After that, the way they looked at me was clearly filled with awe! They were looking at me as if I were a god.
After verifying the identity and presenting the lottery ticket to confirm its authenticity, the procedures are completed, and tax officials stationed at the lottery center handle the tax payment procedures.
After working for more than an hour, everything was done, and when the huge sum of nearly six million was transferred into my account, I didn't show too much excitement on my face.
I know very well that this is just the first step! Just the very first step!
If everything goes smoothly, then with what I already have, this gain is nothing at all!
Finally, the man probably couldn't hold back any longer and pulled me aside to ask in a low voice, "Mr. Chen... forgive my impertinence, but do you have some unique secret to buying lottery tickets?"
I smiled happily and patted him on the shoulder: "Yes!"
"What is it?" But as soon as he said that, he looked embarrassed. Indeed, if I really had a secret, such a secret to getting rich, how could I tell others?
I smiled and then whispered a classic line in his ear.
"It's a matter of character."
When we stepped out of the office, reporters from the media were already waiting outside. Basically, every time a new lottery draw is held, several newspapers send people to stake out the area and interview the newly minted millionaire. However, today, after we came in, we heard outside that someone had won three tickets in a row, taking away over eight million yuan in one go. This news was somewhat unusual.
While I was inside, I guessed there were probably reporters outside, and the people at the lottery center might have already leaked some information about me while processing my paperwork, such as how I once won dozens of tickets in a row in those instant lottery games...
Before leaving, I was careful and deliberately walked behind. After opening the door, I pushed Qiaoqiao out first...
As soon as the beautiful woman stepped out, she heard the incessant flashing of camera lights outside. Caught off guard, Qiaoqiao almost fainted from the glare.
Immediately following was a surprised conversation among the reporters:
A: "Huh? Wasn't it supposed to be a man? How come it's a woman?"
B: "Yeah... I haven't heard that sex reassignment surgery in our country has reached this level, have I?"
C: "Damn! You three idiots, this is the real news! A transgender person has won a million-dollar lottery! This is definitely going to be on the front page!"
Not only did I hear those words, but Qiao Qiao heard them too. Seeing the murderous look on Miss Qiao's face, Aze and I quickly grabbed her on either side and rushed out…
Luckily, I had been careful and hadn't driven the car to the entrance of the welfare lottery shop; instead, I left it at the bottom of the ramp. We ran all the way out, and while the reporters were probably still searching at the entrance, we had already reached the parking lot below.
But there are still people waiting down there!
A wandering monk with a shiny scalp, wearing an old monk's robe, walked over. He wore glasses, had an inscrutable expression, wore cloth shoes, and carried a cloth bag.
Later I learned that scammers frequently frequent the area outside the welfare lottery center. This is basically their regular workplace!
Because those who come and go here are all lucky winners of the lottery, and these people are easy to swindle money from. By cleverly using some fortune-telling, physiognomy, and superstitious tricks, you can swindle a little bit of money from them.
Even if people don't believe it, those who win big prizes are very generous. They might say a few auspicious words and get a reward of ten or eight yuan.
It's quite a sight near the welfare lottery center.
The monk first stopped the wooden figure at the front, and loudly chanted a Buddhist prayer: "Amitabha! This humble monk greets you!"
The man didn't even glance at him out of the corner of his eye, treating him as if he were invisible, and walked past him, casually tossing out two words: "SB".
The monk rolled his eyes in anger, and seeing Aze approaching, he quickly stepped forward to stop him, shouting, "May Buddha have mercy! Benefactor! This humble monk sees that you possess considerable wisdom!"
Aze didn't budge an inch, letting the monk follow beside him, and sneered, "Nonsense! Every man has a root! One without a root is a eunuch!"
The monk nearly choked on his breath upon hearing this.
Then I saw Miss Qiao strut over. This guy probably changed his strategy; he probably figured that sweet talk wasn't working, so he decided to say something unpleasant, hoping it would scare her away.
As a result, this guy came straight at Qiaoqiao and immediately unleashed the supreme Buddhist skill, the Lion's Roar! He struck a pose reminiscent of a Buddhist blow to the head: "Damn! This female benefactor! You carry an ominous sign..."
Before she could finish speaking, Qiaoqiao suddenly flew into a rage and slapped him across the face.
With a snap, the high monk spun around 360 degrees, leaving five finger marks on his face. Then, Miss Qiao, her face contorted with rage, glared and shouted arrogantly, "You damned monk! Whether I wear a bra or not is none of your business!!"
Miss Qiao was already in a bad mood today, and then she delivered a groin kick to the monk's crotch. The guy cried out in pain and stayed in place, hopping like a rabbit...
Part One: In the Martial World, Not in Control of One's Own Fate, Chapter Eighty-Three: Fang Nan Returns
Suddenly having six million in your bank account, that feels really great...
