Chapter 12: Unknown Call
Gu Heng admired her beautiful legs for a moment before his gaze returned to Jiang Ruan’s delicate, fair face.
"Put on some music. Let’s hear how the sound system is."
Gu Heng gestured to Jiang Ruan with a slight lift of his chin.
"Of course."
"I’ll connect to the Bluetooth and play a song for you."
At his words, Jiang Ruan immediately took out her phone and began deftly operating the large, wraparound screen in front of them.
Once the Bluetooth was connected, a soft, pleasant melody soon filled the enclosed cabin.
...
Even if a thousand songs come in the future
Drifting on the distant road I travel
Even if a thousand evening stars come
Shining brighter than tonight’s moon
...
Listening to the classic Cantonese song, *Qian Qian Que Ge*, echoing in his ears, Gu Heng looked at Jiang Ruan and said with a smile, "It seems like all of you salespeople at luxury brands choose this exact song when demonstrating the sound system for customers."
"It’s probably because the song is such a classic."
Jiang Ruan replied with a smile of her own.
"The sound system is definitely impressive."
Gu Heng nodded in satisfaction. Then, as if suddenly remembering something, he asked Jiang Ruan, "Hey, I remember the Maybach GLS 600 has a special ’Recovery Mode,’ right? Does this one have it?"
Recovery Mode, also known as "Dancing Mode" or, jokingly, "the Boss’s Easy Button."
When the first-generation Maybach GLS was initially released, it was this very feature that made it go viral online.
"President Gu, this car does have Recovery Mode."
Jiang Ruan nodded and replied, "In China, only the ’Li Shang’ edition of the Maybach GLS 600 has Recovery Mode. The standard version and the ’Li Yue’ edition don’t have it."
"Oh?"
"Can you demonstrate it for me? I’d like to experience it."
Gu Heng’s interest was piqued.
"Of course."
As she spoke, Jiang Ruan raised her hand and pressed a button.
Soon, the entire vehicle began to bounce rhythmically.
Since Gu Heng was sitting upright the whole time, the Recovery Mode didn’t have much of an effect on him. But it was a different story for Jiang Ruan.
She had been sitting sideways, facing Gu Heng. The moment the mode activated, she lost her balance. Her hands instinctively shot out to brace herself on the central sport armrest, causing her body to lean much closer to him.
In that instant, the scent of her perfume, mingled with her own unique fragrance, wafted over to him.
Seeing this, Gu Heng suddenly understood why so many people online called the Maybach GLS 600’s sport armrest the "screaming armrest."
’The more I look at this car, the less proper it seems...’
’I have to buy it and then... give it a thorough critique, inside and out!’
Gu Heng mused to himself.
"President Gu, is... is that enough?"
Jiang Ruan asked, her face slightly flushed with embarrassment.
Ever since this Maybach GLS 600 had arrived at the dealership, plenty of people came to gawk at it every day, but very few had both the ability and the intention to actually buy it.
This was actually Jiang Ruan’s first time experiencing the special Recovery Mode from inside the car. She hadn’t expected the bouncing to be so powerful.
"That’s enough."
Gu Heng could see her discomfort and proactively reached out to stop the Recovery Mode.
"So, tell me."
"What’s the drive-out price for this car?"
Gu Heng’s left hand gently caressed the steering wheel, the fondness in his eyes unconcealed.
"The base vehicle price is 3.1 million RMB, so the drive-out price is around 3.7 million RMB."
Jiang Ruan answered with a smile, "Of course, you’re a valued guest personally referred by President Zhao, so we can definitely offer you a discount."
"Hmm..."
Gu Heng nodded slightly and then asked, "I’ve heard that luxury brand dealerships like yours usually have a few special reserve license plates from auctions. Do you have any here?"
"President Gu, we currently have three premium plates: Ji A·H8888, Ji A·V6666, and Ji A·A7777. I’m not sure of their exact prices. If you’re interested in buying one, we’ll have to call President Zhao."
Jiang Ruan answered truthfully.
"Then contact your President Zhao."
"Ask him how much of a discount he can give me on the drive-out price."
"And add in the Ji A·A7777 license plate. Give me a final total."
Gu Heng quickly made his choice among the three plates.
If he was going to buy a car, he might as well go all out.
A blue plate with four consecutive identical numbers is a rarity anywhere. Whether its value would appreciate was another question, but at the very least, it wouldn’t lose value.
"Understood."
"I’ll go find our manager right now and have him contact President Zhao for you."
Jiang Ruan acknowledged him, then opened the car door, stepped onto the electric running board, and walked away quickly. Gu Heng, meanwhile, let his gaze fall back on the car’s interior.
Beichun was a provincial capital with a relatively low profile in the country.
If Gu Heng wanted to buy a car off the lot in Beichun, his choices among luxury brands were limited to Mercedes-Benz, Porsche, and Land Rover.
Because other luxury car brands simply had no dealerships in Beichun.
As for why Gu Heng didn’t consider the Porsche Cayenne and Panamera, or the Land Rover Range Rover and Range Rover Sport, it was because those four models were a dime a dozen in Beichun, and most of them were used cars.
The Land Rover Range Rover, in particular, had become the standard-issue vehicle for every boss in Beichun.
Ever since he was young, Gu Heng had hated showing up in the same outfit as someone else. Now, he had a similar aversion to "showing up in the same car."
In comparison, the Maybach GLS 600 wasn’t very common in Beichun; you rarely saw one on the road. Besides, Gu Heng genuinely loved the Mercedes-Benz interiors.
DING—
Just as Gu Heng was admiring the interior, a crisp chime suddenly sounded from the large, wraparound screen in front.
Gu Heng subconsciously glanced at the screen and saw a text message notification had popped up.
"Your credit card statement for account ****4765 is now available. Your current balance is RMB 5,586.67, with a minimum payment of RMB 266.45. Please make your payment on time. [Xingye Bank]"
Gu Heng stared at the message for a second, then realized the car’s Bluetooth was still connected to Jiang Ruan’s phone.
’So this is Jiang Ruan’s credit card bill?’
Gu Heng’s eyebrow twitched. He already had his answer.
BUZZ... BUZZ...
Just then, Gu Heng’s own phone suddenly started vibrating.
He took out his phone and a flicker of surprise crossed his eyes as he looked at the caller ID.
’What an incredible phone number...’
The last seven digits were all 9s. The value of that phone number alone was probably more than enough to buy a Mercedes C-Class from this showroom.
’Whose call is this?’
Puzzled, Gu Heng answered the call...