Early the next morning, Dr. Qin completed Xie Mingzhe’s discharge procedures. Then Xie Mingzhe went to negotiate with the insurance company to settle his medical expenses.
The medical insurance system in this world was extremely comprehensive. The critical illness insurance he purchased covered accidents, and all medical expenses were reimbursed. Xie Mingzhe finally felt relieved. It was just like the saying, ‘A person only feels light when they have no debts.’ He might be a bit short of money now and had barely any savings, but at least he didn’t have any outstanding debts. He just had to find a way to support himself and the financial pressure would naturally be much lighter.
A busy morning passed and he was finally discharged smoothly. Xie Mingzhe thanked Dr. Qin and walked out of the hospital.
The sunlight outside was a bit dazzling. After sleeping for a month before finally getting to stand in sunlight, Xie Mingzhe’s head suddenly felt dizzy. He covered his head and took several deep breaths before the world gradually became clear.
Various types of hovercars blew by in the air. The world of towering buildings seemed to be covered with a layer of mechanized coldness.
Xie Mingzhe stood on the street for a while. The unfamiliar high-tech environment made him deeply feel the reality of his rebirth.
Let’s bid farewell to 2018. He was reborn in 3001 of the Star Calendar, becoming another down-on-his-luck young man, Xie Mingzhe. He had started with a bad hand but it didn’t matter. He had two sets of memories, so he was confident that he could survive in this world on his own.
Xie Mingzhe took a deep breath, a relieved smile appearing on his face. He turned to walk to the nearby public hover station. He had hands, feet and a brain. He refused to believe that a living person could starve to death.
He took a hover car to the terminal station on the outskirts of the city. Then Xie Mingzhe followed his memory to a dilapidated residential building. He arrived on the tenth floor and found a middle-aged woman waiting for him at the door. The middle-aged woman was noticeably very overweight but wore very thin high heels. She rolled her eyes when she saw Xie Mingzhe and said coldly, “You’re finally back! I thought you deliberately disappeared to avoid paying rent!”
Xie Mingzhe handed his medical records to her and spoke apologetically. “Aunt Zhang, I didn’t mean to. I’ve been staying in the hospital this month.”
Aunt Zhang didn’t take the records and instead glanced sideways at him. “Hospitalized? You are using such a lame excuse. Are you trying to avoid paying the rent?”
Her tone was clearly sarcastic and showed her contempt for this poor young man. XIe Mingzhe readily transferred the 800 crystal coins rent to her via phone transfer. “I’m sorry for the month’s delay and causing you trouble.” Regardless of her attitude, being late to pay the rent was indeed his fault.
The middle-aged woman received the transfer and immediately asked, “What are your plans for the August rent?”
Xie Mingzhe remembered the 200 crystal coins balance in his bank card and quickly said, “I’m having some financial difficulties lately. Could you perhaps postpone the August rent until after I start school?” He was sure that he could definitely come up with a solution in a month, but Aunt Zhang probably wouldn’t be so easy to persuade based on her attitude.
“Wait for you to start school?” Sure enough, Aunt Zhang’s voice rose and she gave him a disdainful look. “Either pay it now or move out immediately! If you can’t afford the rent, you should go to a charity shelter. Don’t come looking for me!”
“……” Xie Mingzhe frowned slightly. He had seen many similar mean-spirited petty citizens. In particular, the Xie Mingzhe of this world had suffered a lot of cold treatment since childhood. He didn’t want to lower himself to beg others, so he simply nodded. “Okay, I’ll move out as soon as possible.”
Aunt Zhang had thought the boy would beg her, but he was instead so decisive. She looked up in confusion and suddenly met the boy’s bright eyes.
Those eyes were completely different from the dejected boy she had first met. Instead, they carried a confident and composed air of self-assurance.
The boy smiled when he saw her look up. “I won’t say goodbye. We probably won’t see each other again. Thank you for taking care of me in the past.”
His polite and calm farewell was so well-mannered that it made Aunt Zhang, who had spoken so harshly, feel quite embarrassed.
