Super Rich: Starting the game by going back ten years to buy Bitcoin

The wine glass clattered on the table; it was empty.

Xiao Yuqing stared at him, her eyes full of curiosity.

"Cryptocurrency? Which one specifically? Bitcoin? Ethereum? Or some altcoin?"

Li Yichen wiped his mouth with a napkin, leaned back in his chair, crossed his legs, and looked completely nonchalant.

"Why are you asking such detailed questions? You wouldn't understand even if I explained it to you. It's just buying low and selling high, the same principle as the aunties at the market reselling cabbages."

Xiao Yuqing pouted.

"Do you think I'm stupid? You think you can make billions by reselling cabbages?"

"Then you'll have to see how much cabbage costs per pound."

Li Yichen almost burst out laughing after saying that.

Xiao Yuqing was momentarily speechless. She opened her mouth to retort, but couldn't find a starting point. She couldn't very well force them to show her their transaction records, could she?

She sighed and leaned back in her chair.

Forget it, if I can't get an answer, I can't get an answer.

The phone screen was still flooded with comments, a dense, overwhelming barrage, scrolling so fast it was impossible to read a single message. Occasionally, a few messages that lingered a little longer would pop into view—

"Stop asking, host! They don't want to talk about it, why are you pressing them for an answer!"

"This guy is definitely not simple! Streamer, you need to make him a target!"

"Cryptocurrency expert! Please mentor me! Please guide me!"

"Ladies, I'm shipping this couple this episode!!!"

Xiao Yuqing glanced at the comments and her face flushed even more.

She detached her phone from the selfie stick, held it up in front of her, and smiled at the camera.

"Alright, alright everyone, that's all for today's live stream. Thank you all for watching! I'll be back tomorrow at the same time to keep things entertaining. Bye-bye—"

With a swipe of my finger, the live stream ended.

The moment the live comments disappeared, the screen went silent. But the background notifications exploded, and private messages kept pouring in, all from fans.

"Hello, are you crazy? You're not going to continue interviewing this big shot???"

"Sister Qing really got herself into trouble tonight, hahaha."

"Oh no, the streamer's done for."

Xiao Yuqing turned her phone face down on the table and stopped looking at it.

She poured herself a large glass of wine, tilted her head back, and took a sip.

Li Yichen raised an eyebrow.

"The way you're drinking, are you trying to chug my 88,000 RMB Lafite like beer?"

Xiao Yuqing glared at him.

"Mind your own business. You're rich, you can afford to drink."

After saying that, he took another swig.

Li Yichen shook his head and didn't stop her.

The two of them took turns drinking, and the food on the table was almost gone. After the Lafite was finished, Li Yichen ordered another bottle. This time, the waiter didn't ask any questions and ran to get it.

When old classmates, whom I hadn't seen for two years, meet in a place like this, they can't stop talking once they start. They chat about embarrassing things from college to their post-graduation situations, from three-yuan chicken legs in the cafeteria to studying all night before exams.

Xiao Yuqing got so into the conversation that she slapped the table and laughed so hard she almost fell over.

"Do you remember that English exam in your junior year? You wrote your cheat sheet on a water bottle, but halfway through the exam you got thirsty, so you unscrewed the bottle and took a sip, and all your answers were smudged—"

Li Yichen's hand, holding the wine glass, froze in mid-air.

"...Could you please stop bringing up things that are hard to talk about?"

Xiao Yuqing laughed so hard that tears almost came out, and she had to brace herself against the edge of the table to keep from slipping off.

"Do you remember that time you kept watch for me? The teacher was right in front of us and you were still looking at your phone—"

"Alright, alright, let's stop talking. If we keep going, my image as a big shot will crumble."

half an hour.

The second bottle of Lafite is also empty.

Xiao Yuqing's words began to become slurred, as if her tongue was tied in knots, and she had to break a complete sentence into three parts.

"Little Li... why didn't you pursue me back then? In college... so many people said... that we were a perfect match..."

She kept nodding her head forward, her chin almost touching the table.

Li Yichen put down his wine glass and waved his hand in front of her.

