Chapter 142 (Updated 1422)
According to Zhou Weifang's plan, he set off for Huairou the next morning.
Although this place is part of Beijing, it is quite far away. He arrived in the afternoon and had to have dinner after only visiting a few areas.
As a result, he had no choice but to stay in the village for another day, troubling his childhood friend for another night.
Luo Hong didn't seem to care. When he answered the phone, he said, "You go ahead with your work. We can have dinner another day."
Zhou Weifang: "You can go another day, but Yan Yan and I can't go to the movies."
Luo Hong didn't want to hear another word of what he was saying, so he immediately hung up the phone and went back to the store to tell his sister when she got out of school.
Luo Yan nodded to indicate that she understood, and picked up the lunchbox from the shelf, asking, "What would you like to eat tonight?"
Luo Hong said it was fine, but when she actually bought only two groceries, he shook his head and said, "The quality of our meals has plummeted."
Luo Yan glared at him: "You should be grateful to have something to eat, stop being so picky."
Luo Hong said "No, no," and sat down to pick up his chopsticks.
Just as I was about to eat, someone from the security office next door called out: "Luo Hong, call."
Wow, so many phone calls today.
Luo Hong thought Zhou Weifang had something left to say, so he instructed his sister, "Go and answer it."
Luo Yan quickly returned and relayed the message: "Mom wants you to come home after you finish eating. She said there's a suitable house available."
Luo Hong jumped up and hurriedly ate his rice.
Luo Yan: "Houses don't grow legs and run away. Eat slowly, or you'll get a stomachache."
Luo Hong mumbled, "I have two more cars that someone else wants later, so I can't be late."
He was quick and efficient; Luo Yan had barely finished eating when he had already fixed the car.
Luo Hong finished up everything at the shop and said to his sister, "Go home early after school too."
Luo Yan was naturally curious about what a suitable house would look like. After class, she rushed to the bike shed, painstakingly shoved her own bicycle out from among the stacks of bikes, and rode home.
The family of three was waiting for her, patting the sofa to signal, "Come on, come on."
Before Luo Yan could even sit down, she asked, "Where is the house located?"
Liu Yinfeng: "No. 7 Courtyard at Erxiekou, the one where the flowers are planted."
The Luo family now lives in Fengshou Hutong, which is the main hutong. Many branches have sprung up from this center, one of which is the Erxiekou, commonly known as the Second Alley.
Luo Yan remembered it and said, "Isn't that Grandma Chen's house?"
Liu Yinfeng thought her daughter didn't recognize anyone and said, "That's right, they're separating their household. The two sons absolutely refuse to live in the same courtyard. It's just right for the eldest and youngest to live with our family. The only thing missing is for you, Yanyan, to go and hug them."
She got excited when she heard about it while chatting in the alley that afternoon, and went straight to the courtyard to inquire. After looking at the place, she felt that everything was suitable. She waited for her husband to get off work and then called her son back. Now she is just waiting for the girl to nod.
Luo Yan: "No need to look, I agree."
She couldn't tell the difference between good and bad anyway, she only cared about: "How big is the place, and how much does it cost?"
Liu Yinfeng: "Three rooms facing north, including the courtyard, would cost exactly ten thousand, but I estimate I can negotiate a hundred or two down the price."
Compared to ten thousand yuan, one or two hundred yuan is really nothing.
Luo Yan: "That's still not enough."
Liu Yinfeng had done the math: "Brother Chen wants these three rooms, which can be worth five thousand. We have two thousand five hundred at home, and you two have one thousand. I'll borrow the rest from your dad. If we tighten our belts, we should be able to pay it back in two or three years."
Her husband earns over a hundred yuan a month, and the two children don't need much money now. After deducting all expenses, she can save about fifty or sixty yuan a month.
It won't take two or three years. Luo Hong is already earning quite a bit: "From now on, I'll give my family 100 yuan every month."
