Chapter 4 - Chapter 4: Seize the Moment, Lay a New Plan

The 300 yuan in my pocket felt heavy, not because of its weight, but because of the hope it carried. As I walked back home, the morning sun warmed my shoulders, and for the first time in this life, I felt a clear sense of direction. The success of selling the stamps was just a small step, but it was a crucial one—it proved that my memories of the past were reliable, that I could really change my fate by seizing the opportunities that others ignored.I sneaked back into the house before my parents woke up, hiding the money in a small wooden box under my bed—a secret place I'd found as a child, where no one would ever look. I sat on the edge of the bed, my mind racing. 300 yuan was a lot of money for a teenager in this era, enough to cover my family's living expenses for nearly a month. But I didn't want to spend it recklessly; I needed to use it to make more money, to lay a solid foundation for my future.I thought back to my past life. In a few months, there would be a small-scale boom in the stamp market—several sets of rare zodiac stamps would be discovered, and their prices would soar overnight. The set I'd just sold was just the tip of the iceberg; there were more opportunities waiting for me. But first, I needed to find more stamps, and I needed to be more careful—too much attention would only bring trouble.That afternoon, I told my parents I was going to the library to study, but instead, I went to the old street where I'd bought the first set of stamps. This time, I didn't rush into any shop; I walked slowly, observing each store carefully. Most of the old shops sold daily necessities, with only a few scattered stamps displayed in the corner, dusty and neglected. The shopkeepers didn't care about these small pieces of paper, thinking they were just useless old things.I stopped at a small shop at the end of the street, run by an elderly woman with silver hair. Unlike the other shops, her counter was covered with a variety of old items—stamps, old coins, worn-out books, and even some vintage toys. I pretended to browse casually, my eyes secretly scanning the stamps on the shelf."Young man, are you looking for something?" the old woman asked, her voice gentle. She didn't look at me with disdain like the other shopkeepers; instead, she had a warm smile on her face."I'm just looking at the stamps," I said, pointing to a stack of mixed stamps in a glass jar. "Do you sell these?"The old woman nodded. "Those are just some old stamps I collected over the years, no one wants them. If you like, you can take the whole jar for 50 yuan. They're not worth much anyway."My heart jumped with joy. I leaned over to look into the jar—there were dozens of stamps inside, and among them, I saw two sets of rare zodiac stamps that would soon skyrocket in price. One was a set of horse zodiac stamps, and the other was a set of tiger zodiac stamps, both in good condition. This was a windfall!I tried to keep my expression calm, pretending to hesitate. "50 yuan… that's a bit expensive. Can you make it cheaper? I'm just a student, I don't have much money."The old woman smiled and waved her hand. "Alright, 40 yuan. I'm not trying to make money from these old things. It's better to give them to someone who likes them than to let them gather dust here."I quickly took out 40 yuan from my pocket and handed it to her, then carefully took the glass jar. "Thank you, grandma," I said sincerely. The old woman patted my shoulder and said, "You're a good kid. Take good care of them."I held the jar tightly and walked out of the shop, my steps light. I found a quiet corner in a nearby park and poured out the stamps, sorting them carefully. Besides the two rare sets, there were also some common stamps that could be sold for a small profit. I put the rare ones in a separate envelope and the common ones back in the jar—every penny counted, and I couldn't waste any opportunity.Just as I was sorting the stamps, I heard a familiar voice behind me. "Hey, isn't that Lin Hao? What are you doing with those old stamps again?" It was Zhang Wei, one of my classmates who had laughed at me the most when I bought the first set of stamps. He was with two other classmates, and they were all looking at me with mockery."None of your business," I said coldly, putting the stamps back into the envelope. I didn't want to argue with them; their laughter was just a sign of their ignorance. Soon, they would regret their mockery.Zhang Wei walked over, kicked the glass jar of common stamps, and the stamps scattered all over the ground. "Useless junk," he sneered. "You're still wasting your time on these things? Do you really think you can get rich by collecting stamps? You're just a fool."I looked up at him, my eyes cold. "I'm not a fool, but you are—you can't see the value of what's in front of you. One day, these 'junk' will be worth more than you can imagine."Zhang Wei and his friends laughed loudly. "Dream on! If these stamps are worth anything, I'll eat them! You're just trying to save face after wasting your money." They mocked me for a while longer, then left, leaving me alone to pick up the scattered stamps.I didn't feel angry; instead, I felt a surge of determination. Their mockery was just motivation for me to work harder. I picked up each stamp carefully, wiped off the dust, and put them back in the jar. I knew that soon, I would have the last laugh.That evening, after dinner, I locked myself in my room and studied the stamps carefully. I recalled the price trends of these stamps in my past life—the horse set would be worth 800 yuan in three months, and the tiger set would be worth 1,000 yuan. With these two sets, plus the common stamps, I could earn a lot of money.But I didn't want to sell them so soon. I needed to wait for the right time, when the market was at its peak, to maximize my profits. In the meantime, I needed to find more opportunities—maybe old coins, maybe vintage books, anything that would increase in value in the future. This was my plan, my path tocounterattack. I would take it step by step, seize every opportunity, and never let my past regrets repeat themselves.As I put the stamps back in the wooden box, I looked out the window at the starry sky. The future was bright, and for the first time, I felt that I was in control of my own fate. The journey ahead would not be easy, but I was ready. I would seize the moment, lay a new plan, and create a life that I could be proud of.