Ping County, Jindi Garden Community, Building 12, Apartment 1003.
Inside the apartment, green smoke swirled around, creating an atmosphere like a fairyland.
Four men and two women were gathered around a large tea table in the living room, playing a game of "Fight the Landlord" (a popular Chinese card game).
The marble surface of the tea table was covered with stacks of bright red hundred-yuan bills.
The sensory thrill of gambling with real cash was far more exciting than using poker cards or game chips as substitutes.
This was a property Yan Ping had purchased as an investment, which she had turned into a secret gambling den.
Every few days, she would invite a group of card-playing friends over to have some fun.
"I'll raise 5,000 and call!"
Yan Ping tossed a thick stack of hundred-yuan bills onto the small pile of money on the table with a flourish, then slammed her cards down to reveal her hand.
A Queen-King-Ace flush!
This was the best hand Yan Ping had gotten all night.
In this round, she had kept calling, betting over 20,000 yuan.
"Hurry up and show your cards! Stop dawdling, you're slower than Yanzi, a woman!"
"Old Wang, can you handle it or not? Why are you dragging this out? Come on!"
"Hahaha, sorry, Yanzi, my luck seems pretty good tonight too. I'm just *slightly* better than you."
A short, skinny, balding middle-aged man sitting across from Yan Ping spoke as he casually tossed his cards onto the table.
"Damn! A triple 8! Old Wang, you're really cleaning up this round!"
"Goddamn, Old Wang's winning big tonight!"
"Good thing I folded early! A flush versus a triple, even my pair of Aces is nothing!"
"Bad luck! That old hag, my mother-in-law, keeps nagging me to go to the hospital. It's definitely her family's bad juju messing with my luck!"
Yan Ping, having lost over 20,000 yuan in one go, grumbled and blamed her loss on her mother-in-law.
"Keep going, keep going! Don't sweat the small losses. The one who laughs last is the real winner."
The man everyone called Old Wang scooped the pile of cash on the table toward himself with a wide grin and urged everyone to continue playing.
"Yanzi, what about your man…"
"Don't mention him. It'd be better if he dropped dead. At least I'd get some insurance money."
"Haha, when your man croaks, how about you and I shack up together?"
"Get lost! With your pathetic skills, living with you would be no different from being a widow."
"Old Wang, stop dreaming about Yanzi. Her guy's a tall, handsome dude, like six-foot-something. You don't even come close."
Amid the laughter and banter, they started the next round.
Suddenly, the door was flung open with a loud *bang* from the outside.
A group of uniformed police officers, wielding batons, stormed into the room.
"Don't move!"
"Hands on your heads, squat down!!"
"Stay still!!!"
At the police's furious shouts, Yan Ping and her group were completely stunned.
Even at this critical moment, Yan Ping was still cursing inwardly.
It *had* to be her husband's family's bad luck dragging her down!
Not only had she been losing money all night, but now she'd been caught red-handed. Talk about the worst luck ever!!!
Faced with a group of heavily armed police officers, none of the gamblers dared to resist. They obediently squatted on the floor.
What followed was the police taking photos for evidence and confiscating the gambling money.
Finally, they cuffed everyone and took them away.
…
On the morning of the fourth day of the Lunar New Year, the temperature was still quite low.
Early in the morning, there were few vehicles or pedestrians on the streets.
After eating breakfast at home with nothing else to do, Tian Mingrong walked to her shop to open for business.
Although the lottery wasn't drawn during the New Year holiday, there were still plenty of people coming in to buy lottery tickets or scratch-offs.
Just yesterday, her shop sold over 2,000 yuan worth of scratch-offs in a single day, earning her a profit of more than 140 yuan.
Add in some miscellaneous lottery ticket sales, and she could make around 200 yuan a day.
For a divorced woman in her fifties, she was quite satisfied with this income.
Running the lottery shop was easy work—helping customers buy tickets, watching short dramas on her phone, and keeping things relaxed.
Having run the shop for a long time, she'd built up a steady base of regular customers, making it a sustainable job for her retirement years.
After all, there would never be a shortage of people dreaming of getting rich overnight.
One wave after another, the dreamers kept coming, never to be fully reaped.