Aunt Zhang felt a strange sensation as she watched his slender, upright figure turn and enter the apartment. She felt that the young man was much more energetic than before, and his smile was even more handsome. It was different from his previous dejected and unpleasant appearance. Unfortunately, no matter how handsome he was, he was still just a poor boy with no relatives. Could he possibly turn his life around?
Aunt Zhang suppressed her unease, frowned and turned to leave.
Xie Mingzhe swiped his card to enter the room.
The room was very small. Aside from the bathroom, there was almost no room to move after the bed and wardrobe was placed. His suitcase had to be put under the bed. Xie Mingzhe bent down and opened the suitcase. It contained clothes, daily necessities and a very old computer.
He had all of the original owner’s memories, so seeing these things didn’t surprise him.
He quickly unpacked and sat on the edge of the bed. Then he turned on his computer and searched for the keyword, ‘part-time job.’
He quickly scanned through various part-time job positions. Then his eyes soon landed on a line of small text. ‘Nirvana Studio near Imperial Capital College is hiring temporary staff aged 18-25. Male preferred, meals and accommodation provided. The monthly salary is 3,000 crystal coins.’
He met the age and gender requirements, the location near the school was convenient for future part-time work and most importantly, the meals and accommodation provided clause solved his biggest problem. However, what exactly did this studio do? Naturally, Xie Mingzhe sent a private message, politely asking, “What are the job duties at this studio? I would like to apply.”
The other person quickly replied, “We are a game boosting studio, mainly engaged in card repair and card training for Star Card Storm. The requirements include at least one year of experience playing Star Card Storm and familiarity with all game rules.”
Xie Mingzhe, “……”
Who would post a job ad without clearly stating the crucial requirements?
Xie Mingzhe had never played Star Card Storm but he was very familiar with game boosting. Back in college, he had used his spare time to boost players for League of Legends and Honor of Kings, helping several clients reach the highest rank. He had even been approached by e-sports clubs, inviting him to become a professional player for their teams. It was just that his plan was to find a stable job after graduation, so he declined.
The future world actually had a profession like game boosting?
This was his old profession and it should be easy for him to handle. Xie Mingzhe became excited when thinking of this and quickly replied, “I haven’t played Star Card Storm but I’ve been a game booster for other games. I am very familiar with this business. Can I apply for a job at your studio?”
The other person was puzzled. “What game?”
Xie Mingzhe thought that games like League of Legends and Honor of Kings definitely didn’t exist in this world, so he didn’t dare to make something up. He just made up a story, “The games I played are relatively niche, but I have a lot of experience with game boosting. I also know a bit about Star Card Storm. I guarantee I can learn it within two days.”
The other person hesitated. “If you haven’t played Star Card Storm, it will definitely affect our efficiency!”
Xie Mingzhe immediately backed down. “Then I’ll work as a intern for the first month and you only need to pay me half the salary. Is that okay?”
The other person was surprised. “You mean that you would accept a salary of 1,500?”
Xie Mingzhe didn’t hesitate. “Sure!”
No matter how small, money was still money. The currency in this world was roughly equivalent to the prices of yuan in the Earth era. 1,500 yuan was enough for a college student’s living expenses, and there was even some pocket money left with careful budgeting. If he was officially hired in the future, it would be 3,000 a month. Wasn’t that fantastic? The key was that this studio was close to the school and provided meals and accommodation. If the schedule was good, he could consider long-term, part-time work.
Xie Mingzhe’s mind raced and he made up his mind. “Just give me 1,500. I will be an intern first. Then you can hire me if I perform well.”
The other person quickly sent a reply, “Come and give it a try. I will see you at 2:30 p.m.”
Xie Mingzhe’s eyes lit up. “Thank you. I will be there on time!”
At 2:30 p.m., Xie Mingzhe arrived at the interview location with his packed suitcase.
In his original imagination, the game studio was like an Internet cafe. There would be a row of computers in a closed room, and several acne-faced nerds staring at the computer screens, expressionlessly typing on the keyboards.
However, he couldn’t help being started when he arrived at the scene. The lobby was filled with neatly arranged helmets and a row of swivel chairs. There was a huge virtual LCD screen in the center of the room, constantly updating data.
