Chapter 249 Property Investment
Zhu Lan and Zhu Qingyan had to report to the Hanlin Academy in the palace every day, and although the Ministry of Revenue and Finance Office where Qiao Youyou and Xiao Wan worked was outside the palace, it was not too far away.
Finally, the four girls decided to rent a house together. They looked at houses separately first, collected information, and then discussed together.
Zhu Lan and Zhu Qingyan acted together. They took off their scholar's clothes and put on plain dresses. They walked on the bluestone road and appeared on the streets of the capital. The prosperity of the capital was even better than that of Jiangzhou City. Soon, the sign of a dental shop on the corner of the street attracted their attention.
"Fudi Dental Clinic".
The storefront of this dental clinic is extremely small, not even as big as the signboard. It seems like a corner that was forcibly carved out from the shop next door, just like a standalone dental clinic.
"Ladies, are you here to look for a house? Do you want to buy a house or a piece of land, or just rent a place temporarily?" When the broker saw guests coming to his door, he hurried out to greet them and asked with a smile on his face.
Zhu Lan looked inside the dental clinic and saw that although the space was small, the furnishings were simple and quaint. There were paintings of various types of houses hanging on the walls, and it seemed that there were quite a few houses available.
Zhu Qingyan also suggested that it might be worth going in and taking a look.
The two walked into the brokerage office. Zhu Lan nodded slightly to the broker, briefly explained the conditions, and asked if he had any suitable houses to recommend.
Upon hearing this, the broker hurriedly took down several scrolls from the wall, spread them out in front of Zhu Lan one by one, and began to introduce them.
The price was within Zhu Lan's budget. For four people to rent together, the most expensive one would not exceed five taels of silver per month. However, this house...
Either there is no sunlight all day, or it is extremely cramped and small, or it is right next to the market.
Zhu Lan wanted to find a low-key and ordinary house, but he didn't want to embarrass himself like that. Zhu Qingyan, who was standing by, also frowned slightly.
Zhu Lan shook his head and was about to suggest that the budget could be increased when the man suddenly revealed a somewhat mysterious smile.
"It seems that the young lady is also a respectable person. In this case, I will also suffer a loss and give up some profits. I will just be friends with you two."
The broker winked at Zhu Lan, signaling them to wait for a moment, and then turned and went into the inner room. Soon, the broker came back with a new scroll.
"Ladies, please look——"
He slowly spread out the scroll and saw that the house on it was painted very beautifully, with pavilions, towers, rockery and flowing water, everything available, elegant without being extravagant.
Zhu Qingyan's eyes lit up slightly, and he looked at Zhu Lan with some anticipation.
"This house is located in the east of the city. It has a quiet environment and an elegant layout. It is indeed an excellent choice." The broker introduced.
Zhu Lan looked at the layout of the house and couldn't help but feel tempted, so he asked about the price.
The broker did not answer directly. "If a house like this were sold to a large real estate agency in the city, the rent would be at least ten taels of silver a month."
Then he suddenly lowered his voice and said, "I see that I like the two young ladies today, so I'll give you a good discount, three taels of silver a month."
"Three taels of silver?" Zhu Qingyan thought he had misheard, but the broker repeated it again, it was indeed three taels of silver.
Zhu Lan couldn't help but raise his eyebrows after hearing this, "Then I'm afraid you won't even be able to recover your costs."
The broker laughed and said, "To be honest, the owner of this house is a distant relative of mine. His family is in urgent need of money, but he is reluctant to sell the house completely, so he asked me to rent it out at a low price."
"Since you are in urgent need of money, then paying three taels of silver a month may not be enough to solve your urgent need, right?" Zhu Qingyan felt that it didn't make sense.
"You are really smart, young lady. You hit the nail on the head. Although this house is cheap, you have to rent it for two years at least, and pay the full rent in one go."
Zhu Lan and the other person were silent.
The Ya people were experienced and knew that the more times like this, the more they should not be anxious, otherwise it would easily make the other party suspicious. "The two girls, please take your time to think about it. I will go and get busy first."
After saying that, he walked to the side, picked up the account book and started looking at it without urging them, as if he was not worried at all that the two would refuse.
Zhu Qingyan discussed with Zhu Lan in a low voice, "If a house like this can really be rented at three taels a month for two years, it would be a huge bargain."
Zhu Lan glanced at the broker and said, "But most other real estate agencies pay every three months, but here you have to pay two years' rent in one lump sum. Seventy-two taels is not a small amount. Don't you find it strange?"
Zhu Qingyan thought for a moment and said, "Maybe the owner of the house is really in urgent need of money?"
The main thing is that a house of this level, for four people to live together, only costs three taels of silver a month, it is hard not to be tempted.
Zhu Qingyan secretly glanced at the broker again and saw that he was not pushing him and had a completely voluntary attitude towards the transaction, which did not seem like a liar at all.
Zhu Lan was about to speak when he saw another man enter the brokerage firm and ask the broker about the properties available.
The broker introduced several places to the other party, but the man shook his head to show that he was not very satisfied. Then his eyes fell on the scroll in front of Zhu Lan and the other man, and he immediately became interested.
"Has this house ever been rented out or sold?"
The agent looked at Zhu Lan and the others with some embarrassment before saying that the house had not been rented out yet.
The other party asked about the price in a hurry, and the broker gritted his teeth and said five taels of silver per month.
When the man heard that it was only five taels of silver a month, but the minimum rent was two years, he immediately slammed the table.
"Is there such a good thing? Bring me the deed immediately!"
Zhu Qingyan suddenly became anxious, "My dear brother, everything should be based on first come first served. We were the first to see this house."
Zhu Lan looked up at her with some helplessness. She was indeed still young and had not suffered enough from the harsh punishments of society.
Well, let's teach her a lesson.
When the man heard this, he immediately became angry and loudly asked the broker who he was willing to rent the house to.
The broker was in a dilemma and seemed to be unable to make a decision. Finally, he walked up to Zhu Qingyan and asked her in a low voice if she really wanted to rent the house.
Zhu Qingyan was about to agree, but he held back and looked at Zhu Lan with an inquiring look.
Zhu Lan spoke calmly and made the final decision, "We have rented this house."
The broker walked up to the man, and the two exchanged glances. The broker said in embarrassment, "Sir, I'm really sorry, it was indeed these two girls who took a fancy to you first. You see, we are already ready to sign the lease..."
"I've never seen you do business like this!" The man said two more harsh words "unhappily" and walked away.
The broker hid the triumphant smile in his eyes, took out the lease from the back hall, and handed over a piece of paper and pen. It was clearly written on it that the rent must be 72 taels, to be paid in one lump sum.
Zhu Lan glanced at the lease with a smile, but did not start writing. He asked, "No hurry, you have to take us to see the house first, right? Otherwise, if we move in and the house is different from the one in the painting, we won't be able to explain it."
A trace of hesitation flashed through the eyes of the broker, and then he smiled and said, "Whatever you think, I will take you to the house to have a look. However, if the house is the same as shown in the painting, you two ladies can't regret it.
You can see that the guest just now was eager to rent the house for five taels of silver. I am an honest business owner. I would rather make less money than not make up for the order of arrival. If the two girls regret it for no reason later, it will really be a big mistake for me!"
Zhu Qingyan nodded and said kindly: "Don't worry, we really want to rent this house. If it is consistent with the picture, we have no reason to regret it."
"Okay, then I'll take the two girls there right away." The broker took out a bunch of keys from the drawer and led the two girls outside.
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