159 Hot Commodities
Guan Yuehe and Lin Yiku arrived at the bus stop next to the TV station staff and family compound and waited for Ding Xuewen to come out and pick them up.
Instead of Ding Xuewen, Chen Lizhong arrived on a red motorcycle.
Guan Yuehe exclaimed in surprise, "You bought a car?!"
"Yeah! I got the tickets but still had to wait a while. Luckily I acted quickly, otherwise I would have had to wait another month or two. This model, the Jialing brand, is the most popular." It's the best-selling brand; I heard that its annual production capacity has reached over 200,000 vehicles.
Chen Lizhong also strongly recommended that they buy this model, saying, "It's only a few hundred yuan, much cheaper than a color TV. This year's annual production is much higher than last year's, so it will definitely be easier to buy in the future."
Guan Yuehe was tempted by what she said.
But she wasn't losing her mind. She could afford the car, but the problem was that the purchase coupons and gasoline were hard to come by. Even after buying the car, she still had to scramble to get gasoline coupons.
Like her older brother, who works as a transport driver, he has to get a gas ticket in advance every time he goes out, otherwise, if he runs out of gas halfway, he can't refuel without a gas ticket.
But then again, Chen Lizhong, that big shot, must have some connections to get gasoline coupons.
Buying a car, perhaps?
Chen Lizhong patted the back seat, beckoned Guan Yuehe to get in the car, and said to Lin Yiku with a grin, "Brother, please drive for a while."
This Jialing brand motorcycle is faster and less strenuous than a bicycle, but the back seat is a bit short. Normally, two people can squeeze in, but what if it accidentally hits Yuehe's stomach?
So when Sitian asked him to come out on his bike to pick her up, she told him to let her brother run a few steps.
Is it far?
"It's not far." Chen Lizhong hung the bags they had brought on the hood of the car. "The TV station is just ahead, their family compound is on this side, and across the street are the residential bungalows. Old Ding's new house is right across the street."
Lin Yiku ran alongside the red motorcycle empty-handed, attracting the attention of many passersby along the way.
The main attraction is the red motorcycle. With bicycles everywhere, if a different kind of vehicle suddenly appears and makes a "clanging" sound, she would stop and take a second look.
Chen Lizhong is already very familiar with this area; he has been coming here quite often lately.
"I borrowed my cousin's car to help him move, and it took us two days to finish. Goodness, they brought out box after box of books! His former neighbors were really sad to see him go..."
When they arrived, Xu Chengcai and his family of four had already been sitting for quite a while.
"Yuehe, come in quickly."
"You're here." Upon entering the house, I found it to be much more spacious than I had imagined.
The fact that the new house is more spacious than the old one means that life is getting better and better.
Ding Xuewen handed her and Lin Yiku cups. When she said the house was quite big, he said, "Originally, we bought two rooms, but later we bought half a room of the house next door, knocked down the wall and connected them together, which is why we have such a big place now."
The money originally set aside to buy a television was also used up, and now the house has nothing but his bicycle, tape recorder, and electric fan.
The electric fan was a second-hand one that Chen Lizhong used when he was looking for materials to sit on when he bought his first house.
But Xu Chengcai and his group also mentioned when they first arrived that he had just moved in and hadn't gotten to know the area yet. They bought a TV early on, and if someone got jealous and broke in to steal it while he was at work, he would suffer a huge loss.
He thought about it and realized that made sense. Besides, he didn't know much about the local residents, and his purchase of those two houses would attract attention.
“You should buy a more spacious one; Chen Lizhong said you have too many books.”
Sure enough, the bedroom door was wide open, and she immediately saw two bookshelves piled high with books.
As they were talking, an older woman came to knock on the door looking for Ding Xuewen, but first glanced at all of them.
The three women were clearly in relationships: one was pregnant, one was holding a child, and one was holding a man's arm.
After scanning the area, the eldest sister quietly breathed a sigh of relief.
When Ding Xuewen asked what was wrong, the older sister took out the two apples she had brought. "My husband asked me to bring these over. I heard you officially moved into your new house today, so I left them here for you."
After her older sister left, Lin Sitian asked, "Your neighbor next door?"
"No, her husband also works at the TV station, in the department next to mine." Ding Xuewen accepted the apple and was pacing around the room, preparing to return the gift.
"Keep it for now. They say a close neighbor is worse than a distant relative. It's good to reciprocate. You can return it when you have the chance. Later, take some candy to visit your neighbors and get to know them better." Lin Sitian quickly figured it out for him and then asked if he had bought any candy at home. "If not, you can go to the supply and marketing cooperative up ahead to buy some later."
Chen Lizhong chimed in, "That's right, there's no rush. Let's talk about it after lunch."
"It's still early. Why don't you help him move the tables and cabinets in the room first?"
"Alright, I knew I'd have to work on Lao Ding's new house today."
Several of the men went inside to move furniture and rearrange its positions, while Lin Sitian helped direct them from the doorway.
Guan Yuehe couldn't help, and didn't want to just sit around, so she told Qin Zilan to take the two children to the supply and marketing cooperative.
"Yuehe, buy a bag of salt!" Ding Xuewen rushed out and said.
