Xie Yuyao was taken aback, then smiled wryly.
Old Zhang asked in confusion, "What brother-in-law? Who are you?"
Xie Yulei realized she had misunderstood and blushed, saying, "I'm sorry, I mistook you for someone else. My name is Xie Yulei, and I'm her younger sister."
Old Zhang nodded: "No wonder they look a bit alike."
"It's getting late, let's head back. Farewell," Xie Yuyao said, stopping the two from exchanging pleasantries.
Xie Yulei knew that forcing her to stay was useless, so she asked, "Where do you live? I'll come visit you when I have time."
"No need, just take care of yourself." After saying that, Xie Yuyao helped Old Zhang carry his things and walked towards the bus stop.
Xie Yulei took two steps and stopped, watching helplessly as her sister walked away.
She felt a mix of emotions, as if something had been shattered.
She used to be the most pampered child in her family, but now her parents' attention is all on their grandson, and her brother is busy with his own career. Since she started working, she hasn't heard her family's concern and care for her for a long time.
Compared to her older sister who was sent to the countryside after graduation, she was much luckier. After graduating last year, her parents and brother worked together to help her find a quiet job in the logistics department of a pharmaceutical factory. Although the salary wasn't high, it was stable.
Now that she sees her sister doing so well, she wants to be happy for her, but she feels a strange unease in her heart, and she can't even explain why.
She clearly wanted all her family members to have a good life!
Xie Yuyao didn't care how much emotion this chance encounter left Xie Yulei with. From the day she set foot in Beijing, she had anticipated that she would one day meet the original owner's family, but she never expected that Xie Yulei would be the first to encounter them.
Judging from Xie Yulei's clothes and appearance, she must be doing well after graduation. She was more patient with this greeting, the only one she had received in Qingshantun, and thus spoke a few more words.
Back at the film set entrance, the security guard told her that Ye Xingchang was looking for her. Xie Yuyao's heart pounded rapidly, and she ran quickly towards the film set's studio, simply because there was a phone there.
She rushed into the studio and saw Director Zhu, the assistant director, the screenwriter, and several others sitting inside. They all looked at her with surprise.
"I...I want to make a phone call," Xie Yuyao said, breathless.
Director Zhu stood up first, "You can use it."
After saying that, he went out first, and the others also got up and left.
Xie Yuyao felt awkward for a moment, but she couldn't care less. She picked up the phone and dialed the number Ye Xingchang had left.
"Hello?"
"Is there any news about Zhao Honghui?" Xie Yuyao asked urgently as soon as the call connected.
"No." Ye Xingchang paused for a few seconds, then said softly, "But it's also related to him. He once asked me to buy a house in Beijing. Did you know about that?"
"I know, we agreed to live in Beijing afterward." Xie Yuyao said in a low voice, feeling very disappointed.
Ye Xingchang said on the other end of the phone, "I know one now. When are you free, I'll take you to see it."
"My schedule is really full right now, are you available anytime?" Xie Yuyao asked hesitantly.
"Yeah, keep an eye on your end."
"Wait a moment, I'll go ask the director." Xie Yuyao hung up the phone and went out to find someone.
Director Zhu didn't expect her to finish the call so quickly. Judging from Xie Yuyao's expression, it wasn't good news for her boyfriend.
"Director Zhu, I'd like to ask for another leave during filming to go out for some personal business," Xie Yuyao said directly.
The others frowned in disagreement, but Director Zhu readily agreed, saying, "I'll give you half a day tomorrow morning."
"Thank you, Director Zhu!"
*
The next day, Xie Yuyao walked out of the film crew's door and saw a Jeep parked on the opposite side of the road. Ye Xingchang, who was sitting in the driver's seat, waved to her.
Once in the car, Ye Xingchang said, "If anyone asks us about this trip, just say you're a distant relative of Jiang Zhen. The Jiang family doesn't have many relatives left, and the house has been under their control for over ten years, so many people are eyeing it."
Even today, five or six households are still vying for it, preferring to forgo their assigned single rooms just to have this courtyard. This dispute has dragged on for years, and no one has been able to agree to give it to anyone, so it has remained vacant.
The current argument is that if you give them 100 yuan and ask for the house back, their workplace will immediately allocate them single rooms and won't cause them any trouble.
Besides, all the old neighbors have moved away long ago, so no one knows anything about the Jiang family's background. But just in case, if anyone asks, just say this. If anything happens, come find me anytime.”
Xie Yuyao nodded: "Thank you."
This is equivalent to spending 600 yuan to buy a yard. Without Ye Xingchang's connections, you couldn't buy this house. Even if you could, it would definitely cost more than 600 yuan.
Upon arrival, Ye Xingchang parked the car on the side of the road and led Xie Yuyao through the alleys for quite a while before finally reaching their destination.
Upon entering, there is a large screen wall displaying the Five Blessings. Walking around it further in, you will see a small courtyard to the east.
“This courtyard house has been divided into three households. The main house at the back is one household, and the left and right wing rooms are one household each. What we want is the courtyard separated by the east wing room.”
Xie Yuyao saw that a wall had been built in front of her and in the middle, which was equivalent to dividing a regular courtyard into a "T" shape.
“This house is alright. It’s surrounded by roads on several sides, and each side has its own door. Some houses have more than a dozen households sharing one door, which is really chaotic,” Ye Xingchang explained. “Don’t be fooled by the small size; it’s a great house with its own entrance and courtyard. Since houses can’t be traded now, you’ll have to make do for now. You can move to a bigger house when the policy is relaxed in the future.”
"Hmm! I think this is pretty good. It may be small, but it has all the essential parts." Xie Yuyao was quite satisfied. She knew that during this special period, there were not many houses available, so having a place to stay like this was already quite good.
After observing for a while, Xie Yuyao said, "I think this should be a three-courtyard house, right? The place we are in now should be a two-courtyard house."
Ye Xingchang chuckled: "You have a sharp eye, you noticed that. That's right, the front courtyard has six households, even the gatekeeper is a separate family. The third courtyard, including the servants' quarters, has fifteen households. They all use the same main gate, it's noisy and chaotic all day long."
Xie Yuyao was taken aback. She knew about that major movement, in which many high-ranking officials and wealthy people were overthrown, while the servants rose to power and occupied the former owners' courtyards, turning proper courtyard houses into crowded tenements.
In this context, the rarity and value of this second-courtyard east wing room are even more apparent, which explains why so many people are vying for it.
Finding a complete courtyard house for sale right now is incredibly difficult, but it doesn't matter. She has money and time, and she'll be able to find a complete courtyard house after the reform and opening up!
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