Zhennan was a small county town in the south, where the late summer heat was unbearable.
Jiang Nian had just returned home when the refrigerator door was opened, and a cloud of steam rushed out.
He searched for a while and finally found a few slices of bread left over from the morning, taking a few bites to make do. His stomach felt a little better afterward.
Suddenly, his phone vibrated; someone was calling.
It was Le Zhi, the class's student life committee member, a flamboyant guy with acne, who had added everyone in the class on QQ. He claimed it was to unite the classmates, but in reality, he was just after the girls in his neighborhood.
"Jiang Nian, Zhou Yuting is asking some people to go out. She asked if you want to go?" Le Zhi's voice carried a hint of urging. He had once said he liked Zhou Yuting.
To be precise, few boys in the class disliked Zhou Yuting, including Jiang Nian.
Zhou Yuting had an oval face, willow-leaf eyebrows, a slender waist, and long legs. Beneath her summer school uniform were soft, spring-like breasts. She was smart, rich, and the class's academic committee member.
"I'm not going."
"Really not going? You still remember Zhou Yuting's birthday party?" Le Zhi persuaded, "Is it really that big of a deal? She didn't do it on purpose, it was just a joke."
Jiang Nian got angry at the mention of the birthday party.
A while ago, Zhou Yuting celebrated her birthday, and six or seven people gathered for a meal.
Out of kindness, Jiang Nian went to a nearby convenience store to buy some water-soluble C100. When he came back, he heard Liu Feipeng and a few girls laughing at him.
"He didn't make an excuse to run away, did he? The food we ordered was indeed a bit expensive. He probably thought we were splitting the bill, but he doesn't know that Da Peng is paying for everything tonight."
"Yeah, and he even said that the lousy drink was good, that we didn't need his few cents."
"Haha, he's a warm-hearted guy, he's ranked after the dog."
A group of people laughed, making Jiang Nian, who was outside the private room, feel uncomfortable. He heard Zhou Yuting's laughter. They were usually good friends, but she didn't say a word for him.
From then on, Jiang Nian saw through her.
Bi Yang's stuff!
If it weren't for Zhou Yuting's birthday party, he wouldn't have wanted to go at all. These days, pure love is no match for pure gold. Money talks, but can it buy your mother?
If I were rich, I wouldn't even glance at someone like Zhou Yuting. I was so wrong about her before
. Damn it, so that's how they see me!
"I'm not going, let them play by themselves," Jiang Nian sneered.
Le Zhi replied, "Fine, I'll tell the beautiful Zhou."
Jiang Nian put down his phone, leaned back on the sofa, and sighed softly. This world has really changed. When did kindness become something to be treated like a clown?
His chest heaved. Without money, you're bullied; with money, everything you do is right.
At the peak of his anger, a notification popped into his head. A semi-transparent panel appeared before him, line after line of white text slowly emerging.
[At eighteen, you entered an ordinary second-tier university. After graduation, you joined a large company, working overtime until your liver exploded, running errands until you cramped, but still no promotion or raise. At
twenty-eight, your parents earnestly advised you, a failure, to go on blind dates. To protect your self-esteem, they carefully handed you a savings book.]
At thirty, the bride price skyrockets to 588,000 yuan. Gritting your teeth, you take out a loan of 1.34 million yuan to buy a house and a car. Five gold items cost 80,000 yuan, a dowry of 128,000 yuan, a "change of address" fee of 30,000 yuan, and gifts for getting in and out of the car total 66,000 yuan.
In a luxury hotel, guests throng, each face beaming with smiles. A bouquet is tossed high into the air, like a white dove soaring through the sky.
At thirty-two, your company undergoes downsizing, and you're incredibly lucky to escape unscathed. Your boss always assigns you the heaviest workload, you come home later and later, and your health
deteriorates. At thirty-five, you lose your job, and your wife grows increasingly dissatisfied. You have no children, your medical reports get worse each time, and arguments become more frequent.
At thirty-eight, your suitcase rolls across the floor, and your wife leaves with a cold face. Your shattered phone lights up; it's a call from your parents, ringing incessantly.
In the ruins, you lower your head and light a cigarette.
Host: Jiang Nian, the Divorce Reversal System has finished loading. Do you have the courage to start a life-changing reversal at this age of 30?
On the sofa, Jiang Nian stared at the words in his mind, completely stunned.
Divorce? Thirty-eight years old?
Huh?
Isn't this the person described on the panel? Jiang Nian's name is correct. He stood there in a daze for more than ten minutes, goosebumps rising all over his body.
Suddenly, he looked up sharply, realizing something.
"Wait, I'm only eighteen!"
Damn, did this system come too early?
Looking at the last line of white text on the panel, "Do you have the courage to start a life-changing reversal at this crossroads of 30/40?"
He reached out, vaguely seeing two choices: yes or no.
There was really no need to hesitate. If this system was fake, then he could just treat it as playing a life simulation game. If it was real, then he had even less reason to give up.
Jiang Nian knew very well how humble a person could be because of poverty. He was relatively lucky; at least his parents would support him if the sky fell, and his standard of living was not bad.
What if he can't support his parents after that?
In this world, one can be incompetent, but not poor. Effort doesn't always guarantee a reward; choosing the wrong path leads to a series of mistakes.
The choice is yes!
The panel vibrated, then a line of small text appeared:
[Divorce Reversal Game Loading Complete, Host: Jiang Nian, Male, Age: 38.
Your marriage has failed, and you stand at the crossroads of your forties, remembering your childhood sweetheart. After marriage, you severed ties, and there was no news of her.
Re-establish contact with Xu Qianqian, Reward: 300 RMB.]
After reading, Jiang Nian couldn't help but purse his lips. This system is so literary.
But it doesn't matter, as long as it pays.
Re-establish contact with his estranged childhood sweetheart, Xu Qianqian... Hmm. He got up and paced around the living room for a while. He opened his front door and stared at Xu Qianqian's house across the hall, lost in thought.
Hmm.
Knock knock knock!!
Jiang Nian knocked on the door relentlessly, "Xu Qianqian, what are you doing?!"
A moment later, hurried footsteps came from behind the door, and a crisp voice pierced through before the person even arrived.
"Get out, Jiang Nian, are you trying to kill me?!"
The door was flung open, revealing a delicate, puffed-up face.
A graceful young girl appeared, about 1.6 meters tall, wearing a beige knitted top, her chest bulging as if hiding a treasure.
The girl had bright eyes, fair skin, and eyebrows like distant mountains; her long, flowing hair was tied back with a hair tie. He hadn't noticed before, but she was a stunning beauty.
Unfortunately, the two had never gotten along since childhood, their relationship deteriorating rapidly from middle school onwards.
He stole Xu Qianqian's ice cream, released her pet turtle into the sewer.
When Xu Qianqian had a slight cold, he carried her to the hospital without explanation, causing her to miss an exam, while Jiang Nian achieved the only time in his life he got first place in the entire class.
For all these misdeeds, he should be grateful that Xu Qianqian didn't kill him.