(My True Friend)
(Episode 40)
I'm announcing...
that the City of Love will officially begin...
from today onwards.
Great.
- Great. - Great.
Besides,
the reason why I have all of you here today...
is to inform you on my current situation.
I believe you've already heard...
that my father...
is no longer the chairman of this company.
So I am also no longer the chairman's son.
I, Shao Peng Cheng,
hold only the position of the manager of Hua Yuan Store...
and project manager.
Nothing else.
I am nothing more than that.
Peng Cheng,
Actually,
we have heard about the chairman,
but I think...
it is actually a good thing...
not to have any resources from the headquarters.
We're in charge of our own profit and loss independently.
If we make big money later,
you will be the only shareholder.
Ms. Mei Li.
If we make a loss, Peng Cheng also has to bear it alone.
No choice.
So this is what we call a boss.
The risks,
and the returns,
are proportional.
For the project right now,
we don't have both fundings and designers.
Although our idea has been taken by Hong Shi Real Estate,
I still want to ask you.
Are you still willing...
to work with me...
all over again from scratch.
Actually, we are not from scratch,
We still have the Youth Apartment project...
that stands out as our most unique business model...
and core business philosophy,
no one can steal this away.
Yes, brother. We will support you.
We can get a loan if we don't have money.
We can find the designers together.
We don't have to emphasize the promotions.
We only need to come out with a solid case study.
We may overcome all the obstacles.
Yes.
Rest assured, Peng Cheng.
Xiao Ning and I will always follow you.
Well...
Count me in.
I am also in. I'm free anyway.
But I have a request here,
when the project grows bigger later,
Peng Cheng,
if you are done with being the store manager,
you have to refer me to the headquarter.
Think about it. Hey.
Based on my performances and experiences,
it should be my turn to shine.
Think about it.
I have been working...
so long for Hua Yuan Store.
I am not even a manager now.
This is embarrassing. It is such a shame, isn't it?
- Ms. Mei Li. - Yes?
You're obsessed with promotion.
If we really make this project a successful one,
will you just be a manager in such a small place?
Yes.
No. You just have to admit...
that you are just as loyal...
as the rest of us. Why is that so hard?
Hey, you! Fu Xiao Ning,
why do you have to tell the truth?
I know you very well.
Thank you very much.
I mean it.
Thank you for trusting me.
I assure you here,
I will not let you down.
Here we go.
- Way to go! - Way to go!
Here's the parcel for Ms. Hao Mei Li from Vipshop.
It's coming. It's mine. Hurry up.
- Come on. - Hello.
Okay, please come in.
Well. Recently,
we have been through a lot. Thank you.
So I have bought...
- a lot of good stuff from Vishop. - Thank you, Ms. Mei Li.
To reward all of you. Come on.
Thank you, Ms. Mei Li.
Zhen Zhen, I bought some supplements.
You are exhausted these days.
Try this supplement.
It's really good. It's on sale.
- Thank you. - You need to get these supplements.
- Xi Shan. - What else do you have?
- It is for you. - I will just take it then.
- Hey. - What is wrong?
You have gotten the supplements for the girls.
We, the guys, well...
only got some junk foods.
We are girls.
We are flowers. We deserve to be taken good care of.
You guys are just some leaves.
Just take some water.
Come on.
Fine. You girls are flowers.
- You are the faeces of a bull. - Hey.
I didn't say that.
This is my name card.
This is the business proposal...
of our City of Love project.
Let me brief you about it.
Look, this is...
mainly about the Youth Apartment.
We have done a lot of market surveys.
It is mainly for...
the non-local youngsters or those who are struggling.
So that youths won't be...
burdened by the house prices in the city.
This is a multi purpose shoe rack.
Here. A lot of things...
are hidden in the wall.
I am not interested.
I am sorry.
I am sorry. I am not interested.
I am sorry. Let's work together next time.
I think I am getting better at this money dance.
- So am I. - I can only see money now.
My fellow comrades,
we have limited manpower and a big workload now.
So, you need to work on the City of Love Project...
and your routine task simultaneously.
- Zhen Zhen, brief us about... - Yes.
the companies you have seen recently.
You still have to keep on doing your routine tasks.
One more thing.
I have sold my house.
- What? - Why did you sell your house?
