The old man paused for a moment before continuing, "The most important thing is that I heard these houses all have property ownership certificates. When the time comes, your name will be on the certificate, and when I'm gone, no one can take it from you."

Sha Zhu finally understood the old man's good intentions, but at the same time, a pang of sadness welled up in his nose.

He shouted, "What nonsense are you spouting!"

"..."

What Fatty didn't expect was that if Sha Zhu was going to look at houses with an old man, why did he have to drag him along?

But he couldn't resist the urge to stay indoors, so the fat man had no choice but to drive him, along with an old man and his beloved daughter Chen Mengqi, to look at houses outside Dongzhimen.

Chen Mengqi is on vacation now, and she spends all her time following her dad around like a little shadow.

On the way to Shizipo, Chen Mengqi overheard an old man talking about looking at houses.

She asked in surprise, "How come even you all know about this?"

The fat man said to her with a laugh, "What's wrong? Are you implying that we ordinary folks don't have as many sources of information as you do?"

Chen Mengqi made a face guiltily: "I heard it from my roommate. Her family works in the relevant department."

See? A good university, especially a future top-tier 985 university, is much more than just good academic performance, a good major, and a good job after graduation.

It also means transcending social classes and having a good network of connections.

"..."

You wouldn't believe it until you saw it. Once they arrived at the destination, the old man and Sha Zhu realized just how many well-informed people there were.

This neighborhood—well, even the word "neighborhood" only came into use this year.

Unlike traditional courtyard houses or large tenements, a residential area is a centralized complex consisting of multiple buildings, with dedicated gatekeepers and property management; this is called a community.

The area around Shizipo residential area outside Dongzhimen was packed with people!

There are quite a few people like the fat man who drove here, and the bicycles parked on the roadside are like dumplings being dropped into a pot. There are countless others like the old man who used to take the bus or walk here.

Sha Zhu gasped, "Goodness, are they all here to buy houses?"

When they arrived, an old man had already told them that the houses in this community were the most expensive and in the best location, costing 1,900 yuan per square meter!

What does that mean? It means that buying a two-bedroom apartment from an elderly man would cost around 100,000 yuan!

100,000! That's 100,000!

Even if you buy a smaller one, a two-bedroom apartment, it will still cost more than 60,000!

Well, look at the huge crowds! Anyone who didn't know better would think the houses were free...

While the old man and Sha Zhu were in shock, Chen Mengqi was also whispering to her father, "Dad, should we buy an apartment too? If we do, I can ask my classmate."

The fat man affectionately stroked his daughter's nose: "You're more confident now that you're in college, and you know how to leverage your network of contacts."

Chen Mengqi chuckled and laughed, "That's all thanks to your excellent teaching."

But the fat man shook his head: "We're not buying it."

"Why?"

The fat man thought for a moment and said, "It's time to tell you about my plan. I'm asking you, do you want to live in a big courtyard?"

Chen Mengqi asked instinctively, "How big?"

“Our courtyard house, the whole courtyard belongs to our family.”

Chen Mengqi gasped, "Dad, you really have wild ideas!"

The fat man pointed at the old man and Sha Zhu and said, "Really?"

Chen Mengqi's eyes widened suddenly, and she covered her mouth in surprise.

Looking at his dad with admiration, I thought to myself, "Wow!"

That evening, as soon as Chen Mengqi got home, she started chattering away to Yu Li about how Sha Zhu and the old man wanted to buy a house.

The fat man sat leisurely on the sofa watching TV, um, the 1987 version of "Dream of the Red Chamber," "One is a fairy flower from the celestial garden, the other is a flawless jade..."

I clapped along while listening to "Wang Ningmei".

This version of "Dream of the Red Chamber" needs no introduction; it is absolutely unparalleled in history. In the future, which production team will be able to take all the actors to the wilderness for a year of intensive training just to film a TV series?

We started by teaching them manners, gradually helping these girls immerse themselves in the characters they were portraying.

This TV series must have earned countless tears from their family.

When it first aired, Yu Li, Chen Yan, Chen Fang, Qin Jingru, Xiao Dang, Chen Mengqi, Zhang Hongying, and Li Xianying's wife would gather at Fatty's house every night to watch the TV series together.

Besides preparing some snacks and soda for them, the fat man also prepared a large amount of toilet paper in advance.

And wow, once the plot reached its climax, the cardboard box used to throw away trash every night was overflowing with tissues...

Yu Li is now very sensitive to numbers: "1,900 yuan per square meter, wouldn't a house cost nearly 100,000 yuan? 100,000 yuan is an astronomical figure for the average person, but it's not enough to break their spirit. Interesting, how come this apartment has become such a hot commodity?"

Chen Mengqi understood: "Mom, you mean they don't just want to buy one house, they want to buy more."

Then he slapped his thigh and said, "It's good to buy more, preferably two sets, so that the two rooms belonging to my great-grandfather and the two rooms belonging to my silly uncle will all belong to me."

Yu Li flicked her on the head with her finger: "What do you mean it's all yours? Do you even have any money?"

Chen Mengqi chuckled and steered the conversation elsewhere: "After this courtyard becomes ours, Aunt and the others won't move out, will they?"

Yu Li glared at the fat man, annoyed: "No way!"

Chen Mengqi also chuckled at the fat man, then said, "My Uncle Mao isn't short of money either. Once Uncle Sha buys an apartment, he'll probably be the first to complain. So, the whole backyard will be ours."

"What do you mean the whole backyard? Have you forgotten about the Liu family?"

Chen Mengqi slapped her leg in frustration: "How annoying, how could I forget about his house!"

Yu Li chuckled coldly: "It's not just his house, but also the middle courtyard and the front courtyard. This time, your dad has really gotten himself into some wishful thinking!"

While looking at "Lin Daiyu," the fat man said absentmindedly, "Why are you daydreaming? There are plenty of courtyard houses in Beijing. Just wait patiently, and they'll come eventually."

Yu Li said somewhat awkwardly, "I still think we should buy two apartments. Putting aside everything else, it'll be useful when Qiqi gets married..."

Before he could finish speaking, the fat man stood up alertly, took three steps to Chen Mengqi's side, and whispered, "Daughter, tell Dad, has anyone been harassing you at school?"

Sigh, my daughter's grown up, and she's starting to attract unwanted attention from young men.

Back in high school, Chen Mengqi was under a lot of academic pressure, which made her very irritable. Plus, with Fatty secretly keeping an eye on her, anyone who dared to mess with her would have been dealt with long ago.

Chen Mengqi is now a sophomore in college, and it's time for her to start dating. Her father, Fatty, is constantly worried about her.