“Ms. Zhou, Madam Luo, you’re here. Was it cold on your way here?”
When Luo Huimei saw the other party’s face, she thought that he was feeling uneasy. She wanted to say that if he wanted to know whether it was cold or not, then he should just take a walk outside and he would know. What kind of question was that? However, when the words came to her lips, she thought of the words Yan had said to her previously and changed her words accordingly.
“It’s not cold at all. I just came out to take a walk and exercise, but you must’ve been waiting for us here for a long time, right? I apologize for letting you wait so long.”
There was a 180-degree change in her attitude compared to last time, which made the other party a little puzzled. However, the broker was doing sales, after all, so he immediately responded in kind, “You’re being too polite, Madam Luo. It’s my job to wait for the client. Let me bring you to see the gentleman.”
“Gentleman?” Luo Huimei narrowed her eyes when she heard the gender being named. “Excuse me, can I ask what conditions the other party set? Where are we meeting? Will it be dangerous?”
Yan was speechless. She could not stop Luo Huimei in time before she asked these questions. The atmosphere became awkward for a moment. After a while, Yan twitched the corner of her lips and explained on behalf of her mother, “I’m sorry, my mom’s a bit conservative and you probably know how the elders in the community talk. At the same time, I hope you can understand that she doesn’t have any malicious intent; she’s just afraid that I’ll be hurt.”
The other party finally understood while nodding his head. He then said, “I understand that Madam Luo has such concerns, but please rest assured that we’re a legal agency and all our clients have been reviewed in advance. Generally speaking, there’ll be no accidents.”
“Mom, just relax and don’t think too much.”
Luo Huimei then nodded her head. After that, the other party brought them to meet the owner of the ramen restaurant. It was in a villa on the outskirts of the country. When she entered through the gates, Luo Huimei was a little stunned because the environment of the villa was very good at first glance. It seemed that this person was rich. Whether the rent was high or low did not seem all that important. The other party might not even… need the rental money.
“The owner of the stall is Lin, and we address him as Mr. Lin. I’ve heard that Mr. Lin closed down the ramen restaurant after he lost his wife. The elder Lin couple were known to be very loving, so after his wife passed away, he didn’t want to run the ramen restaurant again. Besides, it was said that the restaurant was designed by his late wife. That’s why everything should remain the same even if the restaurant runs again.”
Upon hearing this, Luo Huimei agreed. “According to what you’ve said, this Mr. Lin must really love his wife. How long has it been since his wife passed away?”
The agent shook his head. “I’m not too sure about this. It took me a lot of days of effort to get the information that I told you just now. I’m guessing the reason the rental here is expensive must be related to his late wife.”
Upon hearing this, Yan could finally understand what he meant. It seemed like Mr. Lin did not have the intention to rent the store out. Moreover, he would not let others renovate the place. It showed how affectionate he was to his late wife. He was afraid that it would be impossible to restore it back to its original state after changes were made. However, there was one thing that Yan could not understand. Initially, the deal was 300,000 a year, but why did the rental drop so much today? These past few days, she did not try to negotiate a deal through contacts, nor did she insist on this shop. Frankly, the shop was not within her consideration at all.
“I can understand what you said, but why did Mr. Lin suddenly lower the price? There must be a reason why he suddenly lowered the price so much, right?”
The agent smiled shyly while rubbing his nose. “To be honest, I’m not so sure myself. However, I heard that Mr. Lin is looking for the chosen one. Maybe you’re the one he’s looking for, Ms. Zhou.”
The chosen one? Luo Huimei’s expression went bad when she heard the three words. “What chosen one?”
Yan thought for a while and looked around. “Probably the chosen one for the ramen restaurant?”
The agent nodded his head. “Indeed, Ms. Zhou. I think that’s what it is.”
“Mom, don’t run your mouth later. Let’s observe first. Cooperation cannot be forced anyway.”
Under the guidance of the broker, Zhou Xiaoyan and her mom met Mr. Lin.
“Hello, Mr. Lin, I’m Zhu from XX Company. This is the Ms. Zhou I mentioned to you a few days ago, Zhou Xiaoyan.”
Zhou Xiaoyan approached him and nodded. “Hello, Mr. Lin.”
Mr. Lin smiled slightly. “Hello. I heard that you want to open a restaurant?”
“Yes, Mr. Lin.” Zhou Xiaoyan saw that the other party was being direct with her. She did not beat around the bush and nodded. “I like the Japanese design of the restaurant, but honestly speaking, the rent is too high for me. That’s why… I’m here to know why you would be willing to lower the price by so much. What are the conditions?”
“I see; you’re a very direct person. My condition is very simple. As long as you can fulfill this, there’s room for negotiation for the rent. It can even be free.”
Luo Huimei inhaled a deep breath after hearing this. He surely is rich and powerful. However, the condition… must be very strict, right? Luo Huimei could not be blamed. She really could not think what condition it would be that could make him waive the rent completely. Is he interested in my daughter? But, the agent mentioned that he’s affectionate and loyal to his late wife. He wouldn’t simply do that, right? Therefore, she decided to listen to her daughter’s advice and not run her mouth while continuing to observe.
“Please say it, Mr. Lin. I’ll do my best, but if…”
“Don’t worry, Ms. Zhou. I’m a proper man and I will not ask you to do things that are too much to ask for.”
“What are you referring to?”
“My late wife liked ramen the most, and this ramen restaurant was designed by her. She’s the one who came up with the ramen recipes on the menu. If you can recreate the dishes so that they taste like how my wife made it, the rent will be waived.”
During the conversation, a maid from the side passed her the menu.
Recreate the dishes so that they taste like how his wife made it? Luo Huimei could not help but utter softly after hearing it, “Yan hasn’t even met your wife before; how could she possibly recreate the dishes with the same taste?”
Mr. Lin only smiled without saying anything while he gave a meaningful look. However, Yan saw a glimpse of pain in his warm eyes. She pursed her lips and looked down at the menu while saying softly, “I’ll try my best.”
