I Start with a Mysterious Island

At night, the city was a brilliant spectacle, its neon lights of every color dressing it up in flamboyant splendor.

It was mid-August, and the weather was still quite hot. During the day, the intense heat of the sun drove everyone to take refuge in air-conditioned rooms.

Once evening fell, the temperature on the streets dropped considerably. People began to emerge from their rooms, meeting up with a few friends to go shopping, watch a movie, or...

At 7:30 PM, a silver van pulled into the parking lot next to Tianli Square.

As one of the top five shopping centers in Rongcheng East District, Tianli Square was incredibly crowded with shoppers at night.

In the parking lot, a sedan worth two or three million had just parked. The young man behind the wheel was telling his girlfriend to get out.

Just then, a silver van worth no more than fifty thousand yuan parked in the spot next to his.

The young man, just about to get out, watched as the passenger door of the neighboring van opened. A beautiful woman with a graceful figure, a lovely face, and an extraordinary air stepped out.

"Wh-what a beautiful woman." The young man stared at the captivating beauty, momentarily forgetting to get out of his car.

After Lin Li parked the van, Su Yue opened the passenger-side door and got out.

She glanced at the young man who was gawking at her, then walked around the front of the van to join Lin Li, who had just gotten out of the driver’s seat.

"The movie’s about to start. We should hurry," Lin Li said.

"Mm."

The two of them quickly left the parking lot and headed toward the movie theater in the adjacent Tianli Square.

"That woman is gorgeous. Her figure is amazing," an icy female voice suddenly remarked.

"Yeah! Not only is she gorgeous, but her figure is incredible. That guy is so damn lucky!" the young man, still staring blankly at Su Yue’s retreating figure, replied subconsciously, his voice thick with envy.

The words had barely left his mouth when realization dawned on the slow-witted young man. The expression on his face instantly froze.

He sat frozen in his seat, as if someone had cast an Immobilization Skill on him.

Two or three seconds later, the young man slowly turned his head to look at his furious girlfriend.

"Honey, listen to me, I didn’t mean it like that, I..." Beads of sweat formed on the young man’s forehead as he spoke frantically to his enraged girlfriend.

"Go watch the movie by yourself! I just remembered I have something urgent to take care of at home..."

The furious girl cut her boyfriend off. Grabbing her purse, she strode quickly toward the parking lot exit to hail a cab home from the roadside.

The young man scrambled out of the driver’s seat and hurried after his departing girlfriend, pleading, "Honey, I know I was wrong! Please forgive me just this once!"

"I’m so sorry I’m not pretty enough and don’t have a good enough body. I’m sorry for making you so unhappy," the girl said, her face cold as ice.

"Honey, what are you talking about? Even though your looks and figure aren’t as good as that woman’s, it’s like they say, to each their own! I’m already perfectly happy with you..." the young man said with utmost sincerity.

"..." The girl knew her boyfriend was trying to express his love, but his words just sounded so... off.

......

"The movie starts in a little over ten minutes. I’m going to buy some popcorn, wait here for me," Lin Li said to Su Yue.

"Let me get it! You’re already paying for the movie tickets, so at least let me get the popcorn!" Su Yue said with a smile.

"Didn’t we agree? I made money today, so everything tonight is on me," Lin Li, who had just earned several million from selling a batch of pearls, said with a smile.

"So how much did you make today hauling goods in that van of yours? To hear you talk, anyone would think you made a few million!" Seeing that Lin Li wouldn’t let her buy the popcorn, Su Yue didn’t insist and asked him casually.

’I *did* make several million! And I’ll make even more in the future. A small goal like a hundred million should be easy enough to achieve,’ Lin Li grumbled inwardly. Aloud, he said vaguely, "Not much, just a few hundred."

"A few hundred in a single day? That’s easily over ten thousand a month! By that math, you’ll be earning more than my teacher’s salary! Congratulations!"

Hearing Lin Li say he’d earned a few hundred, the smile on Su Yue’s face grew even brighter, as if she’d just heard the most wonderful news.

"Alright, enough about that. I’m going to get in line for the popcorn."

Lin Li was afraid that if he kept talking to Su Yue about his earnings, he wouldn’t be able to stop himself from letting slip that he’d actually made millions.

So he quickly changed the subject and hurried over to the concession stand.

"Hah... I really thought that blockhead was going to just laze around at home like a deadbeat forever. I can’t believe he found a job so quickly... This is great," Su Yue muttered to herself, watching Lin Li’s back as he went to buy popcorn.

Today, Su Yue was wearing a white, pleated sundress with spaghetti straps and a pair of off-white, low-heeled sandals. Her jet-black, silky hair was draped over her shoulders.

The outfit should have made her look elegant and demure, but unfortunately, Su Yue’s curves were simply too alluring, sending her seductive charm completely off the charts.

Standing in a corner, Su Yue took her phone out of her purse, opened a video app, and started watching some short videos while quietly waiting for Lin Li to return with the popcorn.