The Charismatic Alex

The world is a b***h, only showing its beauty to the rich. —— In the sweltering July, the city was as stuffy as a steamer. Alex was lying shirtless on a rattan chair in the shade of the small courtyard of his house, sticking out his tongue due to the heat. His stomach was still aching with a dull pain. He had vomited twice yesterday, and the aftereffects had lingered until now. He was a bit hungry but couldn't eat anything, feeling extremely uncomfortable. Suddenly, the mobile phone placed beside him rang. Alex answered weakly. "Hello?" "Alex! He Meng's college entrance celebration banquet is set for the 2nd. You'll surely go, right?" Wang Yonglei's hoarse voice came from the speaker, sounding so excited as if it was his own big event. Alex could understand Wang Yonglei's excitement. 'He Meng' was one of the three most beautiful girls among the graduates of the Experimental High School this year. She had a slender waist, long legs, fair skin, and a beautiful face, and was a goddess in the hearts of many boys. However, his reply was two words that were completely opposite to the excited mood. "No!" "Ah?" Wang Yonglei was a bit stunned. "Really? That's 'He' the Great Beauty! You might not get another chance to see her. What are you thinking?" "We're not from the same world. Why should I go?" Alex was a bit irritable. "Tsk-tsk... Alex, were you provoked at Liu Weilong's college entrance celebration banquet yesterday? I'm not saying you, but don't be so petty. It's not a big deal..." Not a big deal?! It wasn't you who was wronged. You don't care about others being bullied, right? Yesterday, Alex didn't originally want to go to Liu Weilong's college entrance celebration banquet. Although they were classmates, they each had their own circles in the class and had hardly any intersections before. In Liu Weilong and He Meng's small circle, they were all kids from rich families. Alex was just from an ordinary family and had a character that never fawned on others, so they didn't get along, and he simply stayed away from them. However, they had invited him, and Wang Yonglei kept egging him on. Considering that they were classmates and opportunities to get together were getting fewer, Alex finally decided to attend. But the result was far from pleasant. Alex gave a red envelope according to the standard of an ordinary family, 200 yuan, which was indeed not much. But the other side only needed to return the same amount for the courtesy exchange, which was a normal reciprocity. Such a normal consideration was sneered at by several snobbish people, and he was even forced to vomit twice. Even now, whenever he thought of those taunts, Alex still felt extremely angry. "Da Long arranged a five-star hotel. Excluding the drinks, a table of dishes cost more than 2,000 yuan. And you only gave 200 yuan as a gift? You're really something!" "Yeah, are you here to freeload?" "I mean, Da Long doesn't lack your 200 yuan. Come on, bottoms up! If the money is not enough, at least show your sincerity of congratulations!" Young people cared about their faces. At that time, Alex was forced to do things he didn't want to, but he wasn't stupid. After coming back, he swore that he would never go to the college entrance celebration banquets of these guys again! Why should he? They showed off when they got into a good university, showed off when they had a good-looking girlfriend, and now he was even stepped on just because he gave a gift according to his ability?! Were they all full and had nothing better to do?! Especially when Liu Weilong hypocritically said, "Actually, you filled out your college application quite wisely. Although Xingcheng Normal University is a second-tier university, it has a high proportion of girls. Any kind of guy can find a girlfriend there. You don't need to worry about being single." Alex really wanted to slap him. You're just rich, aren't you? If I had that much money, I would have chased He Meng and got her long ago! Stupid rich guy who doesn't even know how to spend money! After such an unpleasant experience yesterday, Alex definitely wouldn't go to He Meng's college entrance celebration banquet to make himself uncomfortable again. It wasn't that he was afraid, but that he didn't want to deal with those snobbish guys anymore. As for He Meng, just let her be a dream in high school... Thinking of finally ending the three-year secret crush, Alex felt a bit sad in his heart, but he also knew it was inevitable. Too lazy to argue with Wang Yonglei anymore, Alex directly cut off his persuasion. "Stop it! If you're treating, I'll go. But forget about He Meng and them. I can't afford to associate with them. Bye!" After hanging up the phone, Alex threw the phone aside, sneered, and shook his head. These people really had no idea. What were you going to do there? Act like a clown, be sneered at by them, and then go home to fantasize while still smelling the perfume on her? Gu Jiao was a mining city