A heavy snow season was predicted for the end of the year. lody Sumrs rembered the snow in her past life had been several ters deep, completely burying the lower floors of buildings. When that happened, her villa would likely beco uninhabitable for a while.
lody Sumrs had initially planned to take her family to The Nimbus Hotel, just as she had during the mountain fires. However, she wasn’t sure if she’d be able to secure a room this ti.
The coming snowfall wouldn’t be the sa as the mountain fires. The fires had only affected the villa district of The tropolis Residences, which was why she’d been able to book rooms so easily.
But the nationwide heavy snowfall at the end of the year would affect everyone living in villas and on lower floors. There would surely be a massive influx of people trying to stay in hotels.
She didn’t have any special connections or pull, so booking hotel rooms then might be impossible.
’So it might be better to buy a couple of high-rise apartnts just in case,’ she thought. ’If I can’t get hotel rooms, we can at least move to a higher floor.’
Hollis thought for a mont before saying to lody Sumrs, "Miss Sumrs, as it happens, the governnt did a property liquidation early this year. I rember so investnt properties in our complex, bought by wealthy people, went into foreclosure. Those owners were always willing to spend a fortune on renovations, so they should et your standards... Let take you to the sales office to inquire!"
lody Sumrs went to the sales office with Hollis, only to find the entire place deserted. There was just one employee on duty, who was currently scrolling idly through his phone.
Hollis introduced the employee as Tate and then explained lody Sumrs’s purchasing requirents to him.
Tate was stunned to hear that lody Sumrs wanted to buy two apartnts right now, and he gave her a peculiar look.
’These days, most people were just trying to figure out how to use what little money they had to make ends et. The slightly more affluent were converting their cash into food, fuel, and gold bars as fast as possible. Who would still be throwing money at real estate? It was like enlisting in the National Army in 1949—a guaranteed losing bet!’
lody Sumrs, however, was unfazed. eting Tate’s astonished and bewildered gaze, she simply spun a tale. "My ex-boyfriend dumped for a woman who had a car and a house, back when I had neither. So, my biggest dream has always been to own lots and lots of apartnts."
"Now that prices have dropped, I want to take the opportunity to buy a couple and make that dream co true."
Hearing this, Hollis, who was standing to the side, couldn’t help but let out a snort of laughter.
Although Tate didn’t understand, he was deeply respectful of her reasoning. After all, a sale ant a commission. He eagerly began making recomndations to lody Sumrs.
"Miss Sumrs, based on your requirents, I’d recomnd you consider units 1605 and 1606 in Building 4. They’re both foreclosed properties that were just listed after the New Year. We saw them when we assisted with the repossession, and they both have high-end renovations. What’s more, the original owner never lived in them after the remodel, so all the appliances and furniture are brand new."
lody Sumrs froze. ’Building 4, unit 1606?!’
...Wasn’t unit 1606 the very place she and the Lancasters had stayed in when they sought refuge at The tropolis Residences in her past life!
lody Sumrs was surprised for a mont. She never expected that in this life, the Lancaster Family wouldn’t even manage to hold onto this apartnt.
But she quickly composed herself, nodding as she replied, "Alright. Please take to see them."
With lody Sumrs’s confirmation, Tate and Hollis grabbed the keys and led her to Building 4.
On the way, Hollis said to lody Sumrs, "As it happens, Mr. Lynch from the supermarket and his family live on the 18th floor of Building 4. Miss Sumrs, if you don’t plan on moving in right away, you could ask them to occasionally pop over and keep an eye on things for you."
After all, break-ins were becoming far too common. Robbery crews were targeting long-unoccupied hos, stripping them of all furniture and selling everything off for cheap.
lody Sumrs nodded at the suggestion. Crystal Lynch’s family lived in unit 1806 of Building 4. If she did end up moving here during the blizzard, the two families could look out for one another.
The three of them arrived on the 16th floor of Building 4. Tate used a key to open the door to 1606 first.
Even though she had braced herself, the mont lody Sumrs stepped into unit 1606, her breath caught in her throat. It felt as if the blood in her veins had turned to ice.
Her eyes fell upon the living room’s familiar French-vintage decor, the familiar furniture arrangent, the familiar ornants—everything was identical to her past life.
lody Sumrs rembered it all. In her past life, she had been sitting on this very cream-colored sofa when she drank the water Elaine Hughes handed her... and then lost consciousness.
"Miss Sumrs?"