"Xiao Yuqing?"

no response.

"Hey, Miss Xiao?"

Xiao Yuqing rested her head completely on her arm, her eyes closed, and she was still muttering to herself.

"Tell me... tell me..."

I'm completely drunk.

Li Yichen rubbed his temples. He was also a little dizzy, his head felt heavy, and his stomach was churning with the smell of alcohol, but he was still relatively conscious.

Half-drunk.

enough.

Li Yichen stood up, bent down, and with one hand around Xiao Yuqing's waist, lifted her up from the chair.

Her weight of just over 100 pounds hung limply on her body, as if she had no bones. A faint scent of perfume mixed with the smell of alcohol wafted into her nostrils.

He helped Xiao Yuqing walk toward the elevator, and the waiter followed a few steps behind, looking as if he wanted to say something but hesitated.

The other diners in the restaurant were secretly watching the scene unfold—a young man dressed in cheap clothes was carrying a beautiful, drunk girl as they left the restaurant.

The bartender leaned against the bar and smacked his lips.

"They really are rich."

The waiter next to him nodded, silently swallowing back his earlier judgment that the person "dressed like a rich person."

The elevator arrived at the first floor.

The lobby was softly lit, and the floor was so clean you could see your reflection. Behind the reception desk stood a girl in her early twenties, with exquisite makeup and the hotel's nameplate pinned to her chest.

Li Yichen helped Xiao Yuqing to the front desk.

"Are there any rooms available? Please book one."

The receptionist's gaze slid from Li Yichen's face to Xiao Yuqing, then back again. It lingered for half a second on his pilling gray T-shirt.

He tapped his fingers twice on the keyboard, staring at the screen.

"Sir, I'm very sorry, all our rooms are currently full."

Li Yichen frowned.

That's true. Hotels of this caliber are usually fully booked by 8 or 9 pm.

He was about to help Xiao Yuqing walk out.

"Sir, please wait a moment."

The receptionist spoke again, squinting as she stared at the screen.

"Sorry, I misspoke earlier. There is one more room, but—it's a bit pricey."

Li Yichen stopped and turned back.

"What room?"

"Presidential Suite"

The receptionist looked up at him with a professional smile on her lips, a smile that was both polite and a little bit probing.

"Sixty thousand a night."

Sixty thousand.

When the number came out of the receptionist's mouth, her gaze lingered for a moment longer on Li Yichen's worn-out sneakers.

Li Yichen tilted his head slightly.

"Get it done for a week."

The receptionist's smile froze on her face.

"Sir, you mean...a week?"

"Yes. Seven days. Is there a problem?"

Seven days. Forty-two hundred thousand.

The receptionist's hands rested on the keyboard, motionless. Her lips moved slightly, as if she wanted to say something but wasn't sure if she should.

Li Yichen didn't give her time to hesitate. He supported Xiao Yuqing with one hand, took out his phone with the other, opened the payment code, and shoved it in front of the cashier.

"sweep."

The receptionist paused for a second, then picked up the barcode scanner.

drop.

"Payment successful."

Four hundred and twenty thousand, and not even a ripple appeared.

The receptionist's hand holding the barcode scanner hesitated slightly. She quickly withdrew the last trace of scrutiny from her eyes, and her back unconsciously straightened a couple of degrees.

"Sir, we'll check you in right away."

Her attitude didn't change much, but her movements doubled in speed. The keyboard clattered, the printer spat out a registration form, and she took the room key from the drawer and handed it over with both hands.

"Sir, the presidential suite is on the 66th floor, accessible by a private elevator. The suite comes with a private butler on call 24/7, as well as 24-hour chauffeur service. Please feel free to call the front desk if you have any needs."

Li Yichen took the room key and nodded.

Where is the elevator?

"This way, please. I'll take you there."

The receptionist personally came out from behind the counter and led him through the innermost corridor of the lobby, stopping at the end.

The elevator is a standalone unit with a dark brushed metal door frame, a stark contrast to the public elevators in the lobby.

The receptionist swiped the room card, and the elevator doors opened.