He doesn't go out much these days; he just takes care of feeding himself and his sister, and that's enough for him no matter how you look at it.
As parents, they always hope to support their families while they are still able to work, but it's not a big deal to keep owing money to others. Luo Xinmin thought for a moment and said, "Whatever amount you take, we will make it up to you later."
He then spoke impartially again: "Yanyan is the same."
Luo Yan said frankly, "Mom, remember this well, I am Babai."
Liu Yinfeng: "Okay, Mom will remember this for you."
Looking around the house again, she said, "If I really have to sell it, I'm a little reluctant."
The family of four sat in the living room in silence, their surroundings filled with memories.
Luo Yan lay on the table: "I thought I would be spending this year here."
Indeed, Liu Yinfeng thought to herself that she had spent more than half of her life here, and silently held her husband's hand.
For so many years, Luo Xinmin's right-hand side has always been his wife's seat. The couple has supported each other for over twenty years, weathering many storms together.
He said, "Oh dear, I'm speechless."
Luo Hong tried to lighten the mood: "Look on the bright side, we're going to have a new house."
He stretched out his hand again: "This time, we'll have to play rock-paper-scissors to choose the room."
Luo Yan deliberately hid her hands behind her back: "I'm not going to guess with you, I want to choose first."
The siblings' antics were quite entertaining, and Liu Yinfeng, forgetting all about being sentimental, tilted her head back to hide, saying, "We're talking about serious matters, no fighting allowed."
Luo Yan scratched her brother with lightning speed and then sat up straight.
When Luo Hong was about to retaliate, she complained, "Mom, my brother doesn't listen to orders."
Luo Hong pinched her cheek: "You really need me to beat you up."
Luo Yan cried out in pain, forcing out two tears as she sobbed, "Mom, my brother hit me!"
"Go ahead and hit me," Liu Yinfeng tapped the table, reminding them, "You two haven't showered yet."
As soon as this was mentioned, Luo Yan jumped up, went back to her room to grab her clothes, and dragged her brother outside.
Luo Hong nearly stumbled: "Luo Xiaoyan, the bathhouse can't grow legs and run away!"
Luo Yan chuckled, then inexplicably sighed.
My younger sister may seem aloof, but she's actually the most sentimental; otherwise, she wouldn't still keep the broken hair clip from when she was little.
Luo Hong was unusually gentle, saying, "When I have money in the future, I'll buy this house back for you."
Luo Yan's eyes lit up: "Then you'd better work hard to make money."
This girl, how can she be so ungrateful? Luo Hong: "At least exchange a few polite words with me."
Luo Yan bowed slightly: "Thank you, brother."
Luo Hong rubbed her head: "Do you still have a second brother?"
Luo Yan slapped his hand away: "One is enough for me."
Luo Hong returned the same words to her, but after taking a shower, he still stood at the door waiting for his sister.
Luo Yan didn't wash her hair tonight, and she did it very quickly.
When the brother and sister returned home, they saw their parents flipping through a photo album and went over to look at it.
The first picture I opened was of Luo Yan crying.
She argued illogically, "I was only a little kid back then, even babies cried."
Luo Hong sneered twice: "I can tell that this is at least three years old. How dare he call himself a baby?"
Luo Yan: "That proves you're wrong! This is a baby!"
Luo Hong pointed and said, "Look at those big teeth you're showing. Tell me, whose baby is teething?"
Luo Yan was speechless, but then she thought, "It might not be me, it could be you."
Luo Hong: "Yes, yes, yes, this is a family photo of the four of us. The eldest child is me, and the youngest child is also me. I can be in two places at once."
Luo Yan was completely speechless, blinking her big eyes.
Finally, things quieted down. With the two of them calling out to Liu Yinfeng from both sides, all traces of sadness from reminiscing about the past had vanished.
She said, "Alright, alright, we have a lot to do tomorrow, so let's all go to bed early."
