Chapter 1 Two Days Later

Before a trip to Silicon Valley could materialize, Su Yehao took Nong Qingying to the capital.

He'd contacted his father two days prior, asking for help in getting Hong Kong movies screened on the mainland. His father had only provided a number, claiming he'd already made some preliminary arrangements. He told Su Yehao to handle the specifics himself, as he was currently busy.

And so, they hastily arranged another trip to the capital.

During their previous visit, snowflakes had danced in the air. Now, in early July, the weather was so hot it could cause heatstroke.

As they disembarked from the plane, a wave of heat hit them. The tarmac reeked of asphalt, and as the shuttle hadn't arrived, they stood waiting by the gate.

Nong Qingying was dressed casually in denim shorts and a white tank top.

Her legs were long, and she was already tall, so even in sneakers, the flight attendant, who was already familiar with Su Yehao, felt completely outshone.

The flight attendant, a Japanese woman working for the private jet leasing company, usually thought highly of herself, but she was repeatedly humbled by the women around Su Yehao.

Despite Su Yehao's seemingly fickle nature, the flight attendant only envied Nangong Tian and Nong Qingying.

In the distance, they spotted a minivan approaching.

The young and beautiful flight attendant, standing behind Su Yehao, smiled and said in English, "I wish you a pleasant journey. I hope to see you again."

"Oh, right."

Su Yehao turned to look at the flight attendant, who resembled Masami Nagasawa. He casually pulled out some Hong Kong dollars and said, "This is a tip for you all. I should be using the plane again in a few days. The service was excellent."

The company allowed them to accept tips, and the flight attendant smiled and accepted the money. Over a thousand Hong Kong dollars—who would refuse free money?

She continued to bow and thank him, but felt a twinge of bitterness.

She was often hit on by customers, which she always found annoying. But when she finally met someone she liked, he was clearly a playboy, yet he never made a move on her.

She glanced at Nong Qingying with a smile, and then recalled Yin Liuli, Jiang Yu, and the others she had seen… she had indeed lost.

…

Su Yehao had no idea what the flight attendant was thinking.

He got into the shuttle, which had no air conditioning, and it felt like he was about to explode from the heat. As he drank water, he joked:

"Once you enter the capital, you're in deep. Dragons have to coil, and tigers have to crouch. Some places allow cars to drive right onto the tarmac, but they don't play that game here. The day I can have a car drive right up to the plane to pick me up, that's when I'll know I've truly made it. Right now, I'm just a small businessman with a little money, no real influence."

Hearing this, Nong Qingying lowered her voice and complained in Cantonese, "Couldn't you have parked the car in the shade? The seat is burning my thighs."

"It's only a short ride. Just bear with it. When we get to the hotel, I'll rub your legs for you."

After Su Yehao finished speaking, Nong Qingying rolled her eyes at him with a smile and asked, "The house you bought last year was renovated a while ago. Should we stay there for a few days?"

"I didn't book a hotel anyway. I hope the designer isn't an idiot and forgot to install air conditioning. If he did, remember to fan me at night…"

The minivan dropped them off at the terminal.

Walking a long distance and being blasted by cold air made Su Yehao feel alive again.

Su’s father was still in the capital and had arranged for someone to pick them up.

As they walked out of the arrival hall, Su Yehao’s eyes lit up when he saw several Audi 100 sedans. He walked around to the front to check the license plates, which were indeed much more impressive than those of the rented Mercedes-Benz S-Class and BMW 7 Series.

The so-called Audi 100 was actually the predecessor to the A6. In the early years, a batch of these Audis had been imported for office use.

Although Su Yehao didn't know much about license plates, he understood something, but he wasn't sure how his father had arranged for them.

After getting in the car and asking, he learned that someone had overheard Su’s father mentioning that Su Yehao was coming during a meeting that morning, and they had offered to arrange airport pickup as a gesture of goodwill towards investors. That was all.

As one of the prominent figures in the Casino business world, Su's father still had some influence.

They drove all the way to Shichahai. Su Yehao had the driver drop them off at the entrance to a hutong. He had been to the house twice when he bought it, but now he couldn't remember exactly where it was. So he decided to walk around Shichahai, trying to find his house by recalling the images in his memory.

After much effort, he saw a relatively new courtyard house, but he wasn't sure if it was his. He walked around to the front, only to find the gate tightly closed. That's when he remembered he didn't have a key.

The bronze gate had a modern feel, and the lock had long been replaced.

The alley in front of the gate was too narrow, and there were many杂物 piled up nearby, so the car couldn't get in.

He called the renovation company and was told it would take about twenty minutes. Su Yehao walked around to look at the outside. The walls were made of old city wall bricks, with blue glazed tiles and flying eaves and beasts.

If it weren't for the surroundings holding it back, it would look even more impressive.

In this era, the courtyard houses nearby were said to be valuable, but in reality, several or even a dozen families could live in one house. The living experience was self-explanatory, leaving only the advantage of a good location.

When he went to buy a house, it was because he couldn't come to an agreement with several families that he gave up the three houses at the foot of the city wall. He had originally wanted to connect them to build a large mansion.

This courtyard house used to be very old, but it was completely demolished and rebuilt on the original site.

It was Nong Qingying's first time here as well. She stood with Su Yehao at the gate and joked, "What's the point of building this house with so much effort? How many times a year will we come to stay? If we stayed in a hotel, we'd already be lying in bed enjoying the air conditioning."

"You don't understand. The appreciation potential is huge in the future. It's a scarce resource. I'd be happy even if it just sits here all year round."

Su Yehao reached out to touch the patterns on the door. He had told the designer not to be rigid and to make it more modern, so this house was now a mix of Chinese and Western styles. For example, the gate was custom-made and shipped from France, and there was a shield pattern on the door.

Clicking his tongue, Su Yehao continued, "The gate doesn't face the main road. I still don't feel it's good enough. Next time I come across a better and bigger house, I want to buy another one."

"… Anyway, it's your own money, and you've earned so much. This house isn't too expensive."

Nong Qingying has an apartment on the Mid-Levels in Hong Kong, which she still rents out.

Speaking of which, she was indeed confident. She had profited from stock speculation, thanks to Su Yehao, and had already earned sixty to seventy million Hong Kong dollars.

While waiting, they bought popsicles from a nearby shop, one for each of them, to cool down and relieve the heat.

The company in charge of the renovation quickly sent someone to deliver the keys.

They entered the courtyard to take a look. The courtyard was regularly cleaned, with a fish pond, garden, and pine trees, creating a very refined atmosphere.

As for the interior, unlike the traditional Chinese style of other courtyard houses, it was almost like a hotel, with a total of ten rooms and a spacious living room.

Overall, it was beyond expectations.

They first turned on the air conditioning and sat down to rest. While the people from the renovation company were still there, Su Yehao asked if there were any other courtyard houses for sale…