I drove back home, and although several guys tried to rip me off by listing some of the most expensive and high-class restaurants in Nanjing, I insisted on eating at home.
At first, a few people disagreed, but I didn't care. The money was in my account, and those beasts wouldn't be able to get it out!
Moreover, Yan Di's cooking skills are quite appealing. We arrived home around noon. Yan Di had listened to me and gone to the farmers' market that morning, bringing back bags and bags of groceries. As I entered the house, I heard the sound of food being cooked in the kitchen. Aze had just walked in when he saw the little money-grubber and his eyes lit up. He was about to hug her when he suddenly noticed the kitchen knife in her hand. He quickly put his hands down and adopted a polite demeanor.
To be honest, having a girl like Yan Di at home is truly a comforting thing. Yan Di is the quintessential traditional, demure, and gentle type of girl—virtuous and docile. As soon as we sat down in the living room, Yan Di, acting like the lady of the house, brought out tea. Watching this beautiful young woman busy in the kitchen wearing an apron, Aze couldn't help but sigh, "Ah, this is what a woman should be like."
I nodded sincerely, "Yes, a woman should be presentable in public and capable in the kitchen. Virtuous and good at managing a household... Yan Di is wonderful, a great choice for a wife. That's the kind of woman you should marry!"
These words angered someone nearby… Qiao Qiao's expression turned somewhat unnatural. She glared at me and said, “What’s wrong? Does a woman have to be a good cook?”
I shook my head: "Not necessarily... A woman doesn't have to know how to cook, but for us men, the most desirable wife is one who can cook and manage the household."
Aze chimed in from the side, "Exactly. It's better than marrying someone you'd rather live ten years less, right?"
"Twenty years," Wood corrected briefly.
Qiaoqiao was furious upon hearing this, but she quickly suppressed her anger: "Who said I can't cook! Humph! Today I'll show you!"
After saying that, Miss Qiao went straight to the kitchen, snatched the cleaver from the little money-grubber's hand, and started chopping the potatoes on the cutting board...
Five minutes later, Amei came out to announce: The stir-fried shredded potatoes for lunch today have to be changed to mashed potatoes.
The three of us men burst into laughter.
Actually, I don't think Qiao Qiao needs to be so stubborn. We weren't saying those things to her. Miss Qiao isn't the demure, demure type of woman by nature. She's the kind of woman who speaks with her eyes wide open and kicks people when she gets excited... It would be awkward to see her wearing an apron and acting like a typical housewife.
What was most infuriating was when Qiaoqiao was washing the dishes and preparing the food. The three of us men were chatting and smoking outside when we heard a loud crashing sound of plates breaking in the kitchen. I was so scared that I rushed in and dragged Qiaoqiao out, pleading, "Grandma! Please have mercy! Don't be so ruthless. We only have a few plates. If you break them all, we'll have to eat from the pot for lunch."
Qiaoqiao was quite unhappy, looking sullen. She snapped, "What kind of lousy plates do you have! They break so easily! Next time you should use plastic ones!"
"Fine, fine! I'll replace all the floors with stainless steel later, okay?" I smiled wryly, "You can stay here and have some tea."
"No way!" It seemed that Miss Qiao was determined to make good use of her "virtuous" qualities today, and insisted on going in to take over the cooking for Yan Di, which scared Aze so much that he stopped her.
Seeing Aze's pale face, I didn't pay much attention at the time, but later I realized how ruthless Miss Qiao was!
Aze and Qiaoqiao knew each other a little longer than I did. Later, I heard from him that Qiaoqiao used to have pets.
They started with a very valuable, pure white Samoyed dog with excellent pedigree, which cost over 40,000 yuan! But in less than a week, the dog became skin and bones from hunger.
It wasn't that Qiaoqiao was abusing the dog and depriving it of food... it was just that she was too good to the pet. She insisted on cooking delicious meals for it every day, and as a result, the poor Samoyed couldn't keep it up for more than a week, vomiting everything it ate. Helpless, Qiaoqiao had no choice but to give it away with tears in her eyes.
Later, someone brought her a small local dog from the countryside. These dogs are known for their strong vitality, unpicky eating habits, and excellent survival skills...
This time, however, it lasted longer... Two weeks later, Qiaoqiao took the puppy to the vet. Luckily, the vet was highly skilled and miraculously saved the dog's life. Apparently, after eating Qiaoqiao's food, the dog stopped vomiting... but it still pooped out exactly the same thing it ate!
And even now, Qiaoqiao's family still keeps pets...
……turtle.
So when Aze heard that Qiaoqiao was going to cook herself, he turned green with fright and quickly grabbed her, trying to calm himself down: "Qiaoqiao, don't go, let's sit down and chat."
"This is boring, I don't want to talk, I want to cook! I, Miss Qiao, am a woman who can be both elegant in public and skilled in the kitchen!"
