The next morning, Lin Wei woke up to the sound of silence—an unfamiliar luxury. For once, there was no screeching alarm, no leaking faucet, and no blaring car horns from the window below. Just the soft hum of his brand-new air purifier and the rustle of high-thread-count sheets.
He lay there for a few minutes, staring at the ceiling of his tiny apartment, now upgraded with a few luxury touches. The cheap plastic blinds had been replaced with automatic curtains. The cracked mirror in the bathroom? Gone. A sleek smart mirror now hung in its place. He hadn't gone overboard—at least, that's what he told himself. Just a few essentials, nothing more.
The black card lay on his nightstand, unmoving, yet somehow radiating presence, like it was watching him. Judging him.
Lin Wei reached for it, flipping it between his fingers. Still blank. Still impossibly smooth. He half-expected it to fade or vanish overnight like a dream. But no—it was real. It is real.
He got up and dressed, pulling on a fresh white T-shirt and new jeans, both tags still attached. He paused to look at himself in the mirror.
"You don't look rich," he muttered. "You just look... clean."
He left the apartment without a real plan. The city was already alive outside, Beijing's rhythms pulsing through crowded streets and clattering subway stations. But Lin Wei walked like he had nowhere to be and nothing to do—which, for the first time in years, was true.
He stopped by a small breakfast stand near Xisi Road and ordered soy milk, fried dough sticks, and a meat bun. This time, he paid with his phone—the old-fashioned way. He wasn't ready to flash the black card around for dumplings.
As he ate on a bench under a tree, he pulled out a small notebook. On the front page, he wrote:
Things to Buy (Eventually):
Pay off all debts
Buy mom and dad a new apartment
Quit the garage
Travel—somewhere. Anywhere.
Figure out what the hell this card really is
A familiar voice interrupted his thoughts.
"Lin Wei? Is that you?"
He looked up, mouth half-full. A woman in her mid-twenties stood in front of him, wearing a smart gray business suit and heels too expensive for the sidewalk. Her black hair was pulled into a tight bun, and she held a coffee in one hand and a leather portfolio in the other.
"Jiang Yue?" he said, stunned.
She laughed lightly. "I thought it was you. You've changed."
She wasn't wrong. The last time they'd seen each other was during university—three years ago, before everything fell apart. Before she went into finance and he started fixing carburetors.
"I didn't think you lived around here," Lin Wei said, standing up awkwardly.
"I don't. I was just visiting a client nearby. Are you... working at a firm now?"
He hesitated. "Not exactly. I'm, uh... figuring some things out."
Her smile didn't change, but her eyes did—just a flicker of confusion. "Well, you look good. A lot better than back then."
He smiled. "Thanks. So do you."
They talked for a few minutes. Polite. Familiar. She had a meeting to attend, and he had nowhere to be. As she left, Jiang Yue turned and said over her shoulder:
"You know, you should come by the firm sometime. We're always looking for talented people. You were one of the best designers in school."
Lin Wei watched her disappear into the crowd, a ghost from a past life. He sat back down and finished his bun slowly.
Later that afternoon, curiosity finally won.
He walked into a luxury mall in Chaoyang District—a place he'd never dared enter before. It smelled like expensive cologne and marble polish. He felt out of place immediately, even in new clothes.
He passed rows of gleaming stores: Gucci, Rolex, Chanel, Louis Vuitton. He wasn't here to buy. Not really. Just... to test something.
At the Omega boutique, he stopped.
The salesman was on him instantly. "Hello, sir. May I help you?"
"I'm looking for a watch," Lin Wei said calmly.
"Of course. Any particular model?"
"No idea. Just show me the most expensive one."
The salesman blinked but didn't question it. He led Lin Wei to a glass case and pulled out a shimmering timepiece—a constellation of diamonds and platinum.
"This is the Constellation Tourbillon. One-point-three million yuan."
Lin Wei nodded like he'd heard it a thousand times. "I'll take it."
The man stiffened. "Will you be paying with card?"
Lin Wei pulled out the black card. "This one."
The salesman hesitated. No logo, no chip. "Sir, I... I've never seen one like this."
"Just try it."
He swiped.
Approved.
No signature required. No ID requested.
The salesman's demeanor shifted instantly. "Would you like champagne while we package it?"
Lin Wei shook his head, almost laughing. "No need."
As he walked out with a million-yuan watch on his wrist, a strange feeling settled over him. Not joy. Not pride. Something colder.
Is this power? he thought. Or just the illusion of it?
That night, he sat on the balcony of his apartment with a cold beer, staring at the skyline. His phone buzzed again.
"Spending freely is easy. Spending wisely is rare.
Chapter Two has begun."
There was no sender.
He looked at the card again. Still blank. Still waiting.
He didn't know who "The Custodian" was. He didn't know what he'd been chosen for. But he was certain of one thing:
This wasn't just about money.
It never was.