Having taken a look around, Su Ying was almost certain that the house had been refurbished only a few years ago. Judging by the signs of wear on the furniture, most of it had been newly purchased, and it looked very substantial.
The owner had excellent taste and had clearly put a great deal of effort into every little detail.
Su Ying pulled Zhao Ling aside and asked quietly, “This place was refurbished less than three years ago. Why on earth is the owner selling it now?”
As she spoke, Su Ying glanced at the two men sitting silently on the sofa. Judging by their appearance, they were clearly in secure, well-paid jobs; in fact, Su Ying secretly guessed that one was a civil servant and the other a teacher. Given their deeply troubled expressions, it didn’t seem as though they were simply looking to move to a new home.
Zhao Ling also glanced at the pair before pulling Su Ying into the bathroom and closing the door. She explained, “Apparently, their son has run up quite a debt—around a million yuan, I’d say. The debt collectors have even been calling his parents’ workplaces. They’ve got no choice but to sell the house to pay off his debts.”
“What? What does their son do? How did he end up in such debt?”
“He’s a civil servant too.”
Su Ying began to feel a bit anxious. With a family of civil servants—secure jobs—how could they possibly owe so much? Could he be a gambling addict…? Su Ying hesitated: “But this house… if I buy it, might I…”
She certainly didn’t want to get herself into trouble.
Zhao Ling sensed Su Ying’s thoughts almost instantly and immediately explained, “It’s not gambling; it’s just consumer loans.”
At first, Su Ying didn’t believe it—what kind of spending could possibly amount to a million yuan in one go? But then she recalled how she’d spent 200,000 yuan in less than a day back in the provincial capital, and thought of all those trainers in the spare bedroom. Su Ying fell silent at once.
As a heavy internet user, Su Ying had naturally heard about the frenzy surrounding trainers a few years back—some had made a fortune, others had gone bust.
Thinking Su Ying’s silence meant she was hesitating, Zhao Ling continued: “Although the owner is asking 680,000, they’re in a hurry to sell, so there’s plenty of room for negotiation.”
Zhao Ling didn’t state it too categorically, but she did hint subtly: “It should be pretty much in line with your budget.”
Su Ying didn’t need Zhao Ling to point this out; she already had a fair understanding of property prices in Chun City. After all, having previously worked at a renovation firm, she kept an eye on property listings. For 680,000 yuan, one could buy a very decent new three-bedroom flat in Chun City.
The main advantage of this property for Su Ying was its layout. Compared to a small three-bedroom flat with a gross floor area of just over 100 square metres and a net floor area of less than 80, a large two-bedroom flat with a net floor area of nearly 100 clearly better met her requirements.
As for the drawbacks, the building was simply too old, so Su Ying intended to haggle for a lower price before making a decision.
Su Ying emerged from the bathroom, and the couple immediately turned to look at her.
The husband stammered a bit before asking, “Well? What do you think?”
Su Ying paused for a moment. “It’s not bad. The flat’s been well looked after. How about this: a flat fee of 480,000. As for the capital gains tax…”
“No way!” Before Su Ying could finish her sentence, the landlady interrupted her with a shriek. “I only had this place refurbished a few years ago. Back then, someone offered 880,000 and I didn’t even agree to that. I—”
The landlady was about to say something else when the landlord took her hand, forcing her to stop mid-sentence.
The husband turned to Su Ying and said, “You’re haggling a bit too hard. Let’s meet halfway—how about 580,000?”
Su Ying shook her head. “I wouldn’t buy this for 580,000. Even the newly completed Yaguang Garden near Wanda Plaza in the west of the city is only just over 500,000.” ” The lady of the house wrenched her hand free from her husband’s grip and said loudly, “Well then, go and buy Yaguang Garden!”
