Chapter 85 Exclusive House Purchase in Jinjiang
"Is it just my imagination? It feels like the provincial capital has changed quite a bit in just over half a month?"
Su Ruyi sat in the car, looking at the scenery outside the window with a puzzled expression.
“This road has indeed changed a lot recently. Look, this whole area has been leveled and a new road has been built. It will become another prosperous area of the provincial capital in the future,” Lu Ting explained.
Looking out the window at the bustling scene, Su Ruyi felt a sense of difference, even though the city had been under construction for a long time.
Especially when Su Ruyi transmigrated, the real estate market was in a slump, housing prices plummeted, and many construction sites were deserted and looked like they were about to stop working at any time, unlike now where it is bustling with activity, and although everyone is poor, they are full of energy and spirit.
"I've taken so long to get here, won't that affect your schedule?"
Su Ruyi originally planned to come back after a week, but it ended up taking a month.
Although she faxed the design drawings to Lu Ting, she was not a professional and did not know much about the current building materials market. She only had a concept but no concrete implementation plan. Lu Ting had not hired a professional interior designer, so it was not easy to put it into practice.
She told Lu Ting on the phone to find someone else first, as she was busy.
Lu Ting insisted that those model rooms were reserved for her, that he was very satisfied with her design, and that he did not want anyone else to interfere.
However, Lu Ting wasn't just waiting for her; he was constantly working, but there was no particular style to it—it was all just the usual, trendy decor.
Currently, there is no such thing as a style in interior decoration, and the overall level is relatively rough.
Everyone was happy to be able to move into a new house and didn't really understand the significance of these things.
Wealthy people are better, but many are nouveau riche who have no concept of style. They just bring home whatever is expensive without paying attention to matching or anything like that. They think it's great even if it's a mess.
Lu Ting chuckled: "You've pushed yourself too hard in just one month. No wonder you're from the South, your pace and rhythm are all about running."
Although Lu Ting was also a decisive and energetic person who acted on his impulses, he knew he was just an average person when he saw Su Ruyi.
The overall atmosphere in Qing Province is quite relaxed, and the pace of life is very slow. It's rare to see someone like Su Ruyi who schedules their time so tightly.
A month is still a month for many people to prepare, but Su Ruyi has already decided that she is slowing down the progress.
"If we work quickly, it could be completed in a month."
The two started talking about work as soon as they met, and even after they sat down in the restaurant, Su Ruyi still wanted to take out the design drafts from her bag to discuss the materials with Lu Ting.
Lu Ting stopped her, "It's lunchtime now, can we not talk about work?"
Su Ruyi then came to her senses. The two hadn't seen each other for so long, and she had only been able to talk about work.
She quickly withdrew her hand, focused her attention on Lu Ting, and stopped mentioning work.
Lu Ting pulled a box bigger than the palm of his hand from his pocket and said, "I went out for a while recently and saw this. I thought it would suit you perfectly."
Although Lu Ting is gradually shifting his career focus, he has not completely cut off his previous business. Sometimes he will still personally make a trip when he gets a big order.
Before the words had even finished forming in my mind, my brain suddenly went blank.
“I noticed that the women who went with me really liked these, so I bought them for you.”
Su Ruyi's lips twitched, but she managed to suppress the speechlessness in her heart.
Inside the box lay a thick gold chain, its design rather questionable. It wasn't even a pure gold chain; it had an added design element, including large, round pearls and some fine-quality white jade.
Su Ruyi liked all of these things, but why would someone put them together so badly, as if afraid others wouldn't know they were nouveau riche?
"How is it? Looks good, right?" Lu Ting asked, looking for praise.
Su Ruyi used all her acting skills to give a compliment, providing ample emotional value, but wearing it was out of the question.
"It's good in every way, but it's a bit too flashy. I'll keep it safe for now and wear it when I'm in my fifties," Su Ruyi said tactfully.
This style is perfect for someone in their fifties.
Lu Ting was not disappointed. On the contrary, he was even happier to hear that someone in their fifties was wearing a hat, which meant that they would be together for a long time.
"Okay, I'll give you another one then, and you can wear them together."
Su Ruyi sighed, "This thing is almost as thick as my neck. What would it be if we added another set?"
Lu Ting usually looks quite respectable, but I never expected him to have such poor taste.
However, Su Ruyi didn't mind. To be fair, this thing didn't suit her aesthetic, but it was very expensive.
As long as Lu Ting doesn't wear a big gold chain all the time or play with beads in his hand, it's fine; her current aesthetic sense isn't quite up to par.
The restaurant was very close to Su Ruyi's shop, but there were no suitable parking spaces there, so they left the car there and walked there.
