Chapter 104 I'm going to be Xu Zhaoli's neighbor

The sales office at Cuihu Villa was not large, with two rows of ginkgo trees planted at the entrance, their leaves turning yellow.

The sales manager whom Chen Ang had contacted was a woman in her early thirties named Lin. Seeing the bentley parked at the entrance, her footsteps quickened slightly as she came out to greet him.

She led Chen Ang and his mother across an artificial lake. A few withered lotus stems floated on the water's surface. Along the lakeside stood a row of detached houses with grey tiles and white walls, each with a small courtyard in front.

"Mr. Chen, Ms. Qu, this is the flagship property of Cuihu Villa. It is 460 square meters, with three floors above ground and one basement level, and it comes with a small garden in the front yard. The owner finished the renovations last year and moved abroad; it hasn't been lived in for a single day."

Manager Lin introduced the property enthusiastically to Chen Ang and his mother.

Qu Suping stood in the living room for a moment, looking up at the high ceiling, then looking down at the floor heating vents, a hint of satisfaction visible in her eyes.

Seeing that she didn't speak, Manager Lin added, "This villa has full-house floor heating, central air conditioning, a fully customized kitchen, and the bathrooms have been designed with elderly-friendly features."

Seeing his mother's expression, Chen Ang knew she liked the house, so he said, "Mom, take your time looking around. I'm going outside to make a call."

Walking out of the villa, he strolled slowly along the path by the artificial lake.

He took out his phone and dialed Zhong Yuanxin's number first. "Sister Xin, there's a villa at Cuihu Villa. I just looked at it and I'm quite satisfied. Please arrange for the finance department to make the payment."

Zhong Yuanxin was stunned. Villas at Cuihu Villa cost at least 12 million, with the most expensive ones reaching 27 million.

However, considering Chen Ang's current assets, buying a villa was not excessive.

"Alright, I'll arrange for someone to handle it immediately. I have things to attend to here, we can discuss the details when I get back."

After hanging up, he dialed Shen Pianran's number. The phone was answered after two rings.

"Boss, it's lunchtime. Could you have a little sense of propriety?" Shen Pianran's lazy voice carried a complaint; she had clearly been woken up by Chen Ang and was a bit grumpy.

Chen Ang smiled, apologized, and said, "I forgot to ask the litigation team something this morning. Regarding those two properties under my name, I want to dispose of them before the lawsuit. Is there any way to do that?"

After a moment of silence, Shen Pianran adjusted herself, and her voice returned to its usual capable tone.

"The owner of the unit at Sheng Huating Residential Area is Wen Huilin, and the property rights for the one in the old city are registered under Chen Zetian. We have to go through divorce litigation to get them back first before we can dispose of them."

"We are confident about this. After all, we have the bank transfer records for the payments and the repayment vouchers for the monthly mortgage. The chain of evidence is complete."

"Additionally, regardless of whether you sell them or not, there is one thing you must do now: go to the Real Estate Registration Center to file an objection registration."

"After all, Wen Huilin is currently the registered owner. Theoretically, she could take the property deed to get a mortgage loan or transfer it privately. Once an objection registration is filed, any of her actions to dispose of the property will be invalid."

"Alright, I'll go handle this immediately. Have the litigation team organize the materials." Chen Ang hung up the phone immediately.

He knew this couldn't be taken lightly. Once the lawsuit started, if Wen Huilin was pushed into a corner, she might very well sell the houses secretly.

He walked back along the path and stopped when he reached the small garden in front of the villa.

A little girl was bending over by the flower bed, pulling at the plants. She was wearing a pink down jacket and was busy working very seriously.

Her little head was lowered, and two pigtails hung down on either side, the tips of her hair almost brushing against the railing of the flower bed.

Chen Ang recognized her.

This was their third meeting.

The first time was at the Financial Center square, when she bumped into his leg.

The second time was also near the Financial Center square, when she was squatting by a flower bed drawing.

He hadn't expected to run into her here again today.

"Little Zhaoli?" Chen Ang squatted down beside her.

Xu Zhaoli looked up, her big eyes blinking twice before curving into two crescent moons. "Uncle, it's you again."

She tilted her head and examined Chen Ang. "Are you stalking me?"

Chen Ang was stunned, then laughed out loud. He pointed to the villa next to them. "I'm here to look at houses. What about you?"

"My grandmother lives here." She pointed her finger toward the villa cluster in the southeast. "When Mom comes back on the weekend, we go to stay at the place we were at last time."

Chen Ang realized and asked with a smile, "Why aren't you in school today?"

"It's math class this afternoon." She rolled her eyes, looking every bit like a little adult. "My stomach hurt, so I asked for leave."

"You're actually a little liar." Chen Ang looked her over and knew she was lying.

Xu Zhaoli pouted and retorted, "What the teacher teaches is too simple. I already know it all, and I don't want to sit there zoning out."

"Oh? I couldn't tell, you're a little genius, huh?" Chen Ang asked with a smile. "Do you want me to test you?"

Xu Zhaoli proudly lifted her little face. "Test me then. I know addition and subtraction within 1,000, even though the teacher only taught up to 100. I can also recite all the texts in the Chinese textbook."

Seeing her so confident, Chen Ang asked her a few questions.

As it turned out, she answered without hesitation, and without any mistakes, which really impressed Chen Ang.

Giving her a thumbs up, Chen Ang praised her repeatedly.

"Mom also says I'm amazing." Hearing the praise, the little girl's eyes curved into crescent moons again.

"You're an amazing kid. I'll be living here often in the future, so I'll play with you then." Reaching out to pat her head, Chen Ang stood up and waved toward the villa.

At the entrance of the villa, Qu Suping saw Chen Ang waving and walked over.

Her gaze landed on Xu Zhaoli beside him, and her footsteps suddenly slowed down.

She walked closer, looked down at the little girl, and stared for a long time.

"This child..." Qu Suping bent down and carefully studied Xu Zhaoli's face. "Chen Ang, look at her. Doesn't she look like Chen Xi when she was little? Just look at that chin, and those eyes."

Chen Ang laughed. "Mom, you must miss Chen Xi too much."

Qu Suping glared at him and said, "You might not remember, but when Chen Xi was five or six, she had this same face shape and eyes just as big."

Chen Ang just assumed his mother liked girls and saw her own daughter in everyone, so he smiled and didn't take it to heart.

Xu Zhaoli looked up at Qu Suping and blinked. "Hello, Grandma."

"Hey there..." Qu Suping replied with eyes full of smiles, reaching out to gently pat her head. "What a good girl."

"Alright, we have to go back now. When I move in, we'll talk again." Chen Ang said goodbye to Xu Zhaoli.

"Then goodbye." Xu Zhaoli waved her little hand and gave Qu Suping a sweet smile. "Goodbye, Grandma."

Qu Suping was full of smiles, but there was also some reluctance in her eyes.

After leaving Cuihu Villa, just as Chen Ang dropped his mother back at the hotel, his phone rang.

Xue Shanshan's name popped up on the screen. He looked at it for a moment, thought of last night's scene, and then answered.

"Brother-in-law," Xue Shanshan's voice was sweet and cloying, and the background was very quiet. "Are you free tonight? I want to treat you to a meal. We agreed last time; brother-in-law has helped me so much, and I haven't found a chance to thank... you."

She deliberately dragged out the tail of the last two words.

Chen Ang leaned back in the driver's seat, his fingers gently stroking the steering wheel, and then he said, "Okay."