Seeing this high-tech equipment, Xie Mingzhe felt like he had entered a space station from a science fiction movie.
A young man in his early twenties, smoking a cigarette, walked over. The young man’s hair was somewhat disheveled, his shirt was wrinkled like it had been picked up from somewhere, and the dark circles under his eyes indicated that he hadn’t slept well the night before. He looked at the curious young man like he was looking at a monster and asked, “You are the guy who doesn’t know how to play Star Card Storm but still wants to apply for the game boosting job?”
Xie Mingzhe nodded shamelessly. “I haven’t played Star Card Storm, but I’ve been a booster for other games. My game fundamentals are solid and I will learn quickly.” He tried hard to sell himself.
The man burst out laughing like he had heard a very funny joke.
Xie Mingzhe wasn’t embarrassed and frankly met the other person’s gaze. “I will give it a try first. If it really doesn’t work out then I will leave. Can you give me a chance?”
The young man’s eyes were sincere and he wasn’t intimidated at all. The man felt a surge of goodwill towards this boy with commendable courage. He beckoned to Xie Mingzhe and said, “Okay, come over here. Farming materials actually isn’t that hard. You will get the hang of it after a few tries.”
The man led Xie Mingzhe into the next room, handing him a brand-new helmet. “Since you have worked as a power leveler before, you should know the rules for our line of work. You need to complete the client’s requests as quickly as possible, so you need to be very familiar with this game.”
Xie Mingzhe nodded earnestly. “Yes.”
The helmet was very exquisite. Xie Mingzhe studied it carefully for a moment, figured out how to wear it and asked, “Brother, what is your name?”
The man felt quite pleased at being addressed so respectfully and his attitude softened considerably. “My surname is Chen, so everyone calls me Brother Chen. You can call me that from now on. Then what is your name?”
“It is Xie Mingzhe. You can just call me… Xiao Xie.” Xie Mingzhe’s nickname was actually Ah Zhe, which was what his close friends from his previous life called him. However, calling him Ah Zhe felt a bit strange since they had just met. He preferred to be called Xiao Xie.
“Xiao Xie, create an account and try it out yourself. It isn’t complicated, and you will get the hang of it after a few hours.” Brother Chen instructed. “Come find me again before 9 p.m. when you are familiar with the rules.”
Xie Mingzhe agreed and carefully put on the helmet.
He put on the helmet and the world before him quickly changed. Several lines of text floated in the air, showing different game login interfaces. It seemed that this helmet could connect to most holographic games. Star Card Storm was listed first, demonstrating its status and popularity in the gaming world.
Xie Mingzhe tapped on Star Card Storm.
There was a crisp system voice in his ears, sounding like a seven or eight year old boy. “Welcome to the magical Star Card world! The system has detected that this is your first time logging into the game. Please create your account and bind your identity number.”
Xie Mingzhe quickly followed the prompts to create an account.
The system, “Please enter your character name and create your image in the Star Card World.”
His image quickly appeared on the game screen, as realistic as a mirror. Xie Mingzhe looked at his virtual self so close to him and marveled at the advanced technology of the present era.
He certainly wouldn’t use his real appearance in the online game. Wouldn’t it be incredibly awkward if he ran into acquaintances later?
Xie Mingzhe pondered on it for a moment and made some adjustments to the character’s appearance. He shortened his height by ten centimeters, increased his weight by thirty kilograms, enlarged his face by a whole size and added a few whiskers. Very good. It was a kind-looking, chubby uncle who was very approachable.
As for his game ID, Xie Mingzhe casually picked one that made it feel friendly: Chubby Uncle.
At the time, he had no idea what type of storm this name would cause in the Star Card World.
Later in an interview, Xie Mingzhe smiled innocently at the camera as he said, “The name Chubby Uncle was really something I picked randomly. It doesn’t have any special meaning. If I had known, I would’ve chosen a nicer name. This way, people wouldn’t be calling me God Chubby.
Fans saw that Chubby Uncle was actually a sunny, handsome young man and exclaimed, “You big liar! Give us back our cute, kind Chubby Uncle!”
His opponents just chuckled and privately gave him a nickname: Very Mischievous Xie Mingzhe.
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