Chapter 379: Making a Killing!

The two followed Wang Liang down the alley for over a hundred meters, then turned left into an even narrower alley.

After walking another few dozen meters, they arrived at a large gate.

The gate was wide open, and several three-wheeled carts were parked at the entrance, loaded with all sorts of furniture and belongings.

People were constantly carrying items out of the courtyard and loading them onto the carts—clearly, they were in the middle of a move.

Seeing this, Li Yi asked in surprise, “Brother Wang, are these people moving?”

Wang Liang replied immediately, “Yes, they’re moving!”

“But the houses haven’t even been sold yet. Where are they moving to?” Li Yi asked again.

“These courtyards nearby were originally allocated by the municipal government for our factory’s employees to live in. This year, our factory built quite a few residential buildings near the workplace, so we’ve assigned apartments to these veteran employees. According to the regulations, once they’ve been assigned apartments, they have to vacate these old houses!” Wang Liang replied.

Hearing this, Li Yi’s eyes lit up, and he hurriedly asked, “So who owns these houses now—your factory or the city government?”

“Our factory. We paid the city government a sum of money for these houses back then, so naturally, the ownership belongs to our factory,” Wang Liang said.

“So is your factory planning to sell these compounds?”

Wang Li sighed and said, “We have no choice but to sell them!”

“Why?”

“Originally, the factory planned to reclaim these compounds and reallocate them to younger employees. But since most people find the houses here old and dilapidated—and because they’re quite far from our workplace—no one is willing to move here.”

Wang Li continued, “So, with no other options, the factory leadership discussed it and ultimately decided to sell all these old houses in the city center and use the funds to build several new dormitory buildings near the factory grounds.”

“So how many compounds is your factory planning to sell, and how many are left now?” Li Yi asked again.

Wang Li replied immediately, “A total of 32 compounds are up for sale, comprising 276 units. So far, 175 units have already been sold!”

Hearing this, Li Yi immediately furrowed his brow and asked, “Brother Wang, are you selling those compounds one unit at a time?”

“Yes! A single compound has anywhere from seven or eight units to as many as forty or fifty. Most people can’t afford to buy an entire compound, and they wouldn’t need that many units anyway, so we have no choice but to sell them one unit at a time!”

Wang Liang continued, “But don’t worry, Brother Li Yi. Old Jiang told me about your requirements, so I’ve set aside two complete courtyards just for you. Take a look and choose whichever one you like.”

“And as for the price, I’ll do my best to give you the lowest possible rate within what I can manage!”

Li Yi replied immediately, “Thank you so much, Brother Wang. Let’s go take a look at the properties first!”

“Alright!”

The three of them immediately walked around the few three-wheeled carts and entered the courtyard.

This courtyard was the kind of small siheyuan commonly found in the capital, consisting of only a single courtyard. At a glance, it covered an area of about three or four hundred square meters.

The courtyard faced south, with the main gate in the southeast. There were two side rooms for storing miscellaneous items, three main rooms facing south on the north side, and three side rooms on each of the east and west sides.

The small inner courtyard wasn’t very large and was currently cluttered with all sorts of random junk.

And just as Jiang Longcheng had said, the courtyard was in a particularly dilapidated state.

Whether it was the walls or the roof tiles, everything was in a state of disrepair. Several rooms were covered with oilcloth, clearly a makeshift solution to the leaks.

Furthermore, the windows—which had originally been uniform wooden frames—had been haphazardly modified by the residents, some now made of wood and others of iron.

Combined with the people bustling back and forth in the courtyard, it looked every bit like a communal housing compound.

The residents in the courtyard were all steel mill workers, so naturally they knew Wang Liang and greeted him one after another when they saw him.

After walking around the courtyard, Li Yi immediately asked, “Brother Wang, how much does the factory plan to sell a courtyard like this for?”