Noticing her pale expression, Hollis asked with concern, "Miss Sumrs, are you alright? You’ve suddenly gone white as a sheet."
lody Sumrs snapped back to reality. She gently shook her head, suppressing the torrent of thoughts flooding her mind. Forcing a smile, she replied, "I’m fine. I just got a little warm on the walk over."
Hearing this, Tate scratched his head. "Yeah, the upper floors can get a bit warm. This unit has central air conditioning, but unfortunately, the power is disconnected, so I can’t turn it on for you."
"It’s fine," lody Sumrs replied with a smile. "I’ll be okay in a minute."
Tate nodded and continued to show lody Sumrs the apartnt’s layout.
lody Sumrs followed Tate through the rooms, listening with half an ear. When it ca to the layout and decor of this apartnt, no one was more familiar with it than she was.
The Lancasters were obsessed with cleanliness. In her past life, lody Sumrs had been forced to scrub the entire apartnt, inside and out, by herself almost every single day.
It was a traditional four-bedroom apartnt with a living room and dining room. The four rooms consisted of a master bedroom and a second bedroom, both with en-suite bathrooms, a guest room, and a fairly large study.
In her past life, Robert Lancaster and Elaine Hughes had taken the master bedroom. Sylvia Lancaster had the second bedroom, while Simon Lancaster and Silas Lancaster occupied the guest room and the study, respectively.
As for lody Sumrs, she had lived in a small, partitioned-off space in the hallway next to a bathroom.
The hallway was freezing at night. During the months of heavy snow, lody Sumrs hadn’t dared to fall into a deep sleep, terrified that if she did, she might never wake up.
The living room was huge, and the adjacent dining room was spacious and empty, but the Lancasters forbade lody Sumrs from sleeping there. They said it would look bad if guests ca over.
Yet, in her past life, right up until the day she died, not a single guest had ever set foot in that apartnt.
As lody Sumrs walked through the apartnt, she couldn’t help but feel a pang of sorrow for the injustice her past self had endured.
Robert Lancaster and Elaine Hughes had originally bought this apartnt as an investnt. Back then, the Lancaster Family was still rich and powerful, spending money without a second thought. They had poured a fortune into renovating the place, essentially buying whatever was most expensive. Not only had they installed central air conditioning and a water purification system, but they had even upgraded and reinforced the windows.
After finishing his tour, Tate asked, "So, Miss Sumrs, what do you think? Is it suitable?"
lody Sumrs nodded. She had lived here for so ti in her past life; she had no complaints about the property itself.
After looking at 1606, the three of them moved on to 1605.
The renovation in 1605 wasn’t as luxurious as in 1606, but it was still a high-end unit, fully equipped with appliances and furniture. It was completely move-in ready.
Unlike the three-bedroom-and-a-study layout of 1606, the owner of 1605 had converted one of the guest rooms into a ho gym, complete with a variety of exercise equipnt and even a climbing wall.
After touring both apartnts, lody Sumrs announced, "I’ll take them both."
The sales office hadn’t closed a deal in two months. Selling two units in one go made Tate ecstatic. He nodded eagerly. "I’ll get the paperwork started for you right away."
lody Sumrs nodded, then asked, "I’d like to knock through the wall between the two apartnts to create a small, hidden door. Is that possible?"
Tate was taken aback for a second, then he answered hesitantly, "It’s possible... There’s a non-load-bearing wall between the two units that you could break through, but we wouldn’t recomnd it."
Tate looked at lody Sumrs and explained earnestly, "Because if you ever want to sell these apartnts in the future, you’ll have to restore the wall first. It’s a huge hassle, so it’s better not to do it."
Since the apartnts were right next to each other, Tate felt it was an unnecessary complication.
But lody Sumrs just nodded, unconcerned. She had no intention of ever selling them anyway. She said to the two n, "In that case, could you have the property managent office help contact a reliable construction company? I need them to install a hidden door in an appropriate spot to connect the two units."
After a mont’s thought, she added, "Also, the locks on the security doors. Please tell the construction company to replace those for as well. I want the highest-security chanical locks, no electronic ones. And have them install security bars on the windows and surveillance caras next to all doors and windows."
Seeing her insistence, Tate didn’t press the issue. He jotted down her requests one by one and nodded. "Alright, you can count on !"
lody Sumrs thought for another mont, then handed Tate a red envelope with so cash, asking him to help oversee the renovations.
Tate happily accepted the money and patted his chest, guaranteeing he would get everything arranged perfectly.
After settling these details, lody Sumrs returned to the sales office with the two n, paid for the apartnts, and completed the paperwork. Only when she held the two property deeds in her hands did she finally feel a sense of relief.
User Comments
0 comments from readers