Chapter 006

Chapter 006

Although it was the sweltering summer heat during the trip, the first-class cabin Lu Mingzhu was in had the most advanced air conditioning. It was comfortably cool, neither too hot nor too cold, keeping her from breaking a sweat.

In addition to a single bed, the cabin also had a set of sofas, a vanity set, a wardrobe, a desk, a coffee table, and more, making it akin to a hotel room.

Every detail was meticulously designed for luxury.

No matter the era, wealth allows one to enjoy the best treatments.

Lu Mingzhu took off her shoes and lay on the bed. She thought to herself how fortunate she was to be a wealthy miss. If she were a poor farmer, how would she ever have the chance to board such a luxurious cruise ship in the 1950s?

Farmers worked the land from sunrise to sunset, barely scraping by year after year. After paying their taxes, they barely had enough food left to eat a full meal. For some, a diet of half grains and half vegetables was considered a luxury, and many lived in constant hunger at all times. Ordinary workers, on the other hand, went out early and returned late, earning next to nothing after a month’s hard work, and after deducting living expenses, they had almost nothing left.

At least they didn’t have to leave their homes behind like she did.

Lu Mingzhu tossed and turned on the bed, unable to fall asleep. She didn’t feel like going out for fresh air either, so she got up, put on her slippers, and took out a copy of *Dream of the Red Chamber* from her luggage to pass the time. However…

As soon as she sat down at the desk and opened the first page, she awkwardly realized she was now functionally illiterate!

Used to reading simplified Chinese in horizontal format, she struggled to adapt to the vertical layout of traditional characters.

Many characters had so many strokes that they were annoying. While she could mostly recognize them by comparing them to simplified characters, some remained completely foreign to her.

Although there weren’t many unfamiliar characters, they greatly affected her reading.

Lu Mingzhu then realized that while she had inherited the original body's memories, she hadn’t fully inherited her multiple talents or skills. Whether it was the English, Japanese, French, and German that the original body was proficient in, or the singing, dancing, and pipa playing that she excelled at, Lu Mingzhu felt as if there was a veil separating her from them. They were just out of reach.

Lu Mingzhu had an intuition that if she didn’t start learning these skills from the beginning and persistently practice them, she would never be able to master them.

She quickly took out a Parker fountain pen and a notebook, bent over the desk, and wrote her study plan.

The transition from simplified Chinese to traditional Chinese was a bit difficult. If she wasn’t careful, Lu Mingzhu would write in simplified Chinese. To avoid raising suspicion, she had to smudge it out and rewrite it.

While it wasn’t as fluid as writing in simplified Chinese, it still looked presentable.

By the time she finished the plan, she glanced at her watch and saw that the needle was already pointing to 11:23.

The watch belonged to her original body, a diamond-encrusted Patek Philippe ladies' watch. It was delicate and elegant, eye-catching without being over-the-top. The black strap fit snugly on her slender left wrist, making her skin appear even more fair and flawless.

Lu Pingan knocked and entered. “Auntie, it’s time for lunch.”

“I’ll be right there,” Lu Mingzhu said, closing her notebook. “Did you call Uncle Li?”

“I’m here, Miss Mingzhu,” Uncle Li said, dressed in a sharp suit, his graying hair slicked with pomade. At over fifty, he didn’t look like a servant but rather a successful businessman.

Lu Mingzhu raised an eyebrow. “Uncle Li, are you dressed so formally?”

Uncle Li said with a smile, “The voyage is long and can get quite tedious. The foreigners on this ship pay a lot of attention to their attire at meals. Breakfast, lunch, dinner, and afternoon tea are all treated like formal banquets, so I naturally need to follow local customs.”

Lu Mingzhu searched through the original body’s memories and realized it was true!

The original body had traveled abroad with her parents and had been on a similar luxury cruise.

Lu Mingzhu hadn’t bothered to dress up and was still in her blue shirt and black skirt. She headed to the dining room with Uncle Li and Lu Pingan, meeting the four or five servants who were staying in third-class cabins.

