After reaching an agreement with Zhou Xiaomei, Ye Beiping walked back to Su Xinyi's side.
"What were you talking about with that auntie just now?" Su Xinyi tilted her head curiously and blinked as she asked, "And she was looking this way at me."
"Shhh."
Ye Beiping glanced at the location of Zhou Xiaomei's shop, put his index finger to his lips, and explained softly, "You'll call her Sister Zhou later. Women don't like being called old."
"Why?" Su Xinyi asked, somewhat confused.
She clearly looks like an auntie, so why call her "sister"?
From a young age, I was taught by my parents to be honest. If someone is clearly an aunt, you should call them sister. Isn't that lying?
Ye Beiping pursed his lips, took a step forward to stand in front of Su Xinyi, blocking Zhou Xiaomei's view, and then said in a low voice, "She's the matchmaker, and she'll be charging a fee in the middle. If we're sweet-talking, she'll charge less. I praised her earlier so we could save some money. Just nod or shake your head and keep quiet, I'll do the talking."
"If you think the house is good and you're satisfied, just let me know with your eyes, and I'll tell her the price."
"Oh, oh, oh." Su Xinyi nodded as if she understood, then suddenly looked at Ye Beiping with a strange expression: "I've discovered how wicked you are. People make money this way, and you lie to save money. How come I never noticed before?"
Upon hearing this, Ye Beiping grinned mischievously and chuckled, "I have even worse tricks up my sleeve. You'll find out later."
After saying that, he took Su Xinyi's hand and walked towards Zhou Xiaomei.
Su Xinyi behind him seemed to have thought of something, and her face flushed red instantly.
Men are worse, but how bad can they be?
It's just that little thing, isn't it?
For Su Xinyi now, although she has been through it all, she is still a blank slate. How could she know how bad Ye Beiping really is? Just thinking about it makes her shy, and she doesn't dare to look him in the eye.
"Sister Zhou, let's go." Ye Beiping's words became even sweeter; he stopped calling her "Big Sister" and started calling her "Sister" directly.
The relationship has become even closer.
Upon hearing those two words, Zhou Xiaomei's lips curled up, and she found Ye Beiping even more pleasing to the eye.
However, she didn't seem to be so polite to Su Xinyi.
Based on Ye Beiping's account, Zhou Xiaomei has come to the conclusion that Su Xinyi's family are all bad people, materialistic, and look down on rural people.
She may have been like that before, but at least she had compassion and a sympathetic attitude towards Ye Beiping.
"Mmm." Zhou Xiaomei responded softly, then closed the shop door and walked into the alley next door.
It has to be said that these alleys in the 1970s and 80s were truly magical. They were full of vendors selling food and toys, most of which were products with little technical sophistication.
As she passed by the vendors, they would all greet Zhou Xiaomei warmly.
Ye Beiping, who was following behind, could tell that Zhou Xiaomei was a know-it-all in this area, and seemed to know a lot of people. No wonder the staff at the state-run hotel had recommended this place to him.
After many twists and turns, it took more than ten minutes to walk.
The weather was extremely hot at the end of September, especially now that it was almost nine o'clock and the sun was already high in the sky.
The sun made Su Xinyi frown, and sweat trickled down her forehead, cheeks, and neck.
Seeing this, Ye Beiping could only keep wiping Su Xinyi with his sleeve.
Ye Beiping wanted to ask Zhou Xiaomei how much further it was, but remembering the expression on her face when she looked at Su Xinyi, he gave up.
Su Xinyi was very pleased with Ye Beiping's actions, her face beaming with a happy smile, and she kept shaking her head at the man beside her who was concerned about her, indicating that she was fine.
Is everything really alright?
Su Xinyi didn't even have the strength to speak; she only felt hot and her feet ached. She used to get about this tired after half a day of farm work in Pingba Village, and she wondered if she'd become too delicate since coming to Hangzhou.
Zhou Xiaomei witnessed their interaction and sighed helplessly at Ye Beiping, while completely losing her good impression of Su Xinyi.
However, these things are none of her business as an outsider. While she may sympathize, Zhou Xiaomei is still able to distinguish between family matters.
Even an upright official finds it difficult to settle family disputes, and besides, she is not an upright official either; all one can do is sympathize with her.
Five minutes later, Zhou Xiaomei led the way to a dilapidated residential area.
Putting aside the lack of even the most basic gatekeepers like in his previous life, Ye Beiping frowned at the surrounding sanitation conditions.
It's too dirty.
The garbage is thrown everywhere at the entrance of the community and on the roadside, which is a complete source of pollution.
Looking at the two or three houses in the community, the most striking feature is that the white walls have been weathered by time, covered with black marks.
Fortunately, Zhou Xiaomei led them to the first building at the corner after entering the community, which wasn't far from the entrance.
She went up the stairs and knocked on the wooden door on the second floor.
Knock knock knock!
Knock knock knock!
A slightly aged voice came from inside: "Coming, coming, are you trying to kill me? Knocking so loudly, you'll have to pay for it if you break the door."
Click!
As the cursing began, the door opened.
Standing in front of the door was an elderly woman in her sixties or seventies.
Although he looked old, his eyes were very bright, as if they could see into people's souls.
She glanced at Zhou Xiaomei and nodded slightly, then looked Ye Beiping and Su Xinyi up and down behind her.
Seeing this, Zhou Xiaomei changed her usual demeanor and said with a smile, "Grandma, this young couple wants to rent a house. I told you before that if I found a suitable one, I would bring it to you to take a look."
"This young man has a rural household registration, while the young woman is from the city. She is pregnant and wants to stay in the city to give birth, but her parents' home is too small, so she needs to rent a place. