Five minutes later, they arrived at a restaurant. Li Xinzhu looked at the name of the restaurant and was taken aback.
"King Crab Burger… Is this a burger joint?"
"Well, I looked for a long time to find this place. It's all king crab. Let's go try it. Many people have given this place a high rating."
"No, I want to eat king crab, not a burger..."
"Let's go. We're already here, and I'm hungry. Let's just go in and take a look at least," Wang An insisted.
They entered the restaurant and looked around. It was a small place with a dozen tables. It was reasonably clean. They chose a table by the window.
"What would you like to eat?" the waitress asked earnestly.
"King Crab Burgers. Four of them."
"Alright, please wait a moment," the waitress said with a smile.
"Wait, do you really have king crab in these burgers?" Li Xinzhu asked. He was unwilling to believe it.
"A little, more or less," the waitress said with a smile. "But as you know, king crab is quite expensive, so the portion is a bit small."
"How small?" Li Xinzhu asked.
"You'll know once you taste it."
After a while, four burgers were served. They looked sizable. They were twice the size of a typical fast-food burger. Li Xinzhu picked one up and examined it.
"Isn't this just a regular beef burger?"
"There is a king crab inside," the waitress said with a smile.
Li Xinzhu took a bite.
"Well, the beef tastes pretty good, but I can't taste the king crab at all."
"Try tasting it carefully."
"Ah, I can taste it now." Wang An took a bite and nodded.
"You can taste it? Wang An, I didn't expect you to be so stingy!" Li Xinzhu sighed and took a big bite of the burger.
"I didn't expect it either. You're really fixated on this thing. In a previous life, were you pinched by a king crab or something?" Wang An said jokingly.
"To be honest, I haven't had fast food like this in a long time. Today, I'm making an exception for you."
"Making an exception for me? You're really... Waiter, please bring five more."
"Five? Can you finish them all?"
"If I can't. I'll pack and take them with me!" Li Xinzhu said irritably.
Wang An chuckled. "I'll treat you to something better next time. I don't have much money lately. How much did your car cost?"
"Why? Are you planning to snatch my car?" Li Xinzhu looked at Wang An cautiously.
"I also want to buy a car."
"But you just said you aren't doing well financially. Now, you're talking about buying a car?"
"I want to buy a car, that's why my finances aren't doing well. Does it make sense?"
Li Xinzhu took a deep breath, then took a few more big bites of the burger. "Waiter, two of the most expensive milk teas."
"What price range are you looking at for the car you're planning to buy?"
"It can't be too expensive, but it can't be too cheap either. It should look decent. I want to look respectable while driving it."
"Respectable? You still care about something like that?" Li Xinzhu asked in surprise.
"It's not for me. It's for my family. I can ride my bicycle just fine if I'm alone," Wang An said with a smile.
"If it's for the sake of looking respectable, expensive would be better. If you don't have much money on hand, then spending a hundred thousand or so on a car would be enough. I thought only rich people thought about how they looked."
"You don't understand. Living isn't just about yourself." Wang An took a few bites and finished a burger.
"Why won't I understand? I also care about my image, but not in that way."
In less than twenty minutes, Li Xinzhu had already eaten four burgers. Wang An, sitting across from him, had eaten nine and stopped. Together, they had eaten thirteen.
The waitress was quite surprised. She had never seen someone eat so much.
'Wow, he ate nine burgers in one go, and his stomach didn't change a bit. Where did all that food go?' The waitress secretly stared at Wang An's stomach.
"Fast food occasionally is fine, but it shouldn't be a regular habit."
"Yeah, the taste is not bad," Li Xinzhu said after taking a sip of milk tea.
"But this is not real king crab. What's next? Any plans?"
"We'll look at cars, and if we have time, we'll visit a Buddhist temple."
In the afternoon, Zhao Ziyuan had other things to attend to and wouldn't be teaching Wang An.
Wang An wanted to check out cars, and if there was enough time, he wanted to visit a nearby temple in Hu An City. Perhaps, he could find the right inspiration to learn the "Diamond Zen."
"Seriously? Buying a car and seeking blessings from the Buddha? Is it dirty money?"
"Your thoughts are always a little strange. I want to go to a temple because I want to talk with the master there. Let's go."
"If you really want to buy a car, I have a friend who works as a salesperson at a 4S dealership. I can take you to meet them."
"Will I have to treat you to a meal again?"
"Your words. Aren't we friends? Treating a friend to a meal won't bankrupt you."
Afterward, Li Xinzhu drove Wang An to the car sales market in Hu An City, where they met Li Xinzhu's friend.
Guided by the friend, they looked at a few car models, test-drove two of them, and inquired about the base prices.
Then, they visited other 4S dealerships and looked at cars of similar price range. Comparing this with his current savings, Wang An had a rough estimate of how much it would cost.
After working for a few years, he had saved over two hundred thousand by being thrifty.
Recently, he had not been saving much. He had spent quite a bit. Buying a car of about the same value would deplete all his savings.
'I need to find a way to make money.' Wang An thought to himself.
Sitting in the car, Wang An stared outside and thought of ways to make more money.
"What are you thinking about?"
"I'm thinking about money," Wang An said with a smile.
"You can come work as a coach at our dojo," Li Xinzhu said after a moment of silence.
"What about the salary?"
"Four thousand a month. No insurance, no housing fund, you have to take care of your own meals and accommodation, no weekends, and no leave. It's relatively flexible, though."
"Thanks. I'll think about it."
With his current situation, he was already studying massage techniques at the traditional Chinese medicine clinic. His day was full. He could not spare time to work as a coach at a dojo.
"Stop ahead. I'll get off."
"Aren't you planning to visit the temple? Let's go together. I'm not in a hurry anyway."
"Alright. Let's go to Songlin Temple."
"Sure, I heard the vegetarian food there is excellent. Let's give it a try," Li Xinzhu said with a smile.
He drove out of the city and arrived at the outskirts.
Not far from Hu An City's outskirts, near Qingyang Mountain, there was a mountain covered with evergreen pine trees all year round. On this mountain stood a temple named Songlin Temple, with a history of more than two hundred years.
The two parked the car halfway up the mountain and hiked to the temple.
At the temple gate, they were stopped by a monk.
Before entering the temple to worship the Buddha, they had to buy tickets.