RPAGF Chapter 125 Easy to grasp!
Chapter 125 Easy to grasp!
“Girl, you can’t say that. The reason why the yard isn’t paved with blue bricks is to make it easier for you to take care of it yourselves. You can plant fruit trees or sow vegetable seeds. It’s more convenient to eat what you grow yourself, and you won’t have to go to the market to buy vegetables every day, right?”
Moreover, our alley is close to the main street, and the entrance is secure. It's not easy to find a small house close to the main street in town. You've already looked at the cheaper ones; they're either old and dilapidated or very remote, and the prices aren't much cheaper. In my opinion, this house is the most suitable and cost-effective.
Lin Xiaotang pretended to be reluctant and said, "What you said is not wrong, but remote areas have their own tranquility, and bustling areas have their own liveliness. We just want to settle down in the town, and we don't necessarily have to choose a bustling city."
Besides, this isn't your first time doing business. You surely know the principle of leaving room for negotiation. This is a house worth hundreds of taels of silver; how can you set a fixed price? Even when buying vegetables at the market, you can get a couple extra stalks for free, right?
The broker's face was almost frozen with laughter. He thought to himself that this girl was quite something for her age, and she had a knack for bargaining with him. He had finally met someone who knew how to haggle.
But he quickly put on a smile again.
"Oh dear, girl, it's not that I set the price rigidly, it's just that the owner set this price. They're not in a hurry to sell, they just told me the price can't be lowered, how could I dare to lower the price on my own?"
The brothel owner was eloquent and persuasive; he talked for ages, but he wouldn't budge an ounce.
Liu felt bad about the money and whispered to her husband, "Dad, this house is too expensive. Why don't we look at a small two-bedroom house instead? We can't live in all of it anyway. We can share one room, and the two children are still young, so they can share one room. Why spend such a high price and leave one room empty?"
Lin Qingchuan was conflicted. He felt that the broker was right. He and his eldest daughter had to go to Dushui County to buy supplies before dawn. If they stayed in a remote area, he was really worried about the safety of his wife and youngest daughter.
Moreover, he would take the mule cart away in the morning, and his wife would have to carry the stove a long way to set up a stall to sell roasted sweet potatoes.
His wife had worked hard with him for six or seven years, and he didn't want her to continue to suffer just to save a little money.
He whispered to comfort his wife, "Fengniang, don't worry. Let's discuss the price again. If we really can't reach an agreement, we can look at other options. Anyway, it's not like we'll lose money if we can't reach an agreement."
He really liked this house. He gritted his teeth and agreed to 180 taels. He would try to negotiate and lower the price further, since he could always earn it back later.
If he doesn't have enough money to buy things next month, he'll think of a way to discuss with Manager Su and ask for an advance on one month's payment so he can have a little more money on hand.
He asked, "Brother, can you give us a discount? If the price is right, we'll buy it. Eighty taels is too expensive. If we buy it now, our whole family won't be able to celebrate the New Year."
The broker thought that this young man surnamed Lin was definitely interested in buying, but he felt that 180 taels was too high and he was unwilling to buy after negotiating for a long time. He thought that he should lower the price a little and quickly close the deal.
"Sigh, I understand what you're saying, but I don't have any special privileges. How about this, since we're destined to meet, I'll give you a discount of two taels of silver, enough for your New Year's money. What do you think?"
The couple said with regret, "Only two taels of silver cheaper?"
Lin Xiaotang spoke up, "Let's make it 160 taels, a discount of 20 taels. If that's okay, we'll sign the contract and settle the transaction immediately. If not, we'll wait until after the New Year to look at houses. Uncle, what do you think?"
The man with the tooth was so shocked that his jaw almost dropped, and he quickly shook his head.
"No, no, you little girl, you're too good at bargaining. You've already offered a discount of twenty taels with just one word. Do you know that I only make half a tael when I sell a house?"
Just kidding, he only asked for a little over twenty taels more for this house, and he immediately lowered the price to the bottom. What profit would he make?
Lin Xiaotang smiled faintly at the broker, but in her heart she thought that if she didn't have the soul of a modern person, she might have believed the broker.
In modern times, house prices can be found online, and multiple developers and communities can be compared. With such transparent pricing, salespeople can earn substantial commissions. This is even more true in this fictional ancient town where every house has a different price.
The broker had been busy showing them many houses, but he could only earn half a tael of silver. How could she believe that!
She insisted, "It's only 160 taels. If you're willing to sell, then we'll make a deal. Otherwise, we won't look at it before the New Year. We have a lot of work to do at home, and we won't take up any more of your time."
No matter what, the man with the tooth couldn't manage a smile.
In the past two months, he hasn't sold a single house. If he can only earn two or three taels of silver, then what is the point of all this hard work?
He sighed, "Twenty taels is really not going to work out. How about this, I'll lower the price by five taels, and we'll settle on one hundred and seventy-five taels. If that's acceptable, we'll sign the contract. If not, you can look into it again."
Lin Qingchuan remained silent, secretly hesitating whether the price of 175 taels was acceptable.
He wondered if they should talk again.
Liu felt that 175 taels was still too high, so she quickly pulled her daughter aside and whispered her advice.
"Tang'er, this house is too expensive. A slightly more remote one is thirty or forty taels cheaper, and that's without even negotiating the price. Listen to your mother, let's look around some more."
The broker saw that Liu kept complaining about the price and didn't want to buy it. He tried to persuade her husband and her eldest daughter, but the shrewd eldest daughter insisted on a discount of twenty taels. There was also a younger girl who was wide awake and didn't understand anything. The broker was getting a little worried.
What if the father and daughter are persuaded by Liu and decide not to buy it?
He gritted his teeth and said, "Ten taels, I can only reduce the price by ten taels. I'll only make a few copper coins. If you still think it's too expensive, then I can't do anything about it."
Lin Xiaotang found the broker amusing. At first, he said he couldn't lower the price and would only make half a tael of silver. Later, he said he could lower it by five taels, and when they hesitated, he said he could lower it by ten taels, so he could only make a few copper coins.
This gave her the feeling that she could keep cutting, otherwise she would feel like she had lost out big time.
So she pulled her parents along and said, "Dad, Mom, let's go home. We can look around more after the New Year when we have more free time. We have a place to live anyway, so there's no rush to buy." She winked at her parents to signal them, and then called to her younger sister to walk outside, "Xiaoyu, let's go home with Dad and Mom."
Lin Qingchuan saw through his daughter's ulterior motive and immediately nodded, apologizing to the broker, "Brother, let's wait until after the New Year to see it. I'm really sorry to have kept you waiting for so long."
When the broker saw that the family of four was about to leave, he immediately gritted his teeth and called out to them.
"Gentlemen, wait a minute!"
He said with a pained expression, "One hundred and sixty taels it is. I can see that you really want it. I will make this deal even if I don't earn a single coin today. I can't let you leave empty-handed."
A confident smile appeared on Lin Xiaotang's face.
Take it easy!
The couple were incredulous; they never expected their daughter to actually cut off twenty taels of silver.