I'm A Baller - Chapter 38

Chapter 38: Naive
Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

Lin Weiwei’s challenge was like a roll of thunder, astonishing everyone in the crowd.
Everyone at the karaoke place was in their early twenties, and the oldest in the crowd was 23. Everyone was still at the stage of life where they barely had any financial freedom.
Nonetheless, they were also not kids who had been living in poverty.
Living in the Capital, they were able to come into contact with many luxury goods and also rich tycoons. Hence, they were not only familiar with all the different luxurious bands, but they also longed to own them.
Take, for example, Guo Zihao’s Rolex Submariner Hulk. Li Yao was green with envy.
However, fewer people were envious of those who owned an exorbitant Breguet Marine watch, as they were aware that watches of such a standard and price range were not easily affordable.
Right then, a five-hundred-thousand-dollar Patek Philippe watch was right before their eyes. Wasn’t it scary?
Especially when the watch was on Wang Yan’s wrist. Since he was forgiving and kept such a low profile, it was even more astonishing.
An Lu’s eyes were wide open, and her hands were pressed tightly against her chest. The shock had knocked every wisp of air out of her lungs so she could only gasp desperately for air.
From the start, she didn’t have a very deep impression of Wang Yan.
She thought that Wang Yan had a very dark skin tone and was really short. He had an immature boyish look. Compared to Guo Zihao, Wang Yan was a loser through and through. As a result, she also looked down on Liu Li.
What was wrong with her taste in guys?
Even if she had no interest in handsome guys like Zihao or Yuxin, she should not just pick a random carrot as a full course meal.
Such low standards!
When they were playing truth or drink, her impression of Wang Yan had changed a little. At least his character wasn’t bad.
However, when Wang Yan had made Guo Zihao vomit his guts out, An Lu gritted her teeth in anger, about to flip. She swallowed her words of anger, as she didn’t want Lin Weiwei to be put in an awkward situation.
She thought, ‘You’re just an awkward outsider. Why are you trying to show off in front of Zihao? Are you better than Zihao in any way? Even by just a bit?’
Nonetheless, all her anger and superiority were crushed into pieces by Lin Weiwei’s words.
Even if she had no knowledge of the different watches, the price of the watch said it all.
Guo Zihao’s Rolex Submariner Hulk only cost eighty thousand, which was barely anything compared to Wang Yan’s.
It cost more than six times the price of Guo Zihao’s watch. There was no need to even place the watches next to each other for comparison.
No one would have expected such an inconspicuous boy to own a five-hundred-thousand-dollar watch. His net worth was definitely greater than Huang Xu’s.
Who said Liu Li’s taste was bad?
Her taste in guys was extremely good!
Au Lu was suddenly reminded of Guo Zihao’s attitude towards Huang Xu, and unexpectedly, she felt a gush of admiration for Wang Yan.
The man that she was pursuing was a prince charming.
The man that her prince charming had to bootlick was a reputable man.
And anyone richer than the reputable man was a person one could not afford to offend.
If he knew that, Guo Zihao should have never offended him. Why was he shouting so loudly?!
Was he dumb?
An Lu quickly held onto Guo Zihao’s wrist, as she was afraid that her prince charming was unable to restrain himself and would cause more trouble.
…
Guo Zihao’s mouth was left agape and he couldn’t seem to close his mouth. The smell of cigarettes, alcohol, and fermenting pistachios gushed upward. The pungent mixture’s smell was giving him a headache.
Looking at his Rolex watch, he was instantly reminded of earlier, when he had taken it off for Wang Yan to “play around” with. At that moment, he could feel a burning sensation on his cheeks.
Karma was a b*tch!
‘There are at least four other girls watching. How embarrassing!
‘Nawu was clearly aware of that all along. No wonder she didn’t even bother looking at me.
‘I was showing off my sixty-six-thousand-dollar watch to a person with a Patek Phillippe watch worth five hundred thousand. Who wouldn’t find it funny…?
‘Anybody there?
‘Please wake me up from this daydream!’
While he was hoping that he could hide his head in the sand, his eagerness to compete with Wang Yan was instantly put out.
‘Even if Wang Yan is an outsider, he was able to afford such an extravagant watch, meaning he’s definitely not someone that I could afford to offend. I better watch what I say before he loses his temper,’ he thought.
‘I’m not a coward, I’m just peace-loving!
‘Huh?
‘An Lu, why are you grabbing my arm?
‘What? Do you think that I’ll lose control?
‘Crazy!
‘Even if I lose my temper right now, I’ll be coming at you and not him!
‘Do you understand what peace-loving means?!’
…
The mic hogger had made up her mind and didn’t want to meddle with the mess. She would let them be and argue however they liked.
But right then, she abruptly gave Liu Li a thumbs up.
‘You win, you’re f*cking awesome!’
Liu Li grinned, but she was rather indifferent.