Why did you sell your house?
Do you have any problems raising funds?
Hong Shi Real Estate has launched the project ahead of us.
It has become a big obstacle for us to raise funds.
Moreover, even if we manage to find investors now,
it still takes time for the money to reach us, isn't it?
But then, we...
cannot afford to wait anymore.
Where are you going to live then?
- That is right. - Okay. Stop it.
I have made up my mind.
Is that all right?
Look at your frowning faces.
I am willing to sell my own house...
to invest in the City of Love Project.
That means I am confident in this project.
You should be happy with it.
(In-patient Building)
- Mom. - Yes?
How do you feel? Are you feeling better?
I am getting better these days.
The pain from the wound...
is much relieved as compared to a few days ago.
Son,
how do you feel...
these days?
I had been wanting to talk to you...
even before I fell sick.
But,
I saw you were in pain,
so I dared not bring it up.
I am fine.
Mom, just ask anything you want.
I know,
the fact that Zhen Zhen broke up with you...
it has made you very sad.
You know, actually,
I am upset as well.
Even at the very beginning,
I was really frustrated.
And I was really mad at Zhen Zhen.
But when I think about it later,
I realized...
that I haven't really been treating her well.
I even wonder if I was too harsh on her.
Zhen Zhen is a good girl.
Yes.
I know she's a good girl.
But...
since Zhen Zhen has chosen to give up on you,
but that's her rights, right?
Then...
Maybe you should let go, too.
Mom.
I've thought it through.
I didn't know Zhen Zhen well before.
I...
I'm too obsessed with her.
I understand. I can relate to that.
She has her own dreams.
Zhen Zhen...
doesn't want to be a full-time housewife.
She doesn't want to only stay home and raise her kid.
I'm the one who's been forcing her...
to do things she doesn't want to do.
Sometimes,
we should learn to give some freedom to the one we love.
That's why,
I've decided to help her...
- to accomplish her dreams. - Okay.
I ordered it for you.
Is everything all right with Ms. Bai?
She's much better now.
I heard you've resigned.
Yes.
What's your plan?
I've established my own company.
So, why do you ask me here?
I'll help you...
on City of Love project's design work pro bono.
Are you doing this for Zhen Zhen?
I intend to design a comfy home...
for the youngsters in this city.
Remember to send me the proposal.
Thank you for saving my mother.
I'm so sorry to call you up at this hour.
Aren't you interested in the property in this area?
How's your consideration so far?
Do you like the house?
That's great!
Well, I can bring you there if you're free.
You'll like it more once you see it.
Okay, great! It's late,
I shouldn't disturb you anymore. Keep in touch, goodbye.
I knew you guys won't be leaving so soon.
- Come, let's eat something. - The food's here.
- This is great. - I'm starving.
You're such a foodie.
Did I say you can take it?
Aren't these for me?
Go away.
Your popcorn chicken.
- Thank you. - Can I have this coke?
Yes, it's all yours.
Xi Shan, what would you like?
- I'll take popcorn chicken. - Popcorn chicken, here.
- Thank you. - All right.
- Here, there's another one. - Thank you.
One for me, please.
Get it yourself.
Xiao Shao...
Director Shao,
how's that investment going on?
Are you kidding me? Call me Xiao Shao.
Hey, listen.
There's something I have to tell you guys.
Today, I was thinking...
of how can we spend the least money...
on making Youth Apartment project a big success.
Look at us right now, we don't have much capital,
so we couldn't invest in constructions.
But we can use another method.
For instance,
we can find...
some houses that have the potential to be renovated.
Then, we can rent them all...
and use our design plan...
to renovate them all together.
Then, we can rent it out.
What do you guys think?
Yes. It works.
- That's true. - Tell you what,
that's really a good idea.
Think about it. Hong Shi has starting work on their projects.
We can't even compete with them...
on time or capital.
But if we work on Hao Mei Li's idea,
it is as good as paving ourselves a shortcut.
- Hao Mei Li, - Yes?
Finally, you utilize...
your intelligence in the right place.
I've studied hard...
on City of Love's proposal for the entire night.
I must have somehow figured something out, right?
Do you guys...
remember the pilot project...
of Miss Yu and her family?
Remember?
They used the exact same technique.
So why can't we use the same method, right?
