'Hmm? A system? The power of money?'
In the dead of night, a sudden voice in his mind so startled Gao Yuan that he nearly fell out of his executive chair.
He immediately scanned his surroundings, confirming he was completely alone.
After a moment, it wasn't until a virtual panel appeared before his eyes that he dared to believe he'd been blessed with a cheat.
'My life is about to change!'
[Host]: Gao Yuan
[Level]: 0 (0/10)
[Current Daily Cashback Limit]: 0
'What a freaking minimalist style!'
When Gao Yuan checked the cheat in his mind and saw the incredibly simple stat panel, he was so speechless he facepalmed.
However, his sharp eyes were still drawn to the "Daily Cashback Limit."
'Isn't this just like the cashback systems from the novels? If I can level up the system, I'll get a cash deposit every day. This is a classic super-rich protagonist cliché!'
'But the key is, don't systems always start with a mission?'
'Where's my mission?'
'Was it so outrageous that it got 404'd?'
Perhaps the system heard his complaints, because a notification sound rang in his mind the next moment.
[Ding! Tutorial mission initiated.]
[Mission:] Find a new partner within one week.
[Reward 1]: A monthly total of fifty extra minutes (freely distributable).
[Reward 2]: 10 EXP.
Gao Yuan glanced at the mission panel that appeared before him and was instantly thrilled.
However, when Gao Yuan took another look at the reward, he realized it was a *total* of fifty extra minutes per month.
He did a quick calculation in his head and slapped his thigh.
'Holy crap, I've finally hit the big time!'
'Monthly it is, then. At least it doesn't include foreplay. I've already beaten 99% of all...'
Still, the mission required him to find a new partner within a week, and that presented a bit of a challenge.
Although Gao Yuan was the e-commerce director for a publicly traded company with a decent monthly income, finding a partner in a place like Hang City wasn't easy.
At his company, the only age-appropriate woman who seemed interested in him was the designer who had just resigned.
As for the young streamers, their incomes were higher than his. Besides, those girls liked rich, powerful "daddy" types, not a "pseudo-daddy" like him. They only treated him with professional respect at work.
Beyond them, all that was left at the company were the young married women. Trading a few dirty jokes with them was fine, but if things got serious, they wouldn't be the ones to back down—Gao Yuan himself would be too scared.
Outside of this circle, to be honest, he really didn't have any other female friends.
Gao Yuan had once gone to Hang City's famous matchmaking corner at Wansong Academy, and he had been completely demoralized there.
The matchmaking at Wansong Academy had a minimum standard: men had to own a house and a car with no loans, be at least 175cm tall, have an after-tax annual salary of no less than 200,000 yuan, and also be handsome, cheerful, and ambitious.
And most importantly, there had to be instant chemistry.
He, with his 300,000 yuan after-tax salary, could only declare himself unworthy!
Gao Yuan slipped on his suit jacket, his mind racing, wondering which woman from his WeChat contacts he should pursue to succeed in the shortest amount of time.
'My recent ex-girlfriend?'
'The KTV hostess?'
'Or... my rich landlady?'
Even as the elevator reached the first floor, Gao Yuan still hadn't decided who to make his move on.
Standing in the lobby of the office building, Gao Yuan was about to hail a ride-share on his phone when the first "favorite" address popped up. On a whim, he tapped it.
...
Ten minutes later, the ride-share arrived at its destination.
Gao Yuan got out of the car. Looking at the rows of luxury cars worth millions in the parking lot, his eyes were filled with indifference.
Before, if he had seen these luxury cars he could never afford in a lifetime, he would have been filled with bitter resentment for the rich.
But now, he just wanted to scoff.
'Just some Porsches and Ferraris.'
'Once I have a partner, will all this still be so far away?'
'It'll be within my grasp!'
'Besides, a car is just a tool for getting around. Is it really that important?'
'A man's gotta be hard where it counts.'
'Compared to those fifty minutes, this is all just superficial crap.'
Thinking of this, a sense of superiority spontaneously welled up inside him.
