After being reborn, her aloof ex-husband and her crazy deceased husband got into a fight.

Gan Cai'er was also an impatient person, and she would leave at a moment's notice. The next day happened to be another day when Du Ke didn't have to go to school, so she dragged Lan Tingzhou along and went to see the houses one by one according to the address.

The three houses listed at the address were indeed excellent. Not only were they in good locations and new houses, but they were also all large houses with three courtyards and an outer courtyard.

The key point is that the house is fully equipped with almost everything you need, so you can move in directly without much additional renovation.

These places were several times better than any house she had seen before; the imperial family's taste was truly exceptional.

Based on Gan Cai'er's experience buying houses in Kyoto in her previous life, each of these three houses would cost nearly ten thousand taels of silver to buy, while she only offered three thousand taels... For some reason, she felt a little guilty.

Although this was one of the rewards she deserved for working for Emperor Jinghe, she still felt guilty. She remembered that Gan Maoguo always said that doing business required integrity, and one should never cheat or monopolize the market, nor should one take advantage of someone's misfortune.

Gan Cai'er counted the silver notes in her money box, gritted her teeth, and reluctantly added another two thousand taels of silver.

Finally, she chose a place closest to Qianmen Street. Lan Tingzhou also thought it was suitable. They immediately signed a contract with the landlord.

The landlord was taken aback when Gan Cai'er produced a five thousand tael silver note. Wasn't it agreed that it would be two thousand eight hundred taels? What, was there a last-minute price increase?

He was a businessman, and this was the first time he had ever encountered a situation where the buyer would voluntarily raise the price after the deal was agreed upon, and by a significant margin.

But he dared not accept the money!

“Madam Lan, the middleman agreed on two thousand eight hundred taels. I can’t very well raise the price on the spot.” The homeowner’s surname was Wang.

"That price is too low..." Gan Cai'er said shyly.

"It's alright, Mr. Wang, please accept this money," Lan Tingzhou said.

Lan Tingzhou could roughly understand what Gan Cai'er was thinking. She had only asked for an exorbitant amount, and after taking advantage of others, she felt guilty and remorseful, so she had to spit out some of the meat she had in her mouth to ease her conscience.

This person always makes a show of bravado to act arrogantly, but in the end, he always softens and backs down, and may even have to pay some compensation.

He looked at Boss Wang and said calmly, "If you only sell this house for 2,800 taels, you are indeed losing too much money, which is unreasonable. Just pass on your words to the middleman, and he will not make things difficult for you."

As expected, Gongsun Rui did not blame him after hearing the report; he simply smiled and said, "Lady Lan Tingzhou is quite interesting."

"It's rare for our ancestor to praise someone, and she also speaks highly of this Lady Lan." Yao Ji, who was standing to the side, also smiled.

"I wonder when we'll be able to meet again."

"Be patient, this can't be rushed." Gongsun Rui grasped Yao Ji's hand. "We'll meet eventually."

The news of the Lan family buying a new house reached the Regent Prince's government that very day.

“Mr. Fan, what do you think about this matter? Should we tell the Prince?” Su Yang, the strategist of the Prince’s mansion, handed a note to Fan Sui.

Fan Sui took the note, glanced at it, and then asked, "Who owns this house? What is its origin?"

"The owner's name is Wang Feng. He runs a tea business in the capital. His ancestors served as officials in the capital for several years and accumulated some wealth. This house was newly built and was originally intended for his second son to use as a separate residence. However, after the second young master moved in, he got into a fight with someone and was seriously injured. As a result, the family disliked the house, saying that it was unlucky for its owner, and that's why they wanted to sell it."

"What about the Du family? Are they related to this house?"

“This house has nothing to do with the Du family.” Su Yang shook her head.

"As for Du Ke, he still visits the Lan family every two days and occasionally goes out with Lan Tingzhou to meet friends. Apart from that, he almost never leaves the house and has no friends in the capital. At present, there is nothing wrong with him."

After listening, Fan Sui pondered for a long time.

"Nothing seems amiss. Let someone keep an eye on things for now. The Prince is very busy at the end of the year; let's report this matter when he has some free time."

After saying this, Fan Sui put the note into a file labeled "Lanting Boat" and set it aside.

The Lan family moved quickly, finishing in just one day. This was partly because not all the trunks and boxes had been opened to begin with, and partly because the Lan family's servants were more enthusiastic about the move than Gan Cai'er, simply because the Lan family's old house was too dilapidated.

The next day, the whole family happily ate a traditional home-cooked meal in their new home.

Before they were even fully settled, Lan Tingzhi had already fenced off a large open space in a courtyard, saying he wanted to turn it into a martial arts training ground so he could practice martial arts every day.

Xiao Hong also set her sights on the pond, saying she wanted to raise a few red carp to bring good fortune to the manor. The cook, however, put her hands on her hips and said that since the madam and young master both liked to eat fish, it would be better to raise more mandarin fish and perch.

Lan Tingzhou placed his study in the left courtyard. With a window open, he could see a small pond right in front of him, enjoying the breeze and the water. The scenery here was truly exceptional.

A sheet of Xuan paper was spread out on his desk, and he was grinding ink, preparing to inscribe a plaque for the mansion.

Not far from the desk, a tall figure sat with his legs crossed, swaying back and forth in a frivolous manner; it was Lu Qingning.

"Hey, Tingzhou, your house is really nice. Not only is it perfectly square and well-organized, but it also has two large courtyards, a garden, and a pond... It's truly enviable!" Lu Qingning exclaimed, her words full of envy.

"By the way, do we no longer need to investigate the houses in the East District?"

Lan Tingzhou paused in grinding ink, his eyes half-closed, making it impossible to see his expression. Only his cold voice could be heard: "No, we still need to investigate."

"You've already bought a new house, why are you still clinging to that one?" Lu Qingning asked, quite puzzled.

"I have my own plans. Just continue investigating for me." Lan Tingzhou's expression remained unchanged.

Lu Qingning could clearly sense that Lan Tingzhou was in a bad mood. Could it be that there really was something fishy about that house?

Although he was very curious, he suppressed the urge to ask again, because he couldn't handle Lan Tingzhou if he got really angry.

It seems we should find this Mr. Huang as soon as possible.