We can renovate...
all of the houses we rent...
and rent it out to our client.
It will go viral.
I think Ms. Mei Li's idea is workable.
We didn't consider about this before...
because we were planning...
to promote 200 units all at once.
Which means, we have to build a building of 20 floors...
and each floor consists of 10 units to make a total of 200 units.
But if we are to rent,
the key problem is, where do we find a building...
that consists of 200 units?
That's our biggest obstacle.
It's very difficult to find such a building...
in Shanghai.
But I'm thinking...
maybe we don't have to focus on renting one building.
For example, we can find 7 to 8 buildings...
which consists of about 20 units.
If we add these all up,
we'll get the amount we want, right?
This is a good idea.
Seven or eight buildings in all over Shanghai.
We can let our client choose...
- wherever they want. - Hey.
I think this will work too.
Let's do it this way.
So, what we have to do right now...
is to find an apartment...
which has 20 to 30 units.
The more the merrier.
And they have to fulfil two criteria.
First, it allows long term rental.
Second, it is able to renovate.
Yes, that's right.
All right, tomorrow,
let's find these units tomorrow.
- Okay. Great. - All right.
Hang on, speaking of which,
you remind me of something.
I remember there's one building...
that's exactly what we're looking for.
Number 19, Ai De Street.
That's a three stories building,
and it has a strategic location.
Most importantly,
it has a very big estate.
The only downside of it...
is the interior is a little run down.
But its exterior design...
is very unique.
Many claims to like it...
and they're willing to buy it and renovate it,
or rent it and renovate it.
Then turn it into a bar or a café.
Many real estate agents have surveyed about it too.
But you know what?
The landlord is very quirky.
Neither would he rent nor sell the building.
What kind of a person is the landlord?
I don't know.
Because I heard about this from someone else too.
And we don't need this info back then,
so I didn't find out more about it.
It's okay.
I think we can make this as our backup plan.
- We should check it out tomorrow. - Okay.
Okay. That's it then.
Let's do what Mei Li said.
Let's work on this starting from tomorrow, all right?
- Okay. - Sure.
I'm starving, hurry, give me a burger.
- Burger? - My stomach is growling already.
Thank you.
How did it go with selling my house?
I have a client...
who specifically ask about your house.
But I couldn't get in touch with him lately.
- This person actually... - It's okay, keep trying.
I need to answer a call.
(Love and Family Real Estate)
I'm so tired.
- I'm so full. - You're tired, right?
We'll head off first.
You're leaving already?
Goodbye.
- Bye. - Bye.
- Bye. - Bye, Ms. Mei Li.
- Let's go. - Let's go.
How was the meeting?
The meeting went pretty well.
But you don't look happy,
is it about capital funding?
Of course, not, it's just a small matter.
Plus, I have you to keep me company.
You're my biggest motivation.
Good that you know it.
Before I came back just now, I went to see Jing Ran.
What's wrong? Did something happen to Ms. Bai?
It wasn't about Ms. Bai.
Jing Ran has resigned from Love and Family.
He's established his own company.
And the most important thing is,
he'll be cooperating with us...
on behalf of his own company...
in designing for City of Love pro bono.
Really?
That's great.
I knew Jing Ran's going to do that.
What?
How did you know all that?
You sound like you know him very well.
Come, tell me about it.
I know so much about him.
I'm telling you,
don't be too confident and don't think too much.
Jing Ran is cooperating with us pro bono...
isn't because of you...
or for you.
He was touched by what I did, understand?
I really don't.
What do you mean?
I'm so hardworking, I work my fingers to the bone,
Do you think it's easy? Isn't that a touching story at all?
Fine, you've improved lately.
- Let's go. - Hey, I'm very hardworking, okay?
I've worked so hard for City of Love.
You really...
Give me a compliment, now.
Try to play tricks?
What tricks are you going to play?
Let's see now, how are you going to mess around.
I'm never moving out of here.
I'll die here if I have to.
Sir.
Did you forget to bring your key? Why are you knocking on the lock?
You won't be able to unlock it like that.
- It must be some agents... - What's the matter?
putting super glue into the keyhole...
when this old man went out...
to buy medicine just now.
I thought so too.
These people are really mean.
This is illegal. How can they do that?
- That's right. - Hey.
Look. These two are real estate agents too.
