RENOTALK PEOPLE

Hi guys, I m new here and just got my flat recently .. Tried to do my hmwork at renotalk but its been down for SOOO LONG!!! I need Ah soon & Yeak's contact no. (btw they r diff contractors rite? Seems like they r v famous here) ... Anyone kind enough to send to my email: [email protected]
Thanks!
 


kuek... I notice that this is your first post.. come by often to chat with us la... hehhe tell us about the very frustrating ID/Contractor search you are going to go through....
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Hi all,

I am new here. Can someone pls share with me who is this 'Ah Soon' (is he a contractor or ID). I will be getting my apt next mth and looking for a trustworthy/good contractor to do-up my place. Wld be glad if some of you can give me some recommendation. Thanks a million !
 
zonkkie: its my 1st and probably last time going back during lunch, my workplace very far from home leh. Just now went back cos we had to ask them to chge my false wall height and make sure the electrician does a proper job (he tend to have parallax error).

my kitchen is west facing, that's the problem. Now can only pray hard, else put curtains in kitchen? :P

Congrats! Finally started! So in the end who did u engage?

Pinkpetter: eh, i think somehow the case doesnt apply to ah soon. There was a couple viewing at my place on Sat, and the electrician uncle was asking hub if that's my fren. When he knew it was Ah soon's potential customer, he complained "wah lau! he still got 10+ houses haven start he still wanna take biz?! I do until die liao lah!" So funny!

Today ah soon also say "u all 1 person recommend 2 house, i do until cannot tahan liao" LOL!!
 
Hi Pet ... Yaa I sure will
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... I always enjoy to see others T-blog @ renotalk but since its down + I hope to do some hmwork first before engaging a contractor ... its so frustrating ... I just happen to search for reno forum & came across this thread ... So anyone can provide me the c/n for both the famous contractors u guys have been using?
 
hi mrspiglet...thanks leh...my kitchen white laminate is vanila..i think very close to white & its glossy type de! You choose all off-white for your kitchen? Should be very nice oso...very cheng cheng like that!!!

yah...my main & bedroom doors are veneer ones...i dont wana change oso cannot cos my previous owner one cannot make it...so got to spent money and change leh...if i can paint over it i can save abt $1300 for all the doors ahh...heartpain man!!

Hi zonkkie...thanks...i love white and green...my common toilet oso these 2 colors leh..hahah...i will go my new house and take fotos for my solid top tomoro....maybe wednesday can show you all the final look for my kitchen le...
 
vonic>> ah soon is our contractor.. Vincent, mrspiglet's and mine.
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Can definitely give you the recommendation if you PM any of us?
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He's a contractor who doesn't speak English... Mandarin and Hokkien only... is that ok with you? hehe
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mrspiglet... aiyah I always tell him when he calls... WAH UNCLE now economy slowdown but you still huat ah!
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mmm I think kitchen west facing is ok. Easier for clothes to dry anyway. It's not a place that you will stay for hours at a stretch so not too bad.
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Anyway evening time, you're still at work ma.
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Roamca... Wednesday can show liao? That's so fast! take more photos of the rest of the house le... mm your doors cost you $1300 altogether ah? wah. But they look fantastic le... Any idea how much your main door alone costs?

kuek I emailed you Ah Soon's. As for Yeak's.. you have to wait for Rondy/Roamca/Angel. mmm Angel not free. haha
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busy moving.
 
Thanks Pet! Received ur mail ...
Btw anyone here got a 3 room flat that is renovating now? Can share pics of ur reno? Ard how much being spent on the reno? I need to do some calculating ... Thx in advance!
 
roamca: ya, all white for kitchen. Hee! But scare to take full white so took off-white instead. Solid surface top also taking white speckled ones.

Doors cost so much?! Heng my door can be salvage, i would have fainted if my doors are the typical doors i'm still using at my 20yrs+ current house.

Pics pics! And i hope RT will be up soon. Very troublesome to post pics here!

pinkpetter: My MBR also west facing! But surprisingly not hot leh, maybe the toilet is there to buffer the heat. The sun is so bright it goes all the way into the living room! No need to worry clothes wun dry liao. :P

Uncle soon super busy and happy lah, he smiling all the way at my place just now. Gd... i can bargain more freebies from him! What else to ask for?
 
Zonkkie> Oh is it no need to bring anything... than can I just leave my 5% cash with me¡K Just kidding but hope I can :P Har¡K still got to pay seller's lawyers for conservancy charges what else do I need to pay beside below:

5% Cash or Cashier Order to HDB
Agent Fee (Commission)
Seller's Balance COV

Additional:
Seller lawyer's conservancy charges <-- Can we pay this via CPF??

