Mrs. Zhen ca back a bit later than usual, but it was still before 5 o’clock.
After all, she had an arrangent with the gatekeeper Brother Wang, and if she was late, she would have to make him wait, which is certainly not the way to treat a guest!
Mrs. Zhen whispered a few words to Zhen Yu before hurrying downstairs to First High School.
Zhen Yu also called over Zhang San and Li Si’er, and had her brother bring along the master and fellow apprentices.
Out of the six apprentices, only two were able to co; the rest had strict parents and had to be ho on ti.
Zhen Yan didn’t press the matter upon hearing his sister’s request. There would be plenty of opportunities in the future, no need to rush this ti.
The group headed to the restaurant Mrs. Zhen and Zhen Yu had agreed upon, and just as they were seated in the private room, Mrs. Zhen arrived with her guests.
Zhen Yu introduced everyone around. After a few rounds of drinks and nurous dishes, Mrs. Zhen began to speak.
She stood up with her beer glass in hand, "The main reason I’ve gathered everyone here today is for my son. This is his first ti away from ho. If he ever encounters any difficulties at school, I’m counting on you for help, Brother Wang! And as for outside of school, I’m looking to you three, Brother Xu! Now, let’s drink to that!"
"Of course, of course!" All four raised their glasses, exchanging polite remarks.
After that round of drinks, Mrs. Zhen sat down and had a few bites before speaking again.
"I only have this son and a daughter. In a couple of years, my girl will also co to study in Qi City. We’re considering moving our family here."
Listening to her tone, everyone understood the purpose of today’s al once Mrs. Zhen ntioned ’moving’—after all, you need a place to live when you’re relocating!
"I have another favor to ask today; I’m looking to buy a shop near First High School, ideally one that is suitable for both living and conducting business."
Grandpa Wang sighed, "Properties and shops around here are in high demand, so they won’t co cheap!"
"Indeed!" Xu Lin nodded, "I heard my father say he spent nearly thirty thousand to buy our second-floor property, which is almost 84 square ters."
"When did he buy it?" Zhen Yu instantly inquired upon hearing the price.
"The year before last, when I decided to co back and open the Martial Arts Hall."
Zhang San imdiately interjected, "Then it must have increased in value by now!"
"The price must have increased for sure. But the key is that they aren’t easy to purchase," Grandpa Wang took a bite of his dish, "I do know of a shop at the school gate that’s looking to sell, but the catch is they’re selling everything together, including the inventory."
Zhen Yu’s brow slightly furrowed upon hearing about selling the shop, but she still asked, "What kind of shop is it?"
"A convenience store that sells stationery and snacks; they carry a wide variety of items."
Zhen Yu suddenly rembered the ’sister’ she asked for directions last ti, "Is it the one right across from the school gate?"
"That’s the one!"
Zhen Yu shook her head; it was too close to the school!
She recalled from her past life that the issue of minors going online had caused a big stir, and the governnt later introduced policies strictly prohibiting internet cafés within a few hundred ters of schools.
"I don’t want the shop to be too close to the school. It should be at least four to five hundred ters away."
Everyone at the table turned their heads in surprise; people usually aim for business close to schools, why would she want to buy a shop farther away?
Zhen Yu, unable to explain, rely offered an awkward yet polite smile.
—
Mrs. Zhen trusted her daughter unconditionally. Since she ntioned four to five hundred ters, that’s the distance they would aim for.
"With that criterion in mind, do any of you brothers know of any suitable places?"
"I know one!" A boy next to Zhen Yan suddenly spoke up, imdiately attracting the attention of everyone present.
The focus of the ’focus fire’ was Zhen Yan’s third senior brother, whose baby-fat adorned round face turned beet red as he stuttered, "It’s my relative’s, they, they can’t keep their training class running."
Zhen Yan quickly grabbed his arm and asked, "What kind of training class? Where is it?"
"Taekwondo, just, just not far from our Martial Arts Hall."
Zhen Yu couldn’t help but feel amused. What kind of coincidences were these? Was this Taekwondo class the sa one they had visited before?
After so questioning, everyone discovered that it was indeed that one!
Except the indifferent man they encountered last ti was just an employee teaching classes, not the actual owner, who was the boy’s relative.
Thinking about that man’s attitude, it was not surprising that the training class was failing.
With that in mind, Zhen Yu threw out a barrage of questions, "What did your relative say? Are they looking to transfer ownership or sell the property? Is it just the second floor?"
The boy couldn’t answer any of the questions, but Zhang San’er took over the conversation, "I know!"
It was then that Zhen Yu rembered there were two of them who had been sparring partners there. "Let’s hear it!"
"We’ve seen that relative when we applied for the job. The property is the second floor, while the first floor belongs to soone else. The second floor is probably less than a hundred square ters."
"That big?" Mrs. Zhen was sowhat surprised, a large storefront would definitely cost more! But Xiao Yu had ntioned needing computers as well...
"This storefront will do!" Zhen Yu did so ntal calculations based on the price Xu Lin provided; the place should have been about thirty-five thousand two years ago, so now it would be over forty thousand.
After all, the second floor is cheaper than the first, and it would be quite suitable for an internet café on the second floor.
——
Zhen Yu turned to the round-faced third senior brother, "Can you help us make a connection? Let’s find an opportunity to et and talk tomorrow."
"Sure! What ti tomorrow?" The boy’s face was still flushed as he said, "My na is Cao Zhixin."
"How about we et at the Taekwondo Hall at nine o’clock tomorrow morning?" Zhen Yu pondered for a mont before suggesting.
"It’s settled! Definitely! My uncle isn’t working; he’s free all day!" Cao Zhixin nodded vigorously.
"Then thank you so much!"
"No, no problem!"
The conversation here ca to a close, and everyone started to chat about other things.
Seeing that the al was almost over, Li Si’er hesitated for a long ti before finally speaking up.
"Little sister!" He called out to Zhen Yu, and only after Zhen Yu looked at him, did he speak up, "I heard about another shop for sale this afternoon. Do you want to hear about it?"
Zhen Yu’s eyes lit up, "Of course, I want to hear!"
"The one I heard about is on the street to the east of the school, a restaurant. Connected first and second floors, got to be around a hundred square ters or so."
"Two floors?" To be honest, Zhen Yu’s budget allowed for a maximum of forty-five thousand for purchasing a shop.
After all, her total budget was around eighty thousand, at most eighty-five thousand, with forty thousand needed to buy computers.
But! If there really was a suitable property, she was not opposed to spending all her money on the shop. Buying property now was an investnt, as prices were sure to rise sharply in the future!
And the money for the computers could be covered by taking out a mortgage on the new property. Using the bank’s money to make money might an paying interest, but compared to the profits, the interest would be nothing but a drizzle!
"Right! Two floors. The first floor is the main hall, and the second floor is private rooms, nicely decorated." Li Si thought the Zhen family might not be able to afford it, but still, you have to look! So when he finally heard about a shop for sale, he thoroughly checked the place inside and out. The boss kept offering cigarettes and pouring water, thinking they had a real buyer!
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