Chapter 2 First Impressions
Zhou Wang wasn't surprised, although he and Liu Zixi were indeed close friends, having hung out since junior high, Liu's family financial situation was also just average!
Although he was sure he could borrow the money, Zhou never imagined that Liu could pull out so much.
Liu Zixi simply explained, and then Zhou understood.
It turned out the money was the down payment for a car Liu's family had given him, and he planned to pick up the car during the National Day holiday, so he asked Zhou if he could repay it in three months.
Thinking about his childhood friend, Zhou also felt somewhat sentimental.
Liu's academic performance had never been as good as Zhou's, but he had "natural beauty" on his side—the boy wasn't nearsighted despite playing games alongside Zhou.
During their senior year of high school, an aviation college distributed brochures; the teacher didn't care much and casually tossed them on the desk, but Liu noticed them.
Although Liu didn't pass the military's physical examination, he passed the civil aviation one, and with just over 400 points on the college entrance exam, he met the criteria and became a reserve pilot.
As soon as he started university, he signed a 99-year labor contract with an airline company and embarked on a predictable life, while what Zhou got was...
Tuition-free university, an expected annual salary in the millions, a life spent traveling with different flight attendants, and frequent holidays.
Zhou was confident that 90% of their peers wouldn't end up doing better than Liu.
So, what's more important, choice or effort?
No wonder he could afford to buy a house and a car right after graduation; even with an average family background, saving four years of tuition wasn't a small sum.
With Liu Zixi's transfer, the balance in Zhou's account had now become 61,273 RMB.
Zhou didn't bother with further complication; he pulled out a half pack of Purple Cloud cigarettes that he hadn't smoked in a long time and the remaining two bottles of Da Wusu beer, then sat on the balcony, waiting for the moment when fate's gears would turn.
Time had never felt so slow, and in Zhou's anxious wait, midnight finally arrived.
"Ding!"
The bright phone screen displayed a message and an app banner simultaneously:
"CMB: Your account ending in 1024 has received an income of 6,127.3 RMB on July 1st, 00:00. Claim your gift: cmbt.ch/H0."
Is it really happening?
At that moment, Zhou finally relaxed completely.
He clenched his fist, feeling a surge of excitement.
Six thousand a day, that's two hundred thousand a month!
Even during his ambitious entrepreneurial days, he had only hoped to make eighty or a hundred thousand a month.
And these six thousand were just the beginning; with the compound interest rule, he would earn more every day.
He didn't dare to think about it, he couldn't bear to!
Zhou stared at his bank account balance for a while before suddenly remembering to check the transaction details curiously.
The payment was from a company named "Cloud Trust," with the description "fund dividend."
Zhou immediately went online to search and actually found some scattered information; Cloud Trust was an offshore trust institution, registered abroad.
After reading some materials and roughly understanding what a trust fund was, Zhou couldn't help but marvel.
Put simply, a trust is when a grantor entrusts a sum of money to a trust institution for management, and the profits are then distributed to the beneficiaries as agreed.
Many financial tycoons use "trust funds" to leave independent properties for their children and families, ensuring that even if they go bankrupt, it won't affect their relatives' lifestyles.
Right, the Nobel Prize is also a type of trust.
He wasn't sure how the system had such great capabilities, but it seemed that this income wouldn't have any legal risks.
That night, Zhou didn't suffer from insomnia; instead, he fell into a deep sleep, his body and mind extremely relaxed.
...
July 1st, 9:00 AM.
Zhou Wang suddenly opened his eyes, staring blankly at the somewhat peeling dormitory ceiling for tens of seconds before suddenly sitting up.
He took out his phone and saw that the six thousand RMB was still quietly lying in the bank account balance, and he couldn't help but smile.
Given Zhou Wang's exceptionally rich life experience during his four years of college, he wouldn't claim to be very mature, but in terms of stress resistance and emotional regulation abilities, he should be considered outstanding among his peers.
Even if he found out that everything had been a dream, he might be very disappointed, but there wouldn't be too much turmoil in his heart.
What should he do next?
Of course, the best choice was to continue expanding the capital.
Zhou Wang pondered many quick-money making schemes, but unfortunately, being limited by his cognition and resources, even with over sixty thousand in hand, he couldn't think of a way to quickly inflate his capital within one day.
If he had such a skill, he wouldn't be just another one of the common masses.
However, while washing up and staring at his slovenly self in the mirror, Zhou Wang felt that he should first get a haircut.
He had been working to death during his internship, and along with the change in his mentality, Zhou Wang hadn't taken good care of himself for quite some time, his once eight-points handsome face had now diminished to barely eight percent.
As Zhou Wang was contemplating this, a "ding" suddenly sounded in his mind.
[There's only one thing in life that can't be overturned: "First Impression"]
[Host has had a change of heart, successfully triggering the first action round]
[Please proceed to the core commercial district and, before the round countdown ends, transform your image and enhance your outward demeanor]
[Core Reward Mechanism—Impression Points: The system will automatically assess the Host's outfit and hairstyle on a percentage scale and reimburse the equivalent percentage, with extra rewards for triggering the Lucky Number]
[Round Countdown: 6 hours]
Zhou Wang was stunned, then overjoyed.
So that's what "action round" meant!
He had been thinking about giving himself a buzz cut that costs 15 RMB at the "Sorrowful Barber" behind the school since he was at the initial stage of capital accumulation.
But the system's operation was like rain in a drought.
From its meaning, it seems that not only the hairstyle but also the outfits were within the scope of the system's assessment.
The key point was that as long as Zhou Wang could satisfy the system, he could actually get a certain percentage reimbursed!
70 points would get a 70% reimbursement, 80 points would get an 80% reimbursement... even if he didn't reach full marks, his consumption cost would drop to the lowest.
Although he couldn't use too much of the capital, an expenditure of a few thousand RMB wouldn't be too significant.
Zhou Wang quickly finished washing up, changed into a simple casual outfit, put on a pair of black Converse classics he had bought at a discount store, and bolted out of the school gate.
Six hours seemed ample, but the presence of a scoring mechanism meant that Zhou Wang had to make the best possible choices, which could make things tight for time.
He didn't even have time for breakfast and even gritted his teeth to take out the rarely used taxi-app, setting the destination for Henglong Square in Ming City.
It was the summer solstice, the wind clear and bright, the sky a vibrant blue; Zhou Wang, leaning against the car window, couldn't resist humming along to the Bluetooth music playing in the ride-share car:
"Cigarettes, one after another, drinks, cup after cup..."
This song was called "Reformed Rascal," which Zhou Wang had quite liked for a while.
That was when he had just failed in starting a business, and the living expenses he earned from part-time jobs, apart from sustaining life, one-third had contributed to the national defense budget, and another third went to the little bar near the school.
His life at the time was exactly as described in the lyrics, constantly surrounded by cigarettes and alcohol, even though there were quite a few girls ready to help him through the dark times...
But Zhou Wang didn't have the heart to engage in romance then and adamantly rejected them all!
By the time Zhou Wang regretted it, he was already in his senior year, and the girls were no longer naive; mere good looks no longer attracted them.
Zhou Wang also thought about changing himself, but his academics had long been neglected, and it was all too late.
Hah, the reformed rascal... He had almost sunk to the Mariana Trench, unable to swim back!
However, although life couldn't be restarted, one could always change the way they live at any moment.