The Old Street Lottery Shop

An old street, an old-fashioned lottery shop.

I’m the owner of this lottery shop, opening earlier and closing later than anyone else every day.

This little shop is like a tiny stage on which life plays out.

The neighborhood’s everyday folk come and go, people from all walks of life, with lottery players of every stripe gathering here.

There’s Old Li, a two-lottery fanatic who obsesses over numbers and stubbornly studies the trends;

there’s easygoing Old Wang, who loves watching the action and is always trading barbs with Old Li;

there’s Zhang the Deadbeat, who’s always looking for a bargain and throws a fit when he loses a ticket;

and there’s Wang Xiaoer, so dazzled by dreams of a jackpot that he steals money to buy tickets and throws his household into chaos.

Some play sensibly, just for a little everyday fun;

others are too consumed by their obsession, sinking deep into fantasies of getting rich overnight.

A little lottery ticket reflects every facet of life and lays bare the greed in people’s hearts.

Arguments, misunderstandings, farces, heartache, joy, regrets...

They’re all condensed in this smoke-filled lottery shop on the old street.

I mind the shop, watching the everyday bustle of life and witnessing the absurdity and obsession of countless lottery players.

An ordinary shop on an ordinary old street tells the story of ordinary people’s dreams of striking it rich and the reality of everyday life.