Chapter 1 The System Arrived Too Early

Zhennan is a small county town in the south, and the late summer heat is unbearable.

Jiang Nian had just returned home, and as the refrigerator door opened, a white mist billowed out.

He searched for a while and finally found a few slices of bread left from the morning, taking a few bites to sate his hunger. With something in his stomach, he finally felt a bit better.

With a buzzing sound, his phone vibrated; someone was calling him.

It was Le Zhi, the class’s life committee member, a show-off with a face full of acne. This guy had added everyone in the class on QQ, claiming it was for ‘class unity,’ but in reality, he was just after the girls in the immediate vicinity.

“Jiang Nian, Zhou Yuting is looking for people to hang out with. She asked me to ask if you want to go?” Le Zhi’s voice carried a hint of encouragement; he had once said he liked Zhou Yuting.

To be precise, there weren’t many boys in the class who didn’t like Zhou Yuting, including Jiang Nian.

Zhou Yuting had a melon-seed face, willow-leaf eyebrows, a slender waist, and long legs. Beneath her summer school uniform, her chest was soft like the ridge of a spring mountain. She was smart, wealthy, and the class’s academic representative.

“No.”

“Really not going? Are you still holding a grudge about Zhou Yuting’s birthday party?” Le Zhi tried to persuade him, “Is it really that big of a deal? She didn’t do it on purpose; it was just a joke.”

At the mention of the birthday party, Jiang Nian got angry.

A while ago, Zhou Yuting celebrated her birthday, and six or seven people had a meal together.

Out of good intentions, Jiang Nian volunteered to go to a nearby convenience store to buy water-soluble C100. When he returned, he heard Liu Feipeng and a few girls mocking him.

“He wouldn’t have run off on some excuse, would he? What we ordered at this table is indeed a bit expensive. He probably thought it was going to be split evenly, not knowing that Da Peng is paying for tonight’s expenses.”

“Yeah, and he even said that crappy drink was good. Like we’re short a few coins from him.”

“Haha, he’s a ‘warm man,’ ranked behind dogs.”

The group burst into laughter, making Jiang Nian feel terrible outside the private room. He heard Zhou Yuting’s laughter; even though they usually got along well, she didn’t say a single word in his defense.

From then on, Jiang Nian saw through it all.

What a bunch of jerks!

If it weren’t for Zhou Yuting’s birthday party, he wouldn’t have wanted to go at all. In this day and age, pursuing pure love is not as good as pursuing pure gold. What’s so great about being rich? Can it buy a mother?

If he were rich, he wouldn’t even glance at someone like Zhou Yuting. He had truly misjudged her before.

Damn it, so this is how they viewed him!

“No, let them play by themselves.” Jiang Nian sneered.

Le Zhi replied, “Alright, I’ll tell the great beauty Zhou.”

Jiang Nian put down his phone, leaned back on the sofa, and let out a long sigh. This world had truly changed; since when could good intentions be treated like a clown’s act?

His chest rose and fell. Without money, people are bullied; with money, everything you do is right.

The moment his anger peaked, a ‘ding’ sounded in his mind. A translucent panel appeared before his eyes, and line after line of white text slowly emerged.

【At eighteen, you enrolled in an ordinary second-tier university. After graduation, you joined a large company, working overtime until your liver exploded and running errands until your muscles cramped, yet you never got a promotion or a raise.

At twenty-eight, your parents earnestly urged you, an unaccomplished individual, to go on blind dates. To protect your self-esteem, they cautiously handed you a savings passbook.

At thirty, the betrothal gift reached 588,000 yuan. Gritting your teeth, you took out a loan to buy a house and a car for 1.34 million yuan. Five golds cost 80,000 yuan, a parental care gift 128,000 yuan, a change of address fee 30,000 yuan, and car pick-up/drop-off gifts 66,000 yuan.

