Chapter 14: To Hell with Making a Million a Year! (Please Keep Reading!)

Jiang Tao had always been cautious throughout his life. Even after acquiring such an incredible intelligence system, he didn’t immediately abandon his original job. This thing had come suddenly—what if it suddenly disappeared again? It was easy to go from frugality to luxury, but hard to go the other way. The biggest trap on the road to financial freedom for ordinary people was consumption upgrade. When one’s earning ability improved, the temptation was to live in bigger houses, drive better cars, wear more expensive clothes, and eat finer meals. This wasn’t wrong, but such upgrades should come only after achieving financial freedom, not before. Blindly upgrading consumption and indulging oneself before reaching financial freedom would only prolong the process. Worse still, when a person fell into the consumption trap deliberately designed by capitalists and was controlled by material desires, they could easily miss the chance for financial freedom and spend their entire life in constant busyness.

The world-famous boxing champion Mike Tyson once earned over 500 million dollars but eventually went bankrupt due to excessive spending. Michael Jackson, the King of Pop, signed a billion-dollar contract and sold over 800 million records, yet he ended up over 300 million dollars in debt because of overspending and legal troubles. These were vivid, living examples.

Moreover, Jiang Tao still had tens of thousands of yuan in debt to repay. Although he had earned a considerable amount recently thanks to the intelligence system, he limited himself to a modest meal of lamb soup costing a few dozen yuan and a bottle of decent wine priced around a hundred yuan. His most pressing task now was to earn as much as possible before the New Year to clear the family’s debts so they could celebrate the holiday without worry.

Throughout the day, Jiang Tao had been busy hauling goods at the Red Star secondhand furniture wholesale market. Only when the market closed at 6:30 in the evening did he pack up and get off work. Adding the 29,800 yuan found in the sofa to the 400 yuan earned from the day’s work, his daily income officially surpassed the 30,000 yuan mark.

Driving home, Jiang Tao hummed happily, imagining earning 30,000 yuan every day. That would be 90,000 yuan a month, over a million a year! “Bah! I’ve got the intelligence system; why am I still thinking about a million a year? That’s just cursing myself!” he suddenly realized. With the intelligence system, 30,000 yuan a day was nothing. He could definitely make more in the future. Forget about a million a year—ten million, even several tens of millions, sounded more fitting!

Feeling even better, Jiang Tao bought a flatbread, a pound of pig’s head meat, and some cold dishes on the way home.

At home, the decade-old Niuer wine was only half-finished, so no need to buy more alcohol. Settling into his rented room, Jiang Tao ate the pig’s head meat with the flatbread while sipping the small amount of wine, enjoying a comfortable life. While eating, he contemplated whether to tell his wife about the 30,000 yuan found in the sofa. How would he even explain it? The phone he won from a tea lottery could be attributed to luck, but the cash hidden in the sofa? That would only bring trouble. After much thought, he decided to keep it to himself.

Just then, his phone rang—a video call from Xu Li. They chatted about family matters for more than an hour before ending the call. No sooner had he hung up than another call came in—“Brother Wang.”

“Hello, Brother Wang,” Jiang Tao answered with a smile.

“The light bulb’s broken? You’re not home?”

“Alright, no problem, it’s a small thing. I’ll head over right away.”

“Drive safely. Bye.”

After hanging up, Jiang Tao muttered to himself as he got up, slipped on his black cotton coat hanging on the rack, and stepped out. He headed toward the apartment where Wang Lianming and his wife rented.

Wang Lianming had just called to say a light bulb was broken and that only his wife was home. He was out delivering goods and wouldn’t be back for at least another hour, so Jiang Tao was asked to check it out first. After a five-minute walk, Jiang Tao arrived outside a neighboring old-style apartment building.

“小姜! You’re here! Sorry to trouble you,” said He Fang, who had been waiting downstairs for some time, greeting him with a smile.

He Fang was petite with a round, baby-faced visage and a dimple on one cheek when she smiled. No one would guess she was 37 and a mother of two children. Jiang Tao, standing at 1.82 meters, was over a head taller than her. Judging by her outfit, she had just returned from work: a light green down jacket over a women’s blazer and trousers of fine texture. Her work makeup was still fresh.

To be honest, Jiang Tao sometimes envied Brother Wang’s luck. Except for being a little shorter, He Fang was still quite attractive. If ten were perfect, she was about a seven. They had been married for over a decade; while Wang Lianming had become plump and bald with age, He Fang hadn’t changed much since their wedding photos.

Jiang Tao smiled politely and said, “Sister-in-law, there’s no need to be so formal with me. If you need anything, just let me know.”

“Xiao Jiang, have you eaten? If not, I can make some noodles for you later.”

“No, thank you. I’ve already eaten.”

“Alright then, suit yourself.”

They chatted and laughed as they entered the stairwell and went upstairs to apartment 206. The ceiling in these old-style buildings was just over two meters high. Jiang Tao could reach the ceiling by standing on a stool.

“Be careful, Xiao Jiang. I’ll hold you steady,” He Fang said as she steadied his legs with both hands.

“Uh…”

Jiang Tao felt an electric tingle rush through him and almost thought the wiring was leaking electricity. Embarrassed, he cleared his throat and continued unscrewing the broken lamp.

Soon, he removed the faulty lamp panel and replaced it with the new one He Fang had just bought downstairs. He Fang flipped the switch at the door, and the room instantly lit up brightly.

“Sister-in-law, you should get back to cooking. I won’t bother you anymore; I’ll head off now,” Jiang Tao said with a smile as he climbed down from the stool.

“You don’t have to rush home. Rest here for a while,” He Fang said with a bright smile, inviting him to stay.

“Brother Wang will be back soon. You both like to drink, so why not have a few drinks together? I’ll cook some dishes for you.”

“That’s too much trouble.”

“No trouble at all. You just sit and play on your phone while I change clothes.”

“Uh…” Jiang Tao’s heart suddenly raced when he heard He Fang mention changing clothes. She didn’t treat him as an outsider at all! Their apartment was just a one-bedroom!

“Oh, Sister-in-law, I just remembered I have water boiling at home. I better get going. I’ll drop by to drink with Brother Wang another day!” Jiang Tao quickly found an excuse to leave, not wanting to be misunderstood.