Reborn in 2002

In the high school entrance exam, she missed the cutoff for a top high school by just 0.5 points. In the college entrance exam, she missed the score for a top-tier university by just 1 point. In the civil service exam, her overall score was just 0.1 points below the last person admitted. At thirty, Lin Xiao was already a third of the way through her life, yet had accomplished nothing. She worked a job that paid 5,000 yuan a month, with only one day off a week and frequent overtime. Her family kept urging her to get married, but she had never even had a boyfriend. Every night before falling asleep, she couldn't help thinking: “If only I'd tried a little harder in my final year of middle school. If only I'd gotten one more multiple-choice question right on the college entrance exam. If only I'd taken the provincial civil service exam instead of the national one, maybe I would have passed...” The more uneventful her life became, the more Lin Xiao missed the past. She kept wishing she could go back more than a decade and change things. One day, she woke from a dream and discovered she had really returned to the age of fifteen. It was the summer of 2002. She had just finished the high school entrance exam and was about to choose which schools to apply to. Lin Xiao regretted that she couldn't change her exam results, but was also relieved that her future was still in her own hands. This time, she wouldn't just miss the mark by a little! Reader's Guide: 1. The story of an ordinary girl who returns to the past and, through her own efforts, gradually builds a better future. 2. Being reborn doesn't make her smarter. The heroine only has a little foreknowledge of the future. There are no plots about dominating the business world or stirring up a storm in the stock market. 3. Other than being reborn, she has no golden finger. This is a family-life story with a small ensemble cast and a realistic tone. 4. The setting is fictional, so please don't scrutinize it for historical accuracy. Blurb written on August 25, 2025 Blurb for the new novel, A Recombined Little Family in the 1990s: When Lu Miao was thirteen, her mother, Meng Jiaojiao, remarried. After registering their marriage, the two families met formally for the first time. Meng Jiaojiao: “Miao Miao, say hello. This is your new dad.” Xu Jianguo: “No, no! You don't have to force yourself, Miao Miao. Just call me Uncle Xu.” Lu Miao answered without hesitation, “Dad.” Xu Jianguo was thrilled. “Miao Miao, this is my son, Xu Qinglan. He's a year older than you. And this is my daughter, Yang Jingjing. She just turned seven.” This time, the boy across from her spoke first. “Nice to meet you, little sister Miao Miao.” After a meal together, the newly recombined family had grown a little more familiar. Meng Jiaojiao and Xu Jianguo held Yang Jingjing's hand as they paid at the front desk. Lu Miao and Xu Qinglan stood behind them, chatting. Lu Miao: “Why doesn't your sister have the same surname as you?” Xu Qinglan: “She's my half-sister on my mother's side. My mom remarried and ran off. Her new husband didn't want the daughter she had, so my dad got stuck with the whole mess.” Lu Miao: “Oh, my mom's just as much of a bleeding heart. Our family is about to gain another member too: my half-brother on my dad's side. He's nine. My dad drank himself to death, and his mom remarried and didn't want him, so my mom's planning to take him in.” Xu Qinglan: “Tsk. What a mess of a life.” Lu Miao: “Tell me about it.” Two years later, Lu Miao's younger half-sister on her mother's side, who was Xu Qinglan's younger half-sister on his father's side, was born. Lu Miao: “Sigh. Life can't just be a mess; it can always get messier.” Xu Qinglan: “You make a good point.” Lu Miao had expected her mother to remarry, but she'd never imagined their recombined family would have seven people. A steady dad, a softhearted mom, tearful younger siblings, and her, the tough one! Oh, and Xu Qinglan, her fellow sufferer. For a while, Lu Miao despaired. Could a normal family with such an unusual mix of people really have anything to look forward to? But as time went by, she realized their little life wasn't bad at all. Her dad might be a little plain, but he had no bad habits and was happy to spend all his earnings on the family. Her mom might be softhearted, but she fiercely protected her kids and always put family first. There might be a lot of younger siblings, and they might be noisy, but they were fighters. If their big brother or sister had a problem, they'd roll up their sleeves and jump in. Lu Miao: “Things really are getting better.” Xu Qinglan: “There's a lot to look forward to.” The five siblings in this family may or may not be related by blood, but we'll always be a loving family. Theme: A little more effort today brings success a little closer tomorrow.