Chapter 37: Lamborghini Urus

"Get up, come with me for a workout."

At eight o'clock in the morning, Lu Liang woke up naturally. Having had his days and nights reversed for the past few days, he had neglected his exercise.

"It's so early. Can't we skip it?" Li Manli pulled the quilt over her head, responding with a muffled voice from beneath the covers. She suddenly poked out a beautiful leg and gave it a wiggle. "Look at a figure like mine—so standard. What do I need to work out for?"

"If you get fat, I won't want you anymore," Lu Liang said, giving her thigh a slap. He was truly a bit envious. The biggest difference between being young and being older is the metabolism. Li Manli didn't eat any less than he did, and she had a particular fondness for desserts and snacks, yet she simply refused to put on weight.

"Hiss—that hurts! It's on, then!" Feeling the sting, Li Manli gasped, threw off the quilt, and, not caring that she was exposed, lunged at Lu Liang, claws out.

Lu Liang ducked and dodged, heading for the bathroom. "Hurry up, I'm only giving you ten minutes."

At eight-thirty, the two arrived at the residential complex's fitness center. Li Manli's reluctance only lasted for the first few minutes after waking up. Seeing Lu Liang sweating it out on the treadmill, she began to jog alongside him. Unlike other women in the gym who relied on tight yoga pants to shape their figures, Li Manli looked no worse than anyone else even in her athletic skirt and tank top. Her calves, thighs, and glutes were as firm and taut as her cleavage, even having a soft, rosy hue. Sometimes, Lu Liang suspected she secretly applied body powder; otherwise, how could she be so pink and supple?

In front of the treadmills were tablets, allowing people to catch up on the day's news while exercising. For the past few days, the financial sections were filled almost exclusively with news of gold prices skyrocketing, with a total increase of 162 points over three days. That was an average increase of 5.21 dollars per gram, and domestic gold prices had surged even more than the international market, breaking through 320 yuan per gram. This 11-yuan-per-gram lead over the international price was mainly thanks to the "fighting power" of the local "aunties," as well as the fact that the stock market was currently in the midst of a crash.

At nine-thirty in the morning, the A-shares opened. The Shanghai Composite Index suffered its third consecutive decline, currently at 4,350 points. In three days, it had fallen by over 800 points, causing 820 billion in market value to evaporate. A sense of sorrow permeated the market, with reports everywhere about bosses and financial officers fleeing with funds. It was fortunate that it was the A-share market; having developed for over twenty years, it was still like a young boy. Had this kind of drop happened to the Hang Seng, Nikkei, or Dow Jones, the rooftops would surely be crowded with people.

At ten o'clock, Lu Liang returned home. After breakfast, he went to his study and opened his London Gold account, withdrawing the entire balance of 21.5934 million dollars. At today's exchange rate of 6.36, that was approximately 137 million RMB. This major market move had netted him a profit of 20.5934 million dollars.

"Turning one hundred thousand into a billion—it's still difficult," Lu Liang sighed. He carefully reviewed his trades from the past few days; because he was unfamiliar with the process, there were flaws everywhere. If he had another chance, he was confident he could multiply his gains several times over.

Leaving the study, Lu Liang headed to his company. Today was Friday, and Zhang Chen from Mahua was coming over to sign the contract, as they had already agreed last week.

"Brother Liang, Sister Xiaoqi invited me out to play today," Li Manli suddenly said. After posting on her social media last night, Zhou Xiaoqi had invited her to go shopping today. It felt a bit strange, though she couldn't quite put her finger on why.

Lu Liang smiled and patted Li Manli's head. "That just means she likes you. What's so strange about that?"

"Is that so?" Li Manli was skeptical. She then added, "Also, I want to go get my driver's license."

"Go ahead. Let me know if you need money."

Leaving the residential complex, crossing the Pu River, and passing the convention center, Lu Liang suddenly turned and drove into the convention center's parking lot. He remembered seeing a car show, and it dawned on him that the Bentley he was driving was still a rental. Previously, his capital was insufficient, so he had to keep renting, but now that he had money, it was time to buy a car of his own.

Lu Liang spent 3,800 yuan on a ticket to the luxury exhibition hall, and the organizer even provided him with an exclusive guide.

"Hello, Mr. Lu. My name is Li Yue, you can call me Xiao Li." Li Yue was all smiles as she explained that the car show was divided into three types of halls: luxury, comfort, and economy. The 3,800-yuan ticket covered all exhibition halls, allowing Lu Liang to visit and choose from any of them.

"Which brands are in the luxury hall?" Lu Liang was invited to the VIP lounge, where coffee and various exquisite Western-style desserts were laid out before him.

