A perfect life begins with changing the timeline.

Chapter 1 Old

Child, who are you really?

The child replied: "I am the day that is coming." --- Romain Rolland, *Jean-Christophe*

"Li Mu?"

Who?

Who's calling me?

Ugh... I really can't drink anymore.

Still feeling a bit hungover, Li Mu groggily opened his eyes, looked in the direction of the sound, and blinked twice in confusion at the scene before him.

where is this?

He instinctively looked left and right, only to find... he seemed to be in some dark space, surrounded by complete darkness, without light or wind. And in the entire space, there was only himself and... a mirror opposite him?

My own reflection is in the mirror.

At this moment, the "Li Mu" in the mirror asked again:

"...What are you?!"

"?"

Li Muxin wondered why her reflection in the mirror was speaking.

He blinked instinctively, then touched his face.

And the person opposite him, who had the exact same face as him, actually made the same move.

Then...

"?"

"???"

Both of them looked bewildered at the same time.

Who are you?

"...Who are you?"

The words rang out at the same time, accompanied by the same look around.

Li Mu then realized that he was surrounded by darkness.

In the entire space, it seemed as if only oneself was present...

Yes, it's myself.

Exactly the same face.

However... for some reason, her demeanor was somewhat颓废 (颓废 is a difficult word to translate directly, but it implies a sense of listlessness, decadence, or dejection).

At this moment, Li Mu noticed a detail: the other person's right hand, which was touching their face, only had three fingers.

Only a section of the little finger and ring finger remained.

"?"

What happened to my hand?

He instinctively looked down again, only to find that his right hand was still intact. All five fingers were there, except that the nail on his little finger was a bit long.

It's time to cut it.

But cutting your nails isn't like chopping off your hand, so where did my fingers go?

His eyes were full of confusion, while the "Li Mu" opposite him seemed stunned as well, staring blankly at Li Mu's fingers:

"Your hand?...This isn't a mirror?...Where am I?"

"...How would I know? Who are you?"

"Me? I'm Li Mu. Who are you? Why do you look just like me?"

Li Mu was even more confused, wondering what he had done to me.

But he still instinctively responded:

"I am Li Mu. Who are you? Is this a dream? Am I dreaming about myself?"

"???"

Li Mu was stunned upon hearing this. He was about to speak when he suddenly seemed to realize something, paused, and asked in confusion:

"Why did I dream about myself on this day?"

"What do you mean?"

Li Mu tilted his head, somewhat puzzled, while continuing to look around.

Where exactly is this pitch-black space? Did I drink fake alcohol?

Perhaps it was Li Mu's absent-mindedness that stirred up memories for "Li Mu," who let out a bitter laugh:

"Ha, it really is... I wish it were true..."

"?"

This sentence successfully drew Li Mu's attention back. Looking at his "mirror image," who, despite having the same face as him, somehow gave off a more mature, older vibe, and inexplicably old-man-like aura, he asked curiously:

What happened to your hand?

Li Mu was taken aback and subconsciously raised his right hand.

The ring finger and little finger were severed completely.

"He was hacked to pieces, didn't you know?"

"...?"

Li Mu was speechless.

"You've been drinking too?"

"I'd rather not drink alcohol."

Li Mu rolled his eyes.

"As a con artist, I've long since stopped touching alcohol, which stimulates the nerves and affects the sensitivity of my fingers."

A con artist?

Li Mu was even more bewildered.

God of Gamblers?

I need to have my license plate checked!

He wondered to himself, what exactly is going on?

Which of us is dreaming?

Why are you starting to talk nonsense?

Just then, "Li Mu" suddenly sighed:

"Sigh...it's alright too."

"What's so good about it?"

"Seeing my past self again... By the way, you're Li Mu, right? This dream is too real."

Amid his reflections, Li Mu nodded:

"Yes, I'm Li Mu, male, 21 years old..."

"Alright, alright, do you need to tell me? Don't I know myself?"

"Li Mu" interrupted the other person directly, and then began to add on his own:

"Born in a rural area of Henan Province, a journalism major at Sun Yat-sen University, he had just attended the Southern Metropolis Daily's onboarding party on July 29th. After waking up, he bought a lottery ticket, only to find that while all the winning numbers were correct, the order was completely wrong. He missed out on the grand prize and became addicted to gambling, which led to further gambling addiction. Eventually, after accumulating a mountain of debt, he became a con artist, only to have two of his fingers chopped off... Do you think I need to tell you that?"

After saying this, his eyes were full of self-mockery, and even a hint of regret and resentment.

But Li Mu was speechless:

"Are you making a movie? All the numbers are right but the order is wrong... What nonsense! Who's that unlucky?"

"Nonsense?"

Li Mu gave a mocking smile and casually recited a set of numbers:

「22号这天的彩票开奖号码是03、05……而我买的是05、03……」

The two sets of numbers were thus revealed by "Li Mu".

"Wow, it's just like the real thing."

Li Mu simply scoffed:

"You remember it so clearly?"

"nonsense."

Li Mu also scoffed:

"How could I forget something like this? Besides, I've always had a good memory, didn't you know that? How did you even get into Sun Yat-sen University in your senior year of high school? And besides, what makes you a con artist if you don't have a brain?"

Faced with his question, Li Mu subconsciously blurted out:

"With such a good memory, how did you manage to get your hand chopped off?"

"..."

Li Mu's face stiffened.

He subconsciously covered his right hand and began to rub it unconsciously.

It's like the spot where a finger was cut off is very itchy.

But this time, he didn't refute it.

Instead, she looked at Li Mu with an extremely complicated expression.

"I don't know why I dreamt about you... but, July 29th, right?"

"...How are you sure?"

"Nonsense, this suit cost me over four hundred. I started working on July 29th, and the very next day I bought a lottery ticket while wearing this suit! Tsk, the color of this gray suit is really tasteless."

"..."

Li Mu subconsciously lowered his head, and the corner of his mouth twitched.

I thought to myself, isn't it pretty?

Just as they were speechless, they heard "Li Mu" say:

"Even though I know it's a dream, Li Mu, please listen to your brother, okay?"

His tone was inexplicably sincere, even filled with a regret and pleading that Li Mu couldn't quite understand:

"Don't get involved in gambling. You can do anything, whether you stay at the Southern Metropolis Daily as a reporter, or work for someone else, even if it's poor, tough, or tiring... anything is fine, just please, don't get involved in gambling. Once you're hooked, at best you'll lose everything, at worst... your family will be ruined!"

"Well……"

Looking at "Li Mu's" face, which was filled with a variety of complex emotions, Li Mu was momentarily at a loss for words.

gamble……?

I... I don't know how.

All I know how to play is 50K, I don't know anything else.

How did I get involved in gambling?

He was puzzled.

I don't understand at all.

Seeing that he did not answer, "Li Mu" raised his voice even more:

Promise me! We will never tolerate gambling or drugs!

Li Mu was a little taken aback by those words and instinctively asked:

"What about yellow?"