2016.
Jiangcheng.
Dawn broke on the horizon; the morning dew had not yet dried.
Zhou Xing stood on the balcony, feeling the morning breeze brush against his face. However, his brow was slightly furrowed, and his expression was dazed.
He had been reborn.
He had returned to the summer vacation of his senior year of high school.
What he couldn't figure out was... this world was no different from his memories, so why had his family undergone such earth-shattering changes?
His father, Zhou Jianping, who used to make a living selling fish, had suddenly become a leading figure in the heavy industry sector.
Starting from scratch, he had built the Jianghan Heavy Industry Group Co., Ltd.
The company had a paid-in capital of one hundred billion yuan.
Its subsidiaries spanned steel, metallurgy, machinery, energy... a true steel behemoth in the physical industry.
Although Zhou Jianping kept a low profile and had never appeared on the Forbes List,
his net worth was conservatively estimated to be over three hundred billion.
It far exceeded that of the nominal richest man.
His capital chain even crushed a multitude of internet tycoons.
His mother, Zhang Lanfang, who used to run a small convenience store, had become a highly renowned elite lawyer in the country.
She was also the founder of Junhe Law Firm, one of the top law firms in the country.
They should have been squeezed into a dilapidated old apartment of less than a hundred square meters in the old city district. Zhou Xing looked at the two-acre lake-view villa before him and fell into silence.
An outdoor heated swimming pool, a yard of over a thousand square meters, a private garage large enough to fit over a dozen cars... all these luxurious facilities that Zhou Xing could not have imagined in his previous life were present.
His bedroom alone was over a hundred square meters, larger than his entire home in his previous life.
The room was equipped with a walk-in closet and a private bathroom.
The floor was covered with expensive wool rugs.
Imported big-brand furniture, whose names Zhou Xing couldn't even call out, could be seen everywhere.
It exuded luxury.
His parents' life trajectories had undergone a massive shift.
The only thing that hadn't changed was his college entrance exam results.
He was still admitted to the Hucheng Conservatory of Music through the art exam, thanks to his outstanding appearance.
This kind of family background might not seem like much on the internet,
but in reality... he had clearly reached the peak of life.
His status was among the best in the entire country.
He was the ultimate Second-generation rich!
"What on earth happened? Could it be that my rebirth caused a butterfly effect?"
Zhou Xing was puzzled.
Even though no one would refuse a wealthy family, for Zhou Xing, who had been used to an average family for over twenty years,
for a moment,
it was a bit hard to digest.
Heaven is fair.
He gained wealth... and at the same time, he would lose his worries!
"Detection: host background optimization complete."
"Life Optimization System activated."
"The system is dedicated to helping the host continuously improve themselves and optimize their life path until perfection is achieved!"
"..."
At that moment,
a series of cold, emotionless mechanical sounds suddenly rang out in his mind, interrupting Zhou Xing's thoughts.
He looked up, and a light blue light screen appeared before his eyes.
[host: Zhou Xing]
[Age: 18]
[Height: 185]
[Charm: 83]
[Physique: 80]
[Endurance: 99]
[Skills: Basic Driving Skill]
[...]
Zhou Xing's brow relaxed, and all his doubts instantly vanished as he suddenly understood.
So... all of this was the system's handiwork.
The system was the culprit.
Zhou Xing stared at the attribute panel and couldn't help but nod slightly.
The data was simple and easy to understand.
It should be based on a hundred-point scale... For now, it seemed his attributes were quite good, with each item well above the passing line.
It was only 'Endurance' that left Zhou Xing a bit confused.
He thought for a moment, his expression shifting, and suddenly realized that he had never had a girlfriend before the age of eighteen.
The weapon had not yet been unsheathed, so how could there be any wear and tear?
Zhou Xing's gaze was somewhat complicated.
During college in his previous life, he had also had a few girlfriends, but they all ended without results.
With an ordinary family background, even if he had an outstanding appearance, it was of no use.
The feeling wasn't that obvious when he was in Jiangcheng.
It wasn't until he entered college and met classmates from all over the country that he saw the disparities in society.
For the first time, he understood that the gap between people could be so vast.
Like a chasm!
Especially in an arts school like the Hucheng Conservatory of Music.
There were countless handsome men and beautiful women, and Second-generation rich kids were everywhere.
Zhou Xing's tuition for a year might not even be enough for their spending in a nightclub for one night.
Feelings of inferiority sprouted and grew uncontrollably.
As a result, during his four years of college, he was a marginal figure in school, completely inconspicuous.
After graduating, Zhou Xing only wanted to make money.
Unfortunately, after wasting several years... he had nothing to show for it.
Approaching thirty, no longer young, and with a heart already numb, he barely managed to get a girlfriend.
Only then did the weapon leave its scabbard, giving him the chance to level up and fight monsters.
But the cruelty of society gave him another heavy blow.
Facing sky-high bride prices, houses, cars... these completely crushed Zhou Xing's last shred of dignity.
Zhou Xing had to accept that he was just an ordinary person who even struggled to make a living.
While some people were born in Rome.
Standing on the mountain peak looking down at him, he was like an ant.
Zhou Xing shook his head and chuckled a bit.
He never thought that one day he would also become one of them.
Rebirth is the peak!
He had lost his goal to strive for.
Everyone eventually becomes the version of themselves they once hated.
He wondered what kind of scene it would be when he met those who used to look down on him again.
"It should be interesting, right?"
Zhou Xing chuckled, letting those not-so-pleasant memories fade away, and tried to communicate with the system.
In his view, his current life was already perfect enough.
How else could it be optimized?
"System?"
Zhou Xing called out several times, but his voice was like a stone dropped into the ocean, receiving no response.
Just as he was about to give up, the voice in his mind rang out again.
"Newbie rewards have been loaded and are being sent."
"Rewards sent."
"Please treat the newbie rewards with caution. The system will make judgments based on the host's behavior and the way you use them."
"In three months, the system will automatically upgrade to provide the most suitable life for the host."
"..."
As the voice faded,
the system returned to silence once more.
"Newbie rewards?"
Zhou Xing's eyes were bright, sparkling with expectation.
He had already experienced the system's power.
Not only was his rebirth its work, but it also made him a top-tier Second-generation rich kid.
The newbie rewards surely wouldn't be ordinary either.
Zhou Xing waited patiently.
After a long time, he lost his patience.
What's going on!
Where... are the newbie rewards?
He didn't feel his body being strengthened to the point where a single slide tackle could defeat a large golden tabby cat, making him a little superman who surpassed human limits.
His brain hadn't been developed to the extreme, giving him skills like 'photographic memory'.
Zhou Xing was dumbfounded.
Could it be that something went wrong with the system midway and it crashed?
Leading to his newbie rewards being swallowed up.
Zhou Xing was getting a little anxious.
"Buzz buzz..."
The phone in his pocket suddenly vibrated twice.
He instinctively took out his phone and glanced at it.
It was a text message.
[An amount was credited to your account 2963 on August 03 at 06:59: chinese yuan 3,472,500,000.00. {China Merchants Bank}]
Three billion four hundred seventy-two million five hundred thousand.
According to the exchange rate,
it was exactly five hundred million us dollars!