Lin Chen gave Boss Sun a faint glance, "I said I would buy your two stores for 1.8 million, is my Mandarin not clear enough?"

"Kid, you're not playing a joke on me, are you!" Boss Sun stared at Lin Chen; he still couldn't believe Lin Chen was the type to have 1.8 million to spend.

"It's just 1.8 million, there's no need for me to joke with you. If you don't believe it, we can sign the agreement right now," said Lin Chen with relaxed ease.

Boss Sun pondered for a long while. His two stores had cost him a little over 400,000 at the time, and due to the poor location, the rent was cheap, so he had long wanted to sell them, but he just never met the right price.

Today, Lin Chen offered 1.8 million right off the bat, which was even 50,000 more than he had expected. How could he not be tempted?

Yet, he blinked his eyes and did not agree right away, but said, "My shop has good feng shui and is next to several big companies, it is indeed a prime business location, so the price is a bit low."

Lin Chen snorted coldly, "I have already offered you 50,000 more than the market price. If you don't want to sell, that's fine. With money, are you afraid you can't buy good stores? Uncle Zhao, let's move out tomorrow, and I will buy you a better store."

The value of this store had already been calculated by the system, so Lin Chen naturally wouldn't budge.

Hearing what Lin Chen said, Boss Sun was secretly shocked, not expecting Lin Chen to know the market so well. He hastily said, "We can talk it over, 1.8 million is 1.8 million."

"System, are you sure this area will be developed into a large CBD commercial district?" Lin Chen also secretly communicated with the system in his mind.

After all, 1.8 million was a substantial expenditure for him, too. It was only with the system's private hint that the shop would appreciate in value that Lin Chen wanted to buy it in the first place.

"Don't worry, the mayor's office has already passed it. The news will probably be announced in the next couple of days. Please don't doubt my abilities, for I am the system with the highest popularity value in the entire universe!"

"I get it, you're impressive, alright," Lin Chen hadn't expected the system to be boastful, but his heart was quite happy.

If the commercial district behind this were built, the shop's value would multiply, and it could be said that Lin Chen would have a large income at a glance.

"Shall we sign the agreement then?" Boss Sun urged, afraid that Lin Chen would change his mind.

"Sure, no problem," Lin Chen nodded.

At this point, Zhao Gang became anxious, "Lin Chen, for such a big decision, shouldn't you discuss it with your dad and mom first? 1.8 million is not a small amount!"

"Uncle Zhao, don't worry, 1.8 million isn't much money; there's no need to tell my parents," Lin Chen said with a smile.

Wu Mei felt somewhat stunned at this point. In fact, she quite liked Lin Chen in her heart but felt that his family's poor condition, being in debt, was the reason she stopped Xiaowen from associating with him.

However, Wu Mei, no matter what, hadn't expected Lin Chen to suddenly be so wealthy, with the astronomical figure of 1.8 million being considered just a small amount to him.

Even Boss Sun had already decided that Lin Chen was a rich second-generation, which made him more confident in the transaction.

Soon, he called a real estate agent to sign the sales agreement, and Lin Chen directly made the payment by card. In less than two hours, the two shops had become Lin Chen's.

Only when he saw the money in his account did Boss Sun feel relieved, thinking he had made a profit. However, he would end up crying in the restroom after hearing the news about the city government's redevelopment plan two days later.

Delighted to see the money in his account, Boss Sun curiously asked, "Young brother, what are you planning to do with these two stores?"

"Open a restaurant," Lin Chen replied offhand.

"What, opening a restaurant?" Boss Sun looked at Lin Chen as if he were a monster.

"What's the matter, is it not allowed?" Lin Chen asked, looking at Boss Sun's strange expression.

"Kid, I suggest you change your line of work. You won't be able to compete with the restaurant across the street. Their boss is a renowned chef from Jiangsu and Zhejiang, a five-star hotel cook, and the dishes he makes have been featured on 'A Bite of China'." Boss Sun warned Lin Chen.

Lin Chen smiled slightly, "If I could squeeze such an awesome restaurant out of business, wouldn't that be even more interesting?"

"You think you can drive him out of business? Young man, you're too naive," Boss Sun shook his head and said.

"Who has the audacity to say they're going to drive my Yongsheng Restaurant out of business?" At that moment, a fat-faced middle-aged man walked in.

Boss Sun saw the newcomer and gave an awkward smile, "Oh, it's Boss Li, my apologies, we're not renting this place anymore."

"What? Is my money not enough? I can offer more," Boss Li said commandingly.

Boss Sun shook his head, "I've already sold this place to this young friend, if you want to rent it, you should talk to him."

Boss Li turned his gaze to Lin Chen and sneered, "Kid, you want to open a restaurant opposite mine?"

Lin Chen nodded, "Yeah, Uncle, I suggest you just close down your place now, to save yourself the heartache when no one eats your food in the future."

"Haha, young fella, you're the first person to dare speak to me like this. My food will be uneaten? What a joke, even the district leaders have to make a reservation to eat what I prepare," Li Dafu said with pride.

Lin Chen listened and smiled slightly, "That won't happen in the future, because once they've tasted my food here, even if you invited them, they probably wouldn't go."

"Humph, such a big talker, I want to see how long your restaurant can last." Li Dafu was nearly exploding with anger at Lin Chen's words; no one had ever dared speak to him like this.

Lin Chen had confidence, for he had the skills of a master chef; to him, five-star hotel chefs were merely passing clouds.

After hearing Lin Chen's words, Boss Sun couldn't stop shaking his head, thinking the young man was overestimating himself, while Zhao Gang and Wu Mei both frowned, thinking Lin Chen had spoken too confidently.

"I've tried the food at your restaurant, and compared to what Lin Chen makes, it's practically pigswill, disgustingly inedible!" Zhao Xiaowen also chimed in.

She had secretly visited Yongsheng Restaurant to gather intelligence and had thought their stir-fries were tasty. But after tasting Lin Chen's cooking, she truly didn't want to eat at Yongsheng Restaurant anymore.

Li Dafu trembled with rage, pointing at Lin Chen and Zhao Xiaowen, "You, you guys, if I can't drive your restaurant out of business, then I, Li Dafu, will have wasted thirty years as a chef."

"I'll lay down the gauntlet as well. If I can't drive that Yongsheng Restaurant of yours out of business within a month, then I'll close my doors voluntarily," Lin Chen said provocatively with a smile.

"Fine, we'll see about that." With that, Li Dafu slammed the door and left.

In the past, to drive their little shop out of business, Li Dafu had used every dirty trick in the book. Watching him storm off in a fury brought Zhao Xiaowen a sense of satisfaction.

At this, Boss Sun scoffed, "Young man, you're still too naive. I advise you to change professions. Competing with Li Dafu in cooking, you're quite frankly a chicken egg against a rock, a sure loss."

Lin Chen, not at all concerned, smiled, "Don't worry, Boss Sun, it's not yet clear who's the egg and who's the rock."