"What message do you want to convey?" the shopkeeper asked, looking at her curiously.
Gan Li lowered her voice: "Shopkeeper, to be honest with you, I want this shop, but not to rent it, I want to buy it."
"Buy?" The shopkeeper wondered if he had misheard. After confirming that Gan Li was indeed saying he wanted to buy the shop, he wondered if he had misheard.
Or perhaps, Manager Gan has lost his mind?
He looked at Gan Li suspiciously and said, "Manager Gan, you're not joking, are you? This shop belongs to Miss Zhao..."
“I know,” Gan Li interrupted him. “Although we have some disagreements, I really like this shop. If she’s willing to sell it, I can just buy it. Wouldn’t that be perfect?”
The shopkeeper was still somewhat hesitant: "Miss Zhao did intend to sell this shop, but between her and you... if she knew that you were the buyer, I'm afraid she wouldn't be willing."
But if it's just a rental, since I currently have the right to use the shop, we can sign the contract without her involvement.
Gan Li sneered upon hearing this: "You know that I don't get along with her. Even if I take over this shop behind her back, as long as she finds out and tells me to get out, I have to get out."
"What, shopkeeper? I'm willing to help you, but you think I'm a fool? Do you think I don't know the stakes involved and are trying to scam me?"
"How dare I! How dare I!"
The shopkeeper was startled by her sharp demeanor and broke out in a cold sweat. He was even more afraid that Gan Li would get angry and refuse to buy anything, so he hurriedly bowed and apologized, saying:
"It's not that I can't pass on your message, but... if Miss Zhao asks about the buyer's identity, how should I answer?"
"Just say that the buyer is the son of a wealthy family who wants to acquire some property, but it's not convenient for him to reveal his identity for the time being, so as not to let the news leak out and cause trouble," Gan Li replied calmly.
The shopkeeper thought for a moment and agreed, saying, "Alright, I'll give it a try, but..."
He looked troubled and hesitated, saying, "If Miss Zhao really agrees, then my rent..."
Gan Li knew exactly what he was worried about, and readily replied, "Don't worry, if this shop really sells, Miss Zhao will naturally refund your rent. I can also give you some extra running fees, how about that?"
Upon hearing this, the shopkeeper was overjoyed. This 120 taels of silver was all his savings. If he could really get it back, that would be wonderful!
As for errand fees, they're just icing on the cake; more is better, but he'll be happy with less.
"That's great! Manager Gan, please rest assured, I will do my best to make this happen!"
...
Zhao Juan has been in a great mood lately. Since she "woke up," she has discovered that the real Zhao Juan is actually incredibly wealthy!
The Zhao family was one of the wealthiest families in town, and Master Zhao only had this one precious daughter, so he naturally doted on her.
Although Zhao Juan was just a young woman, she owned quite a lot of land and shops. According to her maid, these were all part of the dowry given to her by Master Zhao when she first got married.
These past few days, while recovering from her injuries, Zhao Juan has been taking stock of her "assets." The more she looks at them, the happier she becomes, and the more jealous she feels of the real Zhao Juan.
She never imagined that a mere girl like her, who was just married off, would actually receive such a large inheritance!
But the thought that all these things would be hers in the future made her laugh out loud with pride.
"Miss, what's wrong?" The maid Cui'er was worried when she saw her frowning one moment and then smiling foolishly the next.
"It's nothing, I just thought of some happy things," Zhao Juan replied casually.
After she woke up, she was able to read because she had the original Zhao Juan's memories. At this moment, she was looking through the account book and saw a certain entry, which made her frown.
Zhao Juan managed her dowry very well, except for one shop near the dock, which was a money pit. Everything she tried to sell there lost money. Zhao Juan had no choice but to rent it out, but it still ended up losing money.
Thinking of this, she frowned slightly: "By the way, how's that shop that's been losing money doing?"
Cui'er knew which shop she was referring to, and quickly replied, "Miss, it's the same as always. The shopkeeper said he wants to terminate the lease."
"Terminate the lease?" Zhao Juan was furious upon hearing this. "He was the one who begged and pleaded to rent it in the first place. Now he wants to terminate the lease after only a year? There's no way it's that easy to get away with it."
Cui'er whispered, "That shop is really weird. Everyone who rented it before lost money, and now even the current owner can't keep it going..."
"No matter what, we can't cancel the lease!" Zhao Juan said without hesitation. "If we cancel, who would dare to rent to us in the future? Let's just get through these next few years!"
"Won't this cause a scene?"
Zhao Juan frowned even more, thought for a moment, and said, "Find some time to go to that shop and tell him that I agree to let him sublet the shop, and everything else is off the table, otherwise let him wait to be sued!"
"Yes, Miss."
Just as Cui'er was about to accept the order and leave, there was a knock on the door.
"Come in," Zhao Juan said unhappily. "What is it?"
A maidservant came in, bowed, and said, "Miss, the shopkeeper from the dock has arrived. He says he has important business to discuss with you."
"What's he doing here?" Zhao Juan frowned. "Didn't I say there's no way he can cancel the lease?"
The maid replied, "Miss, the manager said he didn't come to terminate the lease, but... but someone wants to buy our shop."
"What?!" Zhao Juan was somewhat surprised: "Someone wants to buy our shop?"
"Yes, that's what the shopkeeper said." The maid nodded affirmatively.
Zhao Juan immediately perked up and hurriedly told the maid to go out and invite the person in.
The young maid turned and left. Cui'er hesitated beside her and said, "Miss, are you really planning to sell that shop? Should we discuss it with the master?"
Upon hearing this, Zhao Juan recalled the days when she worked for Granny Lü and had to ask for permission to buy even a single egg.
Now that she has a different identity, does she have to live at the mercy of others? Besides, the Zhao Juan of the past could make her own decisions about these things!
Thinking of this, she glared fiercely at the maid:
"What's there to ask? That shop has been losing money, and we can't do any business there anymore. No one else is willing to rent it. Now that someone wants to buy it, we'll sell it to avoid being stuck with it for the next two years!"
Cui'er didn't know why she suddenly got angry, but under her murderous gaze, she didn't dare to say anything and weakly lowered her head.
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