Lin Fan was still inexperienced in the ways of the world. He never expected his own father to scheme against him. Other people had sons who brought trouble to their fathers; in his case, it was the father who was taking advantage of the son.
“A marriage alliance is fine, but what do I get out of it?”
Although Lin Fan was naive, that didn’t mean he was stupid. You might fool him once, but there was no way you’d fool him twice.
Lin Defei sneered. “Letting you join the Lin Family is already the greatest benefit. Once you become one of us, you’ll have status in Chujiang Prefecture. You’ll be a cut above everyone else.”
“I’m already part of the Lin Family. If there’s no tangible benefit in it for me, don’t expect me to enter into a marriage alliance.”
Lin Fan knew the Lin Family would gain something by having him enter into a marriage alliance. If they got the benefits while he was stuck marrying an ugly woman, how was that fair?
Lin Zhecheng said with displeasure, “What benefits do you want?”
Seeing Lin Fan’s faintly amused expression, he realized this cast-off son wouldn’t be easy to deal with. They’d probably have to give him a taste of the good life.
Lin Fan pointed at Lin Defei. “Whatever he has, I have to have too. I’m entering into a marriage alliance and making so many sacrifices for the family—my youth, my chastity, my… To make it up to me, I need everything he has, and twice as much.”
Lin Fan didn’t know what he needed, but as long as he got more than Lin Defei, he wouldn’t be losing out.
Lin Defei roared, “Who do you think you are, demanding the same treatment as me? I’m a Level 4 Martial Artist. You’re nothing! If you’ve got the guts, compete with me on strength. I get 100,000 yuan in pocket money a month, and you get 10,000—no, 1,000 is plenty for you.”
“Besides pocket money, what else do you have?”
“I also have a sports car, all kinds of luxury watches and fine liquor, and custom designer clothes. Those are things you’ll never have—and don’t deserve to have.”
Lin Fan said unhurriedly, “Then this is easy. I want everything you have. If you want me to enter into a marriage alliance, you’ll have to give me 200,000 yuan in pocket money every month. Also, you’ll have to get me a sports car, one that costs more than yours. Oh, and I came back with nothing, so give me a settling-in allowance of five million yuan.”
Lin Defei said furiously, “A five-million-yuan settling-in allowance? And a car? What’s next, a villa? Keep dreaming! Get out of here!”
He only got 100,000 yuan a month himself. What gave Lin Fan the right to demand 200,000? And now he wanted a settling-in allowance and a car too? Dream on.
Lin Fan said, “Right, you reminded me. You’ll have to prepare a villa for me too.”
Lin Zhecheng shot Lin Defei a furious glare, cursing the idiot inwardly. Had his Combat Power Rating gone up at the expense of his brain?
“You’re asking for too much. Enter into a marriage alliance with the Xiao Family first. You’ll have all that eventually.”
“If I make so many sacrifices for the family and still end up with nothing, why should I sacrifice anything? Once I enter into a marriage alliance, I’ll have a family and plenty of expenses. Besides, I can’t exactly establish an independent household empty-handed, can I?”
Lin Zhecheng’s chest ached with anger. “You… you unfilial son!”
Lin Fan was making outrageous demands, and openly preparing to establish an independent household.
How could a disobedient son like him possibly pull that off? Still, every time Lin Zhecheng heard him spouting nonsense, it left him feeling stifled.
“Oh, so the Lin Family is sacrificing me in a marriage alliance, making me marry a mute, ugly freak, and still expects to give me no benefits? Even when you slap someone, you give them a piece of candy afterward. If you keep haggling with me, I’ll double every amount!”
“Dream on! Dad, you absolutely can’t agree!”
“Then you go enter into the marriage alliance. I won’t ask for anything.”
Lin Zhecheng gritted his teeth and said helplessly, “Fine. As long as you agree to the marriage alliance, I’ll meet your demands.”
Compared to what they would gain from the Xiao Family, Lin Fan wasn’t asking for much.
“All right. My car can’t cost less than three million yuan, and the villa can’t cost less than fifty million or be smaller than 2,000 square meters. I want 100 luxury watches, 10,000 bottles of fine liquor, clothes…”
“You unfilial son!”
“You bastard! My car only cost one million yuan. What makes you think you deserve a three-million-yuan car? I don’t even have a villa, just a large apartment, and you want to live in a fifty-million-yuan villa?”
Lin Fan said, “If you married that ugly freak from the Xiao Family, all of that would be yours.”
“You…”
Lin Defei was left speechless. He had no intention of marrying her. Even if it meant becoming a Level 5 Martial Artist, he would never marry a mute, let alone an ugly freak.
Lin Fan suddenly said, “By the way, send me a photo of the Xiao Family’s young lady. If she’s so ugly I feel like throwing up, that’ll cost extra. She isn’t fat, is she? She has a good figure, right? If she’s fat, short, and ugly, no amount of money will make me do it!”
Lin Defei scoffed. “Don’t worry. Xiao Ruoxue may be ugly, but she has a great figure. If you don’t look at her face, she’s considered one of Chujiang’s beauties. Once the lights are off at night, what difference does it make?”
“Do you have a photo? Let me see.”
“Xiao Ruoxue is so ugly that she never takes pictures and won’t let anyone else take them.”
“Then I can at least sneak a look at her first, right?”
Lin Zhecheng said, “Since you’ve agreed to the marriage alliance, there’s no point in looking now. I agree to your demands. We’ll hold the engagement banquet in a few days.”
He was afraid Lin Fan would cause more trouble and make some other demand, ruining the arrangement.
Lin Fan held out his hand. “The engagement banquet happens only after you’ve met my demands. Transfer the money to me first: 200,000 yuan in pocket money plus a five-million-yuan settling-in allowance. That comes to 5.2 million yuan. Thanks.”
“You… Your ID has expired, and you don’t have a bank card. You can’t use the money even if I give it to you. Wouldn’t it be better to transfer it to you at the engagement banquet?”
“No 5.2 million, no engagement banquet. Also, you have to get the car, house, car, and liquor ready for me. I’ll go renew my ID and get a bank card. Until I do, you can give me cash. Or just transfer it to my WeChat balance.”
Lin Fan was still using a phone from several years ago. It was slow, and the screen was scratched up.
“I’ll transfer 200,000 to you now. We’ll talk about the remaining five million after you get your bank card.”
Getting an ID renewed and opening a bank account would take at least half a month. They should hold the engagement banquet first. After that, whether he gave Lin Fan the money would be up to him.
“Then transfer the 200,000 first. I need to go buy some clothes, too.”
His clothes were all the rage up in the mountains, but in the city, he had to keep up with the times.
After Lin Fan left, Lin Defei said unhappily, “Dad, you’re really going to let him get away with this?”
Lin Zhecheng smiled smugly. “As long as we form a marriage alliance with the Xiao Family, we’ll get far more in return. Besides, we can always take back what we give him later.”
“Once he marries that mute, ugly freak from the Xiao Family, we’ll take all of it back. Dad, I want his villa.”
“Mm.”
With money on his phone, Lin Fan headed straight to the mall. The first thing he did was buy a new phone. These days, if you go several years without replacing a smartphone, it gets so laggy it’s practically unusable.
By the time he left the mall, he’d cut his shoulder-length hair short. He looked incredibly sharp and full of energy, more handsome than those celebrities.
His coarse cloth clothes had been replaced with a brand-new designer suit, and his cloth shoes with a pair of high-end leather shoes.
Now, if anyone told him Lin Fan used to live in the mountains, he probably wouldn’t believe it himself.