New Rental

New Rental

Officer Xiao Wang had found a suitable place through his childhood friend, Xiao Jiangnan, the general manager of Yongling Martial Arts Fitness Center.

The property rights to the entire eighteenth and nineteenth floors belonged to Xiao Jiangnan and his sister Xiao Wei's father, Xiao Wenhai. The Yongling Martial Arts Fitness Center occupied the second and third floors and half of the first floor, while Xiao Jiangnan currently used the two upper floors.

Most of the eighteenth and nineteenth floors served as staff dormitories for Yongling Martial Arts Fitness Center, with a few apartments rented out to the public.

A tenant on the nineteenth floor had just moved out, leaving an apartment vacant. Officer Xiao Wang recommended it to Li Bai, repaying his kindness with kindness and thanking him for helping the task force break through the interrogation deadlock.

"This apartment is on the east side. It has a floor area of seventy-five square meters, with two bedrooms, a living room, a kitchen, and a bathroom. Both bedrooms face south, and there's an open balcony. The layout gets natural light throughout, and water, electricity, and gas are all connected, with separate meters for each unit. I won't mark up the utilities; you'll pay the standard rates. The central air conditioning is charged by usage time. Yongling provides the internet, with shared gigabit speeds, free of charge. There's Wi-Fi throughout the floor, and every room has network and phone jacks. You can install your own signal boosters, or, if you want a separate line, you can apply at the fitness center on the first floor and we'll arrange the wiring."

Since Li Bai had been introduced by his childhood friend, Xiao Jiangnan personally showed him around the apartment. Outside the door, the number 1901 was set in the uniform style of Yongling Martial Arts Fitness Center, with a blank tenant information plaque beside it.

After the previous tenant moved out, the apartment had been left bare. There was nothing in the living room, and the two bedrooms had only a built-in wardrobe in each. The bathroom and kitchen were better equipped, with a gas stove, range hood, and gas water heater, but no refrigerator or washing machine. The kitchen cabinets were empty, waiting for the next tenant to fill them.

The walls were clean and free of mold, the laminate flooring showed no signs of damp or warping, and every outlet was in place. The water and electricity switches worked smoothly, and there were no leaks. Li Bai looked around and was quite satisfied. It was much better than Yang Fa's old, shabby apartment, with far more space and much better natural light.

The fact that utilities weren't marked up was especially fair. Many landlords paid household rates themselves, then charged tenants commercial rates—two or even three yuan per kilowatt-hour—and doubled the water and gas bills too, making a hefty profit on the side.

"Looks good! Really good!"

As Xiao Jiangnan explained the place, Li Bai nodded repeatedly. He was certainly pleased, but his one concern was the rent.

He estimated that a place like this would cost at least twice as much as his current apartment, starting at four thousand yuan.

He couldn't understand why Officer Xiao Wang had recommended such an expensive place. He hadn't been working at Seventh People's Hospital for long and hadn't received a promotion or raise yet. How could he afford to rent somewhere this nice?

As he tried to think of an excuse to turn it down, Xiao Jiangnan seemed to notice his hesitation. He smiled and said, "Xiao Wang introduced you. If you two weren't close, he wouldn't have sent you my way. I'll give you the friends-and-family rate: eight hundred. Utilities and air conditioning are separate!"

Eight hundred?

Li Bai's eyes widened. He asked in disbelief, "What? Eight hundred?"

Eight hundred was barely enough for a single bedroom, wasn't it?

"Heh, that's right. Eight hundred!"

Xiao Jiangnan held up eight fingers, confirming the price once again.

"President Xiao, you're far too kind."

Li Bai knew that eight hundred yuan for a two-bedroom apartment with a living room, kitchen, and bathroom was practically the same as living there for free.

He guessed that half the discount was for the sake of his childhood friend, Wang Xuan, and the other half was because of what had happened before.

"Most of the eighteenth and nineteenth floors are Yongling staff dormitories. Whether I collect rent or not doesn't make much difference to me."

Xiao Jiangnan shrugged, making it clear that it was a trivial amount of money.

"Fine, then I'll rent it. How much should I pay upfront?"

Since Xiao Jiangnan was being so generous, turning him down would be rude. Li Bai readily accepted the offer.

