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Jiang Guiying brought over the meat from her house; there was quite a lot of it. A small portion was a gift from Gu Mannian, and the majority was bought by Jiang Guiying with her own money.

Guan Yuehe was about to rummage through her pockets for money when Jiang Guiying waved her hand, "Forget it, you can give it to me when you have more money."

They even asked with concern, "Will you still have money for the Lunar New Year this year?"

Now that life is a bit better, the children of neighbors with whom we have a good relationship will give us a small red envelope during the Lunar New Year, and the children of very close relatives will give us even more.

Helpless, Guan Yuehe simply stuffed the money into her pocket, saying, "It's not much, but it'll be enough for the New Year."

Fang's mother told them not to rush to repay the money; she and Lin Yiku planned to pay it back together in two months. They weren't short of money right now; it was just that the money in their savings account had gone to zero.

The cupboards in the house were empty. She packed up the luggage she had brought back, and while Gu Yu was reading a comic book, she gave her mother a look and quietly slipped out to buy things.

Gu Yu suddenly realized that her aunt was not at home. Just as she was about to go out to look for her, her mother came to pick her up.

It took a lot of coaxing and persuasion to finally get her to put down her aunt's comic book.

In the evening, the people who went to work at the car factory gradually returned home.

Guan Yuehe carried a bucket to the front yard to fetch water and chatted with her neighbors in courtyard number two for a long time.

Aunt Bai sighed, "Yuehe has lived here for almost ten years, and I've gotten used to it. I'm a little reluctant to see her move away."

“Who says otherwise?” Aunt Er chimed in, “With Yuehe living here, even thieves have to go out of their way to avoid her.”

They weren't exaggerating. Aunt Bai was grateful to Guan Yuehe for helping Xiang Hong and Yuejin find a teacher to learn how to use a sewing machine. Xiang Hong got a job at a garment factory after learning how to use the machine, and now she even has her own apartment. Aunt Er genuinely felt that with Guan Yuehe and Officer Song around, the safety of Courtyard No. 2 was exceptionally secure.

Aunt Zhao handed a bowl of pickled cabbage to Aunt Bai and casually said, "My Lili relied on these two to take her to the hospital both times she gave birth. Yuehe, let us know when you move, and we'll come help."

Wow! Guan Yuehe never expected she had such a good following among the people in Courtyard No. 2!

He grinned broadly, "Don't worry, I'll buy the big white coat in a couple of days. I'll definitely come to you guys when we pick Sunday to work."

"Oh right, we also need to renovate that house over there. Okay, how about this Sunday? Everyone can go then."

“Okay, my husband Jin will be home this Sunday too.”

After chatting happily, Auntie Er finally asked the question everyone was most concerned about: "Yuehe, are you planning to keep that house to rent out, or return it to the factory?"

Guan Yuehe replied, "After I've moved out, I'll go to the housing management department to return the house."

Upon hearing this, Aunt Er frowned even more deeply, clasped her hands together in front of the door, and said, "We absolutely must have someone who won't cause trouble!"

Aunt Bai exclaimed, "I need to buy some talismans later. I must find a neighbor who won't cause trouble!"

After Sun Dashan and his family of three left, the No. 2 courtyard remained peaceful for almost ten years. The three women—Second Aunt, Aunt Bai, and her husband—who were unemployed, spent the most time at home. They were afraid that a troublemaker would come to the No. 2 courtyard.

Aunt Zhao disagreed, saying, "It's fine if you don't return the house; you might as well rent it out."

"No, that's not reasonable."

Cai Ying chimed in, "It's fine if you live here yourself. If you occupy the house and rent it out, people might be unhappy. You can just forget about the rent."

Aunt Zhao curled her lip and muttered under her breath, "You people are so enlightened!"

Cao Lili, who was standing next to her, remained silent. She felt that no one was wrong, but it was normal for them to have high awareness; otherwise, how could they be the cadres?

Luo Guifang, who was washing vegetables, wanted to speak several times, but silently kept her mouth shut. "Never mind," she thought, "speaking now would only cause trouble. I'll wait until things are settled."

Fortunately, Officer Song returned and said that the supply and marketing cooperative had temporarily delivered several baskets of mutton, and the cooperative's sales staff were calling their relatives and friends to come and buy the meat.

Of all things under heaven, eating and drinking are the most important.