“Oh, oh, oh.” The gentleman quickly grabbed his wife’s hand again, put on a sheepish smile, and said in a conciliatory tone, “ “I’m selling this flat out of necessity. Could you perhaps offer a bit more? If you buy Yaguang Garden, you’ll have to renovate it from scratch. Renovating is such a hassle these days, and as a young woman, you’d inevitably have to put up with a lot of stress. Besides, even after the work’s done, it’ll be at least six months before you can move in. If you buy our flat, the fittings and furniture are all ready to go—you can move in with just your bags.”
The male owner was speaking the plain truth, and this was another reason why Su Ying had chosen this property. The two owners—one a civil servant and the other a teacher—belonged to the very group of people that decorators detest the most for being overly fussy; at the very least, this guaranteed that the quality of the property’s renovation would be beyond reproach.
But whilst Su Ying thought this, she could not let it show.
Su Ying shook her head. “I’m not in a great hurry to move in, and besides…” She glanced around the room. She could tell the furniture wasn’t cheap, but it certainly didn’t suit her taste. “Even if I buy this place, I won’t be keeping the furniture.”
The female homeowner was about to interject again, but this time the male homeowner pulled her back before she could speak.
The husband remained silent for a moment before saying in a grave tone, “520,000 yuan. We can’t go any lower.”
Su Ying shook her head again. “480,000 yuan, paid in full.”
The wife, who had been about to speak, froze instantly. She exchanged a glance with her husband; both lowered their heads in silence, and finally, they sighed simultaneously.
If they took out a mortgage, it would take nearly a month from start to finish for the funds to be released, and if the buyer’s credit check failed, it would all be for nothing.
With a cash purchase, the funds would be transferred on the day of the transaction. In the past, there might not have been much difference between a cash purchase and a mortgage, but for today’s homeowners, receiving the money a month earlier meant a month’s worth of interest saved.
The wife covered her face with both hands, letting out a soft sob, whilst the husband mechanically patted her shoulder, offering comfort: “Once this is over, we’ll buy a new one.”
Su Ying watched this scene, which should have been deeply touching, yet felt no stirrings within her heart.
She even thought maliciously: if it were a daughter, would these parents still go out of their way to mortgage their home to help her pay off her debts?
At this thought, Su Ying gave a self-deprecating chuckle. If it were a daughter, she’d be the renowned only child of Chun City—who’d have time to worry about a sister like her, a ‘brother-supporting fiend’ with a younger brother to look after?
The house purchase was thus finalised, and the three parties agreed to go through the transfer of ownership together that afternoon.
Just before leaving, the female homeowner called out to Su Ying: “You said earlier that you don’t want this furniture, didn’t you?”
Su Ying paused, unsure what she meant, and nodded. “Yes, the furniture is quite nice, but it doesn’t suit my taste.”
“You don’t want the appliances either, do you? Then I’ll call a removal van to take it all away later!”
Su Ying hadn’t expected the female homeowner to mean that, but she had no objection; after all, if the homeowner didn’t take it away, it would indeed be a hassle for her to deal with later.
She nodded, even finding the spirit to joke: “That’s fine, but please don’t take the interior fittings with you.”
The male landlord, who had remained in the background the whole time, his face a picture of embarrassment, finally stepped forward. He put on a mortified expression and offered Su Ying a sheepish smile: “My wife simply loves this furniture. Please forgive her, young lady.”
Su Ying tilted her head to look at the male homeowner, finding him rather odd. If he found the female homeowner’s behaviour embarrassing, why hadn’t he stopped her when she first suggested it, instead of putting on this act only after everything had been finalised?
It was rather strange.
The transfer of ownership went smoothly; from stepping out to view the property to receiving the pink title deed, the entire process took less than eight hours.
Su Ying stared at the red title deed in her hands, finding it hard to believe for a moment. Did she really have her own flat now? Did she really have a room of her own?
That was truly—
Wonderful!!!
Su Ying hugged the title deed to her chest and spun round. From now on, she could do whatever she pleased at home; she could walk in completely naked, eat as much as she liked in the dining room, and never again worry about someone banging on the door in the middle of the night, or being evicted by the landlord for non-payment of rent.
