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That afternoon, Zhuangzhuang asked the sales office for half a day off in advance and took a 40-minute bus ride to Teacher Zheng's house.

Teacher Zheng lives in an old neighborhood in western Beijing. The apartment is a two-bedroom unit allocated by her work unit. In the living room, there is an old piano with a thick stack of sheet music piled on the lid.

Teacher Zheng is in her forties and is extremely dedicated to teaching. If you miss a single note, she can make you sing it twenty times.

When Zhuangzhuang arrived, Teacher Zheng was sitting at the piano revising a score, while his wife was busy in the kitchen.

Hearing the doorbell ring, the teacher's wife wiped her hands and came out to open the door. As soon as she saw Zhuangzhuang, she smiled and said, "Little Zhuang is here? Come in, come in quickly. Is it cold outside?"

Zhuangzhuang changed into slippers and came in. "It's alright, it's not too cold today. Madam, you don't need to do anything else, I've come to have a lesson with Teacher Zheng."

The teacher's wife waved her hand and said, "No rush, no rush. I just steamed a few buns. You can take a few with you after class."

Teacher Zheng called out from the living room, "Let's start class first. We'll talk about the steamed buns after class."

Zhuangzhuang stuck out his tongue at his teacher's wife and quickly ran to stand next to the piano.

Teacher Zheng turned to the page of the sheet music to practice, tapped a note on the piano key, and said, "Come on, warm up your voice first."

The class lasted for more than an hour.

Teacher Zheng had Zhuangzhuang sing the same melody repeatedly no less than ten times, and each time she could find different faults.

Zhuangzhuang blushed from the criticism, but showed no impatience whatsoever.

Because she knew that although Teacher Zheng was strict, what he taught was truly solid.

After class, Zhuangzhuang packed her things to leave.

The teacher's wife poked her head out from the kitchen. "Xiao Zhuang, wait a moment. The buns aren't ready yet. Sit down for a while. Teacher Zheng, don't just sit there. Go get Xiao Zhuang a glass of water."

Teacher Zheng immediately poured a glass of water and handed it over, muttering, "They won't even let me catch my breath every day!"

"Thank you." Zhuangzhuang took the water glass with a smile and then sat down on the sofa.

At this moment, the teacher's wife came out of the kitchen with a plate of steaming hot buns, placed them on the coffee table, and then sat down on a chair next to them. "Xiao Zhuang, I have a question for you. Do you work at Mingju Real Estate?"

"Yes, I work at Mingju Real Estate. How did you know, Mrs. Master?"

The teacher's wife smiled. "I overheard you chatting with Teacher Zheng last time. You said you were selling houses at the sales office, right?"

Zhuangzhuang said, "Yes! I'm at Building No. 3 in Beijing right now."

Mrs. Zheng moved forward slightly. "Well, Xiao Zhuang, we've been looking at houses lately. You've seen the apartment your teacher Zheng's workplace allocated—a two-bedroom. It was fine when we lived there, but now that the kids are older, we don't have room for them when they come back for holidays. We've been thinking of buying a three-bedroom, but we've looked at several developments, and either the location is bad or the layout is terrible. We've seen the apartments built by your Mingju Real Estate in the newspaper, like Jingcheng No. 1 and Jingcheng No. 2. They say they're low-rise buildings with elevators and good layouts, right?"

Zhuangzhuang immediately became serious. "Teacher's wife, you want to buy a house from our company?"

The teacher's wife nodded, a little embarrassed, and said, "We just wanted to ask around. We heard that the houses there are expensive, almost six thousand per square meter, which is indeed a high price for us. I just wanted to ask you, since you work there, do you have any discounts available?"

Teacher Zheng, holding a teacup beside him, frowned and said, "You, Xiao Zhuang is here to attend class, and you're pulling him aside to talk about buying a house."

His wife glared at him. "What's wrong with me asking? You've never liked asking for favors in your life. If I hadn't asked, we would have continued to squeeze into this tiny two-bedroom apartment for another ten years."

Zhuangzhuang quickly waved his hand and said with a smile, "Teacher's wife, please don't be so polite. There's nothing wrong with asking. This is what I do for a living. I would feel awkward if you didn't ask me."

The teacher's wife's expression immediately relaxed. "Then tell me, what's the layout of your three-bedroom apartment like? How big is it? What was the total price?"

"Our apartments in Jingcheng No. 1 are sold out! As for Jingcheng No. 2 and No. 3, the main three-bedroom units are 88 square meters, with three bedrooms, two living rooms and one bathroom, and are well-ventilated from north to south. The living room is 4.2 meters wide, the master bedroom has a bay window, and the kitchen and bathroom are bright and airy, not the kind that are dark and stuffy. The community has a central green space, underground parking spaces, and the property management is handled by the company itself, with staff on duty 24 hours a day."

The teacher's wife's eyes lit up as she listened, and she turned to Teacher Zheng and said, "Did you hear that? Eighty-eight square meters, three bedrooms and two living rooms, bright kitchen and bathroom! It's so much better than our old tenement building."

