June 8, 1999, evening, Yangcheng, Zhonghai City, Dragon Kingdom, Blue Star.
Beside a small river in the park, the setting sun cast its glow.
An eighteen-year-old youth lay on the grass. He had sword-like eyebrows, bright eyes, a resolute face, and was tall, strong, and imposing.
This youth was none other than Zhang Tianxing, reborn.
Fortunately, Zhang Tianxing was reborn after the college entrance examination. Otherwise, the exam questions would have known him, but he wouldn't have known them.
Things were different now compared to his high school days. After being beaten by the "university of life," he had long since returned the knowledge to the old man at the school gate.
Recalling the tragic changes in his family in his previous life, Zhang Tianxing couldn't help but clench his fist.
A hero reborn, this time I won't give any of you a chance.
In my previous life, my life was unsatisfactory, and my parents lived out their old age in misery. In this life, I vow to be superior to others. I will drink the strongest wine and enjoy all the most beautiful things in this world.
Ideas are beautiful, but reality is harsh. This is the era where daring leads to wealth.
Nowadays, opportunities fly everywhere, it just depends on whether you can seize them. The bold get rich, the timid starve. Seize one opportunity, and a sow can instantly climb a tree.
Thinking of this, Zhang Tianxing patted the dust off his clothes and stood up.
Looking at the dilapidated state of Yangcheng, it was because he had no money. If he had money, he would buy ten or eight houses directly in the old city center of Yangcheng and wait for development.
To become a demolition household himself, that kind of life wasn't bad to think about.
His college entrance examination scores were quite good, exceeding expectations, a major upset. Unfortunately, in his previous life, due to family reasons, he never got to go to college.
He went out to work, traveling far and wide, wanting to subsidize his family a little. Instead, he was exploited for his desire to make money, fell into a trap, took out a high-interest loan, and became the last straw that broke his entire family.
After his family fell into ruin, he reflected deeply and, after much hardship, finally achieved some success. However, he was sent back twenty years by a lightning strike.
A wave of sadness surged in his heart. He had been too much of a scoundrel in his previous life, betrayed by his so-called brother who set him up with a "honey trap." His girlfriend ended up with his brother.
It made relatives and friends a laughingstock and caused him to miss two opportunities in his life for no reason.
No matter what, a person encounters opportunities a few times in their life. If a person seizes just one opportunity, their life will be different.
Zhang Tianxing's misfortune was that he failed to seize those opportunities, giving them all to his various friends.
Later, he thought that this matter was mainly Zhang Tianxing's fault. He had a people-pleasing personality, lost himself, and was egocentric.
The kind are bullied. Because Zhang Tianxing was kind-hearted, he was always given the "friend zone" and ended up doing all the dirty and tiring work.
He did the most work, but got the least, and received the most criticism.
All words can be summed up in one sentence: when everyone is against you, it's not the world that has a problem, but you. You haven't found a way to coexist peacefully with this world.
Zhang Tianxing was in a daze for a long time and realized that he really didn't have the protagonist's luck. He hadn't found any systems or golden fingers.
Let alone a system father, he had called out "system grandfather" for a long time, but no one answered.
Alas, is it really so hard for an honest person to turn their life around?
Perhaps he would still be a salted fish in this life, but even a salted fish wants to live the life of a landlord.
Unfortunately, he wasn't a technical talent either, with no special skills. It seemed he could only take small steps.
Let's see what opportunities there are in the next twenty years. See if he can save up a few more houses, and then be his own landlord.
However, being reborn was his greatest advantage. What else could he ask for? A person should know themselves, and he knew himself best.
So difficult, so difficult. Thinking about the schemes from his previous life, he was fooled year after year, each time in a different way.
Only he understood the tricks involved. In this era, making big money was not easy.
After thinking for a long time, Zhang Tianxing suddenly remembered something.
It was the lottery. He remembered it clearly.
It was at a banquet that a landlord said that on the day the college entrance examination ended in 2000, he bought a lottery ticket and won the grand prize, thus beginning his happy life as a landlord.
