Chapter 012: One Billion in Savings

Chu Mo did not drive the Aston Martin One-77, valued at over 40 million, that was in the garage, although the car keys were in his pocket.

Firstly, Chu Mo did not have a driver's license, and secondly, aside from the training car, Chu Mo had never touched any other car, and he feared that suddenly getting behind the wheel could lead to problems.

Of course, the most important reason was that the car was still registered under Shen Long's name; once he paid the money and transferred both the house and car into his name, it wouldn't be too late to drive it!

Still seated in Zhan Bingxue's Maserati, the female clerk named Sun Qing was in the back seat, while Chu Mo and Shen Long both wanted to settle the matter quickly, so they decided to go straight to the agency to sign the contract.

The Maserati led the way, with Shen Long's Rolls-Royce following behind.

Upon leaving the villa area, Chu Mo suddenly addressed the petite girl in the back seat:

"Xiao Qing, add me on WeChat!"

"Ah? Oh, okay, Mr. Chu!"

After the other party scanned his QR code, a WeChat contact request from "Sunny" soon appeared.

Chu Mo clicked to accept and opened the chat window, then he directly transferred 100,000 RMB to her!

"Mr. Chu? You...!"

An excited voice came from the small girl in the back, and Chu Mo, waving his hand slightly, said indifferently:

"It's nothing, consider it a tip for Xiao Qing! Don't hesitate."

Sun Qing in the back seat opened her mouth as if she wanted to say something more, but after seeing Chu Mo wave his hand, she hesitated for a moment and then with gritted teeth, she whispered her thanks and gently tapped to confirm the receipt of the payment.

Suddenly, 100,000 RMB was credited to her account.

That was Sun Qing's annual income!

"By the way, Mr. Chu, when you mentioned giving me a challenge earlier, were you talking about that Number 1 villa?"

It was now 12:30 PM, right at lunchtime, and there was not much traffic on the streets. The cars moved smoothly and unobstructed. As they waited at a red light, Zhan Bingxue, with both hands on the steering wheel, suddenly asked!

Upon hearing this, Chu Mo chuckled:

"Manager Zhan is truly sharp-witted. Indeed, I'm quite fond of that Number 1 villa. So here's the deal—if Manager Zhan can help me secure that villa, I'll personally transfer 5 million RMB to you as a red envelope. Of course, as for the price, we can raise it a bit."

Suddenly turning her cheek with a slightly hesitant look, Zhan Bingxue softly said:

"You mean to put the Number 8 villa on hold, Mr. Chu?"

"No, no!" He waved his hand and then pointed at the green light ahead. As the car started moving smoothly, Chu Mo continued:

"Buy the Number 8 villa right now, that part is unchanged. As for the Number 1 villa, consider it an investment opportunity. If Manager Zhan can secure it for me, that would be great, but if the owner doesn't agree, then there's no pressure!"

As Chu Mo finished speaking, his stomach suddenly let out a growling sound. He hadn't slept all of the previous night and hadn't eaten anything in the morning. By now, he was indeed starving. Pointing at a ramen shop ahead, Chu Mo suddenly said:

"Manager Zhan, let's grab something to eat here first!"

Both people in the car heard Chu Mo's stomach growling and naturally wouldn't object. The Maserati turned on its signal and slowly parked, and the Rolls-Royce behind also came to a stop.

Chu Mo got out of the car, pointed at the ramen shop in front, and said to Shen Long who had just stepped out of the driver's seat with a smile:

"Boss Shen, let's go, my treat to a grand feast—big portions guaranteed to fill you up!"

"No, I should be treating this meal…!"

Before he could finish his sentence, seeing that Chu Mo was pointing to a ramen shop, the portly Shen Long looked puzzled and swallowed the rest of his words.

The ramen shop was small but fairly clean. Of course, hoping for a private room here was wishful thinking. The four of them found a spot to sit, and Chu Mo called out loudly:

"Boss, four bowls of ramen, two big and two small!"

"Got it!"

After the boss's wife responded, Shen Long, rubbing his belly, spoke with a face full of nostalgia:

"It's been a long time since I've eaten in a small place like this. When I first started my business, I was a big fan of all kinds of street food—spicy hot pot, stinky tofu, teppanyaki... Thinking back on it really makes me miss those days!"

With a look of affection on his face, Shen Long got emotional. Chu Mo, not skilled at socializing, could only laugh in response, barely keeping up with the conversation, while Zhan Bingxue, ever resourceful, promptly complimented him and avoided any awkwardness.

However, what surprised Chu Mo was that Sun Qing, the short-haired girl, kept glancing at him, with or without intention. Whenever Chu Mo inadvertently made eye contact, the girl with the attractiveness score of eighty-five would flush with embarrassment and avert her gaze!

Chu Mo couldn't be bothered to guess what was on the girl's mind, but when his stomach rumbled loudly again, he noticed that the expression on Shen Long's face, a tycoon worth over a billion, seemed off as he looked at Chu Mo with a hint of scrutiny.

It seemed he was harboring some suspicions.

At that moment, his phone rang. Glancing at the caller ID, it turned out to be an old classmate, Ling Yue. Without hesitation, he answered the call, and the sweet voice of the campus beauty came through!

"Chu, are you free? I'd like to invite you for a meal?"