"Hmm, well... how about we play cards? Or we play video games! Chen Yang has some game consoles here, let's have a King of Fighters match!" Aze grabbed Qiao Qiao and wouldn't let go.
"No way," Qiaoqiao shook her head. "I want to cook."
Aze's eyes darted around: "Then let's flip a coin to decide!"
After saying that, he took out a coin: "Guess whether it's a head or a tail. If it's a head, we'll play cards! If it's a tail, we'll play video games!"
Qiaoqiao paused for a moment: "Then what about cooking?"
Aze sighed: "If the coin lands on its edge, I'll let you cook."
After much pleading, Qiaoqiao only made a cold dish, just to be on the festive side. But during the meal, I shamelessly placed that plate of cold dish in front of Aze…
My daughter Yan Di is a very good cook. Girls from modest families usually know how to manage household chores. Girls with Yan Di's gentle personality are almost rarer these days than pandas. I can only say I'm incredibly lucky to have met one.
At the dinner table, Yan Di and A Mei finally couldn't help but ask me what joyous occasion had occurred that day. I put down my chopsticks and told them everything, while also taking out the newspaper with the winning numbers and two bank cards.
"Holy crap!!" Ah Mei yelled, her body springing up like a spring, almost overturning the table. She stared at me with wide eyes: "You...you really won the lottery?!"
"uh-huh."
"Over eight million? You really won over eight million??" The little money-grubber's eyes were full of stars.
"To be precise, we won over eight million." I smiled. "You forgot? One of the tickets had your birthday as the number. I bought it for you. That ticket won the second prize, 460,000. After deducting personal income tax, I deposited the money into this card."
I pushed the card that I had prepared separately for the little money-grubber over, and he looked so surprised he almost fainted.
Seeing that the little money-grubber was a bit dazed, Aze and Qiaoqiao next to her had already narrowed their eyes. Judging from the way these two rascals were acting, it seemed like they were just waiting for Amei to faint so they could immediately go over and give her CPR...
The man at the table was still silently eating, seemingly oblivious to everything. Yan Di, sitting beside me, had joy in her eyes, but not excessive excitement. Her eyes, however, blinked as if they could speak, and she whispered, "Brother Wu...is it true? You've really become so rich?"
I blinked. "Really. It seems like I have a knack for the lottery. Didn't you see it with your own eyes last time?"
Yan Di smiled gently, and I placed my hand under the table, gently holding her small hand. I said softly, "I will have even more money in the future... As for you, little girl, you can just stay at home and be my little maid."
Yan Di smiled shyly. But she protested, "I...I'm not a maid!"
I smiled and squeezed her little hand: "You're not a maid, you're a young mistress, okay?"
Yan Di lowered her head at those words. Beside her, A Mei was staring blankly at the bank card in her hand. Then she suddenly sighed, took a deep look at the card in her hand, and put it back in front of me. Her expression was more serious than ever before: "Chen Yang, take it back."
"What?" I was stunned.
There was no hint of a joke on Amei's face. Her expression was serious as she said solemnly, "I, Amei, do like money, but this money isn't mine. I sometimes like to take advantage of you in small ways, because you're a man, right? But even if I like money, I only take what I'm entitled to! I won't take a single penny less of the money I've worked so hard to earn, but I won't take a single penny of this money that isn't mine."
I laughed and said, "It's not that exaggerated, Mei. Didn't we agree that the lottery ticket was a gift from me?"
Amei shook her head again: "Chen Yang, when I received the lottery ticket that day, I never thought you would win. I just thought it was a little joke you were playing on me. I thought that at most, I would win ten or twenty yuan, which would be pretty good. We're friends, and it's something to laugh about. But now... such a large sum of money, I won't take it."
Seeing that I was about to say something, Amei firmly said, "Chen Yang, take it back. I, Amei, like money, but I don't take just any kind of money. My mother always said that once a girl accepts other people's money casually, it's the beginning of her downfall!"
That's when I was really shocked.
To be honest, I never expected Ah Mei to have such a strong-willed side. In my mind, she was a typical little money-grubber, but I never imagined... this girl could be so principled!
Seeing the resolute expression on Amei's face, I slowly took back the card from the table, thought for a moment, and said, "Okay, Amei, I'll take the money back... But I really didn't expect you to be so generous. Sigh, you would argue with me over a few dozen yuan normally, but now you don't want hundreds of thousands of yuan even when it's right in front of you."
Amei rolled her eyes: "That's because you don't understand my noble sentiments! And... I don't need the money, but you won the grand prize. You should at least show some appreciation, right? Not even a red envelope, fine, but you should at least give me a gift, right? This time, you're not allowed to fool me with a lottery ticket again!"
I readily agreed.
Another bottle of red wine was opened, and everyone drank a few glasses. Even Yan Di, who has the lowest alcohol tolerance, took a couple of sips, and her face, flushed with the smell of alcohol, looked quite adorable.