Su Yizhou, a thirty-five-year-old manager at an investment bank, pulled in an annual salary of over a million and never had to worry about food or drink. At the moment, he was sitting in an upscale restaurant with lifelong friends, seemingly celebrating his thirty-five-year-old birthday.
"Thirty-five already? Time really flies." Watching his childhood friends surrounded by wives and children, it was impossible not to feel a twinge of envy. They might not earn as much money as he did, but their sense of happiness undoubtedly far surpassed his own.
Was Su Yizhou's personal situation really that poor?
At thirty-five, though he didn't usually bother with skincare, his sharply defined facial features still exuded the charm of a mature man. The passing years had left very few marks on him; instead, they had given him a pair of deep eyes that seemed to have seen through everything.
"Yizhou, I'm telling you, you're no spring chicken anymore. When are you finally going to settle down and start a family?" Chen Yu asked from the side, a look of worry in his eyes.
"That's right. Back when you went abroad, we all joked that by the time you finished your studies, our kids would already be running around. Never imagined you'd still be single now," Deng Pingchuan sighed.
Su Yizhou could hear the genuine care behind their words. He knew his brothers truly wanted the best for him, and this wasn't about showing off. Aside from his own parents and family, they were probably the only people in the world who wished him well straight from the bottom of their hearts.
Looking at the silent Su Yizhou, they knew he must be deep in thought, so they quickly brushed past a topic that seemed rather heavy for him.
Su Yizhou thought with a bittersweet sigh: Marriage? He was already thirty-five; the beauty of youth was long gone. Getting married now at most meant finding a stranger, both parties entering into it purely for the sake of marriage, getting that cold, loveless marriage certificate, and then checking off tasks step by step to play their assigned roles.
A marriage without any emotional foundation, perhaps done merely to appease one's parents, completely contradicted Su Yizhou's views on romance.
He said to his friends, "The kind of love I believe in should be a gradual, mutual attraction, followed by a passionate and unforgettable story. It's nothing like this utilitarian approach to marriage."
"What were you doing all this time? We've known you for all these years, and we've never seen you drawn to a single girl! Talk is cheap, but now you're thirty-five and you've never been in a single relationship. Who knows when a blockhead like you will ever figure it out!" Chen Yu retorted mercilessly.
Right, what *had* he been doing all this time? Su Yizhou thought back: ever since he was little, he had lived his life step by step according to his parents' rules. In middle and high school, puppy love was strictly forbidden, and he hadn't had the guts to disobey his parents. In college, his parents loosened the reins, and Su Yizhou finally cut loose.
Only, it seemed he cut loose in all the wrong places; he chose to "shine" in the realm of entertainment. During his freshman and sophomore years, he drowned himself in the computer and mobile games that were all the rage back then. Blessed with striking good looks, he didn't lack female admirers making advances, but Su Yizhou, still a blockhead at the time, simply brushed them off with a laugh. The girls didn't even get a chance to know him before he went right back to holing up in his dorm or the internet café to play games.
By his junior and senior years, his family's business ran into trouble. Facing the heavy burden of supporting his family in the future, Su Yizhou could only focus on mapping out his path ahead. Fortunately, he hadn't let his grades slip during his first two years, and he began preparing applications for graduate school.
In the end, he applied and went to an Ivy League school in the United States. His frantic graduate school life left him with zero inclination for romance, and he poured his heart and soul entirely into his studies and daily survival.
He didn't want to put any more financial pressure on his parents, so he worked study-aloud jobs to support himself through school in America, earning the majority of his tuition on his own.
Pulling himself back from the bittersweet haze of memories, the birthday gathering drew to a close. His friends' children were growing sleepy, and they couldn't stay with him forever, so they eventually said their goodbyes and left the restaurant.
Once his friends were gone, a sudden wave of loneliness surged from the depths of his heart, engulfing Su Yizhou entirely.
Instead of hailing a cab, he chose to walk alone along the riverbank. Looking at the pitch-black river water and the scattered lights along the shore, he suddenly shouted at the top of his lungs: "When on earth is the plot of a transmigration novel going to drop on my head? I want to live my life all over again, and this time I'll live the exact way I want to!"
Yet, he knew this was merely a release for the loneliness buried deep inside—it wouldn't change a thing. Seizing the present moment was what mattered most. Hearing a burst of scolding from a young couple in a distant grove—it seemed his wild shouting had ruined their mood—he smiled and walked away.
Right. He'd clearly had so many chances, yet he hadn't seized a single one. To be reaching middle age before sighing aloud his understanding of love was downright pathetic.
After walking for a long while, he finally reached his apartment building.
Approaching the elevator, he saw the ad playing on the screen:
*Yujing Pavilion Foot Spa. Comfortable foot therapy, relax your body and mind. Professional care for your feet. Begin a cozy journey for your soles.*
*So is this foot spa of yours legit? If it's proper, I might just go give it a try,* Su Yizhou joked to himself.
He silently mused, *"Finally, I can go home, take a nice long soak, and comfortably put an end to this busy day."* However, just as the elevator was about to arrive, a sudden, bizarre sensation welled up in his chest.
The brightly lit space instantly went pitch black, as if an invisible hand had ruthlessly snuffed out the lights. At the same time, the endlessly looping commercial audio cut off abruptly, plunging the entire space into dead silence. The surroundings grew as dark as a midnight wasteland, sending chills down his spine.
*"No way? What a coincidence! I just said I wanted to transmigrate and the universe hits me with this? I don't want to die, God!"* Su Yizhou thought in a panic.
There was no response. Su Yizhou hurriedly rushed over to press the emergency call button in the elevator, but nothing happened.
He checked his phone, wanting to call for help, but there was no signal. *"Did I not transmigrate, but accidentally wander into a horror novel instead? Lord of the Mysteries? Rules-based strange tales?"*
Suddenly, a flash of red... ahem, scratch that. This is an urban transmigration novel, dear readers, so rest assured.
Cutting back to the elevator scene, Su Yizhou gradually calmed down. He thought to himself: how could life possibly have so many absurd tropes?
*But this is a novel, bro!*
The elevator began a rapid, plummeting descent. Only then did Su Yizhou realize things were going terribly wrong. He seemed to recall seeing in online videos that, theoretically, if you jump one second before the elevator hits the bottom, you'll be completely fine. But as you well know, that's strictly *in theory*. Whether he could actually jump in time was a whole other question.
With no other options left, Su Yizhou decided to try it anyway. Life and death are up to fate; wealth and honor are up to heaven. Everything rode on this single jump.
*Huh? Wait.* Theoretically, it should hit the ground in a matter of seconds. How come nearly a minute had passed and nothing had happened yet? Su Yizhou wondered.
Then, a wave of dizziness washed over his brain, and he blacked out entirely.