Chapter 00139: Little Star Corner Market
# Little Star Corner Market
Chapter 139
Novel: After the Myth
Chapter 139: Little Star Corner Market
Peng Zhan led Ding Huan and the others to a densely built area.
Ding Huan's spiritual sense had already detected a bustling market not far from this residential area.
The market was crowded with people, and it was clear that the place was noisy and chaotic.
Ding Huan looked at Peng Zhan with a wry expression.
"Brother Peng, do you really think this is a quiet place?"
Peng Zhan patted his chest confidently.
"Friend, don't worry. This place is absolutely quiet. Unless you have some dirt on someone or have offended someone, very few people will come looking for trouble here."
Ding Huan finally understood.
"Brother Peng, are you saying that if we live in a secluded, less populated area, it would be dangerous?"
Peng Zhan nodded firmly.
"Friend, the Four Directions Star Continent may seem peaceful on the surface, but in reality, there's robbery and killing everywhere. If you dare to live in a secluded, uninhabited place, I guarantee that within three days, someone will sneak into your place at night to rob you."
He then pointed to the spot where Ding Huan had just gotten off the flying vehicle.
"I, Peng Zhan, always conduct my business with integrity. You saw it yourself when you got off the flying vehicle, right? Many people are competing for business. But I must warn you, some of them are running scams. They lure outsiders to secluded places and then, at night..."
Peng Zhan made a throat-slitting gesture.
Ding Huan clasped his hands in gratitude.
"Thank you, Brother Peng."
Peng Zhan was pleased that Ding Huan appreciated his advice.
Although he had exaggerated a bit, he wasn't entirely lying.
"This area is called Little Star Corner Market. There are many empty houses here, but if you want to rent one, you'll have to pay a hefty deposit. Do you want me to help you find a place, or are we stopping here?" Peng Zhan looked at Ding Huan expectantly.
If Ding Huan asked for his help, it would mean that Ding Huan wasn't too poor, as Peng Zhan's assistance came with a price.
Ding Huan quickly replied, "Brother Peng, I'm very grateful for your help so far. We'll look for a place ourselves. How much do I owe you for guiding us here?"
Peng Zhan sensed that Ding Huan wasn't particularly wealthy, but in business, it was all about bargaining.
"The usual rate here is fifty black gold coins..."
"What? That expensive?" Ding Huan exclaimed in surprise.
Without waiting for Peng Zhan to lower the price, Ding Huan hesitated and said, "I don't have enough black gold coins on me. Maybe I should exchange some for you."
Peng Zhan had initially planned to charge twenty black gold coins, and he would have even accepted ten.
He didn't expect Ding Huan to be so quick to give up on bargaining.
He couldn't wait for Ding Huan to reconsider.
"I can give you change," Peng Zhan quickly said.
Ding Huan reluctantly took out a purple gold coin and handed it to Peng Zhan.
"Brother Peng, your business must be quite profitable."
Peng Zhan hastily took the purple gold coin and gave Ding Huan fifty black gold coins in change.
"We also have to pay high taxes and fees. Don't think I'm keeping all fifty black gold coins. I don't even know how much I'll end up with."
"Thank you, Brother Peng," Ding Huan said as he took the fifty black gold coins.
Peng Zhan was pleasantly surprised by how much he had earned this time.
After receiving the coins, he even reminded Ding Huan to always use a middleman when looking for a house before hurriedly leaving.
Peng Zhan's advice was that Ding Huan should always go through an intermediary or broker when looking for a house.
"Xiao Tu, I think he would have accepted a lower price," Qi Xin Yue said, somewhat puzzled.
Although she was clever, she was still young and lacked experience in dealing with people.
"A few dozen black gold coins don't make much difference. The main thing is that we can't show that we have money, or we'll attract a lot of trouble," Ding Huan explained.
He wasn't afraid of being robbed, but he was worried about being harassed by different groups of people every day.
If it weren't for the need to hide his wealth, Ding Huan wouldn't have asked Peng Zhan for the fifty black gold coins in change.
Ding Huan understood very well that he shouldn't show kindness indiscriminately.
He was satisfied with the information Peng Zhan had provided, otherwise, he might have bargained down to ten black gold coins.
Originally, Ding Huan had wanted to find a secluded place to live, but Peng Zhan's warning made him reconsider.
In this place, seclusion didn't necessarily mean peace.
The Little Star Corner was densely populated and close to the market, making it a decent place to live.
As soon as they entered the residential area, Ding Huan saw a row of housing agencies and independent brokers.
It was clear that the housing business was booming here.
Ding Huan didn't approach any of the brokers or agencies.
He noticed that many houses had "For Rent" signs posted on them.
Since that was the case, he decided to look for the landlords directly.
Ding Huan wanted to buy a house, but after looking around, he found that most of the business here was in renting, with very few houses for sale.
The ones that were for sale were in average locations, but the prices were within Ding Huan's budget, ranging around two thousand purple gold coins.
