Chapter 21: Hope

    Creating a game ID wasn’t a bit complicated since developers wanted as many players as possible. Within minutes, Li Yifei had her own game ID and earned the right to draw two entry gifts.

    After winning the ‘Wishful Staff’, Li Yifei now had high hopes, knowing how valuable it could be when sold for a good price.

    When she clicked to draw her first gift, she received an ‘Invisible Flute.’

    Li Yifei turned to look at her brother.

    "Hmm, it's considered a mid-tier item," he said.

    A mid-tier item? Wasn’t that just the same as saying it was common?

    Noticing his sister’s disappointed expression, Li Yifeng quickly reassured her.

    "Even if it's mid-tier, you’re starting from level zero, sis, so getting a good item like this is actually pretty lucky! Actually, you’d have to reach level 15 to get an ‘Invisible Flute’ on your own."

    "And how much can we sell it for?"

    Her question made Li Yifeng chuckle softly.

    "Let’s see."

    He looked up the price of the ‘Invisible Flute’, which appeared on the screen as 50 yuan.

    "Maybe that’s a price most kids can afford."

    His sister grumbled in response.

    "But if we sell it for less than the in-game price, it should sell quickly. You never know unless you try," he suggested.

    "Alright then, give it a try," she agreed.

    Li Yifeng used his sister’s ID to post a sale listing for the ‘Invisible Flute’, but no one responded immediately.

    "We might have to wait a bit. Go ahead and open the next box," he urged.

    Li Yifei nodded. Since the first draw hadn’t met her expectations, her initial excitement had faded. She clicked to open the next gift box.

    The result? Another ‘Invisible Flute’.

    "You’re quite lucky, sis. You got two good items in a row. But they’re just beginner-level. I think I should play on your account to level you up, and then maybe we’ll get better stuff."

    "That’s probably the best plan."

    Li Yifei thought that this online game was more suited to her brother. While she had played before, it was only farming games. Her brother clearly knew better how to progress in a game like this.

    "I’ll go ahead and post the *Invisible Flute* for sale," Li Yifeng said.

    Li Yifei nodded and looked down at her ice cream cup, which had completely melted. Luckily, she had eaten most of it already, so there wasn’t much to waste.

    "We’ll have enough money to buy a new cup without a problem, especially if you draw another good prize for me tomorrow!"

    Her brother joked, trying to cheer her up.

    Just hearing her brother’s encouragement brightened her mood. Even though she was a bit disappointed by the prize draws, she had to admit that the game developers were smart. After all, they couldn't make the prize items too powerful, or it would ruin the challenge for players.

    The same principle applied to their strategy of selling game items. It would have to be a slow process.

    "That’s true. And now I’ve got a thousand yuan. I can’t believe it!"

    "Me neither," Li Yifeng replied with a grin.

    Even so, Li Yifei continued eating her now-melted ice cream, much to her brother’s amusement. He then turned back to focus on leveling up her account. 

    While her brother played the game, Li Yifei decided to clean the house. She noticed that the laundry basket was overflowing with clothes. Good thing they had a washing machine, though she’d need to hang the clothes out to dry on the rooftop.

    Or else they had to hang them outside the bedroom window.

    It was already nearly three in the afternoon, so she decided to leave the laundry for tomorrow.

    By the time she finished cleaning, it was four o’clock.

    "Yifeng, should we buy some ginseng-braised chicken? From one of those mid-range restaurants?"

    Li Yifeng paused his game and turned to his sister.

    "Not yet, sis. Grandma gave us a huge lecture yesterday."

    "That’s true. But we haven’t had any real protein lately."

    "Then you should buy some eggs. I guarantee Grandma won’t complain. At least she can boil some for Mom and Dad to take to work."

    "You're right. I’ll go buy some eggs then."

    "I'll come with you."

    "I can go alone."

    "It’s fine. Playing too many games isn’t good for my body or my eyes. It’s better if I go with you."

    Hearing that, Li Yifei didn’t argue, as she agreed that even though he enjoyed playing games, he should take a break from the computer screen.

    The two siblings then walked to the grocery store to buy some eggs.

    "You two have been sticking together a lot lately," the shopkeeper’s wife remarked.

    The siblings glanced at each other and chuckled softly.

    "As the younger brother, it’s my job to look after my sister," Li Yifeng responded with a smile.

    Li Yifei, hearing her brother's words, couldn’t help but smile happily.

    "Li Yifei, you're so beautiful! You should become an actress."

    "It’s not that easy to become one," Li Yifeng quickly interrupted, worried that this might reignite his sister's old aspirations.

    Though only 15 and a third-year middle school student, Li Yifeng knew that becoming an actress wasn’t easy. She had to study various arts.

    At most, his sister could hope to become a social media influencer.

    Also, Li Yifei needed to find her selling points. However, his sister’s social media page only had a few thousand followers, far from enough compared to the population in their city.

    "That's true. The Huang family next door is sending their daughter to study all sorts of things—singing, posture, everything," the shopkeeper’s wife added with a sigh.

    "Exactly," Li Yifeng agreed.

    Li Yifei could only smile, knowing how intensely the body’s original owner had wanted to be a star, and how that had caused concern in the family.

