What's the happiest thing in life?
It's not duty, responsibility, or the noble concept of repaying kindness. At the core of everything lies sensory pleasure. All the food, drink, games, and fun in life ultimately exist to give our bodies feedback—our senses crave stimulation. Why work like a dog to earn money? To experience more of that stimulation, on a higher level, and with greater intensity.
Luxury cars, mansions, beautiful women, lobster, shark fin, abalone—Xu Bin was just an ordinary guy, but he had the same dreams as any other man. Watching dramas filled with rich second-gen male leads, reading novels where the protagonists are absurdly powerful, he too longed for the day when he could indulge in every sensory pleasure the world had to offer.
Now that he had the chance, he wasn't going to let go. Staring at the once-broken-down washing machine that was now brand-new, Xu Bin clenched his fists and muttered to himself:
"Xu Shuangquan, you've got this. The heavens gave you a chance. No matter what it costs—you hold on tight."
Taking a deep breath to steady himself, he glanced at the 3,000+ yuan in his pocket, then strolled out to a nearby supermarket. He bought a pack of Furongwang cigarettes for 22 yuan, a bottle of Coke, a meat-only boxed lunch from a nearby takeaway, and even treated himself to a fresh watermelon from the market before heading back to the shop.
He deliberately avoided buying from Uncle Ma's store—Xu Bin understood the importance of keeping a low profile. Quiet wealth and discreet indulgence were the key. Flashy behavior might be acceptable for those with powerful families backing them up. For everyone else? Flashiness meant disaster.
He once read a story in the newspaper: an old man won 5 million yuan in the lottery, and people found out. He collected the money, yes, but relatives—some distant enough to need a genealogist—came crawling out of the woodwork begging for loans. "Just borrowing," they claimed, but nobody intended to pay it back. He's rich now, they reasoned, what's a few thousand yuan here or there?
Then came the requests from the village—build a school, fix a bridge, support the community. Gangsters got wind of the win and came knocking too. In the end, the old man was even poorer than before he won. Xu Bin remembered that story vividly.
Low profile. Discretion. Quiet indulgence.
The meat was delicious. The premium cigarettes smooth. The chilled watermelon brought relief from the summer heat, cooling him from the inside out.
Fully refreshed, Xu Bin glanced at his old 25-inch CRT TV… and then at his worn-out clothes. As much as he wanted to use his system on everything, he reminded himself that restraint was key. Who knew what kind of RNG awaited on that attribute wheel? If he accidentally turned himself into a chubby giant, that'd be a disaster.
So he made a rule for himself: unless absolutely necessary, don't use the system on things like clothing or daily necessities. Those could be bought with money.
He picked up his phone, flipped through the notepad next to his PC, found a number in his call log, and redialed.
"Hello, Auntie? This is Xiao Xu from Shuangquan Repairs. About your TV—yeah, that's right. I've checked it over. The display tube's busted. Parts would cost a few hundred, and they're hard to find. You're not repairing it anymore? Got it. Should I send it back for you?"
He added quickly, "Honestly, TVs like these aren't worth anything even if I take them. The only use is salvaging a few components. I can give you 100 yuan for it. That work?"
This TV belonged to a nearby skewer shop. It had been mounted on a welded iron frame in their store, but too many customers made in-store repairs impossible. They'd brought it to him instead. But Xu Bin wasn't about to fix someone else's property with his precious "refurbish" feature. He needed it to belong to him first.
Auntie from the skewer shop soon arrived. Seeing the dusty, opened-up TV, she didn't look too heartbroken. CRTs were out of fashion—even in the countryside, LCDs were the norm.
She sighed as she accepted the 100 yuan. "What a pity. That chunky old TV was just right for the shop. Now the frame's useless. And I'll have to spend another hundred to get a new one."
Xu Bin's eyes lit up. "Auntie, why not buy a used one? Same size, same brand. Shouldn't be hard."
She rolled her eyes. "Not easy to find anymore. Buying new costs a few hundred. Not worth it."
Xu Bin slapped his thigh dramatically. "Funny thing is—I actually do know someone with one! Same brand, barely used. I was at their place fixing a washing machine the other day, and they offered it to me for 400 yuan. I thought it was pricey and passed."
