Chapter 161: Why Not Open the Door?

"Isn't it just a matter of price? Do you think I'm a broke person, Sister Zhang?"

Zhang Hong grew even more angry.

"Tell me, exactly how much it is."

The two women exchanged a glance, and the one on the left extended two fingers.

"Two thousand?"

Zhang Hong snorted.

Is this even considered a bit pricey? The whitening injections she usually gets cost at least several hundred, even if not a thousand.

"No, Sister Zhang."

The woman on the right whispered, "It's not two thousand, it's twenty thousand."

"What!"

Zhang Hong let out a shriek.

"Twenty—twenty thousand?"

She widened her eyes, unable to believe it.

It's more than ten times what she usually uses!

Can a single whitening injection be that expensive?

"Yes, Sister Zhang, as I said, it's a bit pricey because it's imported from another planet. This time our boss lady was lucky enough to get a few of them; we have no idea when the next batch will appear."

The woman on the left sighed.

"This…"

Zhang Hong's face showed hesitation.

Imported goods—if she missed this chance, she might really have to wait months, maybe a year or more.

But this price even makes her feel a pang of pain.

After all, a whitening injection is used up after one shot.

"If you think the price is too high, Sister Zhang, then never mind. Honestly, I also think it's quite steep; only the high‑society folks in the Inner City District can afford it," the woman on the right said deliberately.

Sure enough, hearing that, Zhang Hong became displeased.

"Xiao Yanzi, what do you mean by that? Are you looking down on me, Sister Zhang?"

"No, no, Sister Zhang, I don't mean to look down on you. I'm thinking of you; the usual few hundred yuan per injection is still reasonable," the woman on the right said nervously.

"Hmph!"

Zhang Hong snorted coldly and said, "It's only twenty thousand per injection, right? I've decided on the whitening injection; you two wait here while I go back to get the money."

"Oh dear, Sister Zhang, we really didn't mean it that way."

The two women pretended to reach out and block her, but she brushed them aside easily.

"Keep those injections for me; I'll go home, get the money, and come back."

Zhang Hong grabbed her small purse and walked away without looking back.

Although the Outer City District has decent conditions, banks are scarce, which makes account‑opening requirements very strict; ordinary users are essentially a burden to them, having no value.

Most importantly, even for those who have accounts, depositing money in the bank yields no interest; instead, they have to pay the bank a sum each year.

Therefore, even those who can open accounts prefer to keep money at home; the bold and powerful opt for high‑interest private lending.

"Alright, Sister Zhang, rest assured—no matter who comes today, I'll keep those injections for you!"

"Sister Zhang, stay safe!"

The two women saw Zhang Hong off, their smiles growing wider.

"That fat lady is so easy to swindle."

The woman on the left covered her mouth with her hand and whispered.

"Exactly. Those whitening injections are a bit better than the old ones, and selling them for two thousand is already impressive, but that fat lady is foolish and has lots of money; selling them to her for twenty thousand makes her think she's getting a huge bargain."

"If we sell those to her, just the commission this month will put us over ten thousand a month."

"When she arrives, we'll try to sell her even more."

Zhang Hong remained oblivious, already a fish in someone else's pond; at this moment, her mind was filled with fantasies of herself, after taking the twenty‑thousand‑yuan injection, exuding endless charm and mesmerizing countless beings.

Jiang Cheng was behind, following at a moderate distance.

In fact, he had considered killing the target outright on the street, which would have saved a lot of trouble.

But doing so risked exposing himself; if he had another Handgun it wouldn't matter, but unfortunately he didn't.

Moreover, he heard those two say that the woman was very rich! And he was short on cash.

And so, the two walked one ahead of the other.

Soon they arrived at a place called Jinxiu Residential Area.

Someone who saw Zhang Hong arrive took the initiative to greet her.

Zhang Hong, seeing this, smiled brightly and walked over; the two began chatting.

Jiang Cheng furrowed his brows.

He felt the greeter was rather troublesome.

At that moment, a flash of inspiration crossed his mind.

He already knew where she lived; couldn't he just go there early and wait for her?

Jiang Cheng tightened his mask and walked over as if nothing were happening.

As he passed by, a corner of his eye caught her glance at him.

This Jinxiu Residential Area, like the one he lives in, is also an old neighborhood.

There is a security guard, but he's old, sitting in the guard booth doing who knows what.

He put both hands in his pockets and walked in at an unhurried, steady pace.

After looking around the residential complex for a while, he found Building No. 3.

Jiang Cheng walked up the stairs, glanced at room 302 as he passed, and then proceeded to the rooftop.

He waited silently.

At the entrance of the complex, Zhang Hong was chatting animatedly with the other party.

The latter clearly wanted to leave, but the other kept pulling her, saying they were going to a beauty salon later for a whitening injection that cost twenty thousand yuan per dose, which left her looking stunned.

Zhang Hong felt a great sense of satisfaction.

After talking a bit more, she finally let the other go.

But as she kept walking, she began to come to her senses.

That whitening injection—does it really live up to what those two people claimed?

Twenty thousand yuan for one dose! "They can't be lying to me, can they? I've already promised them I'll go back to get the money; if they don't keep their word, where will I put this face afterward?"

"What if it's real? Never mind, it's just twenty thousand yuan. Anyone can easily earn more than that, let alone those two. Let's try a shot first, see the effect; if it's good, we'll keep using that method."

Zhang Hong convinced herself, and a smile returned to her face.

After two flights, she was out of breath, climbing while muttering, "This dump has no elevator; if I weren't used to living here, I'd really want to move elsewhere."

Finally reaching the third floor, she stood at her front door, pulled the key from her bag, and half‑inserted it when a faint footstep sounded from the stairs behind her.

Turning around, she saw a man wearing a mask slowly descending the stairs.

Zhang Hong frowned.

She suddenly recalled that she seemed to have seen this person before.

Right! It seemed to be the same one who was there when she first entered the complex.

Is he also a resident of this building?

But how had she never seen him before, a person like that upstairs? She paused, didn't rush to open the door, and planned to wait until the stranger went down before entering.

However, she could never have imagined that after the other came down the stairs and passed by her, he suddenly stopped.

Not only did he not move, he asked, "Why aren't you opening the door?"

(End of chapter)