Chapter 1

"Good morning, everyone, a new week has begun, welcome back to Harvard-Westlake Middle School, this is the Saperstein Theater..."

"Today, we are honored to welcome the famous blues band 'Louisiana Gator Boys' as our first guest of November to perform for us. They have previously worked on the soundtrack for the 2000 film 'Blues Brothers 2000'..."

The sound of the microphone broadcast grew louder, like a giant hammer striking Ye Wei's mind, causing waves of turmoil. There were also distant whispers and light laughter, like background noise in a movie, all buzzing but unclear.

"No, I can't die! The family debt hasn't been settled, Mom is still working hard, and my sister's tuition hasn't been paid. I need to take responsibility for all this! And... and I haven't fulfilled my father's last wish, I haven't become a real film director yet, no..."

"I have so much to do..."

"I can't die yet!!!"

Ye Wei felt extremely uncomfortable, the intense pain in his chest made it hard to breathe, and his consciousness began to fade, intermittently...

Suddenly, as if the radio had rewound to the beginning, with a crisp "click," something powerful pulled him back from the darkness. Ye Wei felt his strength instantly return and couldn't help but shout with all his might: "No!!!!!!!"

In the next second, all the sounds disappeared, the darkness receded, and the scene before him suddenly became bright. His vision refocused, and Ye Wei saw the scene.

But when he blinked and looked around clearly, he couldn't help but be stunned.

It was impossible not to be stunned...

Because at that moment, in this spacious theater, the more than 700 people, whether they were young students or teachers and staff, were all silent, staring at him in surprise, the entire venue was silent!

No? No-what?

At the center of the stage, the old principal, Tom Hednut, was holding a microphone in his trembling right hand, his balding head almost exploding with anger, his dark, wrinkled face frightening many of the younger students!

And below the stage, the middle school principal, Jenny Hebrich, was also speechless; not to mention the teacher, Grace Eche, who was standing beside her.

She stared at the guy who had shouted and stood up, her mind echoing with helpless thoughts: "It's you again, it's you! Ye Wei, it's you again, you demon!"

Ye Wei (Vigor-Ivan-Yeah, Wei Ge-Ivan-Ye), male, born on February 19, 1988, is a third-generation Chinese-American immigrant.

He is one of the ninth-grade students she is responsible for, a very, very "unique" student!

Like all the students at Harvard-Westlake, he comes from a privileged family, living in the wealthy Brentwood area of West Los Angeles. His father is a dentist with a private practice, and his mother is a full-time housewife, both of whom are polite and courteous. He also has a three-year-old sister, whom she had just met at the recent homecoming event, a very well-mannered and cute child.

But this boy is different!

He is the black sheep among a flock of white sheep. As an Asian student, he is as smart and talented as the white sheep, but he doesn't use his intelligence for his studies. His grades in all subjects are always C. When asked to work harder, he casually says, "Passing is enough, no one is perfect," with a straight face!

This kid seems to know a little about everything but does nothing well, except for football, where he excels, but has no other highlights...

That's in terms of studies and serious matters. If it's about being mischievous, causing trouble, and being wasteful, he is a master at it.

A spoiled child! An energetic teenager!

Just look at the ridiculous things he often does, like when he was in seventh grade, shortly after starting school, he led a protest and initiated a donation campaign, causing a commotion until the school was forced to add a cook to the cafeteria. This is where he used his intelligence.

Because of this, Ye Wei is quite famous in the school, and the Asian student community regards him as a king. He has a nickname, "VIY," which is both the initials of his name and the title of an old horror movie, meaning "the spirit of the devil; the demon!"

Fortunately, he doesn't bully others or do anything bad. In fact, with him as this "oligarch," there is less bullying in the school.

The Asian students have a saying, "If you are bullied, find VIY."

But his previous mischief never led to punishment, which is his cleverness. Now, he dares to pull such a stunt at the Monday assembly...

Does he want to be expelled?

"Oh, oh..." The old principal was so angry he couldn't speak, gasping for breath, almost having a heart attack.

As the principal of the entire school, managing over 1,500 people, he didn't know these middle school kids as well as the teachers. He only knew that this was the first time such a thing had happened!

Since the merger of Harvard Boys' School and Westlake Girls' School, he, as the first principal for over a decade, had presided over countless middle school Monday assemblies, and this was the first time such a terrible thing had happened!

The student handbook clearly states that students are prohibited from making any screams or shouts during assemblies and can only express enthusiasm with applause when prompted and approved.

The worst disciplinary issue before was whistling... This is Harvard-Westlake, not some school without tradition, discipline, or honor!

Who is it, who is the troublemaker?

The staff all shared the same shock and anger, and they were even more worried that laxity could spread!

"Who is it?" "It seems to be VIY from ninth grade, oh, it's him!"

Many students were whispering, a wave of excitement rising, with some saying, "I know him! He's Wei, I'm his friend!" Others were puzzled, "Oh my God, what is he doing?" And some were laughing, "High on weed? Ha, I love him!"

"What are you surprised about, have you forgotten? He did even bolder things, like at the homecoming in September, he, a ninth-grader, a new student, a kid, actually tried to dance with the Homecoming Queen!"

"Oh? What happened then?"

"The Queen, of course, ignored him, but the seniors from eleventh and twelfth grade were so angry they wanted to beat him up. He gathered dozens of people, almost causing a big incident."

"I remember, this guy is crazy! By the way, didn't he also bid $20,000 for a rare comic book at the school's 'Annual Event' auction?"

"Yes, it's him! His family is quite wealthy, and he is very generous! Many people call him BOSS."

"Quiet, quiet!"

