1 Come back, only to coast through life?

"What? I've been reborn?"

Chen Yu stared at the classroom of Grade 1, Class 5, feeling somewhat dumbfounded.

Never had he imagined that reading reincarnation novels would lead to his own rebirth.

However, he wasn't too perplexed by the situation. You see, in his previous life, whenever he read these reincarnation novels, he yearned for a chance at rebirth. But back then, it was nothing more than daydreaming. Now, that dream had unexpectedly come true.

Wasn't this an incredibly exhilarating turn of events?

Perplexity? Not a chance.

"I don't care for money."

"I have no interest in wealth."

"What I detest the most is money."

Murmuring to himself with a faint smile, Chen Yu could already see his future self uttering these classic lines, just like Teacher Ma.

He wiped away the drool and began planning his future financial endeavors.

"By the way, Miss Lu, what's the date today?"

"The 28th."

"Which month?"

"September, of course. We've only just started school. How could you forget?"

Watching his desk mate, who seemed a bit dazed, Chen Yu felt a bit embarrassed. How could he possibly remember something that happened decades ago? But what mattered wasn't the exact date but rather which year it was.

"One last question: Is it the year 2001?"

He remembered attending high school in 2001, but this was a crucial detail that needed confirmation.

"Yes, it is."

Lu Xue, his desk mate, looked at him strangely. "You haven't got a fever, have you?"

"No fever, I'm perfectly fine."

Now that he was sure of the year, Chen Yu realized he had a vision decades ahead of his time. At this point, Tencent's QQ Messenger should still be in its early stages, not yet a dominant force.

If he could develop an instant messaging app himself, wouldn't that potentially rival Tencent's QQ Messenger?

However, a wry smile crossed Chen Yu's face as he thought it through. In his previous life, he was just an ordinary person. Even with foresight, how could he possibly take down Tencent without capital, technical expertise, or programming skills? The difficulty level was far too high. It was best to give up on that idea for now.

So, what else could he explore? E-commerce? Well, it involved software technology, logistics, sales, and more—a real challenge.

As a fallback, maybe he could work on a search engine... No, let's not even go there. A search engine isn't just a single search box.

Alright, esteemed experts, you can relax for now. I won't compete with you. How about considering other options? Second-tier IT companies, perhaps? Is that a feasible route?

But what remained the same was that not only did he need technical know-how, but he also needed a substantial amount of capital.

"Wow, could it be that I've been reborn for decades and still have no place to shine?"

After pondering for half an hour, Chen Yu began to feel a sense of unease.

He had thought that a bright future was waiting for him in this reincarnated life, but he suddenly realized that even though he had been reborn, he seemed unable to do much at the moment. Not to mention competing with those big shots, it was even a bit challenging to make some money.

"Don't panic, don't panic, I'm a reincarnated individual after all."

Taking a deep breath to calm himself down, Chen Yu contemplated the various ways to make money in the future.

Real estate.

Yes, this was a golden opportunity for making big money.

Currently, property prices in Xinfeng were only a few hundred yuan per square meter, but in the future, they would skyrocket to nearly ten thousand.

And that was just the beginning. In places like Shanghai, Beijing, and Shenzhen, it could easily go up to four or five times that amount.

Investing in a few properties now would secure his future.

However, it was a pity that although the real estate route was promising, the problem was that you needed properties to invest in.

Even if it was just properties priced at a few hundred yuan per square meter, Chen Yu couldn't afford them.

This left Chen Yu with a bit of a headache.

But there were always solutions to difficulties.

Immediately, he thought of music.

Many popular songs from the future hadn't been released yet.

However, after some consideration, Chen Yu gave up on the idea.

It wasn't that he couldn't carry a tune; the problem was that he didn't even know how to read sheet music.

And how exactly did one sell music? He had no clue.

So, how about writing novels?

At this thought, Chen Yu's eyes lit up.

In his previous life, many reincarnation novels became cash cows, with writers earning a fortune.

Now, it was 2001, and those classic works from the future hadn't even appeared yet. Works like "Zhu Xian", "Ethereal Journey", "Battle Through the Heavens", and "Shrouding the Heavens" were all huge earners.

But just as he entertained the idea, Chen Yu shrugged.

These novels weren't etched into his memory; how could he possibly write them exactly as they were? Even if he tried to follow the original plot loosely, the problem was that it seemed there weren't even websites for writing novels right now.

Of course, this wasn't to say that there were no novel-writing websites in 2001.

...They existed.

But even though they existed, these websites didn't have a VIP reading system. So, if he wanted to write, he could only do it for free.

At this time, authors writing novels online were doing it for their own amusement. After all, there was no money in writing novels. They would write a chapter when they were happy and not update for half a year when they weren't.

"No, that won't work."

Chen Yu shook his head.

Stock market?

Not a good idea.

The A-share market was a huge pit from 2001 to 2005, only becoming a bull market after 2006.

Betting on sports...

This seemed plausible at first, but upon further consideration, it wasn't feasible either. Gambling on sports was illegal in China, so he'd have to go abroad to pursue this avenue.

But Chen Yu couldn't even afford a plane ticket right now, so what was the point of thinking about sports betting?

"Oh heavens, did I reincarnate in vain?"

After dismissing dozens of ideas in a row, Chen Yu felt like banging his head against the wall.

Heaven, are you playing a joke on me?

Why didn't you give me a system when I was reborn?

Even if you didn't give me a system, couldn't you at least provide me with a USB drive or something?

In this situation, it was incredibly difficult for someone like him, a nobody, to compete with big shots like Teacher Ma.

Was he destined to just focus on studying and aim for a good university?

Funny enough, this actually seemed like a viable option.

While some other paths were closed off, excelling in academics was still possible.

Hadn't it been said that education could change one's destiny?

In his previous life, he had decent academic achievements, and with a little effort, getting into a good university shouldn't be too challenging.

Just like his desk mate, Lu Xue, who had become a successful woman in the future by focusing on her studies.

He still remembered a reunion with classmates from his past life where Lu Xue had attended. She had invited him, but at that time, he was struggling, feeling that class reunions were just gatherings for showing off, and he didn't want to embarrass himself or get his face slapped.

"Why are you looking at me like that?"

Noticing Chen Yu's gaze fixed on her, Lu Xue asked.

"Lu Xue."

"Yes?"

"Um... Can I still pursue you now?"

It slipped out.

In an instant, Chen Yu thought of a great way to strike it rich.

"Huh?"

Lu Xue clearly hadn't expected Chen Yu to suddenly say something like that. Her face turned red, and she opened her mouth but didn't know how to respond.

"Uh, never mind."

Chen Yu chuckled after saying that.

Reincarnated to live a comfortable life, he thought, but making such a proposal would be a disgrace to all the reincarnated individuals. He would surely be scorned by the community of reborn individuals.

"I think you must have a fever, saying such nonsense. By the way, many classmates are planning to visit Xian Jiyan tomorrow. Are you going?"

"No, I'm going to study."

"Study?"

"Yes, I want to study hard, aim high, get into Peking, Renmin, Zhejiang, Nanjing..."

Clenching his fist, Chen Yu made a silent vow.

However, soon after, Chen Yu abandoned his vow.

On his way home, a game poster posted outside an internet cafe caught his attention.

"Who says fate isn't in your hands? Forge a legend with thousands of others."

"The Legend of Mir: Waiting for your arrival..."