Chapter 3 Returning to Rural Inner Mongolia
On May 6th, the balance was 1 million (460,000 in bank account - 70,000 for buying a house + 630,000 for selling a house - 20,000 for taxes and agent fees).
After packing all my belongings, I arrived at my new home and officially began my doomsday preparations.
Walking up the small slope, I pushed open the gate and saw my dilapidated new home.
The main house faces south and is quite large, measuring 160 square meters.
It is divided into five parts: three bedrooms on the sunny side, and the kitchen and bathroom on the shady side.
The main entrance is located in the very center of the house. Pushing the door open, you'll find a spacious bedroom on the sunny east side. Two large windows on the south wall illuminate the room brightly.
The north wall, which has no windows, was fitted with a large heated brick bed that extended directly to the east and west walls.
In other words, half of this room is open space and the other half is a heated kang (a traditional Chinese bed-like structure). This room will be referred to as the East Room from now on.
The east room serves as the master bedroom, with a large heated kang (a traditional heated platform bed). Besides sleeping, it also has a table for meals and needlework.
The ground floor is also very spacious and has excellent natural lighting.
When it's too cold outside to grow vegetables, I can put some soil-filled boxes on the floor of the east room and plant small green vegetables in them.
The sunny side on the west side was neatly divided into two rooms by a wall.
The first room is square and spacious, without a heated kang (a traditional Chinese bed-stove). I plan to use it for growing vegetables and raising livestock.
The second room on the west side is rectangular; let's call it the Little West Room from now on.
This room is quite special; it not only includes the sunny side but also extends into the shady side.
The sunny side was empty, while the deepest part of the shady side had a small heated kang (a traditional heated platform bed).
Next to the small heated kang (a traditional heated brick bed), there is an inconspicuous wooden board on the ground, with an area of about 1.5 square meters.
Curious, I lifted the plank and shone my phone's flashlight underneath.
However, due to the dim lighting, it was really difficult to see clearly.
Just then, I suddenly touched what seemed to be a switch on top of the entrance.
Press the switch, and in an instant, the dim yellow light bulbs lit up one by one, illuminating everything below.
I was so surprised that my mouth dropped open—it turned out that there was a basement almost the size of the house hidden underneath!
The basement was empty, except for a few empty water tanks in one corner.
I suddenly remembered the landlord's mysterious smile when I signed the contract, and what he said about "a mysterious gift for me".
This is such a wonderful gift!
They made a quick decision to hide the treasure in the basement.
It's very simple: just turn the basement entrance and the small earthen bed into a dark room (a private little house that no one else can see).
Build a wardrobe wall in the middle of the house, flush with the wall of the outer room.
A hidden door is opened behind the middle wardrobe door.
Unless an outsider observes very carefully, they would not notice that there is a room inside.
The sunny side of the small west wing was used as a storage room, while the dark room on the shady side was decorated as a cozy little bedroom.
The north is dry and cold, and there is no dampness in winter, so bedrooms on the shady side are not afraid of mold and dampness.
The shady side is a whole kitchen, and a bathroom is separated by a wall on the far east side.
There is a stove on the east and west sides of the kitchen, which connects to the heated brick beds in the east room and the small west room, respectively.
The two stoves were used for cooking and burning firewood, which also served as a source of warmth for the heated kang (a traditional heated brick bed) inside the house.
There is a back door on the north wall, which is directly opposite the front door.
Pushing open the door, a small space five meters wide is formed between the mountain wall and the house wall.
Walls were built on both the left and right sides, and the length of the open space was the same as the length of the house.
The open space behind here is really useful.
I plan to pile all the honeycomb briquettes and lump briquettes I bought here, so they are easy to access and relatively hidden.
Once the extreme cold and apocalypse are over, this place can be cultivated into a small vegetable garden.
I nodded in satisfaction, went through the back door to the front yard, looked around, and considered how to use the yard and the west wing.
Most of the yard and the threshing ground were intended to be used for storing firewood.
I don't know how long this extreme cold and apocalypse will last, so I need to prepare enough firewood and coal to keep warm.
In rural areas of eastern Inner Mongolia, firewood is plentiful; people rely on it to cook meals regardless of the season.
Therefore, every household had a large stack of firewood, enough to burn for at least a year.
Even if the firewood runs out, most hardworking rural people will choose to collect firewood from the nearby mountains rather than stealing it from other people's homes far away.
So they can pile up the timber in the yard without worrying about others stealing it.
The three large side rooms on the west side were used to store chicken feed in one room, farm tools and implements in another room, and the use of the third room depended on the situation.
With a preliminary plan in mind, I began to try to find a construction team to give the house a complete renovation.
It's not easy to find a construction team. If they're too close to home, I'm afraid it will arouse suspicion; if they're too far away, they won't come.
After researching for a long time, I was still hesitant, worried that the quality of the house they were renovating for me wouldn't be up to standard.
I suddenly remembered a good friend from junior high school named Su Mi, who is a rich kid.
A few days ago when we were chatting, she mentioned that her family had built a small villa in the next county, and that the villa was very well decorated.
Many of the renovation materials are very advanced; I'll visit her place sometime when I have time.
"I just don't know how expensive these materials are."
He muttered to himself as he started contacting this friend.
When I told her that I was planning to go back to the countryside to start a self-media business and wanted to build a nicer house, she immediately recommended this decoration company.
"Sister, their prices are a bit high, but it's totally worth it! The quality is top-notch!"
She sent me voice messages in a very dramatic and startled manner.
Seeing that she was still so enthusiastic and innocent, I couldn't help but remind her,
"The weather has been unusual this year, so just in case, you should stock up on more grain, as well as plenty of coal and firewood."
She said, "The new villa we built has a big fireplace on the first floor, which I really like. As a result, I bought a whole warehouse of coal, which will last for three or four years. I even got scolded by my mom for this a few days ago."
She tearfully poured out her troubles to me, and as soon as I heard it, I felt relieved. She really was the chosen one of the apocalypse.
Sumi is a homebody and hasn't worked since graduating.
I stay home all day, and I have countless snacks in stock. Even if the apocalypse comes, I'll still have enough to eat for a while.
I still told her to stock up on food at home, and after hanging up the phone, I went to contact the renovation company.
The person in charge who answered the phone sounded very reliable and capable.
They asked me when I wanted to start construction, saying they needed to come and inspect the site beforehand.
I said the sooner the better, and we finally decided to come to my house tomorrow to see the house and discuss how to renovate it face-to-face.
I casually mentioned whether they knew how to build a heated kang (a traditional Chinese bed-stove), and the person in charge assured me they did.
After hanging up the phone, I saw an unread message on WeChat from Su Mi.
Sumi transferred 50,000 yuan to me, along with a 30-second voice message.
She said, "Chengcheng, since you told me to stock up on food and firewood, you should stock up on more too. No matter what strange things happen, it's better to be prepared. I don't know if you have enough money, but I'll give you another 50,000. If you don't have enough, just tell me. Don't be shy, you can pay me back when you make money later."
Listening to this voice message, my nose tingled with emotion. It felt like it had been a long time since I had received a red envelope or a transfer from someone, nor had I felt such genuine care.
I understand why Sumi trusted me so much and even advised me to stock up.
She's a complete apocalypse enthusiast; the slightest disturbance makes her think the end of the world is really coming.
I accepted her transfer and planned to use her money to buy her more long-lasting food online and send it to her. I even mimicked her tone and sent her a very cheesy message.
"Waaaaah, I love you so much, thank you baby, how could I live without you~"
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