"This question didn't appear in the test two years ago, nor did it show up last year, but I have a strong feeling it'll be on this year's exam. It's worth twelve points—take it or leave it, it's your choice!"
On the podium, their homeroom teacher, Old Qin, was practically spitting with excitement as he explained the key points of the exam.
Only 18 days left until the college entrance examination!
Behind him, on one side of the blackboard, the countdown to the gaokao was scrawled in chalk, casting a heavy tension over the entire classroom.
On the battered desks, carvings of embarrassing, melodramatic slogans stood as testament to youthful impulsiveness.
In the reflection of the glass windows, a young, unfamiliar face stared back.
It wasn't until this moment that Fang Yi fully accepted—he had really been reborn.
Back to June 20, 2000.
The wild years of the millennium had already passed. He couldn't be the lucky pig standing in the wind, nor could he ride the tidal wave of the internet boom. Companies like Alibaba, Tencent, Baidu, and NetEase were already well on their way.
But Fang Yi wasn't the least bit flustered.
With the perspective of someone reborn, he saw a land of golden opportunity.
Take next year, for instance—it held the perfect chance to make a fortune. If he could seize it, he could accumulate hundreds of millions—no, even billions—in a very short span of time.
But right now, the question was… how to earn his first pot of gold?
Capital operations needed capital to begin with. And the hardest step was always that very first one.
To complete the original accumulation of wealth, some people became disgraced disciples of prestigious sects, some were forced into becoming PhD couriers, some turned to delivery jobs, and others, under pressure, resorted to reselling crayfish...
So what should he do?
In his past life, plenty of people online loved to boast that if they were reborn, they'd take their cash straight to Hangzhou's Lakeside Gardens to find Jack Ma, or head south to Shenzhen or Guangzhou to look for Pony Ma.
Fang Yi just scoffed at that idea.
Naïve.
As if waving a wad of cash would get the attention of either of the Mas.
Let's talk about Pony Ma first. The man was a proper second-generation rich kid—his dad was hometown buddies with Li Ka-shing, and they were close friends too.
Would someone like that really need your puny couple million?
Even when he considered selling QQ for 600,000 yuan, it wasn't because he was desperate—it was just that his entrepreneurial venture wasn't going smoothly, and he wanted to take a break. Far from the dramatic "I have no way out" image people liked to imagine.
And in the end, it was Li Ka-shing's son, Richard Li, who lent a hand and helped Pony Ma get through the tough times.
As for Jack Ma, don't even think about it.
From the very beginning of founding Alibaba, Jack Ma had made one thing clear: "Shareholders come third."
When Alipay was split off, Yahoo and SoftBank suffered enormous losses. Yahoo was so furious they tried to kick Jack Ma off the board, and in the end, it was Jack Ma who kicked them out instead. The grudges and drama there were enough to write a whole novel.
And a nobody with no power or influence—want to invest in Jack Ma? He'd have you counting money for him even as he sold you out.
If he could dare to screw over global giants like Yahoo and SoftBank, what would stop him from screwing you?
In the end, you'd be forced to cash out early, earn a bit of petty change, and never live to see the day the company went public.
Besides, with the golden finger of rebirth, Fang Yi believed his future achievements wouldn't be any less than the two Mas—perhaps even greater.
Of course, making money was only part of it.
Living a second life, the most important thing was to leave no regrets behind.
At that thought, Fang Yi instinctively looked toward the second row of the classroom.
A girl sat there, her silky black hair cascading down her back. Even the cheap blue-and-white school uniform couldn't hide her graceful figure.
As if sensing his gaze, the girl turned her head.
Their eyes met. She froze for a split second before calmly turning away.
But the faint flush that crept up her delicate ears betrayed her true emotions—it was definitely not as calm as it looked on the surface.
Fang Yi broke into a bright smile.
Ah, youth. How wonderful.
…
"Ding-ling-ling~"
The bell signaling the end of class rang out—a sound both familiar and foreign.
But even as the noise died down, Fang Yi still had no clue how to earn that first bucket of gold.
"Yi-ge, let's go eat!"
A voice rang out behind him, laced with a distinct Sichuan-Chongqing accent. A small, fair hand lightly patted his shoulder.
Fang Yi turned to look and saw a delicate oval face.
Short hair brushed the tips of her ears, framing a pair of clear, bright eyes now fixed in confusion at the sheet of paper in front of him.
Her lips were on the thinner side, and her mouth always seemed to carry a hint of stubbornness.
But when she smiled, it was like a sunflower in full bloom—radiant and warm.
Zhao Wanqiu.
Seeing her face again brought back memories of the last time he saw her in his past life.
In the hospital room, late-stage lung cancer had reduced her to a shadow of her former self.
She'd gripped his hand tightly, her face twisted in pain, as she whispered, "Yi-ge… it hurts…"
…
"What are you doing? What's this Pinduoduo, Taobao, Alipay, Meituan?" she asked, puzzled, picking up the paper on his desk.
Snapping back to reality, Fang Yi reached out and gently pinched her cheek, grinning.
"Qiu-ge, long time no see."
"…You…"
That sudden tenderness stunned Zhao Wanqiu. A hint of panic flickered in her eyes.
She quickly slapped his hand away, barking with forced bravado, "Don't touch me, you punk!"
Hmm?
Fang Yi raised an eyebrow. Her fair cheeks were gradually turning pink.
He looked at her with amusement. "Qiu-ge, don't tell me… you actually like me? I've always seen you as a bro, and you wanna sleep with me?"
"I like your ass!"
Clearly flustered, Zhao Wanqiu blurted out in her native dialect.
"Really not even a little?" Fang Yi gave her a suspicious look.
"No!"
"Not even a tiny flutter of feelings?"
"I said NO!"
Feeling increasingly cornered under his gaze, Zhao Wanqiu flushed in embarrassment and launched herself at him, throwing her arms around his neck in a headlock.
Good thing Fang Yi was sitting down—if he were standing, with her barely 160 cm frame, there'd be no way she could reach his neck.
Their intimate scuffle didn't raise any eyebrows in the classroom. Everyone was used to it by now.
A few boys, however, looked on with envy.
Even if Zhao Wanqiu was wild and boyish, she was still a looker.
By modern beauty standards, she'd easily score a 90.
If only their heads were buried in her chest like that…
Teenage boys, brimming with hormones, couldn't help but fantasize.
Fang Yi, head still locked in place, decided to stop teasing.
"Alright, alright. I believe you," he mumbled.
Only then did Zhao Wanqiu release him.
Rubbing his neck, Fang Yi draped an arm around her shoulder and said cheerfully, "Come on, let's get Haozi and eat out. My treat!"
Zhao Wanqiu didn't react awkwardly at all.
She was used to it.
From a young age, she'd always hung out with Fang Yi and the rest of the boys.
She and Fang Yi had grown up in the same apartment complex. They'd been classmates from elementary school all the way to high school—almost ten years of history.
Best friends, soulmates, brothers-in-arms.
As for "Haozi," that was Shen Hao, another childhood buddy they'd grown up with—though he wasn't in the same class.
The two stepped out of the classroom and immediately spotted Shen Hao waiting at the staircase.
"Let's go eat!"
Fang Yi slung an arm around each of their shoulders and led them out toward the school gates.