There's a saying that plans can't keep up with changes.
Originally, Shi Xiaolei had already discussed with the landlord about renovating the store, and the landlord had agreed.
However, just as Shi Xiaolei was about to contact the construction team, a few days before the planned closure for renovation, the landlord suddenly came to the store and reluctantly delivered some news.
The specific issue isn't worth mentioning, but in short, the landlord family had run into some problems and needed funds.
To raise money, he had no choice but to sell the property.
Unfortunately, because Shi Xiaolei and the landlord had always maintained a good relationship and trusted each other, they hadn't signed a written contract regarding the store renovation.
So, the situation hit a snag—if the landlord sold the shop to someone else, whether the new owner would allow Shi Xiaolei to continue renting became a question.
And even if they were willing to rent to him, they might not permit him to upgrade and renovate the store.
Find another storefront? Or...
He had already become familiar with the neighbors, and felt reluctant to move away now.
His shop had established a good reputation, and suddenly changing to a new address might mean losing many regular customers.
Additionally, the landlord was an honest person, and his purpose for selling wasn't to make a profit, so the price he offered wasn't inflated.
After several days of consideration, Shi Xiaolei gritted his teeth, made a decisive move, and simply paid to buy the property himself.
The building itself wasn't expensive; it was the land that was costly.
When he had previously purchased a new house, he only spent $3.68 million.
That was because Shi Xiaolei only bought one floor, which, when converted to land rights, meant he only owned one-sixth of the property.
But now, he was buying both the building and the land together.
This price was not comparable to buying just one floor.
The floor area ratio in popular areas of international first-tier cities has always been ridiculously high.
On Manhattan Island, the relevant data is only ever increasing, never decreasing.
This means that land prices are at least ten times higher than housing prices.
Combining the storefront in front with the living area in the back, the total space added up to nearly 400 square meters.
Compared to the average housing price in the area of $11,000 to $13,000 per square meter, to buy this land from the landlord, Shi Xiaolei would need to prepare at least $45 million.
And that didn't even include the price of the building.
Thinking carefully, selling gemstones to Stark had only brought in $50 million.
Subtracting the $3.68 million used to buy the house, he still needed to set aside some working capital for home renovations.
Add to that the expense of furnishing the home with furniture and appliances, as well as the cost of transforming the storefront.
Even including the $1.5 million he had saved up earlier, it would just barely be enough.
He might need to borrow some money, or maybe not.
In any case, Shi Xiaolei would have to empty every last cent from his pockets to gather enough and 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 United States; he still maintained Chinese habits—if there wasn't some money in the bank account for emergencies, he would always feel a bit insecure.
"Sigh."
Sprawled on the table, writing and calculating for quite a while, the numbers still came out the same.
Putting down his pen, stretching, and glancing back at the darkened rooms of Kanna and 2B, Shi Xiaolei stood up and walked quietly into the bathroom.
Turning on the faucet, he washed his face, and looking at himself in the mirror, Shi Xiaolei raised his hand and patted his cheeks.
"Cheer up, don't get discouraged. It's just money, not like you can't earn it. Be positive, Shi Xiaolei, you can do this. After all, you just don't have extra money now, you're not in debt, so the situation isn't that bad."
Giving himself a pep talk, his mood relaxed a little.
He also remembered that S.H.I.E.L.D. last purchase had been nearly half a month ago.
Thinking they might come to buy another batch in a few days, which would bring in another sum of money, Shi Xiaolei face finally broke into a smile, and his heart gained some confidence.
Grabbing a towel, he dried the water on his face.
With his mood settled, Shi Xiaolei turned around, planning to go to the kitchen to get a thermos and soak his feet before going to bed.
Just as he turned to face the living room, an orange circle with sparking flames suddenly appeared before his eyes.
"!!!!"
As a dimensional traveler, he was all too familiar with this sight.
Seeing the circle, Shi Xiaolei eyes widened, and his heart sounded an alarm.
'A big shot has arrived, what should I do? Has my identity as a dimensional traveler been exposed, drawing her displeasure?'
'That shouldn't be it. If it was simply about being a dimensional traveler, she would have found me long ago. So then... could it be because I interfered with the battle between Stark and Iron Monger, disrupting the original timeline, and that's why she's targeting me?'
'What should I do, what should I do? Will I be banished?'
The more he thought, the more panicked he became.
Shi Xiaolei entire body froze, as if he had returned to the barbarian homeland and been turned into a statue by the cold wind at the top of Mount Arreat.
"Hello."
As if his fears had been realized, the person appearing before Shi Xiaolei was indeed the Supreme Sorcerer, who was said to be at the pinnacle of Earth power in the Marvel universe.
Despite not being particularly tall or imposing, and despite the faint smile on her face, the psychological pressure she exerted on Shi Xiaolei was indeed like a mountain, making it difficult for him to breathe.
"H-hello."
Raising his hand with extreme restraint, Shi Xiaolei forced his mouth into an awkward smile.
The Ancient One smiled and nodded, raising her right hand and gently waving it.
The floor, walls, ceiling, and all the furniture and decorations inside seemed to suddenly come alive.
Flipping, folding—an incredibly mystical yet utterly real scene unfolded before Shi Xiaolei eyes.
Knowing this was the reaction to the opening of the Mirror Dimension, the corner of Shi Xiaolei eye involuntarily twitched a couple of times.
"The little one is still growing, sleep quality is very important, it's best not to disturb her."
She said, stepping forward to Shi Xiaolei and pointing to Kanna room, which was now in a different dimension. The Ancient One face showed a somewhat playful smile.
"Besides, if she were to make a fuss, it would be quite troublesome to clean up, don't you think?"
"..."
Not knowing how to respond, after struggling for several seconds, Shi Xiaolei only managed to squeeze out one sentence.
"Who are you?"
He was still clinging to a glimmer of hope.
"Hehe."
The Ancient One gently shook her head, with an 'I've seen through everything' smile on her face.
"Rock, you know who I am."
Because of the Ancient One words, Shi Xiaolei heart skipped another beat, and his expression became even more tense.
"Relax a bit."
Turning to sit on the sofa, the Ancient One appeared very at ease, as if she had returned to her own home.
"Sit down, don't be nervous. I've come today just to say hello and give you a few reminders, nothing more."
"..."
"The tea is nice."
Summoning a teacup from the kitchen on her own, the Ancient One poured herself some tea and took a gentle sip.
Putting down the cup, the Ancient One reached into her robe and took out a small paper package, placing it on the coffee table.
"But it's still not as good as what I've brought. Here, this is my welcoming gift to you—special tea leaves from Kamar-Taj, you can't buy these anywhere else."
(T/N: Like the story fellow daoist?you can read 20 chapters ahead on my P@treon [[email protected]/DaoistRongyi] Thanks for your support! 😊)