Chapter 133 Buying a Shop in the County Town

The following afternoon, after Lin Chunxing and the others finished their work, they took Lin Chuntao to see the shop.

The shop was run by an old lady selling dried goods. There was a storefront in front and a small courtyard in the back, as well as a few rooms for living. The neighbors on both sides had lived on this street for many years.

The old lady looked at Lin Chuntao and said, "Madam Lin, although this house of mine is quite old, I have always taken good care of it, and it is much better than other houses of the same age."

Lin Chuntao looked around and saw that the house was indeed quite nice. After listening to the old lady's words, she smiled and continued, "This house is indeed nice, but Auntie, your dried goods business was doing quite well, why did you suddenly stop?"

The old lady said, "Our family is moving to Yongchang. We still have a house in the county town. We bought it specifically to make dried goods. We won't be living here often anymore. This house will get old if no one lives here for a long time."

Lin Chuntao smiled and said, "That's true."

Many old houses, even though they are very old, can still be lived in for many years. But if people move out, the houses will soon become damp, moldy, rotten and collapse. It is true, as the old lady said, that houses will age if no one lives in them.

The old lady said, "Madam, I heard from your second sister that she wants to buy a shop to start a food business. My location is in the center of the city, and there are no other noodle shops like yours around here. It would be very suitable to open here, and the business will surely prosper in the future. If you are sincere in buying, I will give you a fair price of eighty-five taels."

A few days ago, Lin Chuntao went for a walk and learned a little about the prices of houses in the county. The house had a total area of ​​about 100 square meters, which was not very big. Lin Chuntao felt that the price the old lady was asking for was a bit high. She looked at the house carefully and thought that buying the house was also acceptable. Only after confirming the price did she bargain with the old lady.

"Auntie, what's the lowest price you'd pay for this house?"

The old lady was taken aback for a moment by her bargaining, then smiled and asked, "How much can you offer, madam?"

Lin Chuntao smiled and said, "Auntie, would you sell this house for sixty taels?"

The old lady stared blankly at Lin Chuntao after seeing such a large price reduction. She had been in business for many years and was used to haggling every day, so she didn't change her expression because of Lin Chuntao's bargaining.

She was somewhat amazed by Lin Chuntao's ability to bargain, as she had always thought that many young people were too shy to bargain, and even if they did, they would only offer token prices.

Lin Chunxing and her friends came to see the house yesterday, and she even offered a price. However, Lin Chunxing only said that she would call her sister to come and see it today. When she and Pei Ying were leaving, she asked Pei Ying if they could buy it for seventy-five taels. Pei Ying replied, "Let's wait until your sister comes to see it before we talk about it."

The old lady saw them off and vaguely overheard this conversation.

I thought they would go back and find an adult before coming back, but I didn't expect to hear that they came today. Lin Chuntao is still a young woman.

She took the initiative to quote a fair price. When people hear that, they usually consider the words "fair price" and will hesitate even if they try to bargain, fearing that they might offer too much and the deal will fall through.

But Lin Chuntao really dared to ask for that price.

“My lady, I definitely can’t afford the price you’ve offered. It’s too low. You know this location is the best in our county.”

Lin Chuntao smiled and said, "I know the location of the house is good. We'll buy it to run a food business, and we'll definitely need to renovate the house later, which will cost a lot. It's a small business for us, so it's not suitable for us if it's too expensive. Give us your bottom price, and if it doesn't work out, we won't hold you back."

The old lady smiled and said, "Since you say so, madam, I'll give you a discount. Seventy-eight taels. I used to sell dried goods in this house, and you can use it to sell soup noodles in the future. It's the same business. I've used this house for over twenty years, and I'm a little reluctant to sell it."

Hearing the price, Lin Chuntao realized that the price the old lady quoted was roughly the final price the brokerage firm would pay. If the house were given to the brokerage firm, they would take a cut, so the old lady would definitely not get that much.

"Auntie, don't worry, we'll definitely cherish this house if we buy it. When you come back here, come sit in the shop and I'll treat you to noodles. If you give me a discount, I'll add some for you. How about a fixed price of sixty-five taels?"

After Lin Chuntao finished speaking, she decided not to raise the price any further. If Lin Chuntao could buy it at this price, she would; if not, they would discuss it further.

The old lady understood what she meant and sighed softly, grumbling, "My lady, you've offered too low a price."

She said this, but didn't say she wouldn't sell. Lin Chuntao said, "Auntie, this price is about right. If it's possible, we can go to the government office to get the deed done."

The main value of this house lies in the land itself; building the house didn't cost much.

She had also gone to a real estate agency to get an estimate, and the agency would give her this price. The old lady thought for a moment and said, "Since you are so determined, madam, then let's sell it to you. I also hope to find a family that will cherish the house."

After the old lady agreed, Lin Chuntao smiled and said, "Don't worry, we will definitely cherish this house. Let's go to the government office to complete the deed today."

