Chapter 55: Envy

Shen Baichuan awkwardly touched his nose. He realized that Chen Jin was really easily startled; several times, she had jumped when she suddenly saw someone.

After Chen Jin calmed down, he asked her if she wanted to take a look inside the car, mentioning that the interior was quite impressive.

Chen Jin was tempted. “Is that okay?”

“Of course. Wait a moment, I’ll go inside and grab the car keys.”

In just two minutes, Shen Baichuan came out with the keys and invited Chen Jin to sit in the driver’s seat to get a feel for it.

Chen Jin opened the passenger door and was about to sit down, but hesitated after hearing him, saying, “No need. I’m just curious, wanted to take a look.”

It wasn’t just this car; there had been a few others before in bright colors. She was most curious about the royal blue one, along with the green and purple ones… Who would have thought, living next door, that Shen Baichuan, who seemed so proper, had such a flashy taste in cars? She hoped she wasn’t using the wrong term.

Chen Jin, feeling a bit guilty, avoided eye contact with him, carefully observing the car’s interior.

The saying “you get what you pay for” really rang true here.

Although her Santana had most of the same functions as this car, the quality here was just at a different level. She didn’t know what the seats were made of, but they felt really nice, especially in this scorching summer heat. The seats looked ordinary, but once she sat down, she realized how much more comfortable they were.

When she heard Shen Baichuan say the car was custom-made, she understood.

And when he mentioned that he owned over a dozen cars and would let her try another one next time, Chen Jin just didn’t feel like talking anymore.

Would the world really change if there was one more super-rich woman like her?

She felt a bit envious, wanting to find a corner to sit in.

“I’m really jealous of you, Mr. Shen,” she said. After all, he had built up such a “car empire” by himself.

Shen Baichuan thought she was just envious of his collection of cars, so he responded, “Not really, most of them were gifts from my elders.”

Chen Jin gave him a meaningful look.

“What’s wrong?” Shen Baichuan frowned. He felt like there was something off about her gaze.

“Nothing, I just think you’re a straightforward person, Mr. Shen.” What’s wrong with getting cars as gifts? The most practical kind of gift. If she had a grandfather who gifted her cars, she’d probably own more than just a dozen.

“Xiao Jin, Baichuan? Are you two heading out?” Professor Song and Aunt He had returned from grocery shopping and saw Shen Baichuan’s car doors open, with the two of them sitting inside, chatting.

Professor Song pulled out a handkerchief to wipe his sweat. On such a hot day, sitting outside in the car and chatting—young people sure have strong bodies, able to handle the heat.

“No, we’re not going out,” Shen Baichuan explained as he got out of the car. “I just got a new car and invited Teacher Chen to take a look.”

“Oh, I see. You young people really like these cars. We can’t tell the difference. But Baichuan, this new car of yours is a nice color—would be great as a wedding car, very festive.”

Professor Song cheerfully invited them both, “We made some liangfen this morning, and it should be ready to eat now. You two should come over.”

“Is it white liangfen?”

“Both black and white. Last time you said you only liked the white one, so Xiao He made an extra batch of white just for you.”

Chen Jin quickly got out of the car. “I’ll go home and bring over a watermelon.” She didn’t even bother looking at the car anymore, hurrying home to bring the last big watermelon she had. Otherwise, since Chen Jia and Chen Yongan had gone home, she wouldn’t be able to finish such a big watermelon by herself.

Shen Baichuan locked the car and went back home to get something.

This time, Chen Jin finally met Dean Xi.

Dean Xi and Professor Song had been back for several days. Since they had been away for quite some time, a lot of old friends and people wanting their help rushed to see them upon their return. When she delivered watermelons a few days ago, Professor Song was already entertaining guests, and Dean Xi was talking to someone in the study. She even overheard him scolding someone.

As soon as Chen Jin arrived, they asked her about her work.

“It’s fine. My colleagues are easy to get along with, and the work is light.” For now, that was indeed the case.

