NOVEL NEXT Chapter 2:
Chapter 2: It’s Real! A Million-Yuan Jackpot!:
After washing up, Lin Xian went straight to bed and fell asleep.
He hadn’t given the red mailbox or the letter a second thought, dismissing it as nothing more than a stress-relief pastime.
After all…
It was just too absurd.
…
The next morning.
The world was still as peaceful as ever.
“Yaaawn—”
Lin Xian let out a long yawn.
He went about his usual routine: washing up, toasting bread, eating, dressing, and heading off to work.
“Huh?”
While reaching into his pocket, he found a few crumpled pieces of paper.
Pulling them out, he saw—
“What the heck! These are Double Color Ball lottery tickets!”
Lin Xian was shocked!
There was no way he had bought them himself. He had never believed in lotteries; even if it only cost 2 yuan, he would rather throw it away than waste it on a ticket.
“Could it be… my ‘yesterday self’? No, wait… it’s actually my ‘day-before-yesterday self.’”
He shook his head, deciding not to dwell on such a trivial detail.
Walking over to the table, he stared at the red mailbox.
Still plain and unremarkable.
He picked it up and gave it a shake.
“Huh? Empty?”
He shook it again.
Not a sound came from inside.
It really was empty.
A sudden realization struck Lin Xian like a thunderclap.
This wasn’t a joke or a prank.
Yesterday, he had indeed written a letter and placed it inside. Now that letter had vanished without a trace.
Connecting the dots with the tickets in his pocket, all signs pointed to the same conclusion—
This red mailbox was truly a time-space mailbox!
It had successfully delivered the letter to the past!
And his past self had received it and gone to buy several lottery tickets.
Lin Xian pulled out the tickets from his pocket.
There were five in total, all purchased from different lottery shops, but they shared the same set of numbers:
XX-XX-XX-XX-XX-XX-04.
Except for the last digit, which had been altered, the numbers were identical to what he had written in the letter!
“Hah, I really am something else.”
Seeing this, Lin Xian couldn’t help but laugh.
Such cautious behavior—it was undoubtedly just like him.
His “past self” had been just as careful, refusing to aim for the jackpot and instead changing the last number.
Not only that, but to avoid drawing attention, his past self had even visited five different lottery shops to buy one ticket at each.
Lin Xian grabbed his phone and searched for the Double Color Ball winning numbers.
“Good, the butterfly effect didn’t change anything. The winning numbers are intact!”
According to the online announcement, the second-place prize for this draw was 200,000 yuan per ticket!
And with five tickets in hand…
That meant he had won a total of 1 million yuan!
Overnight, he had become a millionaire.
All from writing a single letter to the past. A simple move, and he had earned a million yuan!
“I can’t believe this time-space mailbox is actually real.”
Lin Xian gave the red mailbox a pat.
“Sorry for the misunderstanding yesterday. From now on, we’re buddies, alright?”
He sent a message to his supervisor, requesting a day off.
Who could focus on work after winning a million? It was time to claim his prize!
Before leaving, Lin Xian carefully placed the red mailbox in the cabinet under his bookshelf.
This was a life-changing treasure—it couldn’t be lost.
…
With no need to work, Lin Xian changed into casual clothes and headed out.
As soon as he stepped out of his apartment complex, he noticed a commotion across the street.
A crowd had gathered, drums were beating, and gongs were clanging.
Drawn by the commotion—a trait ingrained in the people of Longguo—Lin Xian walked over to check it out.
“Congratulations! Congratulations!”
“Big congratulations to this lottery shop for selling a second-place Double Color Ball ticket!”
“This shop is a feng shui hotspot, brimming with luck! Come rub some fortune for yourself!”
As Lin Xian approached, he realized it was a lottery shop.
He recognized the place but had never stepped inside before.
Now, the shop’s entrance was packed with a sea of people. The owner, holding a microphone, was red-faced with excitement.
“Don’t ask me who it was! I sell so many tickets every day—how could I remember?”
“Instead of asking, why not buy a few tickets yourself? The luck here is hot right now! Act fast before it’s gone!”
The crowd pushed and squeezed into the shop, while the staff behind the counter worked up a sweat printing tickets.
Lottery enthusiasts believed in the idea of “luck.” If the shop had just sold a second-place ticket, then its fortunes must be high!
It seemed today’s sales at this lottery shop would set a new record.
Smiling faintly, Lin Xian stepped away from the crowd and hailed a cab.
“Driver, to the XX Bureau, please.”
Lottery winnings exceeding 10,000 yuan couldn’t be redeemed at shops. They had to be claimed at the XX Bureau.
Of course, lottery shop owners would gladly offer to redeem the prize for you—they’d even take pictures for their store’s promotional purposes.
But no one who won a big prize would be foolish enough to expose their identity like that.
After getting into the car, the driver nodded and hit the gas.
The car’s radio was playing the morning news.
“What a lucky day! Our city has seen five second-place Double Color Ball winners from five different lottery shops!”
“Part of the lottery proceeds will go toward welfare projects. For those feeling lucky, why not grab a ticket on your way home from work?”