Casual players might randomly buy a couple of tickets to try their luck—these were the small fry.
But the veteran lottery players, the ones who bought hundreds or even thousands of tickets per draw, were the real cash cows, the main source of income for the shop.
Especially those who had once won big—they were convinced the lottery had patterns to crack.
They'd analyze hot numbers, cold numbers, front zones, back zones, big or small, odd or even, like self-proclaimed lottery experts.
They firmly believed that with enough skill in picking numbers, they'd surely snag the first prize!
If a lottery shop could hook one obsessive veteran player, it could easily bring in an extra few hundred yuan in profit each month.
Tian Mingrong's shop had one such "Top Spender Bro."
This "Top Spender Bro" had been buying lottery tickets for nearly twenty years, never missing a draw.
Some draws he'd spend as little as forty or fifty yuan, others as much as four or five hundred, or even a thousand.
Every month, this "Top Spender Bro" would spend thousands of yuan on lottery tickets at Tian Mingrong's shop.
Before the New Year, for some reason—maybe a stroke of inspiration or a hunch he'd hit the jackpot—"Top Spender Bro" came to her shop and bought a massive multi-ticket bet worth nearly 20,000 yuan.
Maybe it was divine inspiration, or maybe he felt he was destined to win big?
But the next day, when "Top Spender Bro" sobered up, he started to regret it.
Over the next few days, his regret grew stronger.
When he had his ticket analyzed by the trending AI "DeepSeek," the odds of winning were so low even a dog would shake its head!
Completely shattered, "Top Spender Bro" lost all confidence.
He started asking Tian Mingrong to help him sell the ticket, even if it meant taking a loss!
Tian Mingrong promised to help, but she didn't take his request seriously.
Come on, in a small county like Ping County, who would be foolish enough to spend 20,000 yuan on a lottery ticket?
Having one guy like you is already enough—finding a second one?
Besides, lottery tickets are very personal.
Everyone has their own "lucky numbers" tied to birthdays or family members' special dates.
Everyone thinks *they're* the protagonist of their own story.
They believe fate has hidden a "lottery Easter egg" tied to their birthdate, waiting for them to discover it.
The ticket you picked? Only *you* think it'll win. Others don't see it that way.
You think you're the protagonist of the world, but others think *they* are.
Now you regret it and want to find a sucker to take it off your hands? Dream on!
The ticket you bought, you'll have to wait for the draw with tears in your eyes.
*Ding-a-ling-ling—*
Tian Mingrong had just started sweeping the floor when her phone rang in her down jacket pocket.
She pulled it out and saw the caller ID: "Top Spender Bro."
Tian Mingrong instantly felt a headache coming on.
This guy called her ten times a day about the lottery ticket, driving her nuts!
"Hey, Dapeng."
He was a regular customer, after all, so despite her annoyance, Tian Mingrong's tone turned warm the moment she answered.
"Sister Tian, any progress on that ticket? Anyone interested? Even if the price is lower, I'm fine with it—say, 10,000 or so."
"Just tell them the ticket has a high chance of winning. I'm only selling it cheap because I've got an emergency and need the cash."
A man's voice came through the phone, but Tian Mingrong dismissed it as nonsense and didn't take it seriously.
Buddy, you can fool others, but don't fool yourself!
Such a high chance of winning, and you're not keeping it for yourself?
"Dapeng, I've been asking around for you, but a ticket that expensive isn't something most people can afford."
As Tian Mingrong spoke, her gaze flicked outside and caught sight of a sleek black Mercedes pulling up in front of her shop.
The car door opened, and a handsome man in his thirties stepped out.
Tian Mingrong recognized him.
Yesterday, he'd come to her shop with a stunning woman who looked like a celebrity and bought a 500-yuan pack of scratch-offs.
And his luck was pretty good—he won over 700 yuan!
"Alright, alright, I'll keep asking around for you. Okay, I've got a customer, gotta go."
As Tian Mingrong hung up on "Top Spender Bro," Jiang Tao pushed open the door and walked into the shop.
"Hey, handsome, you had some good luck yesterday, huh? Want to get another pack today? Maybe you'll make a few hundred more!"
