When Bao Yu lived in an urban village, she always dreamed of setting up a small stall there to sell snacks.
Unfortunately, she lacked both the courage and the skills before. Now, she feels she can give it a try.
Therefore, when Bao Yu was looking for a house, she didn't look for an apartment building specifically for tenants. Instead, she looked for a ground-floor unit that could be used as a shop.
However, even setting aside the question of whether there would be any available spaces in high-traffic areas, the rent was something Bao Yu couldn't afford at the moment.
So she started walking towards the back street, and sure enough, just one street away, the number of people on this side was much less.
But seeing no houses available for rent, Bao Yu decided to look further back, all the way to the back of the urban village. If the front was a bustling market, then the back was a ghost market. Not only could you not see any people, but because the houses were built so crampedly, it was also impossible to see any sunlight all year round, giving it a somewhat eerie feeling.
Moreover, all the shops here were empty, so Bao Yu went into one that was relatively close to the front to inquire about the rental situation.
"The first floor apartments are all 1,000 a month, with a deposit and payment of one month's rent in advance! Just let me know a week in advance before you leave."
Good heavens, two thousand yuan in one go! Where did Bao Yu get so much money? She just bought fries, and she has less than a thousand yuan in total.
"I'll give you two thousand yuan a month!"
The landlord's eyes widened in surprise. Good heavens, someone actually asked for a rent increase?
Bao Yu quickly said, "Brother, look, we're recording a live show here, I can only rent your place for one month."
Upon seeing the cameraman, the landlord understood: "Oh, there are so many live streams these days. A month is fine too. Shall I write you a written agreement?"
"Don't rush, brother. There's something I need to discuss with you. As you know, there are requirements for us when we're filming a show. This month, they only gave us 1,000 yuan for living expenses, including rent."
That's why I thought about starting a business.
Upon hearing this, the landlord's eyes widened: "What? A thousand yuan? What can you do with that? In the city these days, you need at least three or four thousand a month to live on!"
Bao Yu looked on with empathy: "Who can disagree? Besides, it would be fine if I were alone, but the key is that I have two children to take care of. One child is only 6 years old and the other is only 3 years old. This makes it impossible for me to go out to work. Otherwise, I wouldn't feel at ease leaving two children that big at home."
So I wanted to start a business so I could take care of my child and earn some money at the same time.
How about this? The rent is 2,000, but can we pay you in four installments a month? Or, I'll give you 500 upfront for three days, and then pay you the rest, including the deposit, after three days, is that alright?
Seeing the sincerity in Bao Yu's eyes, the landlord sighed: "You've had it tough too, you're all out here to make money. To be honest with you, if you want to do business, you have to go to South First Street up ahead. There aren't enough people here, you won't be able to succeed."
"Don't end up losing money instead of making it."
Bao Yu is not the same person she used to be; she is still very confident about her food stall.
"Don't worry about that. Once my stall is set up, you'll know once you try it."
Seeing Bao Yu's confidence, the landlord agreed: "Okay, we'll do it your way. I won't take your 2,000 yuan rent for nothing. Come with me!"
As he spoke, the landlord led Bao Yu to another place, just one block away from South First Street. The foot traffic wasn't very high, but it was much better than the place they had just seen.
However, this is a container house, much smaller than the five- or six-story houses on either side.
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