An old friend asked Dong Guanliang and another former colleague to help sell their house. Knowing his daughter wanted to buy a house, Dong Guanliang directly announced his intention. Without further ado, the two of them immediately agreed to the deal. Dong Guanliang then called Professor Dong to handle the paperwork. Unexpectedly, the friend's children weren't there when they arrived. Upon hearing the news, they all rushed over. Not only did they prevent the sale, but they also demanded exorbitant prices, claiming the price had doubled, nearly infuriating the friend to the point of death.

After more than a year of tug-of-war, Professor Dong finally bought the house a month before his old friend's death. His friend died in the hospital, and his children didn't even get to see him for the last time. Professor Dong and Dong Guanliang handled all the funeral arrangements, and only after he was laid to rest did they finally have closure.

There are so many things like this these days. Severing ties with one's parents is a minor issue. Then there's that jerk kid who reports his parents by name, spills all the beans on his family's affairs, and then personally leads the fight, thinking he's such a hero. And then, a few years later, those jerk kids meet the worst end of the world. Who would want to be friends with a bastard like that? He treats his own parents like that.

I won't describe the location of this house any further, it is a courtyard house with five entrances in the center.

Because an old friend was sent to the cowshed, this house was requisitioned and rented out to the street for one dollar per room. Even the kitchen and warehouse were used.

The tenants certainly didn't care for it; it wasn't their own house, so they just kept on doing it! The house, once filled with carved beams and painted buildings, was severely damaged. The beautiful wallpaper on the walls was long gone, and the mischievous children had completely destroyed the exquisite stone paintings outside the courtyard. The carved stone scenery was also dismantled. The small stones were used to press down pickle jars, while the larger ones were smashed and some were tied to ropes and used as clothes drying stones. Oh, it's so heartbreaking.

When Professor Dong took over the house, it was in dire condition. Over 70 percent of it was damaged, but when I complained to the street vendor, they didn't care! They just said it was the way it was when they took it over, so there was no way to complain.

What’s even more infuriating is that there are still a few stubborn households who refuse to move out. They rent the house over and over again and think it’s theirs. They don’t have a property certificate, household registration, or anything, but they just claim it’s theirs without any basis. It’s completely unreasonable. They think they can just pretend the house is theirs by being a scoundrel.

Professor Dong didn't bother to argue with these scoundrels and went straight to the police. Because he had informed Jiang Shaoming in advance, Jiang Shaoming's minions came to handle the situation. After a "friendly" ideological persuasion, the tenants moved out without saying a word.

After purchasing this house, a considerable amount of money was spent on its restoration. After the exterior masonry work was completed, a team of experienced craftsmen were specially hired to meticulously restore the interior, such as the murals on the roof and the murals on the walls. This process took over six months. They lived and ate at home and never left the house, so outsiders were unaware that the courtyard house had been restored. They also didn't know that the restoration was complete, though they knew it was close enough.

Later, I bought all the pots, pans, tables, chairs, benches, beds, bedding, clothes and other supplies through Taobao. They are all nostalgic versions and they don’t look out of place when used now. Well, the family is complete.