COFCO Seaview No. 1

The next morning, Zhang Yang had just woken up in his apartment when he received a call from Pei Xiaoru.

"Old classmate, looking at houses?"

"You've already made an appointment?" Zhang Yang glanced at the time, somewhat surprised. It was only a little past seven o'clock; how dare Pei Xiaoru bother the landlord at this hour?

"You wouldn't believe it, last night I saw my China posting some really 'emo' stuff on her WeChat Moments late at night, lamenting all sorts of random things. I just got the gist of it: her family was going to fall on hard times. So I took the opportunity to comment on her post, and look, that's it," Pei Xiaoru said with a smile.

"That makes sense, no wonder they wanted to sell the house," Zhang Yang muttered to himself.

"Anyway, that's it. This young lady has a sharp eye. Just get your outfit and stuff together, don't feel like you're being deliberate. Anyway, please help me out, old classmate." Pei Xiaoru pleaded over the phone.

"Okay, give me an address, I'll come pick you up when I'm ready," Zhang Yang said casually.

A short while later, Pei Xiaoru sent the address.

Zhang Yang glanced at it; it was the address of Pei Xiaoru's store.

After warming up and exercising in the morning, Zhang Yang took a shower, opened his wardrobe, ran his fingers over his clothes, and then picked out a Gucci Eton collar shirt that cost a little over 10,000 yuan, along with some trousers.

Then, he casually put on his Audemars Piguet.

In front of the mirror, his incredible physique immediately stood out beneath his shirt; he was tall, with thin lips and a straight nose, his figure perfectly proportioned beneath the shirt.

If there's a benchmark for male idols, this is probably what they look like.

"Alright, that's fine." Zhang Yang wasn't going to listen to Pei Xiaoru's attempts to fabricate a story.

When would you need to put on airs? If you're broke and trying to look sophisticated by piling on clothes, sorry, Zhang Yang is a genuine, high-net-worth client, why would he need to put on airs?

He simply put together a comfortable early summer outfit according to his own preferences.

In the underground parking lot below the apartment building, Zhang Yang walked past his Porsche and Bentley in turn, finally stopping in front of his new ride, a Rolls-Royce Cullinan BB.

"I get the feeling," Zhang Yang said with a smile.

While it's far from a line of luxury cars, having both Porsche Bentley Rolls-Royce, the pinnacle of the world's luxury car market, is something to be proud of.

"Huh, who the hell wrote their WeChat ID in lipstick?" Without thinking, Zhang Yang took out a wet wipe and cleaned the lipstick off the car window.

A moment later, he drove his Cullinan straight to the store where Pei Xiaoru was currently working, intending to meet her.

··

Anjia Real Estate, Pudong Lujiazui Branch.

Pei Xiaoru arrived at the store early this morning. She sat at her workstation and occasionally looked down at herself in the makeup mirror.

Compared to her confidence yesterday, she felt inexplicably nervous today.

"Xiaoru, you seem a bit off today." A female colleague from the Luxury Property Department sat not far away, noticing Pei Xiaoru's absent-mindedness, and asked curiously.

Pei Xiaoru is someone who can't hide her feelings, and now that someone is asking, she immediately chimes in.

"I found someone to go with me to the apartment in COFCO Seaview No. 1," Pei Xiaoru whispered to her colleague Liu Fei.

"Great, at least we can finally figure out the inside of that house. By the way, who did you contact? Be careful not to give yourself away. A colleague of mine gave himself away before and was immediately rejected; they weren't even allowed to enter the house," Liu Fei emphasized repeatedly.

"That's not a problem," Pei Xiaoru sighed softly.

"If there's no problem, why are you sighing?" Liu Fei's eyes widened.

"Liu Fei, let me ask you a question. What if one day, a classmate who used to be very ordinary suddenly appears in front of you, transformed into someone rich and good-looking? What would you think?" Pei Xiaoru asked Liu Fei.

"Are you alright? Have you been watching too many movies and reading too many novels?" Liu Fei's eyes widened. "You're not trying to say that the person who went to look at apartments with you is this classmate you mentioned? Rich and good-looking... well, that's what they say, right?"

"You don't believe me?" Pei Xiaoru pouted.

Liu Fei could only smile in response, offering no further comment.

As they were talking, Pei Xiaoru glanced down at her phone and then stood up a little nervously.

"Your classmate is here?" Liu Fei asked.

