Hongrun Wholesale Market had stalls and warehouses available for rent year-round.
After finishing breakfast with Jiang Yining, Lin Zhe rode his little electric scooter straight to the wholesale market.
The market's management office consisted of two connected rooms. It wasn't particularly large, and only four employees worked there.
"Hello, ma'am. Who should I speak to about renting a warehouse?"
After entering, Lin Zhe addressed a woman working at a desk near the door.
She was in her fifties, with her hair permed into tight curls. Despite her makeup, plenty of wrinkles and crow's feet were still visible.
"You want to rent a warehouse? I'm the person to ask. Have you picked one out, or would you like me to show you around?"
As she spoke, she rose from her seat. Her manner wasn't especially enthusiastic, but she wasn't aloof either.
"I'd like F4 in the F Zone, in the northeast corner."
Lin Zhe had just ridden his little electric scooter around the market.
He had taken a quick look at the vacant warehouses with rental notices posted on them.
The warehouse in the northeast looked brand-new, as though it had never been rented out before, which suited him perfectly.
Most importantly, it wasn't in the same area as Old Li's Grain and Oil Shop, so he could avoid too much contact.
In the future, he could have Sister Li deliver the goods to that warehouse, convert them, then haul them straight out of the market through the east gate.
After all, his special ability, Return Plum for Peach, was a little too incredible. It was better to keep a low profile.
"So that's the one you've picked? All right, I'll take you over and unlock it so you can have a look."
"This will be its first rental. No one's used it before. What kind of business are you planning to run, young man?"
Making casual conversation with Lin Zhe, she opened her desk drawer and took out a ring of keys.
Lin Zhe gave a half-truth. "I'll use it as a warehouse to store some things."
"All the units in that area are rented by merchants for storage. It's also an area our market management team pays special attention to."
"To keep our merchants' goods safe, we added four more surveillance cameras there this year."
"You can rent it with peace of mind, young man. Security definitely won't be a problem."
"Hongrun Wholesale Market has been officially operating for seven or eight years, and we haven't had a single warehouse theft."
"Come on, I'll take you over to see it in person."
As she spoke, she led Lin Zhe outside.
Chatting on and off, they walked for about three minutes before reaching the warehouse Lin Zhe had chosen.
"The one on the left belongs to a dairy merchant, and the one on the right is used by a snack wholesaler."
"They generally only come over to collect goods. They aren't around the rest of the time, so you won't have much trouble getting along with them."
As she spoke, she found the key to the warehouse door and unlocked it.
Since no one had ever rented it, a thick layer of dust had settled inside.
The warehouse covered about a hundred square meters, making it reasonably spacious.
There were three small windows in the south wall to let in light, all fitted with security bars outside. Security shouldn't be an issue.
"How much is the rent for this warehouse?"
Overall, Lin Zhe was quite satisfied with the place, so he turned to ask her about the price.
She asked, "Are you looking for a long-term or short-term rental, young man?"
Lin Zhe thought for a moment. "Long-term. At least a year."
"An annual lease would certainly be best. It's also the most economical."
Hearing that Lin Zhe wanted a long-term rental, she smiled and said:
"If you rent this warehouse by the year, I can offer you a discounted rate of twelve thousand yuan. That works out to just a thousand a month."
"Is there any room for a further discount?"
"Young man, that's already a very low price! Ask around anywhere, and you'll see. Hongrun is known for having low rents in this area."
"All right, I'll take this one. When can we sign the contract? And when can I start using it?"
Once Lin Zhe heard there were no further discounts, he couldn't be bothered to haggle.
He still hadn't converted today's five hundred jin of peaches.
A day's delay would cost him several thousand yuan in earnings, almost enough to cover the rent.
"Signing the contract is easy! Just come back to the office with me. Once it's signed, you can start using it today."
"How about this, young man? You seem like an honest fellow, so I'll throw in an initial deep clean!"
"Once we've signed the contract, I'll have the market's cleaners get the warehouse cleaned up for you!"
"All right, thank you. Can they finish today? I'm in a hurry to move some goods in."
"Yes! Absolutely! How about I call the cleaners now and have them come over to get started? Then I'll take you back to sign the contract."
She was a decisive woman. Even as she spoke, she took out her phone and made a call.
Once the call connected, she told the person on the other end to bring a team over to clean the warehouse, stressing that they needed to work quickly and finish before three that afternoon.
"There you go, young man. It'll definitely be cleaned up before three."
After finishing the call, she put away her phone and looked at Lin Zhe as she assured him.
"Great, thank you so much. Let's go sign the contract."
They retraced their steps to the office, where she found two copies of the contract in a filing cabinet. They soon finished signing both.
Lately, the Fortunate Inn and the Good Fortune Canteen had been raking in money every day, and the balance in Lin Zhe's bank account had long since passed the six-figure mark.
The twelve-thousand-yuan rent wasn't a large sum to him. He scanned the payment code and paid it in full on the spot.
"Lin Zhe, congratulations on becoming one of the merchants at Hongrun Wholesale Market."
"If you have any problems with your business in the future, you can always come to the market management office and ask for me."
"Here's your rental contract and three warehouse keys. Keep them safe."
After checking the contract and finding everything in order, Liu Wenying handed Lin Zhe his copy along with the three warehouse keys.
"All right, Sister Liu. I'll be counting on your help in the future. If there's nothing else, I'll be off."
Lin Zhe accepted the contract and keys with a smile, exchanged a few polite words with Liu Wenying, then took his leave.
After leaving the management office, Lin Zhe headed straight to Old Li's Grain and Oil Shop.
"Oh! Boss Lin! What brings you here in person?"
"If you need anything, just call and say the word. I'll deliver it straight to the inn!"
Li Ying, who had been organizing goods, looked up and saw Lin Zhe coming in. She hurried to greet him with a smile.
"You're here, Boss Lin. Whatever you need, just talk to Old Li."
Li Ying's husband, Jia Wen, looked like the honest, straightforward type.
He gave Lin Zhe a brief greeting, then, unsure what else to say, went back to work.
"Sister Li, I'd like to order five hundred jin of fresh peaches. Can you deliver them today?"
After parking his electric scooter, Lin Zhe walked into the grain and oil shop. He skipped the pleasantries with Li Ying and got straight to business.
"Yes, yes, yes! Of course! I'll deliver them straight to the inn!"
Hearing that Lin Zhe had come to buy peaches, Li Ying was delighted.
Earlier that morning, she had already delivered three hundred jin of fresh peaches to the inn.
Now Lin Zhe had come to order another five hundred jin. The volume of sales really was beyond anything she had expected.
Lin Zhe quickly said, "No need to deliver them to the inn. I rented a warehouse in the market's storage area. It's being cleaned right now.
"Just deliver them to the warehouse after three this afternoon, Sister Li. You don't need to worry about anything else."
"You rented a warehouse in the market?"
Li Ying was completely baffled by Lin Zhe's puzzling move.
She truly couldn't understand why he needed to rent a warehouse.
"Yes, F4 in the northeast F Zone. Just deliver the peaches there, Sister Li."
Lin Zhe only gave Li Ying the warehouse number without offering any further explanation.
"Sure, sure, no problem. Wherever you tell us to deliver, Boss Lin, that's where we'll take them!"
"After three, northeast F4. Consider it done!"
Li Ying wasn't the type to pry.
Since Lin Zhe hadn't explained why he was renting a warehouse, she didn't ask any more questions.
It wasn't as though his rent had cost her a single cent, so why should she worry about it?
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