While Xu Li and Jiang Xue were having fun at their father-in-law's house, Xu Sha drove Jiang Tao and her dad to the Qisan Reservoir.
"Sasha, go have some fun. Call us when we're ready to head back," Jiang Tao said.
"Here's some pocket money. Go stroll around the mall, see if there's any clothing you like."
After getting out of the car, Jiang Tao casually pulled a stack of cash from his wallet without looking and handed it to Xu Sha.
"Thanks, brother-in-law! Hehe, my brother-in-law is so generous!" Xu Sha didn't hesitate to accept the cash from Jiang Tao, flashing a sweet smile as she called him "brother-in-law."
Regarding her brother-in-law's recent habit of pulling out large amounts of cash, Xu Sha found it a bit odd but didn't think much of it. Whether it was cash or mobile transfers, as long as it could be used to shop and buy things, it was good money!
As the saying goes, whether it's a white cat or a black cat, the one that catches mice is a good cat!
"You little rascal, now you see how good your brother-in-law is to you, huh?" Xu Wencheng chuckled as he looked at his second daughter, pleased to see her getting along well with his eldest son-in-law.
It warmed his heart as both a father and a father-in-law.
"Hehe, of course I know! My brother-in-law is the best in the world!" Xu Sha grinned sweetly, her eyes filled with both fondness and admiration as she looked at Jiang Tao.
Not only had Jiang Tao arranged a high-paying job for her, but he also occasionally gave her pocket money like today. Her attitude toward her brother-in-law had done a complete 180-degree turn! Where she used to be indifferent, now she was full of affection.
Jiang Tao was well aware that his sister-in-law's change in attitude was largely due to his "money power." As for his personal charm, well, he figured he had some of that too. But he didn't mind. After all, she was his wife's younger sister, his own little sister-in-law.
And his "money power" wasn't going anywhere—it would only grow stronger in the future.
After chatting a bit more, Xu Sha drove the big G-class back to the county.
Jiang Tao and Xu Wencheng went to the reservoir management office and paid a 240-yuan fishing spot fee. Xu Wencheng grabbed his fishing gear and went to set up his rod, while Jiang Tao's eyes sparkled as he looked at a small boat used for spreading bait, parked by the reservoir's edge.
"Boss, can I borrow your boat for a spin?" Jiang Tao asked, pulling out a pack of expensive Da Tian Ye cigarettes and handing it to the boss with a smile.
"Can you drive a boat? How about I take you for a ride instead?" The reservoir's boss, He Qiang, was a villager from Hejiazhuang near the reservoir. He spent his days feeding fish here and loved fishing himself. Years of exposure to the sun and wind had tanned his skin so dark he looked almost like an African native. Just by looking at his skin tone, you could tell his "fishing rank" wasn't low.
Jiang Tao had visited the Qisan Reservoir several times recently, so He Qiang recognized him. As he spoke, He Qiang took a cigarette from Jiang Tao's pack and handed the pack back.
Jiang Tao pushed He Qiang's hand back with a smile. "Keep it and smoke it, boss. I've got more. I just want to experience driving the boat myself. If you drive me, how can I get the full experience?"
"This thing isn't a toy. If you don't know how to drive it, you might end up in the water," He Qiang said. "Can you swim?"
As a seasoned smoker, He Qiang knew a pack of Da Tian Ye cost over a hundred yuan. He quietly pocketed the cigarettes, and his tone softened.
"Haha, to be honest, boss, I grew up by the river. Swimming in water is as easy as walking on land for me. My friends call me 'White Stripe in the Waves.' I can dive twenty or thirty meters like it's nothing," Jiang Tao said, exaggerating a bit to gain the boss's trust.
After all, letting a complete novice drive a boat on the lake carried some risks. If something went wrong, the boss would be held responsible. To avoid trouble, He Qiang was still hesitant, even though he liked Jiang Tao.
"Alright, boss, how about this: I'll give you 500 yuan to let me take it for a spin. And no matter what happens, it's got nothing to do with you. We can have other anglers witness it, or you can record it for proof," Jiang Tao said, upping the ante when he saw the boss's reluctance.