Compared to the luxurious watch, she was admiring Wang Wang’s tolerance and magnanimity as a man. In her opinion, it didn’t matter how rich he was, so she didn’t care whether they were envious of them. It didn’t bother her anyway!
Even though Fu Yushi was quiet and kept a low profile, at that moment, she was unable to keep her composure like Liu Li.
Her mouth was slightly agape. When she tilted her head to peek at the rest, she saw Reyi Nawu holding back her laughter. She quickly scooted over to her and gently wrapped her arms around Nawu’s waist.
She whispered, “You guys were all aware of this? Does it really cost five hundred thousand dollars?”
Nawu felt proud. She smirked and nodded. “How could it be fake? Weiwei and Li Li were with him.”
“Then, why…”
Fu Yushi wanted to ask why Wang Yan was so easygoing, but on second thought, his character and how he interacted with others had nothing to do with her.
Hence, she swallowed back her question.
…
Huang Xu was the angriest. The anger was boiling deep within him, and his hands were shaking in frustration.
‘We?
‘Lin Weiwei, are you associating yourself with a guy from another province?
‘Who am I to you?!’
Fires of fury and hatred were smoldering within him, but he had to suppress his anger, as he couldn’t offend Wang Yan.
Huang Xu had a small sports car that was worth two million dollars, an apartment in an affluent area, and also two watches that cost around two hundred thousand each. Besides, his annual expenditures easily hit eight hundred thousand dollars.
Hence, among the students, Huang Xu was best able to grasp the concept of how rich a person with a five-hundred-thousand-dollar watch must be.
In theory, without taking into account any properties, it was entirely normal for someone with ten million dollars’ worth of assets and a luxury car that cost a million dollars to purchase two watches that might cost a hundred thousand each.
The reason was that cars and watches were used to demonstrate their status but they would not take up a large proportion of their expenditure.
Every tycoon would understand this.
Someone who was driving a luxury car that cost up to a million dollars would have a corresponding standard of living. If not, they would be looked down upon, as that could be considered putting up a facade.
Using the Capital’s quality of life as a scale…
Hosting banquets, decorations, gifts, entertainment, insurance, daily consumption, children’s educations, and health care expenditures, all these added up together would sum up to a monthly expenditure of fifty thousand dollars.
Someone with an annual income of less than six hundred thousand dollars would find it hard to make ends meet!
Every pragmatic adult had a budget in their mind, and they knew where they stood in terms of economic status. Hence, it would also affect the apartments they purchased, the car they drove, and the watch they wore.
Huang Xu’s father was a successful businessman. He had two luxury watches, one from Breguet, and the other from Rolex. They cost seven hundred fifty thousand dollars and 1.18 million dollars respectively.
Huang Xu was deeply influenced by his father. When he purchased watches with his own allowance, they cost around two hundred thousand dollars.
Anything more than that was unnecessary, and he was also unable to afford them.
‘My dad’s surname is not Ma or Wang, I’m just the average son of a rich family. I had to cut down on my expenditures for half a year before I could afford a two-hundred-thousand-dollar watch. If my expenditures on entertainment had exceeded by just a bit, I would have had to beg my mother for money. How can I compare to him?
‘How rich must his family be to afford a five-hundred-thousand-dollar watch?
‘Wait…
‘No matter how affluent his family is, would they easily allow him to buy a five-hundred-thousand-dollar watch?’
Receiving a watch as a present from his parents and buying a watch for himself were two vastly different concepts.
The former meant that his family was rich.
On the other hand, the latter meant that the child had extravagant consumption habits, and the family had to be incredibly affluent to support such spending.
Whatever it was, Huang Xu didn’t have two hundred fifty thousand in cash.
If he wanted money, he needed to seek approval from his father with appropriate reasons, then the money would be wired into his bank immediately.
And if his reason was that he made a bet?
His cheeks would be hit at any moment.
Just when Huang Xu was breaking out in cold sweat due to his anxiety, he heard a snippet of what Nawu and Fu Yushi were talking about.
“Wang Wang has around fifty thousand dollars in his Wechat wallet. Haven’t you seen it for yourself? Why are you so shocked?”
Huang Xu thought about his own Wechat wallet. The amount in it had never exceeded 2,000. He was in utter disbelief.
What normal human being stored so much money in their WeChat wallet?
The only reasonable explanation was that he didn’t need the fifty thousand dollars stored in his bank, hence he just saved it randomly. That amount was just his pocket money.
In reality, the most unreasonable answer was the correct answer, that he had external support.
Who would have expected that?
Huang Xu had never been soberer. He was entirely dumbfounded.
Humans had great imaginations and were able to connect the dots between what they observed. Huang Xu was certain that Wang Yan had been born into a wealthy family, and when he reflected on Wang Yan’s behavior, he was taken aback.
First, he had a great attitude, so his family must have taught him well since he was young. It was likely he had been born into a family of officials.
His eyes were shining brightly, and his aura was incredibly strong and visible. Were his parents working as officials with high statuses?
