章 2: Chapter 2 Double Income
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This damn crow's mouth.
I just blabbered yesterday, and it really did rain.
His home is located in Beixin'an, a village within the city that lies beyond the fifth ring road and near the sixth ring of Capital City, with a small one-bedroom, one-living room apartment that also includes a small kitchen.
The rent is 1,500 yuan a month.
A large courtyard with three entrances and exits would cost a fortune within the third ring, but here in these village-like neighborhoods, it's basically the kind of rental housing for outsiders like them.
In such a big courtyard, there were more than ten households living in it, many of whom he had recommended.
The rain was pouring down non-stop, and Song Yanxi got up early to wash before boiling a big pot of noodles, adding two steamed eggs.
Chen An'an was still in kindergarten, and now that it was the holiday, she had become a little fond of sleeping in.
She was listlessly picked up by her mother by her little butt, with her eyes only half-open, her eyelids fluttering and nearly falling back asleep without paying attention.
"Pingsheng, if you're not busy later, take An'an out to play!"
Chen An'an, who was still not fully awake, lit up with her big eyes at the mention of going out to play with her dad.
Unfortunately, even if it were raining, he still had to go out to make money.
"We'll see later. If I don't get any orders, I'll take her out to play."
After a simple breakfast, Chen Pingsheng, with his small electric scooter, put on his raincoat and firstly dropped his wife off at work.
By day, she worked as a customer service representative at an internet company, and after work, she would sell flowers on a street popular with young people.
By the end of the month, her income wasn't bad, and it was clear that both husband and wife were striving for their little home.
Even in the early morning, there were still many people in the capital city.
Those who were running hurriedly through the rain were all workers like them.
Song Yanxi waved at him before turning around to go to work.
Chen Pingsheng himself then headed home, remembering the sudden "ding" in his mind last night.
According to those online novels he had read, this was definitely a system, or "Golden Finger," that could change his fate.
What could it be?
When he got home, Chen Pingsheng couldn't wait to open that ripple in his mind, and in front of him appeared a line of golden script.
It started with an introduction.
[Host: Chen Pingsheng]
[Age: 30]
[Level: LV1]
[Today's income: 0]
[Explanation: Each day, based on one's income, a chance to win a multiplier lottery draw is available. At level LV1, the reward multiplier can range from 2 to 10 times.]
Can it be used like this?
According to this system's explanation, if he earned five hundred today, he could get a chance at the multiplier lottery. If he rolled a 10 times multiplier, wouldn't that jump straight to five thousand?
Tsk... that's exciting, an excitement unmatched.
This "Golden Finger" is too powerful. If it could be like this, he could definitely have a chance to make a fortune.
Chen Pingsheng rubbed his hands together and gave his hopeful-looking Chen An'an a big kiss.
The little one still remembered her mother saying they'd go out to play, and she was full of anticipation.
Chen Pingsheng didn't have the heart for that now, but he still comforted her.
"An'an, Daddy needs to go out to make money now. Once I make some money, I'll take you wherever you want to play, okay?"
Chen An'an was a bit disappointed but still nodded obediently.
Dad always said that, but he had never taken her once.
All those places the other little friends had visited, she was so eager to go too.
Chen Pingsheng really had no choice. Next year she would be in first grade, and if he didn't sort out the housing situation, no good school would be willing to take a child with an outsider's household registration like hers.
Education is tightly bound with real estate.
If outsiders like them couldn't buy a house, there would be no hope of getting their children into a good school.
Chen An'an often stayed home alone, eating snacks when hungry, and she even cooked noodles for herself from time to time.
It was heartbreaking how sensible she was.
Chen Pingsheng locked the door and went to the next door to give a couple of instructions.
He knew every one of the roughly ten households in the courtyard; it was pouring rain outside, and he definitely couldn't go out to sell durians today.
He'd have to see if he could land a moving job.
Who would say his luck wasn't good? Just as he stepped out of the courtyard and reached the old tree, he encountered a young girl holding a big black umbrella, looking frail and delicate.
"Miss, did you just move here?"
"Yes."
She was a pretty girl, though a bit thin, with a sweet smile.
Zhao Liying took the initiative to ask, "Are you also living here, big brother? Do you know where I can find movers?"
"Yes, I live over there."
Chen Pingsheng pointed to where he lived, and then said, "I usually sell durians outside, but help people move on rainy days; that tricycle is mine."
The tricycle he'd bought two years ago, weathered by sun and rain alongside him, was still very eye-catching.
Zhao Liying was a little delighted upon hearing that he was a mover.
She had just moved here from far beyond the sixth ring road.
After talking for a while, Chen Pingsheng learned that this girl was actually an actress.
The kind with a name he had never heard, which showed that she wasn't doing too well.
That made sense; if an actress was doing well, why would she move to a place like this?
