Chapter 10: Liu Yuling’s Attentive Service

3:00 PM.

At the exit of Haicheng Airport, Cao Kun emerged among the crowd. Standing on the steps, he gazed toward the distant city center, a wave of emotion washing over him. The place where he had been imprisoned in his past life was right here in Haicheng—the Haicheng Second Prison, a facility specifically for hardened criminals.

And now, he was back. Only this time, he was no longer a convicted murderer. He wondered if Haicheng Second Prison would feel empty, lonely, and cold without him.

"Mr. Cao Kun, over here! Over here!"

Just as Cao Kun was lost in thought, a woman's voice pulled him back to reality. He turned to see a sexy young married woman waving at him not far away. She was dressed in a white shirt, a hip-hugging skirt, black stockings, and high heels, with a wedding ring visible on her finger. It was Liu Yuling, the real estate agent he had contacted online that morning.

That was right. After all his planning over the past few days, the reason he had come to the Yundong District of Haicheng was to buy property.

Although the current real estate market was on a downturn and no longer as booming as it had been in previous years—with housing prices in many areas even showing clear signs of decline—Yundong District was about to become the exception. In just over ten days, an official notice would be issued: Haicheng’s Yundong District would be designated as a Special Economic Zone.

Many people might not understand the significance of this, but a recent example made it clear. In 2017, a place called Xiong'an was designated as a Special Economic Zone. On the night the news broke, housing prices in Xiong'an skyrocketed from five or six thousand to fifty or sixty thousand overnight—a tenfold increase. In some areas, it went up over a dozen times, and even in poorer locations, prices multiplied six or seven-fold. Real estate speculators and investors from all over the country had swarmed into Xiong'an that night. It is no exaggeration to say that tickets for flights and trains to Xiong'an were impossible to get. Many people even drove thousands of kilometers overnight, carrying trunks full of cash.

Yundong District was set to be the next Special Economic Zone after Xiong'an, and compared to the Xiong'an of 2017, this place would likely be even crazier. With the global economic environment currently in a slump, many people held money but could find no viable investment projects, forced to watch their savings depreciate day by day. The emergence of Yundong District offered these people a target for their capital. Therefore, Yundong was bound to be even more frantic than Xiong'an had been.

Of course, Cao Kun had learned all of this from a younger brother he’d met in prison. Haicheng Second Prison was a facility for serious offenders, but "serious crimes" didn't just refer to murderers or robbers; one could also be a major criminal in the financial sector. This fellow inmate had been locked up for a massive economic crime. Because he was only skilled and knowledgeable in finance, he spent most of his time talking about economic matters. Aside from the Yundong District situation, he had also shared plenty of insights on stocks and funds. In fact, one-sixth of the moneymaking projects on the list Cao Kun had prepared were provided by this man.

Seeing Liu Yuling waving at him, Cao Kun smiled and strode over. Yundong District was at least an hour’s drive from the airport, and when they spoke that morning, Cao Kun hadn’t explicitly said he was buying; he just said he wanted to take a look. Yet, here she was, having driven all the way to the airport to pick him up. It seemed the real estate business was indeed struggling.

"Manager Liu, you’re too kind. Why go to the trouble of coming all the way to the airport?" Cao Kun said with a grin as he reached her.

"Oh, nonsense, it’s only right," Liu Yuling said with a warm smile, opening the passenger door of her Volkswagen. "In the service industry, we have to treat big bosses like you well."

Cao Kun laughed as he sat in the passenger seat. "The thing is, your service is so thorough—coming all the way to the airport—that if I don't buy a house from you, I’ll feel guilty."

"Really?" Liu Yuling’s smile widened. "If you really buy a house from me, I can provide even more thorough service than this."

"Is that so? What kind of service?"

Liu Yuling pursed her lips, batted her eyelashes at him, and said mysteriously, "You'll see once you buy a house from me. I guarantee you’ll be satisfied."

With that, she closed the passenger door for him. Cao Kun licked his lips with a smirk. "As expected, young married women really know how to play."

In terms of looks and figure, Liu Yuling was on par with Li Tingting, but she possessed a more intellectual, mature, and alluring quality. Every gesture, every little smile, and even her words radiated a unique charm. To put it bluntly, she was very tempting.

...

An hour later, Liu Yuling drove Cao Kun into Yundong District. As a first-tier city, one would expect Haicheng’s Yundong District to be decent, but in reality, it was underwhelming. Because the city’s development was focused toward the west, Yundong—located in the east—found itself in an awkward position. In terms of entertainment, healthcare, and education, it lagged far behind the other districts.

This was reflected in the housing prices. While other districts saw prices well over ten thousand per square meter—with many prime spots reaching tens of thousands, or even over a hundred thousand—Yundong District had very few places where prices broke the ten-thousand mark. Most residential areas were priced below ten thousand, and in more remote spots, it was only seven or eight thousand. It didn't look like the housing market of a first-tier city at all.

"By the way, Mr. Cao, why did you decide to look for property here in Yundong?" Liu Yuling asked while driving. "I’ll be honest: although Yundong is part of Haicheng, the development here is quite average—it’s not even as good as an ordinary third-tier city."

Cao Kun nodded with a smile. "I know, but the property here is cheap. I’m planning to take a gamble. If this place develops in the future, the house I buy will appreciate in value."

Hearing this, a flicker of excitement, carefully hidden, flashed in Liu Yuling's eyes. As a veteran in the industry, she could usually tell who was serious about buying and who was just browsing. From Cao Kun's words, she keenly sensed that he was genuinely interested in purchasing. She couldn't let a customer with such clear intent slip away.

Thinking this, she subtly unbuttoned the top button of her blouse, revealing a hint of cleavage.