Rekindling the Youthful Era

Chapter 841 Aren't you afraid I'll devour you?
Yinjiang District of Yuhang City is mainly located in the northeast of the city, and is divided into two areas, north and south, by Ningshan and Yinjiang.

And there just happened to be a small area sandwiched between Ning Shan and Yin Jiang.

To the south lies the Ningshan No. 2 Tunnel.

Heading north, you'll find the intersection of Ningshan Avenue and Yanjiang Avenue, next to the Yinjiang River, which is the narrowest point between Ningshan and Yinjiang.

Therefore, from the third or fourth floor of the Tianlu Yaju villa, looking north, you can see the scenery of the Yinjiang River.

Looking south, one sees the beautiful mountains and clear waters of Ningshan.

It's truly a wonderful place.

The villa that Li Luo bought, number A08, starts with the letter A, and you can basically see the river view from the third floor.

Meanwhile, the townhouses that Butler Liu and the real estate agent were showing them were all named after the letter B. The view of the river could only be seen from the rooftop.

This area can be said to be the most scenic spot in Yinjiang District.

In addition, the adjacent campuses range from primary and junior high schools to the top-performing Affiliated High School in Yinjiang District, as well as Qianjiang University, the only 985 university in the province.

The educational resources are also top-notch.

However, this is not what Li Luo and the others value.

It mainly depends on whether the house itself is good or not.

The real estate agent was clearly aware of this, so he only briefly mentioned the surrounding amenities before leading everyone into one of the townhouses.

"Speak."

Xu Youyu followed Li Luo, looking up and down at the layout of the fully furnished apartment that was being presented to the public. Then, he quietly asked Li Luo, "Haven't the housing prices in our Yinjiang District been rising recently?"

"Tianlu Yaju is in such a good location. If we buy a few more units and then sell them in a few years, wouldn't we make a fortune?"

"It feels much easier to make money than investing in stocks."

When Li Luo heard Xu Youyu say this, he was speechless: "What if the housing prices don't rise in a few years?"

“How could that be?” Xu Youyu analyzed seriously. “Everyone says that housing prices won’t rise anymore, but they haven’t stopped rising in the past ten years or so.”

"If it weren't for the fact that the money I've saved, including your 800,000, would only be enough for a down payment here, I would definitely have bought several more apartments that I'd leave unused."

"Wait until the price goes up a bit more before selling, wouldn't that be a huge profit?"

As Li Luo listened to Xu Youyu's grand vision, he could only silently mourn for her.

I thought to myself, thank goodness Sister Yu doesn't have that much money, otherwise it would all be stuck in my hands.

Of course, at least you won't lose everything like you would in the stock market or investing in short dramas, but it's not much better.

Yuhang City, a second-tier city, may not be as prestigious as first-tier cities like Changning City, but it is still one of the fastest-growing second-tier cities in China.

Even so, at the end of 17, housing prices are basically about to usher in their final glory.

In another two years, housing prices will basically peak, and then they will only go downhill.

It's safe to say that Xu Youyu is truly exceptional; his ability to make bad investments is something most people can't match.

Every time he opens his mouth, it's all about losing money.

“Sister Yu.” Li Luo patted Xu Youyu’s head helplessly and sighed, “Let’s just stick to writing web novels from now on and stop thinking about these messy things.”

"Trust me, if you focus on writing good online novels, you'll get a platinum contract, which will earn you more than speculating on real estate or stocks."

"Oh, by the way, when we sign contracts with top artists at the end of the year, how about we go through the official channels with Reign Culture?"

"You've earned over a million in royalties this year, and it might even be more in the future, especially with the copyright management services we'll be handling for you, which can easily amount to hundreds of millions."

“Going through the company will result in significantly lower taxes compared to going through an individual.”

For the vast majority of online writers, it is definitely better to pay taxes personally, because the government offers tax reductions or exemptions for royalties.

However, this exemption is only applicable to authors with an annual income of less than 1.2 million.

Once income exceeds this amount, additional taxes will be required at the end of the year. The tax rate on the excess portion will reach as high as 45%, which is much higher than the income tax that a normal company needs to pay.