The old lady said, "I'm free today, I'm available anytime."

Lin Chuntao said, "Then let's go get the money, and we can sign the contract and transfer the money directly at the government office."

Sixty-five taels, to be paid in full at once.

The old lady glanced at Lin Chuntao with some surprise, then said, "No problem, I'll take the house deed and wait for you there."

After making the agreement, Lin Chuntao and the others prepared to exchange the money, while Lin Chunxing followed beside Lin Chuntao in a daze.

The house I just liked yesterday, and I bought it today?

The price was negotiated down from eighty-five taels to sixty-five taels. When Lin Chuntao asked for sixty taels earlier, she gasped, fearing that the old lady would kick them out. Unexpectedly, the old lady wasn't angry, and the two negotiated twice before making a deal.

"Sister, shall we go home now to get the money?"

Lin Chuntao said, "Your brother-in-law has silver notes, we can just go to the money exchange and exchange them for silver."

"Huh? Do we have to use my brother-in-law's money to buy it?"

Upon hearing this, Lin Chunxing immediately felt a little uncomfortable. She quickly explained to Pei Ying, "Brother-in-law, don't be angry. I didn't mean it that way. I just feel that my sister and I are both earning money, and if we buy this shop, we'll be the ones selling soup noodles..."

Pei Ying wasn't angry; Lin Chuntao's actions, along with those of Suan Taiqing and Lin Chunxing, were two different things.

"I'm not angry. What's there to be angry about? Even though you bought this house to run a noodle shop, isn't it all our family's property? Mine belongs to your sister, and the deed will be transferred to your sister's name."

After Pei Ying finished speaking, Lin Chunxing smiled and nodded.

The group went to the money exchange and exchanged silver. Ten taels were exchanged for one ingot. Pei Ying exchanged for nine whole ingots and then exchanged for ten taels of broken silver.

He took the silver to the government office, where the old lady was already waiting, accompanied by a young woman.

Lin Chuntao paid the money in front of the official, and the old lady took out the house deed.

The house deed was in the old lady's name. The official rewrote the deed, and both sides signed and pressed their fingerprints. The officials in the government signed and stamped the deed, and the process was very quick.

Lin Chuntao also had the old lady write a receipt, confirming that she had received sixty-five taels from Lin Chuntao, and the two settled the matter.

The old lady said, "Madam, I won't move the few cabinets and shelves in my room. You can keep the ones you can use. I'll take the door lock with me; you can buy a new one and replace it yourself."

"Thank you, ma'am. We'll buy two locks on our way back."

The old lady and her group went back to get the lock, while Lin Chuntao and her group went to the general store to buy a new key.

Holding the new keys and the property deed, Lin Chunxing was beaming with excitement.

In fact, not only Lin Chunxing, but even Lin Chuntao was a little excited. Although it was just a small house, they now had a shop in the county town.

That way, if it suddenly rains or something, we'll have a place to stay in the county town.

“Sister, now that we have a shop, I think we can make a bed in the backyard. If we can’t go back, we can stay in the county town.”

Lin Chuntao smiled and nodded: "Yes, our family will have a house in the county town from now on."

Pei Ying was still holding the remaining silver in his hand. Seeing Lin Chuntao's happy expression, he thought he should use those silver notes to buy a house.

When they returned to the shop, their neighbors were chatting with the old lady.

Upon seeing Lin Chuntao and her group arrive, the old lady introduced them, saying, "This is the lady Lin who bought my house. They're going to sell rice noodle soup here from now on."

Lin Chuntao smiled at the two old ladies and said, "Hello, ladies. My surname is Lin, you can just call me Chuntao. I was thinking of visiting you in a couple of days after I've tidied up, but I didn't expect to meet you today."

She smiled and spoke gently and kindly, making the old ladies think she was a well-behaved daughter. They smiled and said, "Our house is right next door. Come over and visit when you're done with your work, Chun Tao."

"Alright, once we've tidied up, we'll invite the ladies over for tea."

"You're busy, but we'll be neighbors from now on. Don't hesitate to ask if you need any help."

After exchanging pleasantries, the three elderly women were still chatting, so Lin Chuntao didn't disturb them and went straight into the house.

Just moments ago she was looking at other people's houses, but now it's her own. Lin Chunxing looked around, her mind wandering to the future.

Lin Chuntao smiled and said, "Let's make some plans. We'll get a few more stoves for convenience, and then decide how many sets of tables and chairs to order. Most importantly, we're launching new products! Let's think about what new things we should get."

Lin Chunxing's eyes widened. She skipped over to Lin Chuntao, took her arm, and asked with a smile, "Sister, what new dishes should we serve?"

Lin Chuntao said, "You're mainly in charge of the shop. See if there's anything you want to sell, or plan out breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Think about it."

Lin Chunxing nodded and smiled, "I'll think about it right away."