In Guangdong Province today, various kung fu styles, such as Hung Kuen, Choi Kuen, and Lung Kuen, have spread far and wide.
Although the martial arts schools aren't very big, as long as they dare to put up a sign, their skill level is undoubtedly top-notch.
When Secretary An was with the boss, he was of course loyal and devoted to him. But now that he was with the boss's wife, he had to cater to her wishes. Also, in his opinion, Miss Cai was being disrespectful to his flower-growing skills. Fortunately, he had a list and the next stop he chose happened to be Miss Cai's family's old residence. There was a 90% chance that the people living there were also his family's relatives. This was equivalent to taking Miss Cai home directly.
His actions perfectly aligned with Miss Cai's thoughts.
Her parents had instructed her to return to China tentatively, to discreetly inquire about their former residence without making a fuss, to find out what the house ultimately became, whether it was still possible to reclaim it, and to make a profit from it.
Upon hearing the address Secretary An gave, her heart skipped a beat: the next stop seemed to be her home.
Several young people from Hong Kong arrived in the old town and immediately became interested.
Nie Han, being a young lady from a wealthy family, was worldly and knowledgeable. Hong Kong, in fact, was largely derived from the old city of Guangdong. As soon as she got out of the car, she exclaimed, "Wow, this place is covered in cobblestones!"
Miss Cai became curious and looked at the stone slab on the ground: "It's just a stone, is there some significance to it?"
Nie Han said, "Our Happy Valley villa uses this kind of granite inside and outside the courtyard. My grandfather had to make connections for a long time to smuggle it from the mainland, which cost a lot of money, but that courtyard was also his favorite."
Secretary An explained, "Its scientific name is granite, and this entire street is paved with granite."
Looking at the blue brick walls along the street, with their gold openwork carvings, Nie Han recognized them and excitedly said, "This is called gray plastering. A few years ago, my grandfather wanted the pawnshops in Central to use this technique to decorate their exterior walls, but after trying seven or eight craftsmen, the results were not good. Uncle Liang even went to the mainland to find a master craftsman, but the skilled ones were said to be too old to come, so in the end, it wasn't done. I never expected that the real gray plastering would be so effective."
Miss Cai understood: "So these houses are indeed exceptionally valuable?"
He added, "If the property is demolished, the homeowner will probably receive a lot of compensation."
The more you dig, the more interesting it becomes.
Secretary An smiled and said, "The residents of this area are very fortunate. Because of the protection of cultural relics, they will not be within the scope of demolition. Moreover, the state will pay for the renovation free of charge to build a large-scale tourist scenic area. If nothing unexpected happens, the renovation project will be undertaken by our Nie family. The boss also said that on the basis of protecting cultural relics, we must build it to be fully functional and entertaining, making it a new tourist landmark in Guangdong Province."
Miss Cai's mouth formed an "O" shape: "Wow, that sounds really good."
Nie Han said, "Of course, half of that tourist street in Central is under my mother's name, and the rent is quite considerable."
So Ms. Cai's family is not only facing demolition, but also a future prime location, just like the historic streets of Central and San Francisco's Chinatown, where every inch of land is precious!
As they were talking, they entered a narrow alley on the street. There was a small courtyard with a plaque above the gate that read "Cai Family".
Secretary An asked everyone to wait a moment and went in first. After a short while, an elderly man with only one leg, using a single cane, came out. He was thin and dark-skinned, but his eyes were very bright. He turned to Chen Rou and asked, "Is this the boss of the Nie family?"
Wearing wide-leg pants and Pinkman shoes, Chen Rou's outfit was just ordinary, but it had a fashionable feel that was out of step with the times.
She stepped forward and shook hands: "You must be Master Cai, your leg..."
Like Master Huang, Master Cai was also a little flattered to hear that a tycoon from Hong Kong had come. He had probably explained this many times before, so he just said calmly, "I lost my leg thirty years ago, and I'm used to it."
Chen Rou followed Master Cai into the courtyard and calculated: "That must have been around 1960. You were in your forties then, right? The car accident was such a pity."
A young man walked out of the second courtyard through the moon gate and said with a smile, "You wouldn't believe it, would you? My master is only 56 years old this year. When he lost his leg, he was just a young man in his twenties."
She's only 56, but looks like she's in her seventies or eighties.
Miss Cai had been very lively until just now, but now she was silent, only glancing up and down and looking around.
Chen Rou followed Master Cai into the Moon Gate and said with a smile, "Your place doesn't need to be demolished. Moreover, the country plans to develop tourism in the future. Since you come from a family of kung fu masters, you should mention it to the construction company to build a large exhibition hall."
Unlike Master Huang, who seemed to have anticipated this, Master Cai appeared unaware of the news, rubbing his hands together and asking in a trembling voice, "Really?"
The young man, probably his apprentice, laughed and said, "So that means we don't have to move?"
Master Cai rubbed his hands together again and said to the young man, "A Tao, quickly call your Uncle Huang. Since you can't find a place to go for the time being, move all your belongings here. I'll keep an eye on things and find a courtyard for him."
Atao nodded: "I'll go right away."
Before liberation, these martial arts schools and kung fu halls were both friends and rivals.
But now that we're in a new era, we've become colleagues, and we start sharing information and looking out for each other.
Master Huang was forced to move, but he was worried about where to go.
But Master Cai's former residence wasn't on the list of places to be moved, so letting him move over first was really a good thing.
Ah Tao went to make a phone call. Just as Master Cai was about to lead the people inside, two more young men came to the courtyard. One of them clasped his hands in a fist and bow as he entered, saying, "Uncle Cai, are you busy?"
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