When Su Ying returned to Xingfu Li, she happened to come across the former female owner directing the movers as they loaded the electrical appliances and furniture onto the truck. Upon seeing Su Ying, she gave a brief nod by way of greeting.
The fingerprint lock Su Ying had bought that morning finally came in handy; the fitter had it installed in no time.
The moment Su Ying had registered her fingerprints and PIN, closed the door and leaned against it, she felt, without a shadow of a doubt, that she truly had a home of her own.
The flat had been almost completely cleared out, leaving just an empty shell, but this suited Su Ying perfectly; she could decorate it entirely to her own taste.
The entire house, apart from the balcony and bathroom, had wooden flooring. With the exception of the shoe cupboard, there was no custom-built furniture throughout the property, and every single item was exactly to Su Ying’s liking.
To have bought such a large, run-down old flat for 480,000 yuan, in the eyes of those who understood property prices, Su Ying was a complete fool; but to her, it was truly a stroke of luck.
Su Ying began to survey her new domain and start planning the layout of her home.
She decided to hang a painting on the wall opposite the entrance. She’d already decided what it would be: a traditional Chinese-style painting, the sort that’s all the rage on short-video platforms, which can be made for just 100 yuan. As Su Ying wasn’t working at the moment, it was the perfect opportunity to pass the time with a bit of crafting.
The shoe cupboard was made to measure, so there was no need for Su Ying to get her hands dirty; however, she could buy a figurine of a girl with pearl earrings holding a pair of glasses. Although Su Ying didn’t wear glasses, she could use the dish to hold her keys.
Su Ying doesn’t intend to use the second bedroom as a guest room; she plans to turn it into a walk-in wardrobe. Although she doesn’t currently have enough clothes to warrant a walk-in wardrobe, she would rather leave it empty than put a fold-out bed in there.
The living and dining area is completely empty. Su Ying plans to buy a breakfast bar, a dining table and a chair for the dining area. In the kitchen, apart from the stove and extractor hood, everything else needs to be bought.
Space has been set aside for a side-by-side fridge; Su Ying intends to buy another one to store her ‘ready meals’. A dishwasher is a must-have – even if she’s living alone, she wants to keep her hands free. Frying pans, an electric pressure cooker, an air fryer and a microwave are all essential purchases.
As for items like hotpot pans and barbecue grills, she’ll buy those later when the need arises.
To make sure she doesn’t forget anything, Su Ying has already opened the notes app on her phone and jotted down all her ideas and the things she wants to buy.
The clothesline on the utility balcony is still there, but she’ll need to buy a washing machine herself; Su Ying plans to get a drying machine as well. Strictly speaking, Chuncheng doesn’t really have a rainy season, but in recent years there’s been a spell of persistent rain during the transitions from winter to spring and from summer to autumn, so buying a drying machine is a safe bet.
As for the living room, Su Ying has no immediate plans to make any changes. She doesn’t watch TV and isn’t in the habit of lounging on the sofa. As for coffee tables and the like, she has no use for them either; she’ll buy them when the time comes.
The small balcony off the living room is certainly worth sprucing up, otherwise the space would be wasted. However, Su Ying isn’t planning to do anything about it just yet; she needs to do some research to find varieties suitable for Chuncheng that will ensure flowers bloom all year round.
The bathroom cabinet looked a bit dated, so Su Ying planned to replace it with the popular ceramic-integrated washbasin with a bear-shaped mirror currently trending on social media. Initially, she’d intended to install a bathtub in the shower area, but after reading reviews on social media, she learnt that one had to clean the tub before running a bath each time. Fearing the hassle, she abandoned the idea immediately. Besides, she doesn’t actually have the habit of taking baths herself; she only envies those scenes in TV dramas. Since installing one wouldn’t be too much trouble anyway, she’ll wait until she develops a taste for baths before adding it.
The master bedroom is the top priority; barring any surprises, it will be the space where Su Ying spends 22 out of every 24 hours.
Su Ying intends to give it some serious thought.