Chapter 6: Ready to Go
Last night, Ryan slept at the Internet cafe with will until 2 o'clock and was woken up at ten in the morning by his phone ringing.
"Your courier has arrived. Please come down and sign for it!" The courier brother was concise and hung up promptly after delivering the message.
"I ordered this yesterday afternoon, and it's already here?" Ryan commended the courier company silently.
After a quick wash, Ryan slipped on his slippers and headed downstairs to his community's entrance.
After confirming the package was intact and signing for it, he returned home and eagerly unboxed it.
"The craftsmanship on this WXR laptop is impressive. The matte black finish looks sleek, and the hardware seems top-notch," Ryan remarked, impressed by the laptop's build quality.
After spending nearly an hour setting up and installing various software and games, Ryan decided to test its gaming capabilities.
"Time to see how it handles games."
Step 1: Launch League of Legends.
Step 2: Enter champion selection.
Step 3: Instalock Yasuo.
Step 4: Mute all teammates.
"Death is like the wind, always by my side! Let's have some fun!" Ryan declared to himself.
...
Twenty minutes later, amidst laughter and enjoyment, Ryan's game ended with a defeat.
Regardless of his teammates' reactions, Ryan was content with the laptop's performance. There was no lag or frame drops, and the game ran smoother than on his desktop. It was truly a professional gaming notebook.
Putting down the mouse, Ryan took a moment to check the system interface.
Host: Ryan
Level: LV2
LV1 Privilege Reward: Earn 0.2 yuan every time you blink.
Upgrade Experience: 14,320/100,000 (Experience can only be gained through spending and cannot be borrowed or earned!)
System Store: Closed
Items: [Consumption Rebate Critical Strike Card] x1
Skill: [Drive sports car with One Hand]
[Socks trade mastery]
Balance: 2,612.2 dollar
...
Looking at his balance on the system interface, Ryan wondered if he should reduce his sleeping hours. Sleeping ten hours a day seemed extravagant.
Of course, this was all in jest for his own amusement.
He maintained his usual routine. After waking up, he helped out at the shop, attended driving school after lunch, played games in the evening, and occasionally joined Jack for a few laps.
During this time, lily invited him out several times, but Ryan politely declined each invitation.
Lily wasn't unattractive; she was an 8 out of 10 in looks. However, she didn't quite match Ryan's taste.
Beauty was subjective, and everyone had different preferences.
...
August 8 arrived unnoticed, and Ryan obtained his driver's license that day.
To Ryan's surprise, Emma also got her driver's license on the same day. However, will was still stuck on the third subject as he didn't pass the second one.
In the evening, at the family's hotel,
After seeing off the last table of guests, Mr. Smith lit a cigarette and walked out of the back kitchen, saying, "Ryan, now that you have your driver's license, do you want us to get you a car?"
Before Ryan could respond, Mark , at the cash register, objected, "He's just started college. Why buy him a car now?"
"You don't get it!" Mrs mark exhaled a smoke ring and explained, "He needs to keep driving after getting his license. Otherwise, if he doesn't drive for a few years, he'll forget everything and have to start learning again."
If there were no system, Ryan would have been happy to agree.
But since he had the system and acquired the skill, he'd been fixated on getting a Ferrari.
Thinking of this, Ryan shook his head and said, "Dad, you don't need to buy me a car right now. I plan to try starting a business after college and see if I can buy a car myself."
"Starting a business?" Mark pondered for a moment and said seriously, "It's good to try starting a business when you're young. But before you start, make sure you do proper market research and analysis, and don't invest blindly. Also, be cautious with contracts."
This was Mark way of offering guidance.
Except for illegal activities, he rarely objected to Ryan's decisions and often encouraged him to try new things.
Ms Mark couldn't interfere with Ryan's upbringing and could only express her dissatisfaction, saying, "Hmm! Mark, you're spoiling him. This will only end in disaster!"
Ryan ignored his mother's discontent and said, "By the way, I'm going to new York with my classmates tomorrow for a few days."
Going on a trip with classmates was just an excuse. The real reason was, of course, to shop till he dropped!
During this time, his funds had accumulated to 230,000 dollars. It was time to use that [Consumption Rebate Critical Strike Card]!
Upon hearing that Ryan was going to new York for leisure, mark cautioned, "Be careful while traveling. Don't stay in remote hotels just to save a few bucks."
"Dad, don't worry. I've got it covered," Ryan assured him.
Even if mark offered money, it wouldn't be much—just a thousand or two. It wouldn't make a big difference with the critical strike card, so Ryan declined.
As for why he wanted to spend money in new York, the reason was simple.
Many high-end luxury stores didn't exist there, and new York was the closest first-tier metropolis to his hometown.
With over 200,000 dollars to spend in one go, apart from cars, only high-end luxury goods remained.
Of course, he could also buy a house. However, housing prices had skyrocketed in recent years, and with his limited funds, making even a down payment was difficult.
Ryan thought about it and realized he could only splurge on luxury goods.
And what luxury good to buy?
A watch, of course.
A good watch could enhance one's image.
And top-tier watches were unlike most luxury items; they held significant value.
For example, Rolex had once been considered a global hard currency and was nearly as valuable as gold.
Of course, Ryan chose a watch not for investment but out of necessity.
Imagine driving a Ferrari with one hand and not having a watch to match—it just wouldn't feel right.