Although they were all one-bedroom apartments, one had an elevator, was slightly smaller, but offered a view of a sliver of Chaoyang Park seen between two residential buildings.
The other was a third-floor unit without an elevator, about fifty square meters, which Guo Da strongly recommended.
"Look at the planning of this neighborhood, there will be a subway station at the entrance in the future. And with this area, you can partition it into a two-bedroom apartment and rent it out for a higher price."
The last unit had neither a view nor an elevator, and was also small, but it was stylishly renovated. Mirrors and crystal chandeliers, popular nowadays, were squeezed into less than forty square meters of a one-bedroom apartment.
By the time they finished looking at the three apartments, it was already past four in the afternoon. Guo Da, who had been showing Liu Chen around, was drenched in sweat. However, one thing was that Guo Da never rushed Liu Chen, only when Liu Chen seemed uninterested, he explained that time was tight and he would look for more options if given another two days.
Liu Chen sat in Guo Da's car, glanced at the time on her phone, and then turned to the sweating Guo Da, saying,
"Brother Guo, you've worked hard all day today. It's almost dinner time, let's go eat, and we can discuss buying a house."
Wei Wanyan was arm in arm with Zhu Yingshao, waiting for their number to be called outside Tai Feng Lou in Beijing. People said you had to eat in Beijing at least once. Although a meal cost nearly a thousand yuan, it was worth it. However, in this hot summer, sitting outside, even with fans blowing, was stuffy.
Just then, Wei Wanyan heard the laughter from the airplane again. She turned her head and saw the younger of the two sisters from the airplane.
Upon hearing her mention buying a house, Wei Wanyan rolled her eyes. As the agent drove past her, she pulled him aside and whispered,
"Don't be fooled by her. She just came to Beijing from C City yesterday and flew economy class. Buying a house? I think she's just playing with you to get a free meal!"
After hearing this, Guo Da actually felt some regret. What had possessed him to believe that a high school student could afford 550,000 yuan, and then spend the whole day with her looking at houses?
Hearing the beautiful woman's words, Guo Da also thought that Xiao Liu was just trying to trick him into a meal. He sighed, "Forget it, forget it. I, Guo Da, am a Beijing man after all. It's just a meal. If she's tricking me, so be it. The young girl has been running around all day just for a meal."
When he drove his Alto car to the roadside and picked up Xiao Liu, Guo Da opened his mouth, wanting to say that he knew everything and that Xiao Liu didn't need to pretend anymore. But thinking about it, the girl was shy, so he decided against it.
Guo Da hesitated several times, and Liu Chen noticed it, but she thought it was because Guo Da was disappointed that she hadn't liked any of the houses after looking all day.
The car stopped near Quanjude. Guo Da himself was not short of money. He had opened a real estate agency in the first place to rent out the dozens of properties he and his relatives had received from demolition. Now that he intended to treat them, he naturally wouldn't be stingy.
"Brother Guo, please order. What would you like?" As it was a treat, letting the guest order was the most basic courtesy. Liu Chen handed the menu to Guo Da.
Guo Da took the menu and felt a little better. He had initially thought that if Xiao Liu ordered a bunch of expensive dishes randomly, he would drive away halfway through the meal. But seeing that Xiao Liu was so sensible, why wouldn't he, a Beijing man, treat a young tourist to a Peking Duck? They were fated to meet!
While waiting for the roast duck, Liu Chen finally spoke,
"Brother Guo, I looked at three apartments today and wasn't very satisfied. Of course, I know it's related to my budget. How about this? My budget is up to 670,000 yuan, including all expenses. The decoration doesn't matter, as long as it's south-facing, and preferably with a little view."
Guo Da was furious. He felt like he was already treating her to a meal, and yet Xiao Liu was still not being honest. Who increases their budget by 120,000 yuan in an afternoon when buying a house? Wasn't this just playing him for a fool? He was so angry that he decided he had to make Xiao Liu realize that he knew she was tricking him!
With a glint in his eye, Guo Da said,
"Xiao Liu, how about this? If your budget is 670,000 yuan, I actually have a suitable apartment. It's a seventy-square-meter two-bedroom unit on the third floor, simply furnished, facing east with a view of Chaoyang Park. However, the seller is in a hurry to sell, needs to sign the contract tomorrow, and requires full payment."
Liu Chen's spine involuntarily straightened upon hearing these terms. Such a good deal? After looking around today, she had a rough idea of housing prices. A two-bedroom apartment like this would be at least 850,000 yuan!
If it weren't for the diving competition she had to watch tonight and the flag-raising ceremony tomorrow morning, Liu Chen would have dragged Guo Da to see the apartment right away!
"How about this, Brother Guo? I'll go with you to see the apartment tomorrow morning. If there are no major problems with the apartment, I'll pay a deposit of 400,000 yuan, and I'll pay the rest within a week. Is that okay?"
"Huh?"
Now it was Guo Da's turn to be stunned. He had deliberately said that to discourage Xiao Liu, but Xiao Liu actually said she would go see the apartment tomorrow and even pay a deposit?!
The apartment did exist. It was a property allocated to his second uncle when he was working. Later, after the procedures were completed, the ownership became a tradable commodity housing.
But...
His second uncle's asking price for that apartment was 820,000 yuan!
It's okay, it's okay. Xiao Liu might just be bluffing. Maybe she won't come tomorrow morning?
With this on his mind, Guo Da ate the Peking Duck without tasting a thing...
When he finally went to pay the bill with the menu, Guo Da was even more depressed. He had spent hundreds of yuan to treat them, and he hadn't tasted anything. What a waste!
"Sir, your table has already been paid for. Please take care."
"Ah? When was it paid? I didn't pay!"
"Well, it seems like a fair-skinned, pretty young lady paid the bill. She seems to have already left."
Liu Chen was already in a taxi. She didn't want Guo Da to know her address. Although she felt that the agent was a kind person after spending the day together, kindness didn't preclude him from trying to inflate the price if he saw her living in a courtyard house.
No one is a saint, so there's no need to test anyone.
After returning to the courtyard house and changing her clothes, Liu Chen then got into a black Mercedes-Benz with a star logo driven by Xiao Cai to pick up her aunt and Wang Dong.
Hu Min and Wang Dong were waiting for Chenchen at the entrance of the Beijing Hotel. They had initially planned to stay in a hotel nearby for three to four hundred yuan a night. However, yesterday Xiao Cai had taken them directly to the Beijing Hotel and said that the hotel had a corporate rate, costing only three hundred yuan a day, which they found acceptable, so they stayed.
"Auntie!"
Liu Chen rolled down the car window and waved to the two standing outside the hotel.
Wei Wanyan, who had just finished dinner and was taking a taxi back to her hotel, heard this voice and instantly turned her head. She saw the elder of the two sisters from the airplane and her companion getting into a Mercedes-Benz starting with an 'S', leaving only exhaust fumes in the air.
Wei Wanyan was dumbfounded. She turned her head to look at her companion: "Zhu Yingshao, didn't you say we were different people, that our lives were like two parallel lines? How come we run into each other everywhere we go? And we queue up for food while they buy houses, we take taxis while they ride in a Mercedes?"