By extracting their desires for blind dates, I became the richest man.

Lin Shishan slammed the doors of the Volkswagen Sagitar shut.

As I plopped down in the passenger seat, a strange, slightly sweet smell, a mixture of stale air fresheners and plastic interior trim left to bask in the sun, hit me.

She frowned in disgust.

The center console, made of hard plastic, already has some minor scratches.

The bulky mechanical handbrake stood alone, out of place with the surrounding beige interior; and there was a tiny screen, no bigger than a palm, with a resolution so low it seemed like a relic from the last century.

Her mind involuntarily flashed back to Chen Qiu's Xiaomi SU7 from a few hours earlier.

In comparison, the Volkswagen Sagitar she was in looked like an antique that had just been dug out of the ground.

What made her even more resentful was the driver.

Chen Yujie cautiously leaned over to help her fasten her seatbelt, but Lin Shishan's cold glare forced him to stop.

He awkwardly withdrew his hand, forcing a fawning smile.

"Shall we go straight to Haitang Bay residential area?"

Lin Shishan ignored him and just looked out the window at the street scene rushing past.

Her mind was in turmoil, and a nameless irritation and regret welled up inside her.

Although Chen Qiu behaved like a crazy madman, at least he drove a new car worth 300,000 yuan, and when he heard my demanding requests, his eyes sparkled with excitement and the light of "you deserve it".

And what about Chen Yujie?

He was honest and dutiful, even somewhat cowardly.

From the time we met until now, we've always used the same few words.

"Okay," "No problem," "It's up to you."

He was like a glass of lukewarm water—safe, but also extremely boring.

"Your car is too old-fashioned."

Lin Shishan finally couldn't hold back and spoke coldly.

Chen Yujie, who was focused on driving, stiffened and unconsciously tightened his grip on the steering wheel.

He smiled ingratiatingly and said, "This car is only five years old, and it drives quite well."

"I mean, we have to change it after we get married," Lin Shishan said firmly.

"I don't want to be at a future class reunion where everyone else is driving BMWs, Mercedes-Benzes, and Audis, while I'm riding in your beat-up Volkswagen."

The words "Broken Volkswagen" pierced Chen Yujie's heart like needles.

His smile faltered, but he dared not argue and could only nod meekly.

"Okay, okay, I'll do as you say. We'll change it after we get married, we'll change it."

He kept thinking to himself: I've only driven this car for a few years, and it's in great condition.

Changing cars isn't that easy. Where does the money come from?

But he dared not utter a single word of these words.

He knew that once he spoke up, there was no point in seeing the house today.

The atmosphere inside the car was so oppressive that it was hard to breathe.

Lin Shishan crossed her arms, turned her head to look out the window, and didn't want to say another word.

Finally, the car slowly drove to the entrance of Haitang Bay residential area.

This residential complex is located between the new and old city areas. Its location, environment, and surrounding amenities are all quite good. When it opened two years ago, the average price reached 11,000 yuan, which is considered a decent price in southern Jiangxi.

It is precisely because of its excellent quality that, even in the current difficult real estate market, the price has remained stable at nearly 10,000.

Chen Yujie's mother, Huang Hui, had been waiting for a long time. As soon as she saw the car lights flashing, she immediately came to greet them with a big smile on her face.

"Shishan's here!"

Lin Shishan simply gave a faint "hmm" through her nose, her attitude neither warm nor cold, and slowly got out of the car.

Huang Hui didn't care about her coldness at all, and instead became even more attentive.

She pulled over Luo Jinglan, who had been silent all along, and introduced her to Lin Shishan.

"Shishan, come and get acquainted. This is Yujie's aunt."

She emphasized the word "aunt," her eyes filled with hints and anticipation.

In her view, this address of "aunt" is equivalent to acknowledging the kinship and taking a big step closer to being "family".

Luo Jinglan forced a smile as she looked at the girl in front of her.

Lin Shishan looked Luo Jinglan up and down, noticing her simple clothes, and simply greeted her in a perfunctory and formulaic way, "Hello, Auntie."

She wouldn't call someone "auntie" unless they were engaged and she received that "change of address fee."

Once you openly proclaim this kind of kinship, it's like lowering your own status for no reason, and you'll be at a disadvantage when negotiating terms later.

The atmosphere suddenly became a little stiff.

Huang Hui's smile was awkward.

Chen Yujie rushed over to defuse the situation. He looked at a man in a suit with slicked-back hair not far away and said loudly, "Mom, Manager Li, whom I met, has arrived!"

Then, he introduced Lin Shishan: "Shishan, this is Manager Li from the property management company. He is the regional manager of Haitang Bay Property Management. I specially asked him to show us some nice houses."

Lin Shishan was somewhat surprised.

The property management company and the developer of Haitang Bay are the same company, both of which are well-established real estate companies in the province. A regional manager there can be considered a mid-to-senior level manager in the area.

Unexpectedly, the taciturn and honest Chen Yujie actually has some connections.

The frost on her face melted a little.

The two stepped forward and exchanged a few polite words.

Manager Li had a ruddy complexion and spoke with a江湖 (jianghu, a term referring to the world of martial arts and chivalry) air about him.

He looked at the two of them and said with a smile, "Brother Yujie, don't worry! The houses I'm showing you today are quite special."

These are all treasured properties that our developers specifically reserved to give away!

Whether it's the floor, the orientation, or the apartment layout, it's top-notch in the entire community!

They generally don't end up on the secondhand market!

Upon hearing this, Huang Hui's face showed a hint of smugness, and she straightened her back a bit.

She glanced at Luo Jinglan, who was looking distracted beside her, and felt a surge of superiority.

As the group walked inside, Huang Hui deliberately slowed her pace and moved closer to Luo Jinglan.

She noticed that her sister-in-law kept her head down and seemed restless, knowing that she was still worried about her son Chen Qiu's blind date.

Huang Hui patted her shoulder with feigned concern and advised, "Jinglan, don't worry too much about Chen Qiu. The child is grown up and has his own ideas. You can't rush things like fate."

That's what she said, but there was a hint of boasting in her tone.

"Look at our Yujie, he used to be a worry, but now that he has a stable job, he's looking at houses and getting ready to get married."

She paused, then changed the subject, her tone becoming slightly lecturing.

"You should really urge Chen Qiu on. Stop letting him wander around all the time. He needs to come back to southern Jiangxi, take the civil service exam, and buy an apartment. In today's society, what good girl would want to be with a man who doesn't own a house?"

Luo Jinglan nodded repeatedly, her heart filled with even more worry.

Just then, her cell phone rang suddenly in her pocket.

It was a call from matchmaker Sister Wang.

As soon as the call connected, Sister Wang's distinctive loud voice burst out from the receiver like a machine gun, filled with anger and reproach.

"Jinglan, what's going on with your Chen Qiu? Didn't you explain things to him clearly?"

"Miss Lü Shuang just called to complain to me! She said your son was rude; he got to the restaurant, said one wrong word, and left before finishing his meal!"

"Not only did he run away, but he also said in front of the girl and her best friend, 'This meal is too expensive, I can't afford it!' What does that mean? Huh? Who is he trying to humiliate? Is he complaining that the girl's demands are too high? Can't he just talk things out? He's slapping her in the face like that!"

"Two young women ordered a table full of food, but ended up paying for themselves! With your son's attitude and emotional intelligence, how can he possibly get married! How am I supposed to introduce her to potential partners in the future? How am I supposed to explain this to her?!"

Sister Wang's barrage of questions left Luo Jinglan completely bewildered.