"Xiaochen, get up! Didn't you say we were going to buy a car today? Why are you still sleeping…?"
First thing in the morning, Su Chen was yanked out of bed by Su Zhuyun.
Bleary-eyed, Su Chen rubbed his eyes and grabbed the phone from his pillow to take a look…
"Seven forty-five!"
"Dad~ It's not even eight o'clock. What's the rush? The dealership isn't going to run away!" After speaking, he flopped back onto the bed.
"Not in a hurry? How could I not be? I've been dreaming about this for days! Do you have any idea what these last four days have been like for me?"
A few days ago—on the very day he and Su Zhuyun had gone for a walk—Su Chen had unexpectedly discovered that his old man was quite a capable person.
Not only did his father have a profound understanding of worldly matters, but he was also a veteran driver.
In Su Chen's memory… Su Zhuyun had hardly ever driven. If he had, their family would have bought a car long ago.
He'd thought his dad was some kind of hidden master, but after a bit of subtle questioning, he realized… he was just letting his imagination run wild.
Su Zhuyun was just an ordinary man. He had learned all his driving skills at the factory, and he'd gotten his license years ago—it had since been renewed for a ten-year term.
After all, getting a driver's license was much simpler back then. With just a little effort, anyone could get one.
What shocked Su Chen the most was that… Su Zhuyun actually held an A2 license!
Previously, Su Chen only knew that Su Zhuyun worked at a factory, but he had never known the specifics of his job.
It was on that night that Su Chen finally understood the hardships his father had faced.
It had taken his father over a decade to go from being a regular factory truck driver… to the personal chauffeur for the factory's top executive.
'At that moment… Su Chen realized he knew far too little about his parents.'
.......
「At the entrance of the Haiyi River View residential complex.」
Su Chen squatted on the curb, yawning from time to time.
"Dad, I'm not trying to nag you, but you've already waited for days. Couldn't you have let me sleep in a little longer?"
Su Zhuyun shot him a look and said irritably, "Once we buy the car, you can sleep as much as you want. No one will bother you!"
As for why they didn't take Su Chen's Aston Martin…
In his parents' words, it was too flashy. Chen Shufen had even gone out of her way to buy a car cover and "sealed" it away.
It wouldn't be uncovered until Su Chen returned to Shanghai.
Taxis were plentiful in the morning, and the two of them hailed an empty one after only a short wait.
Fuzhou had developed rapidly in recent years, and 4S dealerships had popped up like mushrooms.
Of course… they were just ordinary dealerships. Of the "big three" German luxury brands—BMW, Benz, and Audi—only Mercedes-Benz had established a dealership in town.
「At the entrance of the Volkswagen dealership.」
"Dad, are you sure? You really want a Volkswagen?"
Hearing this, Su Zhuyun's excited expression instantly stiffened.
"What's that supposed to mean? Don't think you can look down on Volkswagen just because you drive some stupid Aston Martin!"
Su Chen immediately shut his mouth.
'Looks like Dad really has a thing for Volkswagen,' he thought. 'But it makes sense. German cars are really popular here.'
It seemed they had arrived a bit early. The dealership's sales staff were in the middle of their morning meeting.
However, the moment the two of them walked in, all the salespeople's eyes lit up.
'Customers who come this early are definitely serious buyers!'
'If you couldn't tell that much, you had no business being in sales.'
The manager glanced at the eager crowd and asked, "Who's up first?"
The words had barely left his mouth when a female salesperson stepped out from the group.
"It's me, Manager!"
"Then what are you just standing there for? Go greet the customers!" the manager snapped.
'For Christ's sake,' the saleswoman griped internally. 'As if anyone would dare go without you giving the order.'
All smiles on the outside, 'motherfucker' on the inside.
"Of course, Manager!" the saleswoman chirped, then hurried over to Su Chen and his father.
"Hello, gentlemen. My name is Chen Xiaobai, and I'm a sales consultant here at Volkswagen. You can just call me Xiaobai!" she greeted them warmly.
"Chen Xiaobai?" Hearing the name, Su Chen's eyes flickered as his gaze settled on the saleswoman.
Seeing her familiar face, a smile touched Su Chen's lips. 'This city of Fuzhou sure is small,' he thought.
"Well, well, if it isn't our old PE class rep. Hey, Tomboy, when did you get so ladylike?" Su Chen teased mischievously.
Chen Xiaobai froze at his words, her eyes fixing on Su Chen.
After a good three or four seconds, she let out a cry of surprise.
"Holy crap! Su Chen, you bastard, when did you get back from Shanghai?!"
In an instant, every eye in the dealership was on them.
Seeing this, Chen Xiaobai quickly pulled the two of them toward the customer lounge.
Su Zhuyun, standing to the side, had already figured it out: his son and this Chen Xiaobai must have been high school classmates.
They had just sat down when an attendant brought over two cups of herbal tea, placing them in front of Su Chen and Su Zhuyun.
"You bast— Su Chen, when did you get back?" Chen Xiaobai started to call him by his old nickname but stopped herself when she saw Su Zhuyun next to him.
"Almost a week now. This is my dad. He's the one calling the shots today. Whether or not you sell a car depends on his final say!"
Chen Xiaobai understood. Su Chen was giving her a hint: his father was the main customer today, not him.
She quickly offered a respectful greeting. "Hello, Uncle Su!"
Su Zhuyun nodded in acknowledgment.
"Uncle Su, do you have a particular model in mind? I can give you a tour and tell you about them."
Su Zhuyun glanced at Su Chen, who was sitting beside him with no intention of moving an inch, and then nodded.
"Alright, Xiaobai. I'll be in your hands, then."
With that, Chen Xiaobai led Su Zhuyun toward the showroom floor.
Su Chen watched them for a moment before leaning back in his chair to play on his phone.
After about half an hour, Su Chen saw Su Zhuyun walking back toward him, beaming.
"Where's Xiaobai?" Su Chen asked, looking around but not seeing her.
"I sent her to go apply for some discounts and perks!"
"You decided that fast? Which one did you pick?" Su Chen sat up straight.
"The Volkswagen Tiguan. All in, it's about 200,000."
'Su Chen had heard of the Tiguan; it was a pretty popular model.'
"Alright then. You're the one who'll be driving it, so as long as you like it, that's all that matters!"
Soon enough, Chen Xiaobai returned, holding a black folder.
"Uncle Su, take a look at this price. I had to pull a lot of strings to get this approved," Chen Xiaobai said, handing over a sheet of paper.
Su Chen took it and glanced over the numbers. Including the purchase tax and other fees, the final price came to exactly 185,000.
"Dad, what do you think?"
Su Zhuyun was already leaning over his shoulder.
"Hmm, I can accept this price!" Su Zhuyun nodded, satisfied.
'The car was a high-spec model, so its base price was already over 180,000. Add in the purchase tax and other fees, and the total would have been over 200,000. Knocking 20,000 off the total was a great deal.'
"Alright, let's just pay by card," Su Chen said, pulling out his bank card.
Chen Xiaobai was a bit surprised to see this. She never imagined Su Chen would be the one paying.
Despite her surprise, Chen Xiaobai efficiently took the bank card.
After the paperwork was complete, Su Zhuyun followed Chen Xiaobai to go through the vehicle handover ceremony.