Outside the VIP reception area of Aidi International Kindergarten.
*Knock, knock, knock.*
A woman with delicate light makeup, dressed in a purple suit skirt uniform and flesh-colored stockings, stood at the door and knocked.
"Come in."
Hearing the voice from inside, Jiang Yi gently pushed the door open and entered the room.
"Sister Dong, I've finished handling my matters and came to report back."
Jiang Yi walked to the desk and spoke respectfully to a woman with pomegranate-red framed glasses and permed curls sitting behind it.
Dong Mei put down her fountain pen and said in a gentle tone,
"You're back just in time, Xiao Jiang."
"This afternoon, some parents are coming to enroll their child, and it happens to be for your class."
"Take the parents around to familiarize them with our campus and introduce them to our signature programs."
"Try to get the enrollment finalized today."
"Got it, Sister Dong," Jiang Yi nodded slightly, acknowledging her duties.
She only hoped in her heart that the child's parents wouldn't be like the last one—a lecher who kept staring at her sensitive areas.
"Later, contact the parents in advance to confirm when they'll arrive."
"Greet them at the campus gate and make sure they feel the importance and warm welcome we at Aidi extend to our students' parents."
"Here's the parent's name and phone number."
"Oh, what a coincidence—Jiang Tao. This client shares your surname, Xiao Jiang. Your names even sound like you could be family."
Dong Mei chuckled as she handed Jiang Yi an A4 sheet with Jiang Tao's information, making a lighthearted joke.
"Jiang Tao?"
Jiang Yi took the paper, and upon seeing the name, she momentarily lost herself in thought.
A somewhat blurry figure quickly surfaced in her mind.
It was a handsome young man.
Back when she had just started as a university homeroom teacher, after her own introduction, she had the students introduce themselves one by one.
The first student to stand up and introduce himself was named Jiang Tao.
With one called Jiang Yi and the other Jiang Tao, introducing themselves one after the other, the classroom erupted in laughter.
Some mischievous students even teased, asking if they were family or siblings.
Because of that introduction, Jiang Tao left a deep impression on her.
In the years that followed, Jiang Yi paid more attention to Jiang Tao than to the other students in her class.
It was almost as if she treated him like a younger brother.
Time flies, and nearly a decade had passed in the blink of an eye.
That youthful boy must have settled down by now, become a family man, and taken on the role of the pillar of his household, right?
Stirred by the moment, recalling the beauty of youth, a gentle smile curved Jiang Yi's lips.
"Jiang Tao is a pretty common name. It's probably just a coincidence."
Jiang Yi tucked the paper away, said goodbye to Dong Mei, and turned to leave.
Back in her own office, Jiang Yi pulled her phone from the small pocket of her suit jacket and dialed the number listed on the A4 sheet.
"Huh, a Shishi number?"
Noticing that the phone number was from the same city where she used to teach, Jiang Yi's expression froze for a moment.
*Beep, beep, beep—*
The phone rang for quite a while before it was answered.
A man's voice came through, slightly out of breath.
"Hello… who's this?"
"Hello, Mr. Jiang. I'm Jiang Yi, the homeroom teacher for K4 Class 3 at Aidi International Kindergarten. I'd like to schedule a time for you to visit and handle the enrollment process."
"Jiang Yi? Oh, hello, Teacher Jiang. We'll come by around… *hiss*… 3 p.m., *cough*."
"Alright, I'll wait for you at the gate. I look forward to meeting you."
"Great, see you then."
The other side hung up hurriedly, not giving Jiang Yi a chance to say more.
Ending the call, Jiang Yi's delicate willow-leaf brows furrowed slightly.
The name, the phone number's location, and the voice all pointed to her former student.
Could it really be him?
"It's probably just a coincidence…"
Thinking of Aidi Kindergarten's exorbitant tuition fees, Jiang Yi immediately dismissed the idea that this Jiang Tao could be *that* Jiang Tao.
Aidi International Kindergarten charged 183,000 yuan a year for its preschool program—equivalent to Jiang Yi's annual salary.
Even in a place like the capital, it was considered a "noble kindergarten."
Families without at least eight or ten million in assets wouldn't dare send their kids here.
Her former student was just an ordinary vocational college graduate from a rural background.
Aside from being somewhat good-looking, he hadn't shown any extraordinary talents during university.
At most, it had been six or seven years since his graduation.
The chances of him amassing a fortune in the tens of millions were slim to none.
Unless he'd won the lottery.
---
Baigezhuang New Village Community.
Jiang Tao leaned back comfortably on the large living room sofa.
Xu Li, with her back to him, was rinsing her mouth over the trash can.
"Hubby, who was that just now? The voice sounded nice—must be a beauty."
After spitting out the water, Xu Li turned to Jiang Tao with a playful smile, her delicate face still flushed, making her look even more charming than a flower.
