Li Yuan then remembered that Xue Zhiqian's "Actor" hadn't been released yet.
"Forget it. As long as you know she's okay, that's what matters."
Xu Zhi replied, "As a brother, just a reminder: we're all classmates. Even if you're not together anymore, you shouldn't let things get so awkward between you."
Li Yuan was speechless. How had this become his fault?
"Stop nagging. I'm in the middle of a game, can't talk."
Lighting a cigarette, Li Yuan stood up and did a few stretches.
Becoming a web novelist wasn't easy. Just sitting in front of a computer and typing for hours every day was a huge test of endurance. Writing over 4,000 words daily, year-round without a break—it was incredibly hard to persevere unless one was truly passionate about the craft or forced into it by financial need.
Li Yuan had thought about starting a business, but it was currently high school summer vacation. He was going to college in another city come September, and in this small county town, there weren't many good entrepreneurial opportunities.
As a web novelist, he had read plenty of rebirth stories and greatly envied the characters who succeeded in business so easily. In his previous life, he had never started a business. Although his parents had run a business when he was very young, it was just a small street-side stall, offering no valuable lessons.
During a college summer vacation, he had once gone to the Northeast to sell fruit from a tricycle. He hardly made any money—just one or two hundred yuan a day, which was worse than working at a construction site. He didn't have the gift of gab, and that hadn't changed much even in his later years after getting a government job.
Li Yuan had many ideas about starting a business, but this small county town wasn't the right place to implement them yet.
I'll wait until I've saved up my first pot of gold, then look for entrepreneurial opportunities in college.
In the blink of an eye, June 18th, the day of the game, arrived.
Li Yuan watched the game in an internet cafe with Wang Shuai, Xu Zhi, and their friends.
"Kobe, why don't you shoot? Where's your killer instinct? Can't you even put up a fight?" As a die-hard Kobe fan, Wang Shuai was beside himself with frustration, unleashing a torrent of curses.
Xu Zhi also looked upset. "The Boss and the Lakers are going to be nailed to the pillar of historical shame! Losing by 39 points... they've completely lost face."
Yang Zhen slammed the table, making it creak. "This is pissing me off! I've lost my appetite."
Only Li Yuan remained expressionless, but inside he was ecstatic.
He, this small butterfly from a new life, hadn't caused any changes across the ocean. Now, all he had to do was claim his prize, and he'd be a millionaire.
Li Yuan comforted his emotionally wounded friends, "Brothers, I'm treating you all to a big dinner tonight. Let's drown our sorrows in wine."
Upon hearing this, Zhang Zhongding, Xu Zhi, and the others went from sorrowful to joyful. "Yuanzi, for real? Then it's a deal!"
Li Yuan nodded. "I'm just afraid you can't hold your liquor. Wasn't it just the other night you were swearing to the heavens that you'd never drink again?"
Wang Shuai chuckled. "How can you take a man's drunken promises seriously? They're as worthless as farts."
Li Yuan laughed. "So that 'in vino veritas' stuff is all nonsense."
Xu Zhi shook his head. "You can't say that. It depends on the situation. What I said that night was the truth. I sincerely hope we can maintain this kind of friendship after we all go off to college."
Yang Zhen declared, "Dazhi, you're overthinking it. The bond between the Starting Five of Class 22 will definitely last forever."
Li Yuan was silent. After college, once everyone started working, one person would be in the south of Nanshan while another would be in the north of Beihai. How could anyone possibly maintain this kind of bond? Everyone will have their own circle of friends and, over time, slowly forget their old ones... That's exactly what happened in my previous life.
Li Yuan proposed, "We can have a small get-together to stay in touch whenever we're all back home for the New Year."
Wang Shuai blew a smoke ring. "Then it's settled. The college entrance exam results will be out in another week. I just hope I don't have to retake the exam. I asked Old Wang, and the exam-retake classes at our No. 1 High School are insane. They have 140 or 150 students in each class. It's terrifying..."
Yang Zhen laughed. "Let's worry about that when the results come out. After twelve years of hard study, we finally have a vacation. We should just relax and enjoy it."
Zhang Zhongding wore a mischievous smile. "Teachers always say things are tight in high school but get loose in college. You guys know why?"
