"Five hundred million? Are you sure?"
Thomas Liu took a deep breath. The shock he felt on hearing that number was beyond words.
Even though the boy before him had a poise and temperament far beyond his peers, Thomas Liu still found it hard to believe someone could just offer five hundred million so casually.
He had just met Evan Lin's mother, and at least from appearances, Evan's family didn't seem well-off at all.
"Yeah. Someone will contact you tomorrow. I don't want too many people knowing about this," Evan replied calmly, looking at Thomas Liu. "I've seen plenty of people who talk big about doing real work but never actually accomplish anything behind the scenes."
"I'm laying it out here—five hundred million in funds, plus some other resources. How you use it is up to you, but it'd be best if you really could bring some change to Whitewood County like you said."
Evan Lin had lived in Whitewood County for over ten years. Even though centuries had passed, he still felt some attachment to his hometown.
After speaking, Evan clasped his hands behind his back and walked straight toward Selina Shi, leaving Thomas Liu frozen in place. Standing alone in the cold night wind, Thomas watched the boy's silhouette fade into the darkness, a swirl of indescribable emotions flashing through his heart.
"Seems Selina's judgment isn't as bad as I thought. But who is he, really?" Thomas Liu muttered to himself, then shook his head and sighed. "Is it really true that heroes are born young? Five hundred million... Will this investment actually happen?"
Even though Evan had shown complete confidence and certainty, his words were still almost too unbelievable to accept.
Thomas Liu stood there for a while, lost in thought, then finally called his staff to tell them to get ready for tomorrow—time to meet the investors.
Better to believe it than not—just in case.
After hanging up, Thomas gripped his phone tight for a long moment before finally getting in his car and telling the driver to circle Whitewood once before heading back.
Ken Feng was still hyped when Evan walked over. "Yo, Evan! What did Secretary Liu say to you just now? He must've been singing your praises, right?"
"Secretary Liu's actually a pretty chill guy—not like that County Magistrate Ma. Whenever Ma talks to people, he acts like he's about to explode." Ken's little patch of bangs bounced every time he talked.
Joy Zheng looked at Evan, just as confused. "What did he want to talk to you about?"
"Nothing much. Just the usual—told me to study hard and all that." Evan played it vague. He couldn't exactly say, "Oh, I just promised to bring five hundred million into Whitewood." His mom would think he'd lost his mind.
When he bought the apartment, Evan could claim it was lottery money. But five hundred million in investment? No way anyone would buy that story.
"Hey, Evan, did Secretary Liu mention your Uncle Deng at all?" Flora Huang, who'd been hovering nearby, finally shuffled over with a fake smile, fishing for info.
She'd seen Thomas Liu walk over to Evan and chat with him alone. Even if she had no clue what was going on, she was nervous—what if Evan ratted out her and Victor Deng?
If Evan really did that, who knows how it might affect Victor Deng.
"Nope," Evan replied, glancing at Flora. He didn't give her a chance to keep prying—he just grabbed Joy Zheng's bag from her hands. "Mom, let's head home. It's getting late."
"Oh, and Ken, you should get home too. If anything comes up, just call me." Evan turned to Ken Feng, who quickly agreed and dashed home, grinning from ear to ear.
He couldn't wait to tell Frank Feng what Secretary Liu had said in the car.
With Secretary Liu's word, Frank Feng was basically set to land the resort project. In other words, Ken was already halfway into the rich kid club—just needed one more step.
Flora Huang saw Evan ignore her, shot him a dirty look, then stormed off to her own place, huffing all the way.
"Mom, once you finish with this batch of tutoring students, you really shouldn't run classes anymore."
On the way home, Evan helped Joy Zheng push her bike. Seeing how tired she looked, he felt a little bad.
"It's fine, Evan. I'm not tired. Besides, I'd rather keep busy teaching than sit at home alone after school. Most of the kids sent here aren't great at studying—their parents are really worried about them."
"And you're growing up. If I can earn a bit more, I want to set you up for the future."
Joy Zheng smiled softly at Evan, her voice gentle. "You're growing up—now you know how to look out for your mom."
"Mom, you really don't have to save up for me. I don't need the money anymore. Remember when I said I won the lottery? Actually..."
Before Evan could finish, Joy Zheng just laughed. "Alright, alright, say no more. I know you won the lottery—didn't you already give me a hundred thousand?"
"But that money's for you, for the future. You'll need it for college, for getting married—there's a ton of stuff that needs money."
Hearing that, Evan could only sigh. No chance to tell her about the apartment yet. He figured he'd just have to wait until the keys were in hand—then she’d have to believe him.
Back home, the neighbors were chatting in front of the shantytown. Now that the renovations were done, folks who’d spent half their lives in old flats finally had a shot at living in new apartments. Nobody was unhappy about it.
Chu Han spotted Evan in the crowd and waved hello.
Once he got home, Evan called Big Tank to tell him to come to Whitewood County tomorrow and talk investment with Thomas Liu.
Evan never really cared how much money Big Tank managed—money was just numbers to him.
Big Tank jumped at Evan’s orders, promising to drive over tonight.
Shawn Shi and Donny Dong wanted to tag along, but Evan shut them down with one sentence.
He didn't want his quiet life here messed up. If those guys barged in, Joy Zheng might start worrying again.
Next morning, bright and early.
A black Mercedes tore down the county road, its engine shattering the dawn silence.