Chen Pingsheng was not a man for excess frills; he had always been sincere with people.
And he spoke plainly.
"I say, miss, I never would have guessed you were an actress. Later, you have to help me get an autograph. If you become a big star in the future, it'll be a proud capital for me!"
Zhao Liying's smile was sincerely sweet; her dream since childhood was to be an actress.
It was hard to imagine, looking at her optimistic face, that she had been an extra for four years.
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In other words, he'd lived four years without hope.
Where was the future? All seemed hazy.
The two of them chatted and clicked instantly, both disheartened dreamers in the big city.
Still, business had to carry on as usual. Zhao Liying had lived too far away before, a roundtrip taking over four hours.
That was the least of it. The real issue was that she lived on the sixth floor in a building without an elevator.
The furniture inside had all been acquired bit by bit over the years, symbolizing the youth she had spent in those four years drifting in the north.
It also represented her four years of struggle in the entertainment industry.
All of this he had to move. Chen Pingsheng gave her a discounted rate of a thousand yuan.
It was a two-person job, but he could manage alone.
As long as it meant earning more money, Chen Pingsheng wasn't afraid of hard work.
Not earning money was the real hardship.
"Mr. Chen, why don't you get someone else to help?"
Upon arriving at her place, Zhao Liying still worried he couldn't manage by himself, even with her help it would be tough.
After all, there was quite a lot of stuff.
Having finally landed a job that paid a thousand, how could Chen Pingsheng call someone else? That would just be giving away money for no reason.
"No problem, I can handle this amount of stuff by myself."
Chen Pingsheng brought over the special moving straps, secured the small sofa with them, and began the descent, step by step.
If he encountered anyone on the way, he had to step aside.
Sweating through his clothes on a cold day was a novel experience.
Making money never came without fatigue.
Zhao Liying pitched in as well, but being a woman, there was only so much she could do. She only handled items that were lighter.
After seven or eight trips up and down,
they finally moved all the items from the room downstairs.
It was still pouring rain outside, and Chen Pingsheng covered the furniture with a tarp to protect it as best as he could.
He tried to avoid getting them wet.
He then donned a raincoat for himself, and Zhao Liying wore a black one too. His tricycle was larger than usual, loud on the road,
but otherwise, it was fine.
The two rode home together amidst the clattering noise.
By the time they reached home, it was already three in the afternoon, and Chen An'an was still locked in her room.
Hearing someone open the door, she ran over joyfully. She had boiled herself a small bowl of noodles for lunch, with hardly any oil, and cooked an egg as well.
Knowing her dad was back, she immediately turned off the TV, which had been airing her favorite Teletubbies.
Then, she quickly laid out her homework book and waited eagerly behind the door.
"Little Ying, this is my home, we're neighbors now."
As luck would have it, Zhao Liying had rented the room next door, empty for almost three months.
It was a similar one-room apartment.
Chen Pingsheng brought her over to make acquaintance since, in the countryside, neighbors weren't as cold as they were in the city.
In the city, you could live for decades without knowing your neighbor's name.
That was unimaginable in the countryside.
After moving the furniture, Chen Pingsheng brought her over to formally introduce themselves.
"Brother, is this your child? So cute."
Chen An'an, with her small ponytail and baby fat, had a chubby little face.
Who wouldn't say she was super cute?
"Hello, auntie."
Chen An'an's eyes curved with her smile. She was good at greeting strangers and wasn't shy at all.
Of course, she wouldn't talk to strangers without her parents nearby.
Zhao Liying instantly adored the cute little girl.
Dinner hadn't been made yet, and Chen Pingsheng, after a morning of physical labor, was famished.
He whipped up two simple dishes in the kitchen and made some fragrant egg-fried rice with the leftover rice cooked that morning.
Life was rather simple.
Since it was their first meeting, Zhao Liying naturally felt awkward staying to eat.
She said with a smile, "Mr. Chen, I really want to thank you for today. Do you have Alipay? I'll transfer the thousand yuan to you."
Of course, he did.
Chen Pingsheng took out his payment code for her to scan.
With a "ding," one thousand yuan arrived.
[Today's income: one thousand yuan]
[Would you like to open the random earnings multiplier now?]
In his mind, a line of golden text appeared once again.
Chen Pingsheng was excited, he couldn't wait to see the effect of the Golden Finger.
"Open it."
Two golden dice appeared, bearing only the numbers one to five with no six.
Chen Pingsheng called out "stop."
The one on the left showed a three, and the right one the smallest one, adding up to four.
[Congratulations, host, for attaining a four-times multiplier]
[Your Alipay account has been credited with four thousand yuan, balance four thousand five hundred.]
Hmph... Chen Pingsheng was so excited he nearly jumped three meters high.
With the Golden Finger, whether it was buying a house or raising a child, would it be a problem anymore?
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