GBP Chapter 227 House for Rent
Chapter 227 House for Rent
After the computer was installed, the installer tried to explain to them: "This computer can only be used offline, to transfer pictures and play offline games, but its real use requires an internet connection, which requires a network installation, and that part is charged separately."
Jing Yan sighed: "How much will the installation fee and other miscellaneous charges amount to in total?"
The installer chuckled: "The installation fee varies depending on the distance and conditions, but this community already has a network cable interface, so it will be relatively cheaper, around three hundred yuan for installation."
Including the optical modem and router, the purchase cost is 400 yuan. The annual broadband fee can be calculated by time or as a monthly subscription, but it will occupy the phone line, meaning the phone line will be busy when you're using your computer to connect to the internet. This is a minor inconvenience. The data plan fee is about 3 yuan per hour.
Chen Ping continued, "So, activating the internet costs 700 yuan, with internet fees charged separately, is that right?"
The installer nodded, then added, "Well, nowadays it costs five yuan an hour at an internet cafe, and three yuan at home. Of course, you can turn off the internet when you're not using it, so there won't be any data charges."
Jingyan had no other choice; since she was already here, she could only get everything done: "Where do I go to get the internet installed?"
"We can help you apply for and install a VoIP line. You'll need to pay your internet fees at the post office afterward."
Jing Yan nodded: "Okay, then please help us install the internet first. I'll go to the post office to prepay some money after it's installed and activated."
"Then we'll apply when we get back, and they can come and install it in about two or three days, okay?"
"Okay, thank you for your trouble." Jing Yan politely saw the person off.
Just as she was about to close the door, she saw the real estate agent leading two young men upstairs. Upon seeing Jingyan, he exclaimed happily, "Big sister, it's perfect to see you! These two are freshmen from the Film Academy, looking to rent a place. That's why I brought them to see the apartment across from yours. Why don't you come along?"
Jingyan turned to look at Chen Ping, and seeing that she did not refuse, she nodded in agreement. She nodded to the two boys, and that was considered that they had met. After opening the door, she listened to the real estate agent introduce the house. He was really serious about it.
The building is relatively new, and the decoration here is relatively simple, so it looks very clean. One of the boys, who was a bit burly, pointed to the empty window and said, "Well, we're here to rent a house, not to buy one, so do we need to furnish it with the basic living facilities?"
"There aren't even curtains. Our privacy is seriously questionable. After all, if someone sees my buddy's looks and physique, he'll be the one who suffers." He pointed to the tall, slender, and aloof young man beside him and asked the real estate agent with a smile.
The boy glanced at him but didn't respond. Instead, he turned to Jing Yan and asked, "Hello, Auntie. We've met before at the Jiayuan Hotel."
Jingyan really didn't remember him, so she could only smile and say, "Then we really are destined to meet."
After viewing the apartment, the aloof young man said, "This apartment is nice. We'll rent it. Should we talk to you or the landlord in person? There are some things we need to buy, which the landlord is responsible for. As for the rent and payment method, I think it's better to meet with the landlord."
The real estate agent smiled and pointed to Chen Ping standing at the door: "She bought this house."
Everyone turned to look at Chen Ping. She seemed a little reserved, but still smiled and said, "Um, if you think there's anything you're missing, you can give me a list. We'll buy it in the next few days. As for the rent..."
She looked at Jingyan with such a look that Jingyan couldn't pretend not to see it. However, considering that the rent was half of hers, she had no choice but to step forward and say, "The rent for this house is 1,300 a month. How about paying one month's rent upfront and one month's rent as a deposit?"
Utilities (water and electricity) are to be paid by the customer; property management fees are covered by us. For indoor consumables, such as lights, we will cover repair costs unless the damage is caused by the customer. If the damage is caused by the customer, please repair it yourself.
The aloof boy nodded: "I have no objection to the repairs. One month's rent as deposit is fine, but isn't the rent a bit expensive? We're both students, and we're spending our families' money. Could you give us a discount? Don't worry, we'll take good care of the house and clean it regularly. We live across the hall from each other, so you can come and check on us from time to time."
Jing Yan looked at him with a hint of amusement: "Since you said you saw me at the restaurant, you couldn't possibly not know that our child lives in the apartment across the street. Are you trying to trick me into revealing anything, or...?"
