From Robinson Crusoe

When Chen Zhou began the challenge, he felt as if he were in a dream.

In that chaotic dream, he couldn't help but reveal his thoughts. After hearing "Approved," he woke up to find himself on a beach in another world.

Perhaps this is how ordinary people who participate in a "reality show" for the first time start: confused and bewildered, with only a little information and limited wilderness survival experience, they are unprepared and abandoned on a deserted island to begin their new life.

At the end, Chen Zhou's senses were exceptionally clear, so clear that he could even feel the tremor of every single hair.

The experience of traveling through time is not pleasant.

When the time came to exactly four o'clock in the afternoon on December 12, 1687, he, standing in the center of the sand, felt as if he had been shattered by an indescribably large beam of scorching energy, turning into countless fragments and completely evaporating.

His consciousness blurred for a moment, and just as his life was about to end, he saw a familiar, spacious, bright, and clean white room.

Unlike the scene when the challenge began 28 years ago, this time the room is not only filled with strange machines, but also crammed with a group of blue humanoid creatures.

Their bodies are made up of tiny blue cubes that are constantly changing. Apart from their general outlines being similar to those of primates, no other human features can be found.

This time, Chen Zhou had no desire to confide in anyone. He simply stood in the room, accepting the emotionless gazes of the humanoid beings in this seemingly frozen space.

Despite the lack of verbal communication and the inability to discern their thoughts from their eyes or actions, Chen Zhou could sense that these beings were engaged in a heated discussion around him when he was being watched.

If he had to find a way to describe himself, he would say he felt like an "animal star" being watched by tourists inside the transparent glass walls of a zoo.

The onlookers only watched for a moment.

Immediately afterwards, the room, like the quicksand at the top of an hourglass, twisted and poured into the void, and darkness then swallowed everything.

……

Weightlessness and dizziness returned to Chen Zhou's body, and a pain as if his whole body was being torn apart and forcibly pressed to heal was attacking his nerves.

Chen Zhou tried hard to open his eyes.

However, he couldn't do it. Every inch of his skin felt as if it were weighed down by a thousand pounds, to the point that he lost control of his body. Even his brain was in a daze, unable to perceive the condition of his body.

"Damn it, why didn't the Time and Space Administration say that we'd have to suffer like this after the challenge ended? Are they going to paralyze me?"

After finally managing to sort out his thoughts, Chen Zhou cursed inwardly.

It was a process of repeated attempts and failures.

After enduring this long sleep paralysis, unable to judge the time, he struggled for an unknown amount of time before finally falling asleep from exhaustion.

When he awoke again, he finally regained the familiar control over his body and quickly tried to open his eyes and get out of bed.

Even though this action is extremely simple for a normal person, it is a daunting challenge for Chen Zhou now.

Compared to the hazy state of consciousness before falling asleep, he could clearly feel at this moment that he was forcibly merging into a body that did not belong to him.

The old, aged body of the past has been completely annihilated in the massive energy beam, and this familiar yet unfamiliar body seems to be somewhat different from the one before the challenge began.

It takes time for the body to adapt, but what's even more difficult for Chen Zhou is accepting the memories—

The memories of my modern life before the challenge began had long been blurred by the long challenge process, but now that I have returned to the modern world, those memories are still clearly stored in the brain of this body.

The sudden influx of information from the past 25 years, combined with the 28 years of memories from the island, felt like two forces were locked in a fierce battle in his mind, turning his brain into a complete mess.

……

Although his thoughts were in disarray, after sorting them out a bit, Chen Zhou still remembered that he worked in a cement factory before he started the challenge.

The cement plant was located on the edge of their town, and the investors came from the south.

These heavily polluting factories are never built in economically developed areas. Environmental pollution regulations are relatively lax in the north, and labor is cheaper. This reduces labor costs and allows for a reasonable reduction in worker benefits, making it a paradise for investors.

The factory has its own canteen and dormitory, and there is also a bathroom next to the dormitory building.

However, most of the workers were local and had their own houses in the town. Very few workers lived in the dormitory, so Chen Zhou got a single room.

The cement plant's owner lives in Yunnan year-round and only visits the plant once or twice a year. Currently, the plant's top executive lives at the plant.