Dean Xi then looked at Shen Baichuan, “Baichuan, do you still have work at the school? Is your company not keeping you busy?”

“It’s manageable; other managers are taking care of things.”

“Everyone in the city is eyeing the tech and industrial parks in the south district. Will your company be moving there as well?”

“Yes, that’s part of the plan. The policies are good right now, so moving early is beneficial.”

As they left Professor Song’s house, Shen Baichuan glanced at Chen Jin, “The tech park is in the village where your hometown is, right?”

Chen Jin nodded.

She was secretly hoping that more company owners would be like Shen Baichuan and move there quickly. That way, her house in Qiaoxi Village would appreciate in value!

“If there’s still a homestead there, you should build a house early,” Shen Baichuan advised. “The land around there will probably go through several rounds of price increases this year if it can be transferred.”

Chen Jin sighed, “All the homesteads in the village have been demolished. Only the land on the west side hasn’t been, but that’s not homestead land.” If it were, people would have started building by now without needing reminders. After all, being so close to the tech park, there’d definitely be people looking to rent houses.

Shen Baichuan raised an eyebrow and said, “It may not be homestead land now, but that doesn’t mean it can’t be repurposed for housing. You should keep an eye on the big real estate companies in Rong City. The land near the tech park is highly sought after right now.”

Seeing Chen Jin’s surprised expression, he smiled, “Your family doesn’t still own land there, do they? If so, you might be about to make a fortune.”

Chen Jin suddenly thought of the large plot where her family and her third uncle’s family had planted peach trees under her eldest uncle’s persuasion. “This news…”

“Cheng Group is also involved in real estate. I happened to hear some elders mention it when I went home a couple of days ago,” Shen Baichuan joked. “But it’s still in the discussion stage. It’s not set in stone yet, so just treat it as casual news for now.”

“If this news gets out, will it have any impact?”

“Not much. All the major real estate developers are already aware, and they all know what’s going on. As for whether it affects Cheng Group, I can’t say, but it’s not my company anyway.”

Chen Jin’s eyes widened. Does this mean that since Cheng Group isn’t his company, he doesn’t care what happens to it? That must be what he meant, right?!

The company her grandfather founded didn’t belong to him?

But, that kind of makes sense. His father’s possessions might not all be passed down to him, let alone those of his grandfather.

“If you do own land there, plant some valuable crops. If it gets requisitioned, just treat me to a meal,” Shen Baichuan said with a smile.

Chen Jin took a deep breath, almost unable to suppress the grin that threatened to break out. She nodded enthusiastically, “If it gets requisitioned, our whole family will treat you to a meal!”

“… No need to be so formal.”

Seeing that Shen Baichuan was in a good mood, Chen Jin tentatively asked, “Mr. Shen, I have a piece of land and a few buildings in Qiaoxi Village, close to Qiaodong Village. Has that area also caught people’s attention?”

Shen Baichuan stopped in his tracks, surprised. “You own quite a few properties, don’t you?”

No wonder she was so guarded, worrying someone might try to claim her inheritance.

Chen Jin giggled. All thanks to her uncle’s foresight and cleverness!

“Well, it’s just rumors for now, nothing concrete. But the chances are high. If you have extra money, you could make a small investment. Even if there’s no demolition, just renting out the houses would bring in a good income once the tech and industrial parks are developed.”

Shen Baichuan glanced at her, amused at how her eyes sparkled whenever money was mentioned. But she was only interested in her own money…

“Mr. Shen, really, if that area gets demolished, my whole family must treat you to dinner!” Now eager to share the news, Chen Jin wanted to rush back to tell her uncles that they should quickly plant trees in every corner of the field!

Shen Baichuan was indifferent. “Alright, then I’ll wish for your land to be requisitioned soon.”

As soon as Chen Jin got home, she called her eldest and third uncles, arranging to meet them at her uncle’s company.

Chen Wenqiang was anxious, “What’s the big news that you can’t say over the phone?”