The way he spoke and behaved was cautious, showing that he was definitely influenced by his parents.
He didn’t like to show off. Instead, he was trying to keep a low profile out of habit. Even when they were provoking him, he kept his cool… His parents or grandparents must have been extremely reputable, that was it!
His skin tone was a little dark and his skin was rough. He looked like he had actively played sports outside. However, if he was from a rather affluent province, did that mean that he visited the southern region for vacations regularly?
Since he dared to wear a five-hundred-thousand-dollar Patek Phillippe watch out, his parents were businessmen and his grandparents had to be reputable officials…
Mystery solved!
Assuming that he had revealed Wang Yan’s family background, Huang Xu felt a sense of accomplishment.
‘Trying to hide from me? There’s no way!
‘Just by lifting your butt, I know the smell of the sh*t that you’re going to have!
‘You’re awesome, you’re capable, but I don’t want to associate myself with you. Is that okay?
‘Hiding your abilities so that you can take advantage of us? Do you think that I’ve wasted my time reading all those novels?
‘Hehe, how naive!’
Huang Xu had an arrogant sneer on his face, and everyone around him was staring anxiously, their lips tightly pressed together.
Huh?!
Everyone was confused and looked at one another.
Huang Xu held his horses and didn’t make a scene because of Wang Yan’s family background.
Everyone was left in a state of confusion. Only Guo Zihao could figure out the reason.
Actually, Guo Zihao and Huang Xu’s behaviors were polar opposites. They demonstrated the two ends of the spectrum of how the capital’s second-generation rich kids acted.
One type was extra obnoxious and felt a sense of superiority when he met an outsider.
The other type was more cautious when they met someone they didn’t know well. They would first overestimate their capabilities, and when they realized that something was wrong, they were quick to back down.
The Capital had a special environment that nurtured collectivism within the community of rich second-generation rich kids that Wang Yan would never understand.
…
Whatever it was, ever since Lin Weiwei spoke up, Huang Xu had remained silent, and his high and mighty attitude seemed to have been abandoned.
Wang Yan couldn’t wrap his mind around the situation. What was going on?
He was so arrogant before, and a single sentence from Lin Weiwei could placate him?
Actually, it wasn’t Lin Weiwei’s words but the Patek Phillippe watch.
Magical, wasn’t it?
To be honest, Huang Xu had had many more assets than Wang Yan. The richest people in the Capital all had their capabilities well hidden.
However, their current living circumstances would never allow them to act like Wang Yan. He only had six hundred thousand and he had already spent five hundred thousand on one watch.
Everyone at the scene was taken aback by a brand name that was out of the ordinary and started imagining all kinds of scenarios.
However, Wang Yan was oblivious of what was going on and didn’t even bother thinking too deep into it.
Wasn’t it frustrating?
…
It didn’t take long before Huang Xu put his watch back onto his wrist discreetly and acted as if nothing had happened. He went on to have a drink with Guo Zihao.
After a few minutes, Li Yao shook his head lightly and picked himself up. He had finally sobered up a little and quickly followed after his friend.
An Lu was firmly by Guo Zihao’s side, and that unknown mic hogger was called over by Li Yao. The mood quickly lightened up again.
Fu Yushi sat in the middle, acting as a divider, splitting the room into two.
“How are they so thick-skinned?” Reyi Nawu muttered under her breath.
“Drink up! Drink up!” Lu Yuanyuan was unwilling to let go of the Armand de Brignac champagne bottle.
“Thanks!” Lin Weiwei looked at Wang Yan in gratitude. “Cheers!”
“Happy birthday.”
Wang Yan smiled warmly.
Liu Li hadn’t toasted with anyone for quite some time, but at that moment, she lifted her cup as well to celebrate the moment.
At 11 p.m., Lin Weiwei announced that the party was over.
Li Yao and Huang Xu felt so relieved that they quickly took their leave after bidding goodbyes. Their eyes didn’t even dare to stray towards Wang Yan.
Some of them were reluctant to leave, and their gaze had never left a certain someone.
Someone was stumbling with every step, so sleepy that she was swaying side to side. Wang Yan quickly pulled her into his embrace, as that person was Liu Li.
As Wang Yan hugged his pretty girlfriend in his embrace, his stirring heart and excitement quickly translating into the following words: “Do you want to follow me home?”
Liu Li was stunned. She was so shocked that she was no longer dozing off.
“No, no, no, I can’t. I… I-I’m really tired. I will accompany you to-to-tomorrow morning!
The little white rabbit was so cute that Wang Yan couldn’t resist teasing her once more.
“Wang Wang, let me go. There are people watching…”
Wang Yan was reluctant to let go.
“We aren’t even doing anything wrong. Just let them look.”
He had barely teased her for about ten seconds and Lin Weiwei was already calling them to get into the car.
“If you want to go home, you better hop on!”
Upon hearing these two words, Wang Yan was elated.
Since you’re so experienced, are you going to impart your knowledge to me?
Go go go, time to go home!
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