But soon Brian Bolton perked up again—there are many roads to Rome, and he thought of another golden idea. He had checked: many classic works from this era had been lost, especially movies, novels, TV series, and songs. Of course, works from long ago had already surfaced, but the closer it got to 2001, the more works were missing.

  “Is this the effect of being reborn? A butterfly in the Amazon rainforest flaps its wings, and two weeks later there’s a tornado in Texas—the butterfly effect?”

  Brian Bolton fell into a deep fantasy: the songs he sang became hits all over the country, the novels he wrote were translated into countless languages, the movies he made won award after award—a remarkable artistic life.

  Yet after fantasizing, he suddenly realized that he couldn’t compose music, there was no way to remember all the words in those novels, and making movies was even more troublesome.

  “If I can’t do it, I can learn. The classics are right there, I can always create them... But is my dream really to become world-famous and have both power and wealth?”

  A fifteen-year-old body, a thirty-year-old soul—Brian Bolton felt a bit lost.

  His previous life hadn’t gone well, but it wasn’t destitute either. He’d been in relationships and broken up, been fired and quit jobs, had empty pockets but found joy in being broke, and muddled through busy days.

  It seemed he never had any great ambitions.

  Ambition is often the pursuit of the young; the more mature you become, the more realistic you get. After being reborn, as the fantasies faded, Brian Bolton finally realized that he didn’t really crave earth-shattering achievements. Deep down, what he wanted most was simply to live a carefree life.

  The people he hadn’t cherished before, he would cherish twice as much now.

  The things he never had the courage to do, he would now muster the courage to try.

  The mistakes he’d made before, he didn’t want to repeat this time.

  The way he’d made his parents worry before, this time he would only be filial.

  “Starting tomorrow, I’ll be a happy person.”

  “Read, create, and live joyfully.”

  Since the heavens had arranged for him to live again, there must be a reason. Brian Bolton thought Xu Sanduo was right: if something is meaningful, you should live well, and living well means doing meaningful things.

  Looking up, Brian Bolton saw the calendar on the wall.

  August 31, 2001, Friday, lunar calendar: the thirteenth day of the seventh month in the year of Xin Si, the Year of the Snake. And Brian Bolton was born on April 13, 1987, Monday, lunar calendar: the sixteenth day of the third month in the year of Ding Mao, the Year of the Rabbit.

  He was fourteen years old by Western age, fifteen by traditional reckoning.

  Thin arms and legs, a very youthful appearance, and an old-fashioned crew cut. At 1.65 meters tall, he was a bit short, but he’d eventually grow to 1.75 meters—not bad. At the corner of his mouth, there was already some fuzzy facial hair, meaning he was right in the throes of adolescence.

  “School starts tomorrow—Shuangdun Middle School, huh? I really miss it.”

Chapter 002: Old Sea Shrimp

  “I am a green onion, standing in the wind and rain...”

  In this situation, Brian Bolton couldn’t help but feel that his predicament matched this silly phrase perfectly.

  Megan Bennett was just as he remembered—his nagging mom, who really loved to nag. From the moment he got up in the morning, she started buzzing in Brian Bolton’s ear like a hairdryer, and even when they were almost at the bus stop, she still hadn’t stopped.

  “When you get to Shuangdun Middle School, study hard. You’re not a little kid anymore, don’t keep thinking you can just play around. If you don’t study hard in high school and can’t get into college, your whole life will be ruined. Shuangdun Middle School is so far away, your dad and I won’t be by your side, no one will be there to watch over you, so you have to take care of yourself...”

  Listening to his mom’s nagging, Brian Bolton carried his backpack and dragged his wheeled suitcase. Even after a day and a night to adjust, it still felt unbelievable.

  He was actually back in his first year of high school.

  The rundown streets, the old storefronts, and the familiar, chubby minibus up ahead all gave him a different feeling—this was 2001, fifteen years ago.

  “Mom.”

  Brian Bolton suddenly stopped, turned around, and looked at his “young” parents, a smile spreading across his face: “I don’t want to go to school anymore.”

  Megan Bennett was stunned for a moment, then immediately slapped Brian Bolton on the head: “You brat, if you don’t go to school, you might as well be dead!”

  “Let’s talk it out, Mom.” Brian Bolton ducked away, covering his head, forgetting how many years it had been since his mom last hit him. “Fine, I’ll go to school then.”

  “Is that how you go to school! Either go to Shuangdun Middle School and study hard, or stay home and repeat a year. Since you haven’t registered yet, you still have a choice.” Megan Bennett looked at Brian Bolton, getting angrier the more she looked.

  Kevin Bolton stood to the side, carrying a large camouflage-patterned bag, saying nothing. Like many fathers who aren’t good at communicating with their children, Kevin Bolton and Brian Bolton rarely talked, except about practical matters—heart-to-heart talks were out of the question.

  As a child, he didn’t really understand his father, but as he grew older, he realized more and more that his father had deep feelings too, just too shy to express them.

  A nagging mother, a taciturn father.

  Brian Bolton felt that being reborn was wonderful. He couldn’t help but step forward and hug his mother: “Mom, don’t worry. Your son has grown up now. I’ll work hard, study well, and improve every day.”

  After speaking, he let go of his stunned mother and gave his father a hug as well.