Setting: A small teahouse in Chengdu, China. Rain taps gently on the windows as two longtime friends, Wei and Jun, sip jasmine tea.
Wei: (grinning as he pulls out his new phone) Look! I just got a new number: 1888-888-8888. Can you believe it? All those eights! I’m practically guaranteed to get rich now.
Jun: (laughs) Wow, that’s… a lot of eights. Did you pay extra for that?
Wei: Of course! It was worth it. “Ba” sounds like “fa”—you know, wealth. This number’s basically a money magnet.
Jun: You spent more money… to get wealth… by getting a number that sounds like wealth?
Wei: Exactly!
Jun: (raises eyebrow) You do realize that’s not how wealth works, right?
Wei: Come on, Jun. Don’t be such a killjoy. Numbers have power. Why do you think the Beijing Olympics started at 8:08 on 8/8/08?
Jun: Because the government knew it would look good on posters?
Wei: No! Because 8 brings prosperity. Everyone knows that. My cousin opened his noodle shop on 8/18 at 8 p.m. Now he’s got lines out the door!
Jun: Your cousin also makes noodles that taste like they were kissed by angels. That might be more of a factor than his lucky opening hour.
Wei: Don’t underestimate the universe! My grandpa once bought an apartment on the 8th floor, Unit 808. Two years later, he won the lottery!
Jun: Did you also forget to mention he bought lottery tickets every week for 20 years?
Wei: Details, details. Look, science can’t explain everything.
Jun: That’s true. But it can explain confirmation bias. You remember the wins and forget all the times nothing happened. What about all the people with “4” in their number who lived long, happy lives?
Wei: “Si” sounds like death! Don’t say it out loud!
Jun: (chuckles) It’s just a syllable. You don’t see English speakers avoiding “four” just because it sounds like “bore.” Or “eight” because it rhymes with “ate,” like something got devoured. It’s just coincidence.
Wei: Easy for you to say. You always liked physics class. Me? I trust the old ways. Why tempt fate?
Jun: I’m not asking you to walk under ladders or open umbrellas indoors. I’m just saying—your phone number won’t bring you money unless you use it to call clients and work hard.
Wei: What if the lucky number makes clients want to call me?
Jun: What if it just makes them think you’re superstitious?
Wei: So be it! I’d rather believe in something than believe in nothing.
Jun: Belief is fine. But shouldn’t beliefs be based on something real? Like evidence?
Wei: Isn’t it real if it makes me feel more confident?
Jun: Okay, fair. Confidence is real. But what if your belief makes you avoid a great opportunity just because there’s a “4” in the address?
Wei: Hmm… you do have a point. I passed on a good deal last year because the unit was 404…
Jun: Exactly! That’s a tech error, not a life error.
Wei: (laughing) Alright, alright. Maybe I’ll try being a little more rational. But I’m still keeping this phone number.
Jun: That’s fine. Just promise me you won’t name your first child “Ba-Ba Ba.”
Wei: Too late. That’s my backup plan if I go broke.
[They both laugh, sipping their tea as the rain continues to fall outside. The conversation drifts to other things—but both carry a little more understanding than before.]
Science Vs Superstition 
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