Chapter Thirty-Eight: Trouble in the Rear Courtyard

At Zhongtong's branch in Elegant Garden Community, Zhang Wei and Wang Min had yet to return with their clients. After showing the first property, Wang Jianfa had come back a bit earlier, since Wang Min was helping Zhang Wei fetch the keys for the second property. Including himself, there were now four people in the office.

It was around two in the afternoon—the time when drowsiness creeps in. The heat only made it worse. One by one, they sat in the office, listless and drained, some slumped over their desks, others leaning back in their chairs, eyelids heavy, as if they might close at any moment.

Tap, tap, tap… Just as everyone was on the verge of nodding off, the familiar sound of leather shoes echoed through the store. Instantly, everyone snapped awake, straightening in their seats and rubbing their faces to shake off the lethargy.

A moment later, a slim, neatly dressed young man, full of energy, strode in. He glanced at the group, frowned, and said, “It’s well past lunchtime—already after two—why do you all look so groggy?”

“Xu, you’re back! I’ll get you a glass of water,” Guo Bin, seated in the front row, leapt up obsequiously as soon as he saw Xu Ming enter.

“Come on, snap out of it, all of you.” Xu Ming sat down on the sofa reserved for client meetings and clapped his hands, addressing the group. “The moment I leave, you all slack off. Are you here working with me, or just for yourselves?”

No one dared meet Xu Ming’s gaze or respond. Some pretended to study their computer screens, others flipped through their notebooks, each finding something to busy themselves with.

“When I’m not here, you all doze off at your desks. The moment I return, suddenly you’re too busy to even greet me. Put down whatever you’re doing and listen up!” Xu Ming barked, his face stern when he saw they were still ignoring him.

At his rebuke, fear crept into everyone’s hearts. No one dared feign busyness any longer; they all sat up straight, adopting an attentive, eager-to-listen posture.

“Li Lin, you’re our senior agent. When I’m not here, you’re in charge. But instead of leading by example, you let everyone nap. Do you really think that’s right?” Xu Ming fixed her with a sharp look and questioned her.

“Xu, you must be mistaken. I wasn’t sleeping at all,” Li Lin replied. She was most attuned to the sound of Xu Ming’s shoes and had been the first to react, so she felt certain he hadn’t caught her napping.

“Still arguing?” Xu Ming drew out a cigarette, lit it, and took a long drag, then, amused by her denial, pointed at her face. “And what about that red mark on your cheek? If that’s not from sleeping at your desk, what is it?”

At that, Li Lin touched her cheek, picked up the small mirror from the desk, and saw the telltale mark on her right cheek. She stuck out her tongue in embarrassment.

“Xu, have some water and calm down,” Guo Bin said, bringing over a porcelain cup and offering it to Xu Ming.

“Alright, just set it down,” Xu Ming said offhandedly, gesturing to the table beside the sofa.

Guo Bin carefully set the cup on the tea table and quickly retreated to his seat, anxious to avoid attracting any criticism to himself.

“Why so quiet now, Li Lin? Weren’t you just full of words? Did I wrong you?” Xu Ming stubbed out his cigarette, picked up the cup, and took a sip.

“Xu, did the director give you a hard time again? Is that why you’re taking it out on us? Usually, you’re the one who sleeps the longest at noon!” Li Lin muttered, pouting.

“Pfft—” Xu Ming sputtered, spraying out the water he had just sipped, coughing several times before regaining his composure. “What are you saying? How can you compare yourself to me? If you were the branch manager, you could sleep all day and no one would care.”

“Don’t take it to heart, Xu, Li Lin is just teasing you,” Guo Bin chuckled, then asked with interest, “So, Xu, you spent most of the day at headquarters—what did the director have to say?”

“What else? The same old story: first criticizing our poor performance, then boasting about how capable he was when he was an agent and a manager—how many deals he could close in a month—rehashing his life story for the umpteenth time!” Xu Ming snorted, shaking his head. “He’s told those stories so many times, I can recite them by heart.”

