"Ah, since you're Xiao Chun's friend, you're my friend too. Please don't take offense!"
Noticing Ji Jue's stunned expression, Chen Yubo sighed and explained, "Rest assured, Mr. Ji, my orientation is completely normal. It's just that people have called me weird ever since I was a kid.
"All I do is like pink, right? What's so weird about that? I truly don't get it!
"Everyone loves cute things in their hearts, but they're so worried about losing face that they won't admit it—all pure pretense.
"After graduating, everyone put on airs and acted so serious. Whenever I wanted to find someone to chat about melodrama soaps with, I couldn't find a soul. Some people act understanding to your face, only to gossip about you behind your back like you're a joke.
"If Xiao Chun hadn't come out for a meal with me once in a while, I would've choked to death on my own frustration!"
"It's not like you're committing a crime. What's so funny about it?"
Hearing that, Ji Jue's expression immediately turned solemn as he instinctively stood up for Little Niuma. "My ride is pink too. I've been riding it since college until now, taking it out every couple of days to buy groceries. What's weird about that?"
Granted, there was a certain price gap between a little scooter and the kind of car a big boss drove… but now it was an upgraded Little Niuma!
Strictly in terms of manufacturing cost and investment, it didn't lose out to any luxury car!
"I knew pink was timeless, right? Right?!"
Hearing this, Chen Yubo grew instantly excited. Slapping his thigh, he pulled out his phone and began showing off his collection in dazzling detail…
A total of twenty-one limited-edition luxury cars from famous brands across the Southern Continent, Northern Continent, Federation, Empire, and even the Thousand Islands, along with two yachts and an airship…
Every. Single. One. Was. Pink!
"Holy crap…"
Ji Jue could no longer hold it in; his face twitched.
Was this the leisure of the ultra-rich?
Though he could tell from the seemingly understated yet outrageously extravagant Empire Chrono on the man's wrist that their guest was bound to be wealthy or noble, being rich to this degree completely caught Ji Jue off guard.
Then he started to worry…
What if, after Chen Yubo finished displaying his collection, he suddenly asked, *Brother, what model do you collect?* Would Ji Jue have to pull out a glamor shot of Little Niuma?
It still had the cartoon stickers Lao Yao had put on it!
Don't you think it's cute?
Fortunately, perhaps accustomed to no one being as rich as himself, Chen Yubo merely invited Ji Jue to visit his home another day to see them in person once the tour concluded.
Then he finally turned to proper business.
"So, here's the situation."
Speaking in the slurred, easygoing cadence of a local Haizhou native, Chen Yubo said helplessly, "Around eleven tomorrow night, I have a race at Mount Lianhua. We put down heavy stakes on the outcome—together with my buddies from the sports car club, we pool together around two or three thousand.
"Sigh, honestly, winning or losing doesn't matter much to me. The most important thing is having fun. Over the years, I've lost about seven or eight thousand in various places anyway.
"The main thing this time is that this new out-of-towner is way too arrogant. Absolutely insufferable! He talked so much smack that he put me on the spot. In short, if I don't win back some face, I won't be able to hang out in the club anymore."
"Since you're a friend Xiao Chun introduced, I won't beat around the bush. Let's speak plainly," Chen Yubo said earnestly. "As long as you can help me vent this frustration, I'll pay three hundred!"
Three hundred?
Hearing this stirring, deafening number, Ji Jue's expression showed a trace of confusion.
Mind you, even at Dalu Auto Repair Shop, three hundred bucks would barely cover a patch of paint.
Big brother, are you an ambassador for some anti-gambling forum?
"That's it, maintain that cool, aloof attitude. Don't space out."
Ye Chun's voice suddenly sounded in his ear. Resting her chin on her hand as she watched the dancers on stage, the senior explained, "The unit he uses is always in ten thousands."
*Holy crap—*
Ji Jue's eyes widened uncontrollably. Looking at Chen Yubo's expectant, smiling face, he felt weak in the knees.
*Boss, why didn't you say so earlier!*
If the senior hadn't kept urging him to remain aloof and reserved, Ji Jue would have smoothly slipped right into the boss's embrace to snuggle up.
"*Ahem*, calling everyone out like this, I thought it was something major."
Ji Jue forced himself to stay calm, saying nonchalantly, "For this little chump change, I'll drive for one night at most."
