TDU Chapter 91: Lottery Ticket

Chapter 91 Lottery Ticket

“Sir!” A voice called gently, “Wake up!” 

Qi Xia slowly opened his eyes, realizing he was still in the taxi, speeding along the expressway. He sat up in confusion, his gaze instinctively shifting to the azure sky. Stunned beyond belief, he struggled to comprehend his surroundings.

“Are you alright, sir?” the voice beside him continued to inquire.

Ignoring the question, Qi Xia instinctively touched his shoulder—no wounds. He hastily rolled down the window. A sweet, fragrant scent rushed in, blending with the tumultuous winds that furiously buffeted his face as the car hurtled forward.

The freshness of the air was heightened by an inviting breeze.

“I escaped?!” he exclaimed uncontrollably, his face filled with uncontainable joy. Could this taxi be the key to breaking free? It was like the {Ferry of the Underworld}, able to take people in and out of {End Point}, and this woman named {Xu Liunian} was akin to the ferryman {Charon}, responsible for transporting passengers to and from the realm of the living...

Qi Xia turned his head, only to find himself stunned—where was Xu Liunian?

Beside him sat a burly man wearing sunglasses, his skin dark and shiny from the sun's ultraviolet rays, a result of his profession. 

“Why are you so startled, sir?” The driver glanced nervously at Qi Xia. “You’re not on drugs, are you?” 

“You... I...” Qi Xia felt a sense of déjà vu about the man but couldn’t recall any specific details. “Where are we going?” 

“Please don’t frighten me like that, sir.” Despite his robust build, the taxi driver swallowed hard with anxiety. “Weren’t you the one who wanted to go to Jinan? We’ve already traveled over three hundred kilometers. You can’t be suffering from amnesia now.” 

The man pointed to the fare meter, which had already climbed to over nine hundred yuan. 

“What?!” Qi Xia exclaimed in shock as he glanced up at the road signs and confirmed they were indeed approaching Jinan. 

In that instant, memories flooded back—he had seen this man before. Just a day before the earthquake, he had taken this very taxi, embarking on an unwavering journey to Jinan.

‘Did I end up in the day prior?’ Qi Xia felt his pocket and pulled out his phone. After a quick glance, confusion spread across his face. ‘September 27th... it really is the day before the {earthquake}. What’s happening?’ He hurriedly checked the pocket of his shirt, where he found a small piece of paper. ‘Thank goodness... it's still here.’

“Sir... are you really alright?” The driver was at a loss and could only fumble through his own pocket for his phone, his thumb lingering on the emergency dial. 

“Don’t worry, I’ll pay you the agreed fare of two thousand yuan for the round trip. I won’t shortchange you by a single cent,” Qi Xia said, feeling a sense of relief wash over him. Although he didn’t fully understand what was happening, it seemed like everything was starting over. 

“Really?” The driver noticed Qi Xia’s demeanor had normalized, allowing him to relax his guard a bit. “You had me worried there for a moment; I thought you were on drugs…”

“No, I just had a really terrifying nightmare,” Qi Xia replied, rolling down the window to let the September breeze in, feeling an overwhelming sense of relief. “Thankfully, I’m awake now.” 

“Alas, don’t young people like to stay up late?” The driver remarked with a sage-like tone. “If you’re not sleeping at night and then catching up on sleep during the day, how can you have good dreams?” 

“You’re absolutely right, ” Qi Xia responded casually. For him, this was a second chance at life. Even though the earthquake would strike at noon tomorrow, the immediate priority was to secure his money, as today marked the {final deadline}. 

After about another hour, the taxi finally arrived in downtown Jinan.

The driver, perceptive to Qi Xia's needs, quickly opened the navigation app and headed toward East Second Ring Road in Lixia District. 

"Young man... the place you're headed to..." The driver examined the navigation closely. "It seems to be the provincial lottery center?"

“Just drive, sir,” Qi Xia replied, settling back into a moment of rest. 

Before long, the taxi came to a stop in front of the lottery center. Qi Xia swiftly retrieved a thousand yuan from his pocket and handed it to the driver. “Please wait for me here; however, if you choose to leave now, I wouldn’t mind either.”

“Come on, I’m definitely waiting for you.”

As Qi Xia made his way to the entrance of the lottery center, he noticed a staff member waiting to greet him. “May I presume you are Mr. Qi?” 

“Yes,” Qi Xia nodded.

“I’ve been waiting for you for quite some time. Please, this way.” The staff member beckoned at Qi Xia, guiding him into the lobby. As he walked, he patiently explained, “The lottery redemption process has been simplified. Soon, a staff member will verify your ticket, and then you will receive a bank check on-site. Please hold on for a moment.”

“I’m in a hurry; could you please expedite the process?” Qi Xia nodded, following the staff member to the lottery verification area.

“Um… could you please hand me the lottery ticket?” the staff member requested.

Qi Xia retrieved the crumpled little piece of paper from his chest pocket and handed it over, which the staff member then passed to the verifier at the window.

The verifier treated it with utmost seriousness, promptly beginning to check its authenticity. “The prize is one million nine hundred thousand yuan; one moment please,” the verifier said, pulling out a device to scan the ticket’s numbers.

As Qi Xia waited quietly beside him, the staff member who had led him in noticed his demeanor and asked, “Mr. Qi, why don’t you look excited?”

“Excited?” 

“Yes! You should be excited; you just won nearly two million yuan!” 

“Perhaps,” Qi Xia replied, nodding.

“Sigh, let me tell you about something that happened a while ago. Someone won a million yuan, and guess what? It was in August, and the person showed up wearing a down jacket and a big mask! Can you believe that in today’s society, there are still people who treat a million yuan like a big deal?” The staff member chuckled at his own joke, but Qi Xia remained unresponsive, creating an awkward atmosphere.

“How much longer?” Qi Xia asked, his impatience evident.

“Uh… please don’t rush us,” the staff member waved his hand dismissively. “There have been recent cases of fraud using fake lottery tickets, so we need to be thorough in our verification.”

“What are you implying?” Qi Xia blinked in surprise, looking intently at the staff member.

“Ah, please don’t misunderstand...” the staff member quickly smiled apologetically. “I’m not suggesting that the lottery ticket you brought is fake; Mr. Qi, you don’t seem like the type to commit fraud.” 

Qi Xia remained silent, continuing to wait patiently by the side. 

Before long, the verifier put away the scanning device, revealing a broad smile. “Verification is complete; the ticket is legitimate. We can issue your check now.”

Qi Xia couldn’t help but smirk inwardly. 

Of course, the ticket was valid; he had purchased it with two million in cash, making it a bona fide winning ticket. Although he would need to pay three hundred eighty thousand yuan in taxes, the remaining money would be {clean}.

This method was considered one of the simplest for legitimizing the two million yuan obtained through fraudulent means.

“Congratulations, Mr. Qi…” the staff member continued to smile. “I’ll arrange for someone to issue your check right away. Would you like to make a donation?”

“Donation? Is it mandatory?” Qi Xia asked.

“Not at all; it’s just that most lottery winners tend to make donations.”

“Since it’s not mandatory, I won’t be donating a single cent.”