Do you think they're the same gang as those who glued the keyhole?
They don't look familiar.
I don't think so.
Are they new?
Sir, madam.
I heard you guys were talking about agents gluing the keyhole.
What's going on?
By one look, I can tell that you're not a real estate agent here.
Every real estate agents in this area know him,
and all of them came to look at his house.
A lot of them came over to persuade him.
But he's really a strange old man.
Look at him, he can't even afford his medical fees.
Yet he's still trying so hard to protect his house.
He's neither selling nor renting it out.
If you ask me, I'd say he's too stubborn.
How can an old man possibly...
live in such a big house alone?
A house is something...
that you'll have to let go someday.
Why not sell it away?
Look at him living in such a big house alone...
and he doesn't even have the money to renovate it.
It's so run down now.
It's better to just sell it away...
and buy a new mansion.
He can even hire servants to take care of him...
or to buy medicine with the remaining money.
He can do whatever he wants.
Sir.
This old man...
- owns such a big house himself? - That's right.
All of the agents nearby...
have came asking him...
to sell his house over and over again.
But none succeeded.
After some time,
those agents were irritated by him.
Especially when he's in a bad mood,
he'd scold whoever that comes to ask him about the house.
So he literally has provoked all of the agents in this area.
Which is why they'd even glue this keyhole.
Try to play tricks?
Sir, stop smashing it. This is not how you unlock a lock.
We'll get someone to unlock it for you, okay?
Stop faking your kindness.
Aren't you the one who glued the keyhole?
So you're using a different tactic now?
Glue my keyhole first,
then pretend to get someone to unlock it for me,
so that I'd appreciate you?
You're so crafty!
- That's not true, Sir. - It's useless.
I'm telling you, it's all useless.
I'm neither selling nor renting this place.
Stop wasting time on me.
No, Sir. Please calm down. We didn't glue the keyhole.
Stop smashing it.
We'll settle this for you right away.
Sir, do you live somewhere nearby?
Is there any tool that you can lend me?
I have to help him to open up the lock.
I can lend you the tools,
but I can't guarantee that this old man would want your help.
This old man is too weird.
- I'll get you the tools. - Okay, thank you, Sir, Madam.
I'll go get a new lock, you look after him, all right?
Okay.
- Buy me some drinks. - Okay.
Do you know this place?
This is it.
This unit is not bad,
but you should know...
that I wanted to buy a house here...
because I want to get closer to Shao Peng Cheng.
But he rejected to marry me...
in the presence of my dad and his dad.
So, it's meaningless for me...
to buy a house in this area.
I know very well your intention of buying a house in this area.
But, I think...
you should get your own house.
You can either stay there...
or take it as an investment.
A house that fulfills these criteria...
isn't easy to come by.
Okay then.
I'll buy this house.
Xiao Ning, you've helped me a lot...
for a very long time.
I won't let all of your hard work go to waste.
Although I can't marry Shao Peng Cheng,
we're still friends.
Now that he needs money,
I guess buying this house...
is also a form of helping him.
Ms. Luo, you're a loyal friend.
Come, have some soda.
Thank you.
No, I should thank you.
I thank you for Peng Cheng too.
How was it?
I didn't know you're good at this.
This is just a small matter.
- It's unlocked now, Sir. - You've broken my lock.
If someone barges into my house tonight,
it will be your responsibility.
Sir. I have to be honest with you.
Look at how old...
and run down your house is.
No thief would want to come.
Sir, don't mind him.
He's only joking with you.
Look, we've bought you a new lock,
we'll install it for you.
Sir.
I'll leave the lock and the tools here, okay?
Okay.
Sir, have a drink.
- No need. - It's all right, take it.
Your court yard is spacious.
That's true.
Sir.
Won't it be inconvenient for you to clean the house...
since you're living here alone?
Why don't you consider...
of renting this house to us, Love and Family?
Stop it right there.
Stop talking about renting my house.
You bunch of agents...
are all equally guileful.
Young lady, I repeat myself again.
I'm not selling or renting this place.
Look at the signboard I hung there.
(Beware of the loyal dog. Agents, behave yourselves.)
"Beware of the loyal dog. Agents, behave yourselves."
If there's nothing else,
you can leave now.
I won't see you off.
