“Meow~”
A large, fluffy ball suddenly leaped down from the top bunk’s ladder. Ning Jinyu, standing in the aisle, was a bit dazed. The cat twisted its body, ran to her legs, and rubbed against them back and forth with its large tail held high.
Chen Xin pulled back her bed curtain, poked her head out, and yawned. “Jin Yu, are you done with your game? I saw your Zhizhi just clawed a hole in your bed curtain.”
“…” Ning Jinyu bent down and picked up the lazy, sweet, long-haired Napoleon cat. It had a round, silvery-white face, short legs, and a plump, well-fed body. She stroked its head affectionately.
“Zhizhi, you must be hungry. I’ll get you some cat food.”
“Knock, knock, knock! Dorm inspection!”
Chen Xin’s expression changed. She got out of bed, intending to hide her hot pot. Two other roommates were away at class.
The door was pushed open, and Ning Jinyu came face-to-face with the dorm auntie, looking dazed.
The auntie wore a ferocious expression and said unhappily, “Didn’t I tell you last time that cats aren’t allowed in the dorms? Your name is Ning Jinyu, isn’t it? Do you really want to be disciplined? Come with me!”
“…” Chen Xin, who had been trying to hide her pot, gave her a look that said, “You’re on your own.”
Ning Jinyu placed the cat on the floor, locked the door and windows, and followed the auntie downstairs.
She thought about her crowded dorm room, packed to the brim with a ton of streaming equipment, as well as the cat’s litter box, food bowl, and water bowl. In her memory, Chen Xin was a friend from her class, which was a good thing. However, the other two roommates seemed displeased, as neither of them liked cats.
She had tens of thousands of yuan from her streaming now, so renting a place shouldn’t be a problem.
Having made up her mind, Ning Jinyu apologized nicely to the auntie and said she would discuss living off-campus with her advisor today and move out by tomorrow evening.
Only then did the auntie relent.
She went on a housing website, searching for a fully furnished two-bedroom, one-living-room apartment near the university, preferably under 2,000 yuan a month.
Pei Ke watched the information coming in from his real-time surveillance feed and smiled deviously. What a coincidence. He happened to be working in Z City, which was a university town, and he had just bought an apartment in a residential community.
Thinking of the girl’s young, innocent, and beautiful face, he came up with an idea and quickly typed on his keyboard to send her a private message.
Back in the dorm, Ning Jinyu sat in her gaming chair, holding her cat while checking her private messages and making inquiries.
Suddenly, a message popped up.
“Miss, looking to rent? Jingyang Community, Building 3, Unit 101 in Z City. Four bedrooms, one living room, with a balcony and a great view. The apartment is very clean, and the price is fair.”
Ning Jinyu clicked on his profile to take a look. The gender was hidden, and the photos of the apartment space did indeed look good—clean and beautiful. It was just that it seemed a bit too new, with the furniture and everything being spotless. She replied with some suspicion:
“Landlord, this isn’t a hastily renovated ‘lipstick on a pig’ apartment, is it?”
Pei Ke let out an exasperated laugh and replied teasingly, “Beauty, you’re overthinking it. I’m a major real estate owner. I live elsewhere after buying up properties, so this one is just sitting empty.”
He was currently sitting in the gaming chair in the master bedroom of that very apartment, feeling not a shred of guilt for his lie.
Ning Jinyu thought for a moment and asked again, “Then how much is the monthly rent? It can’t be cheap, right? I’ll be living alone, so I don’t need such a big place. Do you have anything smaller?”
Seeing this, Pei Ke’s eyes curved, and his smile deepened. He took a sip from a black cup with one hand while typing a reply with the other.
“It’s perfect, dear. I was planning to rent this apartment to two people. A girl has already rented half of it, and she also thinks it’s too big, which is why I’m posting on this app. If you’re willing, she took the master bedroom for 2,500, so for you, the rent can be 1,500 a month, and there are still two bedrooms left.”
