industries, creating a more convenient and integrative development in pre-existing businesses.

"I have faith that an advancement in this direction will be a sign toward a new era."

After I was done with my speech, I bowed deeply to the audience and received thunderous applause.

Bruce stepped forward and barked sternly, "Are you lot really applauding right now? Look at her! She's only a freshman! What were all of you doing in your first year? Skipping your classes? Look at you now! You can't even squeeze out a single intelligent question!"

"A freshman?"

The audience was in an uproar after hearing Bruce's words.

Bruce invited me to his house for dinner that evening, and I boldly shared my idea with him over dinner.

"Can your team make it happen?" I deliberately added a hint of doubt to my tone.

"Hey!" He slammed his utensils on the table angrily. "If my team can't do it, no one else can!" Then, he suddenly caught on. "Are you trying to make us work for you?"

"Oh, nothing that insidious. We're collaborating." I corrected him. "Besides, you and your team will benefit from this once this project succeeds."

"That may be true, but e-commerce is a brutal field. The initial capital alone is going to be a huge expense, and it'll cost you a pretty penny just to maintain the subsequent operations. The board would never approve of this."

His words reminded me that while product differentiation mattered in e-commerce, price wars were where it really was at. I would need additional funding eventually, though not immediately.

I held up a finger and said confidently, "I'll provide the initial capital."

"One million?" Bruce shook his head with a bitter smile. "That's not enough."

"One? No, think 10 million."