By the time Jiang Tao drove his old Audi A6 back to Xiaosha River, it was already past 6 p.m.
The night had fallen over Beijing, and the city lights were just beginning to glow.
People who had been busy all day were getting off work.
Every day around this time, Xiaosha River came alive, buzzing with the most vibrant, down-to-earth atmosphere.
The "Beipiao" (migrant workers in Beijing) who had worked all day were like ants returning home after a day of foraging.
After earning their hard day's wages, they followed familiar routes back to their small nests.
Once they closed their doors, they lived their own little lives.
As Jiang Tao passed by the lottery shop in the urban village, he went inside and randomly bought 5 sets of Double Color Ball tickets.
He also spent 100 yuan to buy 10 scratch-off tickets with a face value of 10 yuan each, totaling 110 yuan.
In the end, the scratch-off tickets yielded a prize of 150 yuan.
He made a profit of 40 yuan and got 5 sets of Double Color Ball tickets worth 10 yuan.
Was it a coincidence, or was it the work of the river stone?
In his heart, Jiang Tao leaned toward the latter.
Everything in excess is never good; knowing when to stop is a form of wisdom.
Jiang Tao didn't keep scratching more tickets just because he kept winning.
Doing so would likely mean losing everything he had just earned.
No matter how lucky you are, you can't beat the people who make the rules.
Leaving the lottery shop, Jiang Tao bought some cooked food and pancakes along the way.
As he passed by Fat Dongdong's supermarket, he turned and walked inside.
Today was already the 25th day of the twelfth lunar month.
According to his original plan, he would head back to his hometown on the 27th, which was the day after tomorrow.
Every year when he returned home for the New Year, Jiang Tao would buy cigarettes and alcohol at Fat Dongdong's supermarket to give as gifts to his father and father-in-law.
He'd also pick up some local Beijing specialties like preserved fruits, Peking duck, and Beijing's "Eight Delicacies."
"Master Jiang, off work?"
Yu Dongdong saw Jiang Tao and greeted him with a cheerful smile.
Jiang Tao stepped forward and asked, "Boss Yu, do you still have full cartons of Huazi?"
"Of course! Plenty of them! The cheap 10-yuan smokes are hard to come by, but we've got tons of Huazi. Want a carton, Master Jiang?"
Hearing that Jiang Tao wanted to buy Huazi today, Yu Dongdong's expression remained unchanged, but he was inwardly surprised.
Jiang Tao was a regular customer at his supermarket, and Yu Dongdong knew his spending habits well.
Jiang Tao usually smoked 10-yuan Liqun cigarettes, but recently he had upgraded to 30-yuan Huanghelou.
And now, just a few days later, he was upgrading to Huazi!
"Has Master Jiang struck it rich or something?"
While greeting Jiang Tao with a smile, Yu Dongdong couldn't help but wonder to himself.
"Good to know. Saves me the trouble of looking elsewhere. Give me 4 cartons. How much?"
As Jiang Tao spoke, he pulled out his phone and scanned the payment code on the counter with a *ding*.
"Four cartons! Alright! Hang on, Master Jiang, I'll grab them for you!"
Hearing that Jiang Tao was buying four cartons of Huazi at once, Yu Dongdong was even more shocked.
But shocked or not, he knew better than to ask questions he shouldn't.
After acknowledging Jiang Tao, he turned and went to the back room to fetch the cigarettes.
Soon, Yu Dongdong came out with a large plastic bag containing 4 cartons of Huazi and handed them to Jiang Tao.
Jiang Tao promptly scanned the code to pay 2,800 yuan and left with the four cartons.
By the time he got back to his rental apartment, it was around 7 p.m.
The two coconut snails he bought yesterday were still soaking in a basin.
Luckily, it was winter, and the low temperature kept them fresh.
In the summer, they would've gone bad after a day.
The two coconut snails, which cost Jiang Tao nearly 400 yuan, were quite large.
He definitely couldn't finish them alone.
So, Jiang Tao sent a message in the "Tangerine F4" group chat, tagging Liu Zhiyuan and the other two.
He invited the three of them to come over for dinner.
Within 10 minutes of sending the message, Liu Zhiyuan and the other two showed up, and none of them came empty-handed.
Liu Zhiyuan brought two bottles of 10-year-old Niulanshan Erguotou.
Shan Yufei bought a fruitwood-roasted duck and a hand-torn chicken.
Zhang Chao brought two pounds of braised beef and some pickled pepper chicken feet.
Combined with the stir-fried coconut snails and the pile of cooked food Jiang Tao had bought, they easily put together eight dishes.
The spread on the table today was quite impressive.
Once the coconut snails were cooked, the four of them sat around a small round table in Jiang Tao's apartment.
Before this year, Jiang Tao didn't have much interaction with Liu Zhiyuan and the other two.