full of newly rich people. The commercial center, where every inch of land was worth its weight in gold, and the urban villages that looked like scars were intertwined. Our families were the epitome of thousands upon thousands of ordinary urban families, living in the low and shabby shantytowns where there was no sunlight even during the day. In such a money-driven society full of impetuousness, the gap between you and He Meng couldn't be bridged just by the [classmate relationship]! When a person was poor, even his breathing seemed wrong. You might not understand, but I do. There seemed to be a flame burning in Alex's chest, feeling angry and restless. At this moment, a crisp prompt sound suddenly rang in his mind. [Ding! Congratulations to the host for being selected by the God-like Tycoon System.] [As the owner of the God-like Tycoon System, your every breath is power.] [Current System Level: 1] [You will receive a cash reward of 5 cents for each breath.]（0.05yuan） [Upgrade Experience: 0/10000] [Note 1: Investing, gifting, or consuming 1 yuan will earn you 1 point of experience. Lending, repaying, or transferring funds, etc. will not generate experience.] [Note 2: The system money can be withdrawn and transferred instantly, with no limit on the number of times or accounts, and it is absolutely safe.] [More functions will be available after the system is upgraded.] God-like Tycoon System?! Alex was stunned for a long time. After repeatedly confirming that it wasn't an illusion, his face gradually turned red. Fortune's wheel is turning, and it's finally my turn! Am I finally going to become the coolest guy in the village and reach the peak of my life? After being excited for a while, Alex gradually accepted this unexpected good luck and turned his attention back to the system itself. Life-based? Breathing is power? Alex was moved. He stared at the system panel and began to breathe rapidly. "Huff huff huff huff!" He stuck out his tongue and panted like a dog. Sure enough, the amount of money on the system panel began to soar. +5 +5 +5 +5... On average, it was 10 cents per second.（0.01yuan） When he finally managed to earn 10 yuan, Alex rolled his eyes and flopped onto the rattan chair, lying there half-dead. Damn it! Doing it like this is almost like joking with my life. By the time I earn the first 10,000 yuan in my life, I might as well prepare for my funeral first! After resting for a while, Alex changed his thinking and decided to test how many times he breathed per minute in a normal state. He calmed his breathing and counted silently. However, suddenly he couldn't breathe properly. It was either too fast or too slow, and soon his face turned red from holding his breath. Alex was really at a loss whether to laugh or cry. Once it was related to money, breathing became a high-difficulty skill? "Be natural, relax, relax!" Alex muttered to himself to cheer himself up and started to try again. He tried to empty his mind and not focus on his breathing. After a few minutes, he finally got an approximate number. He breathed about 20 times per minute, which meant that he could earn 1 yuan per minute. The number didn't seem high, but when Alex did a simple calculation, he was shocked. About 1440 yuan a day! "Yes! Yes! Yes!" Alex jumped up, ran around the yard, and kept punching the air. It took him a long time to calm down. Finally, he rushed to the kitchen, scooped up a basin of water, and poured it over his head, feeling extremely cool. Refreshing! After simply wiping his body, Alex lay down again, slowly regained his thinking ability, and began to think randomly. The system could be upgraded, and its functions should become more powerful. 10000 ÷ 1440 ≈ 6.94. It would take about 7 days to accumulate enough upgrade experience. The speed wasn't slow. Moreover, the mechanism of the system was clear - it didn't matter where the money came from, but what mattered was how to spend it. If you didn't spend it, you wouldn't get any experience. Was it asking me to be a big spender who spent money like water? I like it! On June 8th, Alex just walked out of the college entrance examination room, ending the three-year arduous struggle. On June 10th, Alex got the largest sum of money in his life, 5000 yuan. He spent 2200 yuan on registering for a summer driving school class and 2,800 yuan on treating classmates and giving gifts at banquets. There was still 1983 yuan left after spending. One day ago, he was ridiculed because his red envelope only had 200 yuan and came back drunk. Ten minutes ago, the most expensive luxury on his dream list was an iPhone. Now, a taciturn and aloof system told him: Your every breath is power. What kind of feeling was that? Life is like a box of assorted chocolates. You'll never know which one is creamy and which one is bitter until you taste them. Alex was quite certain: From now on, my life will always be creamy! What kind of cream? Change the brand every day, drink two sips, and spit out one!