“Haha, not just you—even I can recite them by now,” Guo Bin chimed in.

“All of you need to work harder and land a couple of big deals, or he’ll keep harping on our lack of ability. Thank heavens Zhang Wei closed two big deals this month and boosted our numbers. Otherwise, forget coming back in the afternoon—I’d be lucky to make it back in the evening, and I haven’t even had lunch yet!” Xu Ming lamented.

“Wait, why are there only four of you here? Where are Zhang Wei and Wang Min?” Xu Ming surveyed the room, suddenly noticing their absence.

“They took clients out to view properties and haven’t returned yet,” Li Lin replied.

“What kind of clients? Buyers or renters?” Xu Ming perked up at the mention of clients.

“Probably buyers, but I’m not sure. Jianfa went with them—he should know more,” Li Lin said.

“Oh, yes, they’re buyers. Zhang Wei just met them recently—this is their first viewing,” Wang Jianfa explained hastily when Xu Ming looked his way.

“Are they serious about buying? Did they like the property?” Xu Ming pressed.

“I’m not too sure either. I only accompanied them to one property and didn’t notice any clear signs from the client,” Wang Jianfa admitted sheepishly, scratching his head.

“Look at you all—can’t even answer basic questions about your own business. How do you expect to close deals?” Xu Ming sighed, exasperated.

“Wang Min was with Zhang Wei, so I figured they had it covered. I handed back the keys and left,” Wang Jianfa explained.

“Well, I’m not even through the door yet and I hear Jianfa mentioning my name. Are you praising me to Xu, or complaining about me?” Just then, Wang Min returned to the office, grinning as she spoke.

“Wang Min, weren’t you with Zhang Wei and the clients? Did the client like the property? Any chance of a sale?” Xu Ming asked as soon as Wang Min walked in.

“No chance at all,” Wang Min replied, teasingly keeping them in suspense before sitting down at her desk. “He didn’t even know what the client wanted or what kind of property they were looking for—how could he possibly close a deal?”

“What happened? Tell us,” Xu Ming’s brow furrowed at her words. If an agent couldn’t even clarify a client’s needs, there was no way to satisfy them, let alone close a deal. In fact, such an agent could hardly be considered competent.

“Zhang Wei first took the clients to see two two-bedroom apartments. The clients didn’t say much, but they did look carefully. Then Zhang Wei took them to see a villa, and the male client didn’t even bother to look—it was obviously way out of their price range,” Wang Min shook her head.

“That’s just nonsense. The price of a two-bedroom apartment versus a villa is at least ten times different. These are two completely different types of buyers—you can’t show both to the same client. If they can’t afford the villa, of course they won’t even look at it,” Guo Bin piled on, quick to criticize.

“I don’t think it’s as bad as you’re making it out to be. Zhang Wei might have his own reasons,” Wang Jianfa interjected, knowing more about the situation than the others and wanting to defend Zhang Wei.

“What reasons? I was with him the whole time. After viewing the properties, the client didn’t even mention buying; they just wanted to go home. This deal is dead, I’m sure of it,” Wang Min said decisively.

“Zhang Wei’s just too ambitious and inexperienced. A villa costs tens of millions—the commission alone would be over a million. If clients could all afford villas, and if selling villas was that easy, everyone would be a real estate agent,” Guo Bin declared, forgetting any previous grudge with Wang Min in their shared criticism.

“Enough. You always have so much to say about other people’s clients, Guo Bin. Yet when it comes to your own, you can’t deliver. I haven’t seen you close a deal this month either,” Xu Ming waved him off, cutting short any further comments, and turned to head into his office.

After Xu Ming’s remark, Guo Bin grinned awkwardly and muttered under his breath, “Zhang Wei was aiming to sell a villa—now he’s made a fool of himself.”