Seeing Wen Xiangjie walk into the store, Dorothea, who was behind the counter, came forward to greet her.
"You're here, so early today?" she asked, glancing at the time with a hint of surprise.
"I don't have classes starting today, so I'll have plenty of free time from now on," Wen Xiangjie replied with a smile.
"As expected of you," Dorothea nodded, accepting the news well. "Are you here to see me about the Residential Area villa?"
"Yes."
"Alright, I've already contacted her for you. It's not convenient for me to leave right now, so you can just wait at the entrance of the Residential Area. I'll have her come out to pick you up and show you the house," Dorothea said.
She took out a portrait and handed it to Wen Xiangjie. "This is the person I contacted for you. Her name is Bernadette. I've already described your appearance to her, so she'll definitely recognize you at a glance."
Wen Xiangjie took the portrait and examined it for a few moments, memorizing Bernadette's appearance.
"Okay, thank you."
After bidding farewell to Dorothea, Wen Xiangjie left the store and teleported to the Residential Area. This was Wen Xiangjie's first time visiting the Residential Area.
The Residential Area looked no different from a modern high-end villa district, but it was clear from the main gate outside the villa area that the architectural style here incorporated many card-related elements; even the main gate outside the villa area was designed to resemble a flipping card.
Only householders living in the villas within the Residential Area, or those possessing a specific token designated by a householder, were permitted to enter; outsiders were not allowed.
Wen Xiangjie stood by the side of the Residential Area's main gate, waiting for Bernadette to appear.
"Goddess?!"
A familiar voice and a familiar address. Wen Xiangjie turned her head and, as expected, saw Wang Zhizhen walking towards the villa area.
Seeing that it was indeed Wen Xiangjie standing by the main gate of the villa area, Wang Zhizhen's expression visibly became excited.
She jogged a few steps and arrived in front of Wen Xiangjie.
"Goddess, you're here at the Residential Area too!" Wang Zhizhen said happily. "But strangers aren't allowed in here. I have a token from a Card Master who lives inside, and I'm quite familiar with the security guards here. If you want to go in, Goddess, I can take you."
"No need, someone will come out to pick me up shortly," Wen Xiangjie said, shaking her head with a smile.
Wang Zhizhen understood.
Given the Goddess's strength, it was perfectly normal for her to know a Card Master in the Residential Area.
"Then I'll go in first, Goddess," Wang Zhizhen waved to Wen Xiangjie.
Wen Xiangjie saw that as soon as Wang Zhizhen reached the main gate of the villa area, the gate was opened. Wang Zhizhen was cheerfully saying something to the security guard in the guard booth, and the guard even handed her an unopened bottle of chilled drink through the window.
It was clear that Wang Zhizhen was indeed very familiar with the security guards of the Residential Area.
Not long after Wang Zhizhen entered the villa area, the main gate of the villa area opened again.
This time, the security guard from the guard booth came out and personally opened the gate for the arriving person, with a respectful expression, and even bowed deeply to her.
Wen Xiangjie recognized her at a glance: this was Bernadette, the person Dorothea had introduced to her.
"Good day, Ms. Wen Xiangjie," Bernadette also recognized Wen Xiangjie at a glance and smiled, extending her hand to Wen Xiangjie.
"Ms. Bernadette," Wen Xiangjie also extended her hand and shook hers. "I'll be troubling you today."
"No trouble at all. We should serve every client with utmost dedication," Bernadette said. "Moreover, you are an important client introduced by Dorothea."
"Please follow me."
Bernadette led Wen Xiangjie into the Residential Area.
After Bernadette and Wen Xiangjie entered the Residential Area, the security guard finally raised his head and closed the main gate of the Residential Area again.
Inside the Residential Area were individual detached villas, with considerable space between each villa, maximizing the privacy of each householder.
At a glance, all the villas were exquisitely designed, and the Residential Area was filled with plants. A stream flowed gently, like a paradise, indicating that the environment within the Residential Area was meticulously maintained by dedicated personnel daily.
Wen Xiangjie could smell the scent of unknown flowers flowing in the fresh air as she breathed.
"I have designed three sizes of villas in the Residential Area: large, medium, and small, to meet the needs of different types of householders," Bernadette said, introducing the Residential Area to Wen Xiangjie as she strolled with her.
"For clients like you who prefer to live alone, I recommend purchasing a small villa. All the facilities inside are complete and can fully meet your daily needs."
"Then please, Ms. Bernadette, take me directly to tour a small villa," Wen Xiangjie said decisively.
"No problem, please follow me this way," Bernadette led Wen Xiangjie to the left.
After walking a short distance, a series of villas, visibly smaller than those at the entrance of the Residential Area, came into Wen Xiangjie's view.
However, this 'small' was only relative; in reality, the footprint of these small villas was still considerable.
Bernadette led Wen Xiangjie to the entrance of one of the villas, took out a key from her pocket, and opened the villa's main door.
"This is one of our small villas. Its overall style is..."
Wen Xiangjie nodded as she looked around.
The villa was indeed well-designed, and the property management services provided by the Residential Area were also very thorough.
As long as Wen Xiangjie wished, with just one phone call each day, the property butler would personally deliver ingredients or ready-made food to her doorstep.
Furthermore, Wen Xiangjie didn't need to clean the villa herself; if she felt the villa needed cleaning, she only needed to make a phone call, and the property management would send professional staff to clean it.
After touring the inside and outside of the villa, Wen Xiangjie immediately decided to buy it.
Wen Xiangjie and Bernadette sat face to face on the living room sofa. Wen Xiangjie asked, "May I ask what the price of this villa is?"
"I'll give you the lowest price: 300 million," Bernadette said, holding up three fingers to Wen Xiangjie.
300 million was not expensive for this villa. It was clear that Bernadette was indeed giving her the lowest price out of respect for Dorothea.
"Okay," Wen Xiangjie nodded. "However, I'm a little short on funds here. Please wait a moment."
"Dorothea said that if you are temporarily short on funds, she can cover the remaining amount for you for now," Bernadette said with a smile.
"Well, I appreciate her offer, but it's not necessary for now. I'll figure something out first."
Wen Xiangjie took out the latest model communicator that Dorothea had given her when she stayed at Dorothea's place last time.
"Hello, is this Ms. Allison? This is Wen Xiangjie. I've successfully taken leave from school, and I'll be heading to the Gambling Card District on the morning of the third day from now," Wen Xiangjie called Allison, the owner of the Shenyou Card Gambling Store in the Gambling Card District.