Li Yue's smile widened. "We have eighteen luxury car brands including Rolls-Royce, Ferrari, Porsche, and Bentley. Mr. Lu, which type are you interested in—sports cars, sedans, or SUVs?"

"Let's skip the sports cars, and I'm a bit tired of sedans. What SUVs do you have?" Lu Liang asked.

"Do you prefer the rugged type or the refined type? For rugged off-roaders, there's the Mercedes-Benz G-Class, AMG, and Range Rover series. There's more variety in the refined off-roaders, such as the Porsche Cayenne, Maserati Levante, Lamborghini Urus, and so on." Standing to the side, Li Yue leaned over to introduce the merits of each vehicle, her impressive cleavage nearly brushing against Lu Liang's cheek.

"Let's go take a look first." Lu Liang recalled a popular saying: for every Porsche sold, one beautiful saleswoman disappears from the floor. It seemed this Miss Li was also a very ambitious young woman.

Lu Liang followed her to the deepest part of the luxury car showroom. The number of visitors in this hall was significantly lower, and the quality of the car models was very high—all of them with long legs of 1.7 meters. Lu Liang test-drove the Mercedes G-Class, Range Rover, Porsche Cayenne, Maserati, and Lamborghini one after another. The G-Class and Range Rover were too stiff; he didn't like their boxy exterior and interior at all.

After a round, Lu Liang asked, "Between the Levante and the Urus, which one can I take home today?"

Li Yue was stunned, then immediately overjoyed. "Mr. Lu, please wait a moment, let me consult with my manager."

A few minutes later, she returned and said, "The exhibition is ending soon, Mr. Lu. Whichever one you want, you can take home."

"Then let's go with that yellow Urus." Lu Liang compared the two vehicles and ultimately chose the Lamborghini. The yellow Lamborghini was a classic, and the Urus was Lamborghini's first-ever super SUV. Although it was a refined off-roader, its body lines were sleek, its muscle was full, and its aggressive visual impact was in no way inferior to the rugged off-roaders.

"Mr. Lu, let me tell you about the discount plan," Li Yue said enthusiastically.

"This is an exhibition car. I don't want any gifts; you should think it over carefully and then give me a price." Although Lu Liang had money, he wasn't a sucker. An exhibition car is at least 20% cheaper than a new one. While luxury exhibition cars have lower depreciation, it should still be around 10%. The list price of the Lamborghini Urus was 2.98 million, and the purchase tax was about 10% of the vehicle price. With registration fees, insurance, and other costs, the price for a new car should be around 3.35 million. Subtracting 10% for the exhibition car status, Lu Liang's target price was 3.05 million.

Li Yue's smile stiffened slightly. She gave a deep bow. "Mr. Lu, please wait a moment. Let me consult with my manager again to see if I can get you the best possible discount."

"Mm, go ahead," Lu Liang nodded.

After a while, Li Yue returned, very excited. "Mr. Lu, I've managed to secure a very high discount for you—3.15 million. What do you think?"

"I'll give you one more chance to re-quote." Lu Liang's expression was calm; it wasn't as if he hadn't been a salesperson himself. It was highly likely that Li Yue hadn't consulted her manager at all; she had probably just gone to the restroom. Just like when he used to sell houses: the asking price was 3.5 million, but the average transaction price was 3.3 million. The higher the price above the average, the higher the commission.

"Mr. Lu, then please wait a moment more." Li Yue looked hesitant, and this time she was gone even longer than before. When she returned, she wiped non-existent sweat from her forehead. "Mr. Lu, I believe this price will surely satisfy you: 3.0888 million—eight-eight-eight, prosperity!"

Lu Liang smiled. "Throw in a set of full-car window tinting, a full detailing, and a set of original floor mats."

Li Yue's eyes widened, and she was momentarily stunned. "Mr. Lu, didn't you say you didn't want any gifts?"

Lu Liang said, "This is an exhibition car; people have been walking in and out of it every day. Isn't it standard to provide tinting and a deep clean and replace the floor mats?"

"...Just as you say." Li Yue looked aggrieved. She really wanted to say that the exhibition had been running for 13 days, and only about 900 people had bought tickets to enter the luxury hall. There were 125 high-end luxury cars in the hall; distributed evenly, that was only about 7.36 people per car. It wasn't dirty at all. But she didn't dare say it.

Near noon, Lu Liang signed the contract and paid the full amount of 3.0888 million. He didn't have time to wait here for the license plates, the transfer of ownership, or the tinting and cleaning.

"Once everything is ready, have it driven over to me." Lu Liang left a copy of his ID and an address, then left the convention center for Yongfeng Tower. At first, he thought he would be very excited—after all, it was the first car of his life—but it felt as mundane as going out to buy groceries.

"Even though I have money, I've also lost the ability to worry," he couldn't help but sigh.