Chapter 5

"Has a new tenant moved into the next room?"

Meng Lang muttered to himself as he walked inside.

The rental apartment he lived in was located in an old urban village in the city center. Most of the residents were migrant workers from other places, a mix of all kinds of people, with a high turnover rate.

The living environment was not particularly friendly, but the only advantage was that it was cheap.

"Rumble~" At this moment, the sound from his stomach made Meng Lang realize that he hadn't eaten a proper meal all morning.

Instinctively, he picked up a bag of "Master Tang" instant noodles from the table.

He had just boiled the water and was about to tear open the packaging when his hand suddenly froze.

"That day I drank a lot of alcohol, and after vomiting blood and being hospitalized, the doctor found out I had advanced stomach cancer..."

Advanced stomach cancer...

Advanced...

These words that suddenly appeared in his mind echoed like a reverberation, making Meng Lang's heart tremble.

Indeed, the cause of his tragic life was not just the failed investment.

Some people trade their health for money, while others trade money for health. My life was so tragic that I ended up with neither...

Like many college students, he started eating irregularly in college, often skipping breakfast, having spicy hotpot for lunch, and eating street food for dinner.

After leaving home, Meng Lang was like a wild horse that had broken free from its reins, indulging in the freedom of being reckless.

When he started working, takeout and instant noodles became a regular part of his diet.

However, all of this seemed to come at a cost...

Meng Lang sighed and slowly put down the instant noodles, his eyes gradually becoming determined.

He decided that from today on, he would start living a healthy life, cooking, and paying attention to food and vegetables.

Ideally, he would rent a place with a kitchen and a bathroom, facing the sea.

"Hmm... I'll look up some health recipes. Right! Dad often shares these in the group chat."

In the past, he was too young and didn't have the desire to click on the titles, but now, he realized that having an elder in the family is like having a treasure. The experience of the older generation is worth learning from.

Meng Lang immediately took out his phone and prepared to set a long-term health diet plan for himself.

Goodbye, fried chicken, beer, and barbecues! Goodbye, chips, cola, and instant noodles!

It's not that I don't love you anymore; I'm just afraid of dying.

"'Introduction to Health Living — Teach You How to Live a Zen Life!' This one seems pretty reliable."

"Huh? What?! Beer with wolfberries, cola... with codonopsis?"

Is this even possible?!

Wait, wait, wait, I must be doing it wrong!

"'Advanced Health Living — Core Secrets of High-End Health Living,' let's check this one."

Left hand with caterpillar fungus, right hand with bird's nest and donkey hide gelatin... as long as you have money, you can live to 999?

Next! 'Ancient Health Living — Eight Extraordinary Meridians Health Method.'

The Conception Vessel governs blood, the Governor Vessel governs qi. Blood is yin, qi is yang. Regulating the Conception and Governor Vessels balances yin and yang. Imbalance in yin and yang leads to various diseases...

Meng Lang stood there in silence for a while, then quietly closed his phone.

Dad, you're being naughty.

The following ones like "Mystical Health Method" and "Yin-Yang Five Elements Harmony Health Method," Meng Lang felt that if he clicked on them, it would be insulting the author.

I don't deserve it!

The path of health living is so profound... I should start with the basics.

Anyway, besides the basic health methods, I can't afford or understand the others...

Glancing at the rental apartment where there were no pots, pans, or any cooking utensils, and where even basic ingredients were scarce, Meng Lang sighed deeply.

Forget it, cooking at home isn't realistic in the short term. I'll go out and eat something healthier, like a vegetarian meal.

But... I need to hide my treasure first!

Meng Lang took out the book from his chest and was immediately stunned.

In just a moment, the entire book had changed its appearance.

The originally black and white cover had turned completely black, and the title "Meng Lang's Tragic Life" had been replaced with four large characters — "My Struggle"!

This...

Even with some mental preparation, when this scene actually happened, Meng Lang still felt a devastating blow to his worldview.

If the book hadn't been in his chest the whole time, Meng Lang would have suspected that someone had switched it.

Is this the butterfly effect?

However... the pure black cover, paired with the white, square regular script in the middle, made Meng Lang inexplicably think of the tombstones quietly standing in the cemetery...

Meng Lang shook his head, dispelling these strange thoughts.

Now that I know my original future, I should have avoided the "initial cause" of the failed investment. The subsequent series of tragedies should naturally not happen again.

Looking at the new title of this autobiography — "My Struggle"!

What a positive word! It gives a sense of vitality and vigor!

This is a completely different attitude towards life compared to a tragic life. It shows that my future self must have had a very positive and fulfilling life!

The future! A bright future is waiting for me!

Meng Lang excitedly opened the book.

"Once, my dream was to be a police officer. Later, I achieved half of it; I became an uncle.

Later, my dream was to earn a million a year, marry a beautiful mentor, and reach the pinnacle of life. Later, I earned 50,000 a year, and the beautiful mentor got married, but not to me.

So I realized that one should be down-to-earth and set a small goal, like joining a Fortune 500 company!

...

I succeeded! I joined Huaxia Life and became an insurance salesperson!

...

In the end, I realized that one should never be down-to-earth. As Teacher Tony said, money should make more money, so you don't become a slave to money.

I borrowed from all my relatives, maxed out my credit cards, and leveraged everything to short Huaxia Energy. Then I welcomed the 2018 stock market crash, earning my first pot of gold!

However... it was also the last pot...

Just as I was basking in my success and planning to expand, ... Xiao Yu died!

Yes, that cute, heart-wrenchingly mature Xiao Yu... died!

She was only six, at the age of innocence and joy, just about to enjoy the best years of her life, but she was cruelly murdered in the rental apartment!

Her body was found in a nearby flower bed, and it was said that she had suffered inhuman abuse before her death.

When I heard the news, I felt sorrow, anger, and helplessness...

Especially when I saw the pale, bloodless little face in the news, I felt like I was about to collapse.

An angel in the world, but a demon too!

But, the real bad news was yet to come...

The day after the body was discovered, the police came to my door.

After investigation and evidence collection, all the criminal evidence pointed to... me!!

The surveillance footage from the street, the fingerprints on the door, the murder weapon and blood-stained clothes next to the body, and the hair and skin flakes left by the murderer...

Yes, all the evidence pointed to me!!

No amount of explanation could clear my name!!

...

As the defendant, I was brought to court. There were no eyewitnesses, no alibi, and no one sympathized with me. Public opinion was overwhelmingly against me.

Facing the angry gaze of Xiao Yu's sister, who wanted to kill me, I could only smile bitterly.

Facing my parents' heart-wrenching cries, I felt a knife twisting in my heart.

In the end, due to the heinous nature of the crime, I was sentenced to life in prison.

If nothing unexpected happens, I will spend the rest of my life in prison.

...

I am not resigned!

I am not resigned to being wrongfully imprisoned! I am not resigned to letting the murderer go free!

So, in prison, I studied law, exercised, and worked hard to earn a reduction in my sentence. I even started secretly sharpening a spoon.

I only hope that one day, in my lifetime, I can walk out of here, find the real murderer, and bring him to justice!

For myself, and for Xiao Yu!

...

However, reality proved that movie plots are just movie plots, and reality is far more cruel.

Ten years later.

Due to the harsh conditions in prison and overwork, I vomited blood and fell into a coma.

The diagnosis was advanced stomach cancer...

My struggle... was ultimately in vain...

Meng Lang stood there in silence for a full ten minutes.

Then, he finally couldn't help but curse loudly.

"Damn!"

What about the bright future?

This is even worse than "Tragic Life"!