In an instant, everyone forgot about chatting and rushed home, grabbing their money and dashing back out the door. They didn't forget to shout at the gate, "The supply and marketing cooperative has mutton available! First come, first served!"

The noise in the alley paused for a few seconds, then became lively again as people called to each other to go buy meat.

Lamb and beef are both rare, and it's hard to buy them even if you want to. If you want to eat hot pot lamb, you have to go to a state-run restaurant outside, and even then, you might not be able to get a table.

Now, whenever I hear that there's mutton for sale, I absolutely have to buy some to eat!

Guan Yuehe wasn't the first to leave, but she lined up earlier than her neighbors. After waiting in line for more than ten minutes, she bought two jin of mutton and thought about calling Lin Yiku tomorrow to ask when he would be back.

Just as she was happily thinking about him, she turned around at the entrance of the alley and saw Lin Yiku waiting for her.

She quickened her pace and jogged over, her face beaming with surprise. "How did you know I was coming home today?"

"I guessed." He didn't know, but he had two days off in the next week, so he thought he would go home tonight and visit her at school tomorrow.

To my surprise, I had only walked a short distance to the entrance of the alley when I heard familiar footsteps behind me. I turned around and sure enough, it was her.

He actually wanted to ask: How did you know I was coming home today?

"We just have a tacit understanding."

After praising him, I noticed that Lin Yiku was also carrying a large piece of mutton... They were practically telepathic!

"Let's go, let's have hot pot tonight!"

Just then, Guan Aiguo, who was fast, also managed to buy some mutton. They brought it over and the three families ate dinner together.

Guan Yuehe also made Lin Yiku run to Grandpa Ming's house to borrow a pot and ask him to help her make a dipping sauce.

In Courtyard No. 2, the aroma of meat wafted from almost every household, and the children who had come back from playing outside were all shouting and urging the dishes to be served quickly.

Six pounds of meat, enough for eight people, wasn't enough to satisfy everyone, but at least we got a taste, and it wasn't bad. The steam from the pot made everyone's faces flushed, as if they were all a little drunk.

“There used to be a restaurant in the city that had the best mutton. If only I could go there for a meal without paying…” Guan Canghai was just starting to reminisce when Jiang Guiying interrupted him, “You almost got arrested that one time you went to the city. What’s there to be so nostalgic about?”

Guan Canghai was also thinking about the embarrassing things that happened when he was young, and he was afraid of losing face in front of the younger generation, so he couldn't continue to reminisce about the past.

Only Guan Yuehe pressed on, asking, "Why were you arrested? Father, did you run into bandits or commit a crime?"

“Nonsense! Do you think your father would commit a crime?” Guan Canghai snorted, but refused to say why, and instead brought up another matter.

"Your uncle asked if we're going back to our hometown this year?"

Jiang Guiying calculated the time; the Spring Festival was only two or three days long, and there wasn't a single free day, so she simply couldn't find the time.

"How about we invite my older brother and sister-in-law over for a couple of days?"

Guan Aiguo reminded him, "My elder brother and sister-in-law said they're coming back for the New Year and will stay home on New Year's Eve."

With five more people in the family, the three rooms in the house will have to be squeezed together, leaving no spare room for my uncle's family.

“Your uncles and their family can’t come on New Year’s Eve,” Jiang Guiying quickly decided. “I’ll call the village committee in my hometown tomorrow to ask.”

Aunt Fang said, "We only have free time in the countryside during the Spring Festival. It's hard to find time to go out at other times. This is a good opportunity to come and see the new house that Yuehe and Yiku bought."

That's exactly what I think!

After finishing their meal, the four adults continued chatting around the table, while Guan Yuehe and the others cleaned up the table and kitchen, and then turned on the TV to watch.

Seeing that Lin Sitian was still yawning from time to time, Guan Yuehe urged her to go home and sleep.

There was a dark patch under her eyes; anyone who didn't know better would think she'd been punched in the eye. Her face was also bluish, and she looked extremely haggard.

Lin Sitian wanted to stay a little longer; she couldn't sleep after eating, so she wanted to watch the news before going back.

"I heard that state-owned factory workers are now required to comply with the family planning policy and have only one child. Logically, shouldn't the obstetrics and gynecology department be less busy than before?"

This is what Lan Yunqin said. She said that her relative had only given birth to one daughter before, but now there is a new policy that does not allow couples to have two children. Her husband's family is making a fuss, blaming her relative for delaying having a second child, which caused her husband's family line to end.

