"You said this was the house your parents bought for our marriage, didn't you?" Ai Bing entered the room, her brows furrowing as she took in the nearly empty space. Although she had always considered Zhou Lin as a backup, and not the only one at that, his material conditions were acceptable. At least this fully paid-off house had always felt like hers.
Even if Zhou Lin had sold it, the money from the sale...
"Only five million?"
Hearing the amount, Ai Bing's face turned pale. How could it be just five million? He must be hiding some!
"Where's the money?" Ai Bing asked, barely holding back her anger.
"In my bank account," Zhou Lin replied with a smile.
"I see..." Ai Bing's mind raced, quickly forming a plan. She stepped forward, wrapping her arm around Zhou Lin's, her chest brushing against him suggestively. She believed this was enough to make Zhou Lin lose his composure and his ability to think clearly.
"It's good that you sold it. I know a new development opening soon. Tomorrow, we can go pick out a place. With five million, we can get a nice three-bedroom, two-bathroom apartment."
"Five million won't be enough," Zhou Lin said, guessing her intention but playing along.
"It'll cover the down payment. Once we get married, we can pay off the rest together. How does that sound?" Ai Bing continued to press against him, her movements making Zhou Lin marvel at her efforts. How had he not noticed her true nature in his past life?
She was obviously planning to add her name to the property deed. With Zhou Lin paying the down payment and likely covering the mortgage, she would own half the property. Even if they didn't end up getting married, her name on the deed would entitle her to a significant sum.
A true master of the no-investment scheme.
Zhou Lin couldn't help but chuckle, "If you put it that way, it's not impossible. It's getting late. Have you eaten? If not, we can have dinner together."
"I've already eaten," Ai Bing replied. To maintain her figure, she rarely ate dinner, as her body was her biggest asset given her less-than-perfect features.
"Oh, then don't leave tonight," Zhou Lin said nonchalantly as he continued eating.
Ai Bing hesitated, "Babe, I've told you before, my family doesn't approve of premarital stuff... Besides, we're not even officially together."
"No official relationship, no house shopping tomorrow," Zhou Lin said without looking up.
"You..." Ai Bing was surprised. He seemed like a different person. She reconsidered her options. Could this dog be seeing someone else? No way. She couldn't let someone else beat her to the punch. If push came to shove, she'd stay the night for the five million.
"Alright, I'll stay with you tonight. Don't get any ideas, though. I'm just keeping you company."
Zhou Lin smiled inwardly. Little did she know he had no interest in her. "I'm planning to go home tomorrow."
"To Bashu? But I thought we were going house hunting tomorrow," Ai Bing asked.
"My mom said if I bring my girlfriend home, she'll pay for the entire house, all in cash."
"Really?..." Ai Bing's eyes sparkled with joy despite her attempts to act reserved. To reel her in, Zhou Lin feigned nervousness, "I wanted to ask... if you're free, can you come with me? No pressure."
"Well..." Ai Bing pouted, "I'll see if I can get time off from work. I'm not saying I'll be your girlfriend, just helping you out this once. The future depends on how you perform."
"Great! You get that leave, and I'll book the tickets!"
Seeing Ai Bing's hesitant act, Zhou Lin couldn't help but laugh internally. If she hadn't agreed, seeking revenge might have been more challenging with all he had to do back home. It was as if she had willingly walked into a noose, and no force in the world could stop her.
Later, as Zhou Lin lay in bed, his consciousness drifted into the "Laifu" carrier.
As the largest aircraft carrier, the Laifu had plenty of unused space. The rooms for over five thousand crew members alone added up to over 100,000 cubic meters, equivalent to more than a thousand shipping containers. Plus, the numerous warehouses, garages, and hangars all had plenty of surplus space.
Since he wouldn't likely return to Deep City, Zhou Lin planned a big heist before leaving. He had his eyes on a nearby car town.
While the Laifu had vehicles, driving around in a Beautiful Country armored personnel carrier might not be the best fit.
There was an auto town nearby with many well-known brands. Zhou Lin figured these cars wouldn't be sold in time and planned a midnight visit, heading straight for the train station afterward.
At 3 AM, his alarm went off.
Zhou Lin got up, washed, and shut off the house's water and electricity. After a nostalgic glance around, he left.
By 3:30 AM, even Deep City was asleep, and the streets were empty. Zhou Lin donned a helmet, avoiding cameras as much as possible, and circled to the car town's back entrance. After confirming no one was around, he scaled the wall and entered.
Rows of showrooms stood, some brightly lit, others dark. Occasionally, he spotted security guards, but in the vast car town, a few patrolling guards posed no threat.
If he was going to do this, he would do it big.
Ordinary cars held no appeal for Zhou Lin. He only eyed those fit for the apocalypse, powerful performers.
Two Mercedes G63s, taken;
BMW X7 and Audi Q7, ignored;
Three Toyota Land Cruisers, added to the haul;
Four Ford Raptors, perfect;
Two Unimogs, a nice bonus;
...On and on, Zhou Lin lost count of how many cars he'd taken. He turned back and saw a row of towering RVs in the parking lot.
"Good stuff!"
While off-road vehicles were great for the apocalypse, RVs had their own merits, especially those modified from heavy-duty trucks with robust off-road capabilities, seemingly made for apocalyptic conditions.
Deep City, being a hub for the wealthy, naturally had a few high-performance, exorbitantly priced RVs on display.
In the end, Zhou Lin took three in total. Not because he was holding back, but because these things took up a lot of space. One, for instance, the Armadillo Conqueror, was 11.15 meters long, 2.55 meters wide, and 3.95 meters tall, with a weight of 23 tons and a price tag over ten million yuan!
Previously, he wouldn't have dared dream of owning one, not even after a few drinks.
"Zero-cost shopping is the best!" Zhou Lin thought as he left the car town, still relishing the experience. Unfortunately, he couldn't use these vehicles immediately, or he would have driven one back to Bashu from Deep City!
By dawn, the car theft in the car town hadn't made headlines online, likely overshadowed by the eruption of the Super Volcano in the Beautiful Country.