Chapter 401: The Con Is On You

"Your sister’s name? Then just have your sister sign it. Why are you trying to sign for her?"

Of course, the eldest brother was too embarrassed to admit his sister no longer wanted to sell, so he had to make an excuse.

"My sister is sick. She can’t sign, and she can’t come over."

"That’s not going to work. She has to be the one to sign it."

The eldest brother hesitated. "All right. I’ll think it over."

The men left. Although the eldest brother said he would think it over, he was actually out of options. His only recourse was to scan the small ads on the walls, hoping to find another real estate company.

And sure enough, he found one.

There was another small ad posted at the entrance of Amina’s building, and this one looked much newer.

Of course, the butler had instructed someone to post it right under his nose just after he arrived.

He hastily dialed the number on the ad. Someone answered quickly and came to see the apartment right away.

But their offer was even lower than the last one: only 1.8 million for a cash purchase, and they also insisted that the owner herself had to sign.

The eldest brother refused to accept it. A great apartment like this, only worth 2 million? He decided to try again tomorrow.

But Amina was raising hell back at home. They had to force some alcohol down her throat to get her to pass out. She’d be quiet for a little while, but as soon as she opened her eyes, she would start screaming again.

He worried that delays would only lead to more problems. On the way back to his rental, his eyes scanned everywhere. He found the numbers of several more real estate companies and called each one. He spent half the day showing the apartment, but each offer was lower than the last.

Finally, he decided to go with the first company. He’d just sell it for 2 million and be done with it.

’But what if Amina refuses to sign?’

"Sir, would this work? I bring my sister over, and I’ll hold her hand to sign the papers and make the thumbprint. What do you think?"

The manager asked, "Is your sister legally incapacitated?"

"What do you mean, legally incapacitated?"

"It means, is she mentally incompetent? Like, not of sound mind, in a vegetative state, or suffering from a mental illness. If so, that’s a no-go. Forcing her hand to sign would be illegal, and we can’t be a part of that."

’This won’t work, that won’t work... does that mean I can’t sell this apartment at all?’

After running around all day, the eldest brother was about to die from anxiety.

"Look, sirs... I’m serious about selling. If you’re serious about buying, then give me a solution that works! If you don’t tell and I don’t tell, who’s going to know it’s illegal?"

Manager: "Whoa, don’t even say that. What if housing prices shoot up someday and you get seller’s remorse? Or what if your sister suddenly comes to her senses and regrets it? You could use this to blackmail us, sue us... We wouldn’t just have to give all the money back, we could go to jail. Who’s going to take that kind of risk? No way. We can’t buy this apartment."

The eldest brother was so desperate he was on the verge of dropping to his knees. "Then what do I do? I... I can write a letter of guarantee, promising not to sue you. Would that work?"

"Write a letter? What do you think this is, elementary school? A piece of paper like that has no legal weight. Forget it. We’re not hurting for one apartment. The deal’s off."

The more they acted like they didn’t want it, the more desperate the eldest brother became, until he was practically begging.

"What if I... what if I sell it to you for less? Would that work?"

Manager: "It’s still a risk for us, even if you sell it for less."

Eldest brother: "Please, sirs, have a heart. My family is in desperate need of money."

The manager exchanged a look with the other two.

"He sounds so pathetic. Maybe the three of us should take the risk and do him a favor?"

The other two shook their heads. "We’re not even married. Is it worth doing something this risky and throwing away the rest of our lives? Not unless our cut is big enough. Go on, tell us. What’s the most you’re willing to part with for us?"

The eldest brother gritted his teeth. "I’ll take 1.8 million. You guys can split the rest. Is that okay?"

The three of them turned and started to leave.

"You want the three of us to split 200,000 for taking on such a huge legal risk? You’ve got to be dreaming."

"1.7 million! I’ll take 1.7 million! That’s 100,000 for each of you!"

"Forget it. That’s less than a month’s salary for us."

"What? You make 100,000 a month?"

"You don’t know a damn thing. Our top salesman can pull in a million a month. Get lost, get lost. Don’t even talk to us about this anymore, that’s chump change. I guarantee you won’t find a single company in Veridia willing to make this deal. Taking on that kind of legal liability for that little cash? You’ve got to be kidding."

The eldest brother was completely out of options. "Fine, then you name your price. What will it take for you to agree?"

The three exchanged another look. "One million. You keep one million, and we’ll split one million. We’ll make sure the company never finds out, and you have to promise you’ll never cause any trouble for us down the line. Bring your sister to sign the papers tomorrow."

The eldest brother never imagined they could be so ruthless.

’They took a two-million apartment and crushed the price down to one million.’

"Sirs, you’re... you’re being too harsh. A whole million... that’s..."

"Then don’t sell it. Your family can just sit on this apartment for the rest of your lives. It’ll be yours, worth however many millions. Come on, guys, let’s go."

The eldest brother returned home, completely dejected.

The second brother, who had just managed to get Amina and their grandmother to pass out again, came up to ask how it went. The eldest brother explained the situation, but the second brother refused to accept it.

"Call the other companies. We’re going to have to give someone a cut no matter what, so we might as well find the one who’ll do it for the lowest fee."

The next day, the eldest brother started calling around again.

But they were all just as predatory. Every single company demanded a one-million cut.

After comparing all the offers, the first company’s was still the best.

’Oh well, whose fault was it that they didn’t have any connections?’

’One million was still enough for him and his brother to go back home, buy houses, and find wives. If worst comes to worst, they could just go back to work after getting married. It’s better than walking away with nothing.’

The eldest brother called them again.

The three sauntered over, looking nonchalant. "So, you’ve thought it over?"

"I have. One million it is."

"All right. Cash or card transfer?"

"Cash. I don’t have a bank card."

"A million in cash is a hefty amount. You sure about that?"

"I’m sure, I’m sure."

"All right, bring her over so we can handle the paperwork."

The eldest brother hurried back. He and the second brother worked together to force more alcohol down Amina’s throat, then brought her, unconscious and reeking of liquor, to the apartment.

The three of them fanned the air in front of their noses.

"Whoa, is your sister sick or just drunk? She smells so strongly of booze. Don’t tell me you two..."

"No, no, this is my sister, my own flesh-and-blood sister."

"Your own sister, and you’re... Ugh. If we’d known you were pulling something this despicable, we wouldn’t have touched this deal for all two million. What if your sister sobers up and starts raising hell..."

"Sirs, she won’t, she won’t! Let’s just get the paperwork done quickly. By the time she wakes up, there’ll be nothing she can do."

Manager: "In that case, I’m recording a video. This will be our evidence. If you try to come after us later, don’t think we’ll just accept it."

And so, a video was taken of Amina lying unconscious on the table, her hand guided by the second brother to sign her name and press her thumbprint. The footage was then sent to the butler.

The butler showed it to Wan Ma, who could only shake her head.

"Of all the terrible fates, hers was to be born into a family like that. The poor girl."

"We will not make things difficult for her in the future. Let this matter be."