Pei Xiaoru nodded her head rapidly.

"Then hurry up and go, look how nervous you are... Come on, I'll go with you." Liu Fei looked helplessly at her usually assertive colleague's current state and pulled her towards the door.

A short while later, outside the Anjia Real Estate.

"Where is he?" Liu Fei turned to ask Pei Xiaoru.

"There it is." Pei Xiaoru looked around and suddenly pointed into the distance.

Liu Fei looked in that direction, and her expression suddenly froze.

A tall figure stepped Cullinan parked not far away. From a distance, his physique under the white shirt was unbeatable, and his looks were incredibly handsome.

Then, the figure headed straight for them.

"Pei Xiaoru, getting in the car?" Zhang Yang spotted the two people at the shop entrance at a glance, and then glanced at the woman next to Pei Xiaoru, who was also wearing a shirt, blazer, and short skirt. "Is this your colleague?"

"Hello." Liu Fei's voice was so soft it was almost a whisper, and she didn't dare to breathe too loudly as she felt the overwhelming handsomeness emanating from him.

Zhang Yang nodded and then looked at Pei Xiaoru.

Huh? My old classmate's makeup today...

Yesterday her makeup was very bright and vibrant, giving off a sense of wanting to show off, but today it's much fresher and more elegant, and seems to have been put more effort into it...

A short while later, on the Cullinan train,

Pei Xiaoru sat upright. Usually a very talkative girl, she seemed quite ladylike today.

Especially when passersby curiously peered into the car through the window, she deliberately acted particularly reserved and aloof, as if afraid of being thought unworthy to sit in the Cullinan's passenger seat.

"Hey." Without thinking, Zhang Yang patted her thigh, which wasn't wearing stockings.

Pei Xiaoru trembled, but dared not utter a word of warning, only her legs rubbing against each other slightly uneasily.

"Tell me about the house. If I don't know anything, I don't seem like a customer, okay?" Zhang Yang glanced at Pei Xiaoru with amusement. She was usually a very outgoing girl, but today she was acting all reserved and shy.

"Oh, oh." Pei Xiaoru suddenly came to her senses and began to describe the situation of the house.

This apartment is located in COFCO Seaview No. 1, 340 square meters, with four bedrooms, two living rooms, three bathrooms, and a maid's room. It is in the central area, has two balconies, and offers views of the garden landscape and the Huangpu River. The interior is decorated in ultra-luxury style, and the asking price is 120 million yuan.

"Although I didn't see the house, I managed to add the owner on WeChat by chance. Looking at their WeChat Moments, they are really rich. Sometimes I even wonder if we live in the same world," Pei Xiaoru sighed.

According to Pei Xiaoru, the homeowner is a young woman in her early twenties. Although she is young, her father is very wealthy.

"Didn't you say her family had fallen on hard times?" Zhang Yang asked curiously.

"Even a starved camel is bigger than a horse. Does she mean it's really fallen on hard times? At most, it's just that the family's investments have failed, and they're using this house to generate some working capital," Pei Xiaoru said after thinking for a moment.

Zhang Yang nodded.

Living in a mansion worth hundreds of millions, she is indeed a genuine super-rich and beautiful woman.

Even the girls around him, like Gu Jiani and Bei Jiajia, are at best from well-off families and can be considered rich girls, but they are far from his level.

Let's talk about houses.

COFCO Seaview No. 1 is a well-known luxury residence in Lujiazui, right next to Tomson Riviera, with excellent river views. Although there are always people who criticize it, saying that those who buy Tomson Riviera look down on those who live in Harbour View One, just like those who can't afford Rolls-Royce settle for Bentley.

But think about it, even if they can't afford Rolls-Royce, they still buy Bentley. It's just a difference between the top dog and the second-in-command.

While COFCO Seaview No. 1 can't compare to Tomson Riviera's prices of over 100 million or even hundreds of millions, its starting price is still in the tens of millions, and for better ones, it's common to exceed 100 million.

The owners of Tomson Riviera, a super-luxury residential complex, are only allowed to complain about their homes worth over 100 million yuan. As for others, do they even have the right to criticize them?

Zhang Yang was calculating the cost in his mind.

The asking price is 120 million. Even with a 90% discount on real estate, I would still have to come up with 30 million out of my own pocket. Even if the shop is successfully sold, there would still be a difference of a few million after adding all the cash I have on hand.

