Chapter 143: Chapter 142: When Away From Home, Make Up Your Own Identity

The archway into Fish Head Village was massive, giving off the air of the filthy rich. The parking lot at the village entrance looked more like a luxury car show.

The village’s location was superb, with large tracts of flat land. It was close to a highway entrance and not far from the university town. A new high-tech industrial park was even planned nearby. It seemed to have caught every lucky break.

Money just fell from the sky while they sat at home.

Yang Huixian had said there was no need to bring her dad a gift for their first meeting, but Lin Chu wasn’t the type to do something so classless. He made a trip to the shopping mall and bought him a gold Rolex.

A gold Rolex—the ultimate luxury item in the eyes of the older generation.

Back when they were young, it was hard currency for anyone on the run, comparable to small gold bars.

When it was time to pay, Yang Huixian insisted on buying it herself.

But Lin Chu swatted her on the butt. "Get back. What’s all this fuss about?"

Though she blushed, she accepted the gift. The doubt that had been in her heart was once again largely dispelled.

It was just that Lin Chu had a sort of typical, old-school chauvinism, and he gave off the air of an underworld boss.

He put women in a box labeled "woman" and nailed it shut.

He wouldn’t even let her carry things.

All of his actions were logically consistent with this persona.

As Yang Huixian thought about this, she continued to muse, ’If I adjust and modify some of my behaviors, if I’m more gentle, more feminine, he’ll probably love me even more, won’t he?’

’The old saying is right, after all!’

’Even the hardest steel can’t resist a gentle touch.’

At this thought, her mood brightened considerably.

...

The Yang Family’s property in the village was an entire street. Literally, a whole street—two rows of houses, all belonging to them.

Lin Chu was a little stunned when Yang Huixian told him this.

’They’d have to hire two people just to collect the rent each month. Otherwise, they’d never keep up.’

"Ah Xian, you’re back! Is this... your boyfriend?"

A passing woman pushing a stroller saw Yang Huixian intimately linking arms with a young man and greeted them with a smile. She had a thick accent, and her Mandarin was so non-standard that Lin Chu almost couldn’t understand her.

Yang Huixian smiled and nodded, like a proud peacock, finally able to hold her head high.

’Pester me, will you? Go on, pester me to death! Now I’ve finally brought a man home!’

"Mhm, he’s handsome, isn’t he?"

She playfully poked the baby’s cheek in the stroller, her expression full of smug satisfaction.

The woman sized Lin Chu up, flashed a reasonably friendly smile, and switched to her broken, gossipy Mandarin. "Young man, what do you do for work?"

Lin Chu grinned and said casually, "It’s a national secret, I can’t say. It has to do with nuclear weapons."

’When you’re away from home, your identity is whatever you make up.’

The woman: ???

She jumped in fright.

Yang Huixian stifled a laugh, shot Lin Chu a mock-glare, and, still holding his arm, said goodbye to the woman before walking away.

’That Lin Chu,’ she thought. ’He’ll really say anything!’

Yang Guangrong was rocking in a rattan chair by the door. Beside him was a large enamel mug full of tea and a plate of beef jerky. A cigarette dangled from his lips as he clutched his phone with both hands, completely absorbed in a game of *Honor of Kings*.

He looked so engrossed that he didn’t even notice the two of them arrive.

"Old Yang!"

Yang Huixian called out. Yang Guangrong looked up, and a smile instantly split across his wrinkled face. He tossed his phone aside.

"Oh, you’re back? Come in, come in."

"Xiaolin, are you done with your business?"

he asked, greeting them warmly.

Lin Chu smiled, nodded, and exchanged pleasantries as he was welcomed inside.

After they put their things down and presented the gift, Yang Guangrong had the housekeeper start on a meal. Then, at Lin Chu’s request, he first took him to see the land.

’Young people are so impatient.’

But Yang Guangrong could understand.

"Time is money, efficiency is life" was the creed ingrained in many of this city’s young people.

Especially for someone like Lin Chu, who had such a large business, time was all the more precious.

After a walk of less than ten minutes, Lin Chu saw it.