Pinkpetter> Oh like that one ah... all done by our lawyers... thought still need to go to HDB so we as buyer got options la.. either we go HDB on 2nd appt or our lawyer go on our behalf. Hahah but I think I want to go cause kanchong to have the keys to our new house mah and some more want to rash back to our new house and open the door and feel "Happy¡¨ in the house... Hahaha I think you all can see I am very excited. Time also can bug from lawyer one ah... hmmmm ok think I want to request early morning sia... (PS: But hor our lawyer is appointed by the bank wor... so its the same right?? Sorry very kuku)
 
kuek: how much u spending depends on how extensive ur reno is leh. Very hard to estimate just by size. Why don't u get quotation from a few contractors then u will have a feel of the price range and work from there on?
 
hi pinkpetter...thanks leh...u really like all the doors ahh...actually my main door is the same as Rondy's one...haha...i didnt know until he told me today...The main door is choosen by my hubby so coincidence lor...

I love my bedroom tempered glass sliding door too...very nice to see the real thing...hope it will be smooth when I slide it! my full height 5.5ft cost me approx $1380. dont know consider ex or not? My ceiling abit higher cos me staying top floor...so my wardrobe oso abit higher...

Yeak told me all my bedroom doors and main doors oso higher than normal ones...
 
As mine is a resale flat so I need to hack all the floorings (living rm, 2 bedrms kitchen &amp; 2 bathrms) &amp; heard that hacking is the most ex portion of the overall reno ... isit true?
Thx mrspiglet ... thats y I need a few contractors' c/n so that I can do some comparasion ...
 
Hi pinkpetter...my maindoor cost $450 leh...quite ex hor? heehee...yalor i think by tomoro should be all up le...tomoro night i will go down n check it out...
 
Christy - If I am not wrong, your lawyer should be handling all the payments for you (i.e. you pay the lawyer, the lawyer will pay others). That's why last time the lawyer (Rasif) can run away with people's money. But HDB, *touch wood*, small amount, not worth it for them to run off.. hehe.

Conservancy charges is cash.. but should be small amount ~$100.

Best is to check with your lawyer... my lawyer handled everything... just need to pay him ridiculous amount of money!
 
hi kuek...mine is 3NG and reno $25K by Yeak...mine is basically overhaul...hack everything except my living &amp; bedroom floor...i overlay laminate instead...
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i think hacking is not that expensive...is the laying of tiles that is costly...
 
Kuek >> I agree with mrspiglet.. get a quote from him to see la. much easier. you get the quote liao then show us. OH YES Ah soon's quote is in chinese...
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With a lot of "same sound different word" wrong words. It took me a while to read. Hope you have a better looking one.
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Christy>> Mine are my own lawyers... used them a few times so I think they were very professional in handling everything for us. They did everything and faxed/mailed us a copy of EVERY letter they sent out to whoever, like when they request for time/date/ rushed HDB or CPF... But I guess even if yours are bank-appointed.. you still pay them money ma. Why should you be short-changed. So BUG THEM. Otherwise you pay them a few thousand for nothing. My seller didn't have lawyers so I dunno about the conservancy charges.
I know what you mean about the rushing back to new house... hahah even if it's dirty and dusty it's also nice to be there right??
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Roamca... ya. And yours will be a bit more ex. Cos the things may not be able to fit in your lift and your workers have to climb all the way up carrying your wardrobe. They deserve that little bit more for the labour la....
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a minor disadvantage of living on the top floor. But the advantages are aplenty!
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Kuek - hacking is expensive... not sure if it is most ex - depends on what you are doing.

My friend very jialat... he bought a new Premium HDB flat and chose floor tiles, then his WTB saw someone's place with same tiles, dont like, so want to change and he went to ask HDB..

Friend: Can I dont do floor tiles and take back my 4k?
HDB: Cannot, order already.
Friend: But still got other units in the block not taken up leh.
HDB: Cannot, cannot change one.
Friend: Ok, nevermind... if that's the case, can you just put the tiles outside my house? I don't want you to install.
HDB: Cannot
Friend: Why?!?!?
HDB: We cannot cater to individual requests. Otherwise very messy.
Friend: ....
 
wow...so u guys are "hiding" here
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Thanks to Ivy for directing me here...

Pinkpetter, Ah Soon says my quote for my EM is 34K (!!!) quite unbelieveable leh...Am meeting him up tmr to discuss.