Instead of telling Meiting, who had just contacted him, that he had arrived on her street, Gao Yuan walked straight into a nearby bar.
To be honest, it had been a while since he'd gone out to a bar.
This place was mainly for young people; no one would choose it for any kind of business entertainment.
Gao Yuan sat by himself in a booth, drinking and savoring the low-quality foreign liquor, his gaze gradually becoming hazy.
His worries about finding a partner also faded considerably.
"Ow!"
A pained cry suddenly sounded by his ear.
He had just turned toward the sound when a figure stumbled and fell right into him.
Gao Yuan instinctively dropped his glass and wrapped his arms around the person.
With a muffled grunt,
a soft, fragrant body landed in Gao Yuan's arms. The scent filling his nostrils made his hand squeeze uncontrollably.
Another muffled sound came from beside his ear, but this time, it held a trace of coquettish charm.
The woman's slender eyebrows furrowed. She quickly used the booth for support to pull away from Gao Yuan's embrace, smoothed out her short black skirt, and said with a hint of displeasure in her eyes, "Sorry!"
Tossing out that single word, the woman hurried away.
Watching the woman's retreating back, Gao Yuan suddenly sobered up quite a bit.
The bars in Hang City were never short on beautiful women, but this one... she had a different kind of air about her.
He had been about to leave, but now he called the bartender over again and ordered a bottle of Madrid EXO.
He slowly swirled the glass, his eyes scanning the bar.
He searched all around but couldn't find a trace of the woman from before. Just as he was about to give up in disappointment, a woman in a thin, V-neck top walked out from the direction of the restrooms.
She wound her way past booths and various small tables, sitting down at a table with two other women.
And so, Gao Yuan watched her while he drank.
His patience paid off; the woman finally looked his way, and he raised his glass to her from afar.
When she saw Gao Yuan, the two women at her table followed her gaze and looked over at him as well.
Gao Yuan raised his glass to her.
The woman whispered a few words to her companions, and amidst their laughing jeers, she picked up her glass and, swaying her slender waist, walked toward Gao Yuan.
"Hey, handsome!"
"Thanks for catching me earlier."
Gao Yuan smiled and looked up at her. "Want to join me for a drink?"
The woman probably hadn't expected Gao Yuan to be so direct. She glanced toward her friends, clearly hesitating for a moment, but finally, under Gao Yuan's sincere gaze, she nodded lightly and sat down.
Gao Yuan picked up a glass, poured her a drink, and deliberately added a few ice cubes.
She raised her glass and clinked it against Gao Yuan's. After taking a small sip, she gave him a meaningful look and asked tentatively, "Brokenhearted?"
Gao Yuan smiled faintly. He hadn't expected the woman to think he was drinking his sorrows away because of a breakup.
Gao Yuan's interest was suddenly piqued. A sorrowful look appeared on his face. "Worse than that. I'm divorced!"
This time it was the woman's turn to be surprised. She promptly filled both their glasses, handed one to Gao Yuan, and said, "Congratulations on getting the whole forest back!"
"I couldn't even hold on to one crooked tree, and you want me to have a whole forest?"
Gao Yuan's words made the woman double over with laughter.
Perhaps finding Gao Yuan interesting, the woman settled into his booth, completely ignoring her friends who were repeatedly waving for her to come back.
Through their back-and-forth banter, Gao Yuan learned her name was Lin Wanyu.
Gao Yuan picked up a drink and handed it to her, then clinked his own glass against hers. Noticing a persistent trace of sorrow in her eyes, he leaned in close to her ear and said in a low voice, "You know, I can see a bit of sadness in your eyes. Why don't you tell me your story?"
Lin Wanyu's face instantly showed her surprise. She looked at Gao Yuan in disbelief.
"You can read faces, too?"
"Then tell me, what am I unhappy about?"
Gao Yuan gave her a meaningful look and, without hesitation, dropped a classic, all-purpose pickup line for the nightlife scene: "It's about romance, isn't it? A breakup?"
"Worse than that. I'm divorced!"