Have a pleasant stay.

Li Yichen helped Xiao Yuqing inside and pressed 66.

The elevator went up without making a sound.

Xiao Yuqing rested her head on his shoulder, her hair brushing against his neck, her breathing long and even.

Ding.

We've reached the 66th floor.

The elevator doors opened, revealing a double door directly in front of them. Li Yichen affixed his room card, the lock clicked, and the doors slid open.

The lights turned on automatically. It wasn't a harsh white light, but a warm yellow one, spreading evenly from the recessed channels in the ceiling.

Li Yichen stood at the door and glanced around.

Big.

That was the first word that popped into my head.

The living room is at least 150 or 160 square meters, with dark gray marble flooring and a round, light brown leather sofa in the center. The coffee table is a single piece of solid wood, its surface polished to a shine. To the left is a floor-to-ceiling window that extends from the floor to the ceiling, the entire wall made of glass. The night view of Shanghai unfolds below, the lights stretching to the horizon.

To the right is an open bar, with a wine cabinet embedded in the wall, rows of wine bottles gleaming amber under the lights.

Further inside, there is a restaurant, a study, and a fitness area. The door is half open, and you can vaguely see the outline of a treadmill and a piano.

Three to four hundred square meters.

His rental house consisted of about twenty-five rooms stacked together.

Li Yichen placed Xiao Yuqing on the sofa. She sank into the soft leather, frowned slightly, turned over, and continued sleeping.

He stood in the middle of the living room, hands in his pockets, and spun around.

Sixty thousand per night. For seven days, forty-two thousand.

He used to ride his electric scooter until he died and still couldn't earn that much. Now, that amount of money wouldn't even make a ripple in his account.

Things are changing so fast, it feels almost unreal.

Li Yichen shook his head and went into the bathroom.

The bathroom was bigger than his entire rented apartment. It had a bathtub, a shower, and a separate wet and dry area. The walls and floors were made of the same gray and white patterned stone. When the showerhead was turned on, hot water poured down from all directions, the water pressure so strong that it made a buzzing sound overhead.

He showered for ten minutes, then came out and found the bathrobe provided by the hotel in the dressing room, and put it on.

I grabbed a clean towel, wrung it out with warm water, and went back to the living room.

Xiao Yuqing was still lying on the sofa, her face turned to the side, a strand of hair sticking to her cheek. Her makeup was a little smudged, her eyeliner had smudged a bit, but she had a good complexion, so the smudged makeup didn't make much difference.

Li Yichen squatted down and gently wiped her forehead and cheeks with a towel.

Her brow twitched, and she mumbled a soft hum.

He wiped her neck again and brushed the hair that was stuck to her face.

Alright, that's enough. We can't let her sleep on the sofa all night.

Li Yichen bent down, scooped Xiao Yuqing up from the sofa, and walked inside.

The largest bedroom in the suite was at the end of the hallway. Pushing open the door, a large bed took up a third of the room. The sheets were white, four pillows were folded, and the comforter was neatly made.

He placed Xiao Yuqing on the bed and was about to straighten up—

Xiao Yuqing opened her eyes.

It wasn't a sudden opening; rather, it was a slow, gradual lifting of the eyelids that revealed a pair of misty eyes.

It was probably the warm towel from earlier that worked.

She stretched her arm out from under the covers and wrapped it around Li Yichen's neck.

It wasn't very strong, but it was very tight, with that kind of reckless energy that comes with being drunk.

Her face was very close, the tip of her nose almost touching Li Yichen's. Her breath reeked of alcohol, hot and dry.

"Little Leonardo..."

The voice was so soft it was almost silky.

"You're really lucky..."

She blinked, and the faint, almost invisible mole on her left cheek moved slightly upwards with her smile.

"Come on, let me taste... what it's like to be kept."

Li Yichen froze.

His throat bobbed.

The last vestiges of reason in my mind battled with adrenaline, and the outcome was decided in three seconds.

Reason lost. It lost completely.

The lights went out.

Outside the floor-to-ceiling windows on the 66th floor, the night view of Shanghai stretched to the horizon.