Cradling her cat, Ning Jinyu browsed a few more listings, but none of them looked as clean and tidy as this one. The main appeal was that the doors and windows were beautifully designed. Every room had a security door, and the walls looked solid, thick, and well-renovated, which probably meant they were very soundproof.
Most of the others had screen windows and were on high floors, and she was worried her cat might run off. Also, the other apartments didn’t look very soundproof, and she needed a quiet environment for her streams so as not to disturb others.
She was quite tempted by such a nice apartment at such a low price. However, she remained wary of people online and replied, “Landlord, can you give me the contact info of the female roommate first? I’d like to ask her some questions before I decide.”
Pei Ke thought for a moment. A minor issue. He immediately replied, “Sure.”
Pei Ke created a new account, styled it to look like a young girl’s, and then sent the account ID to Ning Jinyu.
A message came through very quickly.
“Hi, miss. The landlord from the housing app referred me. He said we could be roommates. I’d like to ask about the apartment. Would it be convenient for me to call you? QwQ”
Pei Ke raised an eyebrow, activated a voice changer, replied “sure,” and made a voice call.
“Hello.” The female voice on the phone was cool and steady, speaking in a calm tone. “What would you like to ask?”
It really was a girl. Ning Jinyu breathed a sigh of relief. “I’d like to ask how much your rent is per month. Oh, and how is the soundproofing? Is the space large?”
“2,500 a month. Everything is great. This apartment is a very good value for the price. You should rent it soon if you’re interested, little sister.”
Her voice was so pleasant, so mature and commanding. Ning Jinyu’s face flushed slightly as she said in a soft voice, “Okay, thank you, big sister. I’ll hang up now.”
“Mm.” Pei Ke stared at the disconnected call and grinned rakishly. This was too much fun, hahaha.
Just then, Ning Jinyu sent another message to his landlord account on the app: “Landlord, landlord, can we add each other on WeChat?”
Pei Ke wiped the smile off his face, created another new account, and set the profile picture to that of a successful, middle-aged businesswoman before adding her on WeChat.
“Beauty, how’s the consideration coming along? This offer won’t last forever. I’m getting a lot of other private messages.”
After looking through her Moments, which depicted a woman in her forties or fifties, Ning Jinyu felt even more at ease and hurriedly said, “Auntie, I plan to rent for two years. I’m in a bit of a rush to move. If it’s convenient, can we meet in person in Z City tomorrow morning to sign the contract?”
Pei Ke’s smile deepened as he typed on the screen, “Sure, young lady. Can we meet at Juicee Coffee in the university town tomorrow?”
“Okay, it’s a deal then. Here’s my phone number, 188…”
After securing the apartment, Ning Jinyu contacted her family and communicated with her advisor. Only then did she lie down in bed and fall into a peaceful sleep.
As a digital media major, she had very few classes in her first year, with many not starting for another two weeks. Chen Xin spent her days sleeping in the dorm until the sky went dark, so Ning Jinyu was quite free at the moment.
The next morning, they agreed via WeChat to meet at 10 a.m. She got ready and left at 9:30, taking a bus over. Sure enough, at Juicee Coffee, she was met by an auntie who looked just like a landlady.
She wondered if all aunties with a lot of properties liked to have curly hair.
After reviewing the contract, just as she was about to sign, she noticed the penalty for breach of contract in the bottom left corner and was a little surprised. “Auntie, why is the penalty 200,000?”
The landlady auntie smiled. “Young lady, one must have integrity. We who earn money aren’t afraid of trouble. What would you do if I suddenly asked you to move out, right? The 200,000 is a guarantee for both parties. After all, you’re renting for two years.”
Ning Jinyu thought about it and agreed.
She signed her name, scanned the woman’s WeChat payment QR code, and transferred 36,000 yuan. The landlady handed her the keys, took the contract, and prepared to leave, saying, “Now that it’s signed, I’ll be going, young lady. I have other work to attend to.”
“Okay, thank you for your trouble.”
Ning Jinyu put away the keys and contract and immediately made a call to book a moving van to help her move her things.
She still had quite a lot of stuff in the dorm.