Better to believe it's possible than to assume it's not!
Going to the trash bins to look for a bottle cap wouldn't cost him anything.
At most, it'd waste a few minutes of his time.
But if it was real, that'd be an iPhone!
Worth at least a few thousand yuan!
Jiang Tao immediately pushed open the car door, got out, and swayed toward the trash bins near the west gate.
"Huh? Someone beat me to it!"
From a distance, Jiang Tao saw an old man in a green military coat standing by a row of trash bins, rummaging through them.
Seeing this, Jiang Tao's heart instantly tensed up.
This old man better not snatch the "opportunity" that was rightfully his!
Quickening his pace, Jiang Tao approached and noticed a pile of cardboard, plastic boards, and beverage bottles scattered on the ground next to the old man.
The old man stopped what he was doing when he noticed Jiang Tao's arrival, eyeing him warily.
"Haha, don't look at me like that, sir. I'm not here to steal your business. Want a cigarette?"
Jiang Tao chuckled, trying to explain himself, and pulled a cigarette from his pocket, offering it to the old man.
One cigarette was enough to ease the old man's guard, and his gaze softened considerably.
"Go ahead and do your thing, sir. I accidentally threw out my thermos when I was tossing some trash earlier. Just looking for it."
"If I find it, great. If not, no big deal."
Jiang Tao lit a cigarette and walked toward the third green trash bin from the left.
Taking a deep breath and mentally preparing himself, he started digging through the bin!
Thankfully, the trash bins here were relatively clean—no food waste or bad smells.
The bin mostly contained dust, scrap cardboard, bits of wood, and various bottles and cans.
"Iced tea bottle cap…"
Jiang Tao rummaged through the bin for seven or eight minutes.
Whenever he found recyclable items worth some money, he tossed them to the ground near the old man's feet.
This gesture increased the old man's goodwill toward him even more.
In total, Jiang Tao found three iced tea bottles during his search.
Two were regular small bottles, and one was a 1-liter large bottle.
He unscrewed the caps from all three bottles, stuffed them into his pocket, and tossed the bottles to the old man scavenging nearby.
After about ten minutes, Jiang Tao had turned the third trash bin upside down, ensuring he hadn't missed anything before stopping.
And, as luck would have it, he actually found a discarded stainless steel thermos in the bin!
"Found it! I'm outta here, sir! Keep at it! Wishing you prosperity!"
Grinning, Jiang Tao pulled the thermos out of the bin, waved goodbye to the old man, and strode confidently back toward his parked car.
"Holy crap, Jiang Tao, what happened to your car window?"
When Jiang Tao reached his car, a chubby man, about 1.7 meters tall and in his forties, was standing in front of it, inspecting the damage.
The man, Wang Lianming, was from the same village as Jiang Tao and the one who had brought him into the business.
"Just my luck. A rock kicked up by another car smashed it. I chased after them but couldn't catch up."
Jiang Tao made up a quick excuse. He couldn't exactly tell anyone about the Daily Intelligence System.
"You've had a rough year, man! Did you get the license plate?"
"They sped off too fast. Didn't see it."
"That's bad news. The cameras around the market are just for show—they don't even work!"
"Damn it, everything that can go wrong does! Another day wasted!"
"Look on the bright side, brother. You know the saying—misfortune paves the way for fortune. I've got a feeling your luck's about to turn!"
"Haha, I'll take that, Brother Wang! Here's hoping my bad luck runs out soon!"
In his heart, Jiang Tao thought, *Brother Wang's spot on—misfortune paves the way for fortune!*
Who could've imagined that a [Daily Intelligence System] would come crashing down from the sky, right onto his car!
A broken car window in exchange for a system? That's a deal worth making!
"Oh, man, it's snowing! Time to go, it's getting late, and the market's about to close~"
"See you tomorrow, Jiang Tao! I'm outta here!"
Wang Lianming jogged to his truck with quick, small steps, started it, and drove off.
Jiang Tao looked up at the sky. The gloomy Beijing sky had finally unleashed its first snow of the year.
"Snow heralds a bountiful year! A sign of great fortune! Let's hope starting today, I can catch a bit of wealth!"
With a laugh, Jiang Tao checked the time on his phone.
