88: Envious of renting a house, it’s late but it’s here!

After the Mediterranean Old Man invited Mo Li into the shop, the two had a brief chat.

Mo Li learned that the other party's surname was Qian, and his name was Qian Duoduo.

The meaning of this name was very good, but unfortunately, it didn't seem to make him truly wealthy, otherwise he wouldn't be selling Shop No. 96.

Mo Li cleared his throat and got straight to the point.

"Boss Qian, I see you're a straightforward person, so I won't beat around the bush. I'm the owner of Mo Ji Snacks, and I genuinely want to buy this shop. Please believe in my sincerity."

"Oh? Are you referring to Mo Ji Snacks, which has become incredibly popular in the last two months?"

Qian Duoduo was the landlord of Shop No. 96. In the past, besides collecting rent, he rarely came to Jinhe Street.

But that didn't stop him from knowing through the internet that there was a booming snack shop at No. 30 Jinhe Street.

Mo Li had prepared to explain further, to prove that he indeed had the motivation and sincerity to buy the shop.

He never expected Qian Duoduo to actually know about Mo Ji Snacks.

Mo Li immediately nodded.

"Boss Qian is right, Mo Ji Snacks is at No. 30 Jinhe Street, not far from here."

"I know. No. 30 Jinhe Street is a bit smaller than my place, but the rent isn't cheap at all. It must be at least 15,000, right?"

"Boss Qian is indeed an expert... I mainly feel that No. 30 Jinhe Street is a bit small, and your place is quite suitable."

Qian Duoduo pointed to the back kitchen.

"Including the back kitchen, my place is almost 60 square meters in total, while yours is less than 40 square meters, right?"

"Yes, it's about thirty-something square meters, which is indeed a bit small. So I'm quite satisfied with your place, Boss Qian. Why don't you make an offer first?"

Mo Li directly asked Qian Duoduo to name his price.

As the saying goes, 'ask for the sky, settle for the ground.' Negotiating prices is just that.

The most crucial thing was that Mo Li knew Qian Duoduo's psychological price was 1 million.

Knowing the other party's bottom line, no matter how he negotiated, the initiative was in Mo Li's hands.

Qian Duoduo didn't expect Mo Li to be so straightforward, jumping directly to the price negotiation stage, which caught him a bit off guard.

After a moment of thought, he said to Mo Li:

"Boss Mo, I see you're also a straightforward person, so I'll give you a firm price of 1.1 million. How about that?"

Mo Li rhythmically tapped the table with his fingers, putting on a 'thinking' expression.

Qian Duoduo didn't interrupt, quietly waiting for Mo Li's reply.

After about a minute, Mo Li raised his hand and made an 'eight' gesture to Qian Duoduo.

"Boss Qian, I think 800,000 is more appropriate... If you agree, we'll sign the contract and handle the procedures immediately. I can pay in full, and we might even complete the transaction today!"

800,000 was definitely unrealistic.

Shop No. 96, based on normal market price, should be around 1.2 million.

Qian Duoduo's offer of 1.1 million actually showed sincerity; he likely left some room for negotiation.

Under normal circumstances, both parties would go back and forth a few times, eventually settling at 1 million, which would be a happy outcome for everyone.

But Mo Li knew Qian Duoduo's psychological price from the beginning.

With such a big advantage, why not try to break through Qian Duoduo's bottom line?

Mo Li first threw out an outrageous 800,000, then followed it up with the bait of signing the contract and handling procedures immediately, with a full cash transaction.

This forced Qian Duoduo to continue negotiating from this absurd price.

Qian Duoduo's reaction was pretty much as Mo Li expected. When he first heard the price of 800,000, he seemed a bit angry.

But then he heard that Mo Li could pay in full, and even complete the transaction today if the procedures were handled today.

Qian Duoduo gritted his teeth, forcing a smile onto his face.

"Boss Mo, 800,000 is really too low... How about we both take a step back, 1 million?"