Tian Mingrong looked at Jiang Tao with a warm smile, greeting him and throwing in some flattery.
"Got any unopened packs of scratch-offs?"
Jiang Tao asked with a smile. He wasn't interested in half-opened packs—those were too risky.
Rumor had it that if the shop owner noticed the sold scratch-offs weren't paying out much, they'd scratch the rest themselves.
Those tickets were more likely to make a profit.
But if the pack had already hit a big prize, the owner wouldn't touch it—those were guaranteed losers.
Jiang Tao didn't immediately ask about the lottery ticket.
He played it cool, waiting for her to bring it up.
A clever hunter always approaches as if he's the prey.
"Yep, got some! I'll grab them for you! Take a look at these!"
Tian Mingrong smiled and called out to Jiang Tao, heading behind the counter to pull out a stack of scratch-off packs.
Jiang Tao picked out a pack of 20-yuan tickets.
A pack like that cost 1,000 yuan.
Jiang Tao wanted to test the "gold content" of his mysterious "River-Picking Stone" again.
After scanning the payment code, Jiang Tao took a small scraper from Tian Mingrong and started scratching.
Out of 50 tickets, 28 were duds, and 22 were winners.
Among them: 10 tickets won 20 yuan (breaking even), 7 won 50 yuan, 3 won 100 yuan, 1 won 200 yuan, and 1 won 500 yuan.
In total, he won 1,350 yuan, making a 350-yuan profit on the pack!
"Handsome, your luck is something else! You made, what, almost 300 yesterday, right? And now 350 today!"
"You're on fire! Hardly anyone wins as much as you do!"
Tian Mingrong's face showed exaggerated surprise as she handed Jiang Tao his winnings.
"Heh, I've been pretty lucky these past couple of days."
Jiang Tao chatted calmly with her, but inside, he was shouting:
*Come on, big sis, cut the small talk and get to the point!*
"By the way, handsome, one of our regular customers bought a big multi-ticket lottery bet a while back."
"He's a bit tight on cash right now and wants to sell it at a discount. You interested?"
Tian Mingrong, feeling the timing was right after cashing out Jiang Tao's winnings, finally brought up the lottery ticket.
"Oh? What kind of multi-ticket? How much?"
Jiang Tao played it cool, asking casually to keep up the act.
Tian Mingrong explained, "It's a 12-red, 5-blue multi-ticket bet, 9,240 total combinations, costing 18,480 yuan."
"How much? 18,480? Damn, that's almost 20,000 yuan! Big spender!"
Jiang Tao put on a convincingly shocked expression.
It was the first time he'd heard of such a huge lottery ticket in real life.
He'd seen online reports about companies embezzling hundreds of thousands or even millions to buy lottery tickets, but this was something else.
"It's a big amount, no doubt. With your luck, handsome, you interested?"
"Forget the first prize—even hitting a few third prizes would cover the cost."
"Maybe even a second prize, and you'd make a killing."
Tian Mingrong wasn't trying to scam Jiang Tao; she was just asking casually.
What if he bought it and lost money, then blamed her? She wasn't about to get involved in that mess.
"Haha, you're joking, right? If it's such a sure thing, why wouldn't they keep it?"
Jiang Tao shook his head with a laugh, pretending to be uninterested while bantering with Tian Mingrong.
"No pressure, buddy. I'm just asking. If you're not interested, no big deal."
Tian Mingrong didn't push. She knew you couldn't force these things.
That ticket in her hands was probably unsellable.
"If it's cheap, how much of a discount are we talking?"
Jiang Tao, sensing the time was right, casually tossed out the question.
"I can't promise too much, but a few thousand off is doable! We can negotiate."
"If you're interested, I can call the ticket owner over, and you two can talk face-to-face."
Tian Mingrong's eyes lit up when she sensed Jiang Tao might actually be interested.
"Top Spender Bro" had promised her a 500-yuan bonus if she could help sell the ticket.
"Alright, call him over. Let's talk in person."
Jiang Tao sat down on a round chair in the shop, pulled out a cigarette from his pack, and lit one up.
"You got it! Hang tight, I'll call him now."
Tian Mingrong dialed the ticket owner's number, telling him to hurry over.