One with a small courtyard was priced at three thousand purple gold coins.
Compared to the rental prices, Ding Huan even thought the sale prices were surprisingly low.
"That man said it's best to find an intermediary to rent a house," Qi Xin Yue reminded Ding Huan.
Ding Huan explained, "Xin Yue, in this place, it's all about who has the bigger fist. Even if we use an intermediary, problems will still arise. You can imagine that the intermediaries here can only solve minor issues for us. Whether we use one or not makes no real difference."
Qi Xin Yue nodded, understanding Ding Huan's point.
Using an intermediary might help with small problems, but in Ding Huan's eyes, small problems didn't require an intermediary's help.
As for big problems, the intermediaries couldn't solve them anyway, so there was no need to involve them.
"This place looks good," Ding Huan stopped in front of a small courtyard.
The courtyard wasn't far from the market and was relatively open, making it a quiet spot in the midst of the bustling residential area.
Not far from the courtyard stood a large rock with the words "Apricot Pond" carved into it.
In reality, there was no pond, not even a ditch.
"Xiao Tu, there's no 'For Rent' or 'For Sale' sign here," Qi Xin Yue said, puzzled.
"If there were, it wouldn't be available for us," Ding Huan replied as he walked up and knocked on the door.
The door opened to reveal a burly man with a fierce expression.
He glared at Ding Huan.
"What do you want?"
His tone was clearly annoyed, as if Ding Huan had disturbed him.
Ding Huan clasped his hands and smiled.
"I want to buy this courtyard. Name your price."
"Not for sale," the man replied without hesitation and started to close the door.
Before the door could shut, Ding Huan said, "Five thousand purple gold coins."
He had seen the prices posted elsewhere.
A similar courtyard was listed for around three thousand purple gold coins.
Even if his offer was slightly lower, it shouldn't be too far off.
The man, who was about to close the door, swallowed hard at the mention of five thousand purple gold coins.
Such a large sum of money was hard to come by.
But wait, if this guy was offering five thousand, he might be able to offer more.
Before the man could speak, Ding Huan added, "I only have five thousand purple gold coins on me. If you're not interested, we'll look elsewhere."
"I'll take it. Come in and let's talk," the man opened the door and let Ding Huan and Qi Xin Yue into the courtyard.
He glanced at Lao Liu, feeling a bit puzzled.
As soon as they entered the courtyard, Ding Huan felt that this place was suitable, at least for crafting talismans and practicing escape techniques.
He could craft talismans, practice escape techniques, and gather information about advanced civilization starships here.
Once he got news of an advanced civilization starship arriving, he would immediately find a way to leave this seemingly well-connected but actually desolate place.
"Are you really going to buy this courtyard for five thousand purple gold coins?" the burly man asked, his eyes darting around.
Ding Huan sneered inwardly.
He wasn't sure if he could take action here, but if this guy made the first move, he would kill him.
"That's right. Here's five thousand purple gold coins," Ding Huan said, tossing a pouch onto the table.
The pouch, which had been given to him by Tou Jie, made a clinking sound as it hit the table, indicating that it contained a significant number of purple gold coins.
The man eagerly reached for the pouch but missed as Ding Huan swiftly retrieved it.
"If you're selling, this is yours. If not, it's none of your business," Ding Huan said coolly.
"I'll sell, of course I'll sell. Give me the money, and the house is yours," the man said without hesitation.
Ding Huan didn't hand over the money but instead stared at the man, not bothering to speak.
Realizing this, the man went to fetch the property deed.
Ding Huan's spiritual sense had already scanned the deed.
Although the Four Directions Star Continent was a chaotic place, the property deed was surprisingly well-made.
It even had a photo of the man, whose name was Kan Ni, a resident of the Four Directions Star Continent.
Ding Huan wasn't familiar with the original property deeds of the Four Directions Star Continent, but he couldn't detect any signs of forgery on this one.
"Here's the property deed," Kan Ni waved the deed in his hand.
Ding Huan said calmly, "Since I dared to come here to buy a house, I naturally inquired about you, Kan Ni. So, let's go to the exchange to complete the transfer."
Ding Huan wasn't sure if property transactions required going to the exchange, but since he had to go there to sell the Blue Star, it was likely that buying a house would also require a visit.
Kan Ni was taken aback.
He had assumed that Ding Huan was a newcomer who didn't know about his reputation.
But it seemed that Ding Huan knew about him and still dared to come here to buy a house.
This young man was no simpleton.
However, his gaze fell on the pouch in Ding Huan's hand, and his greed became evident.
His house was worth at most three thousand purple gold coins, and in this area, very few people bought houses—most rented.
This was a deal he couldn't pass up.
"Alright, let's go then," Kan Ni stood up.
Once he got the money, he would investigate Ding Huan's background.
He was sure that Ding Huan was just bluffing, and he could reclaim the house later.
He was certain that Ding Huan hadn't met the original owner of the house.
If he had, he wouldn't have bought it.
(That's all for today's update.
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(End of Chapter)