Back to 80: My literary life.

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.

Originally, Nick, who was in charge of marketing at the publishing house, wanted Fang Minghua to organize a book signing event, but Fang Minghua rejected this suggestion as soon as it was made.

Every book has a book signing sale these days, it’s so annoying.

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

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

He did not plan to start writing the third part right away - this was not an online article that had to be updated every day. The second part was scheduled for official publication in early 97. Extending the work would maximize the benefits for the publishing house.

Li Li is quite busy. Although it is winter vacation now, she has a lot of work to do at the publishing house and has to leave early and come back late every day.

Fang Minghua cooked and did housework conscientiously, just like he did in Xijing. Surfing the Internet became his favorite hobby. He also occasionally drove his old Buick around the city.

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

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

This news was not beyond Fang Minghua's expectations. You know, this book later directly supported a small publishing house!
Of course, even now, Ashley Press has changed its former half-dead appearance, and everyone from the top management to the employees has become busy.

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

Li Li went to change clothes and wash her hands. Fang Minghua placed the prepared meal on the coffee table in the living room, and the two ate while chatting.

"This morning, David, Nick and I had a meeting and decided to start the second printing immediately and print another 50 copies," said Li Li.

Fang Minghua nodded and decided not to worry about these things.

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

"Their CEO Jeff Bezos also said on the phone that the number of visits to Amazon's website has skyrocketed during this period, and most of them are coming to buy your book. The orders have reached more than 1 copies, and he asked us to give priority to supply. Bezos is really mean. Minghua, you are the second largest shareholder of their website, and Ashley Press is yours. I can't lack his even if other distributors are out of stock." Li Li muttered at the end.

"You are also a shareholder of Amazon." Fang Minghua said with a smile.

"My little bit of money can be ignored." Li Li didn't care much about the 20 yuan she invested.

"We have contacted FedEx to send two special trucks to Seattle, carrying about 20,000 books," Li Li replied.

"Oh, there's one more thing. Penguin Books, a subsidiary of the British Longman Publishing Group, called me today and wants to buy the publishing rights of your book in the UK. I need to ask for your opinion on this matter."

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

Ashley Press is a small publishing house that has a hard time coping with the American market and has no time to take care of the publishing markets in other countries.

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

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

Li Li rolled her eyes at him after hearing that.

Just as my cousin said on the phone, he is a lazy person who will avoid things whenever possible.

But what he said does make sense. We should translate it into non-English languages ​​like Italian, Spanish, etc. as soon as possible. It seems that I don’t have time to find a suitable translator.

Li Li was thinking while eating, when she suddenly heard Fang Minghua say, "Li Li, let me tell you something."

"What's the matter?" Li Li looked up at him.

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

"house?"

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

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

"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.
Li Li has wanted a child for a long time, preferably a cute girl like Ruirui!

Of course, a son like Lele is also good.

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

"Okay, let's go check it out after dinner."

After they finished their meal and cleared away the dishes, Fang Minghua drove them out.

Instead of driving around, they went directly to the largest local real estate agency - COLDWELL BANKER.

Located on Ocean Avenue in San Francisco, Cove International Realty is the oldest real estate agency brand in the United States. As soon as the two got out of the car and entered the building, a staff member in a suit and tie came up to them and greeted them politely.

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

Big customer
The smile on the man's face became even wider. He introduced himself as Andy, invited the two into the VIP room for coffee, and started operating the computer himself.

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

"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 and took a quick look.

One is a bare house that needs to be renovated, and the other is a second-hand house that was built ten years ago. The interior has been finely decorated and is fully equipped with furniture and appliances, so you can move in right away.

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

"Lili, why don't we go and 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. I'll 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 his car following the Ford driven by Andy in front of him, looking at the surrounding environment while driving. It was obviously a wealthy area. There were independent villas on the roadside, one after another, with green trees and elegant environment.

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

This is a traditional American villa with a beautiful gray-black roof and white walls. The house is not particularly large, but the gardens in front and back are quite large.

The area was separated from the outside world by a circle of white fences, and the two followed Andy in, walking and looking around.

"Mr. Fang, Ms. Li, the apartment is 4652 square feet, with 4 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms, including one bedroom and one bathroom downstairs. Please come in."

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

Hmm. This is good.

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

"Mr. Fang, Ms. Li, look, 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 began to introduce again.

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

The entire community has Walton Art Glass, CVS, movie rentals, Safeway supermarkets, restaurants, banks, etc., making life very convenient. ”

"More importantly, the villa is located in an excellent school district. When you have children in the future, they can enjoy the 10-point elementary school Forest Hill Elementary School, which is 0.6 miles away from your home; the 10-point junior high school Rolling Hills Middle School, and the 9-point high school Westmont High School, which are only 0.3 miles away from your home."

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

(End of this chapter)