500,000 yuan.

When Lin Jingzhe got this money, he only had a few thousand of his original 20,000 left. He had calculated everything almost to the cent and would not spend any more money than what was absolutely necessary while he was on such a tight budget, just in case any unexpected situations occurred.

When the half a million arrived, he promptly proceeded with the next stage of his plan: taking his buddies to buy a new wardrobe.

Deng Mai’s clothes were passable, but Gao Sheng and Zhou Haitang’s were too worn-out. This wouldn’t do for the role Lin Jingzhe wanted them to play.

He went to the mall, found a brand with clothes that were more reserved in style, and bought outfits for each of them.

All three were tall, and muscular due to their love of sports. In addition, though Deng Mai’s darker complexion didn’t detract from his good looks, it made him look older than his actual age.

As soon as they put on the casual clothes Lin Jingzhe selected for them, the high school students disappeared without a trace—in their place were three strapping young men. When they stood there, silent with their arms folded, they looked quite intimidating.

Gao Sheng squinted at the mirror. He was shocked by the change; he never imagined that he could have this kind of aura.

Zhou Haitang belonged to a gang for a few days, so he had mastered the thuggish look. As he glanced around with slightly narrowed eyes, he seemed ready to knock people out at a moment’s notice.

If Gao Sheng was the brains and Zhou Haitang was the muscle, then Deng Mai was the one who got rid of the corpses and eliminated evidence. The smile on his face was friendly but gave off a slightly sinister feeling that something unpleasant was likely to happen.

Lin Jingzhe was very satisfied. “From now on, you can accompany me.”

Deng Mai had a flash of intuition: “Are we going to act as your bodyguards, Big Bro?”

“Bodyguards?” Gao Sheng blinked, taken aback, then grabbed Lin Jingzhe’s arm. “Are you being bullied?”

Zhou Haitang came up from behind, also looking angry—no one was going to bully Lin Jingzhe on his watch!

The shop clerks, scared by the situation which seemed to be turning violent, kept glancing over at the equally alarmed security guard.

“……” Lin Jingzhe pushed Gao Sheng’s hand off, saying helplessly, “No, why would you think so?”

It took him a lot of effort to convince them otherwise and Gao Sheng still confirmed it several times before he finally shut up, though it was obvious he didn’t completely believe him. He’d been Lin Jingzhe’s protector since childhood, for more than a decade now, and it had already become second nature to him.

One of the reasons Lin Jingzhe took his friends with him was to let them see a wider world and to not let opportunities they may encounter in this magical era pass them by due to ignorance and timidity. In their last life, Gao Sheng and Zhou Haitang were successfully accepted by a new gang after their first one collapsed and even climbed to positions important enough to learn many of its secrets. They were obviously capable.

Lin Jingzhe wanted to help them develop this potential. They didn’t need to become rich and powerful, but he hoped that, at the very least, they wouldn’t be as impoverished as they were now.

As for Deng Mai—this fellow was the all-round talent, with an ability to instinctively know what to say in different situations with different people; his EQ was so high that Lin Jingzhe, an ordinary person, was in awe. If he was cultivated early, his future achievements would be much greater than simply owning several bars in a few small cities.

Lin Jingzhe knew he was about to throw himself into battle.

In the Shen City of 1990, people from the light and dark side mingled together, and there were many speculators trying to fish in troubled waters. He was young, an outsider, and came to Shen City alone. Until now, he had acted low-key and might not have attracted anyone’s attention yet, but after attending the opening of Shen City Stock Exchange, his safety would definitely become an issue.

At present, he had neither the connections nor the money to hire a bodyguard. He could ask Tian Dahua, but who knew if the person he found would be reliable? Although he cooperated with Tian Dahua, he didn’t trust him, so he would never rely on him with issues concerning his personal safety. As such, the most logical choice was to have his friends accompany him. When these tall and fit young men stood together, they looked threatening enough to deter most people from messing with him.

The clothes Lin Jingzhe chose for himself were more casual, light-colored and loose. The dress shirt had traditional knot buttons, giving it a Chinese feel.

Cotton and linen fabrics were breathable and comfortable to wear at the height of summer. When Lin Jingzhe left the fitting room, his friends’ eyes opened wide. He looked in the mirror and suddenly wanted to laugh.

This outfit screamed that the person who wore this treated money as dirt. He looked like an immortal straight out of a cultivation novel.

Enveloped in loose clothing, he cut a stunning figure. His waist was narrow, his legs were long, and his thin shoulders formed a graceful line. The clothes shifted slightly when he walked, as if a burst of fresh air was brushing against his body.

Deng Mai stammered, “It looks good, very good, it looks… it looks…”

He didn’t quite know how to describe it, but he felt that the Lin Jingzhe, who had been different from them since the very beginning, after changing his clothes, suddenly seemed even further away, too high to be reached.