There's a saying: "Plans are no match for changes."
Shi Xiaolei had already discussed it with the landlord, and the landlord had agreed to his renovation plans for the shop. However, just a few days before Shi Xiaolei was about to contact a construction team and close the shop for renovations, the landlord suddenly showed up and, with great difficulty, delivered some news.
I won't go into the specifics, but in short, something had happened in the landlord's family, and he needed cash flow. To raise the money, he had no choice but to sell the property.
The problem was that Shi Xiaolei and the landlord had always had a good relationship, and under mutual trust, they hadn't signed a written contract regarding the shop's renovation.
And so, complications arose here—if the landlord sold the shop to someone else, it was uncertain whether the new owner would allow Shi Xiaolei to continue renting. Even if they were willing to rent to him, they might not permit him to upgrade and renovate the shop.
Should he look for a new location? Or… He had already become familiar with his neighbors, and moving now felt a bit regrettable. His shop's reputation had been established, and suddenly changing addresses might mean losing a lot of regular customers. Plus, the landlord was a very honest person, and his purpose in selling the property wasn't to make a profit; the price he offered was fair… After several days of deliberation, Shi Xiaolei gritted his teeth and stomped his foot, deciding to buy it himself.
The building wasn't expensive; the land was.
He had only spent 3.68 million on his new house before. That was because Shi Xiaolei had only bought one floor, meaning his share of the land ownership was only one-sixth.
Now, he was buying both the building and the land. The price for this, well, it couldn't be compared to buying just one floor.
The floor area ratio in prime locations of international first-tier cities has always been ridiculously high. For example, in many parts of Hong Kong, the floor area ratio generally exceeds 10.0.
On Manhattan Island, the relevant data is only higher, not lower.
In other words, the land price is at least ten times more than the building price.
The front shop area, combined with the living space in the back, added up to nearly 400 square meters. Compared to the average housing price of 11,000 to 13,000 per square meter in that area, Shi Xiaolei would need to prepare at least 45 million US dollars to buy this plot of land from the landlord.
This didn't even include the price of the building.
Thinking about it carefully, selling the gems to Stark only brought in 50 million in total. After deducting the 3.68 million for buying the house, he still needed to set aside some liquid cash for home renovations. Plus, there were expenses for new furniture and appliances, and the cost of renovating the shop… Even with the 1.5 million he had saved up, it would barely be enough.
He might need to borrow some money, or maybe not. Regardless, Shi Xiaolei would have to empty every last penny from his pockets to gather enough funds to complete the transaction with the landlord. This was why the decision was so difficult.
After all, Shi Xiaolei wasn't a Chinese American born in the US; he still retained Chinese customs—if he didn't have some emergency money in his bank account, he would always feel a bit uneasy.
"Sigh." He leaned on the table, sketching and calculating for a long time, but the numbers remained the same.
He put down his pen, stretched, and glanced back at Kanna and 2B's rooms, where the lights were already off. Shi Xiaolei stood up and quietly walked into the bathroom.
He turned on the tap, washed his face, and looked at himself in the mirror. Shi Xiaolei raised a hand and patted his cheeks: "Cheer up, don't get discouraged. It's just money; it's not like you can't earn it. Be positive, Shi Xiaolei, you can do this. After all, you only lack spare cash now; you're not in debt yet, so the situation isn't too bad."
He gave himself a pep talk, and his mood relaxed a little.
He then remembered that it had been almost half a month since S.H.I.E.L.D.'s last procurement. Thinking that they might come to restock in a few days, and he would get another sum of money, Shi Xiaolei finally smiled, feeling a bit more confident.
He grabbed a towel and wiped the water from his face. With his mood settled,
Shi Xiaolei turned around, intending to go to the kitchen to fetch a thermos and soak his feet before going to bed.
The moment he turned to face the living room, a sparkling, orange-red circle of sparks suddenly appeared before his eyes.
"!!!!"
As a transmigrator, he was all too familiar with this phenomenon. As soon as he saw the circle, Shi Xiaolei's eyes widened, and an alarm rang in his heart.
'The big shot is here. What should I do? Has my transmigrator identity been exposed, incurring her displeasure?'
'It shouldn't be that. If it were simply because of my transmigrator identity, she would have come knocking much earlier. So, in that case… could it be because I interfered in the battle between Stark and Iron Monger, disrupting the original timeline, and that's why she's targeting me?'
'What to do, what to do? Will I be exiled?'
The more he thought, the more panicked he became. Shi Xiaolei froze completely, as if he had returned to the barbarians' homeland, frozen into a statue by the cold wind on Mount Arreat.
"Hello." Just as he feared, the one who appeared before Shi Xiaolei was indeed the Sorcerer Supreme, hailed as the ceiling of combat power for Earth's forces in the Marvel universe.
She wasn't tall, nor was she robust, and a faint smile graced her face, yet the psychological pressure she exerted on Shi Xiaolei was like a towering mountain, making it difficult for him to breathe.
"H-hello~." With extreme restraint, Shi Xiaolei raised his hand and forced a strained, awkward smile.
The Ancient One smiled and nodded, then gently waved her right hand.
The floor, walls, ceiling, and even the various furniture and decorations inside the room, all seemed to suddenly come alive.
Flipping, folding, an incredibly fantastical yet very real scene unfolded before Shi Xiaolei's eyes.
Knowing this was the reaction when the Mirror Dimension unfolded, Shi Xiaolei's eyelids twitched involuntarily twice.
"The little one is still growing, and sleep quality is very important, so it's best not to disturb her." Stepping forward, she came before Shi Xiaolei and pointed to Kanna's room, which was now in a different dimension. The Ancient One smiled playfully: "Besides, if she throws a tantrum, it's quite troublesome to deal with, wouldn't you agree?"
"..." Not knowing how to respond, Shi Xiaolei struggled for several seconds and only managed to blurt out one sentence: "Who are you?"
He still held a glimmer of hope.
"Heh heh." The Ancient One gently shook her head, a 'I see through everything' smile on her face: "Locke, you know who I am."
Because of the Ancient One's words, Shi Xiaolei's heart skipped a beat again, and his expression grew even more tense.
"Relax." Turning to sit on the sofa, the Ancient One seemed very at ease, as if she were back in her own home: "Sit down, no need to be nervous. I'm just here to say hello today and give you a few reminders; I have no other intentions."
"..."
"The tea is good." Casually summoning a teacup from the kitchen, the Ancient One poured herself a cup of tea and took a small sip.
Setting down the cup, the Ancient One reached into her robe and pulled out a small paper packet, placing it on the coffee table: "But it still can't compare to what I brought. Here, this is a welcome gift I brought for you, specialty tea from Kamar-Taj, you can't buy it anywhere else."