"To the southwest corner of the commercial square is a big cinema with world class 3D and Max equipment. It should attract a lot of customers after this place is renewed."

Owen’s smile was brimming with confidence as he introduced every detail of the commercial square to Lin Lixin.

Even I was listening closely to his words.

Lin Yixin bumped my shoulder lightly and asked me, "Hey, do you actually understand what he’s saying? Do you know how to organize a commercial square for maximum effect?"

I shook my head. "Nah, I’m just wondering if I should take you to this cinema when Transformers 6 comes out!"

"Sure!"

My beautiful girlfriend beamed, and auntie let out a chuckle.

Lin Xiao and Owen clearly weren’t too happy, but I paid them no heed. A short while later, I received another phone call from Gui Guzi.

"Yes, Little Gui?"

"So, er, our main force is in the city already, but our opponents turned out to be stronger than expected. Soul Battle Robes’ Song of Ice and Fire, God Bone and Ringwraith are openly challenging us, and they’ve even managed to persuade Flower Room, Pop Culture, Hall of Immortality, Rose of the Holy Domain and more big guilds to their side. Song of Ice and Fire promised to share the benefits once they’ve conquered Silver City, and since we’re the biggest threat in the area… they all turned against us…"

"Damn, Song of Ice and Fire is one ambitious dude. It sounds like he’s trying to drag Soul Battle Robes to the top with his own hands. Still, what good can he possibly gain by going against us?"

"I have no idea. All I can say is that Li and brother Xu Yang are pissed off, and they’re getting ready to force the issue. If Soul Battle Robes dares to attack us, we’ll flatten them and their allies in one go!"

"Sounds good. Show them no quarter!"

"When are you coming back online, boss Broken Halberd?"

"I’m not sure. I’m keeping Yiyi company at a commercial square right now."

"Oh, I see. That is more important than one Silver City. Well, enjoy your time, Boss Broken Halberd. We’ll handle this ourselves…"

"Gotcha…"

……

Owen politely pointed at the cinema and suggested, "We have nothing to do this afternoon anyway, so why don’t we all go watch a movie together? The latest local 3D film, ‘City of Warring States’ is now showing. Maybe the experience will teach us something and provide suggestions that will improve this commercial square further."

Lin Xiao thought for a moment before answering, "Sounds like a fine idea. Are you two coming, Yiyi, Lu Chen?"

Lin Yixin asked me, "What do you think?"

I answered, "I’ll go buy the popcorn. What do you want to drink?"

"Get me a strawberry sundae~~"

"Got it. I’ll be back in a moment…"

Soon, Lin Yixin and I entered the movie theater and sat side by side just like any other couple. Of course, I made sure that Owen was sitting away from Lin Yixin. Beauty Lin was my girlfriend, and no one was allowed to touch a hair on her person even if I knew that she would hold it over my head until the end of days.

The movie’s pacing was surprisingly good. Halberds, blades and swords clashed against one another and lit a fire in every audience’s blood. Owen looked distracted, however. On one hand, the movie was very good. On the other hand, he couldn’t help but look at Lin Yixin from time to time.

"Hey…"

Suddenly, Lin Yixin gave my arm a tug and asked me in a small voice, "Which sword do you think is cooler, Duke Xiao of Qin’s sword or your Chill of the Nine Provinces?"

"The Chill of the Nine Provinces, duh!"

"Look over there!"

"Huh? What?"

I was just about to look away when Lin Yixin pressed her lips against mine and slipped her tongue between my teeth like a true gangster. She even put down her cup of popcorn just so that she could hug my neck with both arms before closing her eyes. Her long eyelashes shivered visibly as she put all her heart into the "secret" kiss.

I felt like my body was turning into stone. The kiss was one of the most wonderful kisses I had had yet, probably because we hadn’t kissed in a movie theater before, but at the same time I couldn’t help but think: Dear, your mom and dad are literally a meter away from us. There’s no way they didn’t notice this! What if their opinion of me drops because of it?

Lin Yixin didn’t care, however. We kissed for almost two minutes before she finally let go. Even in the darkness, I could see that she was completely red as she grabbed her popcorn and stuffed her cute little mouth one shove after another. The way she tilted her head a little to sneak a glance at me was both adorable and vexing. What on earth was she thinking?

The answer came to me quickly. The entire reason Lin Xiao brought Owen was to start a spark between them. The old man had never accepted me because I was a professional player, and he wasn’t going to change even after I was standing at the pinnacle of the world.

Lin Yixin had known what her father was planning. Her choice to kiss me in the movie theater was her declaration to Lin Xiao that she would accept no one but me.

I couldn’t help but be moved by her decision. A knowing, beautiful smirk crossed her lips as I covered her hand with my own. I was pretty sure she knew what I was thinking right now.

Owen hadn’t missed our kiss as a matter of course, and it took him all he had just to not look like a deer caught in headlights. His mind was most certainly not on the movie anymore. Owen clearly liked Lin Yixin, but his chances of actually getting together with her were small to say the least.

……

When the movie was over, I checked the time and said, "It’s almost evening. Are we eating dinner with uncle and auntie as well?"

Lin Yixin nodded. "Mom and dad are going back to Shanghai tonight, so let’s talk after we have dinner with them."

"Y-yeah, s-sure…"

"What’s wrong? Why do you look so green?"

"I think I drank a bit too much cola in the theater just now. I need to go to the WC. Do you know where…"

"The sign is right over there. How did you even miss it?"

"Oh, thank goodness. I’ll come back in a jiffy!"

"Okay!"

