Chapter 2

“Ding, congratulations, Host, on successfully activating the Check-in system. Would you like to bind the system?”

Zhou Chao was completely bewildered. A system? Wasn’t that something only found in novels? Could it be that I am the chosen one?

“Please introduce the functionalities of the system.”

“After binding the system, you can perform daily check-ins, which include daily, weekly, monthly, and yearly check-ins. The longer you accumulate check-ins, the more valuable rewards you will receive.”

“Ding, would you like to bind the Check-in system?” a voice echoed in Zhou Chao’s mind, snapping him out of his bewildered state.

“Yes, bind it immediately.”

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“Congratulations, Host, on binding the system. You have received a Newcomer’s Gift Pack x1. Would you like to open the Newcomer’s Gift Pack?”

“Not now. Zhou Chao pushed open the door and entered the small grocery store. As he looked at the less than 50 square meters store, the thought of just obtaining the system crossed his mind, and he exclaimed, “The future looks promising.”

Zhou Chao turned and sat on the recliner behind the cashier counter, saying, “Check-in.”

“Ding, check-in successful. Congratulations, Host, you have obtained a Wuling Hongguang Mini EV and 10,000 yuan in cash.”

“Wuling Hongguang? What’s going on?”

“Host, you’ve watched too many novels. This system is fair and just. The longer you accumulate check-ins, the more valuable the rewards will be!”

“Alright, something is better than nothing.” Zhou Chao lay back on the recliner and rolled his eyes.

“System, open the Newcomer’s Gift Pack.”

“Opening the system’s gift pack. Congratulations, Host, you have received 10 residential units in Binjiang Community and 100,000 yuan in cash. Would you like to claim them?”

“10 residential units?” Zhou Chao excitedly stood up from the recliner.

“Claim them!”

“Claim successful. 110,000 yuan has been transferred to the Bank of China account 9527. The remaining balance is 965,328.62 yuan.”

“System, what about the car and property certificate?”

“The car is parked outside the grocery store, and the key is in the first drawer of the cashier counter. The property certificate is in the car!”

Zhou Chao eagerly opened the drawer and saw the key lying silently inside. He took the key and walked towards the door, where a small Wuling Hongguang Mini EV was parked just 10 meters away from the store.

He quickly approached it, opened the door, and saw a stack of documents resting on the driver’s seat. Opening the property certificate, he saw that the sizes of the properties ranged from 80 to 100 square meters. After a moment of contemplation, he estimated that the total value of these houses was around six to seven million yuan.

“System, will the cash rewards from check-ins attract the attention of the bank?” Zhou Chao asked nervously.

“Please rest assured, Host. The funds are provided by a foreign foundation. Feel free to use them without worry,” the system assured him, relieving Zhou Chao’s anxiety.

“Hey Boss, where are you going? I want to buy cigarettes.” Zhou Chao heard someone calling for him from the grocery store. He then locked the property certificate and headed back to the store.

“Coming, what kind of cigarettes do you want?”

“Give me a pack of Huazi!”

“Sure, right away.” Zhou Chao entered the cashier counter and handed a pack of Huazi to the customer.

“Hey, wait a minute! Has the boss been replaced?” the customer asked, bewildered.

“Oh, the previous owner was my Third Aunt. I’ve taken over now. I hope you’ll continue to support the business,” Zhou Chao smiled and replied to the customer.

“Oh, no problem. We’re all loyal customers. Don’t worry, Boss. Let me pay with WeChat.”

Zhou Chao took out his phone and opened the WeChat payment code.

“Ding, 45 yuan received.” The phone made a sound indicating the successful payment, and the customer, holding his phone, left the store.

As time passed by, Zhou Chao sold a couple thousand yuan worth of goods throughout the day, mostly oil, rice, tea, and cigarettes. He checked the time on his phone—it was already past 8 PM. After considering it, he decided to end his first day as a boss.

He quickly tidied up the store, locked the door, and headed towards his car.

Having obtained his driver’s license during his four years of college, he finally had the opportunity to showcase his driving skills. As the Wuling Hongguang Mini EV was a small electric car, it wasn’t too troublesome, and Zhou Chao easily mastered the driving techniques.

Returning home, he took a quick shower and lay on his bed. The waves of emotions within him hadn’t settled yet. From this moment, his life would undergo earth-shattering changes. He tossed and turned on his bed until late at night before slowly falling asleep.

“Ding, Ding!” The sound of his phone ringing woke Zhou Chao from his slumber. He reached for his phone and looked at the unfamiliar number, sliding his finger across the screen.

“Hello, who is this?” Zhou Chao spoke lifelessly.

“Zhou Chao, you dog, you came back to Fuzhou without even letting us know. If I hadn’t bumped into your Third Aunt yesterday, I wouldn’t have known you were back,” a furious roar came from the other end of the line.

Zhou Chao placed the phone one meter away, only picking it up again after the person on the other side had finished shouting. By now, Zhou Chao knew that it was his childhood friend, Lei Mingtang, who was calling. True to his name, he sounded like thunder when he spoke. They had been in the same class from elementary to high school, and their bond was exceptionally strong.

“Lei Firecracker, can you keep your voice down? I just got back, settled down, and was planning to call you and arrange a get-together with everyone in a couple of days. But here you are, calling me first.”

“Haven’t you seen the high school QQ group chat? The class president is organizing a gathering for everyone. It’s because we’ve all graduated from college, so we should get together. And I heard your first love, Xia Yuanyuan, will also be there.”

“Xia Yuanyuan? Wasn’t she studying abroad? Why did she come back? Have they set a time for the gathering?”

“The day after tomorrow, Saturday. They’ve already discussed it in the group chat. It will be at Fuzhou Grand Restaurant, a 4-star establishment. The class president, Wang Wei, arranged it. Let’s go together.”

“Okay, we’ll contact each other on the day and go together!” After contemplating for a moment, Zhou Chao replied.

“Alright, we’ll catch up then. I have to get back to work now,” Lei Mingtang said before hanging up the phone.

“Host, will you be checking in today?”

“Yes.”

“Check-in successful. Congratulations, Host, on obtaining…”