"Landlord, what brings you here?" He Yufei exclaimed, looking at the middle-aged woman.
Then she glanced nervously at Chen Jie.
The middle-aged woman sized up He Yufei and said with a fake smile, "Well, well. I heard you two mother and daughter have hooked up with a rich man. I didn't believe it, but look at you, all dressed up. So it's true."
"Tsk tsk… these legs, this little skirt, and so sparkly. Must have cost at least a few thousand, right?" the middle-aged woman clicked her tongue.
He Yufei looked embarrassed and proactively took out her wallet. As she fumbled for money, she said, "I was planning to give you the rent tonight. Since you're here, I'll give it to you now."
It turned out that the apartment wasn't He Yufei's own; she and her mother were renting it.
Chen Jie couldn't help but frown.
Judging by the landlord's demeanor, she didn't seem like a good person.
"Ten thousand? Are you trying to cheat a beggar!" The landlord threw the money back, sneering.
"Huh? Isn't the rent ten thousand a year?" He Yufei stammered.
"These days, prices are soaring. I haven't raised the rent for this apartment in over ten years! Starting today, it'll be twenty thousand a year!" the landlord said with a cold laugh.
What? Twenty thousand?
He Yufei and her mother's faces changed.
Then, they showed a look of difficulty.
Indeed, Pingcheng wasn't a cheap city, and twenty thousand a year wasn't much.
The rent was quite reasonable for the area.
However, He Yufei had intended to find a better apartment after receiving her next paycheck, and then save up to buy a place.
Suddenly having to come up with twenty thousand disrupted her plans.
But finding a new place quickly was difficult, so she could only sigh and say, "Okay, twenty thousand it is."
The landlord blinked in surprise, then said, "Twenty thousand is not enough. You need to give me two hundred thousand!"
"What?"
Mother and daughter's faces changed.
They looked at the landlord in disbelief.
The landlord crossed her arms, sneering, "This is a prime location. I want to rent it out for ten years at once! So you need to pay me two hundred thousand in rent upfront!"
"This… this is impossible!" He Yufei shook her head.
"Or, I can offer you another choice. My nephew is developing his career in Pingcheng, and he needs a place to stay. If I let his father and son live with you, I'll only charge you one year's rent, and even lower it to ten thousand!" the landlord said with a smile.
He Yufei and her mother looked at the two men. Their expressions immediately changed.
Because the younger man was staring at He Yufei with a lecherous gaze, as if he wanted to devour her.
The middle-aged man was even more exaggerated, constantly glancing at He Yufei's mother and then back at He Yufei, lust flickering in his eyes.
This apartment was already small. Living with four people would be inconvenient, and with two more men moving in, would they, mother and daughter, still be safe?
"Landlord, it's inconvenient for two women like me and my daughter to live with men. How about this: let us stay for a few more days, and we'll still pay rent. We'll move out as soon as possible." He mother said with a smile.
"Inconvenient? You old hag, what's so inconvenient for you? Huh?"
The landlord pointed at He mother's face, spattering saliva as she said, "Do you think you're still an eighteen-year-old girl? Dressed so provocatively, who are you trying to seduce?"
He mother's expression shifted slightly. She hadn't bought new clothes in a long time and was wearing an old outfit of He Yufei's.
This made her look much younger, and after being nourished by Chen Jie's spiritual energy, she appeared ten years younger.
"You don't think my nephew would have ill intentions towards you, do you? My nephew is such an outstanding person. If he fancies your daughter, wouldn't that bring honor to your family?"
"Landlord, please speak respectfully. Don't use such foul language!" He mother said awkwardly.
"Foul language? Heh! Let me tell you the truth. I was originally waiting for you, you old hag, to die, so I could give your daughter a chance to marry my nephew, Ke Qiang. Otherwise, why do you think I haven't raised your rent all this time? Who knew you wouldn't die, and instead, you'd be cured!"
"You old hag, you've wasted all my good intentions! In the end, your daughter still found a rich man behind my back! And look at you, dressed so provocatively, you're not planning to shamelessly indulge with your daughter, are you? Shameless bitch, you dare talk about inconvenience to me?"
"I'm telling you today, if you don't let my nephew move in, you'll be kicked out immediately! Otherwise, I'm afraid you two will dirty my apartment!"
The landlord's words made He Yufei both ashamed and angry, and He mother's face turned red.
Chen Jie was listening nearby. How would he think of them hearing this?
Just then, Chen Jie couldn't stand it anymore. "He Yufei, it's just a crappy apartment. Let's move. I'll find you a new place to live."
He Yufei looked at Chen Jie gratefully.
She said to her mother, "Mom, maybe we should just move."
Unexpectedly, the landlord's nephew, Ke Qiang, suddenly shouted, "I don't want them to move! I want He Yufei! I'll marry no one else but her in this life! Aunt, quickly think of a way!"
He had heard his aunt say she was introducing him to a potential girlfriend and thought she would be ugly.
But seeing her now, he was so excited his heart was about to leap out of his chest.
Just one glance and he desperately thought, I must have this woman!
Otherwise, I'll never be interested in another woman again!
That provocative little skirt, I really want to…
"Good nephew, how could your aunt let you suffer? Don't worry, whatever you like, your aunt will help you get it!"
The landlord glared at He Yufei. "Bitch, did you hear that? My nephew fancies you, so you'll live here with him!"
"Impossible!"
He Yufei's pretty face turned cold. She immediately said to her mother, "Mom, let's pack up and leave now!"
She understood that with such a landlord, they couldn't stay any longer, even if it meant not paying rent.
"Stop right there!"
The landlord shouted, "Trying to leave? Fine! Bitch, I let you stay before because your mother was dying, expecting to get a dowry when you married someone after she died! Now that your mother isn't dead and you want to move out, how do you expect me to account for the rent I've waived over the past decade? You need to make it up to me! Give me a hundred thousand and I'll let you go!"
He mother was timid and didn't know what to do for a moment.
However, He Yufei, having been respected as a CEO for the past few days and regaining her confidence, was no longer the girl who was easily manipulated.
With a stern face, she said, "There's no such logic in the world. We're not staying in this apartment! And there's no money."
"You… you brought this upon yourself!" the landlord roared.