Chapter 369: Buying a House
Editor: Atlas Studios
Seeing that Wu Jin didn’t show any dissatisfaction with Mu Yangling, the shopkeeper immediately heaved a sigh of relief and immediately welcomed Mu Yangling warmly. At least Mu Yangling was much easier to talk to than Wu Jin.
He personally went out to gather information on houses that were on sale in that area.
As soon as they left, there were only the few of them in the private room. Mu Yangling turned to Wu Jin and said, “I know you’re a profligate son, but you don’t have to show off from time to time.”
Wu Jin snorted and said, “If I don’t act fiercely, they’ll bully me. If you don’t believe me, find a broker another day and try. Let’s see how they treat you.”
“Not to mention that clients are above all else, but they should at least be polite to me, right?”
Wu Jin mocked, “That’s just on the surface. If you wear such clothes to the brokerage and say that you want to buy a house, even if you say that you want to buy a three-entrance house, they can still find some one-entrance and two-entrance houses for you. Moreover, the houses will be in lousy locations and sell at more than double the price.”
“How do you know so much?”
“I know everything.” Wu Jin waved his hand nonchalantly and said, “Aren’t all the businessmen outside like this? I’m used to it.”
The shopkeeper brought the booklet in and said with a smile, “There are only three houses near the General’s Residence. One is five-entrance, one is four-entrance, and the other is three-entrance. They are all built in the style of mansions and are especially beautiful. Miss, how big of a house are you looking to buy?”
Wu Jin interrupted and asked, “Why are they selling the houses?”
“For the five-entrance house, the family is heading south and probably won’t be coming back in the future. For the four-entrance house, the family is moving to Xingyuan Prefecture. For the three-entrance house, the family is in urgent need of money. They’re all located near the General’s Residence. The security is good and it’s quiet…”
Wu Jin took the booklet and flipped through it before throwing it to Mu Yangling.
Xiuhong came over to look at the layout of the three houses. In the end, she pointed at the four-entrance house and whispered, “Cousin, this is good. The place is big, and it’s not inferior to the five-entrance house. Also, it’s not far from the General’s Residence.”
“Let’s see it for ourselves.”
In fact, she was also quite satisfied with the four-entrance house. This was because she could tell from the layout that although it was only a four-entrance house, the area was about the same as the five-entrance one. As the twins were getting more and more mischievous, it was better to find a bigger place for them to play.
The group of people went to check out the houses, starting from the furthest one.
First, they looked at the three-entrance house. It was a very ordinary layout, but it was rather exquisitely built. The furniture inside was also very new. It was said that the main family had only moved in for less than two years. Because their family was in a hurry to use money, they had no choice but to sell it.
As the four-entrance house was only a street away from the General’s Residence, it would take just 15 minutes to get there.
However, this house was at the back and not far behind was a small hill. There were fewer houses nearby, so it looked a little remote.
Smiling, the shopkeeper said, “Don’t think that this place is remote. In a few years, someone will build houses here. By then, it will definitely be lively.”
Mu Yangling did not comment and pushed the door open to take a look.
A squire lived in the four-entrance house. The house had just been built and was not far from the General’s Residence. It was safe, but the battle before the New Year had frightened them, so they decided to move to Xingyuan Prefecture. Many of their relatives were there, so they had some roots there.
Therefore, the house was empty and there was nothing in it. The place where flowers and trees should have been planted in the courtyard had not been touched.
However, this house was cheap, priced the same as the three-entrance house. This was because the three-entrance house had been renovated and also came with furniture.
In comparison, there was obviously still a lot of follow-up work to be done in this four-entrance residence.
The five-entrance house was diagonally opposite the General’s Residence. It was magnificent and even Wu Jin couldn’t help but nod when he saw it. “This house is not bad. If you’re buying a house, I suggest you buy this. Although it’s a little expensive, you can move in once you tidy it up.”