Teacher Zheng's face was expressionless, but she was clearly listening attentively.

Zhuangzhuang continued, "Regarding the price, our current opening price is 5,888 yuan per square meter, and the total price for a three-bedroom apartment is approximately 520,000 yuan."

When the teacher's wife heard the number, she exclaimed, "Five hundred and twenty thousand..."

Seeing the change in his teacher's wife's expression, Zhuangzhuang immediately took over the conversation, "Teacher's wife, I know this price is indeed quite high for an ordinary family. But listen to me, I have a discount quota. The company gives each salesperson a certain amount of authority. When normal customers come to buy, there are no discounts at all; it's just the listed price. But you are Teacher Zheng's husband, so please leave this to me. I will definitely get you the biggest discount possible."

The teacher's wife's eyes lit up again, "What's the biggest discount you can get?"

Zhuangzhuang thought for a moment, not making any absolute statements, but also not being vague: "I can't guarantee you the exact amount right now, because I have to go back and apply to my superiors. But I can assure you that within the limits I can get, the discount I'll give you will be a price that no one else can get. And I'll also help you choose the floor. Whichever floor you want, I'll reserve it for you. Good floors and good orientations, I won't give them to anyone else, I'll reserve them for you first."

The teacher's wife couldn't hide her smile. "Oh, Xiao Zhuang, you're such a good person. Your teacher Zheng and I are so old, and when we went to look at houses elsewhere, the sales girls there were so indifferent because we were dressed so simply. But you just said you'd get the best floor. It warmed my heart to hear that."

Teacher Zheng finally spoke up, "Five hundred and twenty thousand. Even if you give us a 2% discount, that's still a saving of ten thousand or so yuan. Honey, if Xiao Zhuang can really help us get it, we have to remember this favor."

The teacher's wife turned around and said to him, "Aren't you going to say now that I was talking to someone about buying a house?"

"..." Teacher Zheng picked up her teacup, took a sip, and pretended not to hear.

Zhuangzhuang was amused by the couple and stood up, saying, "Teacher's wife, Teacher Zheng, don't worry, leave this to me. I'll go back in the next few days and help you find the right floor. I think the sixth to eighth floors are the most suitable, with good lighting but not too high, and convenient elevator access. After I've found the right floor, I'll calculate the floor plan and the total price in detail, and then you can take a look, okay?"

The teacher's wife stood up and took Zhuangzhuang's hand, "Alright, alright, I'll listen to you. I trust you to handle things. By the way, take a few steamed buns with you, I've steamed a lot."

"How could I possibly accept this?"

"Take this!" Without waiting for a reply, the teacher's wife took a food bag, filled it with seven or eight buns, and stuffed it into Zhuangzhuang's hand.

Zhuangzhuang tried to push it away twice but couldn't, so she had no choice but to pick up the bag and leave.

As Zhuangzhuang walked downstairs, she glanced back at the window of Teacher Zheng's small two-bedroom apartment.

Teacher Zheng and his wife have always been very kind to her. If it weren't for Teacher Zheng teaching her step by step when she first came to Beijing, she might have lost all her vocal skills long ago.

She had her money stolen at Beijing West Railway Station and couldn't afford tuition, but Teacher Zheng was still willing to teach her wholeheartedly.

This favor is very important; we must help Teacher Zheng get a discount.

……

The next day, Zhuangzhuang went to see her team leader, Zhang Jie, as soon as she got to work.

Then I told Zhang Jie about my intention to apply for a discount for Teacher Zheng, without beating around the bush, and explained the situation directly.

After listening, Zhang Jie pulled Zhuangzhuang aside and asked, "Don't you still have your own spot? Why do you need to come to me specifically to apply?"

“My own discount is limited, and I want to save the teacher as much as possible. Teacher Zheng has been very kind to me. When I first came to Beijing, my tuition was stolen, but he never charged me. His wife always brings me food during holidays. Their small two-bedroom apartment is really cramped, and I genuinely want to help them.” Zhang Jie looked at Zhuang Zhuang's expression and knew that the girl was truly thinking of others. “Okay, I'll give you that favor. You let them choose the floor and apartment type, and I'll approve it to the maximum extent of my authority. But there's one condition: this discount is only valid once, so you should keep that in mind.”

Zhuangzhuang nodded vigorously, "Thank you, Team Leader Zhang. I knew you would help me."

Zhang Jie waved his hand and said with a smile, "Stop with the nonsense, get back to work and try to win another top sales award."

"no problem."

That very evening, Zhuangzhuang called Teacher Zheng's house and told him about the discount.

Zhuangzhuang read out the final total price over the phone. After listening, his teacher's wife was stunned for several seconds. "Xiao Zhuang, you're really a good person. You've done our family a huge favor."

"As long as you're satisfied."

"Satisfied! Satisfied!"