“It’s good news! I’ll tell you in person!” Chen Jin teased, going upstairs to change into her workout clothes, grabbing her keys, and humming “la la la~” happily as she left the house.

Shen Baichuan stood in the small living room on the second floor, watching her drive out of the community. After thinking for a moment, he called an old friend and then went downstairs to leave as well.

Chen Wenqiang called out to Chen Yongxin, “Your third sister says she has good news, and she’ll be here soon. Your third uncle is coming too. Stay and listen.”

Chen Yongxin exclaimed, “Oh, if Third Sister says it’s good news, it must be! Should we invite Second Uncle too?”

“She said it has nothing to do with your second uncle. She’s being all mysterious; I have no idea what she’s up to.” Chen Wenqiang motioned for him to sit down and poured him a cup of tea. “It’s hard to get a hold of her nowadays. Yesterday I asked her to go to Xichan Temple with me, but she said she was busy with Yongan and Jiajia.”

Chen Yongxin laughed, “She probably just didn’t want to go burn incense with you, right?!”

Though their third sister often said things like “ancestors bless us” or “the ancestors will come back to life,” she wasn’t interested in burning incense, praying to Buddha, or seeking divine guidance. As for the promise she made to go to Xichan Temple with their father, he figured she had probably said it casually at the time and hadn’t really meant it.

Recently, his father somehow got wind of some news again and has been spending his days running to Victory Law Firm to learn about the expropriation of collective land by real estate companies.

Perhaps this source of information had been embellished by him, and through several twists and turns, it somehow got linked to his third sister, which made him think about going to Xichan Temple.

But what he didn’t expect was that his third sister was really amazing! She could even get her hands on this kind of information.

Maybe his father was right, his third sister did seem to have some financial luck on her side.

His third uncle and Chen Jin arrived at the company one after the other. As soon as Chen Jin came in, he rushed to spill all the information he had heard from Shen Baichuan, and then asked, “Third Uncle, when are we going back to the village to plant trees?”

His third uncle was excited, but his eldest uncle was calm, as if he had known about this news for a while. Chen Jin asked, “Did you already know?”

“I found out three days before you did. There were a few hints before, and I had a hunch. Now that you’ve confirmed it, I’m sure.” Chen Wenqiang had sensed something a few days earlier and had already been excited, but after hearing Chen Jin confirm it, he felt even more reassured.

Looking at Chen Jin again, his gaze naturally softened with affection: It’s a shame his third sister didn’t go into business!

The company’s lucky cat, fortune tree, and god of wealth statues might not even work as well as she does.

“Your neighbor… is Cheng Group owned by his grandfather? The information I heard before might not have been accurate.” Chen Wenqiang hesitated only for a moment before shrugging it off. It didn’t matter what their identity was, since they weren’t in the same circle for the time being, knowing too much wouldn’t help.

Still, it was good that his third sister had made this friend, who managed to leak this piece of information.

Cheng Group’s real estate subsidiary was practically a market trendsetter. If they were preparing to get involved, it meant that the outskirts of the southern district and Qiaoxi Village held great potential.

“So, when are we going back to the village to plant trees?”

Chen Jin was ready for action. With school yet to start, she was eager to go home and take care of her family’s peach orchard!

“Hold on, let me think it over. We may not necessarily end up planting trees.” Chen Wenqiang stopped her, saying, “Besides, in this heat, you don’t need to do the manual work yourself.”

Despite what he said, both Chen Jin and her third uncle were so excited they couldn’t sit still and made plans to go to Qiaodong Village the next day.

The following morning, Chen Jin drove to the Rose Garden to pick up her third uncle. On the way, they arranged a time to sign the contract with her third cousin. They then sped off towards Qiaodong Village.

It was the same scorching summer day, but this year, instead of riding a motorbike to Qiaodong Village, they were driving a car.

What hadn’t changed was the way the niece and uncle were grinning stupidly the whole way.