Chapter 124: System Upgraded Again, And A Wronged Zhang Chao!
In the blink of an eye, half a month had passed since Jiang Tao’s family of five arrived in the capital.
Jiang Xue officially enrolled in Aidi International Kindergarten, becoming a new student in Class 2 of K4.
She went from a kindergarten in a small village straight into an elite international school like Aidi.
For the first few days, Jiang Xue was a little unaccustomed.
She cried every day, not wanting to go to school, wanting to go home, and missing her friends from her old class.
Under Jiang Yi’s careful nurturing and patient guidance.
In less than a week, Jiang Xue had integrated into her new class and made many new friends.
Although there was still a considerable gap between her results in various aspects and those of the other children in the class.
Jiang Xue shared a similar trait with her father, Jiang Tao: she was carefree.
The little one didn’t worry about her results at all, she had fun every day, and she talked non-stop when she got home.
Today she made a new friend, tomorrow she gained a little brother, and she gradually forgot her old friends at home.
Moreover, children’s learning or imitation abilities are actually very strong.
Being in an environment with the learning atmosphere and unique characteristics of Aidi International Kindergarten, Jiang Xue’s progress was so rapid that it even surprised Jiang Tao.
She had zero English foundation, not even recognizing all 26 letters of the English alphabet.
In just over ten days at Aidi, Jiang Xue’s spoken English level had completely surpassed Jiang Tao’s.
When the little one started speaking gibberish at home, Jiang Tao would get a headache and have to ask her to speak Chinese.
After graduating from university, Jiang Tao had basically no further contact with English in his daily life, except for occasionally watching Western blockbusters.
Most of what he learned in school was returned to the teacher.
Xu Li, however, had no pressure.
She was still a full-time stay-at-home mother, just like before.
While tutoring Jiang Xue, she was also studying and progressing every day, growing alongside her daughter.
In the past half month since arriving in the capital, she had become familiar with the various supermarkets around the residential area and had resumed her role of grocery shopping and cooking at home.
After everyone left the house during the day, she would do laundry and clean at home.
She also followed KEEP’s courses to practice yoga and do fitness routines.
Xu Li’s already excellent figure became even more toned due to exercise.
In her words, she would endure the hardship of fitness, and Old Jiang wouldn’t have to do anything, just enjoy the doubled benefits of her post-fitness happiness.
Her father, mother, and Old Sun had almost visited all the famous attractions in the capital city.
Tiananmen, Forbidden City, Bird’s Nest, Water Cube, Summer Palace, Old Summer Palace, Fragrant Hills, Badaling Great Wall, and so on, and so on…
Their footprints and souvenir photos were left at every scenic spot.
After more than a month of pleasant time together, from Jiang Family Village to the capital city.
Jiang Tao’s family of five and Old Sun’s relationship also gradually deepened.
Jiang Xue even recognized Old Sun as her godfather.
Jiang Tao had also entered “work mode” in the past half month.
Although he wasn’t actually working, he still had to put on an act.
He couldn’t just be idle at home every day.
Every morning at past 8 AM, he would drive to Panjiayuan for a stroll.
He would “get off work” and return home around 5 PM.
However, Jiang Tao’s luck during this period had been rather mediocre.
Even with high-intensity patrols of Panjiayuan every day, he hadn’t triggered any intelligence related to finding bargains.
Fortunately, with the Money-Attracting Golden Toad providing a basic living guarantee of 10,000 yuan every day, Jiang Tao wasn’t worried.
Previously, he only earned seven or eight thousand yuan a month after working tirelessly.
Now, without doing anything, he had a guaranteed income of 300,000 yuan, which was a significant improvement in his life.
With an income of 300,000 yuan a month, what was there to be anxious about?
This income was sufficient to maintain the current high standard of living.
300,000 yuan of pocket money a month was simply not enough to spend!
Although he hadn’t received any valuable intelligence during this period, Jiang Tao wasn’t entirely without income.
The signed card of Director Jiaozi that he had previously opened from the Dou Tian Bao was successfully sold for 98,000 yuan.
