Judging by the time, my aunt should be going to discuss the land with my mother-in-law soon.
Next to the empty plot of land is her house. Although her daughter is married, she still lives at home. Her son-in-law is from Zhejiang and owns several supermarkets in Nanjing. The children are sent to her aunt's house to be taken care of.
Although Jiangdao is an island, it is surrounded by water on all sides, and it is only a ten-minute drive from the city center after crossing the Jiajiang Bridge.
Since the Jiajiang Bridge officially opened to traffic on May 1, 2010, it has brought great convenience to the people of Jiangdao Island. Previously, there were three boat docks on the island.
The ferry runs every half hour, from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. The island's piers are divided into three sections: Mianhuati Ferry Terminal at the head of the island, Hongxing Ferry Terminal in the middle of the island, and Hongwei Ferry Terminal at the tail of the island.
My mother-in-law's house is in Xixia Village, about one kilometer from the Hongxing Ferry in Zhouzhong.
Xixia Village is divided into Shanggeng and Xiage. My uncle and grandfather lived in Shanggeng, while my grandmother lived in Xiage.
My mother-in-law's name is Li Yuxiang. She is a local from Jiangdao. She is a hard-working person with an honest and kind nature and no guile.
She works as a cleaner at the Olympic Sports Center subway station outside Jiangdao Island. Her family also owns a three-acre vineyard. Every family in Jiangdao has a vineyard with more than 100 varieties. They started planting grapes when the land was allocated to individual households in 1985. The grapevines are older than Jiang Shuya.
Rare grape varieties are not commonly grown by ordinary families. Besides the high price of saplings, common varieties on the market include Ping Pong, which are large and beautiful, with a bunch weighing at least 5 kilograms and fetching a good price.
Then there's the Kyoho variety, which has a strong grape flavor. It's affordable and tastes good, so most people choose Kyoho. Then there's Sunshine Rose, which has a rose-scented taste, is very sweet and not sour, but it's more expensive and can only be sold at a higher price in the city.
My mother-in-law's three-acre vineyard is mostly planted with Kyoho grapes and a small amount of Ping Pong grapes, as well as a few Shine Muscat grapes, which have been planted for several years but have not yet borne fruit.
My mother-in-law once told me that the annual income from our three-mu vineyard was about four or five thousand yuan. Because there were no better sales channels, we could only cross the river by ferry to sell to vendors, or the vendors would go into the vineyard themselves to pick and prune the vines.
Those that are left over will be sold at a lower price to get a better understanding of the market. Grapes are only harvested once a year, and I take the vineyard with me to work during the week.
If we only rely on this income, the whole family will starve. Although Nanjing is not a first-tier city, it is the capital of Jiangsu Province. The income is not high, but the cost of living is very high. I estimate that my mother-in-law's annual income plus grapes will not exceed 20,000 yuan, which is all used for the family's daily expenses.
Just then, the phone on the rectangular cabinet in the hall rang. Jiang Shuya, still shaken and afraid of waking Abao who was fast asleep upstairs, paced over and grabbed the phone.
"Hello, who is this?" a soft, gentle voice sounded from the other end of the phone, tinged with a hint of impatience: "Sis, it's me. Why has your phone been off all this time?"
"Oh, really? Maybe you forgot to charge it. Do you need anything?"
"Sis... I... I have a boyfriend. He's coming over to meet my parents on Sunday. I've already met them. Are you coming this weekend?"
Jiang Shuting said earnestly:
"No problem, I'm not working." I'll charge my phone later, just let me know the time." Shuya said a few words and hung up the phone, then came to her senses, realizing that her rebirth was definitely real.
At the dinner table that evening, my mother-in-law muttered to herself, "Haohao will be back in a month. It'll be the perfect time to help out when the grapes are in season."
Shuya, who was feeding Abao rice cereal, paused for a moment, her expression changed slightly, and she thought to herself, "Yes!"
Huang Minghao, who works on a seagoing vessel, returns home every six months. He spends only two months at home a year. So, he comes back every six months, which means he's back for almost a month each time!
Facing that person, I felt a mix of emotions I couldn't quite describe. I tried to think of a solution, to compose myself, but I knew I couldn't treat him with the same eagerness I used to. The old man sitting next to me didn't respond.
He was focused on wolfing down his rice.
Jiang Shuya pondered for a moment and said:
"Dad, I have something to tell you. There's a piece of land on our big hill, right? It's next to Uncle's house, the place where you used to live, right?"
The old man was a little surprised by the sudden question and replied:
"Of course it's not mine. Whose is it? Your grandfather built four rooms, and your uncle and I each lived in two."
Hao Hao lived there until he was ten years old. Your mother and your aunt didn't get along and argued every few days. Your grandmother was also stirring things up. Your mother was no match for your aunt. Your grandfather asked the brigade secretary to re-approve a piece of land for us.
It was separated from the Cao family's private plot. The Cao family next door still hates us to this day and rarely talks to us. Your grandfather was the head of the Jiangdao Water Conservancy Station back then, which was an official position.
The village's brigade secretary will give me some face, and the land ownership certificate for that plot of land is still in my hands.
Jiang Shuya's eyes lit up:
"Can we build a house on it? How many square meters is shown on the land certificate?"
The old man got up and went into the room. He rummaged through a worn-out box and pulled out the greenish property certificate, which clearly stated…
Below "Huang Guohua" is a square pattern resembling a drawing, with a total area of 110 square meters, and the county government seal.
Shuya picked up the babbling baby and said earnestly:
"Would you like to build a house on it?"
The old man rolled his eyes: "Give me the money to build it!"
"If your son and I build on top of it, is that okay? You can help us divide our household registration, so that when the land is demolished, our family can get two shares, and your family won't get anything. What do you think?"
Jiang Shuya said, "We don't even know when that will happen."
"Can you even afford to build it? Don't forget we still owe your aunt 60,000 yuan! And we're not planning on paying it back!"
The old man spoke in a warning tone:
"Dad, just tell me, will splitting up the household registration be beneficial for future demolition and relocation?"
Just because I don't have money now doesn't mean I can't borrow it. You don't need to worry about building the house.
As long as you don't give the homestead land to others, that's fine. Remember, don't sell the homestead land to anyone. Don't listen to sweet talk from others; leaving it to your son is the right thing to do.
Jiang Shuya continued to feed Bao'er rice cereal.
“I know that separating households is definitely the best option. If you are separated, there will be a lot of compensation for demolition in the future. Who wouldn’t want to make a fortune? You know how much debt your family has.”
"Your grandfather is keeping a close eye on it; he wouldn't dare not return it." The old man sighed.
"If only you had known this would happen, why did you do it in the first place? Why didn't you think of this when you were sitting at the mahjong table when you were young?" the old woman suddenly sneered. The old man glanced at her but didn't speak; the atmosphere became somewhat tense.
Jiang Shuya got back to the main topic: "Dad, demolition is inevitable sooner or later. You should help us get the separate household registration first. I won't give the homestead to anyone. I have my own plans."
I plan to build a 400-square-meter house up there. As for how to build it, you don't need to worry about finding someone or introducing me to someone else.
As long as you keep the homestead, when your aunt comes looking for you later, you can just say that the land was left to us, and it's normal for the son to divide the family property, right? Just like you and Grandpa did...right?
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