When in doubt, let the lottery help.
Thinking of this, Zhang Tianxing glanced at his watch.
Damn, it was 7:30 PM Beijing time.
Tickets couldn't be sold after 8 PM.
Zhang Tianxing rushed towards the lottery store.
As he ran, he desperately tried to recall the winning numbers of that "Kong Lu Feng Cai 30 Choose 7" ticket.
If he hadn't been sensitive to numbers, he wouldn't have been able to remember it.
"1, 5, 8, 11, 21, 22, 28..."
It seemed to be this set of numbers. If he won the grand prize, he wouldn't have to worry about collecting rent for the rest of his life.
In this era, housing prices were still genuinely cheap, not yet inflated.
Money still had considerable purchasing power.
Zhang Tianxing excitedly rushed to the lottery store. Just as he was about to go in and buy, he pushed the door, but it didn't open.
He looked up and saw a red piece of paper pasted on the door, with eight large characters clearly written on it.
"Family matters, closed for three days!"
Zhang Tianxing almost spat out a mouthful of blood. "God, are you playing with me?"
He was already pressed for time, and the closest place was closed.
It seemed he had to run there.
It was 7:40 PM Beijing time, and there was a lottery store three kilometers away.
There was still time. This body was young.
Fifteen minutes for three kilometers, with five minutes left for ticket sales. Whether he ate meat or chaff depended on how long it took him to cover these three kilometers.
The plan was perfect.
Energized, Zhang Tianxing spread his long legs and ran over. He couldn't falter this time.
Being young was good. Step by step, Zhang Tianxing was moving forward rapidly.
Alas, his physical condition wasn't as good as he imagined. He had overestimated himself by thinking he could run a kilometer in five minutes.
First kilometer in five minutes.
Second kilometer in five and a half minutes...
Zhang Tianxing was dumbfounded. No, he had to sprint like his life depended on it. If he ran slowly, this would become someone else's fortune.
Panting heavily, he sprinted forward, sweat pouring down his face, his body drenched as if he had taken a bath.
Zhang Tianxing looked at the time. There were still three minutes left.
He saw the small door of the lottery store.
Zhang Tianxing was overjoyed. At this moment, he heard a fierce braking sound.
With a loud "BANG!", Zhang Tianxing was sent flying by a car.
The car stopped, and Zhang Tianxing fell to the ground in a "flat sand and wild goose" pose.
A beautiful woman opened the car door and got out, her face pale with fright. She shouted at Zhang Tianxing in panic:
"Hey, wake up, don't scare me."
Zhang Tianxing glanced at his watch: 7:56 PM.
Gritting his teeth, he forced himself to get up and staggered towards the lottery store.
"What's wrong with this young man? He looked so handsome and refined. Has he been stunned by that impact?"
"Why is his first thought after being hit not to check if he's injured, but to rush towards that lottery store? He's not even from the lottery store."
"This Kong Lu Feng Cai store has only been open for a month, and no one has ever won."
"Ah, those lottery tickets are all scams. Whoever buys them is a fool. Look at how many people are paying for their foolishness."
Seeing this, the beautiful woman bit her lip lightly and followed towards the lottery store.
Zhang Tianxing said hurriedly to the proprietress.
"Boss, give me five times the numbers: 1, 5, 8, 11, 21, 22—28."
The proprietress was startled by Zhang Tianxing's pathetic state, covered in dust and limping.
"Brother, you can buy anytime. Our lottery store isn't closed. Sit down first."
"Oh dear, brother, I'll print it out for you first. Don't rush."
At 7:59 PM, a freshly printed lottery ticket with a five-times bet arrived in Zhang Tianxing's hand.
Why didn't Zhang Tianxing buy more? Because he only had ten yuan left.
He contributed all his remaining money to the lottery cause, but his heart felt at ease.
His house was secured, and the life of a landlord was coming!
As Zhang Tianxing relaxed, he felt an intense pain throughout his body and let out a cry of agony...