Beyond the Divorce by Third Blossom

Lauren continued, "That landlord saw Alejandra's business thriving and wanted to drive her away by raising the rent. Both parties didn't want to back down. Alejandra certainly didn't want to pay such a high price for rent, and the landlord wanted to force her out."

"That's downright unethical," I complained.

"Alejandra already had a steady stream of customers. If she moved, it would be a considerable loss. Alejandra was furious. When she rented the place, she paid two years worth of rent in advance. It would all be in vain if she left after building a loyal customer base.

"But the landlord didn't care about any of that. He doubled the rent and even threatened to take the place back if they couldn't reach an agreement quickly, claiming he couldn't delay his own leasing process. "Alejandra was infuriated and argued with them. When she first rented the place, the rent was already higher than usual. The landlord took advantage of the situation for personal gain," Lauren expressed disdain.

"And what happened next?" I couldn't wait to know how Lauren had stepped in to help.

"He said too much and ended up saying, 'Buy it from me if you can. I'll sell it to you cheap. It's worth 50 thousand dollars, but I'll give it to you for 40 thousand. Is that generous enough? How dare you say I'm not being fair? Buy it from me if you can afford it! Then no one will bother you about rent anymore. How about that?'

"When I heard that, I realized the place was worth 40 thousand dollars, and he had deliberately put it that way to provoke her," Lauren said, still angered by the memory.

"If Alejandra agreed to buy it for 40 thousand dollars, he would get rid of what he considered a hot potato, and if not, she would have to pay the rent. If she couldn't afford it, she would have to leave," Lauren explained while gesturing helplessly.

"A classic case of taking advantage of someone in trouble," I remarked.

was infuriated. It was obvious he was bullying poor Alejandra! I asked him,

actually agree to sell it?" I

agreed. I immediately asked Alejandra if she wanted

chuckled. "Actually, I

"What

afford to buy, why would she still be renting? Business might be booming, but 40 thousand dollars in two years is still quite a stretch. She has to support her family while running the shop

At that moment, I kind of regretted getting involved," Lauren confessed, looking at me with a

said, "But that's just what you're

sneered at

you're dealing with. Does she have 40 thousand dollars?' In response, took out my card

Ine

it on the

and

She doesn't have 40 thousand dollars, but I do? Are you selling

I was intimidating? I thought I was.

her. "You really

and continued,

he hesitated for a long time. He hadn't been able to sell the place for many years. There was supposed to be redevelopment in this location,