The boy smiled: "I guessed it, but I wanted to test the waters. You don't need to worry too much about my intentions. I really didn't mean to do anything bad. He Anzhi and I are classmates, and I only found out during class recently. I thought we could take care of their safety in the future, so this rent..."
"How much do you hope for?" Jing Yan wasn't fooled by his looks. Although he was handsome and refreshing, money was more important to her.
"How about 1,000 yuan a month?"
"One Thousand Two"
"One thousand one hundred, Auntie, please let us have it."
Jingyan looked at Chen Ping, who shrugged, looking like she would do whatever Jingyan said.
"Okay, when do you plan to move in?" Jingyan finally conceded.
"Is this weekend okay? There are still two days left."
"Aren't you freshmen not allowed to commute to school during your first semester? How come you can move out so early?" Jingyan thought she must have remembered the school's regulations correctly.
"It's not that we're not allowed to, it's that we can't live outside without our parents' permission. But our parents have already signed a consent form with the school, so we can move out. The main reason is that the school dormitory conditions are really not good. Some people grind their teeth and snore at night. We can only get a good rest if we move out," the stronger-looking boy replied.
Jing Yan nodded: "Then the rent will be calculated starting from the 13th of each month. When you move in, bring the deposit and rent totaling 2,200 yuan. After that, you can just pay He Anzhi the rent directly."
If you decide not to rent anymore, you need to notify her a month in advance. She will refund your deposit when you move out, but of course, all utility bills (water, electricity, gas) must be settled beforehand. Jingyan is quite meticulous in this regard.
Both boys nodded in agreement. The aloof boy introduced himself: "Hello, Auntie. My name is Chu Han, and this is my classmate Chen Bin. We are both in the directing department and are classmates with He Anzhi."
Jingyan smiled at them and said, "He Anzhi is my daughter. The girl with her is Lu Xiaoxiao. She is a student in the performing arts department and is your Aunt Chen Ping's daughter. The two children grew up together. We won't be here anymore, so you two should take good care of them. The main thing is that it gets dark early in winter, so they can come back together. As for the rest, they can manage on their own."
The two boys understood the unspoken message: they could be classmates, but they shouldn't have any other ideas.
With the agent as a witness, both parties signed a rental agreement. The agent, having received his commission, happily took his leave.
Chu Han and Chen Bin borrowed paper and pen from Jing Yan and started writing down what they wanted to buy. Small items like curtains and shoe racks were a given, but when they saw Chu Han calmly write down a refrigerator and a fan, even Chen Bin became a little uneasy. He tugged at Chu Han and said, "Isn't this a bit too much?"
Chu Han frowned, his tone quite matter-of-fact: "Isn't this an essential appliance for the home? I haven't asked for a TV yet. We'll have computers in the future, so I don't think a TV is a necessity. However, it would be good to have one, since our major requires us to watch more movies and TV shows to learn and observe."
After saying that, he added a television set. When he finished writing the list and handed it to Chen Ping, his expression was very calm.
Chen Ping glanced at him twice, then smiled and nodded in agreement: "You're a good kid, you won't suffer losses when you're out there. Most people wouldn't dare ask to buy these appliances, but considering you're students, and from the Film Academy at that, with your specialized major, I'll provide you with everything you need."
Since you're planning to buy your own computers, we can also arrange for internet installation. I'll cover the installation fee; after all, it's my own house, and it's only right that the basic infrastructure be in place.
Chen Ping had a comfortable life since childhood, so she didn't care much about these things. The most important thing was that she had enough money. She still had 6,000 yuan left after the price reduction on the house, and she was confident enough to make up another 2,000 or 3,000 yuan. Otherwise, she wouldn't have been so quick to agree.
After making the arrangements, the two children politely said goodbye and left. Jingyan and Chenping exchanged a glance and continued to sigh, "We have to go out again tomorrow. Just thinking about it makes me tired."
No matter how much I resisted it, I still had to do the shopping. Fortunately, I had experience from shopping before, so when I went to the electronics store to buy appliances, I also went to the store where I bought my computer before and mentioned that my neighbor across the street also wanted to install internet.
Computers are not yet common in private homes; only large factories, schools, and internet cafes have a need for them. Therefore, network installation is not a busy business. Adding another one to Jingyan's order is not difficult. Once the installation is confirmed for Saturday, the matter is considered settled.
