A series of news popped up, seemingly triggered by Li Chengyi opening a world map link.
As these chaotic news pieces flooded in, a vast amount of information about this world's overall structure surged into his mind, overwhelming him.
Hmm... He set his phone down and gently pressed his forehead, where sharp stabs of pain began to pulse.
A tidal wave of memories and information rushed into his mind, merging into his consciousness.
With this influx of knowledge, he finally gained a comprehensive understanding of the situation of his previous life.
This was a special era, on the edge of peace and war, where two great powers were competing for dominance.
Yiguo and Baixing—these were the two powers in the ongoing competition.
The Earth-Moon system was under the influence of Yiguo, a massive empire, and there was no nation in the Earth-Moon system capable of challenging Yiguo's supremacy.
He was living in Suizhou City, located in Yiguo.
Yiguo was a country somewhat similar to China, with cultural and ideological similarities, but also many subtle differences in the details.
As for Baixing, the previous owner didn't know much about it, as it was a real empire on another planet.
All he knew was that Baixing's technology was far more advanced than that of Earth-Moon, and it currently held the upper hand in the two-polar competition.
As for himself, he was just one of the millions of university graduates in Yiguo.
If he hadn't come here, it was likely that, after struggling to find a decent job, the previous owner would have lowered his expectations, taking on lower-income and lower-status jobs.
Over time, he would have improved his skills, sought better opportunities, increased his income, gotten married, had children, and spent his life worrying about their future—repeating this cycle.
He would have lived an ordinary, uneventful life.
Now, with the memories of his past life, many things simply didn't apply in this new environment. He was uncertain about what the future held. Could he ever return to his old world? What were his plans now? Li Chengyi felt a sense of confusion.
He was still in a state of unfamiliarity, as if he had been forcibly placed into a well-ordered world that didn't belong to him.
Beyond all this, Li Chengyi had the strange feeling that something in this world was off.
He couldn't pinpoint exactly what, but compared to his previous life, everything felt... strange.
After sitting for a while, and after checking various sources of information, he looked at the time. It was almost time to leave for the school.
He had a scheduled meeting with his mentor, Chen Shan, in thirty minutes, which would perfectly match the commute time.
Ding dong.
Suddenly, a message notification sounded.
Just as Li Chengyi was about to put his phone away, he quickly glanced at the screen.
The message popped up automatically on the illuminated screen.
"There's a pest problem in my friend's small garden. Isn't that what you studied? Can you come help me check it out at this address?" — Lin Sang.
Li Chengyi thought for a moment, quickly replying.
"What kind of pest? Send me a photo."
"You'll know when you get here. Just help me out. Those people you saw this morning, building relationships with them will be good for you, trust me!" — Lin Sang.
"How much do you charge for this?" Li Chengyi asked.
"Are you really going to charge a friend? Are you that stingy? Come on, get here before 2 PM, or don't blame me for turning our friendship sour later." Lin Sang replied with a tone full of feigned annoyance.
Whenever the three of them had disagreements, she would get angry, and the other two would always soften and try to appease her.
So, every time she used this trick, it worked.
Li Chengyi looked at the address she sent. It was about thirty-two kilometers away. Taking public transportation wouldn't make it in time, so he would have to take a taxi. The cost, plus the needed pesticides and pest detection cards, would add up to several hundred for the round trip.
This was for a relatively easy pest issue. If it were a more troublesome one, the cost of the medication alone would reach at least a thousand.
Though he really wanted to continue adapting to the previous life's lifestyle and gradually make it his own habit, this request was a bit much. He didn't know those people, which meant that helping Lin Sang was really just doing her a favor.
Putting aside whether it was worth it or not, he was still mentally hazy and didn't feel capable of handling this.
So, Li Chengyi decided to ignore Lin Sang's message, turning off his phone and putting it on silent.
Even if he were the previous person, without any romantic filter, Lin Sang's request felt like a waste of time and energy.
He didn't bother with the phone's vibrations and quickly left the house. He took the bus at the neighborhood entrance and headed to the suburban university.
Suizhou University was a local comprehensive university located on the southern outskirts of the city.
It covered an area almost equivalent to a small town, with dozens of buildings spread out in an orderly fashion.
Li Chengyi arrived about twenty minutes later.
On the third floor of the university's administration building, he found the fifth office following the sign.
The door was open, and two young men in glasses were standing and chatting near the entrance. One was tall, the other short, both dressed in shirts and trousers, looking refined and scholarly.
