Kelvin picked up several scrolls and spoke in a casual tone.
"My friend has been studying calligraphy lately. I want to buy a few pieces to give him as a gift. If you give me a good discount, I'll take them all."
The wretched old stall owner's eyes lit up instantly. Business had been slow since morning, and this young man looked easy to fool.
"I'll give you forty percent off," the old man said with a wide grin. "How about that?"
Kelvin snorted coldly and shook his head.
"Twenty dollars a piece. Take it or leave it."
The old man's smile froze.
"Twenty? That's too low. I'd be losing money!"
Kelvin didn't bother arguing. He simply placed the scrolls back on the table and turned to leave, silently counting in his heart.
Three… two… one…
"Little brother, wait!" the old man shouted anxiously, exactly as Kelvin expected. He hurriedly grabbed his sleeve. "Fine, fine, I'll sell them to you. Let's just consider it a way to start the day's business."
In the end, Kelvin spent only one hundred dollars to buy all five calligraphy pieces from the stall.
Watching Kelvin's departing figure, the old man couldn't help but beam with pride.
"Hehe, trash worth five dollars sold for twenty each. That silly kid was so easy to cheat. I made a killing today!"
After walking a short distance away, Kelvin stopped in a quiet corner. He carefully opened the scrolls again and selected the authentic piece, rolling it up and keeping it safely. The other four fakes were tossed casually into a nearby trash bin without a second glance.
Then he walked straight into a well-known calligraphy and painting shop.
The shop owner was a middle-aged man with sharp eyes. The moment he saw the scroll, a flash of shock appeared on his face, but he quickly suppressed it and pretended to remain calm.
"Little brother," the owner said slowly, "although this piece is a later copy, it's still quite old and worth something. Tell you what—let's close the deal at eight hundred thousand. What do you think?"
Kelvin looked at him with a faint, cold smile.
"Boss, you're an expert. There's no need to beat around the bush with me. This is an original." He tapped the table lightly. "One price—two hundred and fifty million. You definitely won't lose out. If you don't want it, I'll go elsewhere."
The shop owner's heart skipped a beat. This kid isn't simple.
He let out a long sigh and stopped pretending.
"How about this," he said seriously, "two hundred and thirty million. Even if you took it to an auction house, they'd deduct a large commission. Trading directly with me is more cost-effective for you."
Kelvin pretended to hesitate, lowering his eyes as if calculating gains and losses. After a while, he nodded reluctantly.
"Fine. Deal."
After completing the transaction and receiving the money, Kelvin left the shop calmly, though his heart was surging with excitement.
Not long after he left, a young woman accompanied by an elderly man in a foreign suit hurried into the antique street and walked straight to the stall.
The young woman spoke anxiously,
"Shopkeeper, where is that calligraphy piece I liked earlier? I'll buy it for one hundred thousand."
The old stall owner's smile instantly vanished.
"I… I already sold it," he stammered.
"What?" the young woman exclaimed. "Can you buy it back and sell it to me? I'll pay more—two hundred thousand… no, one million!"
The old man's face turned pale. He hurriedly asked around and soon learned that Kelvin had entered the calligraphy shop earlier and then left. It was obvious the scroll had already been sold.
Beside the young woman, the elderly man in the foreign suit shook his head with a long sigh.
"What a pity… truly a pity."
The stall owner swallowed hard.
"Master… could it be that the calligraphy was authentic?"
The old man stroked his beard and spoke slowly,
"I wasn't completely certain at first. But judging from the situation now, it should be genuine. The market price is at least two hundred and thirty million. Otherwise, that shop would never have bought it."
"Two hundred and thirty… million?!"
The stall owner's face turned ashen. The world seemed to spin around him. He recognized this old man as a locally famous calligraphy master—someone who would never speak nonsense.
That meant he had just sold away a fortune.
His chest tightened, and he began to curse loudly,
"Fuck… fuck, fuck, fuck—"
Suddenly, his eyes rolled back and he collapsed to the ground.
"Someone fainted!"
"Quick, call emergency line 121!"
"Is there a doctor nearby?"
The antique street fell into chaos.