"No matter how beautiful, she's not as beautiful as my wife."
"It was a teacher from Aidi Kindergarten, saying she'll be waiting to receive us this afternoon."
As Jiang Tao spoke, he stood up from the sofa, pulled up his pants, and zipped them up.
His praise for Xu Li wasn't just flattery.
Who says the flowers at home aren't as fragrant as wild ones?
That didn't apply to his silly wife!
"What time did you agree on? Are we heading over now?"
Xu Li asked while tying up the trash bag to take downstairs later.
"Three o'clock. No rush, we've got plenty of time."
"Okay, then I'll fix my hair and touch up my makeup. You messed it all up."
Xu Li shot Jiang Tao a charming glance, then swayed her hips as she headed toward the bedroom.
"With a lovely wife at home, even goji berries can't save me."
Gazing at his wife's graceful figure, Jiang Tao touched his lower back.
He silently resolved to eat more of the kidney-nourishing foods Old San recommended, like walnuts and shrimp.
While Xu Li went to touch up her makeup and hair, Jiang Tao headed to the room originally reserved for their daughter, Jiang Xue.
That morning, he'd placed the golden toad in there but hadn't had a chance to study it closely.
He entered the room and closed the door behind him.
Jiang Tao walked to the dressing table, reached into a black trash bag, and pulled out the golden toad.
The originally bronze-colored toad shimmered with a dark golden glow in his vision.
Above the toad, two lines of text appeared:
**[Item Name]: Wealth-Attracting Golden Toad**
**[Status]: Unbound, Unactivated**
As he read the text, the method to activate the golden toad flashed in Jiang Tao's mind.
It was simple: just drip a drop of blood into its mouth to activate it and unlock a random attribute.
"Is this some kind of blood-binding ritual? So outdated, not modern at all."
He grumbled, but Jiang Tao was still excited about the toad's hidden special attributes.
He removed a small brooch from his sweater.
Gritting his teeth, he pricked his left index finger but failed to break the skin.
He really couldn't bring himself to do it!
After two more tries, he finally pierced his finger, and a small bead of crimson blood emerged.
Jiang Tao quickly extended his finger over the toad's mouth.
With a gentle shake, the blood droplet fell into the toad's mouth.
**[Item binding in progress, please wait…]**
**[Item activating, please wait…]**
**[Item successfully bound and activated!]**
**[Item Name]: Wealth-Attracting Golden Toad**
**[Bound To]: Jiang Tao**
**[Attribute]: Wealth from All Directions**
**[Wealth from All Directions]: The Wealth-Attracting Golden Toad can absorb 10,000 points of wealth energy per day. Wealth energy converts to cash at a 1:1 ratio.**
**[The Wealth-Attracting Golden Toad has currently accumulated 5 points of wealth energy. Would you like to convert it to cash now?]**
*Gulp…*
After reading the description, Jiang Tao couldn't help but swallow hard.
Ten thousand points of wealth energy per day, at a 1:1 conversion rate, meant 10,000 yuan a day!
That's 300,000 yuan a month.
And 3.65 million yuan a year!
With this thing, even if he just lazed around in the capital, he'd live more comfortably than most people!
A passive income of 300,000 yuan a month—what kind of concept was that?
It was like having over a hundred million in the bank!
This thing was practically a supercharged golden rice bowl!
At that moment, Jiang Tao finally understood what netizens meant by "a cheated life is awesome."
A life of constant cheating—what a thrill!
This was like spending 700 yuan to buy a cheat code with an annual passive income of 3.65 million!
It was just too awesome!
While he was lost in thought, Jiang Tao noticed the toad had accumulated 20 points of wealth energy.
He tried converting the wealth energy to cash and initiated a withdrawal.
The next second, he heard the sound of money landing.
Checking his phone, he saw a 20-yuan transfer had arrived in his Alipay account—withdrawal successful!
"Another steady stream of income from now on. Not bad, not bad."
Jiang Tao's eyes gleamed as he looked at the Wealth-Attracting Golden Toad on the dressing table.
He'd have to treat this "ancestor" with care from now on!
If that jerk from this morning knew he'd traded a cheat code for a pack of cigarettes, he'd probably cry himself unconscious in the bathroom.
Pocketing his phone, Jiang Tao carefully picked up the toad and left the room to find a safe place for it.
No matter where he thought to put it, it didn't feel secure enough—he was terrified of it being stolen.
"I'll have to buy a safe to lock it up. That'll be secure!"
Muttering to himself, Jiang Tao carried the toad into the master bedroom.
"Hubby, why'd you bring that thing in here? Ew, it's so ugly~"
Xu Li, touching up her makeup at the dressing table, saw the toad in Jiang Tao's hands and grimaced.