Well, Sir.
You see.
You have such a big mansion, but it's so messy.
And look at your house, it's so old and run down.
If you rent it to us, we can restore this place...
to how it used to look like.
We'll renovate both the insides and outsides of this place.
What do you think of that?
That's impossible.
What's gone is gone.
You can never get back the thing that's gone.
Lad, I'm telling you,
not even a brilliant architect can restore this place.
You can renovate this place to make it look new again,
or paint all of the walls.
But,
you can never restore the feelings...
and emotions I used to have.
It's useless that I'm telling you all this.
That's it, you can leave now.
Stop trying to sweet-talk me.
You bunch of agents...
are all so crafty.
Sir, just believe in us once.
We have excellent designers.
Sir.
How about this?
I give you my name card.
Sir, call me anytime if you ever need anything.
Like what happened today. You can call me anytime.
We shall not disturb you then.
We'll leave now. Okay?
- Sir. - Let's go.
- Sir, your medicines. - Yes.
The new lock and water. I'll leave them here, okay?
We're leaving then, goodbye.
We're leaving, Sir.
Actually, I can feel that he is slightly moved...
when you said you can restore the house.
I believe if we continue to persuade him,
we might be able to convince him.
Didn't you hear what he said just now?
No matter how we try to restore the house,
we can never bring back the feelings he used to have.
Look at the place, it's so messy.
And it's really run down.
But for him,
he'd do anything to protect the house.
It's obvious that there's a story behind.
I thought so too.
So if we can find out the story behind this,
maybe he'll be willing to rent the place to us.
And how do we do that?
Let's ask the neighbourhood association,
they'd know something, right?
- Okay. - Let's go.
I should return the tools too. Let's go.
This design of this house is really incredible.
This house is nothing but impeccable.
I've been here countless times,
hurry up and proceed with the procedures.
There's nothing more I want to know.
All right, that's great.
Please prepare your ID and your household register.
Is your household registered in Shanghai?
No.
- I'm from Shanxi. - It's okay.
Have you paid Shanghai's Social Insurance for five years?
- Five years of Social Insurance? - Yes.
I just came back from overseas,
I never pay for any social insurance before.
It's problematic then.
Your household register isn't in Shanghai...
and you didn't pay for Social Insurance in Shanghai.
So you're ineligible to buy a property in Shanghai.
I can't buy a house...
just because of household register and social insurance?
How is that possible?
I thought money is all that matters.
No, of course not.
Who told you that money is all that matter?
If money is the only thing that matter,
then everyone would be buying houses just for investment.
You're ineligible to buy a house,
so you're just wasting my few months of time and effort...
in finding you a house?
What about Aunt Bai's house?
Didn't you almost sign an agreement already?
No, I didn't get to buy it in the end.
What's more,
I think as long as I have money,
then you, as an agent, should be in charge of the rest.
If your job is to bring me around for viewing only,
wouldn't it be too unreasonable...
for me to pay you such high amount of commissions?
- I... - Also,
buying a car in Shanghai...
requires household register and social insurance too.
But I fulfil none of the requirements,
and yet I still get a car with a Shanghai car plate.
So, you should bear the responsibilities.
Oh, please, my lady.
Buying a house and buying a car are two completely different things.
We're not as powerful as you think.
We can't solve your eligibility for buying the houses.
I don't care, you have to come up with an idea.
I...
Come in.
Excuse me.
So sorry to disturb you.
We're estate agents from Love and Family.
We'd like to ask you about something.
- Have a seat. - Okay, thanks.
You're from Love and Family?
- Yes. - What's the matter?
Our company is now planning to...
launch a Youth Apartment project.
So we'd like to know more about the building...
unit number 19, at Ai De Street.
Unit 19 at Ai De Street?
That's a very special case,
I advise you to give up on trying to rent this building.
There were many real estate agents who tried to buy or rent that place,
but the landlord rejected them all.
There's no room for negotiation.
We've met that grandpa, actually.
And we understand what he's thinking.
So we'd like to know more...
about the history of this building
and the background of this grandpa...
to see if we can fight for it.
Unit number 19 of Ai De Street...
was built during the Republic of China...
in the late '90s of last century...
when houses were becoming a sale item.
That's when the current landlord,
Mister Zhong Zhi Heng,
bought the entire building all at once.
