How can I justify myself as a Magnate if I don't indulge myself?

....

"Brother Lu, give me your bank card number so I can transfer the money to you,"

Lu Yuan raised an eyebrow, "You seem to be in a hurry to spend your money?"

Gu Heng nodded earnestly, "Very much so."

Lu Yuan: "..."

He had meant it as a tease and didn't expect Gu Heng to admit it so directly; he couldn't help but pause in astonishment...

It was his first time hearing someone so eager to spend money...

But he didn't think too much about it and directly reported his card number...

A transfer of tens of millions takes a long time for the bank to process, and it's easy to retract, so even if the deal fell through, Gu Heng could easily get the money back.

After Gu Heng had made the call, instructing his VIP account manager to handle the transfer of 47 million, the system's voice rang out.

[Host has acquired the most expensive car of his life, heart racing with excitement, successfully indulging in luxury. Reward: 220 million. Balance: 346.9 million.]

Listening to that pleasant voice of the system in his mind, Gu Heng couldn't help but squint his eyes in comfort...

Although Gu Heng's sensitivity to money had started to decline, the thought of 220 million being deposited directly into his account still excited him...

Buying a sports car for 47 million earned him a reward of 220 million, so what if he bought that mansion worth over two hundred million later, wouldn't his savings break the 1 billion mark?

This is 1 billion in cash!

Two months ago, wasn't he just a guy with a monthly salary of 4500? And now, two months later, he was about to become a tycoon with 1 billion in cash...

This life was truly amazing...

Seeing Gu Heng's expression, everyone looked a bit puzzled...

Especially the lawyer, well-versed in the law, who even wondered if Gu Heng's money was illegally obtained, hence his eagerness to spend it...

Otherwise, how could someone not only not feel the pinch after spending half a billion but also look utterly relaxed?

Just as Gu Heng was fantasizing about becoming a cash billionaire with 10 billion, 100 billion, or even 1000 billion, the system's cold reality check, though late, arrived.

[When the host's balance reaches 500 million, any indulgence reward will not exceed the threshold of 500 million. The total balance will only increase once the host reaches a certain social status. The system reserves the right to interpret what constitutes social status.]

Gu Heng: "???"

Gu Heng, who had been imagining a bright future, suddenly widened his eyes...

What did it mean to have a threshold for indulgence reward balance?

[For example, if the host's balance is 500 million, whatever the amount of the indulgence reward, it will only fill the gap up to the total threshold of 500 million. If the host's balance is only 1 dollar short of the 500 million mark, then the indulgence reward will be just that 1 dollar.]

Alright...

Alright, alright...

Actually, there's nothing wrong with the system's settings; without a limit, I could become the world's richest person in the shortest time. But then, even if the source of the system's money could withstand scrutiny, I'd probably become a target for everyone...

During this time, as my horizons widened, I also learned a very basic social rule.

That is, social status will always outweigh financial status.

What is financial status?

Simply put, it means I can easily spend 47 million to buy a sports car, then spend another two hundred million to buy my parents a mansion so they could enjoy their later years in comfort. In short, I can get anything money can buy if I want to; that's called financial status.

With this system's cheating, it's not an exaggeration to say my financial status has reached the ceiling of the entire planet.

Because I have an infinite amount of money to squander.

But so what?

Right now, not comparing myself with Lao Ma, Xiao Ma, Lao Wang, Xiao Wang, I can't even compare with Lu Yuan.

There's no other reason; it's simply because my social status isn't enough...

Social status, in a nutshell, is the capacity to spend your money.

Just like the Bugatti Divo I've just bought from Lu Yuan, if I didn't know Brother Lu, what good would it do even if my bank account balance had hundreds of millions?
Experience new stories on empire

I wouldn't even know where to spend that money.

Why? Because my social status isn't high enough.

Wealth and social status complement each other, but it's very obvious which one is more important.

After attaining social status, it's easy to achieve wealth, like Luo Yonghao, who previously went bankrupt from making phones. Why was he able to clear 600 million in debt within a few years? It's just because he had enough social status and influence...

The system had reminded me before to convert money into capital for indulgences, but at that time, I didn't take it seriously...

Now, the system is practically demanding it half-forcefully, so I can't dismiss it any longer...

With that thought, Gu Heng directly tried his luck by asking Lu Yuan, "Brother Lu, how can you improve your social status?"

Lu Yuan looked at Gu Heng with surprise, pondered for a few seconds, and spoke, "Go into politics, do business, get involved in charity."

"How do you mean?"

Gu Heng eagerly lent an ear to start learning.

"There's not much to say about politics; in our country, the highest social status definitely belongs to those with power.

Doing business is also easy to understand—it's about expanding your business; the bigger it gets, the higher your status gets.

Getting involved in charity is... pretty much the same, the bigger you do it, the more money you spend, the higher your social status becomes."

Just as Gu Heng was about to probe further, Lu Yuan's voice continued, "To put it simply, social status is about how many people you can influence. If you start a company that creates hundreds of thousands of jobs, your social status will soar.

It's the same with charity.

The difference is that one earns money from the common people, and the other spends money on them, but as long as you influence a large enough number of people, your social status will increase. If one day the entire world's 7 billion people couldn't do without you, you'd have the highest social status in the world, and no one on the planet would dare touch you."

An epiphany struck...

Gu Heng had thought improving social status was an extremely difficult task...

But now, it seemed not so tough after all...

"Why the sudden interest in this?"

Gu Heng, enlightened by Lu Yuan's words, smiled and shook his head, "Just casually asking."

Seeing Gu Heng's inexplicable demeanor, Lu Yuan could only shake his head and continue, "The sales office staff should be arriving in about 20 minutes. How about I take you for a stroll around the neighborhood first?"

At this moment, Gu Heng no longer had any intention of buying a house.

Normally, if I were to buy this multimillion-dollar mansion, the system might reward me with seven or eight billion, even ten billion or more isn't out of the question.

But now the system has set a balance threshold for me.

If I'm rewarded with 10 billion, that would be a straight-up loss of several billion...

I can't bear such a huge loss...

I must wait until my social status improves and the threshold is removed before buying.

With that thought in mind, Gu Heng directly said, "Tell the sales office people not to come; I'll buy it another time."

Lu Yuan teased with a smile, "Is it because you're running short on money? Do you need me to get the bank to lend you some?"

"I still have over three billion left, but I don't plan to use it to buy a house for now."

Lu Yuan: "???"

Lu Yuan had never doubted Gu Heng's words. Seeing how effortlessly he had spent 47 million buying a car from him, he knew this guy wasn't short on cash...

But hearing that he still had over three billion in cash, he still couldn't help but widen his eyes...

"So, what do you plan to use it for?"

"To elevate my social status."

"???"