Chapter 128 - 126: Should I Go Big?
The next morning, Cecilia Sterling made an appointment with a real estate agent to view some properties.
She prioritized upscale residential complexes near Lorcain Tech. Since the senior members of her team hadn’t officially graduated, it was more convenient to be closer to the university.
"Miss Sterling, based on your requirements, there actually aren’t many listings in this area that fit the bill. This one is considered the best value."
"It’s only eight hundred meters from Lorcain Tech as the crow flies. The entire apartment has an interior area of about 450 square meters and exactly seven bedrooms. The view is great, the bus stop is right at the complex gate, and it’s very close to the subway station."
"Large, single-floor apartments of this size aren’t common to begin with, and there are even fewer on the market. Miss Sterling, what do you think? Are you satisfied?"
Cecilia Sterling followed the agent, listening to his pitch while she inspected the apartment’s interior details.
The residential complex was relatively new, and the apartment’s layout and decor were both excellent. Most importantly, there were enough bedrooms. Aside from Paige, the only woman, the seven senior male members of the team could each have their own room.
Cecilia Sterling nodded, feeling quite satisfied. "It’s very nice. Are there any others?"
"Miss Sterling, if you trust me, just take this one. I’m trying to save us both time, so I showed you the best and most suitable option first."
The young agent seemed sincere, and Cecilia Sterling saw no reason to doubt him. She just asked, "I also need a smaller place, for one person to live in."
"This building is all large units with one apartment per floor. The adjacent building has two apartments per floor, but the smallest available is a 150-square-meter two-bedroom."
Cecilia Sterling didn’t waste any more time on the matter. After confirming both properties, she signed the digital contracts with the agent on the spot.
But just as she finished signing, Timothy Rowe showed up late.
"Cecilia, why are we meeting here?"
Confused about the situation, Timothy Rowe wore a bewildered expression as he entered the massive apartment. It wasn’t until Cecilia Sterling forwarded the digital contract to the team’s group chat that everyone realized she had already rented the place.
"You rented this place? For us?"
Timothy Rowe’s eyes went wide with shock. He had only ever seen an apartment this size online. In a prime area of Lorcain where every inch of land is precious, and in a luxury complex on top of that—how much could the monthly rent possibly be?
"No way, Cecilia, this is too expensive. We don’t need to live in a place this nice." Timothy Rowe felt his confidence wither. When Cecilia first mentioned renting a place for the team, he had planned on offering to help, saying he was familiar with the market for older, more affordable apartments.
He never imagined that with a single move, she would rent a 450-square-meter luxury apartment. The rent for a single month had to be in the tens of thousands, didn’t it?
Cecilia Sterling had anticipated this reaction from Rowe, which was why she had rushed to sign the contract before he arrived.
"The contract is signed. You all can move in whenever you’re ready. Don’t argue with me about it. A good environment stimulates creativity—you know that," Cecilia Sterling said lightly.
Timothy Rowe shook his head frantically. "But it doesn’t need to be this nice! Cecilia, you don’t have to go to such lengths for us. This puts a lot of pressure on us."
"A little pressure is a good thing. Look, everyone in the group chat is thrilled. A boost in morale will improve team cohesion. If you can run the first wave of online testing in three months, that will be the greatest return on my investment."
Timothy Rowe opened the WhatsApp group chat and saw that everyone was ecstatic. Of course they were happy; their investor was giving the team such incredible treatment.
It showed they were valued, and one by one, they were pledging their loyalty to Cecilia in the group chat.
"But what if the first round of testing fails?" Timothy Rowe asked Cecilia, his tone pessimistic.
Cecilia shot him a glare. "Giving up before you even start is the biggest mistake you can make. I’m not saying you can’t fail, but you can’t keep fixating on that word. It will affect your mindset, and you’re the team leader. As the saying goes, a cowardly general makes for a cowardly army. You need to be more optimistic. Have you forgotten the fire you had when you crashed the Goodman family’s reception and made all those vows to Mr. Goodman?"
Then Cecilia added, "If the first round of testing fails, we’ll just do a second, and a third. No pressure."
Timothy Rowe nodded, his heart filled more with gratitude than anything else.
’They had been complete strangers before this. Why was she so supportive and trusting? What had they possibly done to deserve it?’
"Cecilia, we won’t let you down."
This wasn’t the first time Timothy Rowe had said those words, but this time, his voice was firmer than ever before.
Cecilia offered a gentle smile. "As for the invitation to the conference, I’m already working on it. I’ll have an answer for you by tomorrow at the latest. I don’t think it will be a problem."
This was what Timothy Rowe was truly concerned about. His eyes lit up at her words. "That’s great! Thank you."
Just then, a push notification popped up on her phone from an account she followed. Cecilia tapped on it out of habit, and her expression froze.
"Genesis Fashion Park at 145 Meridian Road, Sunstone District, to be officially auctioned by the government at the end of the month."
The words in the headline stirred memories hidden deep in Cecilia’s mind.
In her past life, she hadn’t just known about the live auction for Genesis Fashion Park—she had been there and witnessed the entire thing. At the time, Shawn Lane had wanted to take her to see the spectacle, and she had been curious to see the grand scene of major corporations bidding on land, so she had gone to the site with him and the representatives from the Lane Group.
She couldn’t recall the exact final price, but she remembered that the massive industrial park was ultimately purchased by the Lane Group.
Not long after, the Lane Group demolished the entire park and rebuilt on the site. During Sunstone District’s most rapid period of development, they erected a landmark fashion office building there. The project made a significant impact on the industry and later became nationally famous after major fashion companies and other pioneering enterprises moved in.
Cecilia stared at the news notification for a long time. She knew nothing about real estate, but her memories from a past life were enough to convince her of this land’s commercial value.
’Individuals are allowed to participate in government land auctions. If I were to win the bid for this land...’
"Cecilia? What are you thinking about?"
Seeing Cecilia staring blankly into space, Timothy Rowe couldn’t help but call out to her.
Cecilia snapped back to reality and shook her head slightly. "Nothing. Just thinking about making a big move."
"Huh?" Timothy Rowe started, blurting out, "What we’re doing is already big enough! Please, don’t do anything else impulsive."
Seeing his panicked expression, Cecilia couldn’t help but laugh. "Relax, this has nothing to do with you all."
As soon as the words left her mouth, her phone chimed with a text message. Cecilia casually opened it, but when she read the contents, she was completely dumbfounded.
"Your card ending in *1069 received an interbank transfer of 56,200.00 Dollars at 10:12 on October 9 via the Lorcain branch. Current balance: 4,893,359.88 Dollars. Sender: Lorcain Department of Human Resources and Social Security. Memo: Retirement Pension. [Construction Bank]"
Last month, she had received her final salary.
And today, she had somehow received her retirement pension—from forty-five years in the future!