Having just parted ways the previous night, receiving a call from the other party again, Chu Mo actually felt a hint of unfamiliarity. He glanced at Shen Long across from him and said with a laugh,

"I'm at the ramen shop now, about to have dinner. If you're willing, I'll treat you to ramen!"

Chu Mo was just joking, but to his surprise, on the other end of the phone, Ling Yue immediately said,

"Send me your location through Weixin. Manager Zhou and I will be there shortly. The Black Gold Card has been taken care of, and we can discuss the details in person!"

The Centurion Black Gold Card was ready so soon?

Before Chu Mo could ponder further, the person on the other end said they wouldn't miss it for the world and hung up the phone.

With a wry smile and a shake of his head, he opened Weixin to send the location. As he did so, the owner had already brought over four steaming bowls of ramen.

"I'm famished, so I won't wait for anyone. Let's all dig in."

Already hungry with an empty stomach, and enticed by the appetizing scent of the ramen, Chu Mo picked up his chopsticks and started eating heartily.

Chu Mo and Shen Long, each with a large bowl for the men, naturally, and the girls with smaller ones. Chu Mo devoured his food, while Sun Qing across the table didn't hold back and started eating daintily. However, Zhan Bingxue sitting next to Chu Mo hesitated at the sight of the green onions in her bowl!

She normally didn't like green onions and would specifically request not to have them included when dining out. But as she glanced at Chu Mo out of the corner of her eye, she gritted her teeth. With a delicate air about her, completely out of place in the surrounding environment, Zhan Bingxue went ahead and ate despite her reluctance.

As for Shen Long with his potbelly, aside from trying a strand of noodle at the beginning, he quickly laid his chopsticks down.

After all, being accustomed to refined cuisine as a corporate executive, the greasy taste of the ramen was too much for him!

Only after slurping up the last drop of soup and letting out a contented burp did Chu Mo put down his bowl and chopsticks. Zhan Bingxue, sitting next to him, also let out a sigh of relief as she put down her chopsticks, having eaten only a little of her bowl of noodles.

On the contrary, Sun Qing across the table cleared her bowl clean.

Clearly, the small girl opposite seemed used to meals of this caliber.

Compared to the refined and elegant Zhan Bingxue and the portly Shen Long, Chu Mo suddenly felt a surge of goodwill towards Sun Qing.

Indeed, he and she were truly birds of a feather!

Just then, a call suddenly reached his ears. Looking up, indeed, the tall figure of Ling Yue had already arrived at the shop's entrance, accompanied by a man in his fifties, somewhat balding.

"President Chu, let me introduce you. This is Manager Zhou!"

"Manager Zhou, this is my university classmate, President Chu!"

At that moment, Ling Yue was dressed in a white dress, without high heels on her feet. Even so, with her supple skin, she still stood a few centimeters taller than the older man beside her.

However, before Chu Mo could speak, Shen Long, who had been indifferent until now, suddenly stood up and then, the portly man bellowed,

"Manager Zhou... is it really you? I can't believe I'm running into you here!"

Shen Long's company had been facing difficulties and naturally, had approached various banks for loans. Shen Long had visited this Manager Zhou at least three times.

Though just a balding older man, as the branch manager of the Agricultural Bank, Manager Zhou held no small amount of power, having loaned out over three billion each year.

For corporate heads like Shen Long, Manager Zhou was akin to their god of wealth, someone to be heavily ingratiated with upon meeting.

The enthusiastic Shen Long stretched out both hands before the balding elder, who clearly wasn't in the mood to chat and simply nodded as a way of greeting.

Then, just like Shen Long had been moments ago, Manager Zhou's demeanor became exceedingly warm as he approached Chu Mo, reaching out with both hands and smiling,

"Mr. Chu is truly accomplished at such a young age. If Manager Ling hadn't said you were university classmates, I'd hardly dare to believe it!"

Chu Mo smiled and shook hands with him, replying, "Manager Zhou, thank you for your troubles!"

The two exchanged pleasantries, while Zhan Bingxue and Sun Qing naturally stood behind Chu Mo. Seeing two good-looking women clearly following Chu Mo's lead, Manager Zhou said even more heartily,

"It's the least I could do, serving our clients is our duty. Manager Ling, you've got the card that President Chu needed, right?"

As the words fell, Ling Yue, who had been a half step behind, immediately stepped forward and handed a metallic-gloss black bank card to Chu Mo, her voice playfully adding,

"President Chu, our Manager Zhou really put a lot of effort into this card. You just need to come with me to the bank later to activate it!"

Ling Yue and Chu Mo were classmates, so with that relationship, her tone could naturally be more relaxed.

Nodding lightly, Chu Mo certainly wouldn't go back on his word, having previously said he'd deposit a billion into the card. If he couldn't manage that, it might cause trouble for his old classmate.

Tucking the black card away, Chu Mo said casually,

"I have to deal with a property transfer contract with President Shen later. How about I go with you to the bank this afternoon to deposit those ten billion?"

Chu Mo spoke in an even tone, but as soon as the words left his mouth, Shen Long, who had been sitting across him, suddenly lowered himself onto the dining table.

Lifting the bowl of ramen that had barely been touched and eating it as if it were some exotic delicacy, Shen Long, who previously wouldn't even touch it, began slurping it up greedily!