Meanwhile, Kelvin had already left the antique street and headed to a 4S dealership. His next plan was to purchase a recreational vehicle and later modify it into a heavily armored truck-style RV.
Although he planned to stay in his safe house most of the time during the apocalypse, it was better to be fully prepared in case he needed to travel.
Money was no longer a concern.
After looking around briefly, he directly chose an extra-large Toyota brand pure electric recreational vehicle and paid twelve million without bargaining.
The saleswoman's smile was so wide that her cheeks almost cramped. It was her first time encountering such a straightforward customer who paid the full amount upfront without even pretending to negotiate.
This was what a true tycoon looked like.
Since the vehicle was in stock, she personally led Kelvin to pick it up. She walked in front, her high heels clicking crisply on the floor. Her hips swayed with every step, her tight skirt outlining her curves, and her long legs wrapped in black stockings shone under the showroom lights.
Kelvin glanced at her and thought to himself that there might be an opportunity here.
After completing the delivery procedures, he looked at her and said with a faint smile,
"Miss, I don't quite understand many of this car's functions yet. Why don't we find a place to… exchange ideas in detail?"
The saleswoman shot him a sidelong glance, half shy and half playful, but she did not refuse.
Soon, the two of them drove to a quiet lakeside and parked in a secluded area to begin their so-called "exchange."
When it was over, Kelvin was quite satisfied. The saleswoman, still slightly flushed, learned that he intended to modify the vehicle and enthusiastically offered to introduce him to a nearby repair shop.
She personally drove with him there before leaving.
When Kelvin stepped into the repair shop and saw the owner, he froze slightly.
Standing behind the counter was Janet—Matt's mother.
He had almost forgotten that Matt's family owned a large repair shop.
Matt had been Kelvin's university classmate. Because Kelvin came from a poor family, Matt had always looked down on him and bullied him whenever he had the chance.
Later, after Kelvin's parents died in a car accident, he received compensation in the form of a high-end apartment—coincidentally right next to Matt's home.
That incident had made Matt's family furious. They believed having someone like Kelvin living next door was bad luck and tried repeatedly to drive him away.
Not long afterward, Matt's father fell ill and died. From then on, Janet and her son became even more convinced that Kelvin had brought disaster to their family, and their hostility only deepened.
Now, three years later, the repair shop was on the verge of bankruptcy. Expenses exceeded income, and if they didn't secure a large order soon, they would be forced to close.
Kelvin sat on a sofa nearby, calmly observing Janet.
She was a mature woman with a noble aura. Her hair was neatly tied up, her skin smooth and fair, and her red lips stood out vividly against her pale complexion. Her professional OL suit tightly hugged her curvaceous body, especially her chest, which strained against the white shirt beneath her blazer.
Her pencil skirt and black stockings accentuated her long, well-proportioned legs.
Even after seeing her many times in the past, Kelvin still couldn't help feeling amazed by her beauty.
Janet noticed his gaze and her expression turned cold and annoyed.
"This is not a place you should be," she said sharply. "Disappear from my sight within three seconds, or face the consequences."
Kelvin chuckled softly.
"What, is this how you treat your customers?"
She stepped away from him in disgust.
"What kind of customer are you? Just get out before you bring your bad luck here."
Kelvin remained completely calm.
"If you don't get a big order soon, your factory probably won't last much longer," he said lightly. "Coincidentally, I came today specifically to give you money. It just depends on whether you're willing to take it."
Janet crossed her arms, her tone full of contempt.
"Everyone knows you're a loser. What, do you actually have a big order?"
Kelvin smiled faintly.
"I just bought a Toyota recreational vehicle and want to modify it into an apocalypse battle vehicle. Are you interested?"
Janet snorted.
"A Toyota RV costs at least ten million. If you can afford one, I'll sleep with you on the spot."
Just then, a worker rushed in excitedly.
"Boss! There's a Toyota recreational vehicle parked outside. The customer wants to discuss modifications. This is a huge order!"
Janet's expression froze. She slowly turned her head and stared at Kelvin in disbelief.
"The car outside… is yours?"
Kelvin leaned back on the sofa and grinned.
"Congratulations," he said lazily.
"You guessed right."