CH 31.1

After a peak follows a trough. Although she had previously been extremely busy, in the last couple of days Ning Wan had found herself unexpectedly idle. When one was busy, one looked forward to being idle, but when she really became idle, Ning Wan felt uncomfortable. She had already imparted to Fu Zheng all the skills she could teach. Since she had nothing to do, she began looking through old classic court cases.

When she glanced up from looking at those cases, she found Fu Zheng looking at cars on his computer.

For a moment, Ning Wan hated iron for not being steel. "It wasn't easy clearing our plates here, at the very least use your free time looking at old cases and seeing how other people handle their cases. What are you looking at cars for? I did teach you how to slack off, but I didn't tell you to put it into practice immediately!"

"..." Fu Zheng obviously hadn't expected to be caught red-handed and looked a little embarrassed. Looking at cars during work hours really was a slacking-off activity, so he immediately and subconsciously tried to justify himself by saying, "I was looking because I wanted to buy one..."

It was too bad that his sincere and truthful slip of the tongue was his own downfall. Ning Wan scoffed when she heard this reply. "Do you think I'm blind? You were looking at a luxury car forum! Is that what you look at when you want to buy a car? Each is worth upwards of ten million!"

……

This admission hadn't been a lie. Fu Zheng was a luxury car collector, and seeing there wasn't much to do at work lately, he had moseyed into the luxury car online forum to take a look. He hadn't expected his blunder to be discovered by Ning Wan, and now he was being disciplined like an unruly grandson--

"Fu Zheng, you've been making great progress recently. I know that many men love cars, but you're already older than me. Your time is precious, and you must use it wisely."

Fu Zheng had already long deciphered Ning Wan's personality. He knew that she was easy to persuade and difficult to argue with, so he chose to go with the flow this time. With a mournful, ashamed face, a bowed head, and a small voice, he admitted, "I was looking at used cars, but I couldn't help myself when I saw a luxury car..."

Ning Wan was very soft-hearted. So long as one could induce her sympathy, not only would she not lecture, but she might even attempt to comfort.

Fu Zheng decided to add a little more depth and detail to his personal character settings. To make it seem a little more authentic, he looked at Ning Wan with just the right amount of loneliness on his face. "I know that I'm overreaching," he said a little wanly. "I shouldn't be looking at luxury cars when I can't afford them at all. I'm very well aware of my own situation, and I know looking at things I can't have will only aggravate the pain. Thank you for your advice. Next time I'll do my best to just focus on looking at used cars..."

Remorse and self-reproach bloomed on Ning Wan's face. She immediately explained and apologized, then inquired in a concerned matter about Fu Zheng's potential used car. "What do you want in a used car? Should I help you keep an eye out?"

This was the sort of thing people said in order to be polite. Seeing that Ning Wan had stopped scolding him, Fu Zheng simply made something up. "Nothing too expensive, just something efficient I can use to get around."

After he answered, she really did drop the topic. Not taking her offer seriously, he turned his computer to the case network and began actually working. Then an hour later, Ning Wan sent him a link on WeChat--

"What about this car?"

Fu Zheng frowned and clicked on the link. It was a second-hand Volkswagon Polo in a very spicy, eye-gouging mustard yellow.

"I asked my friend who knows about cars to help you look around for a used car, and he sent me a few selections," Ning Wan said enthusiastically. "This one is only 30,000 yuan1! It has a decent performance, and there aren't too many miles on it yet, so it would be my first pick!"

Fu Zheng looked at the car and with difficulty managed to say, "But the colour... isn't great..."

"This is high speed yellow! I know it's a little out of the ordinary, but it's also conspicuous, so it'll make it easier for you to avoid accidents while driving. Everyone  will see you from afar. Furthermore, most people don't like this colour and that's why it's so cheap! Why, for a car like this, if it was any other colour you would be paying 40,000!"

"But well, now that you bring it up... I can see what you're talking about. I suppose a man would rather drive a more low-key car, so maybe a white or black car..."

Fu Zheng hadn't expected Ning Wan to actually help him find a used car. She didn't seem discouraged at all by his euphemistic decline. "I knew you were picky. It's no problem, I was just starting out with the Polo to first lower your expectations of used cars. The one below is the one I really recommend - a used black Mazda!"