This policy has changed really fast. Not long ago, it only required officials to have one child.

Lin Sitian scoffed, "You have no idea how much trouble some people will go to to have a son. When a woman gave birth to a daughter, even we doctors and nurses almost got beaten up."

“Some of the older folks in our alley can’t keep up with those people. They’re unreasonable and won’t listen to reason. As soon as the woman gives birth, they start plotting a divorce.”

Lin Sitian became more and more agitated as she spoke, "And there's something even more outrageous: someone actually wanted to secretly switch children! They didn't want their own daughter, but wanted someone else's son?!"

“I see upsetting things every day, I’m not going to talk about it, it will ruin my mood.” Lin Sitian sighed deeply again, leaned against Guan Yuehe, and couldn’t help but say angrily, “Our hospital’s security department is missing someone like you who can handle people.”

The security department is all male, so they can easily pull away male comrades who are causing trouble. However, it's really difficult to reach out and pull away some female comrades who are causing trouble, because if you do, they'll accuse you of being a hooligan.

Fortunately, she was quick-witted. When she realized something was wrong, she either called for help or hid to the side.

I'm really afraid of those unreasonable people.

Guan Yuehe sighed, thinking of poor Sitian.

"You really should start exercising, or... how about we go for a run in the alley tonight?"

Lin Sitian sprang up from the sofa with a quick movement, "I'm going home to sleep."

—

The next day, Jiang Guiying came for the third time and finally saw that Guan Yuehe's door was open.

It's almost 10 o'clock, and these two just woke up.

Guan Yuehe immediately understood the meaning behind her mother's eyes. She casually buttoned up the top button of her shirt and muttered to herself, "Eating too much mutton is a bit too much."

Jiang Guiying: "......"

That little bit of meat, how could it possibly cause any internal heat? It'd be lucky if it even sparked a fire.

After Guan Yuehe finished packing, she slung her basket over her shoulder and said to Jiang Guiying before leaving the house, "Lin Yiku, Mom and I are going out to buy some things. Remember to buy Da Bai later."

Guan Yuehe didn't necessarily have to go out, but she was annoyed by people coming to her door to talk about the house, so she simply went out and made sure no one could find her.

Someone actually came to her door wanting to rent her apartment, but when the door opened, Lin Yiku stood there with a stern face. "What is it?"

When the person who came to the door heard that Guan Yuehe was not at home, he wanted to discuss things with Lin Yi, but was told that "she makes the decisions at home" and was then locked out.

After running around for two days, Guan Yuehe called on her neighbors to help tidy up the new house as soon as Sunday arrived.

The condition of the house was better than Guan Yuehe had expected. The walls were still passable, and it would be enough to remove the partitions used to divide the house for the time being.

The Niu family moved the kitchen to the outer half of the house, and divided the two large rooms into four small rooms and a small living room, with wooden boards used as partitions between the rooms.

If the couple were to do this at night, the neighbors could probably hear everything clearly, rendering the partition practically useless.

Guan Yuehe had planned it well. The two and a half rooms were adjacent, and the half room here was more spacious. So she simply converted the half room into a kitchen and a bathroom, and converted the remaining two large rooms into two bedrooms of different sizes and a living room.

But the reality is, it's cold now, below freezing, not suitable for renovating the house. Scraping or painting the walls will easily cause them to crack. We'll have to wait until after spring.

So, we had no choice but to remove the partitions, do a thorough cleaning of the house, move all the furniture over, and make do for now.

Many neighbors came to help, so the demolition was completed quickly and the cleaning was done quickly as well.

Yuanbao came over to help, but he only made things worse and was dragged home by the back of Zhou Hongqi's collar.

Several families from the No. 1 courtyard came to watch the excitement, which gave Guan Yuehe a good opportunity to get to know all of them.

The Hu family, who live in the back house, is small. Hu's husband works as a gatekeeper at the breeding farm below the car factory, Hu's wife is unemployed, and their son, daughter-in-law, and two grandchildren live with them.

The young couple who lived in the gatehouse were both employed; the woman was pregnant and had gone back to her parents' home early that morning.

The four families in the backyard and the rear building had no dealings with the Guan and Lin families. They were neither opposed to nor happy about Guan Yuehe and Lin Yiku moving in. They simply greeted them and went about their own business.

Guan Yuehe considered it and figured that she would probably interact more with Zhou Hongqi across the street in the future. As long as she didn't interfere with the other neighbors, she wouldn't need to interact with them much.