As the property prices in Xingzhou Prefecture were not expensive at all, this five-entrance house only cost 480 taels. If it was in Lin’an Prefecture, it would cost at least 3,000 to 4,000 taels, and even then it was in a middle-class area.
Mu Yangling also felt that it wasn’t expensive, but she still didn’t like this five-entrance building very much. Although it was very luxurious, it didn’t seem to suit their family. Not to mention her great-aunt and the few young ones, even she probably wouldn’t feel comfortable living here.
Xiuhong clearly had the same thought. She said in a low voice, “Cousin, I still think we should get the four-entrance house. When the time comes, Grandmother and Aunt can decorate the place as they wish. This also gives them something to do.”
Mu Yangling asked the shopkeeper, “Can the four-entrance house be cheaper?”
“Geez, Miss, 360 taels of silver isn’t considered much. Look, even the three-entrance house you visited earlier is priced the same. Although the four-entrance house only has four entrances, look at the large area in the northwest—it can be used as a drill ground. It’s not much smaller than the five-entrance one.”
Xiuhong said, “The four-entrance house hasn’t been completed yet. Not to mention the furnishings in the house, just the courtyard alone needs to be renovated. This will also cost a lot of money. After including the wages and cost of materials, it’s not much cheaper than the five-entrance house…”
Mu Yangling handed the bargaining task to Xiuhong.
Perhaps it was because of Wu Jin, or perhaps it was because Xiuhong bargained too fiercely, but in the end, he lowered the price to 325 taels. Xiuhong’s eyes lit up.
Seeing that the shopkeeper had a bitter expression yet no frustration in his eyes, Mu Yangling knew that the other party was not losing out by offering them this price. However, she also knew that it would be difficult to bargain down the price any further, so she agreed to this price.
The group turned around and went to the government office to settle the procedures.
With Wu Jin around, how could the government office dare to make things difficult for them? They didn’t even want the usual bribe and directly settled it for Mu Yangling.
After the shopkeeper left, Wu Jin shook his head and said, “Why did you buy the worst house? Not only is that four-entrance house remote, but it’s not fully-renovated yet. If you want to live there, I’m afraid it’ll take you another half a year…”
“Why does it need to be so long? Can’t we just move the furniture in?” As she spoke, she said with a frown, “But Cousin, their brick bed hasn’t been completed yet. I’ve looked at a few rooms, and saw that there’s no brick bed inside. Moreover, the position of the brick bed in the third courtyard wasn’t right…”
Wu Jin was stunned for a moment before he burst into laughter. He held his stomach and laughed. “How is it wrong? Don’t tell me you want to put a brick bed in the middle? Hahahaha…”
Xiuhong said angrily, “Whose brick bed is placed in the middle? Whose brick bed isn’t placed in the northwest of the room? But their brick bed is placed in the east.”
Mu Yangling glared at Wu Jin and said, “Alright, it’s done. You don’t have to accompany us anymore. I’ll treat you to a meal to thank you later.”
Wu Jin knew that Mu Yangling didn’t want him to laugh at Xiuhong, so he immediately said, “Alright, I’ll leave now. But Miss Mu, I have a favor to ask of you.” Wu Jin licked his lips and smiled. “Can you put in a good word for me in front of Little General?”
Mu Yangling looked at him in surprise and said, “You want to join the military?”
Wu Jin shook his head like a rattle drum.
“What do you want me to say in front of him?”
Wu Jin said with a bitter expression, “Little General has been looking for me to ride a horse when he has nothing to do these few days. He said that he wanted to help me to strengthen my body. Not only did he want me to practice martial arts with the soldiers in the drill ground, but he also wanted to throw me into the forest. It’s so cold and my illness has just recovered. In the past, my father would support me. This time though, not only did he not object, he even personally handed me over to Little General. Miss Mu, please be merciful and help me plead.”
Mu Yangling nodded with a smile. “No problem. I’ll definitely tell Qi Haoran later and ask him to be gentler when training you.”
Wu Jin, who was originally all smiles, immediately pulled a long face.