bdsm-fiction Chapter 79 Lin Zhou: It turns out I was the penniless one all along.
Chapter 79 Lin Zhou: It turns out I was the penniless one all along.
Back in his second-floor guest room, Lin Zhou slumped onto the bed, feeling as if his spine had been removed, limp and listless.
The hardcover diary he held so dearly was now burning hot. He turned to the last page, his fingertips repeatedly tracing the number circled in red pen—two hundred and thirty-three thousand five hundred and eighty yuan.
A few hours ago, Lin Zhou could have stood up straight, thinking of himself as a thrifty and forward-thinking man. After all, in this age where everyone is broke by the end of the month, being able to scrape together over 200,000 yuan in cash would make him a "ten-thousand-yuan household" with some assets.
But now, this string of numbers looks so ironic, so thin, and even reeks of poverty.
"Two hundred and one thousand..."
Lin Zhou shook his head with a wry smile, his gaze passing through the window, as if he could still see the shimmering carbon fiber sheen of the Bugatti Veyron in the underground garage.
Those people have assets measured in hundreds of millions; even a single car wheel would probably be more expensive than all his savings from the past seven years. He actually thought saving up to buy that bag was some incredibly touching surprise. Now that he thinks about it, Su Qingge probably laughed at him for being so foolish when she saw the ledger.
Is this the variability of the world?
Is this the ultimate realization of a gigolo?
It turns out that in this house, apart from the garage full of luxury cars, the expensive haute couture gowns, and even the two stray dogs that often ignored him, Lin Zhou was the one who was completely penniless, not a single penny to his name.
This huge psychological gap made Lin Zhou question the meaning of life for a moment. He lay on the bed in a "spread-eagle" position, staring blankly at the ceiling, feeling a mix of emotions.
Just then, the system that I hadn't seen in a long time suddenly popped up in my mind in an extremely annoying way.
[Ding! The host is experiencing intense psychological fluctuations related to the "wealth gap," with a mood depression index of three stars.]
[System Reminder: Recognizing reality is the first step to growth. As a man determined to live off his wife, you should understand that true confidence doesn't come from how much money your wife has, but from how much money (or shock points) you can earn for her.]
Want to rise above your humble beginnings and sing your praises? Want to stand tall in front of your wealthy wife? Then get your act together! Do quests! Earn points! Exchange them for those god-tier skills that will multiply your value! What kind of skill is it to wallow in self-pity here?
After drinking this bowl of poisonous chicken soup, Lin Zhou almost choked to death.
"Shut up!"
Lin Zhou cursed inwardly, "I want to make money too! But I don't even have any start-up capital. Am I supposed to go busking on the streets? Besides, with my current identity, wouldn't I be mobbed by paparazzi whenever I go out?"
The system remained silent, feigning death, clearly indicating it had no intention of providing any substantial financial assistance.
Lin Zhou sighed and sat up.
Although he was devastated, life had to go on. Since Su Qingge had given him a Cullinan, as a husband, he believed in reciprocity, so he had to give her something in return, even if it wasn't valuable, it was still a token of his affection, wasn't it?
"What should I buy?"
Lin Zhou took out his phone, opened the shopping app, and swiped his finger across the screen.
Necklace? Too tacky.
Perfume? She has a whole cabinet of it.
A silk scarf? That doesn't seem like anything new.
After looking around, Lin Zhou settled on a custom-made record player. It was retro and artistic, perfectly matching Su Qingge's aloof and elegant temperament. The price wasn't too outrageous either, just over 20,000 yuan.
"That's it!"
Lin Zhou clicked to purchase, was redirected to the payment page, entered his password, and completed the transaction in one smooth motion.
However, the next second, a red exclamation mark popped up on the screen, like a merciless mocking hand, slapping him hard across the face.
Payment failed: Insufficient balance.
"Um?"
Lin Zhou was stunned for a moment, then subconsciously rubbed his eyes. "Insufficient balance? That's impossible. Doesn't this supplementary card have a credit limit of 500,000? Although I bought the skin, I only spent a few thousand..."
and many more.
Several thousand dollars?