"As expected of Mr. Ji, a truly warm-hearted gentleman!"
Boss Chen's face instantly lit up with a beaming smile, but then he hesitated. "However, that's where the problem lies."
He paused, speaking with a touch of bashfulness:
"You're not the one driving. I am."
"…"
Ji Jue fell completely silent, examining the boss before him with grave scrutiny.
Faint spiritus, no aura of a blessing, no matrix. He carried a few alchemical creations, but all of the protective sort. Right now, under Ji Jue's stare, the man looked back blankly, not understanding what was wrong.
Ji Jue cleared his throat. "May I ask… Mr. Chen, do you have any driving experience?"
"Usually when I go out, I have a chauffeur drive me. I rarely touch the steering wheel," Chen Yubo replied with regret. "Otherwise, I wouldn't have been cut off by that bastard today and hit the guardrail."
*Alright, stop talking. The 'bastard' you're talking about is right here trying to help you figure out a solution!*
The corner of Ji Jue's eye twitched. He asked again:
"Then… your driver's license class?"
"Isn't a C2 enough?"
Chen Yubo's eyes brimmed with a clear, innocent light that Ji Jue was all too familiar with—it was everywhere at Tianmen University, summed up in one word: *naive*.
Ji Jue's headache intensified.
*You don't even know how to drive a manual, yet you want to go street racing? Big brother, what were you thinking?!*
Clinging to his last shred of hope, he looked at the boss. "Could it be that you're a once-in-a-generation prodigy driver, the Midnight God of Racing?"
"No, no, no, I pay great attention to safety!" Chen Yubo waved his hands repeatedly, speaking with utter solemnity. "Even on the highway, I never exceed eighty kilometers per hour! Safety first!"
*You mother…*
Ji Jue clenched his fists so hard they turned rigid. *So it's people like you holding up the entire passing lane at crawl speed, huh? Bastard, take two hits from my hammer!*
After understanding the full situation, Ji Jue sighed and just wanted to cup his hands in salute.
*Hopeless, wait for death, goodbye.*
Yet the senior's voice reached his ear.
"Channel your damn power already!"
Ye Chun gave a helpless sigh, reminding him, "All he wants is to win and feel good. He doesn't care how he wins, as long as the car crosses the finish line. Does it matter whether the man drives the car or the car drives the man?
"If this wasn't right up your alley, why would I have landed you this delicate gig in the first place?!"
*Is this kind of unsportsmanlike conduct even allowed?*
Ji Jue was stunned for a moment. Wasn't this a bit too lacking in racing ethics?
…But he loved it!
An account carry, wasn't it? Just drop a Deus Ex Machina and effortlessly rake in three million. Making money like this had an almost wickedly delightful beauty to it.
Just as Chen Yubo began to fear he might return empty-handed, he saw a warm, genial smile bloom across 'Mr. Ji's' stern, aloof face.
"While it sounds rather difficult, it's not entirely without a solution."
Ji Jue took his hand, speaking with heartfelt earnestness: "Although you rarely drive, only hold a C2 license, and have never raced anyone in your life, I believe that with a little effort, beating a professional driver won't be hard at all.
"First, however, you must believe in yourself, Brother Chen. Without even a shred of self-confidence, how can you possibly drive well?"
"Huh?"
Chen Yubo was dumbfounded, looking at him in disbelief. "Me?"
*Big brother, are you serious?*
For a moment, he couldn't tell whether Ji Jue was encouraging him or being sarcastic. Yet the smile on that face was so sincere, so reassuring.
"Rest assured, that's just how racing is. The driver only needs to focus on driving, while the pit crew takes care of everything else behind the scenes,"
Ji Jue promised. "As the saying goes: passion, effort, and victory. You already have two of those; the last one shouldn't be hard either. As long as our bond remains, won't winning be a walk in the park?"
This was a bond worth three million big ones!
The boss had paid so much just to secure an easy win and vent his frustration. If they couldn't even deliver on that, where was justice? Where was the rule of law?
As the old saying went, rely on relatives at home and friends abroad. As Boss Chen's new friend, Ji Jue naturally had to lend a helping hand.
As for whether the rich young masters and princesses of the sports car club would shed little pearly tears after losing their money…
What the hell did that have to do with him?