I was about to leave when Owen said, "I need to go to the toilet as well. Auntie, uncle, feel free to wander around until we return!"

Lin Xiao nodded in agreement.

After that, I wasted no time in entering the WC and finding a standing toilet for myself. Owen followed right behind me.

I wasn’t gay, so I looked directly in front of me as I took my piss. Owen clenched his teeth but didn’t attempt to make conversation until we were both washing our hands in front of the mirror.

"Lu Chen," he started.

"Yeah? What is it?" I asked.

"It’s nothing big, really. I want to talk to you about Lin Yixin."

"Is that so? Continue," I urged.

Owen’s eyes grew determined as he leaned against the sink. "I’m certain I’ve liked Lin Yixin since the first time I laid my eyes on her. I’m sure you realized that Uncle Lin Xiao wants Lin Yixin and I to get together as well. I hope you know what to do after this."

I flicked the water away from my hands while asking, "And what do you want me to do, exactly?"

Owen snarled, "Do you really think you deserve the daughter of the Lin Family? Look in the goddamn mirror, you fool! You’re just a gamer and a shut-in!"

I laughed and looked him in the eye. "And why would I not deserve Lin Yixin? It sounds like you think I’m inferior to you, but we both know that it’s the other way around. Do you have at least 100 million RMB in assets? Do you own the greatest guild in the entire world? Do you have the best brothers and sisters one can ever ask for? And before you start, don’t tell me you’re better-looking than me. Like I care if a gigolo has a prettier face than mine."

Owen’s complexion turned completely green. "The audacity! Even if that may be the case, all is fair in love and war, and I will have a fair fight over Lin Yixin!"

Bang!

My response was to punch the tile beside his face so hard that they actually cracked, and even the wall caved in a little. I said smilingly as he stared at me in shock, "Lin Yixin is my girlfriend and the woman of my life. Long story short, I’ll beat the crap out of you if you dare to chase her. Fair fight? You don’t deserve it!"

"You…"

Owen was beyond pale at this point. He was angry at my declaration, but terrified at the unbelievable punishment I had wrought against the wall. It was often said that even a strong dragon cannot repress a snake in their habitat, but that was definitely not the case right now. As I walked out of the WC, I said, "How can there be no dryer in a high-class WC? Pooh…"

Owen retorted, "Are you blind? It’s right there to your left!"

I went out without answering him.

……

After we returned to the Lin Family, auntie shot Owen a concerned look and asked, "Owen, you… you look very pale. Are you okay?"

The guy hurriedly replied, "I think I caught a stomach ache from today’s lunch, but I’ll be fine, haha. Where are we going for dinner, by the way?"

Lin Xiao replied, "We’re not sure. We haven’t thought of anything yet."

Owen suggested, "In that case, would you like to try out the food at that seven-star hotel beside Taihu Lake, Longxiang Hotel? It’s my treat."

Auntie said, "Ah, that’s a bit wasteful…"

I added, "If we go there, we’re going to be spending 200k RMB at least. Any lower than that and our Yiyi is going to complain about starvation…"

Lin Yixin immediately started acting. "Oh no, I’m so hungry! Will someone save my tummy please~?"

I rolled my eyes at her. "Don’t give an inch and take a mile!"

Lin Yixin stuck her tongue out at me playfully.

Lin Xiao confirmed, "So, we’re going to Longxiang then?"

I replied, "Sure, let’s. It isn’t everyday we get together like this, and it’s a fact that uncle and auntie haven’t been in Suzhou for a long time. In fact, since I’m the local here, why don’t I treat you all instead? I’m glad to have met you, Brother Owen, but you must give me this face, yeah?"

Auntie asked concernedly, "It’s going to be an expensive dinner. Are you sure, Lu Chen?"

"I’ll be fine, auntie."

I produced a card from my pocket and said, "I just sold an in-game item a couple of days ago and earned 7.6 million in total. It can’t be THAT expensive, right?"

Lin Yixin asked curiously, "How much money do you have in this card?"

"It’s a secret!"

"I’ll annihilate you if you don't tell me right now!"

"Fine, fine. It’s just 170 million."

"..."

……

Lin Xiao and auntie looked astonished. Owen was outright one-shot. You could say I "cheated" somewhat, though.[1] I really had 30 million only in this card—they were the profit I had made from the game—but He Yi transferred me a ton of bonuses saying that I would need at least this much when I got married, so before I knew it I had become a multimillionaire.

Back to the present, Owen’s "successful person" arrogance was completely doused after I had reported my card balance. To be fair, he was absolutely my grandfather in terms of business skills, but whoever said that doing business was the only way to be successful in life? At this day and age, it wasn’t even the only way to measure one’s successes. Owen might be a talented businessman, but he definitely wasn’t the number one businessman in the world. On the other hand, Heavenblessed was the greatest game in the world, and I was its champion right now. That was all that needed to be said about the gap between us.

We indulged in a bit of alcohol during dinner at Longxiang Hotel. It was fine though. Lin Xiao had brought a driver with him.

The dinner lasted past 8 pm, and it cost me 310k RMB in total. I could positively declare that I had never had such an expensive dinner in my life! Holding Lin Yixin’s hand with one hand and my card with the other, I complained to Lin Yixin in a hushed voice, "Can you ask your dad to find a weaker competitor next time? It hurts me every time I remember how much it costs to defeat that bastard. That’s an entire week of sales in the square of Sky City gone just like that…"

Lin Yixin burst into a giggle. "You’re always so stingy. Come on, it’s time to go home!"

"Yeah."

1. T/N: you know, this makes YOU the real gigolo between you and Owen