Chapter 159: Chapter 158: Does a Lecher Need to Put on an Act?

Hou Chengjin felt he couldn’t refuse Lin Chu’s overwhelming generosity. After all, Lin Chu had put it so bluntly; to refuse again would just make him seem ungrateful.

He sighed, his gaze on Lin Chu a little complicated.

’He’s a true brother!’

At this moment, he truly had no choice but to admit it.

"Alright, then I’ll pick an Audi Q8. It looked pretty nice."

He’d glanced at it when they passed by earlier. The price was under a million, with the mid-trim model around 900,000. It wasn’t outrageously expensive, and he had a pretty good impression of the Audi brand.

Lin Chu glanced at him and waved a dismissive hand. "Nope. I only buy Audis for my dad. Don’t think you can get the same treatment. Let’s make it a Bentley. That’s final. No more arguments."

’When you’re racking up the bill, you gotta go big.’

’At least I’ll get some of it back.’

’Besides, in this situation, the most expensive car I’ve bought for myself was the seven-million Rolls-Royce. I definitely won’t go over that price for him. A Bentley is about right.’

’As for the reason for not buying an Audi, it wasn’t a complete lie. It was actually true.’

Hou Chengjin: Uh...

He was speechless.

So the two went back to the Bentley booth, placed an order for a top-of-the-line Bentley Continental convertible—3.89 million—and then promptly left without a backward glance.

Once they were out of the auto show hall and in the car, Lin Chu felt a surreal thrill.

’The feeling of spending a fortune in one go really is something else.’

Hou Chengjin was sprawled in the back seat like a dead fish. "I’m doomed, I’m doomed. I feel like I’m being kept. Brother Chu, there’s actually a question I’ve always wanted to ask..."

He was mostly just clowning around now. After all, he’d seen Lin Chu’s golf caddy and female secretary—the man’s taste was impeccable.

’How could it be possible?’

The moment Hou Chengjin spoke, Lin Chu guessed what he was about to say. He waved his hand and scolded him with a laugh, "Get lost! Just focus on shooting your short dramas. Consider this an advance on your bonus. If you can’t earn this much back for me, our friendship is over. We’ll never see each other again."

He: Uh...

Suddenly, as if shot full of adrenaline, he sat bolt upright.

Film!

Do it!

He was full of motivation.

Zhao Rong watched their playful banter with a nonchalant smile, but she had a faint feeling that Lin Chu was putting on a major act, as if it was all a show deliberately staged for her benefit.

’But... isn’t the cost of this performance a little too high?’

On second thought, she realized the play wasn’t for her—it was for Hou Chengjin.

’As for anything more, she couldn’t guess.’

She deliberately adopted a cute and coy demeanor, smiling. "This is my first time seeing someone spend money like that. It’s been a real eye-opener. Brother Chu, you can just call me Ah Rong from now on. I don’t deserve to be called ’sister,’ and besides, it makes me sound old."

"Oho, calling you that sounds so intimate. So who’s your Brother Jing?"

Lin Chu casually steered the conversation into flirty territory.

Her smile grew even brighter. "Not at all! Since I can’t find my peerless hero, I’ll just have to be my own heroine."

Lin Chu laughed heartily.

"A heroine is great too. I’ll be counting on you to look out for me in the future, heroine."

"How could you possibly need me to look out for you? It’s I who should be asking you to look out for me."

Hearing this, Lin Chu smiled inwardly. ’The bait has been cast.’ But all he said was, "Well, that depends on your performance."

BLECH.

’Damn, even I find that line a little cringey,’ Lin Chu thought. ’But you can’t deny it—flirty banter really is a good way to get closer to someone.’

’Besides, deliberately putting on a "lecherous" front can also lower her psychological defenses.’

Zhao Rong understood his implication and smiled faintly, feeling a little smug inside.

’Men... are they ever up to any good?’

’Oh, so that display of wealth earlier was partly for my benefit, was it?’

’You little lecher!’

"Alright then. We have plenty of time."

She was no pushover either, catching his volley with a subtle, noncommittal return.

...

Listening to their conversation, Hou Chengjin silently... played dead.

’Seriously, is Brother Chu this thirsty?’

’He’s already making a move on her?’ 𝚏𝕣𝕖𝚎𝚠𝚎𝚋𝚗𝐨𝐯𝕖𝕝.𝕔𝐨𝕞

He vaguely felt something was odd, but he didn’t dwell on it.

He would never in a million years have guessed that Lin Chu’s real goal was simply that he disliked Zhao Rong.

...

Zhao Rong’s company was located in a high-tech industrial park in Pazhou. It was impressively large, occupying three entire floors.

One floor for livestreaming.

One floor for matchmaking and social events.

And one floor for relationship coaching.

She had truly mastered this niche. She used livestreaming to attract traffic, ran offline matchmaking events on the side, offered customized training for women looking to "marry up," and provided financial services for women seeking a divorce.

She had somehow integrated the entire industry chain.

Of course, she packaged it all very well. While this was the essence of her business, her marketing language certainly didn’t put it that way.

Whether it was matchmaking, etiquette training, or courses on how to be a wealthy man’s wife, everything was perfectly legal and aboveboard.

At this moment, Lin Chu almost felt like an undercover agent.

’He was truly on a deep dive, exploring the secrets of the industry.’

’It seemed Zhao Rong had a high degree of trust in Hou Chengjin. Moreover, the act he had just put on had also kept her from raising any strong defenses against him.’

When they arrived at her office, Zhao Rong brewed tea for them.

"So you handle matchmaking here too?"

"Haha, a godsend for men."

"President Hou, are you married?"

Lin Chu asked casually. He didn’t actually know Hou Chengjin’s personal situation. They were just sitting around drinking tea and making small talk, after all.

"Nope. How could I be? I’m still waiting for an introduction..."

Hou Chengjin replied with a smile, but his eyes drifted toward Zhao Rong.

Zhao Rong shot him a look. "Don’t look at me. Would you dare date someone I introduce? Go find a nice girl on your own. We’re friends; everything here is strictly business."

Hearing this, Lin Chu understood why she had become so successful.

’Smart. Truly smart.’

’She doesn’t touch anything she shouldn’t.’

’It even revealed a kind of worldly wisdom.’

After sipping his tea nonchalantly for a while, Lin Chu stood up. "Mind if I take a look around your place? Heh, when I was coming up, I saw a girl who was one hundred percent my type. Don’t worry, I definitely won’t hit on her. Just looking."

Hou Chengjin gave another speechless smile.

’Sigh, this is the one area where Brother Chu is pretty low-class. He’s got a terminal case of lechery.’

Zhao Rong nodded and smiled. "Go ahead. And it’s fine if you hit on her. Let me witness Brother Chu’s charm. Hey, we could even collaborate in the future. I’m always very welcoming to high-net-worth gentlemen here. You could be a plant for my matchmaking service and help me boost the consultation payment rate for the ladies."

By now, she was convinced that Lin Chu was just a rich lecher, which also made him a potential business partner.

Lin Chu was slightly surprised. ’She goes after both men and women!’

But the smile on his face grew even brighter, and he said in an almost over-the-top manner, "You got it, you got it. Enter me into your database right now. The highest-tier matching pool. Personal stats: 24 years old, assets over a billion, height six feet, weight 165 pounds, handsome, lives in a villa, drives a Rolls-Royce."

"If any real estate agents show up, be sure to let me know."

Tossing out those two lines, Lin Chu stood up and walked out of her office.

Time to go take a look.

...

...