The System: Haggling Is My Specialty
"At the first place, his family wasn't in a hurry to sell, so they were very firm on the price, saying they wouldn't sell for less than 5,600 taels; at the previous place, they could lower it to 4,200 taels; at this place, it's 3,300 taels."
As Broker Wang spoke, he habitually observed Zhao Ruxi's expression.
Suddenly, the system started shouting in Zhao Ruxi's mind, "Two thousand five hundred taels, one thousand eight hundred taels, one thousand taels, just pay this price."
Zhao Ruxi was stunned for a moment, then came to her senses and couldn't help but laugh and cry at the same time.
Is this guy copying how she bargains with it, trying to cut the price at the ankle too?
The middlemen were invited by Wu Zong, out of respect for the Court of Judicial Review. Even if they inflated the price a bit, it wouldn't be much, and they would never dare to ask her for an exorbitant amount.
If she were to pay the price given by the system, she would definitely be blacklisted by several middlemen.
"Then tell me, what is the actual value of this house?" she asked the system.
The system immediately went silent and stopped responding.
This confirms Zhao Ruxi's guess.
She nodded directly to Broker Wang: "Alright, then I'll take the second one, four thousand two hundred taels."
Although she could easily round down the price and negotiate it down to four thousand taels, saving two hundred taels wouldn't mean much to her. But with Broker Wang, she changed his opinion of her, making him think she was a generous customer, and he would be willing to recommend her to others if he had any good products in the future.
Spending these two hundred taels of silver is also a way of making friends.
Broker Wang was taken aback.
The house was actually priced at four thousand taels, and he had specifically left two hundred taels for Zhao Ruxi to bargain with. Unexpectedly, Zhao Ruxi didn't haggle at all and just took it.
Their fees are based on a percentage; the higher the house's selling price, the higher their percentage.
He scratched his head and said to Zhao Ruxi, "To be honest, the lowest price the owner offered for that house was four thousand taels. Some people like to haggle, so I asked for a higher price, and in the end, everyone was happy with the negotiation. You're so generous, it makes me feel a little embarrassed. How about we settle for four thousand taels?"
"No need, no need," Zhao Ruxi quickly waved her hand. "I know it's not easy for you people either. You're out there running around every day, and you have to put up with other people's attitudes. It's not easy for you to get listings. If you get a listing and sell it for a low price, then other people selling houses might not come to you and will go to someone else instead."
"If you were any other middleman, it wouldn't matter, and I would benefit as well. But you're a friend of an official from the Court of Judicial Review, and I can't cheat you for such a small gain. So let's settle on four thousand two hundred taels."
"This... this won't do!" Broker Wang was deeply moved.
Those of them in this line of work are really criticized a lot; everyone thinks they make a lot of money off their customers. Zhao Ruxi is the first person to be so considerate and say such heartwarming words to him.
Zhao Ruxi waved her hand. "It's settled then. If you think I'm a worthwhile friend, then when you recommend servants to me, pick the good ones. Next time you come across a good house or servants, you can also introduce them to me. That would be a great help to me."
Broker Wang immediately patted his chest and said, "Don't worry about that. I'll definitely pick out some good ones for you. I absolutely won't try to fool the girl with some inferior ones."
"Thank you very much then," Zhao Ruxi said with a smile. "It's getting late. I'll go to the west of the city and take a look. If there's a suitable place there, I'll ask for another one. Once you've made an appointment with the owner of this house, send a letter to my third senior brother, Wu Zong Lord Wu of the Dali Court of Judicial Review. It would be best if the deed was signed in the afternoon, as I'm usually only free in the afternoon."
"Alright," Broker Wang, "I will bring people as promised this afternoon, Miss Zhao, please rest assured."
As he spoke, he then attentively escorted Zhao Ruxi to the big banyan tree, and only after watching Zhao Ruxi meet Broker Yu west of the city did he leave with peace of mind.
Zhao Ruxi bought the house in the south of the city to process Feicui, and then sell it at the silver shop that the emperor had given her.
Besides the jewelry store, she also planned to develop other businesses, which naturally required buying another house and a shop. The south side of the city was too expensive, so she set her sights on the west side.
Broker Yu was initially somewhat disappointed when he heard that Zhao Ruxi had bought a house in the south of the city. However, he immediately perked up when she mentioned her requirements and took her to see three or four places. In the end, Zhao Ruxi chose a house with one courtyard and a shop of moderate size, with a total price of only four thousand seven hundred taels.
After parting ways with Broker Yu, Zhao Ruxi did not go home. Instead, she took a carriage to Beining and arrived at Kang Shilin's painting academy.
Kang Shilin was born into a noble family and never lacked money in his life; he lived a very refined life.
Ever since he decided to stay at the painting academy, he brought over many of the cooks, kitchen staff, and servants who were usually employed by the Kang Family. Zhao Ruxi was Kang Shilin's beloved student, so even if Kang Shilin wasn't there, it would be no problem for her to order these people to cook a meal for her. Moreover, Qingfeng would even give these people a reward for following her instructions.
As it turned out, Wu Zong had the same idea as her. Halfway through the meal, Zhao Ruxi brought Wang Guangyao in and ordered several dishes with practiced ease, showing that he was a frequent freeloader and very familiar with the ingredients in the Kang Family's kitchen and what the chef's signature dishes were.
He glanced at the food laid out in front of Zhao Ruxi and said disdainfully, "You don't know how to enjoy life."
Zhao Ruxi was speechless.
Getting a free meal and acting all high and mighty? Does she have to treat herself like royalty?
After finishing their meal, the three of them went next door.
"Miss, they've all arrived," Ma Sheng greeted them and reported. "I've arranged for them as you instructed. Broker Wang from the south of the city, said he's chosen an excellent family of servants for you. The couple is very capable, and their child is also very good. They were originally servants of a wealthy merchant, but the merchant lost money in his business, and because of their competence, they became an obstacle for some people in the household, so they were sold."
It seems that spending those two hundred taels of silver was truly worthwhile.
Ma Sheng and Uncle Lu came here as soon as they arrived in Beining, so they ate at a different time than Zhao Ruxi and the others.
At this moment, Zhao Ruxi instructed him, "Go and have dinner with Uncle Lu. You don't need to worry about things here."
She turned to Wu Zong and Wang Guangyao and explained the situation, saying, "Senior brother, as you know, the Emperor has gifted me a two-story shop. I used to design jewelry for Gathered Treasures Studio, so I'm quite familiar with silver shops, and I'm planning to open one myself. Most of the buyers will be business people, so they need to be quick-witted, eloquent, and preferably literate. When you and Uncle Wang are selecting people for me, focus on these qualities."
Wang Guangyao treated Zhao Ruxi with great respect, out of consideration for Wu Zong.
But when he heard that the Emperor had gifted Zhao Ruxi a two-story shop, his heart skipped a beat. He realized that Zhao Ruxi was no ordinary person; otherwise, how could the Emperor have given her a shop?
His opinion of Zhao Ruxi changed immediately, and he made up his mind to be even more respectful to Zhao Ruxi.
(Zhao Ruxi: It's a huge fog!)