Love Lock

Chapter 30 has the qualities of a businessman.

After wandering around for more than an hour, and as the shops on the street gradually opened for business, Han Lei finally stopped in front of a shop at a crossroads.

This is a two-story building, with a red "For Sale" notice pasted on the wooden door of the shop on the ground floor.

Han Lei went up and knocked on the door.

Soon, an elderly man in his fifties with strands of white hair came out to open the door.

"Sir, is this shop for sale?" Han Lei asked politely.

The old man glanced at Han Lei, then at the group of men following behind her, feeling uneasy.

Those men all possessed a ruthless aura, while the young woman before them was beautiful and well-mannered. What was going on...?

"Old man?"

Seeing that the old man didn't speak and just stared at them, Han Lei called out softly again.

"Uh, yes, this shop is for sale." The old man nodded.

"May I go in and take a look?"

“Yes, but they…” The old man glanced at the wounded soldiers behind him, then hesitated.

Han Lei followed the old man's gaze and instantly understood.

"Hehe, don't worry, old man," Han Lei said softly, "they are all my guards."

"Are they all your guards?" The old man couldn't help but look Han Lei up and down again.

In his limited life, he had only ever seen a county magistrate travel with so many guards. This young lady must be of very high status, right?

Han Lei gave the wounded soldiers a look, and they all lowered their voices and greeted the old man with a "Hello, sir!" Only then did a smile appear on the old man's face.

"Please come in with me, esteemed guest!"

The old man gestured for Han Lei to enter the shop, with the team leader and his team following behind.

This shop used to be a restaurant, with two floors. The downstairs was a large hall, about 200 square meters, and the upstairs had several private rooms. Behind the first floor was a large courtyard with a kitchen and rooms for several employees.

The restaurant's furnishings are somewhat new, but its size is considered relatively large for a place like Qingshui County. Moreover, it's located in a bustling area, making it quite conspicuous.

Han Lei was very satisfied with the shop and inquired about the price the old man was offering for it.

"Sir, I really like this shop. How much silver are you planning to sell it for?"

The old man was delighted to hear Han Lei say she liked it. With the constant warfare in Beiguan, business was difficult throughout Cangzhou; the shop had been listed for sale for months, but no one was willing to take it over.

"My employer said he'd sell it for 270 taels of silver," the old man quickly quoted the price.

"Aren't you the boss?"

"Please excuse my humble abode, young lady. My surname is Wang, and I am merely the manager of this place. The owner is going to the capital to live with his son after the New Year, which is why I am in a hurry to sell."

"Oh! But isn't two hundred and seventy taels of silver a bit too expensive?" Han Lei began to bargain.

“Not expensive, not expensive at all.” Uncle Wang shook his head repeatedly. “Only two hundred and seventy taels of silver, and the whole house is yours. You can ask around, young lady, it’s not expensive at all.” “The whole house is mine?” Han Lei was stunned. She thought it was just a transfer fee!

“That’s right!” Wang Bo was afraid the girl would run away, so he quickly started promoting the property. “Miss, this is the liveliest place in Qingshui County. Even an ordinary house here would cost three or four hundred taels of silver. What’s more, as you can see, this is a shop and a house.”

Hearing this, Han Lei was even more satisfied. The image of her opening a restaurant here quickly flashed through her mind.

Wang Bo thought she was still hesitant about the price, so he pressed on and continued to sell.

"Young lady, you're not losing out by taking over this shop. If the owner hadn't been moving to the capital and was in a hurry to sell, it wouldn't be so cheap. You're also lucky, young lady; the sale notice was just posted yesterday, and you're here today. Seize the opportunity, young lady!"

"Pfft!" Han Lei was amused. "Uncle Wang, aren't you exaggerating a bit? When I knocked on the door just now, I saw that the 'For Sale' notice had been up for ages; it was faded."

Early in the morning, she and the wounded soldiers walked around the surrounding streets several times. They knew exactly which businesses were doing well, which locations were in good places, and which were for sale.

"Uh...hehe."

Uncle Wang was instantly embarrassed and could only chuckle awkwardly.

"Uncle Wang, how long have you been the manager here?" Han Lei thought the old man was quite clever and good at persuading people, possessing the qualities of a businessman.

"I've been with the owner since this shop first opened, for over ten years now."

"Uncle Wang, if this shop is sold, will you have any other work to do? If not, how about staying and helping me? Your wages will double." Han Lei wanted to keep him.

The wounded soldiers under her command were all tough men who had fought desperately against the enemy. They had no business experience, and were not good at entertaining guests, flattery, or deception. If an experienced manager like Uncle Wang were in charge, leading the wounded soldiers, they would achieve twice the result with half the effort.

"That's wonderful! I was just afraid the girl wouldn't like me." Uncle Wang was overjoyed.

He'd been the shopkeeper for over ten years, and at his age, he had no other skills besides that. He was really worried about finding a way out! And judging from the girl's tone, she was very generous. He used to earn two taels of silver a month, but with this girl, he'd earn four taels. Wasn't this a windfall?
"Then it's settled, Uncle Wang." Han Lei took out two hundred and seventy taels of silver from her sleeve and handed it to Uncle Wang, telling him to first settle the affairs with the former owner, bring back the shop's land deed, and then discuss the rest.

……

Zhao Zun slept straight through to lunchtime, and only got up when Luo Hai sent someone to invite him.

When I arrived at the dinner table, I didn't see Han Lei, so I assumed she was still resting. Thinking about how she had taken care of me all night, I felt a warm glow inside.

Zhao Zun felt sorry for Han Lei, who had stayed up all night, and couldn't bear to wake her, so he instructed the servants of the Luo family to leave food for Han Lei.

After lunch, Zhao Zun chatted with Luo Hai for a while, but still didn't see Han Lei come out. Zhao Zun felt that it wasn't good for her to sleep on an empty stomach. So he decided to go and wake her up himself, but after knocking on the door for a long time, there was no response from inside.

Zhao Zun panicked and pushed the door open, only to find that there was no one inside.

When Luo Hai heard that Han Lei wasn't in the house, he summoned the servants to inquire. Upon asking, he learned that Han Lei had gone shopping early that morning with a group of guards.

"Shopping? Even if they were shopping, they should be back by now!" Zhao Zun suddenly felt a pang of panic. "Qingshui County is so small, with only a few streets. How could they have been shopping for most of the day and still not be back?"

He was the only one who truly understood Han Lei's situation. Han Lei had transmigrated from another world and was completely unfamiliar with the place. Although he knew she was protected by a group of people, Zhao Zun couldn't help but worry about her not returning so late.

So Zhao Zun called Pingchuan and they went out to search together.

They had just left when the guards in front of the magistrate's mansion changed shifts.

Friends, let's interact! Those with monthly passes, please give some as a reward, thank you!

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(End of this chapter)