The 100,000 yuan bonus for reporting a fugitive at the Ping County Police Station had also completed the approval process.
He had asked his uncle, who was still in their hometown, to collect the bonus and gave his uncle 30,000 yuan as a hardship fee.
Furthermore, the cattle farm project had been laid out.
Liu Zhiyuan and Shan Yufei had acquired another 200 cows from several surrounding districts and counties, bringing the total to 300.
They just needed to wait for the opportune moment to start selling for profit.
At that time, Jiang Tao would also receive five times the doubling revenue.
In addition, he still had two important pieces of intelligence that he hadn’t acted upon yet.
One was about Mercedes-Benz GLS having to compensate three times the price.
The other was Zhang Chao’s background.
Regarding the Mercedes-Benz matter, knowing that Du Ennan was busy with work recently, Jiang Tao did not rush to disturb her.
He had solid evidence for this matter, so there was no urgency.
As for Zhang Chao’s situation, he hadn’t found a suitable opportunity to talk to him yet.
If these two pieces of intelligence were handled well, it would bring in millions more in revenue.
These were the foundations upon which Jiang Tao could face life with composure.
During this recent period, no valuable intelligence had been refreshed.
Jiang Tao had begun to reconsider a question.
Should he spend 1 million yuan to upgrade the Daily Intelligence System to Level 3?
After completing the task of continuing the family line.
His nest egg already had over a million yuan.
Coupled with the proceeds from the Ultraman Hair Clip and the Flying Pig Popcorn Bucket, which had basically been settled.
Even after splitting with Xu Li 50/50, Jiang Tao had received sixty to seventy thousand yuan in profit.
At this moment, he had nearly 2 million yuan in cash in his nest egg alone.
Whether to upgrade was purely a matter of his desire, as his funds were ample.
In the dormitory building of Lu Qian’s family on Xiao Shahe, in the rental room where Jiang Tao used to live.
Jiang Tao sat on the bed, smoking, and finally decided to spend 1 million yuan to upgrade the system.
In any case, he would have to upgrade it eventually, so sooner was better!
He didn’t have any suitable investment projects at the moment that required investment.
His nest egg of nearly 2 million yuan in deposits had nowhere to be spent.
Each additional piece of intelligence each day meant one more opportunity.
If he was lucky, one piece of intelligence might even recoup the cost!
【 Is it okay to immediately spend 1 million to upgrade the system? 】
“Yes!”
【 Deducting payment, please wait… 】
【 Payment successful, system is upgrading, estimated to take 4 hours… 】
Jiang Tao glanced at his mobile phone, which showed it was already 6 PM.
The system upgrade would be completed around 10 PM.
He would be able to refresh one more piece of intelligence tomorrow.
He couldn’t help but feel a little excited!
Ding-a-ling—
As soon as Jiang Tao finished operating the system upgrade, his phone rang.
The name displayed on the screen was “Foot Massage Chao.”
Jiang Tao swiped his finger and answered the call.
“Hello, Zhang Chao.”
“If you’re treating, I have time.”
“Haha, okay, I happen to be in Xiao Shahe right now.”
“Alright, we’ll talk when we meet later.”
After a brief conversation on the phone, Jiang Tao pressed his finger to hang up and got up to go downstairs.
“Hey! Xiao Jiang, haven’t seen you in a while, I thought you weren’t coming from your hometown!”
“Where are you going? Come to my place for dinner today, let the three of us have a few drinks.”
As Jiang Tao went downstairs, he ran into Old Lu and Ma Dongmei, who were returning from buying groceries.
The smile on Old Lu’s face was exceptionally bright, clearly indicating some progress with Ma Dongmei.
Ma Dongmei also smiled when she saw Jiang Tao, making a few gestures with her hand, which left Jiang Tao completely bewildered.
Old Lu chuckled and translated, “Dongmei also said she’s very happy to see you again, my fellow villager.”