After that, the fan, TV and refrigerator were ordered one after another, and they will be delivered tomorrow, Friday. Jingyan laughed as she turned around: "Look at the way we're doing this, people who don't know us would think we're buying a new house for our son. This is more than just the three major items."
Chen Ping laughed upon hearing this: "Speaking of which, have you thought about what kind of person Zhizhi will look for in the future?"
Jingyan shook her head, looking at the curtains in the display area as she said, "I don't care what kind of person she wants to find, and I won't force her to marry him or not. But if she does date, she must bring him back so we can check him out. We absolutely cannot accept someone unreliable, arrogant, or prone to boasting. As for the rest, we will follow Zhizhi's wishes."
"What about their temperament and personality? What if they have a violent temper and commit domestic violence?" Chen Ping was worried. She had seen too many fights between her neighbors and their spouses, and she didn't want her daughter to live like that in the future.
Jingyan looked at her with a complicated expression: "Didn't Xiaoxiao tell you that my Zhizhi has the highest fighting ability among these children? Even her brother can't beat her. My uncle said that with Zhizhi's skills, she could easily take down three or four strong men by herself. Do you think it's domestic violence? Who's abusing whom?"
Chen Ping... Xiao Xiao never mentioned her. The point is, Zhi Zhi doesn't look very strong, so who would have thought she would be so fierce.
Jingyan patted her and comforted her, "Don't worry, Zhizhi and Xiaoxiao grew up together and didn't want to be separated even when they went to college. They'll probably be together a lot in the future. If Xiaoxiao is wronged by anyone, Zhizhi will definitely help her. These two are practically like sisters now."
These words truly calmed Chen Ping down. The two of them chose the curtains, and the shopkeeper arranged to come in that afternoon to measure the window size so that the curtain material could be calculated. After that, there were some miscellaneous small items, such as brooms and mops. Since they were going to prepare them, they might as well prepare everything.
After shopping around and having lunch outside, I leisurely went home to rest.
While the two were soundly taking a nap, there was a knock on the door. Jingyan scratched her messy hair, slipped on her slippers, and went to open the door. It was the curtain shop owner who had come to take measurements. Jingyan turned around, grabbed the key to room 302, and led the person in to take the measurements. While Jingyan was busy, Chen Ping also came out.
She yawned, still not fully awake, and only fully woke up after following Jingyan until the measurements were taken and the shopkeeper calculated the money. They agreed to come back on Saturday to install the curtains and collect payment, and the shopkeeper left happily.
Chen Ping shook her head: "It seems like we haven't had a proper rest since we arrived. Now that the children are settled, when are we going back?"
Jingyan discussed with her, "Do you think we should also go and talk to the school and ask the two kids to move back in as soon as possible? Zhizhi is doing okay, but I'm more worried about Xiaoxiao. That girl in her dorm doesn't seem like a good person. I don't know if she can handle her."
Chen Ping also thought of the people she saw at the time and nodded in agreement: "Okay, after we help the child move his things back, we'll go home. I've been away for half a month and I miss home."
On Friday night, Zhizhi and Xiaoxiao returned home on time. At the dinner table, Chen Ping asked her how her life at school was going and whether she wanted to move out earlier.
Xiao Xiao swallowed back the "it's okay" that was already on the tip of her tongue: "We can move out? That would be great. Mom, you don't know, there haven't been any conflicts in the dorm lately, but I just feel like my interactions with them are strange."
There's no way around it; we're destined to be competitors in the future, but there's no need to be wary of each other now. Anyway, I spend less time in the dorm and more time in the school library, but it's always crowded, and you have to fight for a seat every day.
Xiao Xiao's answer further solidified Chen Ping's resolve to get the school to sign the consent form. Jing Yan happened to mention Chu Han and Chen Bin, and surprisingly, Zhi Zhi did remember them, mainly because Chu Han was so good-looking.
When school first started, some teachers thought he had chosen the wrong major. They felt it was a waste that someone with his looks and charisma wasn't studying acting. However, his ambitions lay elsewhere. The acting department teachers came to see him twice and, realizing he had no intention of transferring, they finally gave up.
So when Zhizhi found out that the apartment across the hall was rented by the two of them, she wasn't surprised. She even winked at Xiaoxiao and said, "From now on, not only our class, but all the girls in the school will be envious of us. The most handsome campus heartthrob in the directing department lives across the hall from us."