On the outskirts of the village were several factory zones, but they weren’t for heavy industry. Instead, they were for things like precision manufacturing.

Yang Guangrong pointed them out one by one: a camera manufacturer, a laser emitter factory, a mobile phone R&D center... and so on. There was no pollution or wastewater discharge, not even any noise.

The empty plot he had mentioned was not far from the village’s ancestral hall. To its left was a small park, and to its right was the abandoned factory. It had previously been a company that produced components for electronic screens, but now it was completely deserted.

Weeds were growing in the cracks of the paved yard.

The factory itself had been cleaned out; even the assembly lines were gone. There were three workshops, two warehouses, an office building, and a staff dormitory. They all looked quite old, with paint peeling from the walls.

But the place was genuinely huge—about 2.8 acres, which was quite large for the factory districts in this area.

"For a factory in such a prime location to still be available... it feels like fate," Lin Chu said with a smile.

’Of course, he still had his doubts.’

Yang Guangrong glanced at him, thinking that the young man certainly had a way with words. He smiled and explained, "In this economic climate, who’s going to invest? We did have a boss from the village who wanted to lease it for a cement mixing plant, but I vetoed it. It’s too dirty, and the constant noise from dump trucks coming in and out would be unbearable."

Just then, Yang Huixian suddenly chimed in with a smile, "Dad, aren’t there any government subsidies? It’s a nursing home, after all. It’s sort of a public facility. Can’t you think of something?"

She acted perfectly poised, openly favoring her boyfriend. It was even a little deliberate. ’Aren’t you all always pestering me to find a boyfriend? Well, look, I’ve found one, and you all seem pretty happy with him. So how about giving us a little something extra?’

Yang Guangrong glanced at his daughter and sighed.

"There really aren’t. The government doesn’t have any money right now either."

"If the price is too low, I won’t be able to justify it. The villagers will curse my name behind my back."

"What’s the matter? Xiaolin, are you having trouble with funding? If money’s really tight, I can lend you some personally, interest-free."

The land belonged to the village collective, not to him personally.

’Given Lin Chu’s relationship with his daughter, if Lin Chu was really going to develop the land, lending him money interest-free was no problem. But the principal would definitely have to be repaid. This way, he could balance both personal feelings and practical interests.’

This was already the biggest concession he could make.

’Of course, even if he were to lend the money, Lin Chu’s funds would have to come in first before he advanced the rest for the land purchase. That was the minimum safeguard.’

’A man has to have his principles when doing business.’ 𝑓𝑟𝑒𝘦𝓌𝑒𝑏𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝘭.𝒸𝘰𝑚

Lin Chu glanced at him and shook his head with a smile. "Money isn’t an issue, I don’t need to borrow any. How could I let you cover the cost for me? That would be improper. Wouldn’t that make me a mooch?"

As he said this, Lin Chu shot a glance at Yang Huixian.

She pouted, speechless. ’Here you are, talking about your business, and you still have to take a jab at me. Honestly...’

Yang Guangrong smiled and nodded.

Noticing the flirtatious glances between his daughter and Lin Chu, he felt a surge of happiness.

After a moment’s hesitation, he added, "The land price in our village is indeed very expensive. It’s 18.5 million for about a sixth of an acre, which is almost as much as land in the city proper. The main reason is that a residential complex being built not far from the village entrance won a bid at that price last year. The villagers all use that as a benchmark."

"If you really think it’s too expensive, you could look elsewhere. Out past Salt Field or Bao’an, it’s not impossible to find land for a few million for a sixth of an acre. In any case, for a nursing home, I don’t think the location is that critical."

"If you were actually in Salt Field, it’d be close to the sea, and the environment would be even better."

The land belonged to the village.

His prospective "son-in-law" was family.

If Lin Chu was really loaded and decided to buy it, he would naturally be thrilled.

But if it was a bit of a stretch for him, there was no need to force the issue.

Lin Chu smiled and nodded, sighing internally. ’Old Yang... he really is treating me like one of his own.’

’For a seller to say something like that... now that’s sincerity!’

...

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