"Hey, honey, look at this car my friend just posted. Doesnāt it look like the one we just returned?"
Jiang Tao was browsing his friendās posts and came across a recent status update from Li Ming on his social media.
The post contained a nine-picture grid of a black Mercedes GLS.
Photos of the front, rear, left 45-degree angle, right 45-degree angle, along with some interior shots.
Xu Li playfully rolled her eyes at Jiang Tao and laughed:
"Am I the silly one or are you? Cars of the same model all look alike."
Jiang Tao retorted, "Just like a child in someone elseās family and your own child both have a nose and two eyes, are they the same?"
"Hey, hubby, look at the ornament in front of the car! It might really be our car!"
Suddenly, Xu Li pointed her finger at a front photo of the Mercedes GLS, looking delighted.
In the photo, there was a small charm hanging from the rear-view mirror of the Mercedes GLS.
That particular charm was one Xu Li bought for 10 yuan at a temple fair in her hometown.
When Jiang Tao handed over the car to the staff at Wanxianghui, he was too lazy to take it off.
"See, I told you it looked familiar! It might actually be our car!"
"If the price is right, letās buy it back!"
"After all, since itās our returned car, weāre familiar with its condition, as good as a new one."
As the saying goes, itās easy to go from frugal to lavish, but hard to go from lavish to frugal. Jiang Tao wasnāt really willing to downgrade from a Mercedes GLS to an ordinary family car.
The couple now had assets of a few million, but before solving the housing issue, they couldnāt bear to spend over a million on a luxury car.
Buying back the car they returned at a lower price was a good option!
"Iāll call Li Ming!"
As Jiang Tao said this, he pressed a button on WeChat to call Li Ming via voice chat.
Xu Li lay quietly on Jiang Taoās chest like a little cat, blinking her watery eyes at him.
The call went through in less than ten seconds, and Li Mingās voice came from the other side.
"Hey Brother Jiang, have you returned to Beijing? Itās been a while since I saw you."
"Li Ming, I saw you just posted a Mercedes GLS on your feed. Whatās the deal?"
Jiang Tao didnāt beat around the bush and got straight to the point.
"Brother Jiang, are you interested in this car? I just got it less than an hour ago; itās still warm."
"If you have time, you can come and see it. Several customers have already inquired."
"The car is in excellent condition, with barely over 1,000 kilometers, and itās priced nearly 200,000 yuan cheaper than a new one."
On the other end, Li Ming talked about the car condition, explaining it plainly to Jiang Tao.
Jiang Tao subtly asked, "Did you get it from an individual or a 4S store?"
Li Ming didnāt think much and honestly answered, "I just got it this afternoon from the Chaoyang Huirong Mercedes-Benz 4S Store. The quality is absolutely guaranteed."
Upon hearing the mention of the Chaoyang Huirong 4S Store, Jiang Tao was 100% sure it was the car he just returned that morning. He asked Li Ming:
"How much to drive this car away?"
Li Ming responded straightforwardly, "For you, Brother Jiang, 700,000 yuan and itās yours. For others, it wonāt go below 720,000 yuan."
"Alright, let me think about it. Iāll come over to check it out later."
"Sure, Brother Jiang! I need to take another call now, so Iāll hang up first."
"Okay."
After hanging up the phone, Xu Li wrapped her fair, lotus-root-like arms around Jiang Taoās neck, excitedly saying:
"Hubby! It really is our car! 700,000... 700,000 yuan seems acceptable!"
Jiang Tao gently stroked Xu Liās smooth back, smiling in agreement:
"How about we buy it back? Buying it at 700,000 when we previously returned it at 4.48 million, we still make 3.78 million profit."
Xu Li nodded in agreement, "Yes! I wouldnāt dare buy a second-hand car from others, but buying our own second-hand car is definitely worth it!"
"Letās go then."
"Yes, yes!"
The two hit it off immediately and began putting on their clothes.
...
PM.
The couple took a ride to Li Mingās used car market at the South Third Ring Road.
Returning to the familiar place, Jiang Tao couldnāt help but think of the old Audi A6 that once surprisingly yielded him four gold bars.
"Brother Jiang! This must be your wife. Hello, maāam, Iām Li Ming!"
Li Ming, seeing Jiang Tao with Xu Li holding his arm, greeted them warmly with a smile.
When he saw Xu Li, there was a brief flash of surprise in Li Mingās eyes.
Li Ming and Zhang Bo, both frequent visitors to Sanlitun, were used to seeing good-looking people.
But rarely seen were natural beauties like Xu Li, a tall figure standing over 1.7 meters, with an outstanding physique and looks without any cosmetic surgery traces.
"Hello, Li Ming, nice to meet you."
Xu Li also smiled and greeted Li Ming.
Jiang Tao didnāt linger with small talk and went directly to the issue: "Li Ming, whereās the car? Itās getting late; letās check it out first."
"Brother Jiang, maāam, the car is over there. Iāll take you to it."
"I brought it back from Huirong this afternoon and had it cleaned; itās spotless."
Li Ming beckoned Jiang Tao and Xu Li with a smile and led them to the parking lot, where they saw the actual Mercedes GLS he had posted in his social media feed.
Ring, ring, ringā
Just as the three of them reached the Mercedes GLS, Li Mingās phone rang.
"Brother Jiang, maāam, feel free to check the car. You can even take it for a test drive. Iāll go answer a call."
"Here are the car keys."
Even though they hadnāt interacted much, Li Ming trusted Jiang Tao quite a bit, handing him the car keys before stepping aside to take the call.