    Her brother's words made it clear he didn’t want the shopkeeper’s wife to reignite those dreams for her. After all, with Li Yifei’s looks, becoming an actress would have been possible, but acting skills were necessary too.

    Young girls hoping to break into the industry needed an agency and had to take acting classes.

    The original Li Yifei had aimed to get scouted by attending various events, but no opportunities had ever come.

    She applied to several shows but was never selected.

    The last option was to audition, but the accident happened before she could. So, she failed to apply for it and led to the original Li Yifei abandoning her body.

    And pushing Tang Yifei into it instead.

    The phrase “Big sister could do it” still echoed in Li Yifeng’s head. It might refer to her academic success, her knack for claw machines, and her recent luck in drawing valuable in-game items. She seemed to be a lucky person.

    But in truth, if she had really been lucky all along, the original Tang Yifei wouldn’t have been hit by a truck or reported in the news as driving off a cliff.

    Still, having a second chance at life with small bits of good luck like this was fine. After all, now they had eggs at home.

    As they climbed the stairs back to their apartment, Li Yifeng asked,

    "Do you still want to be an actress?"

    "Actually, I do," Li Yifei answered honestly. If she could make it and become famous, that would mean money pouring in.

    "Is that so?" Li Yifeng’s voice clearly lacked its usual enthusiasm.

    "But as you said, it’s not something that can be easily achieved. Right now, I’m just focused on whether we can sell the game items and if I’ll get something good in tomorrow’s draw," Li Yifei replied.

    Upon hearing this, his brother’s eyes, which had dimmed, lit up with hope once again. Being young, his emotions were only simple, he showed what he felt without holding back.

    "Exactly, sis. Let’s not hope for things far ahead. Let’s focus on what we can do now. I can’t wait for tomorrow to come."

    "Me too," Li Yifei agreed.

    That evening, when Grandma Li returned home and saw the eggs neatly arranged in the fridge, she didn’t say anything and boiled three of them. For dinner, each of them had half an egg, except for their mother, who got a whole egg because she needed nourishment.

    No one objected to this.

    It’s hard to find a mother-in-law who takes such good care of her daughter-in-law. Li Yifei smiled happily, feeling grateful for Grandma Li’s care for everyone in the family, even if she sometimes had a sharp tongue.

    As for the thousand yuan from selling the game item, her brother didn’t mention it, and Li Yifei chose not to bring it up either. Perhaps her brother had something he wanted to save up for, so he kept the money for himself.

    Li Yifei, on the other hand, decided that she would use her share of the money to slowly buy eggs, sausages, and bread to stock the kitchen bit by bit.

    Everyone needed to be well-fed, after all.

    Now that money wasn’t a problem, she just couldn’t buy too much at once, or the secret of how her brother had made money from selling game items might get out.

    The next morning came quickly. The adults went off to work, leaving only the two siblings at home.

    Li Yifei was busy doing laundry, having asked her mother how to use the washing machine the day before.

    Meanwhile, Li Yifeng was, of course, busy at the computer, continuing to play on her game account.

    Just as Li Yifei was about to toss the laundry into the washing machine after sorting it into piles, she heard her brother call out,

    "Sis! Come here, quick! Your items have sold out!"

    Li Yifei immediately dropped what she was doing and rushed over to the computer.

    "Go grab your phone and check it out," her brother urged.

    Li Yifei switched gears, grabbing her phone from the dining table. Sure enough, there was a notification showing that 40 yuan had been transferred. Her brother had listed the ‘Invisible Flute’ at 20 yuan each, and both were sold.

    Li Yifei couldn’t stop herself from grinning ear to ear.

    40 yuan was not a small amount of money. She could buy three boxes of fried chicken with this.

    "Maybe you should tone down that smile a bit," Li Yifei teased.

    "Are you teasing me?"

    They both chuckled with happiness, clearly pleased as well that the ‘Invisible Flute’ had sold.

    "Sis, now it’s time to do today’s draw! I’ve leveled you up to level 10, so the prizes should get better. And now that we’ve made some sales, I actually feel hopeful!"

    "Yes! It means we’ll have a steady income this break!"

    "Exactly! Better than working at the fried chicken shop."

    "Just don’t get your hopes up too high."

    Li Yifei said, reminding him to stay grounded. She didn’t want her brother to rely too much on gaming for money, even though she didn’t want him to work at the fried chicken shop either. After all, that job provided a more stable income than playing games and relying on prize draws.

    She wasn’t sure if her luck would hold out forever.

    "I understand, sis! Come on, let’s draw today’s prize," Li Yifeng said eagerly.

    Li Yifei looked at her brother fondly, glad he understood what she meant. She reached for the mouse to do the draw. What would today’s prize be? She hoped her luck held, as this was their new hope for making money.

    The item that appeared at level 10 on Li Yifei’s account was a ‘Power Boost Ring’, and her brother immediately cheered.

    "That’s a pretty good mid-tier item! It’ll definitely help during battles," he said.

    Li Yifei had to agree with her brother. This meant the item would fetch a decent price if sold.

    After her draws were done, it was time for her brother’s account to get its daily prize. Li Yifei couldn’t help but feel excited, wondering if it would be another high-level item today.