As an engineer who oversees and maintains the machinery, Chen Zhou has had many dealings with the factory's leaders.

He is usually responsible for the disassembly and assembly of rotary kilns and ball mills, transmission calibration, hydraulic lubrication maintenance, and motor repair.

The experienced workers in the factory could solve the problem, but they were all nearing retirement age and didn't work as hard as they used to.

He was the only young engineer, and he was the only one who lived in the dormitory. He could be reached with just a phone call, so if the machine malfunctioned or the cement quality changed slightly, the leader would often think of him first.

Compared to this not-so-easy workload, his salary after deducting social insurance and housing fund contributions was only a little over 4000 yuan, which seemed quite meager for someone who had worked in a large factory.

If it weren't for the pandemic, which caused the large factory in the south where he worked to shut down, and his family's constant calls urging him to return home, Chen Zhou would never have gone back to his hometown to do this job.

Before experiencing the challenges, he felt that every day in the factory was extremely difficult.

Modern society creates anxiety and pressure everywhere. He is worried that if he leaves his job, he will be unemployed and starve. He is also afraid of disappointing his family's good intentions and leaving a bad reputation among his relatives.

The small town in the north is economically underdeveloped. Apart from animal husbandry and the little-known tourism industry, there are basically no factories, so there are no suitable jobs for him.

The resumes he sent out disappeared without a trace, and he received no reply for a long time. When he did receive a reply, it was because he lacked work experience and could not offer a salary that would tempt him.

Having spent nearly a year in this struggle, looking back now, Chen Zhou feels that even without this opportunity to challenge him, he would likely have submitted his resignation at the end of the year.

He is still young, and unmarried people don't have as many ties. Rather than hanging himself on one tree, he should return to the fertile ground where he can thrive.

……

Of course, now that he has lived another 28 years, broadened his horizons and broadened his mind, and seen through many entanglements in the world, Chen Zhou would not care about this job even without the generous rewards brought by the challenges.

He deserves better, and he deserves even more courage to embrace a more magnificent chapter.

But before that, Chen Zhou first needs to stand up and walk a few steps.

Enduring the dizziness and lightheadedness, like a drunkard with a hangover, he leaned on the edge of the bed and swayed as he stood up. He had only taken half a step when he fell headfirst, his elbow slamming hard into the tile.

Before even participating in the challenge, this would definitely result in a scraped skin and some bleeding.

Although his body was out of control at this moment, it seemed much stronger than before.

Chen Zhou fell many times while "learning to walk," but his body was not injured at all, which he found strange. However, strange as it was, the feeling of being suddenly thrown back to the two-year-old stage was still very unpleasant.

Now, if someone interviews him: What does it feel like to be a freshman?
Chen Zhou could only answer.

"The feeling of being a newborn is so intense that you have to readjust and learn to use your body."

If I had to give it a rating, I'd say it's like dog shit.

……

Chen Zhou's first deep sleep after returning to modern society lasted only a little over six hours. When he woke up again in his dormitory, it was already late at night.

Unlike schools, the cement factory dormitories didn't have strict lights-out times, and late at night, only his room in the entire dormitory building still had its light on.

Leaning against the wall and gripping the edge of the bed, Chen Zhou practiced walking in the room while cursing the Time and Space Administration in his heart.

Even though the Time and Space Administration made him a billionaire, giving him more wealth than he could earn in ten lifetimes, he still couldn't forgive the terrible experience of this "return"—

The damn adaptation phase made him lose control of his body, and he even peed his pants, which was really uncomfortable.

Fortunately, he hadn't eaten too much before starting the challenge, so his stomach hadn't given him any problems. Otherwise, if he had defecated in this state, he would have become famous in the factory.

A 25-year-old who can still wet his pants will likely become common knowledge in this not-so-big town very quickly.

……

August 30th was a Saturday, and Sunday came the next day.

The cement plant does not have weekends off. The management team from the south has eight days of family visit leave per month, while local workers only have two days of paid leave. They are on duty regardless of the weather.

At 7:30 a.m., it was already bright outside. Workers from the factory arrived one after another in cars or on electric bikes, and the machines woke up and began to rumble.