As they walked side by side, their hands accidentally touched. Lu Ting took the opportunity to hold Su Ruyi's hand, and Su Ruyi did not refuse, which made Lu Ting hold her hand even tighter.
The overall atmosphere in Qing Province is relatively conservative, and even in the provincial capital, there are not many couples walking hand in hand on the street.
The two, one beautiful and the other handsome, attracted the attention of many.
When Luo Youqiong saw the two of them, her eyes were practically glued to their tightly clasped hands.
"What, you don't recognize me?" Su Ruyi said with a smile.
Luo Youqiong then came to her senses and excitedly exclaimed, "Boss! You're finally here!"
The other shop assistants also turned their attention to her. When they saw it was Su Ruyi, they were all about to put down what they were doing and come over to greet her, but Su Ruyi stopped them.
"You all go about your business, don't worry about me."
The shop assistants then went back to what they were doing, but they still kept glancing at Su Ruyi.
The first month's salary has been paid out, and everyone's salary is over 300 yuan, which is a high salary even in the provincial capital, and that's with accommodation included.
This boosted their enthusiasm for their work, making them more actively involved in their tasks.
After hanging up the phone, Sister Wang walked up to Su Ruyi and said:
"Boss, I just received a call from an old customer. He brought a customer from another province with him. They said the customer wants to buy 3,000 pairs of leggings wholesale and wants to get a discount from us."
Whether you order from Sister Wang or from the factory, the price is the same, unless you order in large quantities and need to negotiate further. However, Sister Wang can also discuss and make a decision with the factory, so there won't be much difference.
This is also to better serve our customers, as the factory is located in a small county town, which is not as convenient as being in the provincial capital.
Sister Wang is not only the store manager, but also the general agent in the provincial capital. She needs to maintain customer relationships, and the actual work in the store is mostly handled by Xu Lili.
"We'll discuss this in detail later. Tell me about the recent situation at the store."
Although the two often contact each other by phone, there are many things that cannot be clearly explained over the phone.
Lu Ting then let go of her hand, said goodbye to Su Ruyi, and left. The two agreed to meet again at lunchtime in the afternoon.
Sister Wang briefly explained the recent situation to Su Ruyi, who was most concerned about the internal competition among the store employees.
Because salaries are tied to performance, if not handled properly, it can lead to internal competition.
Sister Wang said, "They are all good girls, nothing like that happened. We have a plan, we take turns serving the guests who come in, whatever kind of guest we encounter, that's what we'll do, we can't compete for customers."
Minor frictions are inevitable, but overall the relationship is harmonious. The members have similar abilities and the income gap is not that large.
Hearing this, Su Ruyi felt relieved and praised, "This is also thanks to you, Sister Wang. If it weren't for you managing things, the atmosphere wouldn't be so good."
Sister Wang waved her hand modestly, saying that she hadn't done anything.
"You are now a formal store manager, and your benefits and compensation are the same as previously agreed. Starting this month, your salary will be calculated as that of a formal store manager."
Upon hearing this, Sister Wang was overjoyed. She had anticipated that her promotion to a permanent position would be no problem, but she never expected to start enjoying benefits this month.
"Thank you, boss!"
"Do a good job. If things go smoothly here, I plan to open another store in the east of the city. I'll appoint you as the general manager of both stores then."
The eastern part of the city is a university town, where most of the major universities in the provincial capital are located, making it a very lively and bustling area with many students.
Leggings are still a popular choice for young and stylish women. Students also readily accept these comfortable and convenient pants that show off their figures, so opening a store there would be a very promising market.
After eating the pancake, Sister Wang didn't think Su Ruyi was just talking.
She had witnessed the popularity of leggings firsthand. Although some people had started wearing them before, the trend had recently exploded, as if everyone had a pair overnight, otherwise they would be considered out of fashion.
As a result, the store has always been doing very well. Even on weekdays like now, the customer flow is still very large, and every salesperson has not had a chance to stop and rest, and has been busy all the time.
This is even with many people not needing service. If it were a clothing store with a wide variety of styles, where staff would be needed to introduce items and help with styling, these few people simply couldn't handle it all.
Nearby clothing stores have also stocked leggings, but they don't have as many varieties as these stores.
The previous advertising was quite effective; everyone recognized the Ruyi brand. Moreover, Ruyi stores not only have unique features but also offer better service than other stores, and there are places to sit and relax outside the main entrance.
Now, a wooden table and stumps have been placed outside the cabin, along with some artificial flowers to create an atmosphere. Many girls love this corner, and some even go there specifically to take photos.
Decades later, many girls still can't resist visiting these tourist attractions, and today's girls are even more so. The decorations in this small place are very novel to many people.