Angel, ur house seems GREAT!
 
kuek>> no no hacking not expensive... it's building up and making good. if you hack AND TILE your entire floor area THAT will be the most expensive.. I reckon tiling for a 3 room should come up to $4500+
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for floor only.
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Christy >> zonkkie is right. which is why I'm a little pissed I have to pay my lawyers again now that i'm buying my recess. :P my lawyers, bank's lawyers and CPF lawyers. :P
 
my 5 room quote from ah soon is $36K will try to ask him to cut cut cut again!!

all other IDs quoted me $40K and above
 
zonkkie>> WHY HDB SO MA FAN ONE? urgh. horrible. I hate being at their mercy. :P

familyof4!!!!!
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hahah we've been here a few days. SO happy to see you here! 34k only??!! so good! envious le especially with the long list of things you're doing. OH YES remember to call him 30 minutes BEFORE appt time to make sure he is going to turn up. Otherwise he will forget!
 
whoa ivy... you do a lot of carpentry? why 36k? that's 11k more than me... mm wardrobes for every room? granite surface?


**today this thread really going fast and furious**
 
kuek/pinkpetter: but i think my hacking is ex leh. $1.4k for hacking 2 toilets and kitchen (floor+wall tiles). I've even been quoted $1.6-$2k for the same amt of hacking by other contractors.

i think hacking is one of the killer items apart from plastering. My hacking n plastering already total up to the same amt for floor+wall tiles for both toilets. *sweat*
 
mrspiglet... is it? my hacking seemed ok. $2400 for whole house all the floor, toilet wall tiles, one 6ft wall and dismantling stuff... including haulage. similiar or cheaper than other companies.

I think plastering,rewiring and carpentry form the bulk of it.

But at the end of the day I think must look at the overall cost most impt.
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I will definitely call him, pinkpetter
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Actually I also do alot leh...don;t understand why my quote so low. Tat's why I ask him, "Uncle, you sure you quote me correctly?!" LOL

Ivy, maybe when I get my quote, we compare. Cos for me, almost everything to-go except for stairs and #2 flooring.
 
hehe familyof4, when we lived in a masionette, my parents' first house when I was young... my mom insisted that the stairs must go also Cos she was VERY particular about that last step being higher than the rest. madness.

I think... the more you hack, the lesser the difference.
 
pinkpetter: ah soon's hacking so far one of the cheapest liao. but considering the overall, i think hacking is still one of the highest priced item. But i agree, look at overall price better, as long as overall ok, then the deal is gd to take.

mommy of house: so cheap until its scary right?! i also did quite a fair bit of carpentry and was quoted $21k+, way cheaper than the cheapest $24k quote i've gotten. Best of all, i wanted just 'doors' to hide my cove area, he do a proper cabinet to slot into the area with sliding door somemore. *salute* He takes pride in the work he does.
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i do

2x6ft wardrobe in MBR.
1x 6ft wardrobe in kid's room.
Another tall cabinet in kids' room due to fengshui.
TV feature wall , tv console, full ht alter, shoe rack, kitchen cabinets, 1 x vanity top (this one cost me $700!! which I tot quite X).

That's all. but I change all doors and the quote includes changing of windows and grilles. and granite top for kitchen. glass doors for toilets. laminate floor for bedrooms and tiles for living/dining/kitchen.

hmmm actually after i spell out all the things i wanna do hor.. the quote starts to sound more reasonable hahahah but I hope his $36K includes all the above man!!! he promise to drop the final quote in my mailbox this evening. 2 weeks ago he promised to drop too but didn't happen :p
 
Roamca > Can I hav the contact no. for Yeak so that I can compare it with Ah Soon's ... Urs quite extensive kind of reno &amp; 25K shld consider cheap rite? btw whats the diff between laminate and parquet? Homogenous tiles or laminate more ex?

Pet > Hopefully I can understand his chinese if not I have to ask my dad to interept for mi liao ... haa

Zonkkie > lolzz ... but I thought floorings for Premium flats can be paid through CPF? SO his 4K gone + need to spend another few K to hack &amp; lay for their new floorings huh?
 
mrs piglet ya. oh and i forget to add that I got 3 toilets :x i got 1 bathroom and 1 toilet side by side in kitchen. old model 5 room flat.

ok ok in that case I better dun be too hard on uncle ah soon. if not he'll ask me go fly kite :p
 
kuek: dun worry, he will give u an english printed quotation too, thou not very well translated one. Still can managed to figure out what he means. haha!

ivy: in that case dun squeeze price down lah. squeeze more free things instead. u do so much shdn't be a problem getting freebies. :P
 
ivy >> your vanity top needs solid top? that will add on to the cost... I only had kitchen cabinets 21ft and shoe cabinet only... so that's why probably yours more. hopefully he gives you a good price ba.

mrspiglet>> ya. He has experience and really tries to do things properly. Like when there was a small mark on one of my doors and my parents made a fuss I was so embarrassed but Ah Soon immediately said CHANGE and didn't hesitate.. which I think is the most important ba.
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MMMmM seems like Ah Soon will gain popularity here also
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Mrs Piglet/ Pet, other than the window thingy ahhh what freebies can i get from him huh??

