Reborn in 2008: The Poet Is My Wife, But I'm Not Telling

Liu Mang, twenty-four years old, graduated from the acting department of the Shanghai Theatre Academy just one month ago. Before being reborn, he was a seasoned corporate slave, worked until he was ready to smoke, got no overtime pay, and was manipulated during blind dates. One day, an electric shock from a can of cola sent him to meet the King of Hell. He took with him max-level life skills from a survival-building online game and a portable backpack, then opened his eyes in a Shanghai rental apartment in July 2008.

Other people are reborn and rush to film sets, become top-tier stars, and tear apart the entertainment industry. When he is reborn, he sells diamonds for cash first, buys an old mansion on Wukang Road outright, opens an anime-themed cafe on the ground floor, and fills the basement with strange parts pulled from his backpack: a robot dog that can walk and crouch, a half-finished exoskeleton, and an AI prototype with laughable computing power. His daily routine consists of sunbathing, gaming, visiting comic conventions, and getting foot massages.

As a result, the cafe becomes a semi-public refuge for the entertainment industry: a budding movie queen drops by for a free meal, a top-tier star comes to hide from the paparazzi, a group of besties comes to chat, an agent shows up hoping to recruit someone, and a business mogul brings an acquisition offer. Liu Mang just wants to laze around, but trouble keeps lining up at his door. He lives by three rules: no acting, no signing, and no getting involved. But if anyone insists on walking all over him, they can't blame him for tossing aside his sunflower seeds and showing them just how nasty he can be.

No rat race, no swallowing grievances, no simping. This is a fun story about a sly guy snacking on gossip and stirring up trouble in the entertainment industry, until he outmaneuvers the capitalists too.