Riches in Disguise

"You're buying a villa?" The real estate agent, who had been talking to the man in the suit, looked me up and down with a condescending smirk. "How old are you? You look like a college student."

I laughed. "What's wrong with a college student buying a house?"

The saleswoman laughed mockingly. "Well, there's no rule against it, but do you even know what kind of houses we're selling here? Do you know how much the down payment is or the monthly mortgage?"

She pointed at the brochure in my hand and gave me a contemptuous look. "The cheapest unit still available is 750 thousand dollars. The down payment is 230 thousand dollars, and the monthly payment is 3 thousand dollars. Are you sure you can afford that?"

I scoffed. In my family, we had never taken out loans for houses.

Just as I was about to respond, the woman in the red dress got excited and exclaimed, "We want this house! Honey, haven't you talked to them yet?

"There are so many people here. If you don't act fast, someone else will snatch it up! Hurry up and pay the down payment!"

The man in the pinstriped suit looked distressed. "Sweetheart, we're actually here to buy the one that costs 500 thousand dollars."

"That one has already been sold! Are you really going to walk away empty- handed? If you don't buy now, there won't be any left next time, not even the 750 thousand-dollar ones!"

She clung to him, playfully nagging and showering his cheek with lipstick kisses. "Come on, sweetheart, don't be stingy. Everyone who lives here is either wealthy or well-connected, and that could really boost your career.

"I could meet a lot of wealthy friends, and maybe we can even climb the social ladder. Just tough it out and buy it!"

Even with the beautiful woman saying all that, the man still sighed heavily. "It's not that I don't want to buy it. I just can't scrape together enough for the down payment. I can't sell my parents' house just to buy this place, can I?"

The beauty's eyes lit up. "That's a great idea! Your parents are getting older. They can live anywhere. Honestly, you should just sell their house!"

Upon hearing that, the man in the pinstriped suit actually seemed to consider it seriously. He frowned and made a significant decision.

"Can you hold this house for me? I'll go back and sell my family's house. Once I raise enough money, I'll come back to pay the down payment."

The real estate agent smiled slightly. "That's fine, but to reserve the house, you'll still need to pay a deposit of 20 percent of the house's price. If you back out, the deposit will not be refunded."

"20 percent! That's 140 thousand dollars!"

The agent grinned. "Actually, it's 150 thousand dollars."

"Ah!" the man exclaimed, his eyes wide with shock. "I-I don't have enough money for the deposit."noveldrama

The woman in the red dress stamped her foot in frustration. "If you don't have enough, why don't you borrow some from your parents? They must have retirement savings. Just borrow the money for the deposit first! Seriously, stop dawdling!"

I was surprised that she was actually criticizing her man.

The man's face turned red as he hurried off to make a phone call for a loan.

I shook my head in disbelief as I listened to him plead on the phone. If he couldn't afford it, he should just go for a more affordable house. It was ridiculous that he would prioritize a woman over his own parents. What a jerk.

At that moment, I noticed the couple I had overheard earlier whispering to each other. "Honey, can't we buy this villa?"

"No, dear. I don't have enough for the down payment either. I didn't realize these houses were selling so fast. The cheapest one is still 750 thousand dollars. We should look elsewhere."

"Alright, dear. Don't be upset. It's just a setback. Who knows, it might turn out for the best?"

The wife of the tech guy was surprisingly sensible. I noticed how reluctant he was to leave, and an idea sparked in my mind. I finally had a way to recruit some talent for my company.