Chapter 718 Buying a Villa in San Francisco

Fang Minghua certainly didn't know what happened in New York, as he had already returned to San Francisco.

Nick, who was in charge of marketing at the publishing house, originally planned to have Fang Minghua hold a book signing event, but Fang Minghua rejected this suggestion.

Now every book has a book signing event, which is really annoying.

More importantly, he didn't want those reporters to disturb his leisurely and peaceful life in San Francisco.

Now that the second part of "Harry Potter", "Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets", has been completed and handed over to Li Li, he has nothing to do.

He didn't plan to start writing the third part right away - this is not writing online articles, which must be updated every day. The second part is scheduled to be officially published in early 1997. Extending the battle line can maximize the benefits of the publishing house.

Li Li is quite busy. Although it is winter vacation now, there are many things to do at the publishing house. She goes out early and comes back late every day.

Fang Minghua is just like in Xijing. He cooks and does housework consciously. Surfing the Internet has become one of his hobbies. Occasionally, he drives the old Buick around the city.

At noon that day, Li Li came back from the publishing house and seemed very excited.

"Minghua, the New York Times bestseller list last week has been announced. Harry Potter has entered the top three. Experts predict that it will reach the top this week!"

This news was not unexpected by Fang Minghua. You know, this book directly supported a small publishing house in the future!

Of course, now is also the case. Ashley Press has changed its half-dead appearance in the past. From the top management to the employees, everyone is busy.

"Are you hungry? Eat first." Fang Minghua said.

Li Li went to change clothes and wash her hands. Fang Minghua put the prepared food on the coffee table in the living room. The two ate and chatted.

"This morning, David, Nick and others held a meeting and decided to start the second printing immediately, printing another 500,000 copies." Li Li said.

Fang Minghua nodded, not worrying about these things.

Suddenly he thought of something and asked, "How is the sales of this book on Amazon?"

"Their CEO Jeff Bezos said on the phone that the number of visits to Amazon's website has skyrocketed recently, and most of them are to buy your book. The order has reached more than 10,000 copies. Bezos is really asking us to give priority to supply. Minghua, you are the second largest shareholder of their website, and Ashley Press is yours. I can't lack his when other distributors are out of stock." At the end, Li Li muttered.

"You are also a shareholder of Amazon." Fang Minghua smiled.

"My funds can be ignored." Li Li didn't care much about the 200,000 she invested.

"We have contacted Fedex Express to send two special cars to Seattle, about 20,000 copies." Li Li replied.

"By the way, there is one more thing. Penguin Books, a subsidiary of the British Longman Publishing Group, called me today and wanted to buy the publishing rights of your book in the UK. I have to ask for your opinion on this matter."

Fang Minghua certainly knew Longman Publishing Group, one of the famous book groups in the UK, and its Penguin Books is the largest paperback book publisher in the UK.

Ashley Press is a small publishing house, and it is a bit difficult to deal with the US market, and it has no time to take care of the publishing market in other countries.

There is nothing to say about this. Fang Minghua immediately nodded in agreement:

"I have no objection. And if other publishing houses in other countries want to buy the publishing rights of this book, you can talk to them without asking for my opinion. I have said long ago that you are my general agent for overseas book publishing."

Li Li rolled her eyes at him.

As expected, just as my cousin said on the phone, he likes to be lazy and avoids as much as possible.

But what he said also makes sense. It should be translated into non-English languages ​​as soon as possible, such as Italian and Spanish. It seems that I don’t have time, so I have to find a suitable translator.

Li Li was thinking while eating, and suddenly heard Fang Minghua say: "Lili, I have something to tell you."

"What is it?" Li Li looked up at him.

"Don't go to the publishing house in the afternoon, come with me to look for a house." Fang Minghua said.

"House?"

"Yes, your house is too small, I want to change to a bigger one."

"No need, I think it's good to live here, and it's close to the school." Li Li immediately refused. "And I'm used to it."