Jiang Tao hadn't even finished his cigarette when a BYD Qin electric car pulled up outside the shop.
The door opened, and a chubby middle-aged man in his forties stepped out.
The moment Jiang Tao saw him, he felt a sense of familiarity, like he'd seen the guy somewhere recently.
Then it hit him.
Wasn't this the other buyer he'd run into yesterday at his brother-in-law's cattle farm when he went to buy a cow?
Well, damn! System Bro was really milking this one guy's opportunities dry!
Without System Bro's intel, that old yellow cow with 1,000 grams of natural bezoar inside would've likely been bought by this guy.
Who knows who'd end up with the bezoar, but it definitely wouldn't have been Jiang Tao.
And this lottery ticket? Without System Bro's tip, Jiang Tao wouldn't have come to buy it.
It probably wouldn't have sold, and this guy would've been the one waiting for the draw.
In that case, the 100,000-plus yuan prize would've been his.
Now, the bezoar was Jiang Tao's, and the prize money was about to be too!
In just two days, Jiang Tao had snatched two of this guy's opportunities. He was almost starting to feel bad!
"Dapeng, you're here! This is the handsome guy interested in your ticket."
Tian Mingrong smiled and introduced An Dapeng and Jiang Tao as An walked in.
"Hey, buddy, I'm An Dapeng. Haven't we… haven't we met somewhere before?"
An Dapeng also recognized Jiang Tao, looking at him with a puzzled expression.
"Yeah, I was at the Tian Family Village cattle farm yesterday buying a cow. I saw you there."
Since An Dapeng recognized him, Jiang Tao just admitted it outright.
"Small world, small world! Here, have a smoke, brother!"
An Dapeng quickly offered Jiang Tao a cigarette, smiling warmly and trying to build rapport.
After some casual chit-chat, the two sat down at a small glass tea table woven with rattan and started haggling over the ticket.
With System Bro's intel, Jiang Tao basically had An Dapeng's bottom line laid bare before him.
In the price negotiation, one was in the dark, and the other in the know—naturally, Jiang Tao had the upper hand.
In the end, An Dapeng's 18,480-yuan ticket was bought by Jiang Tao for a steep discount of 10,000, at just 8,480 yuan.
Though An Dapeng's heart was bleeding, he gritted his teeth and sold it.
Before today, An Dapeng's claim of financial troubles to Tian Mingrong was just an excuse.
But now, it was real!
Last night, his wife got caught gambling with a group.
The 100,000-plus yuan in cash she'd brought was confiscated as gambling money and turned over to the state.
Now, he not only had to scrape together money to pay his wife's fine but also cover the mortgage.
So, even at a low price, he had to bite the bullet and sell.
Tian Mingrong helped Jiang Tao verify the ticket's authenticity on the lottery machine.
Then, Jiang Tao transferred 8,480 yuan to An Dapeng on the spot.
"This ticket's yours now, brother. Hope you hit the first prize!"
An Dapeng handed the ticket to Jiang Tao after receiving the payment.
"Thanks. Let's see how my luck goes."
Jiang Tao didn't waste words with An Dapeng. After securing the ticket, he got up and left.
As An Dapeng watched Jiang Tao climb into the Mercedes parked outside, his eyes were filled with envy.
It was just past 9 a.m. when Jiang Tao got home after buying the ticket.
"Honey~ Where'd you go? Xiao Bing said she wants to go hiking. You coming?"
The moment Jiang Tao walked in, Xu Li came up to him, looking at him expectantly.
"Today, your brother's slaughtering a cow, so I've gotta stay home. You know why, right?"
Jiang Tao winked at Xu Li, giving her a knowing look.
"Oh, oh! Alright, honey, you stay home then. We'll go ourselves. If anything good happens, report back right away!"
Xu Li's eyes lit up when she heard about the cow slaughter, returning Jiang Tao's knowing look.
She loved eating beef, but the bloody scene of slaughtering? She'd pass.
"What are you two winking at each other for?"
Ginger Bing, munching on pistachios on the couch, saw her brother and sister-in-law's flirty exchange and instantly felt annoyed.
Every day, if she wasn't paying attention, she'd get force-fed a mouthful of their lovey-dovey nonsense. Enough already!
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