Chapter 7

   The next day was the weekend. Rick had been looking forward to it all week. As had Debbie. The couple always took out a little time on weekends to just hang out together and be free. This day however, was destined to be very special. They were going to look at new houses. On the way to breakfast, Old Wilson suddenly called Rick. He knew of their plans to look at houses today, so he wanted to give them both some input.

   Rick had just inherited a lot of properties, many residences and commerical buildings, as well as rental property and devolpments. Old Wilson felt compelled to point out this fact. It seemed a little strange for the couple to go look for a new property when Rick already owned so many. So Old Wilson had drawn up a list of the available empty properties that Rick and Debbie could choose from. Old Wilson met the couple and explained himself. Rick was touched that Old Wilson continued to watch over him in such a way. Looking at the list, the couple focused on 3 villas that they wanted to check out.

   Debbie was excited to see that on the list was a group of villas in the newest developement, Silver Hill. It's reputation for quality and exclusiveness was unmatched in Fing City. They decided to start there with their search. Although Rick and Debbie didn't need the biggest and best villa in town, they already owned it.

   After breakfast with Old Wilson, the three took a taxi to Silver Hill Developement. As expected with such an exculsive area, it was gated and boasted a strong security presence. Only owners could come and go as they pleased. Old Wilson had called ahead to say that the owners of the developement would be paying a visit today. This had the entire staff excited and on high alert. The management had organised a welcoming committee to recieve them.

   Being the weekend, many prospective buyers were around to view the new villas. As with any prestigious developement, most of the prospective buyers were very rich. Some who came to view were not in that class at all. This group would come to pretend to be rich just to impress their friends and families. Such was the case of Jennifer and Tony Hall. Although Tony was from a 2nd tier family, he was in so much debt he could not possibly afford a villa in Silver Hill. But he wanted to impress his new in-laws, so he had arranged for them to accompany he and his wife for a veiwing. They were in the sales center when Rick, Debbie and Old Wilson arrived. 

   The security guard at the gate had called into the sales office to announce the trio's arrival. So the staff gathered at the entrance to welcome the prestigious guests. They all were very excited to meet the new owner and try to make a good first impression.

   Tony Hall and Debbie Green had been classmates for most of their early childhood. So when Rick and Debbie walked in, Tony saw a chance to further impress his in-laws by knowing someone who was also looking to buy in Silver Hill. Little did he know that Rick and Debbie actually owned the company that had developed Silver Hill. He was a little taken aback at the reception they were given.

   Silver Hill was divided into groups of family homes and villas. All price ranges were available starting at $5 million up to $150 million. The most expensive and exculsive villa was the one called Ting Gap. It was set in a cleft in the mountainside, away from all the other villas and had 20 acres with it. It's design was that of a royal palace. No expense had been spared to create such an exquisite home. It was the crown jewel of the whole of Silver Hill. This was the home that Old Wilson had envisioned for Rick and Debbie to live in. The villa was equipped with a spa, gourmet kitchens, swimmimg pool, a gym, office space, 15 ensuite bedrooms, salons, dinning rooms, a conference room, media center, art gallery, servants quarters and even a stable for horses. There was no other villa in the north region of the country that could compare to this luxurious villa. Old Wilson could not think of anyone more suited for it than his Young Master. Since it was already completely furnished and finished with all high end surfaces, the total cost was over $500 million. It had been finished 6 months ago, but no one had even put in a bid on it. It drew a lot of attention, but was just viewed and never bought.

   Tony Hall strod up to Debbie and asked "Are you here to look for a new house? My wife and her family are here to do the same! It is so good to see you again. Maybe we will become nieghbors in the future!"

   Debbie was taken aback by seeing Tony here. She knew of his debts and was surprised that he was thinking of buying here. It was well known in Fing City that Tony had a gambling problem and owed money to a lot of loan sharks. How could he afford to buy here?

   She said "Yes, my husband and I are thinking of moving here. How have you been Tony? I heard that you recently got married. This must be your new wife!"

   Tony introduced Jennifer to Debbie. "Debbie, this is Jennifer, and her parents Mr. and Mrs. Chen."

Debbie smiled and said "Hello. Nice to meet you all. This is my husband Rick Green, and our good friend Brian Wilson."

   Everyone exchanged greeting all around.

   At that time the Sales Director came up to Old Wilson and asked "Which villa were you interested in? I will be happy to personally give you a viewing."

   Old Wilson said "We will be viewing Ting Gap. It's the only one worthy of this couple."

    The Sales Director was aware of the identity of the couple, so he was not surprised that this would be the villa that they wanted to see. But it still caused a stir in the sales office as the other prospective buyers heard this. Rick and Debbie were low-key individuals wearing ordinary clothes and had unassuming personalities. Could they really afford such a villa? No one present thought so. They must just be out veiwing villas with no intention of actually buying anything. 

   Tony and Jennifer just scoffed and looked down with disdain at the pretentious couple. Who did they think they were? No one had been able to buy Ting Gap, but this couple thought they had the right to pretend to be interested in it? Laughable. But the Sales Director knew better, and he was most gracious to the couple and Old Wilson. He said "Then shall we go have a look?"

   Although Debbie and Rick were aware of the hype surrounding Ting Gap, nothing could prepare them for its reality. Once they walked in the front door, they were surrounded by opulence and luxury. Debbie was afraid it would be too overwhelming to live in such a place. But the more they saw of the space, the more the couple felt as if they had come home. Everything was to their taste. The artwork was magnificent, the furniture was elegant and the ambiance was restful. Rick and Debbie looked at each other and said at the same time "This is it!" Then they laughed and Debbie hugged Old Wilson for making her dream come true. Her feelings for Old Wilson had always been cordial, but just now she realised how much he cared for Rick and wanted nothing more than for him to be happy. This made her feel like she had gained a new father figure in her life. At first this made Old Wilson embarrassed, but then he started to glow with pride that he had done a good job. Nothing was too good for his Young Master!

   The Sales Director seeing that the couple had accepted the villa as their own, turned to Old Wilson and said "Since Mr. Green already owns this property, all we need to do is to fill out the contracts in his name. Shall we go back to the Sales Center and complete the paperwork? They can take possession today!"

   Tony and his family had gone to view one of the cheapest homes and had just returned to the Sales Center when Rick, Debbie, Old Wilson and the Sales Director were coming in to finish the paperwork. 

   Tony said to Debbie "Did you find anything? We are interested in a villa in the Lotus Section. Very low-key, which would suit us just fine. I don't think it right to be too pretentious" This was meant to be an insult to Debbie. Since she did not care for Tony in the first place, it really didn't bother her.

   She cast a glace over at Tony and said "Yes, we are taking Ting Gap. It suits us just fine."

   Tony felt like he had been hit in the stomach. How could a lowly accountant with a construction worker husband afford to buy Ting Gap? Surely Debbie was just bragging to impress her old classmate. 

   At that time the Sales Director came up and said to Debbie and Rick "If you would come this way I'll get you your keys and supply you with the proper decals so you will have access to the property. Your property comes with 24 hour a day security and Ting Gap has a special security force just for that property."

   Tony was green with envy. Why was his life such a struggle? Why could it not be him buying Ting Gap? It was just too unfair!

   Just then, the salesman that had shown Tony and his family the cheapest house came over and asked "Have you made a decision on the house?"

   Tony angrily shouted at him "I don't think we want to live in a place that would let such low lifes move in!" As he said this he cast a vicious glare at Rick and Debbie. Then he gathered his family together and left the sales center.