In the luxurious hotel, guests were like clouds, and smiles adorned every face. The bridal bouquet was thrown high, like a white dove soaring in the air.

At thirty-two, the company underwent optimization, and you were incredibly lucky to escape the layoff. Your boss always assigned you the heaviest tasks, you came home later and later, and your health deteriorated day by day.

At thirty-five, you lost your job, and your wife grew increasingly dissatisfied with you. You had no children, your medical reports were worse each time, and your arguments became more frequent.

At thirty-eight, a suitcase rolled across the floor, and your wife left with a cold expression. Your phone, with its shattered screen, lit up; a call from your parents, ringing continuously.

In the ruins, you lowered your head and lit a cigarette.

Host: Jiang Nian, the Divorce Counterattack System has finished loading. Do you have the courage, at this age of no confusion, to begin to counterattack your life?】

On the sofa, Jiang Nian stared at the text in his mind, completely stunned.

Divorce? Thirty-eight?

Huh?

Isn’t the person mentioned on this panel himself? Jiang Nian’s name was correct. He was dazed and confused for more than ten minutes, breaking out in goosebumps.

Suddenly, he abruptly looked up, suddenly realizing something.

“Wait, I’m only eighteen!”

Oh my god, did this System arrive too early?

Looking at the last line of white text on the panel: Do you have the courage, at this crossroads of your thirties/forties, to begin to counterattack your life?

He reached out, and faintly, two options, ‘Yes’ and ‘No,’ appeared.

There was really nothing to hesitate about. If this System was fake, then he would just treat it as playing a life simulation game. If it was real, then he had even less reason to give up.

Jiang Nian knew very well how humble a person could be because of poverty. He was relatively lucky; at least when the sky fell, his parents supported him, and his living standard wasn’t bad.

But what about later? If he couldn’t provide a safe haven for his parents, what then?

In this world, a person can be incompetent but cannot be without money. Effort does not necessarily bring rewards, and choosing the wrong direction leads to a chain of mistakes.

Choice: Yes!

The panel vibrated with a ‘buzz,’ then a line of small text appeared.

【Divorce Counterattack Game loaded. Host: Jiang Nian, male, age: 38.

Your marriage failed, and you stand at the crossroads of your forties, recalling your childhood sweetheart. After marriage, you lost contact and heard nothing more of her.

Re-establish contact with Xu Qianqian. Reward: 300 RMB.】

After reading, Jiang Nian couldn’t help but curl his lips. This System was so literary.

But it didn’t matter; as long as it gave money, it was fine.

Re-establishing contact with his childhood sweetheart, Xu Qianqian, with whom he had fallen out, huh? He got up and paced the living room for a while. Opening the front door, he looked at Xu Qianqian’s house across the hall and fell into thought.

Hmm.

Knock knock knock!!!

Jiang Nian knocked on the door with all his might, “Xu Qianqian, what are you doing!?”

Soon, hurried footsteps came from behind the door, and a crisp voice pierced through before she even appeared.

“Go away, Jiang Nian, are you trying to die?!”

Whoosh, the door was pulled open, revealing a delicate, pouting face.

A graceful young girl appeared, about 1.6 meters tall, wearing a cream-colored knitted top, her chest bulging as if hiding a Treasure Trove.

The girl’s eyes were lively, her skin fair, her eyebrows like distant mountains, and her smooth long hair was tied with an elastic band. He hadn’t noticed before, but she was a budding great beauty.

Unfortunately, the two had been at odds since childhood, and their relationship rapidly deteriorated from middle school onward.

He had secretly eaten Xu Qianqian’s ice cream and released her pet turtle into the sewer.

When Xu Qianqian had a slight cold, he had unceremoniously carried her to the hospital in a princess carry, causing her to miss an exam, which resulted in Jiang Nian achieving his only first-place ranking in the entire class.

For such various misdeeds, he should be grateful for Xu Qianqian’s mercy in not killing him, considering he was still alive today.