Therefore, if one's annual income reaches Li Luo's level, it would definitely be better to be affiliated with a company.

If Reign Culture is still a shell company, this kind of operation will more or less have some problems.

But now, Reign Culture has fully grown into a legally operating cultural and entertainment industry company.

If Xu Youyu chooses to affiliate with them again, there will be no problem at all.

“Sure.” Xu Youyu nodded without hesitation and agreed, “I’ll do whatever you say.”

"Aren't you afraid I'll lie to you?" Li Luo teased with a smile when he saw how readily she agreed. "Once you sign with the company, your royalties will be equivalent to the company's revenue. Be careful, or I might just pocket it all."

"Hmph~" Xu Youyu rolled her eyes at him, "If you're so capable, then try and see if you swallow me first, or if I swallow you first."

The words "吞" and "吞" coming from Xu Youyu's mouth clearly have completely different meanings.

After chatting for a while, Li Luo mentioned the matter to Ying Chanxi, asking her to draft a contract in advance when she had time.

Ying Chanxi naturally said no problem.

Meanwhile, the three mothers had already begun to tour the interior of the townhouse with the real estate agent.

"The townhouses here are smaller in size than the detached villas over there," the real estate agent explained diligently.

"Especially the front and back yards, because it's a townhouse, they're right next to the neighboring yards, so the privacy isn't as good as a detached house."

"Of course, the interior is still a four-story structure, and the total area is about two-thirds of that of a detached villa."

"With this layout, the first floor will mainly serve as the living room and dining room, as well as a maid's room."

"The space on the basement level is relatively small, but each store still has its own dedicated entrance to the underground parking garage."

"The area below is only about half the size of a detached villa, and can be used as a gym, wine cabinet, or something similar."

"The second and third floors can be designed as a study and a bedroom, which is enough to meet the needs of the whole family."

"The fourth floor is relatively small. If needed, it can be designed as a space for a home theater or similar facilities, which would be the first choice for many homeowners."

"If you go up further up, you'll reach the rooftop area."

"Many homeowners will do some simple renovations, such as planting flowers and plants, or using it for outdoor barbecues and other gatherings." In these aspects, it is not much different from a detached villa.

The main difference between the two lies in privacy.

Standing on the rooftop, Cui Suling leaned on the railing and looked down at the backyard. Suddenly remembering something, she turned to Lin Xiuhong and Yuan Wanqing beside her and said:
"If we buy three houses next to each other, wouldn't it be possible to knock down the wall between the backyards and combine them into one super big backyard?"

“That’s a good idea.” Lin Xiuhong raised an eyebrow and said with a smile, “My husband, Lao Li, told me before that the fish pond in Li Luo’s backyard is too small and not very interesting for fishing.”

"If we dig a bigger one here, it would be quite interesting for Old Li and the other two to come here and fish when they have nothing else to do."

"Moreover, with such a large backyard, there are many other design options that can be considered."

Yuan Wanqing thought it was a good idea and nodded with a smile, saying, "Why not just open a door in the wall on the first floor? Then we won't have to go outside to visit each other anymore."

"But will the developers and property management here agree to this kind of renovation?"

"I don't know what the rules are here."

When the real estate agent next to Yuan Wanqing asked this question, he immediately became serious and cleared his throat twice before saying in a low voice, "Well, in principle, it's definitely not possible to just open up and remodel it like that."

"But as long as it's not a load-bearing wall, if you make these changes privately and there's no construction risk, no one will care."

"As long as there are no further personal disputes and both sides agree, there should be no problem."

Lin Xiuhong was naturally delighted with this, eager to bring all three families together and foster their relationships.

After all, their son is good in every way, but in terms of his love life, they, as his parents, still need to worry about him and lay the groundwork in advance.

Otherwise, she was really afraid that if Lao Ying or Lao Xu found out the truth, they would just grab a knife and chase after Li Luo to slash him.

Yuan Wanqing is a big star, and if her own daughter were to share a husband with another girl, it would be a scandal.

Cui Suling's family also comes from a scholarly background; Xu Youyu's maternal grandfather and father are both prominent figures at Qianjiang University.

It wouldn't sound good if this got out.