Jiang Tao responded with a smile, “I stayed home for a few extra days during the Spring Festival to be with my family. Brother Lu and Aunt Ma seem to be progressing well.”
Lu Qian laughed, “Hahaha, it’s all thanks to you, kid. Xiao Mei and I were able to get together.”
“Xiao Jiang, you can’t leave today no matter what. Let the three of us have a few drinks.”
“I’m sorry, Brother Lu, it’s really not a good time today.”
“I just made plans to have dinner with a fellow villager. Maybe another day, let’s get together when we have time.”
“Is that so? Since you already have plans, we’ll do it another day. We’ll get together then.”
“Then I’ll be going.”
Jiang Tao waved goodbye to Lu Qian with a smile and strode away.
He bought two bottles of the hundred-yuan-plus Niulanshan Erguotou liquor at Pang Dongdong Supermarket.
He also bought some braised meat and cooked food.
Carrying a load of bags and packages, Jiang Tao headed towards the dormitory building where Zhang Chao rented a room.
It took less than a 5-minute walk for Jiang Tao to arrive downstairs from Zhang Chao’s rented room.
After entering, he went upstairs along the dark hallway.
“Brother Jiang, why did you bring so many things?”
“I’ve already prepared the wine and dishes. You’re being too formal.”
Zhang Chao quickly greeted him and invited him in upon seeing Jiang Tao carrying a pile of grocery bags.
“Let’s not talk about that, brother. The main goal is to eat and drink well.”
Jiang Tao said with a smile and placed the wine and food he was carrying on the small round table placed in the middle of the rental room.
The small room Zhang Chao rented was similar to Jiang Tao’s.
It was only about ten square meters.
Inside, there was only an empty bed and a small fabric wardrobe he had bought himself.
And then there was this small table for eating and playing cards.
The two brothers sat opposite each other on one side of the small round table.
Each with a wine glass and a pair of chopsticks, they started drinking directly.
After the two brothers finished a bottle while drinking and chatting, Zhang Chao’s speech became more voluble.
“Brother Jiang, from now on, I’ll be a solitary person, a lost soul even if I die.”
“No, what nonsense are you talking about, kid? When you called me today, I could tell something was off with you.”
“Don’t be so pessimistic. Tell me what happened, and your brother will guide you. There’s no hurdle in this world that can’t be overcome.”
Jiang Tao, while eating roasted peanuts, poured Zhang Chao another cup and said with a smile, guiding him.
“Heh, Brother Jiang, as the saying goes, family secrets shouldn’t be aired, but I don’t consider you an outsider, and I’m not afraid of you laughing at me.”
“To tell you the truth, today, I’ve severed ties with my parents. I will never go back to my hometown in this lifetime, I damn…”
After saying this, Zhang Chao put his hands together and slumped onto the small round table, sobbing.
A grown man of twenty-eight crying like this, how much grievance must he have suffered…
Jiang Tao looked at Zhang Chao, who burst into tears without warning, and was momentarily speechless.
“It’s okay, Chaozi. Cry, cry. It’s not a sin for a man to cry. Just let out whatever grievances you have.”
Jiang Tao reached out and patted Zhang Chao’s sobbing, heaving shoulders, and sighed to comfort him.
“Brother Jiang, I’m having such a hard time, I’m having such a damn hard time.”
Zhang Chao looked up, wiped the tears from the corners of his eyes haphazardly, and after pouring out his heart to Jiang Tao, his mood immediately improved significantly.
Zhang Chao’s close friends in the capital were only Liu Zhiyuan and Shan Yufei.
These two brothers were currently feeding cattle for Jiang Tao at the cattle farm in their hometown, waiting for the next plan.
Therefore, the only person Zhang Chao could find in the capital to drink with was Jiang Tao, his fellow villager who was a few years older than him.
“What exactly happened, Zhang Chao? Are you facing any difficulties?”
“If you need money, I don’t have a lot, but I can lend you eighty or a hundred thousand.”
Jiang Tao’s tone was extremely sincere.
Others didn’t know Zhang Chao’s true identity, but Jiang Tao did.
