jdhmnovel Chapter 1 The Cards of Fate, Quietly Turned Over
Chapter 1 The Cards of Fate, Quietly Turned Over
At midday, the sun hung high in the sky, its rays pouring down relentlessly, scorching the earth. The surrounding air seemed to stagnate, a mixture of muggy heat and stickiness, with not a breath of wind to be found. The trees along the street were listless from the sun, their branches drooping.
Yuan Baoya carried several bags of freshly bought groceries and walked home at a leisurely pace.
As she walked, a reflection on the ground suddenly caught her eye. She instinctively stopped and looked in that direction, only to see a card lying there quietly.
She was taken aback at first, then looked around to make sure no one was paying attention. After hesitating for a moment, she bent down and picked up the card.
This card is truly special. It feels thin and light in your hand, yet it inexplicably exudes a strong sense of technology, as if it were carefully forged from some rare and mysterious metal.
The overall color is a deep black, inlaid with dark gold patterns. These patterns are faintly visible, as if they have their own life, winding and distributed with a unique and indescribable rhythm. Upon closer inspection, they seem to hide endless mysteries.
When Yuan Baoya saw the words "game card," her countless dreams of getting rich quick were instantly shattered.
However, her innate "Ah Q spirit" immediately surfaced, and she comforted herself, "Even though it's not a cash card bestowed by the God of Wealth, picking up such a beautiful game card for free isn't a loss!" As she thought this, the corners of her mouth turned up slightly, revealing a self-deprecating smile.
Hehe~~ It's definitely not the middle of the day, so don't think too much!
As a result, she selectively ignored the small print at the bottom of the back of the card—"A turning point in fate awaits your intervention."
Little did she know, the instant her fingertips touched the card, a mysterious voice seemed to drift from the void, a voice that seemed to have traveled through the long river of time, carrying a touch of ethereal beauty, softly murmuring: "Welcome to the transfer station of destiny, your life will be changed from this moment on..."
Yuan Baoya, of course, did not hear the sound. She played with the card in her hand, examining it from all angles, and the more she looked at it, the more she felt that this thing had a strange quality about it.
The dark gold patterns, if stared at for a long time, seemed to shimmer with a faint light, vaguely outlining some blurry contours. At times, they resembled an ancient and mysterious map, guiding the unknown; at other times, they resembled strange runes, as if they contained earth-shattering secrets that could change the world.
Speaking of Yuan Baoya, this 42-year-old woman, although the years have left their mark on her face, she always feels that she still has a "girlish heart". She is usually carefree and easygoing, like a sunflower blooming freely in the sun. Wherever she is, the atmosphere is always lively.
From a young age, Yuan Baoya inherited her mother's excellent physical coordination. She could learn to sing and dance very quickly, showing her talent.
She has a very cheerful personality, is simple and kind, and is always laughing and joking. Her signature straightforward and slightly magical laughter, a string of "giggle giggles," can dispel the gloom in other people's hearts. Among her family and friends, she is recognized as the "joker."
But who could have predicted that back in junior high, she was like a stubborn little donkey, and somehow she started to clash with some of her eccentric relatives. Once her rebellious streak kicked in, she focused all her attention on eating, drinking, and having fun, and completely forgot about studying.
When it comes to finding good food, she used all her cleverness. In order to "dig out" the hidden snacks from Aunt Yuan, she outwitted Aunt Yuan. The scene was comparable to a thrilling confrontation in a spy drama. Every time she thought of something, she came up with a clever idea to crack Aunt Yuan's "food hiding code".
Every time they unearthed a "treasure," they would immediately pull their older brother Yuan Baoguo along, hide in a corner and eat it with great satisfaction, muttering "sharing the good fortune."
When Yuan's mother found out and was about to scold them, the two little ones hung their heads and pitifully pretended to be innocent, cooperating quite well, truly "sharing the burden of hardship".
After graduating from junior high school, she didn't have any outstanding academic achievements. So, she decided to go to a vocational school, leaving behind the warm little nest in her hometown. Like a fledgling bird that hadn't yet grown its wings but was eager to venture out, she plunged headlong into the vast world outside.
When she was about to graduate from vocational school, coastal companies came to the school to recruit workers. Yuan Baoya was full of energy and passed the written test and interview with flying colors. She won first place and went to the coastal city with great joy and high spirits, becoming a small cog in the assembly line.
In retrospect, Yuan Baoya actually had two great opportunities in her life that could have enabled her to make a significant leap forward, but fate loved to play tricks on her, and she missed them both times.
For the first time, I joined the wave of migrant workers right after graduating from vocational school, and I've been a corporate slave for nearly twenty years now.
She worked her way up from the lowest level of assembly line worker, working tirelessly from dawn till dusk, putting in unimaginable effort. She finally transformed into a "career woman" in the workplace, taking on the high position of assistant general manager and human resources director, and was about to be able to stand on her own and make great strides.
Who could have imagined that fate would suddenly play such a cruel joke on the company? The general manager suddenly fell ill without warning and passed away at a young age. The company was thrown into chaos, with power struggles and a major personnel reshuffle creating a mess.
Yuan Baoya was caught in the eye of the storm, watching helplessly as the fruits of her years of hard work crumbled. Insomnia became a daily occurrence, haunting her like a demon, and her body began to show warning signs, with all her old ailments surfacing at once.
She was filled with confusion and turmoil, constantly wondering, "What am I going to do now? Can I even continue down this career path?" After struggling countless times, she finally made up her mind and quit her job, thinking that starting her own business and becoming her own boss would at least give her control over her destiny and stop being completely controlled by others.
After a six-month break, Yuan Baoya set her sights on the handmade food industry and took over a training institution. She had a very ambitious plan in mind, dreaming of living in a big house and having a prosperous life in two years. But fate, like a mischievous monkey, played a new trick on her.
The food team held a stockpiling competition, offering bigger discounts for larger stockpiles. Yuan Baoya, in a moment of impulsiveness, took out a 30 yuan loan online and gambled on stockpiling a large quantity of raw materials, hoping to get rich quick.
Little did we know that the mask crisis in those years was like a runaway prehistoric beast, rampaging through our lives, turning the market upside down. All the raw materials we had stockpiled were stuck in our hands and couldn't be converted into cash. Training institutions were deserted and quiet, while rent and utilities were like death knells, constantly chasing after us. Our cash flow snapped cleanly and decisively.
Debt collection calls and emails came crashing down on her like snowflakes, crushing her under the mountain of debt. Her entrepreneurial dream shattered, leaving her only with regret and sighing every day: "How could I have played such a good hand so badly? If only I could start over..." Her tone was full of helplessness and resentment, revealing a deep sense of bitterness.