Luo Yan couldn't sleep after returning to her room. She bent down and looked at the pile of things under her bed, feeling a bit troubled.
It's so late at night; if we keep moving, things definitely won't end well.
Knowing her own nature, and fearing she wouldn't be able to control herself, she quickly turned off the light and crawled into bed. After waking up, she asked her mother, "Can I move all my things from my room to this place?"
Of course we can. Liu Yinfeng barely slept all night as she announced her arrangements: "There are also three rooms over there. We'll change the layout to be the same as it is now, but the rooms will be bigger, and my brother's room will have a window and can fit a table."
Luo Hong: "What would I need a table for in my room? I can't even write three words in a year."
Luo Yan also suggested, "I can sleep in the inner room."
Even with windows, the lighting and ventilation in the inner room would be worse, so Luo Hong was the first to object: "I agreed to choose the room first."
When was this agreed upon? Luo Yan: "I'll go first!"
Luo Hongcai ignored her and continued, "Well, this needs to be sorted out. Should the Chen family move first?"
Liu Yinfeng: "This still needs to be discussed, but it would be best if it were like this."
She slammed her hands on the table: "Anyway, there's nothing to worry about. I'll take care of it. I'll call you when it's time to get to work."
In this family, everyone has their own role.
After lunch, those going to work or school all left home.
After tidying up the dining table, Liu Yinfeng went to visit Granny Chen's house alone.
Selling the house is a big deal for the Chen family. Almost the entire family is on high alert. The reason is not that they are afraid the buyer will take advantage of them, but that the two brothers are afraid that each other will take advantage of the other.
Perhaps that's why Liu Yinfeng actually managed to negotiate down a huge sum of four hundred yuan.
She was secretly pleased and continued to negotiate other conditions.
She talked until her throat was dry all day, and finally they agreed on four things. She would share them with her husband first after he got off work: "They will move out after the house is transferred. We will give Chen Laoda an extra twenty yuan. His family will each find a place to squeeze in for two months so we can tidy up the new house. After we move out, Chen Laoda will move in."
Luo Xinmin also shared good news with her: "I borrowed two hundred yuan from Lao Wu when I was having lunch, and he agreed."
Liu Yinfeng: "I also mentioned it to Xiujuan, and she said she could free up 150 yuan."
The couple meticulously counted who they had borrowed money from and who they would borrow from that night, mentally keeping track of their finances.
On the other side, Luo Hong, who had gathered with his childhood friends, was also talking to Zhou Weifang about this.
He figured moving wouldn't happen overnight, so since they had already agreed on a time, they should stick to their plan and have dinner together.
The group of us decided to meet in a private room at Zhang Hongmin's restaurant. There was a lively table full of people, each of us talking and no one was quiet.
Luo Hong had to raise his voice to tell Zhou Weifang, "You don't need to look anymore, we've already decided on the house."
No, I only went to Huairou, how could things have changed so quickly?
Zhou Weifang: "When?"
Luo Hong gave him a brief explanation, and Zhou Weifang roughly understood the situation, asking, "How much more money is needed?"
If this were before, Luo Hong would have borrowed it from him without hesitation.
But now everything is different. He said, "This time I can't borrow from you, no matter who I ask. My parents will be the first to disagree."
Zhou Weifang knew without guessing what his elders were thinking: "No, then we'll just consider our long-standing friendship."
These things can't be discussed separately no matter what. Luo Hong patted his shoulder and said, "It's okay, my parents can raise the money. I just wanted to let you know."
In that case, Zhou Weifang said, "Then you must call me when you're working."
That's fine, Luo Hong said. "Don't worry, you definitely won't be able to escape."
Zhou Weifang was eager to get involved and took on all the tasks: "I can do all the dirty, tiring, and physically demanding work."
Luo Hong was at a loss for words in response to their attentiveness.
Although he showed some disdain on the surface, he was actually satisfied deep down.
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Author's note: I'm writing so slowly, goodnight.
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