The three of them didn't exactly hold much respect for Jiang Tao, who was a few years older than them and from the same hometown.
At most, they'd call him "Brother Jiang" out of politeness when they saw him, given that they were all from the same place.
That changed after they collaborated on the tangerine project.
Under Jiang Tao's lead, they all earned more money than they had in the past two or three years combined.
Liu Zhiyuan and the others' attitudes toward Jiang Tao shifted dramatically.
Their thinking was simple: whoever helps you make money is the boss!
Before, when they were all in similar circumstances, they called Jiang Tao "Brother Jiang" because he was older.
Now, they called him "Brother Jiang" with genuine respect from the heart, because Jiang Tao was more capable than them. Following Brother Jiang meant making money!
"Brother Jiang, the three of us toast to you again. In the future, if there's any money-making business, you eat the meat, and just let us have a sip of the soup!"
"Brother Jiang, we toast to you!"
"To Brother Jiang!"
Liu Zhiyuan proposed the toast, and Shan Yufei and Zhang Chao chimed in, their faces clearly showing their respect.
"If there's a good opportunity, I'll definitely bring you guys along."
Jiang Tao smiled, raised his glass, and clinked it with the three of them.
This feeling of being respected was something Jiang Tao had never experienced before, and it felt damn good!
No wonder successful people like Da Qiangzi often thought about giving back to their hometowns.
At their level, money was just a string of numbers.
The emotional value of being admired by thousands far outweighed the value of material goods!
Moreover, without Liu Zhiyuan and the other two, the tangerine project wouldn't have succeeded.
Jiang Tao would probably still be slaving away, selling tangerines from dawn till dusk.
He wouldn't have been able to handle all the follow-up information in time.
So, in Jiang Tao's mind, there was no question of who owed whom or who was grateful to whom.
It was just a fair partnership.
The fact that Liu Zhiyuan and the others appreciated him showed they had a conscience and were worth working with.
If similar opportunities came up in the future, Jiang Tao didn't mind bringing them along to collaborate and make money together.
The meal lasted until past 8 p.m.
Liu Zhiyuan and the others knew that Jiang Tao had a nightly video call with his wife.
After eating and drinking their fill, they tactfully said their goodbyes and left.
No sooner had the three left than Xu Li's video call came through.
"Hey, honey, today my mom took me, Shasha, and our daughter to soak in a hot spring…"
As the call connected, Xu Li, dressed in casual home clothes, appeared on the phone screen.
She happily recounted her day to Jiang Tao.
Who she was with, what they did, what they ate, and any interesting things that happened—she shared every detail.
Sharing her daily life with Jiang Tao, who was far away in Beijing, was a part of Xu Li's routine.
And she enjoyed it immensely.
After patiently listening to Xu Li finish, Jiang Tao pulled out two river stones and said with a smile, "Honey, look at this."
Xu Li curiously leaned closer to the phone screen, chuckled, and said, "Just two little rocks, what else could they be?"
"No, these aren't ordinary rocks."
"They're lucky stones I bought today at Panjiayuan Antique Street!"
"Honey, let me tell you…"
Jiang Tao excitedly shared what he could with Xu Li.
For example, picking up money, getting a free taxi ride, winning a prize by scanning a receipt at a restaurant.
And then there was the lottery shop scratch-off tickets—he could talk about all those things.
As for spending 120,000 yuan on an old Audi and finding four gold bars in the car door, Jiang Tao hadn't figured out how to tell Xu Li yet, so he kept it to himself for now.
"What? For real, honey? Are they really that lucky?!"
After hearing Jiang Tao's account of his lucky experiences today, Xu Li's face showed a mix of skepticism and cleverness, as if to say, "Don't try to fool me."
Once or twice could be considered normal.
But so many lucky events in one day? Did he think he was the grandson of Heaven itself?!
And if those lucky stones were so effective, why would anyone sell them to him instead of keeping them?
"I'm not lying to you. The 500 yuan from scanning the receipt has already hit my account. I'll send you a screenshot."
"I also took a picture of the scratch-off ticket winnings."
"And this is the wallet I found today—66 yuan inside, haven't spent a cent."
As Jiang Tao spoke, he sent the screenshots to Xu Li via WeChat and showed her the wallet he'd picked up.
"This is… too incredible!"
"Honey, are you the grandson of Heaven itself?!"
"Our family is really about to turn our luck around!"
Seeing the solid evidence on her phone, Xu Li had no choice but to believe!
As for why the seller would sell such effective stones to her husband, only the seller would know, and she had no way to ask.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Dear readers,
If you happen to notice any errors, typos, or inconsistencies in the text, please don't hesitate to leave a comment. Your feedback is greatly appreciated and will help me improve the story. Together, we can make it as polished and enjoyable as possible!
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------