Chapter 132 Picking Up a Lot
Jiang Tangtang returned to the county town and began to prepare for the opening on the eighth day of the Lunar New Year. At the same time, she asked Lu Shili to inquire around to see if there were any suitable shops to sell the goods.
Generally speaking, before the eighth day of the Lunar New Year, the real estate agent will not do business, but there are special circumstances, such as when a family has suffered a disaster and needs to sell the house urgently.
When Lu Shili asked, Zhu Chengjiang said, "Don't tell me, Brother Lu, there are actually a few shops with good locations and cheap prices."
Lu Shili raised his eyebrows. "Are you talking about the shops that burned down in Jingfu Building?"
Zhu Chengjiang chuckled and said, "Brother Lu has a very sharp mind. He guessed it right the first time."
"What's going on over there?" Lu Shili ignored Zhu Chengjiang's compliments and asked carefully, "What's the price?"
This is a task assigned to him by his sister-in-law, and he must do it well.
Zhu Chengjiang said, "I don't know what bad luck has befallen the owner of Jingfulou. Ever since the shop burned down, nothing has gone right for him. Just during Chinese New Year, his concubine ran away with her lover, taking the family's money. Several other shops are also experiencing financial difficulties. He had no choice but to sell the shop that burned down."
Lu Shili knew a little about why Jingfu Building was having troubles, but what about the neighbors selling it too?
He frowned slightly and said, "You mean the shops next to Jingfu Tower are also selling it? What? They also have concubines who ran off with their lovers with the money?"
"That's not the case!"
Zhu Chengjiang said, "The two shops next to Jingfu Building were owned by ordinary families. Business wasn't good to begin with, and now half of the shop has been destroyed by fire. The owner of Jingfu Building is unwilling to pay compensation, so the two families decided it wasn't worthwhile to repair the shop. So, after some discussion, they decided to sell it."
Lu Shili pondered for a moment and then said, "What's the price the shop is asking now?"
Zhu Chengjiang raised three fingers and said, "This is just the other party's asking price. If you really want it, the price can definitely be lower."
Lu Shili stood up and said, "Let's go check out the current situation of the two shops first!"
They acted immediately and went to meet the owners of the two shops.
The two of them first went to the house to the left of Jingfu Tower. Due to the wind direction and timely firefighting, her shop was not burned too much. The family asked for three hundred taels of silver. To be honest, they were willing to pay less, but at most twenty taels less.
The house to the right of Jingfu Tower was burned more severely, and most of the shops were burned down.
While the house on the left can be slightly renovated and still be used for business, the house on the right is basically the same as Jingfu Tower and needs to be completely rebuilt.
The owner's price was very low, he was willing to sell the shop for two hundred and twenty taels of silver.
This is about the same price that Yan Yongshou sold Jingfulou for.
Lu Shili was somewhat tempted, but did not make a decision immediately and said he would go back and think about it.
Hearing him say this, the shop owner's face flashed with anxiety, and he advised: "Little brother, if you really want to open a shop in the city, I advise you to buy it. Although my shop was burned down, it has a good location and is spacious. It is very cost-effective."
Lu Shili glanced at the man and said slowly, "If it's really that good, why did you persuade me not to keep it for myself?"
The shopkeeper sighed and said, "If we could, we'd keep it for ourselves. But we used up all our savings when we bought this shop. My wife and I aren't good business people, and after running it for a few years, we've barely made enough to get by. Now, with the fire next door burning down half of our shop, we really can't afford to repair it! Otherwise, we wouldn't be willing to sell it!"
No matter how pitiful the shopkeeper's words were, Lu Shili remained unmoved. He returned to the cake shop first and told Jiang Tangtang about his visit.
Zhang Lu and Du Mudan now know how to make French breadsticks, and Jiang Tangtang is currently teaching them new varieties.
This time, I used milk and raisins.
Jiang Tangtang had someone buy the milk from a farmer on the outskirts of the city, and the raisins were homemade from the grapes in her space.
The addition of these two things greatly enhances the aroma of the bread.
As soon as Lu Shili entered the house, he smelled a rich milky aroma. He immediately lost his composure and happily ran to the kitchen and asked, "What delicious food is my sister-in-law making today?"
Jiang Tangtang handed over a freshly baked loaf of bread and said, "Try it. This is what the shop plans to sell after the New Year. How do you like it?"
Lu Shili didn't bother to flatter her. He took the bread and took a big bite. After finishing the whole loaf, he gave Jiang Tangtang a thumbs up and said, "Sister-in-law, this is really delicious. Do you have any more? One more."
"Still eating? You won't be eating for a while?" Jiang Tangtang said this, but handed another one to Lu Shili.
In fact, she could understand Lu Shili's love for bread very well, and was also very confident about the new products launched in her shop.
Didn’t she feel the same way when she first ate bread as a child?
She later became a jewelry designer, so why did she still learn to make Western pastries? In fact, it was related to her childhood experiences.
Lu Shili ate another piece of bread before talking to Jiang Tangtang about the shop.
He explained the conditions and prices of several shops.
Jiang Tangtang asked, "What do you think?"
"I think what the shop owner said is correct. Jingfu Building has a good location. If it weren't for this incident, I'm afraid it would be difficult to buy a shop in that location."
Lu Shili said, "It's only over two hundred taels of silver to buy a piece of land. It's really expensive!"
Jiang Tangtang thought the same thing. "Can we negotiate the price? If we can get it down to under two hundred taels, I'd buy it."
Lu Shili casually picked up the teacup on the table, took a sip of tea and said, "Jingfu Tower and the shop on the right should not have any major problems. I'm afraid the owner of the shop on the left is unwilling."
Jiang Tangtang handed him a few banknotes and said, "Then go and negotiate to buy both shops. But in addition to these two shops, you must also look for another intact shop that doesn't need much repair."
Lu Shili didn't ask Jiang Tangtang why she wanted to buy so many shops. He just took the banknote and said, "I'll go right away."
"Wait a moment." Jiang Tangtang stopped him, wrapped a few loaves of bread in oil paper and handed them to him. "It's Brother Zhu again who's helping you this time, right? It's New Year's Day, and it's not nice to trouble him. Just bring something with you."
"That kid is in for a treat."
Lu Shili took his things and left, then went back to find Zhu Chengjiang. The two of them spent a lot of effort bargaining with the shopkeeper, and finally spent 180 taels to buy the shop to the right of Jingfu Tower.
"Brother Lu, I'm afraid that Boss Yan isn't so easy to talk to. It won't be easy to get it at this price."
Zhu Chengjiang ate the bread that Jiang Tangtang asked Lu Shili to bring, and treated Jiang Tangtang like her own sister. "If we want to buy the shop smoothly, I'm afraid it won't be easy."
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