206 Borrowing money
"Yuehe, did you really buy that dilapidated courtyard in the alley next to the state-run store?"
As soon as Guan Yuehe got off work and arrived at the entrance of the alley, she was stopped by elderly men and women.
"Grandpas and grandmas, your intelligence-gathering abilities have improved quite a bit!" Guan Yuehe couldn't help but admire them. She suspected that every sewer in Beijing had a dedicated grandpa or grandma responsible for listening in.
But this matter would get out sooner or later, so she didn't intend to keep it a secret. "Yes. If you guys have nothing better to do at home, you could help me clear out the stones in that dilapidated yard. Maybe we can find some treasure."
The elderly folks didn't take her line of dialogue. Everyone knew about that dilapidated courtyard; it'd been vandalized countless times. Even if there were any treasures there, they'd all been taken long ago.
But the elderly men and women looked at each other, as if they had something difficult to say. Seeing that they didn't speak for a long time, Guan Yuehe didn't want to ask and was about to push the cart home.
Finally, someone spoke up: "Yuehe, now that you've moved out, is this house available for rent?"
"We'll see when the time comes; I still need to stay here."
Guan Yuehe didn't give a definitive answer. She mentioned the idea of opening a general store here to her parents, and they said they would consider it. Anyway, there was no rush. They would have to move to the courtyard house eventually so that the house here could be freed up.
She wasn't in a hurry, but her neighbors were.
Seeing the Wang family's grocery store thriving, and how they now live in a large courtyard house and drive a car, how many people in the alley are envious?
It's hard to find a storefront outside, and the location isn't always good, but Guan Yuehe's house is in a prime location. Renting it and opening a small grocery store would definitely be profitable.
"Oh dear, you've already bought the yard, why don't you build the house sooner? Nothing here is as comfortable as a detached house with its own yard... By the way, I have a relative who works on a construction team, can I introduce you to him?"
"Let's talk about it later. I borrowed several thousand yuan to buy a house, and I don't have the money now." Guan Yuehe was afraid that her neighbors would come to her door to "persuade" her, so she reached out to them, "Why don't you lend me some? I promise to pay it back in two or three years. You can trust Lin Yiku and me, right?"
When it came to borrowing money, no one paid any attention to her anymore.
There are countless examples in the alley where people borrow money and then refuse to pay it back, some of whom are even factory cadres, yet they still stubbornly delay and drag their feet.
Character is an unreliable thing!
Although Guan Yuehe said she wasn't considering renting out the house for the time being, a few days later, someone still came to her door.
Cao Lili deliberately chose this time after the news ended. Based on her past experience as Guan Yuehe's neighbor, the time between watching the news and studying in the evening was the best time to talk to Guan Yuehe.
Guan Yuehe was quite surprised by her purpose in coming. "You want to open your own general store?"
She heard it clearly: Cao Lili was saying that she wanted to open a general store, and it would be best if she could rent her house, which was why she came to ask for a definite answer.
"Are you planning to resign from the state-owned store? Or is the matter with your store manager affecting you and leading to your dismissal?"
Cao Lili nodded and then shook her head. "It's impossible to say there's no impact at all. For us sales clerks, this is the last job we'll ever do. I'm thinking of taking a leave of absence without pay. If it's good to open a grocery store outside, I'll keep it open. If not, I'll go back to work at my old company in two years."
As early as 1983, the state explicitly allowed employees of state-owned enterprises to take unpaid leave, but stipulated that the period should not exceed two years, during which they should also pay labor insurance premiums of no less than 20% of their wages.
In fact, government agencies are now encouraging their employees to go into business.
Two of Guan Yuehe's young subordinates had proposed the idea, one of whom was Zhu Huacai. The foreign trade system was undergoing reform, shifting towards independent operation and self-financing. Zhu Huacai felt there was great potential in foreign trade consulting services and planned to establish a consulting service company.
The young colleague is enterprising and has a long-term vision. She fully supports him. Moreover, Zhu Huacai herself has already made up her mind, and now she's just waiting for Zhu Huacai to submit her application for leave without pay.
But it's hard to say whether I can return to my original workplace after two years. Even if I take a leave of absence without pay, I might not be able to get back to my original position. After all, there's always a place for someone, and positions can't stay vacant forever.
Cao Lili waved her hand dismissively, "If I go back in the future, the best I can do is continue working as a sales clerk, and the worst I can do is work as a loading and unloading worker."
After discussing it with Chang Zhengyi, she felt they might as well take a bold step. After all, no matter what, they would still have Chang Zhengyi as their support, so their lives wouldn't collapse.
Guan Yuehe nodded. Since Cao Lili was also determined to give it a try, she had nothing more to say.
However, "I plan to leave this house to my family to open a general store."
She'd rather not rent it out; even if she did, she'd still have to pay property tax. The rent might be a significant source of income, but she was worried that if the house remained rented out for too long, it would be difficult to reclaim it later.
If Lin's parents had opened a general store, they definitely wouldn't have all these troubles.
Cao Lili had already expected this; what family doesn't want to bring good things home? But she was still determined to make the trip.
"Okay, then I won't disturb you watching TV." Before leaving, Cao Lili joked, "We've been neighbors for so many years, you'll have to give priority to my grocery store from now on."
"Of course."
No sooner had Cao Lili left than Lin Ting moved over and asked, "Mom, will we always buy ice cream from Aunt Cao's house from now on?"
Guan Yuehe chuckled and pinched her cheek. "The shop hasn't even opened yet, and you're already thinking about buying ice cream. You won't have any ice cream to eat this week."
Guan Yuehe has no doubt that if her family opens a general store in the future, Lin Ting will definitely stay in the store every day to keep watch.