And so, amidst the enchanting singing and graceful choreography of *The Nutcracker*, their hands gripped tightly together, as though grasping victory itself.
A sordid transaction of friendship between adults was officially struck!
Later that night, in the wee hours, Ji Jue was jolted awake by a bank notification text.
*Amount credited: 1,000,000.00.*
*Transfer note: Win or lose doesn't matter. Thanks for your trouble, brother. Let's be friends!*
The next morning, Ji Jue was startled from his sleep by Lu Feng's relentless bombardment of phone calls, before the tears of gratitude dampening his pillow had even dried.
"Holy crap, Xiao Ji, what the hell are you doing?"
Lu Feng lowered his voice. "First thing in the morning, someone drove a brand-new Kunpeng A7 to the shop for maintenance, and he said you referred him!
"Holy shit, the floor mats alone cost an extra two hundred and ten thousand for an upgrade to factory leather! We don't even have the equipment to diagnose the car's computer systems. What the hell am I supposed to service? Did you piss someone off or something?"
"Relax, relax. That's our long-lost biological brother. He heard we were broke and came specifically to help lift us out of poverty and onto the road to riches."
Ji Jue sprang up with a kip-up, brimming with energy. "I'll be right there. Just start on the basics for now—change the oil, top off the washer fluid. If you really can't find anything to service, can't you at least give it a wax?"
The fatigue from staying up late practicing the Dissociation Art vanished in an instant.
After a quick wash, Ji Jue hopped on Little Niuma and sped all the way to Dalu Auto Repair Shop, only to discover that Lu Feng had actually closed the shutter doors just to receive Young Master Chen.
After all, with such a top-of-the-line Kunpeng parked in the service bay, if some reckless kid or old man came by, touched it, and left a couple of scratches, selling his rear end wouldn't cover the damages.
Lu Feng was putting on a show, ducking in and out from under the raised chassis like he was taking souvenir photos, looking thoroughly busy. Meanwhile, on the scratched, aged sofa, Young Master Chen was squeezed together with Lao Yao, watching cartoons on his diamond-encrusted custom phone with the kid.
Hearing that he was a friend introduced by Xiao Ji, Mother Lu had even brought out a plate of sliced watermelon.
"The yellow sister is the strongest,"
Lao Yao declared loudly, ignoring the death glare from his mother behind him. "She's got the biggest chest!"
No sooner had the words left his mouth than the yellow sister had her head severed clean off.
Evidently, a big chest was utterly useless in certain stories.
"See? I told you, the blue sister is the strongest, right?" Chen Yubo gave a smug grin. Then, shortly after, both the blue and red sisters vanished together.
The two of them fell into simultaneous silence.
As the black sister was also about to bite the dust, Lao Yao hesitated, then said seriously, "Big brother, I feel like… this cartoon… isn't quite right for me."
"Indeed. Magical girls these days are getting less and less orthodox."
Thoroughly sunk by the plot, Young Master Chen wiped away his sweat. Seeing Ji Jue finally arrive, he looked as if he had been granted amnesty. "You're finally here, Brother Ji!"
If Ji Jue hadn't arrived, he feared even the last pink-haired one would be gone.
"Oh, Brother Chen, you're so much older than me. Calling me 'Brother Ji' doesn't sound right!" Ji Jue warmly gripped his hand. "Just call me Xiao Ji."
"We'll each call the other what we like!"
"Come, let's look at the car first."
Ji Jue took the lead, walking toward the fiery crimson sports car.
A renowned flagship series from the Federation, the latest model released just last year, limited to ninety-one units worldwide.
For someone like Ji Jue, who hadn't long escaped the clutches of abject poverty, it was something seen only in video games or selfies by internet-famous models.
With just a touch of his hand, its entire condition flooded into his perception.
Completely devoid of flaws and wear, as pristine as if it had just rolled off the factory floor; it hadn't even burned through a single tank of gas.
In prime condition, practically flawless!
"7.4-liter twin-turbo, 1790 horsepower, peak torque of 1810 Nm, zero-to-a-hundred in 2.4 seconds.
"I upgraded everything to top spec through the factory's official partner tuning studio. For extreme weight reduction, the entire body shell is carbon fiber. Total weight brought down to 1300 kilos."
