The interior decoration was quite luxurious, with all furniture brand new, so new that the thin plastic film had not yet been peeled off. The vast house seemed like a product waiting to be unwrapped.
"Go peel off the plastic film," Jiang Ye instructed his son.
Jiang Senlin immediately rushed to get busy, his movements quick and efficient. He enjoyed the feeling of strength in his labor, and soon a large pile of plastic film lay on the floor, resembling giant jellyfish.
Jiang Ye found a tape measure in a drawer and began measuring along the walls.
"What are you doing?" Cen Yemeng walked over to her husband.
"Measuring the area," Jiang Ye said, bending over. "This apartment is 2.8 million per square meter, totaling 300 square meters, with no discount and no common area. I want to see if the area is sufficient."
Cen Yemeng smiled. "It's only a little over eight hundred million in total, what does it matter? Sit down and rest."
"That won't do. Just because I have a lot of money doesn't mean they can rip me off. I don't have this money to be ripped off by merchants from the Supreme Star," Jiang Ye said. "I must measure how large this house actually is."
Jiang Senlin and Jiang Ye were both busy, father and son attacking room after room like a competition.
Jiang Ye, still sharp, or rather, his job was simpler, finished the area measurement first.
"How much?" Cen Yemeng was also curious. "Is it enough for 300 square meters?"
"Damn it, it's even more, 302.15 square meters," Jiang Ye raised an eyebrow.
"So what? Did we profit?" Cen Yemeng asked.
"So this planet is indeed wealthy and powerful to a certain extent. Developers even give you a few extra square meters," Jiang Ye clicked his tongue in amazement. "Normally, they would slightly inflate the numbers, like this apartment, on other planets it would be 305 or 310 square meters. If residents measured it and found it less, developers would explain, saying things like the area of the windowsill or the doormat are also included, such nonsense."
Jiang Senlin ran over, a large bundle of plastic film in his arms. "Mom and Dad, I'm going to walk around outside the community."
"Go ahead, be careful, and don't eat candy from strangers," Jiang Ye joked.
"See if there's any fruit or anything, buy some to bring back," Cen Yemeng said.
"I don't have any money," Jiang Senlin spread his hands.
Cen Yemeng pointed to a room on the west side. "Go to the closet and get some."
Jiang Senlin ran to the walk-in closet, a whole wall of closets, ten in total.
He first opened the first five closets; they were all empty.
Then he opened the sixth closet, and Jiang Senlin froze.
Half of the closet was filled with stacks of banknotes, neatly arranged, like a bank vault.
Opening the seventh closet, it was also filled with a meter-high stack of banknotes, but of different denominations.
The remaining three closets were also filled with banknotes.
Jiang Senlin considered himself well-traveled, but he was still shocked by his parents' behavior, buying a new house on an alien planet and storing several closets full of cash without a second thought. It was like an ancient farmer moving into a new house and stocking up on dozens of pounds of firewood for cooking.
Jiang Senlin grabbed a few bundles and stuffed them into his pockets. Just as he was about to turn and leave, he suddenly heard the sound of a door closing.
Startled, he ran out to look.
His parents were nowhere to be seen.
There was a note on the coffee table.
"Senlin, your father and I are going shopping. You can play nearby, but don't wander too far. We'll call you when we're back for dinner."
Jiang Senlin was stunned, his brain briefly short-circuiting.
What was going on?
The old couple went out shopping happily, and the child was left to fend for himself?
Was this the legendary "husband and wife are true love, children are accidents"?
...
Jiang Ye and Cen Yemeng strolled hand in hand.
Both were amazed by the spectacle of the shops lining the street. It seemed to be the local shopping festival, with every storefront displaying red banners or electronic signs to attract passersby.
"Ten-Year Anniversary Sale! All-Purpose Satellite Systems 40% Off!"
"New Store Opening: Rich Asteroid Leasing Business, Old Space Station Recycling Business!"
"Investing in Forests is Investing in the Future, Get Half a Hectare of Forest Upon Entry!"
"Buy a Spaceship, Get Eggs! Planetary-Class Spaceships Get Half a Catty of Eggs, Stellar-Class Spaceships Get Two Catty of Eggs, First Come, First Served!"
The spaceship stores were crowded, with people constantly rushing in and out, happily carrying plastic bags filled with eggs, their expressions as if they had gotten a great deal.
Jiang Ye and Cen Yemeng were dumbfounded. Going to buy a spaceship just for two catty of eggs? That's not how you spend money, even if you have it!
"Shall we go in and take a look?" Jiang Ye hesitated.
"Let's go," Cen Yemeng was also extremely curious.
Ten minutes later, the couple emerged, each carrying a box of eggs.
The trick wasn't the eggs, but the discount on the spaceships.
A stellar-class spaceship could be discounted by twenty billion, a considerable offer. Jiang Ye and Cen Yemeng were both tempted and immediately placed orders for over ten ships, exchanging them for two boxes of free-range eggs.
Walking half a street further, they found another spaceship store.
"Buy a Spaceship, Get Apples! Planetary-Class Gets Three Catty of Apples, Stellar-Class Gets Six Catty of Apples!"
The entrance to the store was thronged with people, many carrying sacks of apples and beaming, as if they had snatched the apples.
"Oh no, we bought too early," Jiang Ye's expression changed drastically.
"I'll watch the eggs, you go in and check the price at this store," Cen Yemeng said.
Jiang Ye placed the eggs at Cen Yemeng's feet and jogged into the store.
A moment later, Jiang Ye squeezed out again and ran back to his wife, picking up the eggs. "The discount is about the same, just the difference between apples and eggs."
"That doesn't matter," Cen Yemeng laughed heartily.
The couple continued forward, looking for down-to-earth shops, meaning those selling clothes and food with an average consumption of less than 100,000.
It was surprisingly difficult to find. Most shops sold major resources, mining rights, antiques, company shares, and the scene was quite absurd. Even a small convenience store-like shop inside sold goods worth billions.
Many shops displayed decorative items, with golden dragons several meters long hanging on the walls, made of solid gold, as well as jade statues of the God of Wealth a meter high, and white gold statues of Guan Yu. Even a small painting on the wall might have been sold at auction for eight or nine figures, hung casually as if it were a fake.
In some quiet small shops, the clerks were lying on the counter, playing the stock market on their phones. A few taps on the screen would result in millions of stocks being traded, but the clerks were expressionless, even yawning, as if they were playing Dou Dizhu and winning or losing happy beans.
Jiang Ye secretly clicked his tongue. The stock markets of some small planets might experience violent fluctuations due to the casual movements of the salespeople here, affecting the hearts of millions of investors, waking up the Minister of Finance from his dreams, keeping company executives awake at night, and making chairmen weep or laugh with joy.
"The people here are like gods," Jiang Ye whispered to his wife.
"They really are," Cen Yemeng nodded. "Generals are as common as dogs, and planet governors are everywhere. Anyone who speaks on the street can decide the fate of countless people. How are they different from gods?"
"Clothing store!" Jiang Ye suddenly pointed, as if discovering new territory.
Cen Yemeng was startled and immediately quickened her pace, jogging over.