During the video call, Jiang Tao casually transferred 52,000 yuan to Xu Li.
Xu Li was over the moon tonight, in an incredibly good mood.
First, the lottery ticket worth over 30,000 yuan that she'd lost had been recovered.
Then, her husband had sold a Merlot Pearl he'd gotten from a restaurant for 120,000 yuan!
Adding up both incomes, their little family had raked in a total of 150,000 yuan today!
"Honey, can we discuss something?"
"Sure, go ahead."
"Now that we've got some money in hand, should we pay off the renovation and air-source heat pump bills first?"
"Oh, those? I already paid them using the money from selling the sugar oranges."
"Really? Why didn't you tell me earlier? Good thing I asked, or I might've paid them again!"
"I just paid them today and was planning to tell you tonight…"
"So, you're saying the money in my hands right now is all mine?"
"Yup, all yours."
Looking at his silly wife's money-obsessed expression, Jiang Tao chuckled.
He never worried about giving Xu Li money, knowing she wouldn't spend it recklessly.
Based on his years of knowing her, she'd most likely deposit the money into a fixed-term savings account at the bank, not wasting a single cent.
The couple went back and forth, chatting for over two hours.
It wasn't until Jiang Xue got sleepy and needed to go to bed that Xu Li reluctantly hung up to take her to wash up.
After ending the call with Xu Li, Jiang Tao leaned against the headboard and scrolled through his WeChat Moments.
That kid Zhang Bo hadn't been lying. This morning, he had indeed posted about the Merlot Pearl on his Moments.
Besides the Merlot Pearl, he also posted about other collectible items like ancient coins, paper currency, and stamps.
There was even a 2013 used Audi A6 for sale.
The stuff he was selling was all over the place.
Jiang Tao knew nothing about antiques or collectibles and wouldn't easily dabble in that industry.
He stuck to his principle of looking but not buying.
His goal was simply to trigger the system to provide intelligence related to these things.
Xu Li had spent the day out with her mother-in-law, sister-in-law, and daughter Jiang Xue.
At noon, she posted a photo of them eating together.
Her sister-in-law Xu Sha posted a picture of her manicure.
Lü Qian's photo was of him and Ma Dongmei climbing the Great Wall together.
If you didn't look at his ID, you'd never guess this big brother was already 71 years old!
After browsing today's Moments, Jiang Tao opened Kuaidou for a bit of "aesthetic enhancement training."
Soon, it was midnight.
Jiang Tao closed his phone, plugged it into the charger, and with a thought, connected with System Bro.
**[Today's Intelligence 01]:**
You sold a Merlot Pearl at Boya Auction House yesterday, triggering related intelligence—
Near the Tongzhou section of the Chaobai River, where Boya Auction House owner Zhang Long was fishing yesterday, there are two river stones that can bring luck!
**[Note]:** Carrying these river stones grants +3 Luck!
**[Today's Intelligence 02]:**
You browsed Zhang Bo's Moments yesterday, triggering related intelligence—
Inside the four doors of the Audi A6 Zhang Bo is currently selling, there is one 100g gold bar from the Bank of China in each door.
The four gold bars are worth a total of 275,280 yuan!
**[Note]:** The four gold bars were placed by the car's deceased third owner and are currently unclaimed.
…
"River stones…"
"System Bro, you've changed. Even you're starting to play with overused clichés, huh?"
Seeing the mention of "river stones" in the first piece of intelligence, Jiang Tao was a bit speechless.
But…
Since System Bro said these two river stones had a +3 Luck attribute, they must be something special. It was definitely worth checking out the Chaobai River tomorrow!
Better to believe it's real than dismiss it outright.
At worst, he'd just waste a bit of time going there.
After reading the first piece of intelligence, Jiang Tao's gaze shifted to the second one.
His attention was immediately captured by the massive figure of 275,280 yuan.
"275,280! 270,000!"
"System Bro, give me more intelligence like this in the future. This is awesome!"
This 270,000-yuan intelligence was one of the most valuable pieces Jiang Tao had received since binding with the intelligence system.
While it wasn't as lucrative as the sugar oranges, it was far simpler to execute.
All he had to do was buy the used Audi A6 Zhang Bo was selling, then take apart the doors to get the four gold bars!
"Who in their right mind hides stuff like that in car doors? Is there some kind of superstition behind it…?"
For things he couldn't figure out, Jiang Tao didn't bother wasting brain cells on.
He picked up his phone, opened WeChat, found Zhang Bo in his contacts, and checked his Moments. Sure enough, he quickly found the Audi A6 for sale.
It had a classic black exterior, was registered in 2012, had 100,000 kilometers on it, was maintained at a 4S shop the whole time, and had no accidents.
The specific price wasn't listed.
But as long as it was under 270,000, he'd be making a profit!
Though Jiang Tao didn't know much about used cars, he figured a 10-year-old Audi with 100,000 kilometers wouldn't be too expensive.
He had to get those two river stones, and he had to get Zhang Bo's old Audi too!
Jiang Tao was actually in need of a personal car for getting around.
His 4.2-meter truck was fine for hauling goods, but it was too shabby for visiting relatives and friends during the New Year.
Using this old Audi as a temporary ride wasn't a bad choice.
Once he had more money, he could think about upgrading to a better car.
After analyzing the two pieces of intelligence, Jiang Tao glanced at the time on his phone—it was already around 12:30 AM.
He'd already showered earlier, so he climbed into bed and went to sleep!
The hotel room was much warmer and more comfortable than his doghouse of an apartment.
The 198 yuan for tonight was money well spent!
The next morning at 7:00 AM, Jiang Tao was woken by the alarm he'd set on his phone.
He got up, went to the bathroom to wash his face and brush his teeth, got dressed, and then went downstairs to check out.
He headed to a nearby Qingfu Bun Shop, ordered a basket of buns and a bowl of wonton soup.
After eating and drinking his fill, it was still only 7:30 AM.
At this hour, young folks like Zhang Bo, with their vibrant nightlife, were definitely still asleep.
Jiang Tao didn't rush to contact Zhang Bo. Instead, he took a taxi straight to the Tongzhou section of the Chaobai River.
Sitting in the car, he opened the first piece of intelligence about the "river stones."
A virtual 3D map of Beijing appeared on Jiang Tao's retina.
On the map, two small dots—one red, one green—flashed intermittently, and he could hear a faint "beep-beep-beep" sound in his ears.
"Okay, driver, this is the spot. Pull over here."
After about half an hour, as the ride-hailing car neared the flashing dots, Jiang Tao directed the driver to stop.
"Sir, are you sure you want to get off here? There's nothing around—no village in front, no shop behind."
The driver, puzzled by the desolate location, asked curiously.
"Yeah, my friend's fishing nearby. I'm going to hang out with him."
Jiang Tao made up a quick excuse, paid through the ride-hailing app, and got out of the car.
As soon as he stepped out, a cold wind hit him right in the neck.
Jiang Tao shivered, quickly tucking his hands into the pockets of his down jacket.
The spot where he got off was truly in the middle of nowhere. Below the highway was the Chaobai River, which flowed through Beijing into northern Hebei.
There was only a meter-high guardrail at the edge of the highway. Jiang Tao stepped over it, jogged down the embankment, and reached the riverbank.
From a distance, he could see the ice surface dotted with holes like a chessboard, drilled by countless fishermen with ice augers.
It was just past 8:00 AM, and there were already seven or eight fishermen on the ice.
Following the "navigation map" in his vision, Jiang Tao walked along the riverbank for about ten minutes.
Beep-beep-beep-beep—
The beeping in his ears grew louder.
He was getting extremely close to the two river stones.