Pet frankly thought I complain complain but I think hor he did really give me a good price le. thanks for the recommendation man. He is really a nice uncle and he works really hard!! he told me he got good business in indonesia also leh!!
 
hhahahah ivy >> his quotation very funny one. the first few he will put ¿ÉÒÔ̸ at the bottom. But when he comes up with the final price no more ̸ already.
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ya I agree with mrs piglet... GET MORE FREEBIES!!!
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ivy>> is it?? haha no wonder he busy until his hair is horrible! I suspect he really gets it cut once a year for CNY.

Eh...
you choose mosaics for your bathroom and kitchen ah,
ask for small pieces of carpentry ard the house like a small shelf or what...
Door locks and knobs choose nicer ones..
when you buy things from outside ask him to install FOC...
storeroom racks give free...
if you have any ugly pipes in balcony or kitchen ask him to box up FOC
Mirrors in the bathroom can also provide FOC

All this he wun be stingy with you esp since you did so much! ;)
 
Wahhhhhhh, you all are very fast. lol. 1 day 1 page archive. I can't even find my last post anymore. can't remember what I wrote either..

Anyway, today was rectification day 1, one of my switch died, the button dropped off. ID arranged for those guys to come at 2pm to fix it. I was told that I might need to buy my own switch to replace. *fine*

I've an appointment at 3.30pm.

I wait till 2.30pm, gave her a call. *coming soon*. 3.15 pm, they are still not here, called my ID again, told her to cancel it, we arrange another day, I can't afford to wait anymore. She said ok..

4pm, I was outside, got a call from my mum, those guys came !!!!!!!!!! made a lot of noise, say why I didn't wait for them, they rushed all the way here. ARGH!!!

They said 2pm, i said ok. I waited for almost 1/5hrs, I didn't blame them either. I already told my ID to cancel it, but they chose to come at 4pm. Then it becomes my fault for not waiting for them for 2 hours?

My mother told them, come tomorrow, they yelled at her, TOMORROW NOT FREE LA!

Called my ID, she said she will bring them down with her tomorrow, I'll see how smug those 2 are.

btw, I should post all the excuses and replies from my ID about all the defects/incompletes and defects. So that I can transfer them over to renotalk tblog when it's up again.
 
lawry>> yup today was fast and furious. I was scary. Even when I was here I was scared. haha As I was replying more posts were going up already... :P

Please tick those two off tomorrow. They think everyone so free ah?! What crap. Make people wait so long. HORRIBLE.
 
@pinkpetter. hahaha. here's like our personal renotalk mass chatroom.

Those 2 ahhhh, I'm fine if they are late a bit, even an hour if they got a job elsewhere. So long I'm free and at home, I will wait. But I cancelled it and informed them already, they don't have to rush here at all. Why did they even come, knowing that I won't be around, then whine. Self-pwned ...
 
Pet, I didn'r do wall tiles for kitchen wall. I want it plastered and painted. He says I can use mosaic highlight for toilets but my toilet i won't be using mosaic highlights.

he say tonight confirm give me quotation. wahh this time liao no sound no pic from him again... uncle always fly me aeroplane................
 
Excuses excuses, I must transfer this over to renotalk with photos, easier to visualise.

Buddha also got fire, from the way she's defending them, it makes me sick. It's fine to defend if it's justifiable, else just reflect back on self as "no standard"

1. washer base too small (washer depth 550 mininum)
Ans : 600 is our standard, so that there's 25 in front and 25 behind.
Counter : Well, obviously I don't have any allowance in front, and my washer is falling off the edge.

2. Cabinets eat into fridge's base.
Ans : That's the way, to cover the gap.

3. Cooker Hood loopsided.
Ans. Err errr..
Ctr : Err wat? er somemore??? Obvious wrong.

4. Ugly chamfering of granite table
Ans : It's like that one la
Ctr : My fren's chamfer is done much nice isn't it? See picture?

5. Grouting, wrong color
Ans : I did tell them.
Ctr : They didn't listen to you, you didn't bother to rectify either.

6. Granite and glass backing didn't match in length.
Ans : Eh, didn't see this last time.
Ctr : You sure?? Well, it's still here, your work, I didn't shrink the granite.

