The next day at 8:30 am, Zhou Wang, having finished his breakfast in his room, took the private elevator to the basement accompanied by Bella.
There, a driver wearing white gloves and a black Toyota Alphard were waiting at the parking spot.
Last night, Zhou Wang had already discussed his car needs with Bella in advance, and during breakfast, Bella provided him with a choice of three car models.
These were the BMW 7 series, Mercedes-Benz S-Class, and the Toyota Alphard.
Actually, there was a fourth, unconventional option, a Rolls-Royce normally not used by the hotel, seemingly a Ghost model.
Zhou Wang was indeed tempted, but after some thought, he chose the comparatively low-key Toyota Alphard, not because the first three were free while the Rolls-Royce charged by mileage.
Even if he could enjoy a significant discount, a day out in a Rolls-Royce wouldn't cost much for Zhou Wang.
The night before, at midnight, the 100,000 yuan profit from "Hedge Fund" had been promptly credited to his account, and by tonight at midnight, another 100,000 yuan would be credited, his current money-making pace was practically on par with robbery.
Mainly, he felt that he was just going to read a book, there was no reason for such ostentatious display. The Alphard, being a professional business car, wouldn't disappoint in comfort, and it wasn't too conspicuous, which suited his needs better.
20 minutes later, the Alphard smoothly pulled up at the entrance of the Provincial Library.
At this peak hour of work, the library, located in the center of Ming City near Cui Lake, was bustling with people. Zhou Wang exiting the car still drew quite a bit of attention.
After all, it was a luxury car worth millions. "Low-key" was only relative compared to a Rolls-Royce; in fact, it had turned quite a few heads along the way.
Of course… whether the comments were "this car is really ugly" or "this car is really handsome," remained unknown.
Life isn't a short video. Online, some boast that Mercedes-Benz and BMW have become common brands, but the reality is, if you're driving a Mercedes or BMW in your twenties or thirties, you're already outperforming over 90% of your peers, and if you're not too picky, changing girlfriends is as easy as playing a game.
After leaving his phone number and setting a pick-up time with the Driver, Zhou Wang walked through the lush path toward the library.
Just reaching the main five-story building of the library, Zhou Wang was stunned to see a long queue already formed on the steps.
The library opened at 9 a.m., and Zhou Wang had deliberately come a bit early to secure a good spot, yet he was still late.
The last time Zhou Wang visited such a place was two or three years ago, and that was a school library; he had never seen such a sight before.
He could only lament inwardly, so how could there be a lack of diligent people in the world, no matter how hard you try, there's always someone working harder… luckily, I have a "cheat".
Sadly, according to the system's instructions, he could only read books here; otherwise, Zhou Wang really wanted to just turn around and leave.
No choice but to honestly queue up!
At this moment, it would have been nice if a pretty girl could catch his eye.
Just as Zhou Wang thought this, he looked up and saw a girl with a very nice figure from the back.
She was standing on the sun-dappled steps, and being quite tall herself, she stood out from the crowd.
Her hair was tied up, basking in the golden light, beneath which was a stretch of pale, slender neck. Her arms were positioned in a forward embrace, causing her white shirt to tightly cling to her straight back, perfectly outlining her angular shoulders and an A4 waist.
The lower half was a conservatively styled black skirt, but even from the proportions, one could tell she hid a pair of incredibly long legs underneath.
And although he couldn't see her face directly, from the way several men nearby were pretending to casually look back, it was evident her features must be quite remarkable.
Zhou Wang, however, had no intention of going over to see her face. In just a short while, a dozen more people had lined up behind him; he couldn't afford to lose his spot.
Moreover, he trusted only his own aesthetic judgment. Nowadays, with fashion tutorials everywhere, killers dressed in striking outfits were not uncommon; some things are better left to the imagination.
After a while, Zhou Wang diverted his gaze and suddenly noticed something strange. With a slight turn of his head, he saw a girl wearing black-rimmed glasses and a ponytail, tucking her head down in a fluster, her ears bright red.
Zhou Wang was initially taken aback, then he realized what had happened.
The Provincial Library, while open to the public, was mostly frequented by young men and women with exam needs at this hour. As yet another girl walked past, making contact with Zhou Wang's gaze, she unnaturally touched her hair, reminding Zhou of a saying:
"You're admiring the scenery on the bridge; the one admiring the scenery is under the bridge watching you."
His appearance was originally not lacking, and the change in hairstyle further refined Zhou Wang's facial contours. Coupled with a Versace casual outfit, he stood out even more strikingly among the "plain" crowd than the white-shirted girl.
But what was most significant was the transformation in demeanor brought about by the "Posture Training Book."
Even when just standing relaxed, Zhou Wang would unconsciously stand tall and proud, maintaining a straight posture, meeting strangers' eyes without instinctively looking away and would even smile and nod in greeting.
Why are celebrities who frequently appear on screen always so poised? Because they have undergone professional training in this regard.
Under the system's mandatory correction, Zhou Wang had prematurely reached a post-training state, although he was still in the stage of developing the habit, which often felt awkward to him.
After waiting a few more minutes, the library's doors opened and the line began to move forward.
The queuing process was much faster than Zhou Wang had expected, and it was only after he actually entered that he realized how convenient modern libraries had become.
No longer was there any need for a library card; a identification card or any other valid document sufficed to borrow books for free... yes, completely free.
The only time you needed a card was if you wanted to take books outside the premises.
And now, everything was operated on machines; aside from an information desk, hardly any staff were visible – a convenience brought by the information age.
The only regret was that such a public library had no private rooms, so finding a satisfactory spot depended entirely on luck.
After entering, Zhou Wang quickly made his way to the Chinese books lending section, which housed nearly all Chinese books and translated foreign books published domestically in the past five years. Most of the books listed in his system should be found here.
Indeed, even bookstores might not offer a collection as comprehensive as this.
"'Wealth of Nations'... found it!"
Zhou Wang quickly located the first target book in the finance area. He had read online reviews that, since the book was a summary of key points, it could generally be finished in one day, making it his first choice.
But to make the most of his time, he needed to find another target book as a backup.
Zhou Wang then headed to the law section, finally spotting a book titled "Cave Mystery" tucked away in a corner of a shelf.
This was essentially an introductory book to law studies. Zhou Wang found the title intriguing, the book offered decent points, and since it was narrated in an informative way, he figured he could easily get into it, thus he had placed it high on his list.
However, just as Zhou Wang reached out for it, another pale slender hand, unrealistically beautiful, reached out as well, covering his hand.
Feeling the cool, soft touch, Zhou Wang looked up in astonishment.