"Hey, Boss Qian, I clearly took two steps back, that's unfair... If we really each take one step back, it should be 950,000!"

950,000 was very close to Qian Duoduo's psychological price, making him immediately conflicted.

Mo Li keenly caught Qian Duoduo's hesitation and immediately struck while the iron was hot.

"Boss Qian, our meeting today means we have a fate. If we hadn't met today, you'd have to find a real estate agent to sell your shop, right? The agency fee would be tens of thousands, wouldn't it? And the time wasted would be extra..."

Mo Li's words were reasonable and well-founded, instantly breaking through Qian Duoduo's bottom line.

Qian Duoduo steeled his heart and gritted his teeth.

"Alright! 950,000 it is. I'll consider it making a friend in you, Boss Mo! However, I request that we sign the contract and handle the procedures as quickly as possible, preferably finishing today so the transaction funds can be in place."

"Of course, why don't we go do it now?"

"Good! Boss Mo, you truly are a straightforward person!"

...Qian Duoduo owned more than one shop on Jinhe Street and was very familiar with shop transactions.

Coupled with all the complete procedures and a full cash transaction,

that afternoon, Shop No. 96, Jinhe Street, was transferred to Mo's Catering Co., Ltd., becoming an asset of the company.

Correspondingly, Mo's Catering Co., Ltd. expended 950,000, leaving approximately 150,000.

At 6 PM, Mo Li returned to Mo Ji Snacks, planning to rest briefly before Qin Zisu arrived to start preparing meals.

After sitting for a few minutes, a middle-aged man appeared at Mo Ji Snacks.

Mo Li remembered this middle-aged man; he was the landlord of No. 30 Jinhe Street, surnamed Zhou, named Zhou Zheng.

He had been present when Mo Li took over the shop and signed the tripartite contract.

"Boss Zhou, what brings you here? Please come in and sit down."

Mo Li greeted him warmly.

Zhou Zheng walked into the shop expressionlessly, looked around, and then said to Mo Li:

"I'm here to inform you of something..."

"Go on..."

"Starting next month, the rent here will increase to 30,000..."

Hearing the landlord's words, Mo Li almost couldn't keep his composure.

30,000?

Why don't you just rob me?

The general rent level on Jinhe Street was no secret.

15,000 was already considered quite expensive.

No. 30 Jinhe Street, could only command that price because of its slightly better location.

For a slightly less desirable location like Shop No. 96, even with a much larger storefront, the rent was only 10,000.

Soon, Mo Li understood.

This wasn't about raising the rent at all!

Nine times out of ten, he saw Mo Ji Snacks's booming business, got jealous, and wanted to drive them out so he could run the business himself.

There's nothing new under the sun; similar things happen all the time!

As for breach of contract?

Yes, the landlord was indeed breaching the contract, but did that matter?

For the landlord, the worst outcome was merely paying some liquidated damages.

In most cases, they didn't even have to pay liquidated damages, just terminate the lease and be done with it.

That was the reality of the situation.

Ultimately, the shop belonged to the landlord, and the landlord was the stronger party!

As a tenant, asserting one's rights required a great deal of effort and time to go through the legal process.

Many tenants, seeing the long road to asserting their rights, and having to choose between continuing to earn a living and pursuing legal action, ultimately chose to give up.

Fortunately, Mo Li had just bought Shop No. 96, Jinhe Street, today.

And fortunately, Mo Li wasn't fighting alone now; Mo Ji Snacks had two other shareholders, so they could slowly pursue legal action.

He would absolutely not suffer this silent loss.

Bang!

Mo Li slammed his hand on the table.

"The lease term still has a little over 3 months left; raising the rent now is a breach of contract!"

The landlord directly put on a rogue demeanor.

"You can go ahead and sue me, but what the court decides is for later. Before that, there are still 3 days left this month, and you must get out within 3 days!"

...