7. 3D Planning
Ans : We choose tiles first then we plan.
Ctr : That's like crap first then eat, of course you decide colors first then go choose tiles right??
Ans : no ...

8. Cheapo looking white pipings/tubes for basin.
Ans : The chrome ones will tarnish and rust, then got complains, white one no problem.
Ctr : Err, not because they are cheap?

9. Slanted off balance drilling.
Ans : Err.
Ctr : You were there, I pointed it out to you, you were expecting me to just accept it, I have to face this mistake everyday, what kind of nonsense standard is that?

10. Carpentry material thickness.
Ans : We use the same thickness for body, doors and tabletop, if you want thicker, it will be more expensive.
Ctr : Showed her pictures of all the good carpentry, including ikea's, they charge the same rates/ft, but they give this kind of standard, you how to fight?

11. Wood beneath laminates exposed in some carpentry.
Ans : it's like that one, we can't color it black, in case knock, there will be a dent, can see the inside.
Ctr : What nonsense was that, how come the other pieces were all painted and some are not??

12. 2 different laminates joined together, there's a gap in between and a groove.
Ans : because of the difference in height of the laminate.
Ctr : Serious? how do you explain this other gapless one here then? (I will supply a pic in renotalk)

13. silver abs trimmings, black insides, grey insides.
Ans : All these need to pay extra one leh.
Ctr : I saw my fren's quote, it was the same amount! there were fanciful stuff like metal strips, dark mirrors, silver abs trimmings, colored laminates inside. SAME PRICE LA!

14. Cheap door handle, it's worth $6.90 only !
Ans : It came from the shop that does the doors leh, they said $20.
Ctr : ya, right.

15. The V Groove.
Ans : Hmmmm. ahhhhh. mmmmm.
Ctr : FAIL

16. Carpentry cabinet too short, should reach the ceiling, was it measured wrongly ?
Ans : nonnonooooo.
Ctr : I have evidence, wrong measurements is their forte! (picture in renotalk

These are some of the highlights of the showdown the other day. :D
 
ivy... where is your place? Ah Soon just left my friend's place at 8 plus say want to go Commonwealth there.. he haven't eat..quite poor thing. haiz.

Wah lawry.. your ID get cornered still dare to answer back. tsk tsk
 
ivy: pinkpetter mentioned most of the freebies he usually gives. Door knobs, store rm shelvings, box up of pipes, window panes in toilet, etc... i requested him to chge all the cable trunking covers after final quote n ask him how much, he just went "ok, can. FOC"

i like the fact abt him that he's very flexible. I think i mentioned this b4, was quoted 12ft for kitchen cabinet (top+bottom), but in the end had to extend to 14 ft so that i can box up the ugly pipe. Ask him how much to top up, he went "no need, little things like this, no need always talk abt money. Uncle can do uncle will do for u". Gd right?

Unlike some IDs/Contractors, little things also tell u "oh, i go back n revise the quote n send u." Uncle Soon dun have that kinda time to waste either. Haha!

Anyway, he fly aeroplane super common liao. it comes together as a package w his reno. LOL!! but when u really need him to come down settle some problems urgently, he will fly down immediately. Tested n proven. :P


Lawry: i'm amazed by ur patience w ur ID leh. If me i would have gave up talking to her. Pics will do more justice!!
 
Agree with mrspiglet totally. Sometimes ask until feel paiseh but no choice my pocket shallow. Feel so happy then meet him so chin-cai.
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So when i ask for some things and he say i need to pay I also feel willing to pay cos i know what he can absorb he will.
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Aiyah Lawry's ID is Tok-Gong... picture right in front of her she can try to twist...
 
Wah supper tiring day! How to post pic here huh?

mrspiglet: When is handing over time, ah soon will call ppl up to your hse for cleaning. What you can see is what they will clean even windows and grills. But you'll need to clean again and again as there will still be dust will all your other stuff arrived. I would say ah soon ppl did quite a good job cleaning haha. Btw tomorrow jason will still be coming up to drill some holes for me and help me mount my 2 tv.
 


Haha totally agreed with pet. Ah Soon too chin cai liao.
My MBR TV feature wall and cabinet he charge me 600. When everything is done and mount, he say too plain and give me a contact to choose a wall paper for the feature wall foc. When the wallpaper guy tell me that the wallpaper that i've choose for the wall cost 580, i immediately call ah soon, intending to absorb half. But ah soon tell me nevermind. He'll absorb everything as he already promise me to give me foc. He said," i earn u other things. This one i loss nevermind. You happy i also happy". And he ask me to pay the wallpapper first then minus the amount off the last payment.

I guess the above incident can show what type of person he is ba.
 

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