"Come in, come in, quick!"
Old Xu had just pulled off a stunning comeback downstairs, and he was in a great mood.
He eagerly welcomed his daughter's family of three inside.
Du Yongmei, who was cooking in the kitchen, heard the commotion at the door, turned off the stove, and came out to greet them.
Of course, her warm welcome was directed solely at her precious eldest daughter and granddaughter.
As she stepped out, she caught sight of the box of Maotai liquor in Jiang Tao's arms and couldn't help but pause.
For years, when Jiang Tao came over for the New Year, he'd bring ordinary, mid-range liquor worth a few hundred yuan, the kind commonly found on the market.
Bringing Maotai? This was a first!
"Mom~ Is there boiled pork slices tonight? My husband loves it, you *have* to make it!"
Xu Li affectionately hooked her arm around her mom's, starting to inquire about the evening's menu.
"Yes! You've told me eight times on WeChat! Would I dare not make it?"
Du Yongmei's gaze shifted from the Maotai box in Jiang Tao's arms, and she rolled her eyes in exasperation.
"Hehe, thanks, Mom! You're the best!"
"Tch, tch, tch…"
Xu Sha, sitting on the living room sofa scrolling through Xiaohongshu, looked at her sister acting coy with their mom at the door and was utterly speechless.
Where was the 30-year-old woman? She was acting like a three-year-old!
"Mom, Happy New Year."
Jiang Tao smiled and took the initiative to greet Du Yongmei.
He knew his mother-in-law wasn't particularly fond of him, but as Xu Li's mom, he always treated her with respect and courtesy.
"Hm."
"Little Xue, your auntie bought a bunch of yummy snacks earlier. Come on, Grandma will take you to raid her stash."
Du Yongmei merely hummed in response to Jiang Tao's greeting, then took off her apron, grabbed Jiang Xue's hand, and led her to plunder Xu Sha's snack collection.
"Mom! No way! Little Xue, come on, Auntie will take you to buy new snacks. Kids shouldn't eat adult snacks—it's not healthy!"
Seeing her snack stash under threat, Xu Sha sprang up from the sofa as if it had springs, grabbed Jiang Xue's hand, and noisily dragged her out the door, not sparing her brother-in-law Jiang Tao a single glance.
After some small talk, Old Xu and Jiang Tao went to the living room's tea table to have tea.
Xu Li, meanwhile, mysteriously pulled her mom into the bedroom.
"Mom, this is from my husband for you."
Once inside, Xu Li handed her mom a thick, bulging red envelope from her pocket.
"This is…"
Du Yongmei felt the envelope and immediately knew how much money was inside, her face showing surprise.
"My husband said he got cigarettes and liquor for Dad, but it wouldn't be right to get nothing for you."
"So he gave you a red envelope. Buy whatever you like."
"Hehe, isn't my husband filial?"
Xu Li wrapped her arms around her mom's waist, resting her head on her shoulder, once again boosting Jiang Tao's favorability with her mom.
"He's certainly thoughtful. Maotai, Zhonghua cigarettes, and now this big red envelope. Did he strike it rich this year?"
Du Yongmei was indeed starting to see Jiang Tao in a new light this year.
"My husband had some good luck this year—no, it's not just luck, it's more about his keen eye!"
"A while back, he and some friends worked on a tangerines project. You'll never guess how much he made."
When it came to her husband's successful money-making ventures, Xu Li's beautiful eyes sparkled with admiration.
Du Yongmei said, "How much can you make selling tangerines? 100,000 or 80,000 at most."
"750,000! In just over ten days, my husband made 750,000! Hehe! Tell me, isn't my husband amazing?"
Mentioning the money Jiang Tao earned from the tangerines project, Xu Li's face lit up with pride.
"How much?"
Du Yongmei was stunned, her expression practically screaming, "Are you sure it's not 75,000, but *750,000*?"
"When he spotted the opportunity, my husband decisively invested 250,000 and ended up netting 750,000!"
"Come on, praise my husband! We've been married for years, and I haven't heard you praise him once!"
"He's achieved so much this time—surely that's worth some praise?"
Xu Li shook her mom's arm, advocating for her husband's recognition.
"Well… that's pretty impressive."
At this moment, Du Yongmei's opinion of Jiang Tao rose a few notches.
Whether it was luck or vision, making 750,000 in just over ten days was a real skill!
Their family had saved for decades and only accumulated about a million yuan.
Xu Li continued, "And Mom, let me tell you something even more incredible and mind-blowing!"
"How mind-blowing can it be? Look at how excited you are. You're a grown woman acting like a naive little girl."
Du Yongmei feigned exasperation, but inside, she was delighted.
Every time her eldest daughter acted coy with her, she felt like she was ten years younger.
Xu Li said excitedly, "My husband helped a big boss with something, and the boss gifted him a Mercedes GLS! It's worth over a million!"
"A million-plus Mercedes? You're saying someone gave Jiang Tao a car worth over a million?"
Du Yongmei was shocked again, her face full of disbelief.
In just ten minutes, Jiang Tao had delivered one shock after another.
Xu Li laughed, "Yup, the car's parked downstairs. I'll take you for a spin sometime."
"What kind of help did Jiang Tao give? For someone to gift him such an expensive car, those big bosses are really generous."
Du Yongmei's mind was racing, suddenly worried that Jiang Tao might have gotten involved in something shady.
"That big boss is the head of a major shopping mall in Beijing. I even talked to her on the phone—she's definitely not a bad person."
"And you know my husband; he wouldn't do anything illegal."
"That's true…"
Du Yongmei nodded, deciding not to pry further.
Her eldest son-in-law was starting to make a comeback in his middle years, and as his mother-in-law, she was naturally pleased to see it.
Her precious daughter had finally gone from hardship to happiness—what a great thing!
The mother and daughter chatted in the room for over an hour.
Xu Li proudly showed her mom the new phone and gold bracelet Jiang Tao had given her.
Seeing her daughter's happy and fulfilled appearance, Du Yongmei suddenly admired her daughter's judgment.
When Xu Li married Jiang Tao, he had nothing—no house in the city, not even one in the village, still living with his parents and sister.
It was only this year that they'd built a new house, finally giving the couple a home of their own.
"There's an old saying: 'Fortune shifts, and the house's energy changes.' Lili, building that house in the village was the right move."
"It must be that after moving into the new house, the energy changed, the stars aligned, and the house's fortune surged, which is why Jiang Tao's had so much financial luck this year."
After much thought, Du Yongmei attributed Jiang Tao's recent incredible financial success to metaphysics.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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!
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------