It was already 5:30 PM, and the sky was nearly dark.
At this hour, there wouldn't be any more business.
"Time to head home! Traffic's gonna be a mess soon!"
Resisting the urge to immediately scan the bottle caps for a prize, Jiang Tao strode to his car, started it, and drove off.
Though the cracked windshield slightly obstructed his view, he could still see the road and other cars clearly.
The route from the Hongxing Secondhand Furniture Wholesale Market to Xiaoshahe Urban Village was one Jiang Tao had driven thousands of times over the past five or six years. He knew it like the back of his hand.
In 20 minutes, he pulled into an open lot at the entrance of Xiaoshahe Village, where snow was already starting to accumulate on the ground.
The snowflakes falling from the sky were getting larger, turning the world into a vast, white expanse.
Pushing open the car door, Jiang Tao braved the wind and snow, hurrying toward the village.
His shoes crunched lightly on the snow, echoing the upbeat rhythm of his mood.
"Off work, Little Jiang~"
"Little Jiang's done for the day~"
"Sister Wang's still out here working? So dedicated!"
"It's snowing, Sister Li, and you're still out here hustling!"
Jiang Tao had been renting in Xiaoshahe for over six years and was familiar with many of the street vendors. He'd always exchange greetings when passing by.
At the village steamed bun shop, he bought a flatbread.
At the deli, he got 15 yuan worth of pig head meat and some small cold dishes.
At Fat Dongdong Supermarket, he grabbed two packs of instant noodles, two packs of Hongliqun cigarettes, a bottle of Bainiu Er liquor, and 8 yuan worth of spiced peanuts.
After his big shopping spree, Jiang Tao carried his bags through the maze-like alleys of the urban village for about five minutes.
Finally, he arrived at an old two-story tenement building.
He pulled out his keycard, swiped it to enter the building, and headed to his room—205, on the shady side of the second floor.
The rooms on the shady side were dark, damp, and rarely saw sunlight.
The only upside? They were 300 yuan cheaper per month than the sunny-side rooms.
Jiang Tao spent most of his days at the wholesale market, hustling for work.
His rental was just a place to sleep, so he didn't care much about the lack of light.
The 300 yuan he saved on rent each month was enough to buy two packs of cigarettes to last him half a month.
He unlocked the door, stepped inside, and turned on the light.
His room was a mere 10 square meters.
It contained a single bed, a secondhand wardrobe he'd scavenged from the market, and a computer desk gifted to him by a neighbor who'd moved back to their hometown. The desk doubled as his dining table.
The room's furnishings were simple, almost spartan.
Closing the door behind him, he tossed his pile of plastic bags onto the table.
With a nervous expression, Jiang Tao pulled out the three iced tea bottle caps he'd retrieved from the trash bin.
"If I can score an iPhone, I could sell it for a decent chunk of change."
"Please, heavens, let this be real!"
Jiang Tao grabbed a soapbox and went to the communal bathroom on the second floor to wash his hands thoroughly, also cleaning the three bottle caps.
After washing up, he returned to his room, locked the door, and took out his phone to scan the caps.
*Ding!*
The first cap—nothing.
*Ding!*
The second cap—a voucher for QQ Green Diamond.
Only one cap left. Jiang Tao's expression grew serious.
"I've got the meat, the liquor, everything ready to celebrate. Don't let this be a bust…"
He stared intently at the final bottle cap.
Taking a deep breath, he aimed his phone's camera at the QR code inside the cap and scanned it.
*Ding!*
[Congratulations! You've won an iPhone 15!]
"I won! I won! Holy crap!!!"
Seeing the prize notification on his phone, Jiang Tao leapt up from his chair, punching the air in excitement!
All his life, the most he'd ever won was 10 yuan from a lottery ticket.
Beyond that, he'd never won anything worth more.
Today, he'd scanned a bottle cap from a trash bin and won an iPhone 15!
It felt like a dream!
Jiang Tao rubbed his face hard to confirm he wasn't dreaming, then looked at his phone screen again.
The prize notification was still there.
This was real!
After the excitement settled, Jiang Tao followed the instructions on the prize page, entering his name, phone number, and delivery address.