Wang Li replied immediately, “Normally, we sell the main rooms for 1,500 yuan each, the side rooms for 1,000 yuan each, and the small rooms for 600 yuan each. This courtyard has 3 main rooms, 6 side rooms, and 2 small rooms, for a total of 11,700 yuan.”

“Of course, if you really like this courtyard, I can make an exception and sell it to you for 10,000 yuan!”

A discount of 1,700 yuan—equivalent to a 15% discount—left Li Yi quite satisfied with the price.

After a moment’s thought, Li Yi said, “Brother Wang, let me take a look at the other courtyard before I make a decision!”

“Sure!”

Then, led by Wang Liang, the three of them went to see two more courtyards.

Compared to the courtyard they had just seen, this one was much larger—a rare three-courtyard compound covering over 1,000 square meters, giving the entire property a very spacious feel.

The main hall of this courtyard consisted of three rooms, with two side rooms on either side. Although the east and west wings also had three rooms each, they were connected by a covered walkway.

In addition to the front and inner courtyards, this compound also featured a rear courtyard.

Each courtyard served a distinct purpose; compared to the outer courtyard, the inner and rear courtyards offered greater privacy.

After touring the compound, Li Yi instantly fell in love with the place.

“Brother Wang, how much is this compound?”

Wang Liang replied immediately, “A courtyard of this size is a bit pricier. The entire property can’t go for less than twenty-five thousand yuan—that’s the absolute lowest price I can offer!”

Li Yi nodded and said, “Alright, I’ll take both of these compounds. How do I pay?”

“You… you want both?”

Hearing Li Yi’s words, Wang Liang and Jiang Longcheng, who was standing nearby, were both stunned.

“Brother-in-law, those two courtyards together come to thirty-five thousand yuan! With that much money, you could buy a spacious apartment in the city!” Jiang Longcheng said.

Wang Liang chimed in, “Exactly! Besides, are two courtyards this big even something you could live in, bro?”

Li Yi smiled and said, “I plan to have my parents move into the smaller one, and Xiao Xue and I will live in the bigger one.”

“Think it through carefully. Once you pay, there’s no turning back!” Jiang Longcheng said.

“I’ve made up my mind. Let’s go through the paperwork!” Li Yi said decisively.

Wang Liang didn’t say anything; instead, he glanced at Jiang Longcheng beside him.

Jiang Longcheng sighed and said, “Since this kid is as stubborn as a mule, Liangzi, you might as well go along with him.”

Wang Liang nodded and said, “Alright then! It’s a total of thirty-five thousand yuan. You’ll need to pay it directly to our factory’s finance department!”

“Brother Wang, both of these compounds can be registered for property ownership, right?” Li Yi asked again.

“Yes, once the payment is made, I’ll take you there to handle it. It’ll be done in no time!”

The money wasn’t an issue, of course. Just yesterday, he’d received over 80,000 yuan in payment from Fat Jin, and he hadn’t had time to deposit it yet—it was perfect for paying the property fees.

With that in mind, Li Yi immediately said, “Alright, let’s go right now!”

The three of them then rode back to Beiguan Village in Jiang Longcheng’s car, picked up the money, and headed straight for the Beijing Steel Plant.

Led by Wang Liang, they smoothly signed the contract and made the payment.

Afterward, the group went together to the Beijing office responsible for property registration.

After submitting the relevant documents, the property ownership certificates for the two compounds were issued shortly thereafter.

As they stepped out of the property registration office, Li Yi let out a sigh of relief.

The housing issue was finally resolved, and he and Tang Xue now had a place to call home in Beijing.

Most importantly, buying two courtyard houses in the heart of the capital for 35,000 yuan was something only possible now.

In a few years’ time, even if the price were to increase tenfold, they might not be able to afford them.

If you wait until after the turn of the millennium, even that small courtyard would be out of reach without a substantial savings goal!

If only he had a bit more cash on hand right now, Li Yi would have loved to buy a few more to hold onto.

But even so, today’s deal was an absolute steal!