Chapter Forty-Seven: Renting a Car

Wanshou Road in Tianqing City was renowned as the local jewelry and jade street, and since it wasn’t far from where Lin Lei rented his apartment, it became his first choice for finding a shop. After making a circuit through the area, he found only one store with a transfer notice posted on the door, and it was a tiny fast-food shop, hardly worth considering.

Clearly, finding a storefront here wasn’t going to be an easy task—perhaps he would need to look elsewhere. At moments like this, the downside of not having a car became obvious; after all, how many shops could he possibly visit on foot in a single day?

“Never mind, I’ll head home first. Tomorrow I’ll go rent a car and keep searching,” Lin Lei decided, resigned after an unproductive afternoon.

As soon as he opened the door to his rented apartment, the delicious aroma of food filled the air.

“You’re back? I was just about to call you. Go wash your hands—dinner will be ready as soon as I finish these last two dishes,” Li Fang’s voice called from the kitchen.

“Wait, you know how to cook?” Lin Lei asked, intrigued.

“What’s so strange about that? If I couldn’t cook, what would I eat? Eating out every day would waste money, no matter how much you made.” Li Fang kept stirring the pan as she spoke. “By the way, I spent 348 yuan from what you gave me. The rest of the money and the receipts are on the coffee table in the living room—you can check them yourself.”

Lin Lei snuck a taste of a piece of meat and discovered Li Fang’s cooking skills were truly impressive. “No need to keep tabs. Just use that money for groceries. From now on, our food budget is two thousand yuan a month.”

“What? I thought I’d move into the staff dorm once we rented a shop?” Li Fang said in surprise.

“Isn’t it a hassle to keep moving? This place is big enough for both of us. Besides, with rent so high, it’d be a waste for me to live here alone.” Afraid she might misunderstand, Lin Lei made up an excuse.

In reality, Lin Lei’s laziness had gotten the better of him. After walking around the apartment, he found that within just one afternoon, Li Fang had thoroughly cleaned everywhere except his own room.

With such a diligent and pleasant roommate, Lin Lei had no intention of letting her go so easily. If not for her pride, he would have asked her to be a live-in housekeeper. Of course, he wouldn’t expect Li Fang to work for free; once the jade shop was up and running, he could always give her a bigger share.

Dinner was four dishes and a soup, and they even opened a bottle of red wine to celebrate moving in.

“How did the shop-hunting go this afternoon?” Li Fang asked, sipping her wine.

After all, as the nominal store manager, she had to be concerned about such matters.

“Not great. Business around here is too good—almost nowhere is up for transfer. I’m planning to rent a car tomorrow and cast a wider net,” Lin Lei replied between bites.

It wasn’t necessarily that no one wanted to transfer their shops; it was more likely that demand was so high that as soon as a notice went up, someone would snatch the opportunity. To find something suitable, he’d need to be persistent and keep trying his luck.

“How about this—since I don’t have anything else to do, we can split up tomorrow and cover more ground,” Li Fang suggested.

That way, they could cast their nets wide, and she could help with the search. When it came time to negotiate prices, Lin Lei could step in.

He considered it and agreed—it was a good idea. More importantly, with Li Fang out, it would be easier for him to discreetly bring out items from his personal space.

They discussed the matter over dinner. Ever since Lin Lei had confessed to having a girlfriend, Li Fang seemed to have given up on any romantic notions and focused on work, never bringing up anything else.

After dinner, Li Fang insisted on doing the dishes, leaving Lin Lei with nothing to do but retreat to his room.

Since they were now housemates, they respected each other’s space, never entering one another’s bedrooms. Li Fang even skipped cleaning Lin Lei’s room.

This suited Lin Lei just fine; he could confidently bring out his computer from his storage space, connect it, and game online.

His old nightlife consisted of binge-watching shows and playing games. Although he’d resolved to change, old habits die hard.

At least he no longer slept in all day—that was progress!

Meanwhile, after tidying up, Li Fang returned to her room and began researching jewelry and jade on her phone. She wanted to brush up and accumulate more theoretical knowledge for her future job.

If it hadn’t been her first day in a new city—and the worry of getting lost at night—she would have gone out to look for shops right then.

Lin Lei played games late into the night. Satisfied, he finally showered and went to bed.

The next morning, after breakfast, they went their separate ways. Lin Lei rented a Passat at the car rental shop. Only after getting the keys did he realize he hadn’t driven in over three years since getting his license.

He shifted gears, started the car, and—whoosh!—the vehicle shot forward. Thankfully, he reacted quickly and slammed on the brakes, narrowly avoiding a collision with a concrete block ahead.

“Hey, man, are you sure you know what you’re doing? The car’s insured, but if you cause an accident, you’ll still have to pay for depreciation!” the rental agent admonished, running over, breathless.

If he hadn’t seen Lin Lei’s four-year driving record, he would have thought he was a beginner.

“No worries, I just haven’t driven this model before. I’ll get used to it in a moment,” Lin Lei fibbed.

After his body had been transformed by the elixirs, his senses and reflexes were exceptional. Once he’d steered out of the lot, it didn’t take long before he’d mastered the Passat.

Within half an hour, Lin Lei handled the car as if it were an extension of himself. Even on busy main roads, his quick reflexes allowed him to outpace sports cars with ease.

He spent the entire morning driving around. This time, he found several shops available for transfer, but most required extensive renovations. It wasn’t the cost that bothered him, but the time it would take, so he kept them as backup options.

Glancing at the time, Lin Lei decided to drive to the food wholesale market, as the cooldown for his space-time jumper was almost over.

The first time he’d traveled through time, it had been an accident, but now, after tasting its benefits, he was eager for another adventure.

After all, someone was waiting for him on the other side—there was no room for laziness.

At the wholesale market, he stocked up on supplies. Fortunately, he had the car as cover, allowing him to discreetly store everything in his system space.

Returning home, he found Li Fang had gone out again, leaving a note on the table: the food was kept warm in the pot, and she had gone searching for shops once more.

Her absence was a relief—it meant he could make his jump without her noticing anything unusual. Even though the system had made thorough preparations, if Li Fang somehow discovered his secret, any contribution points needed to erase her memory would have to come from Lin Lei himself.