Chapter 43: Chapter 43: In This Moment, Channeling Chen Beixuan, Li Qiyue, and Sakamoto

"You can’t be serious. An annual income of over two million, and you’re just ’barely getting by’? That’s such a humblebrag."

"It’s mainly because our expenses are high, too. He just bought a new G-Wagen a few days ago, and it cost over two million all-in. It completely wiped out our savings."

"You mean you paid for it in full?"

"Of course. Taking out a loan isn’t worth it; the interest alone is a ton of money. Since we had the cash on hand, there was no need for a loan."

"That’s true. If you can pay in full, you shouldn’t get a loan."

Just then, Zhang Xueying’s boyfriend, Xu Chi, brought a platter of fruit to the dining table.

"Everything’s ready. We can eat now."

"Alright, enough about me. Let’s go eat. You must all be hungry."

Zhang Xueying led them to the dining table, and they all took their seats.

"We’ve been talking about me this whole time, I completely forgot about Zhiyi," Zhang Xueying said.

"When did you two meet? And what does your boyfriend do?"

"Well..."

Li Zhiyi hesitated, unsure how to respond. ’If I say we only met a few days ago and I still don’t even know what he does, won’t that sound incredibly reckless?’

"We’ve known each other for a while," Lin Jiang said quietly.

’At that moment, he felt the spirits of Chen Beixuan, Li Qiyue, and Sakamoto possess him. He was definitely not fighting this battle alone.’

"So, what do you do?"

"I run a small business."

Hearing the words "small business," a scrutinizing look appeared on Zhang Xueying’s face.

A place like Zhonghai wasn’t like other cities.

’Even a "small business" here could be very profitable. If he earns more than my boyfriend, this won’t be fun at all.’

"’Small business’ can mean many things. What do you do, specifically?"

"A noodle shop."

"Oh, that’s great. A business like that is stable; minor policy shifts won’t affect you at all," Zhang Xueying said. "It’s not like the live streaming industry, where the slightest tightening of regulations forces us to overhaul everything. We’re on edge every single day."

"Each has its own advantages. You can’t really say one is better than the other," Li Zhiyi said politely, having apparently seen through Zhang Xueying’s attempt to show off.

"We can’t compare to you. Our prosperity is just a facade; otherwise, we wouldn’t be just renting a place here."

"What’s wrong with renting here? This is Century Triumph! It’s one of the most luxurious properties in all of Zhonghai," Zhang Lu said with envy.

"The old, rundown place we’re renting is a world away from this."

"Huh?"

Zhang Xueying looked at Lin Jiang and Li Zhiyi in surprise. "You two aren’t living together yet?"

"This..."

Li Zhiyi didn’t know how to answer a question like that, but Wang Lu quickly interjected.

"Of course not. Zhiyi isn’t like us; she’s more reserved. They probably haven’t known each other that long, so how could they move in together so quickly?"

"That may be true, but I still think you’re falling a bit short," Zhang Xueying said to Lin Jiang with a sly smile.

"How am I falling short?"

"You should be renting an apartment for our Zhiyi. Even if it’s not as nice as Century Triumph, you should at least get her something comparable," Zhang Xueying said.

"I know where she’s living now. The location is definitely a bit remote, and I heard the streetlights don’t even work properly. Back in college, Zhiyi was the campus belle. It’s dangerous for her to walk home alone at night. Can you really rest easy about that?"

"She has a point," Xu Chi added. "You can cut corners on other things, but you have to choose a good place to live. Society is too chaotic these days."

’Damn, you two are really something else. A couple ganging up on me like this?’

"I know. The house is being renovated right now. We’ll move in as soon as it’s ready."

Li Zhiyi secretly glanced at Lin Jiang, sincerely impressed.

’He’s always so quick on his feet.’

"Oh! Where did you buy a house? Let me know so I can check it out. Maybe we’ll buy a place there too, and we could be neighbors."

"But I thought you only liked the properties at Century Triumph. You wouldn’t even look at houses anywhere else," Xu Chi said.

"Oh, come on. This is a chance to be neighbors with Zhiyi, so it doesn’t matter whether we live in Century Triumph or not," Zhang Xueying said, looking at Lin Jiang with great interest.

"So where did you buy the house? How’s the landscaping in the complex? Do they have any large units, over 200 square meters?"

"I think they have 298 and 681 square-meter floor plans. The rest are apartments."

"Huh? Those floor plans sound a lot like the ones at Century Triumph." Zhang Xueying turned to Xu Chi. "Honey, doesn’t our complex only have those two floor plans?"

"That’s right. This is a luxury residence; they wouldn’t have small units."

Zhang Xueying looked at Lin Jiang. "Which complex did you buy in?"

"It is Century Triumph."

As soon as he said this, the entire table fell silent.

"You’ve got to be kidding," Zhang Xueying said. "This is Century Triumph. It’s over 200,000 per square meter."

"Even if we didn’t eat or drink for a year, we’d only be able to afford a dozen or so square meters."

"We really did buy it here. The 681 square-meter unit."

The atmosphere at the table grew heavy again. This time, even Li Zhiyi started to panic a little.

She placed her hand on Lin Jiang’s leg and squeezed it gently, signaling him that he’d gone far enough.

’In a city like Zhonghai, buying a car worth over three million wasn’t a huge deal; the city was crawling with wealthy people.’

’But a home in Century Triumph wasn’t something you could just buy on a whim!’

’A 681 square-meter home would cost over a hundred million. No one would believe him!’

"Can you take us to see it? I’d love to see how it differs from our apartment," Zhang Xueying said.

"They’re actually pretty similar, so there’s no real need."

’Life is an arduous journey, and I am the King of the Flex.’

’Trying to flex in front of me? Do you think I’ve read all those web novels for nothing?’

"What’s the harm?" Zhang Xueying goaded him.

"Take us to see it. You already bought the place, you’re not trying to hide it, are you? Right, honey?"

"Definitely. It would be good to take a look. We’re thinking of buying here in the future, so we can use your place as a reference."

Lin Jiang smiled. ’These two assholes must think I’m bluffing.’

"It’s just that we haven’t finished our meal."

"What’s there to worry about? We’re in the same complex, so it’s not far. We can eat when we get back. It’s hot pot, so it’s not like it’ll get cold."

As she spoke, Zhang Xueying grabbed her coat, ready to go and see for herself, not giving Lin Jiang another chance to object.

"Then let’s go."

Lin Jiang stood up, and Li Zhiyi and Wang Lu had no choice but to follow.

Once they left the apartment building, Lin Jiang and Li Zhiyi walked ahead.

"Brother Jiang, I’m so sorry. You were trying to stand up for me, and it ended up like this."

"Standing up for you was part of it, but this is no big deal."

"How is this not a big deal? I can make up an excuse for us to leave. The worst that can happen is we just don’t contact them anymore."

"Why wouldn’t we? If you didn’t have friends who love to show off like them, how else would your own excellence be highlighted? Isn’t that right, Miss Li?"

"Oh, Brother Jiang, stop teasing me. We need to figure out how to handle this."

"Handle what?"

"We don’t have a 681 square-meter house, so where are we supposed to take them?" Li Zhiyi said worriedly.

"Who says we don’t?"

"You mean we actually do?"

"What do you think?"

After a short walk, they arrived at Building C and used the facial recognition scanner to take the elevator to the 24th floor.

Stepping out of the elevator first, Lin Jiang used his fingerprint to unlock the entrance. He pushed open the double doors and said with a smile:

"Welcome."