Tang Yu hesitated for a long time, finally unable to resist asking, "Little Fan, right? Do you have any connections in the official circles?"
"Me?"
Lin Fan looked up, pointing at himself in surprise, and replied, "I've never even been to the city. Where would I have connections?"
"Is that so."
Tang Yu's disappointment was evident.
Her family had mobilized all their friends and relatives for this matter, even distant relatives had come bearing gifts.
But up until now, there was still no lead, like trying to find a temple without a pig's head to offer.
Seeing his girlfriend's dejected state, Zhang Liang chided, "Little Fan, if you really have any connections, don't hide it. We're old classmates, you should at least help out a bit!"
Lin Fan sighed lightly, spreading his hands, "It's not that I won't help, it's that I truly don't have any. You know me, how could a village kid like me have connections in the official circles?"
Lin Fan's expression was sincere, not dismissive.
Su Yurou tilted her head, looking at Lin Fan, thinking, "This kid isn't stupid. He doesn't boast about his connections just because he has them; he knows how to keep a low profile."
Zhang Liang's spirits plummeted. He sat there without eating or drinking, sulking.
He and Tang Yu exchanged a look, seeing the word "dejected" in each other's eyes.
The dishes were delicacies, the wine was Bin Hai Maotai.
Yet, the whole table ate without any flavor.
Su Yurou didn't touch a bite.
Disregarding the gazes of the couple opposite her, she kept picking food for Lin Fan, preparing anything that needed peeling or deboning beforehand.
The more Zhang Liang watched, the more uncomfortable he felt.
He usually doted on and pampered his girlfriend, wanting to pluck the stars from the sky for her.
Why was Lin Fan receiving this treatment?
"Little Fan, you run your own clinic now, it must be quite profitable, right?"
Zhang Liang wanted to regain some sense of importance by changing the topic.
Lin Fan replied casually without thinking, "It's alright. It's enough to support myself and my family."
"Support your family!"
Zhang Liang's spirits perked up. "The country's policies are good now, encouraging early marriage and more children. You're not young anymore, you should think about finding a partner and getting married!"
"Just supporting your family isn't enough!"
"You need to earn at least over a hundred thousand a year to save money, right?"
Zhang Liang said this because his own annual salary was close to two hundred thousand.
Lin Fan nodded seriously, "Yes, I know. Once the house is built, I'll start saving."
"Building a house?"
Zhang Liang was taken aback, as if he had heard something fantastical. "Little Fan, what's the point of building a house in the countryside now?"
"Will someone you find a partner be willing to move back to the countryside with you?"
"Think about it, the environment here in Tianjiang is so good. There are distinct seasons, and you can even wear shorts in winter!"
"With such good conditions, if you still live in a mountain ravine, who would be willing to go back with you?"
"If I say it nicely, I'd say you're honest and dependable!"
"If I say it poorly, aren't you just lazy!"
"It's not the north where it's freezing in winter, why would you do that?"
"Are you planning to live in the countryside your whole life?"
Lin Fan was about to say it didn't matter when Su Yurou exclaimed, "Why wouldn't someone be willing?"
Su Yurou held her head high, almost saying that she was willing.
Zhang Liang was speechless, utterly defeated.
Fine.
You two are on the same page. If you're willing, no one can do anything about it!
Thinking this, Zhang Liang couldn't help but advise, "Little Fan, listen to me, it's more practical to buy a house in the city. At least its value retention is a million times better than a rural house!"
"Little Fan already has one."
Su Yurou feigned surprise, looking at Zhang Liang and said, "Didn't Little Fan tell you?"
"He has a 150 square meter fully furnished apartment in Lanxi Residential Area."
Zhang Liang and Tang Yu were stunned.
"Lanxi Residential Area!"
"One hundred and fifty square meters!"
Zhang Liang had been researching buying a house lately and had done quite a bit of homework.
Houses in Lanxi Residential Area weren't cheap!
Even at 6,500 per square meter, multiplied by 150, that's 975,000!
Add in the renovation costs, and it easily exceeds a million!
Zhang Liang was skeptical and asked, "Little Fan, where did you get the money for the down payment?"
"I, I didn't pay a down payment."
Lin Fan shot Su Yurou a glare, mouthing, "You're just looking for trouble!"
"No down payment?"
Zhang Liang burst into laughter, as if he had heard the biggest joke.
Tang Yu also chuckled, "If you didn't pay a down payment, did the developer give it to you?"
Lin Fan almost nodded in agreement, "You're right, the developer actually gave it to me."
Su Yurou, seeing Lin Fan's intention, smiled and said, "Alright, alright, let's not talk about money, it's so vulgar!"
Zhang Liang took a deep breath, half-believing, half-skeptical.
When they were in school, his family's financial situation was much better than Lin Fan's.
Now, he earned much more than Lin Fan.
Yet, even so, if he were to buy a house now, his parents would have to sell everything they had. Where did Lin Fan get the money to buy a house?
He took a gulp of wine and said angrily, "Little Fan, regardless of anything else, money is courage. Saving more money is never a bad thing."
Lin Fan nodded, "Yes, I don't spend money carelessly."
Seeing Lin Fan's nonchalant expression, Zhang Liang became anxious, "Ten thousand or twenty thousand isn't much money, not even enough for an emergency. You need at least a hundred thousand or eighty thousand to be useful."
"You, you don't know the importance of money until you're in a tight spot."
Zhang Liang paused, then suddenly asked, "Little Fan, how much do you have saved up now?"
"Don't worry, I'm not asking to borrow money, just asking."
Tang Yu's curiosity was piqued upon hearing Zhang Liang's question, and she looked at Lin Fan.
She mainly wanted to know what kind of capabilities Lin Fan possessed that made Su Yurou so attentive.
"And… it's almost all spent."
Lin Fan said with a wry smile, which was the truth.
With Tian Mengyao, the village Party secretary, constantly eyeing him, he wouldn't have enough money no matter how much he had.
"Ah?"
Su Yurou covered her mouth, surprised, "Didn't I give you a million? You spent it so quickly?"
Realizing she had said the wrong thing, she quickly covered it up, "Oh, sorry, I was just kidding!"
She took out her phone and smiled, "I'll transfer some more money to you, you can spend it first."
Zhang Liang was dumbfounded.
Is this real?
Gave Lin Fan a million, and after he spent it, she's transferring more?
Am I dreaming?
Lin Fan shot Su Yurou a glare and chided, "Stop joking, Ms. Su!"
He pointed at the crayfish on the table, "If you're bored, there are still two shrimp. Peel them for me."
"Okay~"
Su Yurou didn't seem to mind his commanding tone at all.
Zhang Liang and Tang Yu were shocked.
This kind of attitude, this tone…
They would believe it even if someone said Su Yurou was Lin Fan's kept mistress!
No!
Keeping a mistress requires paying money, but Su Yurou was clearly trying to give money just now!
Zhang Liang looked at Lin Fan, who was quietly eating, and suddenly realized that his old classmate was different now, he had become unfathomably profound.