But on Sunday, Lin Ting still got to eat ice cream.
Guan Yuehe could hear her arrogant laughter all around her.
Xu Chengcai and Ding Xuewen suddenly came to visit with their families. Niu Niu and her brother took Lin Ting and Feng Chun to the supply and marketing cooperative. When they came back, each of them had an ice cream and sat in a row under the eaves outside the door. They seemed to be quite easy for the adults to take care of.
If Lin Ting hadn't given the bad idea of taking his older brother, older sister, and younger brother to the very end of the alley to catch kittens to raise...
Fortunately, Yuanbao was watching TV at home, which attracted them all.
Seeing her sigh several times, Xu Chengcai said gloatingly, "You've finally raised a little rascal."
He remembered very clearly that before Lin Ting was three years old, Yuehe would always praise her whenever she brought Lin Ting out, saying that she and Lin Yiku had given birth to a sweet-talking child who was both well-behaved and sweet-talking, and very easy to coax.
Now Lin Ting has finally started climbing on roofs, tearing off tiles, and teasing cats and dogs.
The others laughed along, and Guan Yuehe really wanted to roll her eyes at each of them.
"Hey, Chen Lizhong went to pick up Sitian and Xiaoyu, why aren't they here yet?" Xu Cheng peeked out several times, but still couldn't see them.
Why? Sitian finished her postpartum confinement today and went to the public bathhouse early, saying she wanted to scrub herself a few times.
If they hadn't arrived in time, she would have already taken Lin Ting to the bathhouse to meet up with Si Tian.
"By the way, when do you plan to start construction on your house?"
"We'll have to wait until July; the construction team is very busy." The construction team was found with the help of her second brother. The foreman is her second sister-in-law's cousin, and it's the most reputable construction team in their hometown commune.
Guan Yuehe suddenly realized something was wrong. "Hey, I was thinking of telling you the good news next Sunday when Xiaoyu has her one-month celebration. How did you know?"
“The old folks in our alley stroll to the factory gate every day, and some even stroll to the entrance of the residential compound. When people in the compound say that the former Section Chief Guan bought a small courtyard, I know right away they're talking about you.”
Last week, he heard that she had borrowed money to buy a dilapidated little courtyard. He waited for a week but didn't receive any news from her. So he called Ding Xuewen, and the two of them decided to come to her place today.
Guan Yuehe laughed, "Look how well I had connections with the factory workers back then."
"Yes, who can compare to you? The factory's legendary Rat King." Fearing Ye Zhi Qiu might not know, Xu Cheng Cai explained the origin of the Rat King title to him.
While they were having fun, Lin Sitian, whose skin was red from rubbing, and Chen Lizhong, who was holding Chen Yu, arrived.
"Hurry up and look, she'll be asleep soon." Chen Lizhong handed the baby to Ding Xuewen, who had been craning his neck to see. After the adults looked at the baby, Chen Lizhong took the baby back.
Not long after, they jogged over again, and this time, everyone was present except for Lin Yiku.
Guan Yuehe had actually guessed the reason why they had decided to come and find her on short notice.
After a brief silence in the room, Guan Yuehe decided that there was no better time than now, and decided to talk to them about borrowing money today, instead of waiting until Xiaoyu's one-month celebration.
But before she could even open her mouth, Ding Xuewen pulled a bulging envelope out of his bag. "Zhi Qiu and I have discussed it. We'll lend you three thousand first. If it's not enough, just ask again. You can write the IOU yourself. You can pay it back when you've recovered."
Xu Chengcai also took out a thick envelope from his bag. "This is three thousand as well. Zilan and I don't need a lot of money in the next few years, so there's no need to rush to pay us back."
Qin Zilan nodded and said, "The factory is doing well, and our combined wages are not low. My mother's tailor shop also gives us a share."
The two letters on the small table looked heavy, filling Guan Yuehe's heart with a heavy weight.
Lin Sitian was stunned. She exclaimed, "You guys planned this all along? Why didn't anyone tell me?"
Xu Chengcai replied, "If she needed money, she would definitely ask you first. Why would we need to notify you?"
"Why are you still excluding them?" Lin Sitian snorted, and finally said to Guan Yuehe, "Then Chen Lizhong and I will also take three thousand. Their two families will act separately. We are not the kind of people who seek special treatment."
Everyone looked at Guan Yuehe, who was sitting on a small stool.
"Oh dear, I was planning to talk to you about borrowing money when we meet next Sunday..." But after hearing the news from someone else, they made a special trip to come here.
Guan Yuehe felt her eyes getting hot and laughed, "You don't think I'm embarrassed to ask you for money, do you?"
"I hadn't thought of that," Ding Xuewen said with a rare moment of humor. "You're not exactly shy."
Everyone else laughed, their faces showing complete agreement.
But Guan Yuehe only took out two thousand from each envelope. "I originally planned to borrow two thousand from your family. But let me make it clear in advance that I will pay back part of the money in one year and finish it within three years. Wait, I'll go find some paper to write you an IOU."
They stuffed the IOU and the remaining money back into their bags, and the group of them looked relaxed, as if they had finished their business.
Guan Yuehe thought that since everyone had started their own families and had children, it had become increasingly difficult to get together. So she decided to go out to eat today.
Guan Yuehe said without any politeness, "I'm the poorest now, so you big shots should treat us."
"Okay, just name your choice when you want to eat."
"Go to Uncle Ming's place, hurry up, he doesn't allow orders after noon." Guan Yuehe urged them to hurry out and call the child, she ran fast to reserve a seat first.
Like children rushing to grab supplies, the four of them left the alley one after another.
The difference is that the four people from back then have become four families.
Author's Note: [Let me see]
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