For the sake of a lucky ingot worth over 600,000 yuan, spending a little money was no big deal.
Sure enough, He Qiang's eyes lit up at the mention of 500 yuan. Money delivered right to his doorstep? There was no reason to refuse!
"Alright… fine! But young man, before you take the boat out, can you write a note?" He Qiang looked at Jiang Tao. "I'm not cursing you or anything, but better safe than sorry."
Jiang Tao laughed. "No problem! I get it, big brother. Where do we write it?"
"Over there in my office," He Qiang said, pointing to a blue container-style iron shed nearby.
"Alright!" Jiang Tao nodded and followed He Qiang to the office, where he wrote a liability waiver stating that any consequences of his boat-driving experience were his own responsibility and had nothing to do with He Qiang.
They both signed the document and pressed their fingerprints on it. Jiang Tao also added He Qiang on WeChat and transferred 500 yuan to him.
With the waiver signed and the payment received, He Qiang took Jiang Tao down to the riverbank to the bait-spreading boat. The small boat had a diesel engine at the back. He Qiang gave Jiang Tao a quick rundown on how to operate it.
Jiang Tao picked it up quickly—it wasn't as hard as he'd imagined.
*Buzz buzz buzz, buzz buzz buzz—*
After learning the basics of driving the fishing boat, Jiang Tao started the engine and headed toward the center of the reservoir. To avoid drawing attention from the anglers on the shore, he first drove the boat aimlessly around the lake for over half an hour, also satisfying his urge to try driving it.
After half an hour, his boat-handling skills had noticeably improved.
At first, He Qiang was a bit worried and kept watching from the shore. After about twenty minutes, seeing Jiang Tao's skills getting smoother, he finally relaxed and walked away.
A little while later, Jiang Tao steered the boat toward the blinking red dot on his retina's map. Soon, he reached the spot where the red dot overlapped with the panoramic map on his retina.
[Target item is 38 meters directly below you. No third-party observers detected. Would you like to spend 6,666 yuan to retrieve it now?]
Seeing the retrieval cost for the lucky ingot, Jiang Tao didn't feel too bad. Spending just over 6,000 yuan to get an ingot worth over 600,000 was nearly a hundredfold return!
"Yes!" Jiang Tao didn't hesitate and chose to pay for the retrieval. At a depth of 38 meters, he couldn't retrieve it himself—this money was unavoidable.
[Processing payment, please wait…]
[Payment complete. Retrieving item, please wait…]
[Item successfully retrieved!]
Seeing the third notification on his retina, Jiang Tao suddenly felt something in his pocket. He reached in and pulled out a cold, hard object. It was an egg-sized silver ingot, pitted and silver with some black patches.
This ingot was different from the typical silver ingots seen in historical dramas. It had a couplet inscribed on it:
Right: *The Wealth-Recruiting Child Arrives.*
Left: *The Prosperity Immortal Comes.*
Top: *Heavenly Official Grants Blessings.*
Through some research, Jiang Tao learned this was a "lucky furnace ingot." In the past, when silver furnaces began casting ingots, they would first make a few lucky ingots for good fortune. These ingots were usually given to nobles or officials and didn't circulate in the market. Not only were they of high purity, but their craftsmanship was also more refined than standard circulating ingots.
In short, they were like the collectible coins issued by banks today—not meant for circulation but highly valuable for collectors. Due to their rarity and auspicious inscriptions, lucky ingots were often kept as household treasures by wealthy families. One had sold at auction for over 600,000 yuan.
Jiang Tao's ingot, valued at 600,000 by the system, had a solid basis in reality.
"600,000 in hand, mission perfectly accomplished!" Jiang Tao carefully examined the lucky ingot before restarting the boat's engine and heading back to shore.
*Buzz buzz buzz, buzz buzz buzz—*
The bait boat soon reached the shore. Jiang Tao hopped off, informed the boss, and went to join his father-in-law, who was fishing.
"Whoa, Dad, nice haul! You've caught so many already!" Jiang Tao said with a laugh, noticing five fish splashing in a red bucket by Xu Wencheng's side. "The boss is probably crying in the bathroom seeing this."