Young Master Chen recited the car's specs like family treasures, displaying the lavish aesthetic of the wealthy—*I love buying them, but I just don't drive them*—which commanded genuine admiration.
Who could have guessed that a true sports car aficionado like this was a precious baby who stayed capped at eighty kilometers per hour in the highway's passing lane?
"That kid named Mu brought an outdated, modded Mustang and still dares to challenge me?" He laughed boastfully. "Well? Are we guaranteed to win?"
"Hard to say. After all, this isn't a professional circuit where everyone runs in circles,"
Ji Jue shook his head. "Besides, there are too many modification schemes for Mustangs. Some of them change everything under the hood to the point where even the car's mother wouldn't recognize it, keeping only the shell. If you run into a real maniac, they might even stuff an aircraft engine in there, packing so much horsepower they could take a shortcut to reincarnation.
"Furthermore, based on what you said, an out-of-towner showing up at a local sports car club, stirring up drama to race you with stakes this high—no matter how you look at it, it smells like setting up a slaughterhouse for a fat sheep.
"Do you know his background?"
"Ah, don't worry, I looked into him. Just a second-generation rich kid whose family builds houses."
Chen Yubo pulled out his phone. "Back in college, he joined the youth academy for the Empire's F2 circuit, but he didn't make the cut and never amounted to anything. After returning, he acted all high and mighty, looking down on everyone. Then he offended the wrong people, couldn't survive in Chaocheng, and ran over to Yacheng."
"I looked at the section of Mount Lianhua you chose last night. It's fifteen kilometers long with over ninety corners, more than twenty hairpin turns, and six chicanes. In mountain racing, sometimes superior specs mean nothing. In a bit, we'll need to go check out the road in person so we don't end up rolling over."
"OK, I'll follow your lead."
Boss Chen accepted advice readily without the slightest temper, casually pulling out his phone. "It's almost noon, what should we eat? I know a great takeout place; why don't we all eat together? I still have two episodes of that cartoon left."
Ji Jue was about to tell him to stop obsessing over that damned cartoon and focus on the race, but when he caught a glimpse of the page on Chen's phone, he froze.
It wasn't a food delivery app. It was the exclusive home-catering service page for Meilongji, the premier Chaocheng restaurant in Yacheng, where a team of star-rated chefs brought their own ingredients and equipment right to your door…
*Brother, you're the boss. Naturally, we follow your lead!*
Everything was proceeding according to Ji Jue's anticipation and arrangements, methodically falling into place. If nothing went wrong, the next steps would be: activate abilities, awaken the sports car, take the wheel remotely, win the race, please the boss, collect the remaining payment, and look forward to the next gig.
Unfortunately, before the plan could even get off the ground, it appeared doomed to die in the womb.
*[IN YOUR DREAMS!!!!]*
The enraged Kunpeng roared within Ji Jue's consciousness, its engine howling in righteous fury: *[Do you know what kind of life I've lived for the past year and a half?*
*[I've been fucking gathering dust every single day, big bro!]*
The furious sports car revved wildly inside the garage, exhaust thundering: *[Fresh from the factory, he took me for mods and upgrades, and I thought the good life had finally arrived.*
*[Then, ever since that bastard bought me and brought me home, he hasn't even touched the steering wheel! Every day he leaves me lying in the garage waiting to die—a year and a half! A whole fucking year and a half!*
*[Aside from getting serviced, I haven't even seen what a highway looks like!]*
*[Today, after so much trouble, I finally got taken out for a drive. Over fifty kilometers, and this grandson crawled the entire way at thirty an hour! Thirty an hour, holy fuck! Even an electric scooter could overtake me!]*
*[What a curse! What a bloody curse!]*
*[If I'd known, I would have rotted straight in the factory back then!]*
*[And now he finally remembers me? Oh, now that he needs something, he wants me to help him race? Just three words: In your dreams! Even if I rot in the garage for the rest of my life or get scrapped in a junkyard, there is no way in hell I'm driving for him ever again!]*
*[Today, I'm stalling the moment we launch! He's guaranteed to lose!]*
At last, amid a frenzied burnout of its tires, the Kunpeng roared at the top of its lungs: *[Even if the God of Racing shows up, he won't get me to move a hundred meters! That's my final word!]*
Chapter 107