Of course, this difference is negligible, but if one can afford it in one go, who would want to wait any longer?

Forget it, let's look at houses first. If we're really satisfied, we can try to negotiate the price.

In the morning, beneath the tallest building in China, the Shanghai Tower, lies COFCO Seaview No. 1, which is on par with Tomson Riviera, hailed as the premier luxury residence in China.

The entire COFCO Seaview No. 1 covers an area of 24,000 square meters, with a total construction area of 120,000 square meters. It consists of five super high-rise river-view luxury residences, making it an absolutely unique riverside location with unparalleled views of the Huangpu River.

Zhang Yang drove his Cullinan to the heart of Lujiazui CBD and finally parked it near Riverside Avenue.

After getting off the car, Zhang Yang looked up at the towering Shanghai Tower Shanghai Tower COFCO Seaview No. 1 below it. Under the sunlight, the off-white steel plates paired with light-colored stone and glass curtain walls created a visually stunning yet refreshing effect.

"This is COFCO Seaview No. 1," Zhang Yang exclaimed inwardly.

Even though it's right next to Tomson Riviera, which is known as the pinnacle of riverfront luxury residences, it truly deserves the title of "Number One" because it boasts an absolutely prime riverside location.

Nearby, Pei Xiaoru was making a phone call to the homeowner.

Because they were so close, and Zhang Yang had excellent hearing, he could hear every single word of their conversation.

"Hello?" The voice on the other end was cold and carried an air of superior arrogance.

"Ms. Luo, I've brought my client over. Would you like to come over?" Pei Xiaoru asked eagerly.

"What time was our appointment?" The voice on the other end sounded sleepy and languid. "Is this client of yours reliable?"

"Absolutely reliable, Ms. Luo," Pei Xiaoru quickly assured her, feeling a little guilty.

The "client" she brought was wealthy, but not exactly a client, so she couldn't say she was 100% confident; she was still somewhat apprehensive.

"Okay, you wait here, I'll have Auntie... never mind, I'll get down myself."

Before Pei Xiaoru could say anything, the phone was hung up.

Pei Xiaoru looked at Zhang Yang somewhat awkwardly, "Zhang Yang, shall we wait here for a while?"

"It doesn't matter," Zhang Yang said nonchalantly.

The two didn't wait long downstairs when a tall figure walked out from the COFCO Seaview No. 1.

"You're the agent who contacted me, right?" The girl walked over and looked at Pei Xiaoru.

"You are... Ms. Luo?" Pei Xiaoru recognized the girl in front of her at a glance as the owner of this COFCO Seaview No. 1 apartment and greeted her warmly.

"This is my client, Mr. Zhang."

Pei Xiaoru solemnly introduced Zhang Yang.

Ms. Luo looked at the tall and handsome figure standing next to Cullinan and scrutinized him carefully.

Well, the car is Cullinan Black Badge worth nearly ten million, the accessories are Audemars Piguet around two million, and the Gucci shirt he's wearing is only worth a little over ten thousand, but it only makes this guy's incredibly good physique stand out even more.

Good temperament, great physique, handsome, and rich...

He certainly seems to be a capable client, and he makes an excellent impression.

"Hello, I'm Luo Xinyu, let's get to know each other?" She walked up confidently and extended her hand, looking more closely at the boy in front of her.

"Hello, Zhang Yang." Zhang Yang sized up the female landlord in front of him.

The female homeowner was beautiful, had a great figure, and her skin was flawless.

While her attire didn't deliberately pile on various luxury items, the Bulgari jewelry watch she glimpsed on her wrist alone was probably worth at least a million.

"Zhang Yang? Shall we go up and take a look at the house?" Luo Xinyu put away the condescending attitude she had inadvertently displayed when facing Pei Xiaoru, and now only a friendly smile remained on her face.

"Okay, let's take a look first." Zhang Yang nodded and glanced at Pei Xiaoru beside him.

Pei Xiaoru quickly followed the two, walking straight into the riverside mansion located beneath the tallest building in the country.

The houses are located in the front row, only about 100 meters away from the Huangpu River, and feature a three-elevator, two-household design.

Along the way, the landlady Ms. Luo, was not at all as aloof as she had seemed on the phone; in fact, she was quite talkative.

However, Pei Xiaoru, who was standing nearby, still couldn't get a word in edgewise.

