Chapter Seventy-Eight – The Car Purchase Fiasco (Part One)

After being led out of the conference building by Chu Qitong, I could only resign myself to telling her how I’d met Zhang Jing at the bar and later managed to make an enemy of Zhou Zisheng. Of course, I glossed over quite a few details. After listening to my account, Chu Qitong’s hatred for Zhou Zisheng deepened further.

“Xiao Qiang, why are you so wealthy? Zhou Zisheng said you were something like a millionaire,” she asked, as I’d expected. I could only laugh it off and reply, “Well, you know, I made a bit of money selling that SX software to Weiruan.”

“Oh, so that’s it.” She’d heard her father mention the SX software before, so my excuse didn’t raise any suspicion. Nodding in understanding, she smiled, “I never would have guessed you were so rich. But if that’s the case, why are your parents still living in the old part of town?”

I smiled wryly. “It’s not that I want them to stay there—it’s just that they’re attached to the old house and refuse to move. Besides, the area is about to be redeveloped, so our family will get a new apartment without me having to pay for it.” When I gave my parents that million, I’d already brought up buying a new place. It’s not that they were unwilling, but rather that they wanted to save the money for my future, so I couldn’t insist.

“I see, that makes sense.” She smiled at me understandingly, but as I looked at her, I suddenly had the odd feeling that I’d just taken the bait. Sure enough, she continued, “Xiao Qiang, about that car accident we had last time—the fault wasn’t really mine, was it?”

“Uh, no, it was my fault. I shouldn’t have slapped you. Why bring this up now?” A sinking feeling came over me, though I couldn’t quite put my finger on why.

“Hehe, that Santana 2000 was a gift from my dad last month to celebrate my starting high school. I’d only driven it a few days before it went off that cliff...” At this moment, Chu Qitong seemed just like a spoiled little girl, softly pouting, “It was all because of you. If you hadn’t startled me, I wouldn’t be too scared to drive now.”

Sweat. Now she’s blaming me for her not daring to drive? I could only drop my head and smile ruefully. “Young lady, while it was my fault, I also saved your life, didn’t I? Don’t blame all the aftereffects on me, okay?”

“Hmph, it’s all your fault, all your fault!” Chu Qitong stamped her foot in mock anger, her fair, slender leg rising and falling, leaving me a bit dizzy. “My car’s gone, so I want you to buy me a new one!”

Well, I could only mentally slap myself—once again, this little witch had outmaneuvered me. Shrugging helplessly, I sighed, “Fine, fine, you win. I can never out-talk you. So, what kind of car do you want? Nothing too expensive though—I can’t afford that.” Hearing her talk about buying a car, I felt a bit tempted myself. In my previous life, I only bought my first car in my twenties, and it vanished along with me. Now that I had money, always taking the bus or a taxi wasn’t ideal—a car was long overdue.

As soon as I agreed, she was overjoyed, her beautiful eyes sparkling as she tapped her finger against her lips in thought. Finally, she shook her head, “I can’t decide. Why don’t we go to the dealership and take a look now?”

I remembered I had nothing pressing today—Su Xin was visiting her grandfather, and Zhang Jing was busy preparing for her project. With the day off, I might as well relax. I nodded in agreement.

“Yay!” Chu Qitong nearly jumped for joy. I couldn’t help but find it amusing—how could a woman from such a wealthy family be so delighted about a car?

So, she dragged me outside, and we hailed a taxi straight to the car dealership in the south of the city.

“Boss, they’ve gotten into a taxi. We’re tailing them closely.” As soon as we left, a yellow van followed tightly behind. Inside, a bald man spoke into his phone, “The target’s with a woman, they’re heading south. Yes, sir! I’ll alert the brothers in the south right away. What? Boss, you’re coming in person? Okay, I’ll have everything ready!”

“The boss himself? Who is this guy that’s so impressive the boss is coming out personally?” The blonde man in the passenger seat turned to the bald driver, his face full of surprise.

“No idea—seems he’s an enemy of Mr. Xia. The boss said to keep a close eye on him; he’ll bring men over himself. This kid’s in big trouble! Nobody’s ever had it easy when the boss gets involved.” At this, even he shivered and hurriedly focused on tailing the taxi.

Meanwhile, I was completely oblivious to being followed, chatting with Chu Qitong about different car models. After listening to her favorite types, I suddenly remembered something. “Qitong, wasn’t your last car’s license plate starting with ‘CA’? That’s pretty rare, right? Most of the cars I see are ‘CB’.”

She shot me a “not bad” look and replied proudly, “A CA plate is quite special. ‘C’ stands for our city, and ‘A’ is a Class A license—only government vehicles have those. My father was worried I’d get into trouble since I was new to driving, so he asked Uncle Su to get me a government plate. That way, even the traffic police are extra polite. Actually, my dad doesn’t know how much more than just polite they are. Last time I drove the wrong way, the officer didn’t fine me—he even smiled and saluted!”

I couldn’t help but shake my head. So much goes into a license plate. But I didn’t approve of her little tricks and said, somewhat disapprovingly, “That traffic cop wasn’t doing his job. Bowing and scraping just because of a government plate? If it were me, I’d give you a ticket first!”

She glanced at me, pouting unhappily. After a while, she muttered, “Yeah, yeah, you’re so great. I’m not afraid of anyone but you, okay?”

Seeing her aggrieved expression, I smiled awkwardly. “Come on, it’s nothing personal. I’m just saying, traffic laws are important—if everyone acted like you, the roads would be chaos.”

“I know, I know. I’ll change next time. Why are you so fierce... You think I really care about your car? I just wanted to spend more...” She muttered softly, then blushed, turning away to hide her embarrassment by looking out the window.

Thanks to my recent Ziyang Divine Skill practice, my hearing and vision had improved—others might not have caught her mutter, but I heard every word. So she wasn’t trying to extort me—she just wanted an excuse to spend time with me? Could it be that she likes me? Thinking back over her recent behavior, it seemed more and more likely. My god, just dealing with Zhang Jing was already overwhelming—what if Chu Qitong joined in too? How was I supposed to survive this?

“Um, Qitong, I...” I wanted to explain, but the words caught in my throat. What could I say? That I’m not good enough for her? That I don’t like her? Or ask why she likes me? But she hadn’t actually confessed—how could I bring it up? So, I fell silent, imitating her by gazing out at the passing cityscape.

Su Xin, Zhang Jing, Chu Qitong—three beautiful women, each with their own unique charm, all seemed to have feelings for me. Was it my luck since being reborn, or had I always been this way and simply never noticed before? I desperately wanted to ask the heavens what I was supposed to do. I was sure about Su Xin, but to hurt the other two openly—I couldn’t bear to see them sad. And after all this time, they’d each become a part of my heart. Zhang Jing was not only my capable assistant and spokesperson, but, fatally, I’d seen her naked. As for Chu Qitong, though we’d clashed at first, after surviving that life-and-death ordeal together, something had changed between us.

Heavens, what am I supposed to do? Staring out the window, I let out a heavy sigh from the depths of my heart...