Chapter 138: Chapter 137: A Niche and Secret Circle

Since he’d opened his eyes to the world, Lin Chu’s horizons had truly broadened immensely.

In ancient times, the act of buying an island would have been called conquering new lands.

But in modern society, anyone with enough money can buy one.

He’d had Gu Jiayan look up Daber Island through official channels just a moment ago. The asking price was only 2.6 million US Dollars.

A little over ten million yuan.

That wasn’t even a third of the price of the string of Jade Beads.

But if he acquired it and developed it, he’d be the undisputed king of the island. As long as he didn’t violate international law, he could do whatever he pleased.

In that regard, wealthy Americans were indeed far ahead of the curve, with their ’Lolita Islands’ and what have you.

...

That night, they celebrated their sworn brotherhood with a big drinking party.

Lin Chu could tell that although Liu Junfeng and the others found the whole thing strange, they were still a little envious.

Meanwhile, Zhong Yunlong, who had been very low-key since the trip began, was being exceptionally friendly toward him today, proactively coming over to toast him again and again.

He had knocked around Southeast Asia for years and was a true backpacker, as well as a professional diving instructor.

"Brother Chu, I’ve actually been to that Daber Island you mentioned. It left a really deep impression on me. The island has a lot of beautiful birds, and every year, quite a few photographers sneak over to take pictures secretly. There are often pods of whales nearby, too. It’s a prime whale-watching spot."

Zhong Yunlong said this with a casual smile, taking advantage of the drinking atmosphere and flashing a mouthful of big, white teeth.

Hm?

Hearing his words and seeing his uncharacteristically forward behavior, Lin Chu vaguely understood his intentions. He laughed and said, "Not bad, an old hand who knows the area. Once I buy it, I’ll send you over to be the governor."

Lin Chu could guess what he was after just from his tone, so he responded in a magnanimous fashion.

An island that was practically uninhabited would require a massive amount of manpower and resources to develop in the early stages. One more person was no big deal—in fact, it was a good thing.

Zhong Yunlong’s smile grew even wider when he heard this. That was exactly why he’d approached him. He was once again struck by Brother Chu’s loyalty. ’What a stand-up guy!’

"I was thinking, if we really get it up and running, I could open a dive shop. Getting clients would be no problem at all; I can handle it."

"The main problems there, though, are transportation, electricity, signal, and fresh water. Those are the biggest issues."

He also raised his concerns. These things weren’t free; they all cost money, and not a small amount either.

That place wasn’t like back home, the ’Infrastructure Maniac’.

If all that stuff was already in place, the island wouldn’t be for sale to a private owner in the first place.

Lin Chu smiled and raised his glass. "Not a problem. Anything that can be solved with money isn’t a real problem. We’ll start a group chat later and you can discuss the details with my Brother Xiong."

Da Xiong licked his lips, and the three of them clinked their glasses together.

The topic had them all intrigued. Lu Ming couldn’t help but joke, "Brother Chu, I’m not going back! Just send me there and drop off ten young models. You can come pick me up in fifty years."

Liu Junfeng shot him a glare. "Damn it, you think you’re first in line? Dream on, little bro. You don’t have the stamina for that. This is a job for your big brother. You can step aside."

Lu Ming flipped him the bird. "Come on, let’s see who can piss higher and farther."

At this, a group of girls nearby couldn’t help but hoot and cheer.

Liu Junfeng: ...

’I give up,’ he thought with a bitter smile. ’Shit. How can a guy in his thirties compete with a kid in his twenties?’

One can piss ten feet against the wind; the other gets his shoes wet even with the wind at his back.

He was just running his mouth.

Da Xiong was now completely certain that Lin Chu was serious about this island business. It seemed like he even had follow-up development plans ready to go.

For a moment, he felt another stir in his heart.

He thought back to when Lin Chu and his group had first arrived, and his own speculation after seeing that "security team."

’Maybe he really does have a government background.’

’Fucking incredible!’

’Incredible!’

Even if the island, once purchased, wasn’t used for non-peaceful purposes, a lot of the data—meteorological, hydrological, biological, and so on—could be extremely valuable.

As he considered this, a peculiar sense of involvement began to grow within him.

The group quickly grew more and more enthusiastic, brainstorming the coolest ways to develop an island if they really had one.

This, too, was a romance encoded deep in the male psyche.

...

Lin Chu was only in charge of coming up with the ideas. The actual business of buying the island was left to Gu Jiayan.

Later that evening, after most of the drinking was done and Da Xiong had left, Gu Jiayan saw that Lin Chu was still sober and walked over with her laptop. "President Lin, I found something very interesting. Would you like to see?"

Her fundamentals in data collection were quite strong. From the afternoon until now, she had basically researched and understood the entire process.

"Let’s see it. Come on, let’s go to the tea room."

The two of them went to the tea room, where Lin Chu casually brewed some tea while he listened to her speak.

"Actually, buying an island isn’t difficult. The subsequent development is the hard part. I’ve looked through a lot of information..."

She had just begun when Lin Chu waved his hand dismissively. "I already know the basics. Get to the point. What’s the interesting part?"

Uh.

Gu Jiayan tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. "I found a group called the Chinese Island Lord Alliance. It’s for Chinese people who have bought islands all over the world. They’ve even been reported on in the news. The group’s founder was the first Chinese person to buy an island overseas. In their small circle, they also have a term called the ’Three Island Masters’."

Lin Chu took a sip of tea. Now this... this made him curious and even a little excited.

A circle!

That one word was a trigger for Lin Chu, a source of excitement, his G-spot.

"Let me see."

Lin Chu said with a smile.

Gu Jiayan quickly showed Lin Chu the information she had organized.

She had prepared text documents and also compiled an Excel spreadsheet. The spreadsheet listed over thirty people who had bought islands overseas over the years. The more famous ones had their real names and personal information, while the less famous ones were just listed by a code name.

In this small circle, the most famous was the group’s founder, Li Dong.

He, along with two others, He Xiaobo and Pei Ming, were known as the ’Three Musketeers’.

The islands these Island Lords had purchased were scattered all over the globe, spanning Southeast Asia, Australia, America, and even Africa.

Lin Chu scanned the list and thought, ’Not bad. Not bad at all.’

"Do you have contact information for this circle?"

Lin Chu asked casually. Infiltrating social circles was his specialty, and doing so with such a niche identity gave it the thrill of uncovering a secret.

’If I really get on the inside,’ he mused, ’then things will get really interesting. I’ll have ’bases’ all over the world.’

Gu Jiayan pressed her lips together. "I haven’t found it yet; they’re quite mysterious. But I do have some leads and connections. Right now, people buying islands around the world generally use an agent from a professional, legitimate agency. I’ve contacted a company in Xiangjiang and I’m planning to have them handle it. The service fee will probably be around 3%."

"Since they’re in this business, they’ll definitely be able to connect us. What do you think... is that okay?"

Lin Chu lit a cigarette and nodded with a smile.

"That works."

"Go with that approach. I’m just realizing, you’re pretty capable."

He praised her offhandedly.

She pursed her lips and looked away, but the corner of her mouth couldn’t help but curve into a slight smile.

’He actually praised me. That’s a rare occasion.’

...

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