The taxi came to a smooth stop.
Jiang Lijin looked out through the car window. Everything in sight was desolate. In the interstellar era, plants were more precious than rare metals. In this area, there wasn't even a decent new building to be found. The bare alloy road stretched straight ahead, and at its very end stood her newly allocated single-family villa.
"This trip's fare will be reimbursed by the Female Protection Center. Thank you for your outstanding contribution to the interstellar society, Ms. Jiang Lijin!" The taxi was autonomous with remote manual override, and a human voice rang out from the driver's seat.
Jiang Lijin froze for two seconds.
Contribution? Aside from eating, drinking, sleeping, and going to the bathroom, she hadn't even washed a single plate these past few days. What kind of contribution was that?
Still, only a fool would refuse a free ride. She casually said thanks and briskly pushed the door open to step out.
Just as she walked up to the front gate, a small silver scanner popped out from above, sweeping a soft blue light over her from head to toe.
"Identity confirmed. Welcome home, Ms. Jiang Lijin."
The heavy metal gates slid open silently.
[Wow, wow, wow! Host! Is this our home?!] Little One's voice echoed deafeningly in her mind.
Jiang Lijin wasn't in a hurry to go inside. She pivoted and first wandered into the yard.
A whole patch of lush green turf covered the courtyard. The corners were dotted with a few clumps of unknown low-lying flowers and plants, and right in the center stood a tree over two meters tall.
This was considered an extremely luxurious setup in the interstellar era. You have to know, even a big shot of Chiron's level only had a few small flowerbeds in the public area outside his home. But this house actually used real grass turf to cover the entire yard.
Moreover, the tree wasn't small. It had lush branches and leaves, clearly showing that a lot of effort had gone into cultivating it. If she tied a swing here in the future and sat down with a book in the afternoon to soak up the sun... it would be absolutely perfect.
Jiang Lijin unconsciously curled her lips into a smile, then turned and walked indoors.
She was immediately greeted by an overwhelming sense of advanced technology. The lights turned on layer by layer following her footsteps, with the color temperature automatically adjusting to the most comfortable warm white. The whole-house smart AI butler system was already online, and invisible panels on the walls flickered with a faint glow.
The spacious living room connected to an open kitchen. She walked over and casually pulled open the large double-door refrigerator.
Empty? Not even a bottle of water? But that made sense. When Su Han left this morning, he specifically instructed her to let them know in advance once she decided which house to live in, so they could arrange for grocery delivery and an exclusive hovercar.
She closed the fridge and continued walking further inside. The first floor had a karaoke room, a reception room, and even a small indoor heated swimming pool. On the second floor, an independent medical pod stood quietly in its exclusive room, matching Su Han's holographic projection perfectly.
She raised her wrist to check her optical computer, remembering Su Han saying he wanted to add her social media account.
Social media account?
[Little One, what do people in this place usually use to chat?]
[StarChat!] Little One answered quickly. [It's the universal communication software in the interstellar era. The original owner has a StarChat account.]
Jiang Lijin searched hard in her mind. The original owner used a terribly laggy, old-fashioned optical computer and had a pitifully narrow social circle. No one would ever look for her online. She did have an account, but having it registered was no different from not having one at all...
She tapped the blue and white StarChat icon on her optical computer. The account was her citizen ID number. The password field popped up, and she casually typed in "123456".
The screen flashed, and she was logged in.
The interface looked a lot like the green chat app from the world Jiang Lijin lived in before she transmigrated. She casually opened the friends list. Only three people were pitifully lying in her contacts: Arden, Rex, and Kieran.
Clicking on the avatars of Arden and Rex, both prompted: You have been added to the other party's blacklist.
Only Kieran hadn't blocked her, but it wasn't much better. The chat box was densely packed with messages sent by the original owner, asking about his well-being and humbly trying to please him. She had to scroll up several screens just to see a single-word reply from Kieran occasionally.
She decisively backed out and clicked on the flashing "New Friends" notification in the top right corner.
Four friend requests were lined up neatly.
At the very top was Baal, whose avatar was the military emblem. Below him were Chiron and Su Han. There was also one named Tinia. She remembered him—the walking mountain of gold.
She accepted them one by one. Right after accepting, she first opened Su Han's chat box.
"Commissioner Su, I choose the one in the western suburbs."
As soon as the message was sent, Little One couldn't hold back: [Host, aren't you going to look at the other two houses? What if they look even better?]
Jiang Lijin walked over to the sofa, sat down, and leaned back. "What's the rush? All three houses are under my name anyway. I can live in this one today, switch to another next month, and move whenever I want."
Little One shut its mouth.
The optical computer vibrated. Su Han replied very quickly.
"Received, Ms. Jiang. We will process your move-in procedures immediately. Fresh ingredients will be delivered before ten o'clock tomorrow morning. The allocation of your exclusive hovercar will take seven working days. During this period, your travel expenses will be fully reimbursed by the Center."
Then another message followed.
"Additionally, please be reminded to fill in your current address in the matchmaking email sent by the Main Brain as soon as possible, so that your five matches can get in touch with you in a timely manner."
Jiang Lijin typed a few words: "Okay, thank you."
Then she switched out of StarChat and opened her mailbox. The email titled "3S-Grade Female Matchmaking List" was still hanging at the very top.
At the bottom was a red address input box. She stared at that box for a few seconds. As long as she filled it in, those five men standing at the pinnacle of the interstellar world would immediately receive a notification... She didn't know why, but she felt a bit nervous.
Her fingers hovered over the optical computer screen for a moment, but ultimately, she quickly typed in the coordinates of the western suburb villa and clicked send.
[Hehe!] Little One excitedly rubbed its hands together. [Host, who do you guess will be the first to come knocking?]
Jiang Lijin yawned. "Whoever."
Despite saying that, the words Baal had left behind when he departed from Chiron's house popped into her mind at an inopportune moment.
"When you move into your new house, I'll be the first to visit."
"Ding."
The optical computer let out a crisp notification sound. It wasn't an email; it was StarChat.
Jiang Lijin raised her wrist. A new message popped up on the screen. The sender was Tinia, whose friend request she had just accepted. His avatar was a little sun rising over the sea, drawn in a style like a children's cartoon, complete with a smiling face on the sun.
Opening the chat box, there was only a single, solitary line of text.
"Hello wifey, I am Tinia. I have received your address information and will arrive by eight o'clock tomorrow evening. I'm very much looking forward to meeting you."
Jiang Lijin instantly sat up straight, her sleepiness dissipating in a flash. Wasn't he calling her that a little too smoothly?
Facing that painfully straightforward opening line on the screen, her fingers hovered over the virtual keyboard, unable to type a single word for a long time.
What should she reply? "Hello"? "See you tomorrow"? Or "Don't just call me wifey"? In the end, she replied with nothing and simply closed the chat interface.
[Host, he called you wifey!] Little One's tone carried a gleeful excitement of someone enjoying the drama. [This is a mega-rich tycoon! Tomorrow night at eight, do you want to prepare anything?]
[What should I prepare? A broom or pepper spray? Isn't he supposed to be SSS-rank? Why does he seem so sketchy?]