The dining room was enormous, capable of seating over a thousand people.

Ornately carved pillars supported the ornate ceiling, and the walls were adorned with opulent decorations, featuring intricate murals and carvings. It felt like stepping into a grand palace.

Oh, there's also a bar counter offering alcoholic beverages.

Lu Mingzhu was astonished.

She was blown away by what she saw.

This is the 1950s, after all. This cruise ship surpasses the ones she would ride several decades later. Only super luxury cruise ships costing tens of millions and charging hundreds of thousands per night could surpass this one.

At this moment, a foreign staff member speaking English came to invite them to be seated and handed them a menu.

The menu was bilingual, Chinese and English, which was very thoughtful.

It offered both Western cuisine and Chinese and Japanese dishes, available for guests to choose from.

Uncle Li, who used to be Wang Xingcai's study companion, was quite intelligent and had read many books. Wang Xingcai took Uncle Li with him when he studied abroad. As a result, Uncle Li's English was very fluent. After exchanging a few words with the waiter, he passed the menu to Lu Mingzhu. "Miss Mingzhu, would you like to try Western cuisine? I've had it before, and it's very authentic, better than most Western restaurants in Shanghai."

"I can try it," Lu Mingzhu ordered according to her own taste.

Lu Pingan ordered the same as her.

The aunt and nephew sat at the same table as Uncle Li, while the other servants sat at another table.

There were many people dining, and most of them were eating Western food and drinking foreign alcohol.

Some were foreigners, some were Chinese employees of foreign companies, and some were wealthy merchants from Shanghai. Many brought their families along, all looking glamorous. There were no ordinary people, however.

"Uncle Li, how are the housing prices in Hong Kong now?" Lu Mingzhu was particularly concerned about this.

The first thing to do upon arriving in Hong Kong was to own a house.

Uncle Li thought for a moment and replied, "Two years ago, Hong Kong had only a few hundred thousand people, and property prices were very low. In the last two years, a large number of people have poured in, and this year the population has reached 2 million. Land and property prices have risen quite a bit. When Young Master arrived in Hong Kong, he started a real estate business. At that time, the price per square foot was only a few dozen dollars. It surged dramatically for a while, rising to 200 dollars per square foot, but property prices were around 20 to 30 dollars per square foot."

Lu Pingan exclaimed in surprise, "The property prices are lower than the land prices?"

"Yes, it's strange, isn't it? Everyone found it odd, but it's a fact," Uncle Li said, sipping his champagne before continuing, "Miss Mingzhu, if you and Young Master Pingan are buying a property, I suggest you buy one in Pok Fu Lam. It's close to the University of Hong Kong, convenient for both of you to study."

Lu Mingzhu nodded.

Uncle Li said, "Ask Young Master! He developed a real estate project on Sha Tsui Road in Pok Fu Lam."

Lu Mingzhu made a mental note. Before she could respond, Lu Pingan chimed in, "Buying a property isn't worth it. It's better to buy land and build a house yourself. You could build as many floors as you like, as tall as you want, and in whatever style you choose."

Uncle Li smiled upon hearing this, "This gentleman is correct. There is such a regulation, and many buildings are four or five stories. Even if you buy land immediately, it won't be ready for construction, let alone moving in, anytime soon. So it's still more convenient to buy an existing property."

Uncle Li recognized him as a well-known agent in Hong Kong and introduced him to Lu Mingzhu. "Miss Mingzhu, this is Mr. Zhao Sinan, also from Shanghai. He went to Hong Kong many years ago and has an excellent reputation in the jewelry and real estate brokerage business."

Lu Mingzhu became interested immediately. "What exactly does a jewelry broker do?"

She had heard of real estate agents in Hong Kong, what would later become real estate agents in the mainland, called intermediaries in ancient times. But what exactly is a jewelry broker? Is it like a real estate agent, but for jewelry?