"Tangtang and the two children are coming to San Francisco soon. Where will you let them live? I will definitely come here often in the future. Besides, you have children, so there will be no room for them here." Fang Minghua advised.

Children

Li Li has long wanted a child, preferably a cute girl like Ruirui!

Of course, a son like Lele is also good.

Now after hearing Fang Minghua's reminder, she immediately agreed.

"Okay, let's go and see after dinner."

After the two finished their meal and cleaned up the dishes, Fang Minghua drove them out.

They did not drive around but went directly to the largest local real estate agency - COLDWELL BANKER (Cowell International Real Estate).

Cowell International Real Estate is located on Ocean Avenue in San Francisco and is the oldest real estate agency brand in the United States. The two got off the car and entered the building. Immediately, a staff member in a suit came up and greeted them politely.

Fang Minghua directly stated his purpose: to buy a two-story villa with a garage and garden, with a good surrounding environment and public security, and preferably close to San Francisco State University.

Big client!

The smile on this man's face was even brighter. He introduced himself as Andy, invited the two of them into the VIP room to drink coffee, and started operating on the computer.

Not long after, a document was printed out and handed to Fang Minghua respectfully, who was sitting on the sofa and drinking coffee leisurely.

"Sir, Madam, according to your requirements, I have two houses here that are very suitable. Please take a look at the information."

Fang Minghua took it over and took a rough look.

One is a rough house that still needs to be renovated, and the other is a second-hand house that was built ten years ago. The interior has been fully decorated and has all the furniture and electrical appliances. It can be moved in with your luggage.

Fang Minghua likes the latter. He didn't have time to decorate.

"Lili, why don't you go take a look at this house?" Fang Minghua handed the information to Li Li again.

Li Li looked at it carefully and nodded in agreement.

"OK, the property rights of this building belong to our company. If you like it, we can give you a discount and take you to see the house now." Andy said.

The house Andy introduced is located in a place called Seacliff, about 6 kilometers west of downtown San Francisco.

Fang Minghua drove the car and followed the Ford driven by Andy in front of him. He looked at the surrounding environment while driving. It was obvious that this was a wealthy area. There were independent villas on the roadside, one after another, and the environment was elegant and shaded by trees.

Finally Dick's car stopped in front of a villa.

This is an American villa with a traditional style. The gray-black roof and white walls look very beautiful. The house is not particularly big, but the garden area in the front and back is quite large.

The surrounding area was separated from the outside world by a white fence. The two of them followed Andy inside and walked around to watch.

"Mr. Fang, Ms. Li, the apartment has an area of ​​4,652 square feet and a total of 4 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms, including one bedroom and one bathroom downstairs. Please come in."

As he spoke, Andy opened the door to the living room. The floor was a light-colored hardwood floor, and the sofas and other furniture were all available. What Fang Minghua was interested in was that there was a wood-burning fireplace in the living room.

Hmm. This is good.

Then I looked at the kitchen, bedroom and balcony. There was also an underground storage room, and there were two garages next to it.

"Mr. Fang, Ms. Li, you see, there is a lawn in front of the courtyard. You can enjoy a comfortable afternoon in the courtyard. There is a garden behind the house."

Standing on the balcony, Andy introduced again.

"Jack Fischer Park is a 15-minute walk from home." Andy pointed to the southeast, where there are lush vegetation and beautiful environment. You can go to exercise, take a leisurely walk, and breathe fresh air. Good mood"

The entire community has Walton Art Glass, CVS, automatic video rental, supermarket Safeway, restaurants, banks, etc., making life very convenient. "

"What's more, the villa is located in a high-quality school district. If you have children in the future, you can enjoy the 10-minute elementary school Forest Hill Elementary School, 0.6 miles from your home; the 10-minute junior high school Rolling Hills Middle SchHigh School, only 0.3 miles from your home. "

Fang Minghua didn't care, but Li Li listened very seriously.