Her eyes sparkled. "Really? Practically new?"
"Absolutely. Nearly 10/10 condition. They bought it for their kid to play games, but now the kid's all about the iPad. So it's just collecting dust."
She smiled. "Xiao Xu, be a good lad and bargain it down for me, will you? 400 yuan delivered to the shop—anything extra is yours."
Xu Bin hesitated, pretending to think. "Well… there's the cost of moving it downstairs from the apartment…"
He didn't want her sending shop staff to help—it would've been a hassle. Eventually, they settled on 420 yuan delivered.
Refurbish.
The TV was instantly transformed into a brand-new model. Xu Bin then carefully scuffed the corners a bit and covered it with an old rag to make it look used. All while chewing on chocolate to keep his energy bar at a full 3/3.
He stepped out, glanced at the "Shuangquan Repair Shop" sign, and grinned.
"From now on, repairs are behind me. This middleman gig… now that's got a future."
With motivation from his system and a steady flow of "old becomes new," he locked the door and headed across the market. Dreams of a happy, prosperous future filled his mind.
For once, he splurged again—he hailed a cab to a familiar electronics wholesale and secondhand store a few districts away. At first, he'd considered checking out secondhand computers upstairs. But considering he couldn't even refurbish a phone yet, he decided not to get ahead of himself.
Follow the system's missions, step by step, like leveling up in a game.
"Han-ge!" he greeted cheerfully as he entered the cluttered store, packed wall to wall with spare parts and old appliances. Only a narrow path allowed foot traffic. Most visitors were regulars. The owner didn't bother keeping things tidy anymore.
A burly man in a tank top looked up. "Xiao Xu, what's up? What do you need today?"
He looked fierce, but Han-ge was one of the kindest men Xu Bin had ever met. Xu Bin had known him since his apprentice days. The guy had no real hobbies aside from the occasional poker game. He worked hard all year to support his family.
Xu Bin said casually, "Got a cousin in the countryside opening a repair shop. Secondhand appliances sell okay there. You've got tons piled up—cut me a deal and let me take some off your hands."
Han-ge stood up in a flash. The secondhand market was dying. His shop mainly sold wholesale parts now. Most of the time, appliances just collected dust—he'd already stopped accepting more.
"Xiao Shuangquan, you still got connections like that? Take whatever you want. I'm not making money—just want to clear this junk out."
Everyone in the trade knew the market's condition. Even repair work was drying up. These days, people didn't fix appliances unless it cost under 30 yuan. Anything more expensive? They bought new.
In truth, you didn't need a full year to learn the trade anymore. Xu Bin had mastered a key trick: swap parts until something works. Repairs no longer meant soldering circuit boards or microchips. Wholesale parts were cheap. As long as you understood the basics and weren't afraid to get your hands dirty—you were good.
He skipped over the CRTs—they were worthless. Even if the system could refurbish them, he'd be stuck with unsellable inventory. Instead, he chose two models: one 24-inch LCD and one 26-inch plasma—both hard to find but still somewhat valuable.
Han-ge claimed both were refurbished and came with three-month warranties. 500 yuan total, including parts. Xu Bin secretly thought, I bet you didn't fix a damn thing. But he paid anyway, gritting his teeth, and even negotiated 20 yuan off for delivery.
He hired a pedal tricycle to haul the TVs home, paying an extra 5 yuan to help move them inside. He covered the refurbished CRT with cloth and wheeled it over to the skewer shop.
"Quick work, Xiao Xu," the auntie said with a grin.
"Hehe, made 30 yuan off the deal. Times are tough. Gotta hustle or go hungry."
"You brat."
He paid 100 yuan for the broken TV, sold it for 420. Net profit: 320 yuan. Normally, he wouldn't pay more than 50 for a CRT.
Now that cold, hard cash was in his pocket, Xu Bin finally felt grounded. He rushed back to the shop and immediately refurbished both TVs.
"Host has completed weekly mission: Refurbish three color televisions. Reward: One spin of the Attribute Wheel."
"Ugh…" No matter how much you liked it, eating this much chocolate… was not fun.