"Whatever works for you. If money's tight right now, you can pay a few months later. I don't even require a deposit."

Xiao Jiangnan really didn't care about such a small amount of rent. Even if he charged the standard rate, it wouldn't add up to much—probably less than the cost of taking someone out for a meal.

"Then let's sign the contract!"

Li Bai had no intention of taking advantage of him. He would never do something as shameless as falling behind on rent.

The two returned to the general manager's office on the third floor of Yongling Martial Arts Fitness Center. Xiao Jiangnan's younger sister, Xiao Wei, had prepared a standard rental agreement for Li Bai.

Not long ago, Li Bai had received a hefty red envelope from the Yao Family for free, leaving him with plenty of money on hand. So he simply paid a full year's rent at once, using up almost all of it.

His salary would arrive in a few days, so he didn't have to worry about going hungry.

After signing the contract and transferring the money, Li Bai breathed a sigh of relief. At last, he could get away from Brother Yang, that miserly landlord who was obsessed with money.

"This gym membership card is my welcome gift. Come down and get some exercise when you have time. Let me know when you're moving, and I'll arrange for some people to help."

Xiao Jiangnan gave Li Bai another unexpected surprise.

At some point, he had arranged a membership card for Li Bai at Yongling Martial Arts Fitness Center. It appeared to be a gold membership, above the black iron, bronze, and silver tiers.

There was still a top-tier diamond membership, but for Li Bai, a gold card that gave him access to most of the fitness center's facilities was more than enough.

"I can teach you boxing too. Wing Chun, Pigua—take your pick!"

Like her older brother, Xiao Jiangnan, Xiao Wei considered Li Bai a friend worth getting to know. She waved her fair little fists, showing off her skills.

Paying a full year's rent up front when signing the lease had won her approval.

"I'd be honored. I'll definitely make time to give it a try."

A membership card cost Yongling Martial Arts Fitness Center next to nothing, so Li Bai accepted it without hesitation.

He practiced both cultivation and martial arts, so he really could use the card.

For one thing, the strength-training equipment could help build his physical strength and toughen his body.

After signing the new lease, Li Bai returned home and immediately began packing. He boxed up bedding and clothes for all four seasons, along with other odds and ends, and stored them in the Demoness's Storage Dragon Scale.

The Storage Dragon Scale was Qingyao's Natal Magic Tool. Putting things in or taking them out didn't consume any Spiritual Power; all it took was a thought. Since he wouldn't need these things right away, there was no need to use the Storage Ring he carried.

The old, shabby apartment that the unscrupulous, money-grubbing landlord Yang Fa had rented to Li Bai had originally been completely bare. Apart from whitewashed walls and a bare cement floor, the place didn't even have the cheapest ceiling light. There was only an empty E27 screw-in light socket, and three twisted wires were exposed inside an uncovered junction box in the wall.

As for the gas stove, range hood, exhaust fan, gas water heater, refrigerator, television, washing machine, and other appliances and furnishings, Li Bai had bought them all himself later. They had absolutely nothing to do with the landlord.

Who could have imagined that after he had rented the place in good faith, the unscrupulous landlord would keep finding ways to raise the rent over the past year or so? Busy with work, Li Bai hadn't felt like arguing with him. Now that he'd found a better place, he could finally say goodbye.

Li Bai took the Demoness to the new apartment and moved most of his packed belongings and larger items over.

The Public Security Bureau had already gotten somewhere with Yao Donghu. The case would probably be wrapped up before long, and the Santana 2000 he'd picked up from the smugglers could be taken back at any moment. While he could still use it, he might as well make the most of it.

With the Demoness's Storage Dragon Scale to help, Li Bai didn't even need to hire a moving company or movers. He cleaned the laminate flooring, tiles, and every countertop in the apartment, then set up his new home with ease.

The neighbors on the nineteenth floor were a simple lot. Most were employees of Yongling Martial Arts Fitness Center, including several instructors. Their muscles were intimidating enough to look at, and any thief with a lick of sense wouldn't dare come here to commit a crime.

With the property's security guards enforcing strict management as well, the new home was actually safer. Things wouldn't mysteriously go missing. These days, thieves even stole people's underwear—they didn't leave anything behind.