HPDBC Chapter 1: Immediately after being reborn, he gave Shen Jiayi three brocade pouches.
Chapter 1: Immediately after being reborn, he gave Shen Jiayi three brocade pouches.
"Ye Kai, wake up..."
"Class is starting!"
In a daze, Ye Kai felt a pain in his right upper arm, as if someone was stabbing him with a sharp object.
Class? What class?
Cosplay?
Didn't you get enough of that young model who quoted 6,800 last night?
Ye Kai barely opened one eye, his lifeless pupils weakly scanning his right side through the oval field of vision, his expression momentarily frozen.
Instead of seeing any young models, she saw a pretty girl with an oval face and a high-achieving hairstyle, wearing a school uniform set that read "All beings are equal, but not completely equal," looking at her with a worried expression.
She held a gleaming metal compass in her hand, its cold, sharp edge faintly gleaming with blood.
Holy crap, isn't that Shen Jiayi?
How come she suddenly looks so young, with a face full of collagen, like a high school student!
Ye Kai couldn't help but slam his hand on the table and stand up. His eyes widened as he looked around and was shocked to find himself sitting in a classroom, surrounded by adorable classmates with pimples, clutching various exercise books and studying diligently.
I'm surrounded by "53" (a popular exam preparation course)!
The red banner that read "Clear Discrimination, Determined Thinking, Broad Learning, and Prudent Action" was hanging on the blackboard in front of us. Every word seemed to be shining with golden light, and the positive energy was so strong that it was hard to keep your eyes open.
On the blackboard at the back of the classroom, there was a countdown sign that read "145 days until the college entrance examination".
"I've been reborn!"
Ye Kai covered his face with his hands, and suddenly many things came to mind.
Good news: I've been reborn.
Bad news: The college entrance exam is coming up soon.
"Rebirth?"
"Ye Kai, you can be reborn just by taking a nap during class?"
Hearing Ye Kai muttering, Shen Jiayi threw the tools aside and smiled with her lips pursed.
"Yes, don't you believe me?"
"If I hadn't been reborn, how would I have known that you were a mother at Hong Langman ten years later?"
Ye Kai grinned, rubbing his right arm where he had been pricked, then glanced sideways at Shen Jiayi, whose eyes were smiling like crescent moons, and asked her question without any politeness.
That's right. The young model he found before his rebirth, who quoted 6,800 yuan, was introduced to him by his old classmate Shen Jiayi. The original price of 8,000 yuan was reduced by 20%, and he was charged 400 yuan for taxi fare, but she did not charge him an extra agency fee.
The saying "A woman's conscience is no match for her female classmates, especially those with whom she had ambiguous relationships" is absolutely true.
"Then tell me, how did I become Hong Langman's mommy?"
Shen Jiayi wrinkled her nose in anger. She picked up her tools again, gritted her teeth, and aimed at Ye Kai, a dangerous glint in her beautiful eyes.
The most famous entertainment venue in Jinyang City, the capital of Shanhe Province, is the Red Romance, a notorious den of iniquity. It has been popular for twenty years, and few people are unaware of its name.
"You..."
Ye Kai was about to say a few words when math teacher Zheng Xiaojun pushed the door open carrying a stack of test papers, and he immediately shut up.
"Attend class!"
Zheng Xiaojun threw the test paper on the teacher's desk, his expression as serious as an unyielding block of ice.
"Hello, teacher!"
The students stood up sparsely, gave a perfunctory greeting, and then fell heavily back onto the benches like free-falling objects.
From the two beams of light shining through the window, the dust stirred up by the exam papers demonstrated irregular motion, instantly bringing Ye Kai's thoughts back to this era.
There are no short dramas or Douyin (TikTok), online literature has not yet entered the 2.0 era, and although Tencent developed WeChat last year, its promotion has not achieved the expected results. QQ remains the mainstream instant messaging software.
Apple's classic iPhone 4S has only been on the market for a little over a month.
Within Shanhe Province, there isn't even a single high-speed railway line yet...