When dust filled the workshop, every worker wished they could become deaf and blind, so they could just repeat their work and no longer have to endure this terrible working environment.

The machines were all running normally without any malfunctions, and no one cared about Chen Zhou's absence.

It wasn't until lunchtime that an experienced repairman who knew Chen Zhou noticed that the tall, young man was not in the control room.

He initially thought Chen Zhou had left early to eat at the cafeteria instead of waiting for him, but upon closer inspection, he discovered that there were no footprints in the dust on the ground, realizing that Chen Zhou hadn't come at all.

"This kid always complains to me about his low salary, but he's never late for work. I haven't heard him say he's going to take the day off today..."

The experienced worker had some doubts, but he didn't call to ask.

He knew that Chen Zhou liked to save up his vacation days, accumulating more than ten days before using them all at once. Chen Zhou hadn't taken a single day off in July and August, so his absence today might mean he had taken leave.

Although he didn't do much work that morning, as people get older, they feel uncomfortable if they don't eat a meal.

Eating too much will make your stomach bloated, while eating too little will make you feel hungry.

The food in the factory canteen was very cheap, and Sunday was a day when they would serve meat dishes. The factory was generous with the amount of meat they used, and the food tasted quite good. He wandered around the control room, but couldn't find Chen Zhou, so he went straight to the canteen for a meal.

……

After lunch, the afternoon was filled with the roar of machines and flying dust.

The workers had their own tasks to do, and Chen Zhou, driven by hunger, was trying to become a "normal person."

He managed to control his limbs, arranging the paintings that had come into this world with him, taking care of his bodily needs, throwing his urine-soaked pants into the washbasin, changing into new clothes, before finally preparing to go out to get some food to fill his stomach.

He hadn't eaten anything for a full 24 hours, from the evening of the 30th to the evening of the 31st.

Having grown accustomed to life on the island, there are quite a few things he needs to remember when he returns to the modern world.

For example, remember to pay when you eat out, remember to bring your phone when you go out, and remember to find the app and scan the QR code when you pay.

Speak to people in a more polite manner, and don't use the condescending tone you had on the island. Also, don't speak like an old person.

He has now regained his youthful appearance; he is a 25-year-old lad, not a 53-year-old man.

……

After preparing all the items he needed to take with him, Chen Zhou closed the dormitory door and walked awkwardly through the corridor with a slow but determined posture. Then, gripping the stair railing tightly, he slowly shuffled down the stairs.

He struggled to go down the stairs, and it took him a full half hour to go from the 3rd floor to the 1st floor.

It was almost dark when I left the dormitory building. In northern China, the temperature difference between day and night is extreme in September. The temperature drops sharply after sunset. People wear short sleeves at noon, but they have to wear coats in the evening.

A cool evening breeze blew by, and the coolness of his hometown made Chen Zhou feel an urge to cry.

Even during the rainy season, there is no such cool breeze or dry feeling on the island.

Heaven help him, he hasn't felt the summer breeze for 28 years.

The streetlights were already on in front of the dormitory building, their cold white light illuminating the asphalt road. Workers returning late were walking back in twos and threes, chatting and laughing.

Chen Zhou's limping gait went unnoticed by these people.

They all traveled thousands of miles from their hometowns in the south to work here. After work, they all speak the local dialect, just like their wages and benefits, which are very different from those of the locals. This naturally led to the formation of their own little circle.

Before long, Chen Zhou, who was becoming more and more skilled at walking, arrived at the entrance of the cement factory.

Just then, the factory's top manager, whom everyone called General Manager Liu, returned from outside. His black Mercedes was parked next to the gate, the window open, and he was smoking and chatting with the gatekeeper.

Chen Zhou wasn't short for a northerner, and his unsteady gait attracted Mr. Liu's attention from afar.

"Hey!"

Mr. Liu waved to Chen Zhou from the driver's seat.

"Xiao Chen, what happened? Why are you limping?"

The sudden conversation startled Chen Zhou, and he stood frozen in place for nearly two seconds before he realized that the person in the car was talking to him.

It had been years since Chen Zhou had interacted with anyone of equal or higher status than himself. He remained silent, unsure how to respond to the people in the car.

He barely recognized the person anymore. (End of Chapter)