"knew."
Qin Zilan laughed, "That's how it is when you first move into a new house. You only realize how little you have when you start tidying up."
Ding Xuewen started tidying up his new home as soon as he bought it. He worked during the day and could only come over to help after get off work. It took him half a month to tidy up until last night when Chen Lizhong lent him a car to help him move in for the last time. Only then did he officially move in.
"When it's a new home, you'll find everything you need after living there for a while." Guan Yuehe is very experienced in this, having moved twice already.
Niu Niu, who was running ahead with her younger brother, saw them walking slowly and stomped her feet anxiously, urging them to hurry up.
As Qin Zilan replied, "Coming, coming," she whispered to Guan Yuehe, "Cheng Cai and I aren't impatient, and neither are my mom, my older brother, and my sister-in-law. I really don't know why she's getting more and more impatient as she gets older."
Guan Yuehe thought to herself, "This is great! I used to find Xu Chengcai annoying because he was always so slow and indecisive. I'll let Niu Niu teach him a lesson."
When they brought back two bags of fruit candy, they found Lin Yiku standing outside the door.
Why don't you go in?
Lin Yiku glanced into the house and said there were guests inside.
Are there guests now? Could they be Ding Xuewen's colleagues at work, or his college classmates?
Guan Yuehe looked into the room and saw two strangers, a man and a woman, sitting on the sofa. They looked like two leaders.
Lin Sitian, Chen Lizhong, and Xu Chengcai sat at the dining table, watching Ding Xuewen, the host, awkwardly scratch his head and force a smile as he sat there with them.
Lin Sitian whispered something to Chen Lizhong, then covered her mouth and giggled.
Ding Xuewen's smile vanished. Seeing Guan Yuehe and the others return, he immediately used them as an excuse, "Director Lan, I just moved here, the house isn't fully settled yet, and I still have friends to entertain..."
Director Lan then conveyed what he wanted to say and called Comrade Liu, who lived nearby, to take it with him.
"Your boss came to check on you on the very first day of the move? Your boss really values you."
Guan Yuehe was unaware of the situation, but Lin Sitian and the others, who knew the whole story, were all delighted.
"His boss came to him to inquire about his personal life, asking him what kind of female colleague he was looking for, so that his workplace could make an introduction for him."
Lin Sitian said decisively, "Someone in your workplace has taken a liking to you. They made an excuse to have your boss come over to check on you and find out more about you. They probably know you bought a house nearby and want to know if it's true. Also, your colleague in the office next door came over as soon as they heard the news. They probably want to introduce you to someone, afraid that someone else will beat you to it."
She had worked at the Five Star Automobile Factory for many years and had heard countless stories of colleagues introducing potential partners to others, while she herself had been introduced to potential partners countless times. She knew it all too well!
"Not bad, not bad, quite popular."
"Haha, you guys didn't see Lao Ding's reaction when the leader said he'd help him with his personal life. What a pity!"
"If Uncle Ming calls you an old bachelor again, I'll have to have a serious talk with him. You're a hot commodity now! What did that leader just say in praise of you?"
Chen Lizhong immediately agreed, "A handsome and talented young man!"
Ding Xuewen glared at them, annoyed. They hadn't helped him earlier, and now they were laughing incessantly.
Yuehe laughed the loudest, especially since he hadn't forgotten the time he went to Peking University to find her, only to be stopped by her classmates, and she turned and ran away.
But seeing them laughing, he couldn't help but laugh out loud himself.
"Stop laughing. Go borrow a ladder from next door and help me replace the broken tiles on my roof."
"Hey, are we here to eat or to work?"
"You'll definitely get plenty to eat."
At noon, the aroma of cooking filled the air in the new house for the first time, and the house was so lively that it didn't seem like only one person lived there.
Several people passing by glanced inside the nearby shops without thinking.
"Didn't they say that the person who moved in before was a man? I heard he's over thirty and still doesn't have a girlfriend, and his family doesn't live with him here."
He lives alone in two large rooms, which he bought with his own money; this person must be quite wealthy.
"Didn't you hear what Section Chief Liu's husband said? She also works at the TV station, graduated from university this year, and is a key talent being groomed by the station."
"He bought a house right after graduating and starting work? His family must be well-off."
—
Inside the room, Ding Xuewen was receiving advice and guidance from everyone.
"If you don't want to be in a relationship, you have to firmly refuse!"
"If you want to talk, don't be shy. Ask your boss to introduce you to some people, make friends first, and if you get along well, then you can talk."
Lin Sitian pointed directly at Guan Yuehe, "You should learn from Yuehe. She..." Back then, when she said she had her eye on my brother, she pursued him without hesitation.
What happened to Yuehe?
Lin Sitian, whose mouth was covered by Guan Yuehe, couldn't speak. Guan Yuehe replied for her, "I'm telling you to learn from me. If you don't want to date, then don't agree. If anyone tries to introduce you to someone, just beat them up."
Ding Xuewen was silent for a few seconds, then said, "This is not easy to learn."
He's aware of his own limitations. Studying is fine, but fighting is out of the question; he can't win.
Author's Note: [Newbie]
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