Nanyang · Royal Mansion Terrace

"Thank you~" Su Yang said politely.

Then the guardrails on both sides rose, and he lightly pressed the accelerator, driving into the villa district.

If Su Yang had been driving a car worth just over a hundred or two hundred thousand today, without a call from a resident inside explaining the situation to the security guard, he definitely wouldn’t have gotten in so easily.

Society is just that harsh—if you drive a car worth millions or tens of millions, the security guards won’t say much before letting you through.

But if you drive a car worth a hundred or two hundred thousand, the guards will naturally assume you couldn’t possibly be a friend of anyone living in this villa district.

The more luxurious and upscale the residential area, the more this holds true.

Qianshan Peninsula is among the top-tier villa districts in all of Haicheng, where a single villa casually costs fifty to sixty million, and the larger ones go for over a hundred million.

This isn’t a place just anyone can afford to live, so the security guards working in these high-end neighborhoods know exactly how to handle different situations.

Su Yang followed the road until he reached an intersection, then turned right. The villa district looked like a park, with each villa spaced far apart, ensuring excellent privacy.

This was Su Yang’s first time visiting such a high-end community. He slowed down, glancing around at the cars parked in front of each house.

Rolls-Royce Cullinan, Bentley Flying Spur, BMW X6M, Mercedes S480, Audi R8, Ferrari 488, Lamborghini Aventador, Porsche Cayenne, Rolls-Royce Phantom...

With just a casual look, Su Yang noticed that none of the cars parked in front of these homes were worth less than a million.

And each household had at least two cars in their parking spaces.

Su Yang couldn’t help but mutter in the car, "Is this the simple, unpretentious life of the rich?"

Soon, he drove onto a lakeside road where every villa faced Qianshan Lake—exclusive lakefront properties.

Naturally, the villas in this row were even more expensive than those in other areas.

After driving along the road for another two or three minutes, Su Yang spotted a red Ferrari SF90 and a yellow Lamborghini Urus parked in the four parking spaces in front of one house.

Su Yang smirked. "We’re here."

He reversed into one of the parking spots and stepped out.

On the upper right side of the gate hung the house number: Lan District, No. 601.

Pan Ning hadn’t come out yet, and Su Yang wasn’t in a hurry to rush her. He took a few steps back onto the road to take a closer look at Pan Ning’s villa.

Though not as large as the hotel villa he’d stayed in on Ludao Island, this one was still at least seven or eight hundred square meters.

The villa’s courtyard gate was a massive set of double doors with intricate cutouts. The ground in front was paved with five or six tiles, flanked by lush green lawns on either side.

Through the gaps in the gate, Su Yang could see the front yard—not enormous, but he couldn’t make out much from where he stood.

The entire property was enclosed by a gray wall, and from the outside, only a few tree branches peeking over the top were visible.

Su Yang looked around, fascinated. He hadn’t felt this way at the hotel villa in Ludao.

Now, standing in a real villa district—and knowing he’d soon buy one himself—he couldn’t help but feel a little excited.

[Ding—Host’s mood detected as joyful. Reward: 300,000.]

"What are you sneaking around looking at?"

Pan Ning’s voice suddenly came from Su Yang’s right.

He turned and saw that she was dressed in a very sporty, hip-hop style today.

She wore a rose-red baseball cap, an oversized gray hip-hop T-shirt that covered her hips, and white hot pants—though the T-shirt was so long it looked like she wasn’t wearing anything underneath. Her long, fair legs shimmered under the sunlight.

On her feet were a pair of Nike x Dior collaboration sneakers, and she carried an orange Hermès handbag.

Su Yang was momentarily stunned.

Pan Ning walked up and patted his arm. "You spacing out?"

"Uh… your style today is a bit different, huh?"

"What’s so different? This is how I usually dress. Oh, right—I know you like outfits that show off a lot, so sorry to disappoint you today~" Pan Ning smirked meaningfully.

Su Yang knew she was teasing him. He chuckled helplessly. "I like whatever you wear. This look has its own charm."

"Pfft. You didn’t call me when you got here—what were you snooping around for?"

"Oh, nothing. Just admiring your big villa. Since we’re about to go house-hunting, I wanted to get a feel for it first."

"Want to come inside and take a look?" Pan Ning gestured behind her.

Su Yang grinned. "Are your parents home?"

Pan Ning rolled her eyes. "When did I ever say I lived with my parents?"

"Oh? You live alone?"

"Duh."

"Heh. Well, I’d love to come in, but I promised Old Meng we’d meet at noon. Maybe next time."

Pan Ning checked her watch. "Where’s the place? It’s already 11:30—will we make it?"

"It’s called Jingyutai. We’ll check the GPS. Let’s go."

With that, the two got into the car and quickly left the villa district.

Half an hour later, Su Yang arrived near the address Meng Wenzhou had given him.

This area was located in Nanlin District, one of Haicheng’s three main urban zones. To the left of the road was Yu River, the city’s second-largest river after Tianxing River.

Yu River was about 100 to 120 meters wide. On the opposite bank stood clusters of high-rises at varying heights, creating a bustling skyline—especially at night when the lights came on, the view was spectacular.

To the right of the main road was an upward-sloping ramp-like path.

The address Meng Wenzhou had provided was up this road.

Su Yang drove up, following the winding path until he reached the top, where the view suddenly opened up.

At the peak was a vast stretch of lawn, dotted with park-like installations.

A few small landscaped gardens surrounded the area, and at the center of the lawn was a straight path leading to the grand, luxurious entrance of Nanyang · Jingyutai Villa District.

The scenery here was completely different from Pan Ning’s Qianshan Peninsula. This villa district was perched on a mountainside, offering a stunning nighttime view of the illuminated cityscape across the river in Nanlin District—an unparalleled vantage point.

Su Yang laughed. "I think this place should be called Qianshan Peninsula instead."

Pan Ning gazed through the windshield and grinned. "I agree."

When they reached the entrance of Jingyutai, the gates appeared even more extravagant and imposing than those of Qianshan Peninsula.

On either side of the entrance were two artistic water features. To the right, a massive black water curtain stretched about ten meters long and six or seven meters high.

The left wall had a similar water curtain, but behind it were five large characters: "Nanyang · Jingyutai."

At the center of the entrance was a three-tiered staircase leading up to a sleek, modern gate.

Su Yang glanced at the roads on either side. "Where do we drive in from?"

Pan Ning pointed to the road on the left: "Follow this path to the end, then turn right."

Su Yang paused, surprised: "You've been here before?"

Pan Ning shook her head: "Never. Just a hunch."

"Damn, what a hunch. But women's intuition is usually spot-on. Let’s drive over and check it out."

......