Many people stop here when they walk by.
"It's been stolen from several times," Sister Wang said helplessly.
It's always on display during the day, but it's taken back at night.
The current public security situation is not good, and these things are not as cheap as they will be decades later, making them easy targets for theft.
Although there are people around during the day, it doesn't stop thieves; it's easy for someone to steal a flower or a leaf.
"An old lady almost took the stool away earlier, but luckily Xiao Luo was quick and snatched it back," Sister Wang said speechlessly.
Most people still have a sense of shame, so they do these things secretly, taking only small items and not touching anything bigger.
But the old lady that day completely ignored everything and insisted on taking it away. The stool was actually just a wooden stump; it only looked special when it was paired with other items.
This thing is solid and quite heavy, but the old lady insisted on carrying it away.
When they retrieved it, she argued that she thought it was unwanted because it was outside and wanted to take it home to burn as firewood, which was both ridiculous and infuriating.
Su Ruyi shook her head helplessly. What kind of people are these?
"We can afford to compensate for these losses. Just include them in the normal wear and tear, and consider it a change of scenery."
Su Ruyi had always bought extra artificial flowers and vines before, so that she would have something to replace them if something like this happened.
She deliberately bought different styles so that she could present different feelings and bring a sense of novelty to everyone.
It's just that Su Ruyi wasn't there, and the others didn't have that aesthetic sense, so they could only rigidly replicate it, and the effect wasn't as good.
Su Ruyi spent the afternoon in the store and found that there were no major problems. Everyone's work attitude was very good, the management was orderly, and there was no order-grabbing behavior.
While her presence here might be a factor, a sense of order is not easy to fake, especially when facing real guests.
The next day, Su Ruyi went to the building materials market with Lu Ting to learn about the various decoration materials available.
Su Ruyi's designs are all based on materials from decades later.
Arriving at the so-called provincial capital building materials market, Su Ruyi was very disappointed. It was not a large-scale market at all, with shops scattered here and there. If it weren't for Lu Ting's car, she wouldn't be able to visit more than a few shops in a day.
Most shops are doing very well. Although the real estate market hasn't entered its golden age yet, its future glory is already foreseeable.
"If only there were a one-stop building materials market," Su Ruyi exclaimed.
She's much stronger than before, but she still can't withstand this kind of exertion.
"A one-stop building materials market?"
"The shop has everything, so we don't have to run around like this."
Although Su Ruyi didn't like this type of product before, she preferred to pick things out herself and get good quality items at low prices.
I usually only go to two or three building materials markets, and only for a few special materials do I need to go to other places.
"A large building materials market is going to be built in the western district, and it will be much easier to buy materials then than it is now."
“This industry is sure to be booming in the future, but unfortunately I don’t have the connections, otherwise I would also like to invest,” Su Ruyi said regretfully.
Although she really wanted to do it, and could find a way, it was too troublesome.
The market is not truly open yet, and some building materials require complicated procedures or connections to purchase. Su Ruyi finds it troublesome just thinking about it, as dealing with various interpersonal relationships is what she hates most.
If there were no other options, she would still try, but now that there are money-making projects, there's no need to make things difficult for herself.
“I bought a shop in the West District Building Materials Market and am considering opening a related shop. The one-stop shop you mentioned is pretty good. If you are interested, you are welcome to invest.”
Due to demand, Lu Ting has opened up many material procurement channels recently, some of which were obtained by exchanging his existing resources.
To maximize its use, simply using it for his own purposes was definitely not enough, so Lu Ting planned to open a store.
Su Ruyi shook her head. If they were just ordinary friends, that would be fine, but now that they were in a relationship, it was better not to get too entangled in their careers.
"I think I'll pass. I don't have much money right now. I'm planning to buy a house in the provincial capital first. Do you have any suggestions?"
Su Ruyi will still frequently travel to the provincial capital in the future, and it's not appropriate for her to always stay in hotels. Su Ruyi still finds beds that many people have slept in a bit repulsive.
With housing prices not high now and she having some money on hand, she might as well buy a house.
If the property price goes up in the future, you can sell it or rent it out, and that will be pure profit.
Do you want to buy a new house or an old house?
"Anything is fine, as long as the transportation is convenient and the house is comfortable to live in. Anyway, I will definitely renovate it."
“In the neighborhood where you measured the house, several new buildings have already been topped out, and you can take possession of the house before the Chinese New Year. Do you want to go and take a look? I know the developer, and I can give you a discount.”
Su Ruyi agreed without hesitation. The location was good. Although it was far from the city center, given the current development of the provincial capital, it would become a new prosperous area. Buying a house there would be a sure win.
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