Once the new house was finished, Guan Yuehe took another look and saw a large room and a large living room, spacious and bright, and she liked it more and more.

Except for one drawback: the kang (heated brick bed) is a bit small, only about half the size of hers.

Lin Sitian joked, "When we renovate, you can make the kang (heated brick bed) even longer, enough for you to turn over a few more times."

Guan Yuehe thought to herself: "When the two of us are lying together, we only sleep halfway, so there's no need to lengthen it further. The original size is still the right one."

Next, we moved the furniture over.

"No, second sister, this desk is way too heavy! What kind of wood is it made of?"

Guan Yuehe glanced at it; it was the desk she used. This desk was a bit heavier than the others, but surely it wouldn't be so heavy that three grown men would have to grimace while lifting it?

Upon closer inspection, he saw that the people carrying the table were Chang Zhengyi, Guan Aiguo, and Zhang Quanbin, and then he felt he could understand.

These three could be knocked down with one punch; no wonder they had so much trouble lifting the table.

Zhou Hongqi, who was standing opposite, rolled his eyes and said disdainfully, "You're all useless, even when you're lifting the table."

Turning around, she saw Jin Junwei standing behind her with a plate of food and a complicated expression, and quickly said, "You're different from them."

Those three are weak and ugly.

Yuanbao helped her finish the sentence, "My dad is better looking than them!"

After a busy day, the old house was emptied, and the new house is now piled high with stuff.

When Lin Yiku got off work, she helped organize the household belongings, and they didn't finish until midnight.

"This kang (heated brick bed) is a bit small. It's not warm enough either."

"Let's wait until the weather gets warmer, then we can make the changes together, keeping the original dimensions, two meters wide and three meters long?"

"Okay!" Guan Yuehe put her hands and feet on him, "Move over a bit, don't fall off."

"If you don't kick me, I won't fall." There was a hint of helplessness in his calm tone.

"..." Guan Yuehe withdrew her hands and feet, and after a while, pushed the person out, but only moved them a little, showing that it was impossible to kick them down. "You're the one who doesn't sleep well!"

After saying that, Guan Yuehe pulled the blanket up, covering her chin with it, and closed her eyes to refuse to talk anymore. "Go to sleep, and don't talk anymore."

After a while, her breathing calmed down, and she stretched out her arms and legs. Lin Yiku closed her eyes, skillfully hugged her, pressed down her legs, and fell asleep as well.

—

The day after moving, Guan Yuehe still went out early in the morning.

"Yuehe, which company are you interning at this holiday?"

Everyone was used to it. Guan Yuehe was often arranged to intern at her workplace during her holidays. I heard that she was going to some Foreign Language Teaching and Research Press during the summer vacation. No one knew what kind of organization it was, but since it had the word "foreign" in it, it was probably related to foreign languages.

"Winter break is too short, I won't do an internship."

Everyone had already believed it, but when they saw Guan Yuehe follow them into the Five Star Automobile Factory, they exclaimed in surprise, "You're here to help with translation at the factory?"

Guan Yuehe did not deny it, "I went to see Teacher Zhang on my way."

The others assumed she was there to help with the translation. As they entered the factory gate, they waved goodbye and headed to their respective workshops or departments.

Guan Yuehe went to the Housing Management Department and waited outside for a while before Luo Guifang arrived.

After waiting a while, Jin Hongchang and Wu Erni came running over.

"We'll go in first to take care of things, and you can come in after we're done," Guan Yuehe called to Luo Guifang, and knocked on the door of the housing management department first.

The head of the housing management department has been hearing the name "Guan Yuehe" quite often lately, not only because she was assigned to a large state-owned enterprise, but also because many people are eyeing the house she lives in.

Even his relatives have come knocking on his door, saying they want to exchange their apartments for that one. But he scolded them, saying that it's fine if someone buys a house, but if they don't come to cancel their purchase, what's the point of exchanging them?

Who knew that Guan Yuehe would come to return the house today!

Getting a house is troublesome, but getting a house back is much simpler.

Take out the old rental agreement and get a certificate from the housing management department. Guan Yuehe will no longer have anything to do with this house and will not have to pay rent anymore.

Just as the head of the housing management department was having some ulterior motives, before he could even take the rental agreement, Guan Yuehe said, "I've discussed it with Sister Luo, and we're going to exchange houses with her. So, could you please sign a separate house exchange agreement, and then the factory can take back the house Sister Luo is currently living in and redistribute it?"