"As the saying goes, the world is still uncertain, and we are all just cattle and horses."
Thinking of these things, Ye Kai's heart was filled with surging emotions.
"Hey, front row, hand out the test papers."
"Let's look at a few common issues first..."
Zheng Xiaojun tossed the test paper to the student in front of him, swept his sparse hair back with his left hand, and turned to write furiously on the blackboard.
"hiss--"
Ye Kai felt a sharp pain in his right upper arm, turned his head and glared angrily at Shen Jiayi, who had stabbed him again, mouthing the words "You're crazy."
"Splash, splash—"
The students in the front row handed out the test papers.
"I'm guaranteed a spot at a 985 university, and I'm determined to get into a national university! What are you talking about, becoming a mother? Don't blame me for being ruthless if you don't explain yourself clearly!!!"
Shen Jiayi glanced at Zheng Xiaojun, who was writing furiously with his back to the students, scribbled a line on the test paper, and then pushed it to Ye Kai.
"Oh, no wonder you had such a rich pool of beautiful women from various ethnic groups under your command later on. It seems that getting into a prestigious 985 university and becoming a senior at a university for ethnic minorities really gave you a huge advantage in becoming a mother."
Ye Kai swiftly and decisively shoved the test paper back at him.
"So, I actually got into a university for ethnic minorities?"
Shen Jiayi was not as angry as Ye Kai had imagined. Instead, after a moment of contemplation, she continued to push the test paper over.
"I can't guarantee that!!!"
"Perhaps my rebirth has influenced the plot of this world line?"
Ye Kai's eyes narrowed; he didn't dare to make a guarantee.
The college entrance examination is a matter of constant change; who dares to make a definitive prediction for anyone else?
"Coward!"
Shen Jiayi angrily added two words to the test paper.
"Did you get into a 211 university?"
Somewhat unwilling to give up, she glanced at Zheng Xiaojun, who was still writing furiously on the blackboard, and asked Ye Kai another question.
"I've already been reborn, and I still have to take the college entrance exam? Then what the hell was the point of my rebirth?"
Ye Kai's answer also seems very reasonable.
Even if you get into a 985 or 211 university and reach a 92 consensus, you're still just a slightly higher-level beast of burden. If it weren't for the need to fill the plot with all sorts of pretentious posturing on campus, how could college students who are just ordinary working people compare to reborn individuals who can start their own businesses and enjoy a wonderful life?
Zheng Xiaojun finally finished writing out the solutions to several problems, and then began to provide targeted guidance.
The classroom fell silent again, everyone seemed to be struggling with the questions, but only they knew the outcome.
"Where should I get my first pot of gold after being reborn?"
As Ye Kai looked at those familiar yet unfamiliar math problems, his thoughts had already flown far away.
Unconsciously, Ye Kai's gaze fell on the profile of the female classmate next door.
From his angle, Shen Jiayi's profile radiated an exceptionally alluring youthful charm under the sunlight. Her beautiful earlobes, simply styled eyes, and delicate, lotus-like lips were captivating.
Unfortunately, if his memory serves him right, Shen Jiayi will soon be plunged into a major crisis, and her family will collapse in a short period of time, which is truly regrettable.
Why are you looking at me?
Shen Jiayi propped her chin up with her left hand, pouting as she focused on her work, feeling Ye Kai's gaze without turning her head.
"You're in for a world of trouble."
Ye Kai stared at Shen Jiayi's profile and made a definitive judgment.
"impossible!"
"I just... last week..."
Shen Jiayi subconsciously denied it, then her eyebrows furrowed and she turned to glare at Ye Kai.
……
"Shen Jiayi, are you the ancient Greek god of the compass?"
Ye Kai really didn't expect that he would be stabbed with a compass by Shen Jiayi on his way to the restaurant for lunch. This was too outrageous.
He figured it out: during his three years of high school, he probably used a compass for less than a week in real time; the rest of the time was spent intentionally harming others.
"Who gave you the right to curse me?"
Shen Jiayi circled the tree, heading straight for Ye Kai, her movements swift and agile.