He wasn’t really worried about Zhang Chao not being able to repay him this small amount of money in the future.
If he didn’t repay, Jiang Tao would go to Xia Hua Liang Zi every day and order the “overlord set meal,” charging it to his account.
Of course, this was just a joke.
Jiang Tao couldn’t even satisfy his little glutton at home right now, so he naturally didn’t have the energy to go chasing after stray cats.
“Brother Jiang…”
Zhang Chao looked at Jiang Tao with gratitude, his heart deeply touched.
He had no relation to Brother Jiang, yet Brother Jiang was willing to lend him money.
And not just ten or twenty thousand, but eighty or a hundred thousand!
Nowadays, even biological brothers might not lend you eighty or a hundred thousand!
Although Zhang Chao didn’t need to borrow money, he appreciated Jiang Tao’s kindness and kept it in his heart.
Jiang Tao’s image in his mind grew even taller.
“How much do you need? I’ll transfer it to you.”
As Jiang Tao spoke, he reached into his pocket and took out his mobile phone to transfer money to Zhang Chao.
“No, no, Brother Jiang, you’ve misunderstood. I didn’t come to you to cry about being poor or to borrow money.”
“Although, the reason for the incident was indeed because of money.”
Zhang Chao quickly waved his hands, indicating that he didn’t need to borrow money.
Jiang Tao cursed with a smile, “What exactly is it? Stop beating around the bush, kid. We’ve finished a bottle of wine, and you still haven’t told me the main point.”
“Sigh! This afternoon, my mom called me again, asking me to gather 80,000 yuan for my brother to buy a house in Ping County.”
“Don’t laugh at me, Brother Jiang. Although I’ve earned some money over the years, I’m used to spending carelessly, and not much is left at the end of the year.”
“I really don’t have 80,000 yuan on me, but my mom doesn’t believe me. She scolded me terribly on the phone, saying she raised me for nothing and called me ungrateful.”
“Brother Jiang, I, I’m 28 this year, and I’ll be 30 soon.”
Zhang Chao patted his chest, his emotions running high:
“Even if I’m a brother, why should I use the money I worked hard to earn to buy a house for my brother, or for his marriage?”
“Who the hell has ever considered me, or cared about me a little?”
“Do I just not deserve to go on blind dates, get married, or have my own home?”
As Zhang Chao spoke, tears of grievance welled up again, making him look like a big child.
“This matter, your parents’ actions are indeed not very decent…”
Jiang Tao frowned slightly, not entirely agreeing with Zhang Chao’s parents’ actions.
Having also come from a rural area, Jiang Tao had some understanding of the current rural marriage market.
A car, a house, and a betrothal gift, it would cost at least five or six hundred thousand.
With their family’s conditions, to put it bluntly, it would be good if the entire family’s effort could be used to help one son get married.
Their parents’ actions clearly indicated they had given up on him and passed on the responsibility of continuing the family line to his brother.
As for why it was his brother and not him, it was because he wasn’t their biological son.
Given the poor family conditions and limited assistance, whether the two brothers could get married depended on their own abilities.
There was no reason to drain one to subsidize the other.
“You didn’t hear how nastily my mom scolded me.”
“She cursed at me for half an hour on the phone without repeating herself. She didn’t even scold that hard when she was arguing in the village.”
“Heh, my brother called to complain that I shouldn’t have angered my mom so much, saying I was a bad son, heh, heh…”
“So it’s not like he’s the one paying for the house, he’s saying it so lightly!”
“My dad also called me and said I’m no longer his son and that I should die outside and not come home.”
“These are my parents, my brother!”
“This time, I’ve completely fallen out with my family. If I can avoid it, I really don’t want to go back.”
“Brother Jiang, I truly envy you.”
“You have good parents, a good wife, and a daughter who is so lively and cute.”
Zhang Chao’s smile was filled with bitterness, and he said with a self-deprecating laugh:
“Brother Jiang, do you think I might have been picked up from a trash can by my parents? Or adopted from someone else’s home?”