It had only been about an hour since he'd gone out to retrieve the ingot, and his father-in-law's results were impressive!
"Hehe, Jiang Tao, this lucky bead bracelet you gave me really works!" Xu Wencheng said with a grin, lifting his wrist to show off the bracelet Jiang Tao had made from river stones. "Ever since I started wearing it, my luck has been amazing!"
"Luck is only part of it. It still takes solid skills to pull this off!" Jiang Tao said, sitting down at the fishing spot next to his father-in-law and tossing in another compliment.
Everyone—man or woman, old or young—loves to be praised. A single compliment can provide immense emotional value. So, Jiang Tao never hesitated to offer praise. It cost him nothing but a bit of breath, and in return, he earned goodwill—a great deal.
"Haha! I love hearing that! Keep it coming!" Xu Wencheng beamed, his old face lighting up with joy at his son-in-law's words.
"Huh, Dad, what kind of fish is this? Why does it look like that?" Jiang Tao hadn't noticed at first, but upon closer inspection, he saw a small, pure white fish in the bucket that looked strikingly beautiful.
"Haha, you mean the white one? That's a platinum butterfly carp, a type of albino carp," Xu Wencheng said without turning around, knowing exactly which fish Jiang Tao was referring to. "It's still small, so you can't tell much now, but once it grows and spreads its fins, it's absolutely stunning."
The platinum butterfly carp stood out among the regular carp. It was Xu Wencheng's first time catching one. A few years ago, when the market for exotic fish was hot, a mutated fish like this could've sold for thousands, even tens of thousands of yuan. But now, the craze for ornamental mutated fish had cooled, and this one was worth maybe a hundred or two at most—if anyone even wanted it.
"Platinum butterfly carp? That's a pretty name," Jiang Tao said, squatting by the bucket and poking the white fish with a blade of grass, causing it to splash and jump.
"Its tail fin is wider than a regular carp's. When it grows up, the fin spreads out like butterfly wings, floating in the water like sheer silk. It's quite a sight," Xu Wencheng said with a smile, introducing his catch to his son-in-law.
Jiang Tao teased, "This thing's gotta be worth more than regular fish, right? Did we make back our fishing spot fee?"
Xu Wencheng laughed heartily. "Haha, it used to be valuable, but not anymore. At most, it's worth a few hundred yuan now. But yeah, we've definitely covered our fishing fee."
Curious, Jiang Tao asked, "Such a pretty fish—how's it not valuable anymore?"
"It's gorgeous, sure, but it's super delicate. Its care requirements are as high as its looks," Xu Wencheng explained with a grin. "If the water temperature drops below 22 degrees, it catches a cold, gets congested, or even develops tail rot, losing all its ornamental value. To keep it healthy, you need to maintain the water between 22 and 29 degrees, mimicking a tropical fish environment. I bet this one was released into the reservoir by some fool. This isn't releasing a fish—it's practically killing it. The water in the reservoir is way too cold for it. This platinum butterfly carp won't survive a week."
Jiang Tao laughed. "Haha, sounds like it's more than just a little delicate!"
"More than a little," Xu Wencheng continued. "It's also super picky about water quality. Even with the best nitrifying bacteria, you have to wait two or three days for the water to stabilize before putting it in."
Jiang Tao, who'd never raised fish, only half-understood his father-in-law's explanation and quickly forgot the details. The two of them chatted on and off, staying by the reservoir until past 7 p.m.
As the sun set, Jiang Tao's phone rang. It was Xu Li, calling him and her dad back home for dinner. The 240-yuan fishing fee covered half a day, and Xu Wencheng planned to return after dinner for another round to hone his fishing skills.
Now employed at Jiang Tao's MCN company, Xu Wencheng had turned his "hobby" into a legitimate job as a "professional angler." Fishing, once dismissed by his wife as "slacking off," was now his official career. He could fish whenever he wanted, for as long as he wanted, with newfound confidence.
His wife even supported his "work" by packing him a thermos of hot water, snacks, and fruit. Xu Wencheng was thrilled with his current life. *This is the life I was meant to live! It's like the last few decades were wasted!*