Li Chengyi recognized them as the graduate students of his mentor, Chen Shan. They could also be considered his seniors.
"Rongqing and Xu Nanhang are attending the school's seminar. I'm glad, but I really can't take any more additional slots. I already have more than other professors..." Inside the office, an old man with silver-framed glasses and a bald head, dressed in a suit and red tie, was speaking in a low voice to a middle-aged woman.
This man was Chen Shan, the mentor for Li Chengyi's plant care major.
When Chen Shan saw Li Chengyi enter, he waved for him to wait a moment while continuing his conversation with the woman.
They seemed to be arguing over some extra slots.
Li Chengyi, feeling bored, didn't know what his mentor wanted him for. His relationship with Chen Shan was due to his excellence in plant care studies at school, which led Chen Shan to appreciate him and recommend him for advanced plant care training.
Originally, both Chen Shan and Li Chengyi had thought he would go on to become Chen Shan's graduate student.
Unfortunately, as time went on, Li Chengyi's talent and performance didn't meet expectations, and he eventually gave up on continuing in the field after a major argument with his sister, Li Chengjiu. He chose to graduate and find a job.
After talking for a while, the middle-aged woman huffed coldly and turned to leave with a form in hand.
Chen Shan wearily took off his glasses, rubbed his eyes, and then looked at Li Chengyi, who was sitting on the couch.
He had once been quite fond of Li Chengyi, but now...
"Xiaoyi, I see that your file hasn't been moved yet. You probably haven't found a job, right?" he asked gently.
"No, but I'm looking. Don't worry, I've got some connections now," Li Chengyi stood up and walked closer, sensing a hint of regret and helplessness in Chen Shan's gaze.
Through the door, the sounds of his two seniors chatting could be heard, and it seemed like the senior female had arrived by car.
"Don't be shy. I know your temperament," Chen Shan said softly. Though Li Chengyi had fallen into a slump, his mentor still decided to offer one last bit of help.
Saying that, Chen Shan opened the second drawer of his desk, unlocked it with a metal lock, and pulled out a brown envelope.
"You can try this company. I've written a recommendation letter. The general manager is an old friend of mine, and I'm sure they can arrange a position for you," Chen Shan handed the envelope to Li Chengyi.
"Mentor..." Li Chengyi was stunned, not knowing what to say.
"I understand your family situation. Your sister needs money, your parents' income is low, and now the factory is cutting salaries. But trust me, the difficulties are only temporary. If you really need help, call me!" Chen Shan said seriously.
"I..." Li Chengyi was suddenly moved. Although his previous life was gone, it was rare to encounter someone who genuinely cared for him like this.
"Remember, don't waste your talents..." Chen Shan sighed, patted Li Chengyi's shoulder, and shoved the letter into his hand.
Compared to the bright future of his other students, Li Chengyi's situation seemed increasingly difficult.
"Thank you," Li Chengyi sincerely stepped back and bowed his head.
"I'll remember," he said.
"Go on, go on," Chen Shan waved, his expression a little lonely.
He lowered his head and took out a cigarette from the corner of his desk. After fumbling around for a lighter, he set the cigarette back down.
He waved Li Chengyi off again and turned his back to look out the window at the pink flowers.
Li Chengyi bowed again, turned, and left the office.
As he was about to leave, he almost bumped into a red-haired girl wearing a yellow leather jacket and tight gray pants.
"Hey, you're..." The girl paused, as if recognizing him.
"It's you, Chen Pi! Long time no see," Li Chengyi recognized her. She was Chen Shan's daughter, Chen Pi, who had been studying abroad and had only recently returned.
Back then, the previous owner had often joked with her, saying that when he started a business, he'd hire her as his secretary.
Now it seemed...
"Chen Pi, hurry up, over here," she said, waving to him.
She was about to reply, but someone from the office called her.
"We have the alumni meeting later tonight," she said with a smile and quickly walked away.
Li Chengyi didn't have a chance to respond as he watched her disappear into the distance.
Alumni meetings were for people who had made achievements, and he, someone who hadn't even found a job yet...
He turned around, glancing back at the two seniors who were chatting with Chen Pi, acting like successful professionals, while Chen Pi seemed to be getting closer to them.
In such a circle, the previous owner should have been one of them... but...
He didn't say anything further. He turned and walked downstairs.
Do you think this world is truly as it seems? What do you make of the strange events happening around Li Chengyi?Comment your thoughts below!