Yao Qianshan abruptly stood up, ready to go investigate.
When something like this happened, there was no need to think—there had to be something fishy going on.
Under normal circumstances, it couldn’t be such a coincidence that the same person won two cars in the lottery.
While probability theory did allow for such a possibility, the odds were astronomically low.
The most critical point was that the winner just happened to be Song Hui—how could she not be agitated and suspicious?
After taking a few steps, Yao Qianshan suddenly halted.
After all, she had once been a seasoned store manager, having dealt with all sorts of difficult cases before. At the very least, she still had her rationality and judgment intact.
After calming down slightly, she immediately gave orders: "Delay the prize redemption for now. Have someone pull the surveillance footage and investigate the source of those problematic return slips, especially whether the people involved are connected in any way."
The service area of Wanlong Supermarket had the most surveillance cameras because it was the most conflict-prone zone. To ensure a complete and clear chain of evidence and avoid disputes, not only were there numerous cameras, but all of them were high-definition.
"Yes, Manager Yao!" The staff immediately began coordinating with branch stores to retrieve the surveillance footage.
While waiting for the evidence, Yao Qianshan kept pondering how to handle the situation with Song Hui.
After all, the prizes had been legitimately drawn—should they be honored or not?
There was a thorny problem here.
Even if she knew deep down that there was something shady about how Song Hui had won, even if she later found evidence proving the prizes were invalid, the moment he kicked up a fuss and spread the word, Wanlong Supermarket would inevitably be branded as deliberately refusing to honor the prizes.
Public opinion was a tricky beast. Sometimes, it was incredibly hard to explain things clearly.
Especially with lottery-style promotions, most people instinctively harbored some distrust toward games of chance.
Add to that the fact that the organizer reserved the "final interpretation rights," and it was easy for people to jump to the conclusion that the supermarket was making excuses. The authenticity of the evidence often became secondary.
All people would see was that someone had winning tickets, but Wanlong Supermarket refused to pay up.
And you could bet that competitors still struggling in the "trenches" wouldn’t miss this opportunity to pounce.
So, resolving this crisis—voiding the two grand prizes without inviting a massive backlash—was going to be extremely challenging.
......
Song Hui clearly knew that Yao Qianshan was currently at the university branch.
That was precisely why he had come here to claim his prizes—to rub her face in it.
He wanted to drive those two cars right out of the store in front of her, humiliating her in the process.
Last time, when he’d asked her to help him get a car, not only had she refused, but she’d also gotten him thrown in jail. Fortunately, while in temporary detention, he’d met a gang leader from Danan City.
These guys had been arrested after a drunken brawl at a nightclub—nothing too serious, just an overnight stay and a fine before they could walk free.
Truth be told, this was one of the downsides of gang culture.
The more underlings you had, the harder they were to control. And those underlings, emboldened by their numbers or connections, often ran wild, stirring up trouble wherever they went.
They’d even brought this habit with them from Danan City to Bright Pearl City.
The leader of this group was Brother Pao from Danan City. Their main purpose in coming here was revenge—to track down the guys who’d caused trouble at the club that night.
But their boss had given strict orders: leave Wanlong Hui alone for now. After dealing with Zhao Tianxing and the East Sea Alliance, they’d deal with those Wanlong Hui punks who’d humiliated them.
So for the past couple of days, they’d been killing time in Bright Pearl City—some gaming, some singing and drinking, basically just waiting for the signal to move.
But then things went sideways. Some of them got too drunk, started a fight, and got arrested. Brother Pao got dragged into it too. He could’ve escaped, but during the chase, he tripped over something, face-planted hard, and got nabbed by the cops.
Yep, the leader was the first one caught—pretty embarrassing, and it pissed him off.
Luckily, a few of his boys noticed something was wrong and came back to help, only to get arrested alongside him.
They naturally blamed Wanlong Hui for this. Once they got out and settled things with Zhao Tianxing, they’d make sure to wipe out that so-called Wanlong Hui for good.
Later, they were placed in the same cell as Song Hui. When Song Hui overheard that they had a grudge against Wanlong Hui, he immediately struck up a conversation, offering to help them get revenge.
Truthfully, Song Hui had no idea what the connection was between Wanlong Hui and Wanlong Supermarket, but he saw an opportunity to use these gangsters to get back at Yao Qianshan.
If he ended up getting sentenced to prison, it’d be years before he could retaliate against her.
And even if these guys later realized he’d played them, good luck finding him—he’d be behind bars.
Song Hui first spun a tale about Wanlong Supermarket and Wanlong Hui being connected, then got to the main point: Wanlong Supermarket was currently running a promotion giving away cars.
Why not take advantage of that before dealing with Wanlong Hui?
Because of his obsession with Yao Qianshan, Song Hui knew Wanlong Supermarket’s policies inside out.
It was the only supermarket in Bright Pearl City that offered a seven-day no-questions-asked return policy.
So he proposed a scheme to Brother Pao and his crew:
Since Wanlong allowed returns, why not buy stuff, use the receipts to enter the lottery, then return everything later?
That way, they could keep entering the draw indefinitely, increasing their odds of winning big.
Brother Pao’s eyes lit up.
This was a brilliant idea!
First, they’d milk the supermarket dry. Then, when the staff got furious, they’d teach them a real lesson.
And if they actually won a car? Jackpot.
Brother Pao didn’t even own a proper car yet—he was the type to blow through money recklessly.
Now, here was a chance to get one for free. Why not go for it?
At first, Song Hui thought Brother Pao only had the few guys in the cell with him, so he figured they’d have to rely on sheer luck. Even if they didn’t win a car, they could at least mess with Yao Qianshan.
But when he learned they had nearly a hundred men in the city, he was stunned—and then hatched an even more ruthless, zero-risk plan.
Wanlong Supermarket allowed returns, right?
Then why not swap fakes for the real deal?
They could replace genuine products with counterfeits, return the fakes, sell the real items for profit, and still use the receipts to enter the lottery.
Near Bright Pearl City’s train station, there was an electronics market—a lot like Huaqiangbei, teeming with knockoffs and shady goods.
You could find just about any electronic component, bootleg gadgets, or second-hand devices there.
Song Hui immediately shared this plan with Brother Pao, urging him to mobilize his hundred-strong crew to pull this off at every Wanlong branch.
First, buy the items, then take the receipt to enter the prize draw. After that, quickly head to the train station area to pull off a switcheroo, and return the counterfeit goods to the supermarket for a refund.
If by chance you end up buying one of the fake items they’ve planted, then you’ll have every right to demand compensation.
Wanlong Supermarket has already promised to actively compensate customers threefold if they purchase counterfeit products.
All in all, this is practically a triple-win scheme.
After hearing the detailed plan, Brother Pao gave him a hearty slap on the shoulder and exclaimed, "Damn, brother, you’re a freaking genius!"