"This is not a curse, but a kind reminder from a reborn person."
Ye Kai was no ordinary person either; he used the "Qin King circling the pillar" technique to evade Shen Jiayi's attacks by using the large tree.
"I'll give you a chance to make excuses."
Shen Jiayi put the compass away.
She didn't believe Ye Kai's nonsense about being reborn; she just wanted to see what tricks he was up to.
She had also read several rebirth-themed online novels.
"It's not convenient to talk here..."
"I'll come to your place tonight."
Ye Kai looked at the flow of people coming and going, shook his head, and said.
"If you're not afraid of being beaten to death by my dad, then come on."
Shen Jiayi snorted and walked away with her head held high.
"This girl is developing really well."
Ye Kai watched Shen Jiayi's graceful figure from behind and sighed inwardly.
The food in the school cafeteria was still as bad as ever, but Ye Kai tasted a bit more nostalgic in it.
Ye Kai spent the entire afternoon contemplating his path to rebirth and development.
It's incredibly difficult to change your life trajectory through the college entrance examination.
If I were reborn in the early 1980s, there might have been a real possibility of upward social mobility. But things are different now. With social stratification already established, even if you successfully enter a prestigious university through the college entrance examination, you're just striving to become a slightly higher-ranking servant.
If you want to change your life, you have to look for other ways.
As a high school student whose father died early and whose mother had long been out of contact, Ye Kai had no one to rely on and could only depend on himself.
It is now January 12, 2012, 10 days before the Spring Festival, but for senior high school students, this year's winter vacation is negligible.
According to the school's usual practice, they can only have a maximum of five days off.
Although the holiday is very short, Ye Kai can still make good use of it if he plans it properly and earn his first pot of gold after his rebirth.
However, this requires someone's help to do.
Since he was looking for someone to exploit, it was best to choose someone he was familiar with. So Ye Kai set his sights on Shen Jiayi, or more precisely, her father, Shen Mingsun.
He wasn't just making things up to Shen Jiayi. At this moment, Shen Mingsun was at a critical juncture in his life. One wrong step would lead to utter ruin, not only putting himself in jail but also changing the fate of his entire family.
Ye Kai was still somewhat conflicted. He was considering how to handle the matter more perfectly, not only to resolve the other party's predicament but also to bring himself some reward.
But after thinking it over, all those roundabout ways are really annoying; it's better to just go straight for the point.
So, after evening self-study, Ye Kai tore off the sticky note covered in writing, folded it in half, and handed it to Shen Jiayi, who was packing her schoolbag.
"You wrote me love letters?"
Shen Jiayi was somewhat surprised to see the pink heart-shaped background on the sticky note.
Although there was a hint of flirtation between them, they were nowhere near being truly in love.
Ye Kai was practically an orphan, but Shen Jiayi had a warm and happy family. Her father, Shen Mingsun, was a deputy director-level official and was on the rise, and her mother, Jiang Xin, the director of the credit department of Xinghua City Commercial Bank, was no ordinary person either. They were not even in the same social class.
If everything goes smoothly, the only chance Ye Kai and Shen Jiayi will have to cross paths after graduating from high school is most likely a bittersweet reunion at a class reunion some years later.
"You're so narcissistic."
"These are just three tips to help your family solve your problems. Remember to open them in the order I've marked them, and don't make a mistake."
Ye Kai rolled his eyes, then solemnly instructed Shen Jiayi.
"Really?"
Shen Jiayi held the three folded sticky notes, looking on with a mixture of belief and doubt.
"I forgot to tell you, help from reborn individuals doesn't come for free."
"Good luck."
Ye Kai grinned, patted Shen Jiayi's arm, tossed his schoolbag behind him, and walked away with a flourish.
"whispering sound!"
"What on earth is going on with all this nonsense?"
Shen Jiayi watched Ye Kai's departing figure for a long time before turning her gaze away. She clutched the three sticky notes tightly in her palm, her heart filled with an irrepressible curiosity, as if she had been scratched by a cat.