The Card Apprentice - Chapter 8: A Predicament

Abandoned at birth and raised in an orphanage, a young man endures twenty-five years confined to a body ravaged by a rare genetic disease that kept him in constant pain and left him bedridden in his final years. His life ends quietly, without fanfare, as the flatline echoes through his lonely room.But death isn’t the end.Awakening in a realm of pure nothingness, he’s offered the one thing life never gave him: a second chance, and with it, a system shaped from his deepest desires.Given the opportunity to be reborn with the potential to become the Greatest of All Time in any field, his decision is instant. He chooses Formula 1, the one passion that kept him going during his darkest hours.Armed with a custom-built system, a new life, and the relentless drive of someone who has truly suffered, he is reborn in 2003. This time, he won’t just watch from the sidelines.Disclaimer: All characters and events in this story are purely fictional and have no association with real individuals, organizations, or historical events. Any resemblance to real-life figures is purely coincidental and used for narrative realism.

In a world where football is both a passion and a lifeline, Benjamin, a promising young player seemingly has it all: talent, a loving family, and dreams of becoming a Legend.However, tragedy strikes when a devastating car accident claims his life along with that of his parents. But fate intervenes, granting him a second chance at life as he mysteriously finds himself back in time.This time, Benjamin is powerless to prevent the loss of his family, leaving him an orphan at a pivotal moment in his life.Struggling with a broken left foot that threatens to derail his football dreams before they even begin, prejudice and self-doubt. Driven by an unrelenting passion for the sport, he trains tirelessly, honing his skills and overcoming the obstacles in his path.As Benjamin rises through the highs and lows of his journey, he encounters challenges both on and off the pitch.With every setback, he learns the true meaning of resilience, forging a legacy that transcends all and proving that greatness is possible for anyone willing to fight for it.

The fat cat Black Tubby said, “Supreme Commander is a good person, meow!”

The bird Grandfather Sparrow said, “Supreme Commander is a good person, chirp!”

The little mouse Oil Jar also said, “Supreme Commander is a good person, squeak!”

Furthermore, the weasel Great Immortal said, “You and Supreme Commander are a match made in Heaven~”

All of the little animals told Ning Xiaoyao about Supreme Commander, Supreme Commander, Supreme Commander! So, Ning Xiaoyao believed that this Supreme Commander named Lou Zigui had to be a good guy. As to whether or not they were a match made in Heaven…

The fat cat Black Tubby clawed at Ning Xiaoyao. “You wrote the decree sentencing Supreme Commander to death in the execution grounds, ah! You fatuous, self-indulgent ruler!!!”

Ning Xiayao replied, “…”

—

Ning Xiaoyao is a genetically evolved army doctor from a zombie-infested apocalyptic world. One day, she transmigrates to the past as the next emperor of an ancient country. But wait, isn’t she a girl?!

As it turns out, she’s a disguised stand-in for her baby brother under the “loving” care of the empress dowager, her mother and future murderer. Faced with her impending death, Ning Xiaoyao must thwart the schemes of her family to survive in a palace allied against her. But how does a zombie-killing expert with supernormal strength, healing powers, and the ability to understand animals deal with the intricacies of court politics?

“If nothing else works, I’ll just beat them all up!”

Title: Trillionaire Student: The Art of Corporate WarfareGenre: Cyberpunk Corporate Drama / Tech RomanceSetting: Near-future Shanghai (2045) where blockchain dynasties and AI oligarchs dominate global finance.Protagonist:· Ye Chen: A 22-year-old financial prodigy with military-grade neural implants. Orphaned and self-made, he accidentally inherits trillion-yuan assets tied to a cryogenically preserved heiress.· Su Ning: A “frozen elite” heiress resurrected from cryostasis. Her trauma-encrypted mind holds the keys to her family's blockchain empire.Core Plot:When Ye decrypts suicidal patterns in Su's neural data, their forced partnership to upgrade her emotional firewall exposes:1. Corporate Espionage: Rival tech giants weaponize celebrity scandals as NFT commodities.2. Family Conspiracy: Su's mother audits her memories like hostile mergers.3. Hidden Protocol: A blockchain ledger tracking physical intimacy as corporate liability.Key Westernized Elements:· Boardroom duels in holographic Hunger Games-style shareholder arenas· Romance through shared neural hacking of trauma encryption· Memetic warfare where viral tweets manipulate stock marketsThemes:· Capitalism 2.0 (emotions as crypto assets, SEC-regulated marriage contracts)· Cybernetic identity (childhood trauma rebuilt as AI firewalls)· East-West fusion (Tang poetry as quantum encryption keys)Cultural Bridges:· “Black Swan Fund” → “Quantum Contingency Fund”· Neural interface battles styled as The Matrix meets Game of Thrones· Food metaphors: Xiaolongbao dumplings as encrypted data carriers