Two days later, Teacher Zheng and his wife came to the sales office with their identification documents.

Zhuangzhuang accompanied them throughout the process of viewing the model, selecting the floor, and signing the contract.

The teacher's wife's hands were shaking when she signed the contract. After she finished, she held Zhuangzhuang's hand tightly and said, "Little Zhuang, you must come to our house for dinner in the future."

"Of course I'll go. I still miss your steamed buns."

After finishing the business, Zhuangzhuang escorted Mr. and Mrs. Zheng to the entrance of the sales office and watched them leave happily.

Zhuangzhuang stood at the door and breathed a sigh of relief, feeling as if a weight had been lifted from her heart.

……

That afternoon, the sales office of "Beijing No. 3" was as usual, with several salespeople introducing the model to customers in front of the sand table, and Zhang Jie organizing contracts in the back.

Zhuangzhuang had just seen off a group of customers and was organizing materials at the front desk when a middle-aged man suddenly entered the sales office.

This man was in his thirties, of medium height, with shiny hair slicked back with hair gel, and a sleazy face.

As soon as he entered, he looked around suspiciously, more like he was looking for someone than a potential client looking to see the house.

A salesperson immediately approached him, "Sir, would you like to view a property?"

"No, I'm looking for someone."

Who are you looking for?

"Zhuangzhuang, I'm looking for Zhuangzhuang. Does she work here?"

He spoke quite loudly, and several sales staff near the front desk could hear him.

Hearing the noise, Zhuangzhuang looked up from behind the documents and glanced towards the door.

That one glance froze me in place, as if I'd been frozen in place.

The person standing at the door was Kang Shunyin. Zhuangzhuang felt as if something had exploded in her mind.

But she had dealt with hundreds of customers in the sales office before, and knew what to do first in this situation.

Zhuangzhuang walked quickly to the door and lowered her voice to ask Kang Shunyin, "How did you find this place?"

As soon as Kang Shunyin saw Zhuangzhuang, a smile immediately spread across his face. "Zhuangzhuang, I've finally found you."

"Don't talk here, come out with me."

Zhuangzhuang led Kang Shunyin to an open space to the side of the sales office entrance, some distance from the door, but not too far...

She didn't want to go to any more secluded places alone with this person, because unnecessary misunderstandings and rumors would be undesirable.

"Kang Shunyin, what are you doing at my workplace?"

Kang Shunyin laughed first, "Zhuangzhuang, you came all the way to Beijing without telling me. If I hadn't found out where you lived through your family and that you work here, I really wouldn't have been able to find you."

Zhuangzhuang said coldly, "What do you want from me?"

"I just missed you. It's been more than half a year since we last saw each other."

Zhuangzhuang took a deep breath. "Kang Shunyin, we've already made things clear a long time ago. Do you know how many times I argued with my mother about the dowry she accepted from you? I returned all the money to your family before I left, not a single penny less. If you're talking about money, I don't owe you a single cent. If you're talking about anything else, it has nothing to do with you."

Kang Shunyin's smile froze on her face after being shut down by her words, and her lips twitched twice. "Zhuangzhuang, there's no point in talking like that. You came to Beijing to study vocal music, who introduced you to Teacher Zheng? Without our family's connections, could you have studied with Teacher Zheng? Now that you've risen to a higher social status, you don't recognize our connections anymore, do you?"

Upon hearing this, Zhuangzhuang didn't flinch, but instead looked directly into Kang Shunyin's eyes. "Kang Shunyin, you're right, Teacher Zheng was indeed introduced by your family. I've never denied that before, and I won't deny it now. But Teacher Zheng never accepts students based on anyone's connections; he looks at the students' aptitude and qualifications. When he accepted me, he told me that he has a scale in his heart, and no matter who introduced me, if the qualifications aren't up to par, he won't accept me. You're not a vocal musician, so you might not understand the difference—an introduction is an introduction, and ability is ability. I was able to learn from Teacher Zheng because of my own hard work. So I don't owe you anything, and you don't need to use that to argue with me."

Kang Shunyin's face darkened at her words. He moved his lips twice, wanting to refute her, but for a moment he couldn't find any words that could hold water.

The same aggressive tactics he usually uses back home are completely ineffective against Zhuangzhuang.

The Zhuangzhuang of today is completely different from the quiet and gentle girl he remembered.

After Zhuangzhuang finished speaking, she turned around and left without waiting for him to say anything more.

Kang Shunyin stood in the open space by the door, clenching his fists, his face flushing red and then turning pale.

He glanced in the direction of the sales office, gritted his teeth, and then turned and left.

When Zhuangzhuang returned to the "Beijing No. 3" sales office, her colleagues surrounded her with curious expressions.

Zhang Jie also came over and asked with concern, "Zhuangzhuang, who is this person?"

“A blind date from my hometown actually followed me all the way here from Wenzhou.”

"Is there any trouble?"

"No! This guy is just like a leech, just ignore him."

"That's good."

...(End of this chapter)