Chapter 35: So Embarrassed I Want to Dig a Hole

Chapter 35: Chapter 35: So Embarrassed I Want to Dig a Hole

After speaking, Liu Rui wrapped her arms around her boyfriend’s. "Chen Yan, let’s go in."

She was in a genuinely foul mood today. Her little sister had invited her to see the Flower Sea and said she’d introduce her to her new boyfriend. She had been happy about it, wanting to size him up for her sister’s sake. But who would have thought her sister’s new boyfriend would turn out to be Zhang Dong?

A wave of revulsion washed over her, as if she’d swallowed a fly.

’Considering Zhang Dong’s situation after we broke up, he should have had a hard time finding a girlfriend at all.’

So, seeing that he’d found someone so much younger than her—and her own sister, no less—made her inexplicably uncomfortable.

’She had no idea what her sister saw in him. Did she like that he’d been to prison? That his family was poor? That he sold fruit?’

Liu Li looked at her sister, feeling a bit awkward herself, then turned to Zhang Dong. "Dong, let’s go in too."

’They’d already slept together. She couldn’t just break up with him because he was her sister’s ex, could she?’

’Besides, when my sister was dating him, I was in college. She never even brought him home during breaks. How could I be blamed for not knowing?’

’Plus, from working at Dong’s shop, I know he’s much more impressive than my sister’s current boyfriend. After all, who else can make a 5,000 yuan profit in a single day?’

’Having been to prison doesn’t define someone’s entire future. My sister is the one being superficial.’

Zhang Lin felt like he was watching a four-person train wreck unfold. As an outsider, he kept quiet and tagged along behind them, pretending he didn’t know a thing.

The group quickly entered the service center and were immediately affected by the "Mood +1" attribute.

Under its influence, both Liu Rui and Liu Li’s twisted-up feelings instantly improved. The gloom on their faces seemed to vanish.

"This service center is built with such style!" Liu Rui couldn’t help but exclaim.

Liu Li readily agreed with her sister, praising it just as sincerely. "Yeah, it’s so well-built. Just looking at it makes you feel at ease."

The two women were suddenly all smiles, complimenting the service center.

Zhang Lin knew why and was once again amazed by the power of the game-like attributes. ’It really influences people without them even noticing.’

Hearing the two girls, Chen Yan said with a smile, "Of course it looks good. A service center like this? It must have cost at least 3 million to build. It’s all stacked up with money."

"It cost that much?" Liu Rui said in surprise.

"But of course!" Chen Yan nodded confidently.

Hearing this, Zhang Dong turned to Zhang Lin, his expression clearly asking if that was the real price.

"This service center probably cost only 500,000 to build," Zhang Lin said tactfully.

In reality, he had done the math. Building a rustic, wooden-style service center like this might cost a little over 500,000, but definitely not by much.

The 3 million Chen Yan mentioned was completely off the mark. He was clearly just talking out of his ass.

Zhang Dong understood immediately. ’Damn, this Chen Yan guy is a total know-it-all.’

He was the type who had a superficial understanding of everything, or even no understanding at all, yet always acted like an expert. He could talk a big game about any topic, but in reality, most of it was just stuff he made up. These people couldn’t even be bothered to do a simple online search.

In front of people who were just as clueless, these "know-it-alls" could successfully show off. People around them might even think they were impressive and made a lot of sense.

But in front of someone who actually knew the truth, they just looked like a complete idiot.

Chen Yan was displeased by Zhang Lin’s words. He frowned and said, "Brother, you clearly don’t get it. If you can build this for 500,000—no... for 1 million, you build as many as you want, and I’ll pay for every single one!"

"Uh!" Zhang Lin was stunned speechless.

’*I* don’t get it?’

For a moment, he was at a loss for words. He could only admire the guy’s sheer nerve. ’No wonder Zhang Dong’s girlfriend was stolen by this guy. His thick skin and baseless confidence are extremely effective on certain women who are eager to climb the social ladder but lack any real substance themselves. They’d think guys like him are amazing.’

’After all, they can’t tell if he’s the real deal or a fake.’

Seeing Zhang Lin fall silent, Chen Yan grew even more confident. "Brother, let me tell you something. I’ve had dinner with the owner of this farm. He told me himself that this service center cost 3 million to build. Add in the 500-acre Flower Sea, and the total investment was over 5 million."

"..." This time, Zhang Lin was truly rendered silent.

’When the hell did I ever have dinner with this guy? Including today, we’ve only met twice in our entire lives.’

However, he understood what was happening. The guy was just spouting bullshit to cover his tracks, fabricating a story involving a key figure to add credibility and authority to his words.

Honestly, anyone who didn’t know better would be fooled into thinking he was a big shot. But for those who knew the truth, the guy was just... a piece of work.

Anyway, Zhang Lin was truly speechless. Logically, someone who could afford a BMW 5 Series shouldn’t be this clueless.

Even Zhang Dong felt Chen Yan was acting like a clown. ’Damn, he’s trying to show off right in front of Zhang Lin, the actual owner.’

But then, he felt like he was the bigger clown, since this was the guy who had stolen his girlfriend.

Chen Yan, however, was quite satisfied seeing Zhang Lin go silent. After all, it wasn’t like the guy could actually find the farm’s owner to refute his claims. He could say whatever he wanted, couldn’t he?

Just then, the head of the ticketing office, Zhao Lin, suddenly came out with a smile and called out to Zhang Lin, "Boss!"

That single word, "Boss," instantly froze the atmosphere.

Chen Yan’s expression, in particular, became a spectacular sight to behold.

He was completely dumbfounded.

’What’s going on?’

’I just said this guy didn’t know anything, and it turns out he’s the owner of the farm? The crucial part is, I just claimed I had dinner with him and heard it from his own mouth.’

’This...’

Instantly, Chen Yan’s entire face turned beet red. He was so embarrassed he wished he could find a hole to crawl into.

Even Liu Rui, who had been holding his arm, was stunned. Her grip on Chen Yan’s arm loosened. This kind of direct, public humiliation was so intense that even she felt secondhand embarrassment.

For some reason, in that sudden instant, the boyfriend she had been so satisfied with moments ago suddenly lost all his charm.

"Zhao Lin, these four are my friends. Waive their ticket fees, and please show them around," Zhang Lin instructed Zhao Lin, silently giving her a thumbs-up.

’The employees produced by this game system really are competent.’

’She must have heard Chen Yan showing off earlier, so she delivered the face-slap with perfect, invisible timing.’

He had no desire to linger. After a quick word with Zhang Dong, he headed toward the restaurant inside.

Zhao Lin, however, smiled warmly and gestured to Chen Yan and Liu Rui. "The four of you, our boss has instructed that your tickets are free. Please come this way to collect them, and I will show you into the Flower Sea."

To Liu Rui, those words dripped with sarcasm. She was in no mood to see any flower sea. Her face burning with embarrassment, she turned and walked away.

Seeing this, Chen Yan chased after her in even greater embarrassment. "Ruirui, wait for me!"

Only Liu Li and Zhang Dong were left, exchanging a glance.

"Shall we see it by ourselves?" Zhang Dong asked.

"Yeah!" Liu Li nodded.

They both seemed to sense the newfound delight in each other’s eyes.

...