No matter how she thought about it, this was a very troublesome situation, and Lin Xiuhong had a headache just thinking about it.

But for her son's future happiness and for the sake of having three such excellent daughters-in-law, Lin Xiuhong was willing to go all out.

At this point, Lin Xiuhong had made up her mind to buy a townhouse here together with Yuan Wanqing and Xu Youyu.

It's obviously much more lively when the three families are together.

After making the decision, Lin Xiuhong, along with Yuan Wanqing and Cui Suling, asked many more detailed questions.

With a professional housekeeper like Liu accompanying you, you're unlikely to encounter any problems.

"Mr. Li is also one of our long-time clients. We have special offers and benefits available." The real estate agent knew that these men had a strong desire to buy a house, so he naturally didn't want to miss this opportunity and spoke very attentively.

When Li Luo bought the house, it was he who brought him to see it. He naturally knew how generous Li Luo was. Basically, after a quick look around, the deal was finalized.

This time, not only Li Luo came, but also the big star Yuan Wanqing!
This eliminates any concern about the financial strength of these individuals to purchase property.

“I have high privacy requirements and don’t want information about my residence to be leaked,” Yuan Wanqing told the real estate agent.

"Don't worry about that," the real estate agent quickly said. "The privacy protection at Tianlu Yaju is definitely the best in the entire Yinjiang District."

"While townhouses offer slightly less privacy, since you all plan to be neighbors, why don't you choose one in the middle, and the other two choose the ones next to it?"

"Wouldn't that protect privacy?"

The agent's suggestion was quite good.

But Lin Xiuhong was clearly not very satisfied.

After all, if she really had to choose, she would definitely prefer that her family's house be in the middle, so that it would be easier to get along with her in-laws on both sides.

Yuan Wanqing clearly thought so too.

Ultimately, she was closer to Li Luo's family. Although she was acquainted with Cui Suling, they weren't particularly close.

With Lin Xiuhong acting as a mediator to smooth things over, it's clearly a better option.

Xu Youyu, who was standing to the side, immediately saw their concerns and stepped in with a smile, saying, "Even townhouses have houses on the very edge."

"If Aunt Yuan wants more privacy, she should choose the one on the far side, so that only one side will have neighbors."

"Aunt Lin will choose the apartment next to Aunt Yuan's, and then we'll buy the one next to Aunt Lin's. Wouldn't that be perfect?"

Upon hearing Xu Youyu's words, the real estate agent immediately understood and nodded repeatedly: "That's definitely fine too. The one on the far east side hasn't been sold yet, so you can definitely choose that one."

Both Yuan Wanqing and Lin Xiuhong were quite interested in this plan.

Cui Suling also had no objections to the plan.

After reaching a consensus, everyone followed the real estate agent to visit the three townhouses on the far east side.

Unlike the previous fully furnished apartments, this one is still in the unfinished stage, but Lin Xiuhong and Cui Suling are clearly more interested in it than before.

After all, if they really settle down, this will be their new home.

Even if it's just a bare shell, they'll still enthusiastically start planning the design of each area in their minds.

After another tour, which lasted until after 3 p.m., all the families thought it was a good experience.

So Yuan Wanqing said to the agent, "If there are no problems, please book it for me first. I'll pay a deposit, and then we can draft a contract later."

"You've already decided?" Cui Suling was taken aback, not expecting Yuan Wanqing to be so decisive.

But this is normal.

After all, for Yuan Wanqing, a house worth several million is just a drop in the ocean; she can buy it without much heartache.

"Mom, you think it's good, right?" Xu Youyu asked from the side. "I think it's pretty good too. Anyway, there are only townhouses and detached villas around here, so there's no other choice. There's no difference if we look at more."

"Hmm..." Cui Suling was still not used to it. After all, buying a house is such an important matter, and it shouldn't be done too hastily.

But when Cui Suling thought about Li Luo and Yuan Wanqing's net worth, she understood.

So she finally nodded and said softly to Xu Youyu, "Then let's do as you say. Your father and I have no objections."

"Mhm!" Xu Youyu smiled happily and said to Li Luo and Yuan Wanqing beside her, "Then let's pay the deposit together~"

(End of this chapter)