"Don't call it ugly. This thing's been blessed, just like that river stone I gave you—it's super effective."
"This is our family's wealth god. We've got to treat it well."
As he spoke, Jiang Tao opened the bedside cabinet, carefully placed the toad inside, and closed the door.
"Really? Then we've got to treat it well."
"But, dear husband, why'd you lock our wealth god in a cabinet? Is that how you 'treat it well'?"
Xu Li burst into laughter at her own words, finding her husband's quirky behavior quite amusing.
"I'm just worried it'll get stolen. Better safe than sorry."
"Are you ready? We should head out."
Jiang Tao stood up, turned to Xu Li, and his eyes lit up.
Her thin lips were freshly coated with vibrant yet subtle lipstick, her almond eyes and peachy cheeks exuding natural charm.
"Hubby, check if there's anything else I need to fix."
"It's our first time meeting Xiao Xue's future teacher. I want to make a good impression."
Xu Li spun around in front of Jiang Tao, showing off her figure from every angle.
"Perfect~"
Jiang Tao mimicked Jin Xing's gesture, giving his highest approval.
"Hehe, gotta match my handsome hubby~"
Xu Li walked over, linked arms with Jiang Tao, her eyes brimming with affection.
If her younger sister Xu Sha saw this, she'd probably roll her eyes and mutter about her sister's lovesick brain acting up again.
Dressed and ready, Xu Li held Jiang Tao's arm as they chatted and laughed their way out the door.
At the elevator, they pressed the down button and waited.
*Creak.*
As they waited, a door behind them made a sound, followed by a loud *bang* as it closed.
A man in his forties, wearing black-framed glasses and a serious expression, with medium-length parted hair, stepped out holding a black briefcase and stood behind them.
Noticing someone approaching, Xu Li quieted down.
Jiang Tao, new to the area, had no intention of getting to know the neighbors and stayed silent.
After about three minutes, an elevator arrived from upstairs with a *ding*.
Jiang Tao, Xu Li, and the man behind them entered the elevator and rode down together.
Once downstairs, Jiang Tao and Xu Li found their Mercedes GLS parked in the community's public parking area and drove toward Aidi International Kindergarten.
"Hubby, that guy who came down with us looked so serious. Definitely not the friendly type."
"If he's not friendly, we don't need to deal with him. In big cities, plenty of neighbors live on the same floor for a decade without knowing each other."
"Hubby, how much are houses around here? How much would a place like ours cost?"
"My master said it's about 37,000 to 38,000 per square meter. Our place is 138 square meters—do the math."
"Thirty-seven thousand times one hundred thirty-eight equals… equals…"
Xu Li pulled out her phone and started calculating earnestly.
"5,106,000! Oh my gosh!"
"Even winning the lottery's first prize wouldn't cover it after taxes! No wonder it's the capital—this housing market is insane."
"Can't afford it, can't afford it. Let's just keep renting."
After calculating the house's value, Xu Li stuck out her tongue playfully, shaking her head and muttering about how unaffordable it was.
"This is just outside the Fifth Ring. Inside the Second or Third Ring, prices are double or more."
"Don't worry, renting is just temporary. In a year or two, we'll buy a place outright in an even better part of the capital."
"Then I'll get you a Maserati or something so you can cruise around in style."
Jiang Tao drove with a confident smile.
With the daily intelligence reports providing money-making tips and now the "money-making miracle" Wealth-Attracting Golden Toad, if he couldn't afford a house in the capital or a luxury car for his wife, he'd be the most pathetic protagonist with a cheat code in history.
If his story were written into a book, he'd be a Gotham Joker, mocked by countless netizens.
"You're amazing, hubby. Xiao Xue and I are so lucky to have you."
Xu Li gazed adoringly at Jiang Tao, who was driving single-handedly, and held his hand to her face.
At that moment, she felt like the happiest woman in the world.
Even without a car or a house, having her husband by her side was enough.
"But, forget the Maserati. If I drove one, people would think I'm doing WeChat marketing."
Xu Li's comment made her laugh, her fair skin glowing as she shook with amusement.
Jiang Tao chuckled too—Maseratis had been ruined by e-commerce and WeChat marketers.
"Congrats to Boss X for getting a Maserati" posts were everywhere.
Even real tycoons who could afford Maseratis were starting to shy away from them.
Once a symbol of status and wealth, the brand was now almost synonymous with online marketing.
Amid their laughter, the Mercedes GLS arrived at the gates of Aidi International Kindergarten.
From a few dozen meters away, Jiang Tao spotted a woman waiting at the entrance.
She wore a purple suit skirt, flesh-colored stockings, and her dark hair was neatly pinned up, revealing a slender, fair neck—a refined young woman.
"Hubby, is that Xiao Xue's future teacher?"
