Transmigration: On the Gossip Front-Chapter 920 - 921 Toxic Fatherly Love 53

After Zhang Yu met up with the agent, they followed their lead to check out a few offices. To be honest, none of them were particularly appealing.

"The spaces are small, and the rent is expensive." Even though she wasn’t sure about the future scale of her studio, she couldn’t stand the idea of being surrounded by people all the time—it was just too suffocating.

"The only perk here is the convenience of grabbing food nearby. There’s nothing else worth mentioning."

"Parking fees are pricey, and the property management fees aren’t any cheaper."

"If it’s for a company that cares about appearances, renting an office here would be pretty decent."

"When you meet clients, telling them your company is based here definitely sounds glamorous."

"I don’t care about that," Zhang Yu said, genuinely indifferent. "The main thing is having a relaxed environment."

The agent quietly listened to their conversation on the side, smiling politely throughout, even though it was clear they weren’t too satisfied with the offices they’d seen so far.

"Actually, there are quite a few options nowadays where entire buildings in those modern alleyway districts are being rented out as offices," the agent suggested enthusiastically, trying to pitch Zhang Yu on this alternative.

Zhang Yu hadn’t expected the agent to bring up this type of property. After exchanging a glance with Wang Lei, they both burst out laughing.

This completely threw the agent off. They couldn’t understand why these two were laughing so joyfully all of a sudden.

After they finished laughing, the two noticed the agent looking puzzled on the side. Zhang Yu explained with a smile, "I actually own a property just like that, rented out to a company as their office building."

The current tenant had recently changed—her previous tenant had moved south for love, and her property had quickly been sublet to another business.

The agent was genuinely shocked by the coincidence, having just recommended the very type of property Zhang Yu already owned.

Since they didn’t find anything suitable, Zhang Yu said goodbye to the agent and drove off to check out another spot.

While waiting at a red light, she noticed a billboard advertising a villa community.

Normally, Zhang Yu would’ve glanced casually and moved on, but this time, she found herself genuinely tempted.

She had been to that area before and remembered the scenery was quite nice. "What do you think? If I bought two—no, three villas in the suburbs, how would that be?"

Zhang Yu wasn’t sure about the long-term prospects of the development or whether the area would take off, but she felt using one as an office was definitely a good idea.

As the car started moving again, Wang Lei took a quick look at the billboard. "Alright," she said with a smile, "I can see why you’re into it. The ad is pretty convincing."

"The question is, what’s it like in reality?"

"The reality is pretty good too," Zhang Yu remarked honestly.

"You’ve been there?" Wang Lei wasn’t surprised, knowing Zhang Yu had been to many places. What puzzled her was why this idea hadn’t occurred to her before, and yet now it suddenly seemed like such a great plan.

"Yeah, I’ve been there. Last time, I went to a farmhouse in that area."

"Back then, it was still under construction, but from the outside, it looked quite decent."

"At that time, I felt it was a bit far from the city, and the surrounding amenities were lacking."

"But on my last visit, I noticed they’d made a lot of progress with the basic facilities."

"It still can’t compete with the city center, but it’s gradually catching up." The more Zhang Yu thought about it, the more viable the idea seemed.

"I could live in one villa with Grandma, use another as my studio office."

"And the third one? It could be for employee housing." She considered the possibility of late-night work or staff who might be from out of town. Offering room and board could significantly ease the burden for everyone.

A villa for living—perfectly normal. A second one as an office—completely reasonable. But the idea of using a third villa as employee housing? That was unexpected.

Wang Lei let out a small sigh. "I wonder if my future boss will be this generous."

"Prove your worth, and any boss will be generous," Zhang Yu replied with a grin.

"Alright, let’s grab some food first, and then we’ll go check it out and ask about the price."

"I’m not sure if it’s even possible to get a mortgage for three houses at once," Zhang Yu remarked. While she had money, she was also no stranger to leveraging loans.

When Li Cuifen heard that Zhang Yu had gone out to scout studios and office spaces again, she was eager to hear how it went when Zhang Yu returned.

Zhang Yu gave her a simple rundown of the situation. "Honestly, they weren’t great at all."

"Tiny spaces, but the rent is ridiculously high."

"Then I thought about it—whether the office is big or small, or where it’s located, those things don’t really matter. What matters is that I feel comfortable."

"And then I saw an ad and thought to myself—I could just buy a villa."

"Grandma, think about it. Renting a commercial space for years means spending a ton of money, but the property never belongs to me."

"But buying a villa? That’s completely different. Using the rent money to pay the mortgage makes me the owner." Zhang Yu figured Li Cuifen would understand her reasoning.

Before knowing the location Zhang Yu was considering, Li Cuifen nodded in agreement—this seemed like a sound plan.

But once Zhang Yu mentioned where the villas were located, both Li Cuifen and Aunt Huang were stunned.

After a long silence, Li Cuifen finally spoke with a bitter smile. "I knew you wouldn’t be looking at villas in the city."

"I just didn’t expect it to be in such a remote place." If she weren’t worried about adding pressure on Zhang Yu, she might’ve outright said that only a fool would buy a villa there.

Though the older woman stayed quiet, her expression betrayed her feelings. "Grandma, City S is expanding outward," Zhang Yu began to explain.

"Sure, it’s a bit far from the city center, but there’s a fast loop road nearby for easy access."

"That area has always been agricultural—no factory pollution, and it’s highly unlikely to have an industrial zone in the future. The air and environment are fantastic."

"Nowadays, people with money pay a lot of attention to health." Zhang Yu was confident the area would eventually develop.

"And even if it doesn’t, that’s fine too. I can use it as my studio or just live there myself." freёweɓnovel.com

"Grandma, why don’t I take you to see the place tomorrow?"

"I’m sure you’ll love it." With the help of their real estate agent, they’d scoped out the area thoroughly, and it had exceeded her expectations.

Especially after hearing the price, Zhang Yu couldn’t shake the feeling that if she passed up this opportunity, she’d regret it in the future.

Li Cuifen reserved judgment but followed along the next day to tour the area.

The environment was indeed beautiful. Li Cuifen walked around and remarked, "They’re detached homes."

"With front and back gardens." The older woman was already envisioning how to decorate the garden.

"I want to make our garden the kind of place that, when people talk about it, they all remember it as a gorgeous, expansive garden."

Having visited so many properties with Zhang Yu, she had long yearned for a large garden filled with flowers visible from every window—the sight alone would lift her spirits.

As for the issue of mosquitoes, she knew it would be a challenge, but she planned to plant herbs that repel insects.

"Don’t worry. Sure, there might be some bugs, but I’ll manage it well and grow plenty of mosquito-repelling plants."

Although the effect wouldn’t be miraculous, it would help to some extent.

"We can put up sheer curtains," Zhang Yu added, determined to ensure her grandmother’s happiness. "That’ll handle most of the problem."

"And some incense burners at the door." It was just a matter of spending a little extra—it wasn’t a big deal.