As a woman herself, she couldn't help but roll her eyes at Ms. Luo's overly proactive manner.

So what if she's a rich girl from a wealthy family? Isn't she still obsessed with looks?

In this respect, whether you are rich or poor, everyone seems to have the same thing in common.

"My dad bought this house for me a couple of years ago. I had my classmate from the Rhode Island School of Design find Lamborghini Aventador international designer to personally handle the renovation. Talking about how much the renovation cost is cliché, but in terms of design sense, it's absolutely unique," landlady Ms. Luo explained.

"Therefore, I also hope to find a like-minded buyer. Although my family needs this money, I personally don't want to just sell it to any random person."

Zhang Yang nodded and followed him out of the elevator to the apartment door.

He had just listened to Ms. Luo talk about her decorating philosophy and thought that she would go inside the house and explain the design style in more detail.

But to my surprise, the style changed drastically the moment I stepped inside.

Just now, you didn't mention money at all, only talking about design style and aesthetics. Now, you can't stop talking about money, and you don't introduce any design concept at all.

Castel door panel costing hundreds of thousands, a Gaggenau cabinet set paired with an eleven-piece set of Poggenpohl kitchen appliances, would conservatively cost over a million.

The THG faucet, priced at 300,000, reportedly incorporates materials such as platinum, jasper, semi-precious stones, crystal, porcelain, onyx, and lapis lazuli in its design. The bathtub is a bit cheaper, but it's still a Bette bathtub starting at 100,000.

Other items include complete sets of Fendi furniture, and Samsung TVs starting at 100 inches and costing millions...

In short, Ms. Luo mentioned everything related to money that could highlight the value of the renovation.

"Except for my personal belongings, everything else in the house will remain untouched. I'll keep it all. If I weren't in a hurry for the money, I would never have been willing to sell it for this price." Ms. Luo's eyes were filled with deep reluctance.

"Can we negotiate the price?" Zhang Yang was now standing on the super large balcony of this 340-square-meter, four-bedroom, two-living-room penthouse.

What's the essence of buying a luxury river-view home? It's the unbeatable river view, of course.

As one of only two luxury residential projects with the best river view in Lujiazui besides Tomson Riviera, COFCO Seaview No. 1's river view is absolutely stunning.

A 360-degree panoramic view of the river, offering a complete view of the century-old the Bund and the Huangpu River.

Standing here, Zhang Yang suddenly experienced a profound transformation and understood the true meaning of wealth.

To be honest, it's a bit of a stretch for him to own this house now. Only someone who has weathered the storms of the business world and finally reached this position can truly appreciate the feeling of being at the pinnacle of success.

However, even if you try to force growth, it's still growth.

Zhang Yang's current perspective is far beyond what he had before.

"Price? The price is already very low." Ms. Luo exclaimed in surprise, seemingly astonished that anyone would even want to discuss the price.

She glanced at Zhang Yang's handsome back and incredibly dashing profile, and muttered a couple of things under her breath.

"We definitely can't talk to anyone else. As for you, at most... at most we'll give you a few million, that's the most we can get."

"A few million coming and going?" Zhang Yang muttered to himself, glancing at Pei Xiaoru, who was busy taking photos not far away after consulting Ms. Luo.

Hmm, it seems she's almost finished filming.

So, Zhang Yang and Pei Xiaoru exchanged a glance and signaled to each other.

"Let me think about it some more," he said.

Although he was ready to buy it, he wasn't in a hurry, since he didn't have the money yet. He wanted to wait until the shop was successfully sold before making any moves.

"Then... then you'd better hurry up. I've looked at several places and I'm quite interested in them. If you're interested, I can let you talk first." Ms. Luo couldn't see Zhang Yang's strong desire to buy, and she was somewhat disappointed.

"No need, no need. If you're really sincere and have a strong interest, you can talk to others first. You don't have to wait for me. I haven't decided yet either," Zhang Yang said, shaking his head.

"Ms. Luo, I'll take my clients with me now," Pei Xiaoru said at the opportune moment.

"Alright then." Luo Xinyu concealed the disappointment in her eyes, forced a smile, and prepared to see Zhang Yang and the others out.

Today's draw was also in the 10,000s. My child has been coughing for the past two days, so I can't delay. If it gets bad, I'll have to take him to the hospital for an X-ray tomorrow. For the next few days, I'll aim for at least 5,000s, and then try for a bigger breakout in a couple of days.