The elevator arrived at his floor.
Chu Fang walked to the door, entered the password, pushed it open, then casually slapped the light switch.
With a click, warm light spilled across the room.
It was a duplex apartment over a hundred square meters.
Downstairs was a spacious living room. Sofas and comfortable chairs were scattered neatly around, and a large TV sat beside the TV wall. A few rooms were arranged in an orderly way on this floor: a storage room, the kitchen, a bathroom…
Upstairs was his living area two bedrooms and another bathroom.
The entire house followed a simple, modern style. Clean lines, warm tones. Comfortable.
And also…
Empty.
"Alas." Chu Fang sighed. "It's a pity there's no hostess here. This place feels hollow."
He walked in, lifted his leg casually, and
his shoes flew off.
He didn't bother picking them up. Barefoot, he wandered around the room as if it belonged to someone else.
He reached the sofa, hopped lightly, and threw himself onto it. His eyes narrowed as if he'd instantly fallen asleep.
…
"Cao!"
After a while, he opened his eyes, sat up, and pressed a hand to his stomach.
"I'm hungry."
He got up and headed straight to the kitchen.
Because he had the habit of cooking, the kitchen was big fully equipped with all kinds of tools and appliances.
He opened the fridge.
Yesterday was graduation he hadn't bought groceries.
Empty.
There was only one bowl left: fried pork with chili, cooked the day before yesterday.
"Will I die if I eat leftovers from two days ago?" Chu Fang muttered, then started listing options in his head like it was a multiple-choice exam.
"A, I will die.B, I won't die.C, I will starve to death.D, it doesn't matter."
After thinking hard…
He chose F.
So-called F meant: stir-fry it again with peppers and use high heat to "kill the harm inside."
"Genius idea!"
Not long later, the noodles were done.
Chu Fang took a bite.
Spicy. Fragrant.
After sitting for a while, the pepper-fried pork had fully absorbed into the dish its flavor deepened instead of fading. With leek-leaf noodles, it matched perfectly.
Sometimes you had to admit it:
Leftovers really did taste better than when they were freshly cooked.
Unfortunately, there was no soft-boiled egg.
After finishing the noodles, Chu Fang was sweating all over. He washed the dishes, then went straight into the bathroom for a shower.
A while later, he stepped out, wiping water from his hair.
The fatigue of the whole day washed away.
He felt refreshed almost too refreshed.
He sat back on the sofa and turned on the TV.
A boring, melodramatic drama was playing.
He reached into his pocket, pulled out a bank card, flipped it back and forth between his fingers, and sighed with emotion.
"If I didn't have you, my life would be more exciting."
He paused, then continued with forced resignation:
"Unfortunately, there is no 'if' in life. I can only reluctantly be an ordinary rich man."
His thoughts drifted to himself four years ago.
Freshman year, he applied for a bank card.
Then
a "ding" sounded in his mind.
And from that moment, his life's trajectory completely changed.
Every day.
Rain or shine.
Ten million was deposited into his account.
How did it feel to jump from "poor guy" to "rich man" overnight?
Overjoyed?Spendthrift?Crazy excitement?
No.
Chu Fang only felt fear.
He was just an ordinary person, born into an ordinary family. He hadn't seen much of the world. Suddenly, money started pouring in like a flood and he was completely stunned.
Foreign forces sending him money?Using him as a scapegoat?Trying to set him up then murder him?
Questions exploded in his mind.
His first reaction was to throw the card away.
But after thinking…
He kept it.
Because it was money.
And fortune was always earned through risk.
In the beginning, Chu Fang lived in fear every day. He was scared the police would come for him, or someone would assassinate him.
But after staying safe for a long time, he became certain of one thing:
He had cheated.
Even then… he still couldn't relax.
At first, he only dared to spend hundreds, maybe thousands terrified the bank would flag it as unexplained funds.
The bank staff never showed up.
So he tested again.
Then again.
Little by little, his spending became bolder.
And eventually, he directly bought a home in Zhonghai Mingyuan.
Then…
the bank came to him.
Not to investigate.
To beg.
The bank president personally begged him to deposit more money.
Only then did Chu Fang truly understand something:
Plug-ins didn't follow the rules of the Blue Star world.
Big data? Monitoring? Risk control?
Useless.
Against plug-ins, it was all meaningless.
This was a BUG in the Blue Star World.
So what should you do when you suddenly go from poor to rich?
Spend.
Spend extravagantly.
Spend until you get bored.
Chu Fang wasn't immune to human flaws. During college, he was extremely extravagant.
Back then, even if a dog passed by, he would kick it twice.
After more than a year of squandering, one day he suddenly realized
His heart felt empty.
Hollow. Weak.
Something was wrong with his mentality.
Those thoughts… weren't what a normal person should have.
Extravagance made everything feel meaningless.
Life was meaningless.Studying was meaningless.Even living… felt optional.
Fortunately, he noticed the change.
With grit, he forced himself to cut down spending, stop squandering, stop indulging, stop living in luxury…
And he finally climbed out of that "dandy boy" state and returned to being a normal person.
But
Psychological scars remained.
Even now, his heart still felt empty.
So he consulted a psychologist.
He needed to solve his mental problem.
He needed to find a companion.
A girlfriend.
Girlfriend?
Chu Fang craned his neck at the psychologist and asked seriously:
"How much?"
The psychologist looked at him helplessly.
"Sir, money can't buy love."
Chu Fang frowned. "Then what kind of girl is suitable for me?"
The psychologist replied calmly:
"As long as you feel your heart beating fast when you see that girl… she is the one for you."
Chu Fang was extremely disappointed.
Since becoming conscious, he'd never met a girl who made his heart beat fast someone he'd be willing to devote his life to.
As expected.
Four years in college, he didn't find that girl.
He didn't even find a boy.
Single SOLO till now.
"Oh my god…"
Chu Fang lay back on the sofa, stared at the ceiling, and said helplessly:
"Where is my girlfriend that I haven't met? At least give me an explanation dead or alive?"
After those words, the room fell silent.
Only the sound of the TV drama continued.
"Alas." Chu Fang sighed again. "It's boring. It's really boring."
He tossed the bank card aside.
"F**k you."
He walked to the floor-to-ceiling window.
He'd bought a high-rise, so the entire night view of Shanghai spread out in front of him.
It was already eleven, but the Bund was still crowded.
Chu Fang folded his arms and stared outside.
Bright lights.
Magnificent scenery.
Prosperity so intense it almost felt unreal.
After a while…
He felt even more bored.
"Come on."
Chu Fang walked upstairs while talking to himself, as if speaking to the girlfriend he'd never met.
"You can show up or not. At most I'll be a bachelor for the rest of my life…"
He paused, then added a warning with serious tone:
"But I have to remind you you have no chance of marrying into a wealthy family."
He thought for a moment.
"…I'm just kidding."
The room stayed quiet.
Bored to the point of irritation, he walked into the bedroom, threw himself onto the bed, narrowed his eyes, and shouted angrily:
"Sleep!"