The smile on the head of the housing management department froze, and only then did he notice that there was someone behind Guan Yuehe.

He knew this person well too.

After Luo Guifang took over her husband's job, she could only work as an ordinary worker because she couldn't do technical work, and her salary was not as good as what Zhou Gong earned.

Luo Guifang's family consists of four people, and her child is quite old. Logically, they should have been allocated an extra room long ago. However, a few years ago, Luo Guifang made a scene with the leaders and got Zhou Baoyu sent to a barefoot doctor training course. As a result, the housing management department suppressed the allocation of an extra room.

Luo Guifang frequently came to the Housing Management Department to demand an explanation, but the department always had a reason to refuse her.

Unexpectedly! Guan Yuehe actually said she wanted to swap houses with Luo Guifang!

"Well, things can't be calculated like that, and the house isn't divided like that either..."

"What housing allocation?" After Yuehe started to ask, Luo Guifang immediately stepped forward and said, "Yuehe saw that our family of four was crammed into one room, and kindly offered to exchange houses with us. We went to the housing management department to witness it and draw up an agreement. This is perfectly reasonable and has nothing to do with housing allocation!"

The head of the housing management department choked on his words, thinking, "That's not right, is it?" But exchanging houses among workers isn't uncommon; others can do it, so why can't they?

He thought it was okay to exchange the house, but he had also accepted a bribe from a relative, promising to give the house to the relative's family as soon as Guan Yuehe came to cancel her stay.

He truly never imagined that Guan Yuehe would actually consider moving!

As they were at an impasse, Guan Yuehe reached out and pulled out her watch, feigning impatience, and said, "Hurry up, I have an appointment with Teacher Zhang Xinbi and the others, and I'll be late."

The head of the housing management department glanced at her, probably aware that she was using Zhang Xinbi as a figurehead. But Zhang Xinbi was now the head of the research and development center, and even the factory manager had to give her face.

After a long while, the head of the housing management department instructed the young colleague next to him: "Xiao Liu, process their housing exchange agreements."

After saying that, he sat down at his seat and drank tea. Later, when he was needed to affix the official seal, he had a sour face and stamped the seal like he was chopping vegetables with a knife, making a loud banging sound. It was obvious that he was holding a grudge.

But Guan Yuehe and Luo Guifang didn't care about his sour face. As long as the matter was handled well and the benefits were in place, that was the most practical thing.

Luo Guifang moved to the two and a half rooms on the left side of No. 2 Ginkgo Hutong, while Guan Yuehe returned the room she had been given and received a refund certificate, as well as the 150 yuan she had received for the exchange.

It's a little less than when she moved ten years ago; the difference is due to the discounted price her neighbors received over the past ten years.

The two of them walked out of the housing management office with smiles on their faces, nodded to Jin Hongchang and Wu Erni who were waiting outside, and the two of them immediately rushed into the housing management office.

“Section Chief Qin, we are both employed, and we should have been allocated an extra room a long time ago. We are not begging to move to the new staff quarters, but Luo Guifang’s house is available, so we can have that room. It’s right next to ours…”

The head of the housing management department was so angry that his face turned red. "So the people in their No. 2 Ginkgo Hutong compound are colluding to allocate the houses?"

But both of them have a point, especially Jin Hongchang, who has been working at the factory for over twenty years, and Wu Jiawang is also getting on in years; he should be settling down soon...

Guan Yuehe and Luo Guifang couldn't help but smile as they listened to the sounds of banging on the table and wailing inside.

Luo Guifang read the agreement again, feeling particularly good. "Old Jin and Erni are just too honest. If I were them, both working and with two kids, I would have made a scene at the housing management office long ago."

Fearing something might go wrong, she went to discuss it with the couple the day before yesterday, saying she wanted to exchange her apartment for Yuehe's, and they would go and cause trouble in her current room. But the cost of the exchange would have to be shared by both families, 75 yuan each, which would allow them to exchange for an extra room, making it a worthwhile deal.

The two families have no connection and are not outstanding in the factory. They are waiting for the housing management department to allocate housing, but who knows how long they will have to wait!

Half an hour later, Jin Hongchang and Wu Erni came out, their faces flushed.

Before they could ask, Wu Erni exclaimed happily, "It really was changed!"

"Yuehe, your idea is still the best."

Guan Yuehe laughed heartily, and everyone was happy!