“……”

"The asking price is a little higher, 50,000 yuan, but I think we should be able to bargain it down."

It seemed like Ning Wan was for real... Enduring the choking mood, Fu Zheng struggled to survive, saying, "Well... no, forget it. Mazdas are relatively small compared to other cars of the same price. It's not comfortable or powerful, either. It would be better for me to save up a bit more and look for something better..."

"No, no, no, this is just you being prejudiced against Mazdas. They might be small, but there's absolutely no problem with their quality. They might be a bit low in power, but they also don't consume much fuel! On top of that, they handle very well; this Mazda has a G-Vectoring Control system, which helps you steer. They call it 'the King of Turning Corners'!"

But the question was, could one still experience the thrill of being the King of Turning Corners after switching from a Pagani to a Mazda?

Fu Zheng had long been spoiled by all sorts of luxury cars. Forget a Mazda - to him, even ordinary non-sports cars were just about as fast as tractors...

But when he looked at Ning Wan's sincere, serious eyes, and listened to her obviously well-researched words, Fu Zheng felt unable to bluntly refuse. But to put down 50,000 yuan on a Mazda? It's wasn't about money anymore, this was an insult to his taste...

Thankfully, he still had his quick wits. Proving that in the end he wasn't a senior partner for nothing, Fu Zheng soon thought of the perfect reason to refuse. He pretended to seriously consider the black Mazda, hesitated for a moment, and then said--

"I'm thinking I won't buy it."

Ning Wan was a little surprised. "What's wrong? Do you not like this car? If you don't, I can look around for something else. Getting a good deal on a second hand car depends on luck, but if you're willing to put in some time and effort, getting something practical and economical isn't too hard..."

"No," Fu Zheng said, putting on a thoughtful and decisive expression. "I've decided not to buy a car."

Before her startled eyes, he said without turning a hair, "I've thought hard. Cars depreciate rapidly, and though I now have a little money to spend, I'm still not yet well-off enough to buy whatever I want. I think a man should first buy a house. Once I have a house, then I can consider purchasing a car." Looking at her, he said solemnly, "I was a little irrational just now. Now that I've calmed down, I think that compared to a second-hand car, I would prefer to buy a house."

Ning Wan was quite stunned to hear him say this. Then she laughed, looking quite relieved. "Fu Zheng, you've finally grown up! This is an excellent mindset to have! Houses are still the best way of investing, and especially for you, since you're currently in need of one!"

In this manner, she really did leave off recommending used cars to Fu Zheng. Instead, she asked a few casual questions about the house he had in mind, how big he envisioned it, whether he had any thoughts on location, and about the down payment...

Fu Zheng happily and equally casually made up a few reasonable answers. He wanted to a small apartment with convenient transportation. For his down payment, he made up a number that was neither too high or too low, but which was definitely too low for the sort of house he said he wanted to buy. Not only would this answer Ning Wan's courtesy concerns, but it would also put an end to the possibility of her showing him a second-hand house. After all, there was no way he would be able to afford a place at the current market price with the 'saved down payment' number he had mentioned.

Ning Wan really didn't ask any further questions. She only said a few encouraging words, and then went back to looking at cases.

It's said that the amount of time in a day in which people can concentrate on their studies is limited. Afterward, any more studying would have diminishing returns. Ning Wan had been reading cases all morning. At first she was able to analyze them well, but later on her head started to hurt looking at them. But without them she had nothing to do, so instead of simply sitting around in the office, she ran to Old Ji's office next door to chat that afternoon.

Old Ji had been very busy recently preventing and raising awareness for financial scams among the community. He was out every day putting up posters and handing out leaflets, and was getting more and more tanned. When Ning Wan came in, he vented to her and then they chatted a bit about what had been going on recently at the community. Then all of a sudden, he seemed to think of something. Giving her a mysterious look, he lowered his voice. "Ning Wan, I've come across the opportunity to make a fortune..."

Ning Wan blinked. "Aren't you recently trying to raise community awareness about financial scams? Why does this sound exactly like one?"

"This is business," Old Ji answered grumpily, glaring at her.

"Well, what is it about?" she asked dutifully.

"Buying a house!"