Xu Li checked the time on her phone—it was 2:57 p.m., almost exactly the time Jiang Tao had agreed on with the teacher.
"Probably… huh?"
As they got closer, Jiang Tao gradually made out the teacher's face and was struck with surprise.
"What's wrong, hubby?"
Xu Li noticed his unusual expression and asked curiously.
"Xiao Xue's teacher… she looks so much like my university homeroom teacher. It might actually be her."
"What? Your university teacher?"
Xu Li was stunned. What were the odds?!
Her husband's university teacher was now teaching their daughter?
*Skrrt!*
The Mercedes GLS stopped in front of Jiang Yi.
The driver and passenger doors opened simultaneously as Jiang Tao and Xu Li stepped out.
"Teacher Jiang? It's really you! You haven't changed a bit after all these years."
Jiang Tao was almost certain the woman before him was his former university homeroom teacher, Jiang Yi!
Of course, Jiang Yi wasn't that old.
When she taught Jiang Tao's class, she was only 23, just three or four years older than her students.
"Jiang Tao, it's really you! When I saw your information, I wondered if it could be you, and it really is!"
In a city as big as the capital, running into a former student like this was a pleasant surprise for Jiang Yi—though it was mostly shock!
Driving a million-yuan Mercedes, enrolling his daughter in a kindergarten with over 180,000 yuan in annual tuition, and with a wife who looked prettier than a TV star—her former student seemed to be doing very well for himself!
"Teacher Jiang, let me introduce you. This is my wife, Xu Li."
"Lili, this is my university homeroom teacher for four years, Teacher Jiang Yi."
"Hello, Teacher Jiang."
"Hello, Xu Li."
As Xu Li and Jiang Yi shook hands with smiles, they sized each other up, quietly comparing.
At 1.72 meters, Xu Li towered over the 1.65-meter Jiang Yi.
But with Jiang Yi's 5-centimeter open-toe heels, they appeared closer in height.
Xu Li had a tall, slender figure, while Jiang Yi had a fuller, petite charm.
In terms of looks and temperament, they were evenly matched.
"Get in, Lili. Teacher Jiang, I'll drive you both inside."
Jiang Tao called out with a smile, driving the two women into the campus.
Under Jiang Yi's guidance, he drove straight to the preschool section, where she led them on a tour.
Aidi International had not only a preschool but also elementary, middle, and high school divisions.
For families with the means, students could study here straight through to studying abroad.
According to the admissions teacher from the previous day, over 25% of Aidi's graduates were accepted into the world's top 20 universities.
Over 75% entered the top 50, and 100% made it into the top 100.
For those not studying abroad, the domestic university admission rate was essentially 100%.
With effort, top-tier universities like 985s and 211s were within reach.
After all, Aidi's preschool alone cost over 180,000 yuan a year.
Raising a child here from kindergarten to high school graduation would cost over 2 million yuan.
The cost of educating a child at Aidi was dozens of times higher than at an ordinary school!
If they didn't produce results, it would be inexcusable.
Jiang Yi gave Jiang Tao and Xu Li a thorough tour of the preschool section.
The learning area, play area, dining area, and rest area all exuded luxury and sophistication.
This place was a completely different world from the kindergarten in Jiangjiazhuang.
As they toured and listened to Jiang Yi's explanations, Xu Li began to like the place and felt the 180,000-yuan tuition wasn't so expensive after all.
After the tour, Jiang Yi took them to the admissions office, where they completed the enrollment process and paid 197,000 yuan in fees upfront.
Jiang Xue was successfully enrolled in Jiang Yi's K4 Class 2 preschool class.
Once the enrollment was complete, Xu Li looked at Jiang Yi earnestly and said,
"Teacher Jiang, Xiao Xue just came from the countryside, so she might not keep up with the pace here. Please look after her."
Jiang Yi smiled warmly.
"Don't worry. We teach according to each child's needs and treat every student like our own. I'll help her catch up quickly."
"Thank you so much."
"No trouble at all—it's my job."
"We'll head out then. See you at the start of the term."
With the tour done and enrollment finalized, Jiang Tao and Xu Li said goodbye to Jiang Yi and drove off.
It was just past 5 p.m. when they got home.
Their parents hadn't returned yet.
The couple went to the nearby Wumart supermarket for a big shopping trip.
Rice cooker, pressure cooker, frying pan, stewing pot—they bought everything they might need.
They also stocked up on grains, vegetables, meat, eggs, milk, and seasonings like oil, salt, soy sauce, and vinegar.
Xu Li even bought Jiang Tao plenty of kidney-nourishing foods like goji berries, shrimp, walnuts, cashews, and oysters.
The once-empty kitchen was no longer bare, and the fridge was filled with ingredients.
The fruit bowl on the living room coffee table now held a variety of washed fruits.
Jiang Tao's family life in the capital was gradually settling into place.