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Chapter 162: Omnipresent Fantasies
"Why the rush?" the girl who had just gotten into the car asked curiously. She had just finished lunch, but Lynch's car was already parked downstairs.
In this neighborhood, people's understanding of luxury cars mainly came from TV or car shows; they had never seen one up close. Some children even wanted to touch the mirror-like body of the car, but were quickly stopped by the adults behind them.
Who knew how much it would cost to leave a fingerprint on such a luxury car? People often heard stories of someone being ruined by capitalists for doing something trivial.
They didn’t want their kids to ruin their family with one careless touch, so they could only watch from the side, curious and envious.
All this peaked when Katherine arrived. In this era, not just next-door neighbors, but even people living on the same street knew each other well. When they saw the familiar Katherine putting her suitcase into the trunk of this luxury car and getting in, their jaws dropped.
It must be said that even Katherine had a bit of vanity. Especially when she sat in the car under the envious, jealous, and maliciously speculative gazes of the people around her, she felt very happy.
This was not a fault, nor was it a crime; it was something inherent in human nature.
Lynch had also experienced this until he finally saw through people and life, and this primal need gradually faded away.
The surrounding scenery started to move, and the car soon disappeared from this ordinary neighborhood. Soon, people began visiting Katherine's mother, hoping as neighbors, they could benefit from this in some way.
After the car started, Katherine curiously asked why they were leaving so suddenly after his morning call. This didn’t seem like the life of the high society people on TV, who usually planned their lives at least half a month in advance.
They just followed their schedules and rarely faced sudden situations like this.
Lynch explained briefly, "We have our first auction at the Kurland branch on Friday evening. It's crucial, and I need to be there in person to ensure everything goes smoothly."
Katherine knew what he meant by "auction." It had been all over the TV and newspapers recently, and it was one of the key policies pushed by the local mayor.
From Katherine's perspective, it indeed seemed like a good thing. Using less money to meet necessary living expenses could reduce the financial burden on already struggling families.
Her father had attended an auction and brought back a belt and a baking pan, though the pan was only used once right after he bought it.
Lynch valued the Kurland auction because it would determine the investors' final attitudes. If Kurland's auction succeeded, it would prove that Lynch’s grand plans discussed with them were real and achievable.
Facts would break their hesitations and make them invest quickly; otherwise, they might miss out completely.
People often disliked agents like Mark, but most of the time, they represented a barometer of investment. Any business they touched rarely lost money, at least while they held shares.
Katherine only knew the surface-level details and wasn’t aware of the deeper implications. She responded vaguely and soon focused on her books about adapting to university life.
Yes, "How to Quickly Integrate into University Social Circles" was a bestseller, written by a member of the Society of the Sacred Harmony and a renowned social queen. This book had become a must-have for most students planning to attend university.
It detailed how an "ordinary girl" transformed during her university years to become a high-society star and provided tips on social etiquette and breaking the ice at events.
Regardless of whether the author concealed her identity as the daughter of a major conglomerate's board member or her mother being a senior executive at a bank, some social etiquette and content were still accurate.
Katherine read intently. She was very excited about university life, like many girls her age, this even included Lynch before. University was not just a place of knowledge but also a place that could transform lives. Sadly, some people never had the chance to experience it.
Glancing at the girl's profile, Lynch then focused on the scenery outside the window.
It was about a three-hour drive from Sabin City to Kurland City, covering over 400 kilometers of uninhabited wilderness. For safety reasons, Cook arranged for four trucks to escort Lynch.
The truck drivers' toolboxes contained more than just wrenches. The residential compound's service company where Lynch lived also replaced his driver with one who had a legal gun permit and a firearm.
This was no joking matter. Every year, around five to eight thousand homicides occur on highways in the Baylor Federation, many of which remained unknown until the perpetrators were caught years later.
The areas outside cities were very unsafe, and someone traveling in a luxury car like Lynch’s was even more at risk.
After a slow journey, the desolate scenery began to change. Farms and ranches started to appear, followed by sparse buildings. The road became a bit bumpy, but the buildings on both sides grew denser. In the distance, the skyline of a large city came into view; they had arrived in Kurland City.
The truck drivers separated from Lynch near the city center. They would drive their trucks to the branch’s warehouse area since there were no parking spots for trucks in the city center. Bringing the trucks into the city would only result in fines or even arrests, so they didn’t do that. Besides, it was safer here than in the wild.
The girl also put her book down, folding a corner of the page to mark her place.
Lynch, with a teasing tone, asked, "Any insights?"
Katherine thought seriously for a moment. "Positive, optimistic, upward…" she trailed off, reflecting seriously on Lynch's question, but found the book’s content too straightforward to summarize anything useful.
At this point, Lynch interjected, "and wealth."
The girl looked at him, puzzled. He continued with a smile, "An ordinary girl does not have the means to publish a book. And no matter what she says in it, it ultimately boils down to two things."
"Influence and money."
"Sometimes they can be seen as one. The worse the economic situation, the greater the role and influence of money. If you want to fit in with your classmates, the simplest way is to highlight your influence."
Katherine listened attentively. Anything said by a successful person had a special ability to make one ponder. Lynch’s words were no exception. However, after listening, she couldn’t help but chuckle and said, "It seems my university life won’t be very interesting."
She meant she woudln’t be able to achieve everything the book's protagonist did, being liked by everyone and becoming the center of attention, a symbol of trend and fashion because she wasn't an influential girl.
Thinking carefully, Lynch was right. If she were just an ordinary girl, she probably couldn’t even afford a dress, let alone rent some jewel-encrusted crown.
Many people noticed the term "rent" but didn't realize that renting required either the ability to buy the crown outright or such immense influence that the jewelry store could turn the risk of default into commercial value.
Ordinary girls from ordinary families indeed couldn’t do these things.
Katherine had also "brushed up" on some books related to high society recently. She was somewhat curious but also a bit apprehensive about Lynch's life. In short, it was complicated.
"It seems I wasted some money. It doesn't quite suit me," Katherine lamented, patting the book. A few words from Lynch made the book’s content worthless, making her regret her impulsive purchase.
Lynch casually flipped through the book. "It’s a bestseller not because it teaches an ordinary girl how to become the queen of high-society social circles..." He turned to look at Katherine, his gaze clear and serious. "Its success lies in fulfilling some girls' aspirations for future lives."
Spending a few bucks to satisfy a girl’s dream of a beautiful life, allowing her to empathize with the protagonist during the process, made it worth the money.
If one can’t pursue such a life in reality, are they not allowed to indulge in some fantasies?
The car slowly stopped. Lynch looked away and placed the book on the storage shelf behind the armrest, where the driver would clean up the clutter later.
Lynch got out and opened the door for Katherine. Outside was Kurland City's most prestigious Kurland City Grand Hotel. A hotel named after the city existed only once in each region. It might not be the most luxurious, but it was the highest in terms of status.
"Let's rest for a bit, then have dinner together. Would you like to accompany me to the auction on Friday?" Lynch asked casually, holding Katherine's hand to help her out of the car.
Katherine replied just as casually, "Wouldn’t it be more reserved if I said 'no' right now?"
Lynch couldn’t help but laugh, "I'll take that as a yes."
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