Twenty minutes later--
Guided by Amo, Achen followed the stone steps to Teacher Meng's house.
The location here is superb! You can see the ancient city and the old town in front of the No. 1 Middle School, and there is a bustling small market on the side.
Teacher Meng's house was a two-story bungalow.
The shape is 田 (field).
There are several small houses behind the main house, with a courtyard in the middle.
As far as Achen knew, Teacher Meng and his wife lived in the back, because it was right next to a small vegetable garden, which made it convenient for them to grow vegetables.
The front rooms, consisting of two storefronts and seven or eight rooms, are all rented to students.
The rent is not high.
While making things convenient for students, it also adds some income to Teacher Meng's family. After all, they have children to support, and Teacher Meng's wife is a housewife. Teacher Meng's meager salary is hardly enough.
However, at this moment, there were quite a few people coming and going from Teacher Meng's house, one after another. It didn't seem like students were moving their things away, but rather like they were coming to look at the house and preparing to buy it.
Ah Chen and Ah Mo exchanged a glance, their eyes filled with confusion.
after all--
Ah Chen hadn't been here for five or six years; he didn't know what had happened.
But for him, everything here holds too many memories.
"Ah Chen, wait a minute, let me ask what happened."
Amo turned around and asked the women in the field next to her. As soon as the two women saw that Amo was wearing Miao clothing, their attitude immediately changed.
"Little sister, aren't you Old Meng's student?"
"What little sister? She's already married. Look, even her hair accessories are different."
"Calling her 'Little Sister' sounds nicer."
The two women exchanged a few words, and then the woman with the hoe said to Amo, "Something has happened to the Meng family!"
Ah Chen walked over, and Ah Mo asked, "We are students that Teacher Meng taught a few years ago. May I ask what happened to Teacher Meng's family?"
"This young prince looks so familiar?"
"You old hag, this pretty young woman is asking you a question, why are you changing the subject?"
"Yes, yes, yes."
The woman dusted herself off, came out of the field, and said to Amo, "Something's happened to the Meng family; they have to sell their house!"
"Sell the house?"
"Yes! I heard that Old Meng's youngest son beat someone up in Rongjiang and was seriously injured. He has to pay a lot of money in compensation. Old Meng is furious, but he doesn't have enough money on hand, so he has to sell the house first."
"Oh dear---Meng's youngest son has gotten himself into big trouble this time. He actually got into a big conflict with the Buyi people from Rongjiang. I heard the other side is quite fierce."
"Yes, Old Meng's house, plus the land next to it, would normally be worth at least ten thousand. Now it's up for sale. A lot of rich people have come to see it these past few days, and I heard the highest offer was only seven or eight thousand."
There is indeed a big difference between selling when you're full and selling when you're hungry.
Amo glanced at Achen, who then asked, "Excuse me... is Teacher Meng home?"
"Yes, but I haven't left the house for several days. I got sick from being upset by his youngest son!"
"What about Teacher Meng's eldest son and daughter?"
Teacher Meng has three children: two sons and a daughter.
The eldest son is, if Ah Chen remembers correctly, he should be twenty-five or twenty-six this year!
The second and third children are twins, a boy and a girl, both around 22 or 23 years old.
In those days, the one-child policy hadn't been implemented yet, so even with a secure job, Old Meng was still able to have several children.
"Oh, don't even mention it! Old Meng was such a good teacher, yet he has a few ungrateful children. With such a big thing happening at home, his eldest son is in another province and can't come back, which is bad enough, but even though he's already working, he doesn't send any money home to help support the family."
"The second son's daughter is still just a girl. She has no future. She's not married yet and doesn't care about family matters."
"This youngest son just graduated from university and came back, and then this happened. We all suspect that there's something wrong with the Meng family's ancestral graves."
Is there a problem with the ancestral graves?
These gossipy women! When Teacher Meng's child got into university, everyone in the neighborhood praised him. Now that something's happened, these people are saying there's something wrong with his ancestral graves.
Mu Achen didn't want to ask any more questions. He was afraid that these two women would speak ill of Teacher Meng and, by extension, his students, and he would be unable to resist giving them a piece of his mind.
So, he turned around and waved to Tang Abao and Gu Axiong below, took the gifts from their hands, and led Amo into Teacher Meng's house.
But as soon as Mu Achen entered, he discovered that the interior had been altered.
Amo said, "Go this way, the path to the backyard has been changed to this location on the right."
As Mu Achen and Amo approached the room behind the courtyard, they saw several middle-aged men and women standing at the door, pointing and talking about the house.
Meanwhile, inside the house, they were also talking.
“Old Meng, we’re all family here. Your house, plus the vegetable garden next to it, is only about 200 to 300 square meters of land. 9,200 is already the highest you can pay.”
"Furthermore, there are some parts of your house that need renovation. If you are willing to sell, I am sincerely willing to buy."
"If you agree, I'll pay you eight thousand yuan first, and you can give me the remaining twelve thousand yuan for two months. Otherwise, I really can't come up with that much money all at once."
The middle-aged man who was speaking was wearing a suit, though it was a bit old. He was also carrying a leather bag and had the air of a businessman. He was accompanied by a man and a woman, who were probably relatives.
Teacher Meng, who was forty-five or forty-six years old, had short hair, but her temples were covered with striking white hair.
He looked a bit older, while his wife sat to the side wiping away tears; clearly, they were reluctant to sell the house.
Ah Chen, standing at the door, felt a pang of sadness watching this scene unfold.
He still remembers the day of graduation. Teacher Meng had a full head of black hair and was in high spirits as he explained things about life and studies to everyone. He was a guiding light for Mu Achen and the others as they moved forward in the dark.
But now--
The teacher is getting old and is no longer as energetic as before.
It's true, even a hero can be brought down by a penny.
"Achen--"
Amo called out softly to Achen, asking if Achen wanted to go in first.
Ah Chen shook his head and gestured to Ah Mo with his eyes not to go in yet.
He knew that his teacher was a proud man, and he couldn't go in at this time and embarrass him.
Amo nodded calmly, then took Achen's hand and waited with him outside the door.
The atmosphere inside the room was rather somber.
Old Meng may appear strong, but his weary expression already says it all.
Unfortunately, it was his son, his own son, who got into trouble.
Even tigers don't eat their cubs!
But if he sells the house, the only legacy left by his ancestors will be gone, and he won't even have a memento of it. How will he face his ancestors in the afterlife?
But if we don't sell, what can we do? Where will we get so much money?
"How about I think about it first, and I'll give you an answer at this time tomorrow?"
After a long while, Old Meng spoke to the man with the leather bag in front of him.
But the man with the briefcase shook his head: "I'm going to Lincheng tonight to buy goods. I'll be gone for at least a week or two. Old Meng, I can wait, but can you?"
Clearly, the man with the briefcase was deliberately putting pressure on Lao Meng.
Mu Achen, standing outside the door, hadn't wanted to get involved in this situation, but seeing that his teacher seemed to have been driven to a dead end...
So after thinking about it, he decided to come in anyway.
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