He's been living there since then.
Do you know what was his occupation before?
Where is his family right now?
Mr. Zhong was a known artist...
during the early stage of the Chinese Communist Revolution.
I suppose he's pretty wealthy back then.
But for some reason,
he stopped painting after buying the entire building.
He's been very demotivated since then.
He's always been alone.
And is there any specific reason...
for him to quit painting...
and to live alone?
I'm not sure about the reason.
What should we do now?
Mr. Zhong was an artist, right?
Why don't we go look around in the library...
and see if we could find any information about him?
All right.
We won't disturb you then.
- Thank you. - You're welcome.
- Thank you. - Off you go.
- Goodbye. - Goodbye.
I've searched it up online just now.
I tried typing in his name, "Zhong Zhi Heng",
and even "artist Zhong Zhi Heng",
but I still get nothing.
If we find nothing from the internet,
how long do you think we'll have to search from books?
Mr. Zhong wasn't a well-known artist back then,
and he quit painting during the '90s.
Maybe that's why it's hard to find anything about him online.
But I think we can look through Shanghai local artist...
from the Old Shanghai Painting Collection.
We might find something.
But Shanghai local artists...
I'm so sorry.
Thank you for being my driver today.
I've walked too much, my legs are aching.
Of course, no problem.
But if you couldn't solve my eligibility for buying a house,
it will be meaningless no matter how much I wanted...
to give your commissions and help Shao Peng Cheng,
Can't you all come up with some better ideas?
There are definitely some ways.
You can fake a marriage.
Buy a house after you get married, then you can divorce.
And when you divorce,
you have to state in the divorce agreement...
that the house is your property.
But I only heard this from a friend, I didn't try it myself.
That's not a bad idea at all. I think it could work.
But, the thing is, where would you find that person...
who's reliable and eligible to buy a house...
and would marry you?
You'll have to find one for me.
Don't worry, I'll pay you extra.
Ms. Luo, it's not about the money,
I've never done anything like this before.
Where can I find such a person?
This is also a risky thing to do.
Just forget about it.
Come to think of it,
if someone's willing to marry you,
but unwilling of divorcing you, what would you do?
Even if he's willing to divorce you,
it's also problematic when it comes to asset assigning.
Which is why you have to settle all of these things for me.
You have to bear all of the responsibilities.
But...
Are you eligible to buy a house?
I am.
I just paid the social insurance,
but even if I'm eligible,
I don't have the money to buy a house. It's useless too.
We can fake a marriage together.
I have the money and you have the eligibility,
we're a perfect match, right?
If you help me buy a house,
I will pay you extra as a token of appreciation.
Most importantly, I believe in you.
You will definitely divorce me...
and will never fight over the house with me.
That's it then.
No, this is not right.
What's not right?
I'll be the disadvantaged one.
I'm not even afraid, why should you?
I tell you what, if this works,
excluding your commissions,
I'll pay you 2894 dollars as a token of appreciation.
How's that?
Ms. Luo, don't get over excited about this first.
I really have to think about it.
Aren't you a man? Can't you be more decisive?
What's there to think about? I think this will work.
That's it then.
Hurry and wake up.
I found it.
What is it?
Page 168.
What time is it?
Look.
Zhong Zhi Heng.
"Hometown, Shanghai. His real name was Zhong Ah Mao,
"courtesy name Qing Shui, nickname Miaolin Jushi.
"He's a modern time artist who came from a poor family".
His paintings are vivid, natural, refreshing and interesting.
His masterpieces are "Damsel" and "Little puppy".
Look, this puppy.
Do you still remember the board in Mr. Zhong's house...
with a quote that says...
"Fellow agents, please beware of a fierce dog in the house".
The puppy on it looks exactly the same as this one.
That's right.
We've struggled so much in that house that day...
and we didn't see any puppy.
Mr. Zhong can't even take care of himself,
so it's quite impossible that he can take care of a dog.
I believe that this puppy...
must be something important to Mr. Zhong.
Look at this painting.
Although this is just a back view of a damsel,
you can still see the love of the artist...
for this damsel.
So I think...
that the story buried in Mr. Zhong's heart...
must be closely related to this damsel and the puppy.
That's right.
Hurry and take a picture.
Our hard work pays off.