Chapter 42: A Mansion Worth Hundreds of Millions!

Su Juanmo must have told her family about his intention to invest. As a result, the Su family believed he was interested in pursuing Su Juanmo, but after looking into his background, they hesitated. Now, it wasn’t Su Juanmo testing Lin Fan, but rather the Su family putting him to the test. After all, his original goal was to seek the backing of the Su family, while what they wanted was a marriage alliance. Both sides had anticipated each other’s intentions, but in the end, they were both overthinking it.

“So, what did the old man of your family say?” Lin Fan asked, shaking his head in frustration. Why did the profit-obsessed patriarch of the Su family have to meddle in this matter too? After returning home last night, he had researched the Su family’s background online. Currently, the family was led by Su Yan’en, a man notorious for his greed. Under his management, his children and even his nephews and nieces had become either titans of business or high-ranking officials. For the sake of the family’s interests, he would sacrifice his children’s happiness.

For example, the eldest son of the Su family had been in love with his childhood sweetheart for more than a decade, but because the girl came from an ordinary background, the old man forcibly separated them and married his son off to the daughter of a high-ranking official. Ouyang Qi’s father, Ouyang Ming, was Su Yan’en’s nephew. Under the old man’s insistence, he divorced his wife and married a wealthy local heiress. This was how the Su family had become a leading clan in Hang City, a true aristocratic family in every sense.

However, in recent years, the economy had been declining, real estate was sluggish, and many industries were drowning in debt. The hotel industry, which was the Su family’s mainstay, had suffered serious blows. The chain of Holiday Hotels managed by Su Juanmo had been closing down or being sold off over the past year or two. Now, there was an opportunity to turn things around: to follow the example of the Empire Group and transform Holiday Hotels into a diversified enterprise—combining shopping malls, entertainment, retail, hotels, and dining into one massive complex.

What she lacked was not just three hundred million, but a steady stream of future investment. The three hundred million was just the initial round of financing, the seed for developing the first batch of large hotels.

“He said you could invest, but you can’t pursue me. The contract will be ready in two days...” Su Juanmo replied, her face calm. In other words, if Lin Fan wasn’t interested, he needn’t get involved.

Lin Fan suddenly recalled the rumors he’d heard from Wang Jianguo last night. “Did your grandfather set you up with a blind date? With the young master from the Zhu family?”

“How do you know? Only our family knows about this right now. Where did you hear that?” Su Juanmo’s brows furrowed in surprise.

“The richest man in Hang City told me. I suppose he knows people in the Zhu family,” Lin Fan answered truthfully.

“It’s obvious you don’t like him.”

Lin Fan looked at her, his face full of curiosity. The affairs of the wealthy were always a spectacle, and everyone loved to gossip about the marriages of privileged heirs. He was eager to know Su Juanmo’s feelings. More importantly, if he could step in and help, perhaps he could win her heart! He was determined to complete this moderately difficult system task. According to the system’s rating, [Raise Su Juanmo’s favorability towards the host to 50] was a three-star difficulty task. This meant, at the very least, it would require an investment of more than three billion!

Meanwhile, [Winning over Zhang Yi] was only a one-star task—much less costly, requiring just one to ten billion.

“You’re not planning to meddle, are you? What a strange hobby! Are all the women around you ones you’ve stolen from others?” Su Juanmo teased.

“I’m not that bored. I just think it’s not worth it for you,” Lin Fan replied, laughing it off.

He actually felt a bit sorry for this woman now; it turned out that the so-called “ice queen” was merely a facade.

“I didn’t expect you to be so observant—no wonder your emotional intelligence is so high...” Su Juanmo smiled faintly.

At that moment, Lin Fan was delighted to see her favorability towards him rise by five points, reaching fifteen! So, to win the heart of a beauty like her, one had to start by moving her emotionally—but only if one had enough money to gain her recognition.

Lin Fan shifted the conversation. “I also heard you sold both your luxury apartments to raise funds, and now you have nowhere to stay. Are you living with Ouyang Qi?”

“You’re well informed. I underestimated you,” Su Juanmo replied, raising an eyebrow. “So, are you planning to give me a house?”

Lin Fan’s eyes sparkled. He asked straightforwardly, “Do you like swimming?”

Su Juanmo nodded without expression.

“And do you like sports?” Lin Fan pressed.

“Not really. I prefer reading. In my free time, I stay in my study practicing calligraphy or reading novels. When I get tired of that, I go to the pool to relax...” Su Juanmo briefly outlined her interests.

Lin Fan nodded in understanding, took out his phone, and sent a message to Zou Tong, asking about the most expensive mansion in Hang City. Zou Tong replied quickly, even sending detailed information about the house.

“How about I give you a villa in Longquan Manor?” Lin Fan looked at her hopefully.

“Do you know how expensive those homes are? They rank among the top ten in the entire country,” Su Juanmo replied, a glimmer of surprise flashing in her eyes.

Lin Fan immediately caught that subtle expression; clearly, she liked the villas at Longquan Manor.

Seeing that she didn’t refuse, Lin Fan seized the opportunity and continued, “Right now, there’s a three-story villa at Longquan Manor, the most expensive one available. It comes with a swimming pool and a tennis court, as well as a small private library. It covers ten acres and sits halfway up the mountain, overlooking a quarter of Hang City’s skyline…”

With every detail he described, Su Juanmo’s eyes gleamed.

“A mansion that expensive must cost a fortune. I heard the cheapest ones there start at a hundred million, and the fully furnished ones are at least three hundred million…” she said.

“No one’s bought that villa yet. Rarity makes it all the more precious... Only such a rare home is worthy of a goddess like you!” Lin Fan said firmly.

Whether or not Su Juanmo agreed, he was determined to buy the house for her. He finally understood—rather than antiques or paintings, Su Juanmo preferred luxury homes!

“You really mean to buy it for me?” Su Juanmo asked again.

“Just wait for the keys!” Lin Fan replied confidently, lifting his chin.

But Su Juanmo suddenly fell silent, her thoughts elsewhere, her mind adrift.

After lunch, Lin Fan originally wanted to take her to Longquan Manor to see Hang City’s most expensive villa, but Su Juanmo politely declined, claiming she had to work.

Lin Fan went to Longquan Manor on his own, already accustomed to her cold demeanor.

Longquan Mountain was a large hill in the center of Hang City. On the north side stood a temple and a tall pagoda, while the south side had been developed into a high-end villa district, with each property covering at least two acres. The largest sat at the peak.

Villa Number One covered ten acres, equipped with a pool and sports courts. Three years ago, it was valued at four hundred million, yet no one bought it. Now it was worth three hundred million, and still, there were no buyers.