Hednut quickly tried to calm the commotion, looking at the demon student and recognizing him. Despite his anger, he gave him a chance to speak, which could also be an educational moment for the students. He asked, "The student who said 'no,' do you have anything to say? Give him a microphone."

A teacher quickly walked over with a microphone.

As the focus of everyone's attention, Ye Wei looked around, his face full of shock, unable to calm down. He looked at these people, here, here is...

At that moment, he noticed the red and black school emblem on the stage curtain, Harvard-Westlake! This is the theater of the middle school he attended as a teenager! What the hell!

How did he end up here, how is this possible!?

Even more bizarrely, everyone in the audience was looking at him as if it were his concert, with all kinds of looks: curious, hateful, admiring...

"Nothing to say?" The old principal's harsh words came.

"Uh... uh..." Ye Wei took the microphone from the teacher, instinctively pressing his chest. Of course, he was here, it was Monday.

Wait, wasn't it Wednesday night? Hadn't he just been shot in the chest while fighting with a criminal? Was all that a dream? Or is this a dream? He couldn't tell.

But now wasn't the time to think. He remembered what the principal had said earlier and, despite not fully understanding the situation, he answered seriously: "I am Ye Wei. Actually, 'Blues Brothers 2000' is not a 2000 film. Although its title includes 2000, it was released in 1998, similar to '2001: A Space Odyssey,' which was released in 1968..."

The entire venue fell silent again.

After a few seconds, it turned into a roar of laughter. No matter how the staff tried to scold them, most students couldn't stop laughing and didn't want to.

"Ha ha ha, buddy, that's awesome!" A white, fat student not far from Ye Wei's right laughed and gave him a thumbs up. Not far away, a white student with a big nose made a whistling gesture and raised his hands in a "VI" sign, as a good friend of Wei, he was basking in the glory!

And countless Asian and other ethnic students were laughing and joking wildly!

Harvard-Westlake is a private school with a diverse racial and cultural background. About 70% of the students are white, 20% are Asian, and 10% are African American, Latino, and other ethnicities.

Now, Ye Wei, not only "VIY," had become everyone's hero, a rebellion without cause.

"Quiet, quiet..." The old principal was a bit embarrassed and quickly took a small piece of paper from his pocket to look at it, but it seemed to have no record. He then looked at Hebrich, and this series of actions made everyone laugh even more.

Hebrich, after looking at the guest's resume in her hand, nodded helplessly.

A prestigious school is still a prestigious school. The students quickly calmed down, and the principal, being the principal, immediately regained his composure. After getting the answer, he said honestly, "Yes, Wei is correct. I was wrong just now, and I apologize to the guests and everyone. I'm sorry."

The old principal's handling was very graceful, and the audience respected him. At the same time, Ye Wei felt a severe headache, and his vision became blurry. Was he really dreaming?

He had clearly been shot... He repeatedly touched his unharmed chest and muttered, "I'm not dead? I'm still alive?" His voice echoed through the theater due to the microphone.

"Ha ha ha!" The theater, which was just about to calm down, burst into laughter again, thinking he was being humorous.

Unexpectedly, the old principal also chimed in, "If you don't shut up and sit down, it will be soon."

The laughter became even more intense, and applause broke out. Even the staff were smiling, but they were still urging everyone to calm down: "Guys, that's enough, enough."

"Alright, stop laughing. Although Wei corrected my mistake, his way of doing it was inappropriate and disrespectful. The correct way would be for him to report the error to his class teacher, who would then inform me. After the guest's performance, I will explain it to everyone. So, Wei will receive a small punishment."

Ye Wei had his moment in the spotlight, and a bit of punishment was nothing. Many students thought it was worth it and wished they were the ones being punished.

"Next, let's give a warm welcome to our guest, 'Louisiana Gator Boys'!"

Hednut finished speaking and stepped down, and the stage curtain finally opened.

The applause that followed was incredibly enthusiastic. The students clapped with all their might, as if the guest about to perform was Michael Jackson, but everyone knew that more than half of the applause was for Ye Wei.

When the band started playing, the theater was filled with beautiful blues music, as if it had come from the old days.

However, the newly crowned hero, Ye Wei, had no mood to appreciate the music. His face was pale, and he was drenched in cold sweat.

If it were someone else, or even yesterday's him, after such a big moment, he would have been proud. But now, he didn't pay attention to the whispers of praise around him. He leaned back in his chair, weakly, lost in thought, ignoring everyone.

He couldn't figure out what was happening. The old principal's rambling had made him doze off, and he had a very long dream.

And this dream was so terrifying, magical, natural, and real...

It all started with the background of the dream. After the end of the Anti-Japanese War, his grandfather, a soldier, unwilling to fight in the civil war, moved the family to America, where his father, Ye Haogen, was born soon after.

His father was a movie lover who wanted to be a filmmaker but was prevented by his father and became a dentist. It wasn't until middle age, when the student loans and mortgage were paid off, and he opened a private clinic and had some savings, that his dream of making movies reignited.

Then, a small producer named Kevin Thomas appeared with a script called "The Wedding Date."

"The Wedding Date" would be released this Friday in three theaters in Los Angeles through self-financing, and then...

That was the real beginning of his dream.

A nightmare! In the dream, the film was a complete failure!

This independent comedy, which his father had invested heavily in, had almost zero box office and received terrible reviews, as it was indeed a terrible movie.

The dream of his father was shattered, and the investment was lost. His father in the dream suffered a stroke from anger and, due to delayed medical treatment, passed away a few days later.

The family not only lost a loved one but also lost their economic pillar, plunging a once happy family into a dark abyss.

To repay the huge debts his father owed to banks and credit companies, his mother in the dream had to sell the house and move to a