Wang Shuai looked curious. "Is it because the coursework is easier?"
"Nope. Guess again."
After lunch, Li Yuan grabbed his ID card, bank card, and other documents, preparing to visit the various lottery shops.
At the lottery shop near the gate of No. 1 High School, the owner, Zhang Cheng, had been waiting with bated breath ever since the match results came out.
Seeing Li Yuan again, Zhang Cheng's face was all smiles. He casually handed over a Red Bull and said fawningly, "Genius, you're finally here! You're amazing. How on earth did you do it?"
He was kicking himself internally. If only he'd dared to keep following Li Yuan's bets, he would have shared in the fortune today. That was over a million yuan! Enough to live on for ten years.
Li Yuan just smiled faintly, not intending to explain. He would probably only use a money-making opportunity like this once.
"It was a fluke, just good luck. How do I claim the prize?"
Zhang Cheng shook his head and explained, "Lottery shops like ours have a single-claim limit of 50,000 yuan. Your prize is considered a major jackpot. You'll need to go to the municipal Sports Lottery Center to claim it."
As he spoke, he showed Li Yuan the relevant regulations.
Li Yuan wasn't familiar with the specific process. After a serious look, he realized his trip to this lottery shop had been pointless.
"Alright, boss, you stay busy then. I'm heading to the city."
Seeing Li Yuan about to leave, Zhang Cheng hurriedly stopped him. "Genius," he said anxiously, "want to try your luck with soccer?"
Li Yuan shook his head. "Sorry, I only follow NBA basketball."
Zhang Cheng sighed. "What a shame."
Watching Li Yuan's departing figure, Zhang Cheng was filled with regret, practically beating his chest and stomping his feet. He calculated that with this last bet alone, Li Yuan had made over a million yuan.
I'm such a fucking idiot! A chance to get rich, and I just let it slip by. If I could do it all over again, I'd bet my entire fortune…
The trip from the county town to the city took a little over an hour. Li Yuan hailed a taxi on the street.
"Sir, how much for a trip to the city?"
"Sixty yuan. Take it or leave it?"
"Alright, then." Li Yuan didn't haggle, as taxis were metered.
The trip to the city was uneventful. Li Yuan got out near the Sports Lottery Center. To remain inconspicuous, he put on a mask and hat and walked for more than half a kilometer before arriving at the center to claim his prize.
The redemption process wasn't complicated, and there weren't many people there. When the staff saw the six lottery tickets Li Yuan placed before them, they were stunned.
One of the female employees looked at Li Yuan intently, her voice trembling. "Mr. Li, are all six of these sports lottery tickets yours?"
Li Yuan nodded.
"Mr. Li, you're truly lucky. This is a very large sum. Please wait just a moment."
"No problem. Please process it as quickly as you can."
Before long, people throughout the Sports Lottery Center were glancing at Li Yuan, whispering amongst themselves. Some were even secretly taking photos.
Six lottery tickets with a principal of 149,400 yuan and odds of 42.5. The accumulated prize money was over 6.3 million yuan, tax-free. In 2008, this was already a huge fortune.
Soon, the female employee handed the paperwork to Li Yuan. "Mr. Li, you have won a total of 6,349,500 yuan. The funds will be transferred to your bank card before 5:30 p.m. this afternoon."
Li Yuan took the documents, said thank you, and was about to leave when he heard the same employee politely ask, "Mr. Li, would you be interested in any wealth management services? We're connected with several banks that offer various wealth management fund products for large depositors, with annualized returns of 6 to 8 percent..."
Li Yuan didn't reject the offer bluntly. Instead, he smiled and said, "Thank you for the advice. I'll consider it."
Of course, he was just being polite. He had big plans for his six-million-plus yuan; only a fool would hand it over to a bank for wealth management.
Li Yuan made a token donation of one thousand yuan and then left the Sports Lottery Center. He didn't return to his home county immediately. Instead, he wandered around for a bit and then went to an internet cafe to do some writing.
Around 5:00 p.m., a text message alert from China Construction Bank popped up on his phone.
"Your account 6213… received a transfer of 6,349,500 yuan (Municipal Sports Lottery Center) on June 18, 2008, at 5:10 p.m. Current balance: 6,350,108 yuan."