A deliberately forgotten memory suddenly attacked him.
That night, in order to get that damn limited edition skin, he seemed, perhaps, probably... to be hooked?
Lin Zhou's hands trembled as he opened the bank's app to check his balance.
On the supplementary card account that Su Qingge had given him, only a single, extremely pitiful number was displayed:
4.50 yuan.
Holy crap!
Lin Zhou's vision went black, and his phone nearly hit his face.
He remembered! That lottery pool was a bottomless pit. He was like he was possessed, frantically doing ten consecutive draws, and unknowingly maxed out his limit! Later, because he was afraid of being scolded, he selectively forgot about it and even brought it up as a joke in Truth or Dare.
Who could have imagined that retribution would come so quickly!
If there's no money in the card, then you'll have to use cash.
Lin Zhou turned his gaze to the diary. Hidden in a secret compartment was indeed the enormous sum of 210,000 yuan he had saved.
but……
That's his "funeral savings"! That's his last shred of dignity in this wealthy family! Besides, the money hasn't even been deposited into his account yet. He can't exactly go online shopping with a bunch of cash in his pocket, can he?
"So annoying!"
Lin Zhou scratched his hair in frustration, unable to shake off the feeling of depression in his heart.
He has a luxury car but can't drive it, he has a mansion but doesn't feel at ease living in it, he wants to buy a gift for his wife to show his feelings, but he finds that he is penniless.
What the hell is this?!
"Have a smoke to calm down."
Lin Zhou instinctively reached for his pocket, only to find it empty. He then rummaged through the bedside table, searching every drawer, and finally found a crumpled cigarette box in a corner.
I picked it up and shook it.
It floated away without making a sound.
When I opened it, it was completely empty; not even a single cigarette was left.
Undeterred, Lin Zhou turned the cigarette box upside down and patted it, trying to shake out a miracle.
However, there was nothing there except a few specks of dust.
"What a tragedy..."
Lin Zhou slumped onto the bed, staring at the crystal chandelier on the ceiling, feeling a sense of utter despair over his life.
Smoking cravings are something that's fine when you don't have them, but once you do, it's like having a million ants crawling inside your bones, causing excruciating pain. Especially when you're feeling down like this, not having nicotine to soothe you is worse than death.
"Buy cigarettes! We absolutely have to buy cigarettes!"
Lin Zhou sat up abruptly, his eyes hardening.
But...where's the money?
He had only four dollars and fifty cents left in his card, not even enough to buy the cheapest pack of Hongtashan cigarettes. His cash was all in his diary, but he'd already locked it in the safe (he'd locked it when he came in), and the key… seemed to be in the Cullinan garage downstairs?
If you want to get the money, you have to go downstairs to the garage to get the key, and then go back upstairs to open the safe.
This is too loud. What if it wakes up Nuonuo or Su Qingge next door? Does he have no shame?
"Isn't there any other way?"
Lin Zhou paced around the room three times like a trapped beast.
Three circles to the left, three circles to the right.
His eyes scanned every corner of the room, trying to find even a forgotten piece of change.
There was nothing under the bed.
There were none in the pockets of the clothes.
He even searched under the insoles, but still found nothing.
Now he truly embodies what it means to have "cleaner pockets than face".
There's no other way.
Lin Zhou stopped in his tracks, his gaze passing through the wall as if looking towards the master bedroom next door.
There lived the richest person in the family, and currently the only one who could save him from his predicament—his wealthy wife, Su Qingge.
Although asking his wife for money is somewhat shameful for a man determined to live off her, compared to the pain of his nicotine cravings, saving face doesn't seem so important.
Besides, he earned his living through his own abilities, so what's wrong with asking for some pocket money?
This is called reasonable and legal household spending!
Having mentally prepared himself, Lin Zhou took a deep breath, straightened his clothes, and put on an expression that said, "Although I am poor, I am confident."
He opened the door, walked through the corridor, and stood in front of the carved solid wood door.
He raised his hand and hesitated for three seconds.
"Thump, thump".
The knocking sounded particularly clear in the quiet corridor.
"Wife? Are you asleep?"