Volume One, Chapter 2: The Twenty-Million Lottery Ticket

Zhang Han called the police. The officers arrived, and Liu Xin's parents rushed back in time, averting a disaster. In truth, Zhang Han had thought it through clearly. Since he was reborn to seek revenge, he couldn't just finish them off in one blow. It was far more satisfying to bleed them slowly with a dull blade. Soon, Yang Song's parents arrived as well. Yang Zhongrui slapped his son across the face several times, hard enough to draw blood from Yang Song's nose. Yang Song's mother, Liu Yan, hugged Liu Xin's mother, Li Jie, weeping bitterly and begging for forgiveness. Watching from the sidelines, Zhang Han sneered inwardly. This was just a tiny bit of interest collected in advance. Although the police were present, Liu Xin and her parents chose to downplay the incident. Hot-blooded young men acting on impulse was hardly uncommon. Besides, nothing had actually happened, had it? If Yang Song were locked up, he wouldn't be able to go to college, would carry a criminal record, and his life would be ruined. Seeing that both families were willing to settle, the police were happy not to press the matter. As for Zhang Han, it was none of their business. After the letter of understanding was signed, the two officers left. Yang Song was in a sorry state. Pummeled by Zhang Han's fists, his mouth and lips were bruised purple, and both his eyes were blackened. Liu Xin wasn't much better off, with swollen cheeks and her left eye barely open a slit. The two of them had been thoroughly beaten by Zhang Han, yet they had to swallow their anger in silence. "Xiao Han, you know Xiao Song isn't that kind of person," Liu Yan approached to comfort Zhang Han and apologize for her son. "The boy just acted on impulse and almost did something terrible. Fortunately, you stopped him in time before any irreparable damage was done. You two are best friends. You won't hold a grudge, right?" Because of the close ties between Zhang Han and the other two, Yang Song's parents and Liu Xin's parents had known each other for a long time. Liu Yan and Li Jie had even become close friends, often shopping together or working out at the gym on weekends. Cursing inwardly, Zhang Han thought they were truly cut from the same cloth. Keeping a straight face, he said, "Aunt Liu, I've always treated Yang Song like my own brother, and you and Uncle Yang like my own parents. I never imagined he would do such a thing to Liu Xin. I will absolutely never forgive him for this!" Liu Xin's face instantly darkened. "Zhang Han, you have the nerve to not forgive Yang Song? Look what you did to my face! If I'm disfigured, I'll never let you off the hook!" Liu Xin still thought Zhang Han was the same as before, someone she could boss around. Usually, the moment she got angry, Zhang Han would rush over to apologize unconditionally, taking the blame regardless of who was at fault. Both families were waiting for Zhang Han to come over and apologize. They all knew he was Liu Xin's most devoted lackey, more loyal than a faithful dog. However, this time, to everyone's surprise, Zhang Han opened the door, slammed it shut behind him, and walked away with a swagger, leaving a mess for the two families to deal with. The six of them stood there, utterly dumbfounded.

No, that couldn't be. Zhang Han actually dared to snub Liu Xin in front of so many people? The Yang family of three looked at Liu Xin, who felt incredibly awkward, both furious and anxious. That stupid lackey—where did he get the guts? "I'm afraid this really made Zhang Han angry. Even though he's a lackey, he cares about our Xiao Xin more than anything," Liu Zhong said, lounging on the sofa and leisurely lighting a premium cigarette, a gift from Zhang Han. "It's fine. Young people are like this. He's just hot-headed right now. I'll have Xiao Xin send him a message tonight." "But this time," Yang Zhongrui said with a cold face, "we're really short on money right now." "It's not a big deal. If push comes to shove, we'll have Xiao Xin borrow five hundred thousand from Yang Song to tide us over, and then we'll figure out how to squeeze more out of him!" Liu Zhong's voice was calm, but his words were chilling and ruthless. Leaving the residential compound, Zhang Han checked his phone. There was only a half-hearted apology message from Yang Song, and not a single word from Liu Xin. He sneered. They all thought he was still the same old Zhang Han. Zhang Han didn't reply to Yang Song, putting the matter aside for now. He had something far more important to do, and it was truly urgent. Money! During his eight years in prison, Zhang Han's cellmates were quite the characters. One had robbed a bank, another had driven drunk and fled after hitting someone, and yet another had killed a man in a fit of rage. One of them had a story that was both pitiful and hilarious—he had won the lottery, twenty million! They had ended up in the same cell. This cellmate was named Yu Guangkun, a local from An City and an ordinary office worker earning about seven or eight thousand a month, with a son and a daughter. His biggest hobby was buying lottery tickets, spending two or five yuan every day to try his luck. He was quite familiar with the lottery shop owner near his home and had added him on WeChat. For small amounts, he would sometimes transfer the money before the ticket was printed, and sometimes after. It was just a few bucks, so the shop owner didn't mind. Whenever he sent the numbers, the owner would print them out. Who would have thought that Yu Guangkun's luck was insanely good, and he actually guessed a winning combination. But he hadn't sent the numbers before the draw; he sent them after. The shop owner refused to acknowledge it, claiming he had bought it himself, and offered Yu twenty thousand yuan as a hardship fee since the numbers were his. The difference between twenty thousand and twenty million was unimaginable. In the heat of the argument, Yu Guangkun grabbed a fruit knife and stabbed the shop owner, which landed him in prison. Once inside, Yu Guangkun recited those winning numbers every day, no less than a hundred times, until Zhang Han's ears were calloused from hearing them. Therefore, Zhang Han decided to buy that exact combination, and even more tickets, leaving about two million for Guangkun as a gesture of mutual help. He believed that once the prize was drawn and taxes were deducted, the shop owner wouldn't be so inhumane when Yu walked away with over a million. Zhang Han went to a nearby lottery shop and decisively bought that combination. It was a pity the prize pool for this draw was only twenty million; otherwise, he could have made even more. Buying a pack of cigarettes, Zhang Han stood outside the shop and smoked. He looked up, holding the ticket against the sunlight. The paper turned translucent, and a myriad of thoughts flooded his mind.

Eight years of prison life had made Zhang Han endure too much hardship. Now reborn, his goals were simple, boiling down to six words: revenge, make money, and enjoy life. Let the music play, let the dance begin. To hell with slaving away like a beast of burden, and to hell with chasing after love. Moreover, with this capital, he had an even more significant investment in mind, another piece of intel provided by his cellmate. The lottery was his seed money! After buying the tickets, Zhang Han didn't leave. He found a nearby internet cafe and stayed until eight o'clock, when the results were announced. Even though he knew for certain he would win, when it actually happened, he couldn't help but feel a surge of excitement. The prize pool was twenty million. Yu Guangkun had bought one ticket, which would only net him a tenth—two million! After deducting taxes and mandatory donations, he would take home about a million and a half. Enough to live a comfortable life. As for himself, out of his eighteen million, after taxes, he would be left with over fourteen million, nearly fifteen million. Fifteen million! What a beautiful number! Of course, in half a year, this number would explode, perhaps to ninety million, or even a hundred million! Zhang Han tossed the cigarette butt and crushed it fiercely under his shoe. He decisively posted the news in his high school class group chat, sending twenty digital red envelopes of two hundred yuan each. Instantly, the group chat exploded. Oh my god, he won the lottery! And it's eighteen million! The group went absolutely crazy, everyone calling him boss. A slight smirk tugged at the corners of Zhang Han's lips. Announcing the win was intentional. The revenge had only just begun. "Tomorrow at nine in the morning, at the five-star hotel in An City, I'm treating you all to a luxurious feast. If you don't show up, you're disrespecting me, Zhang Han!"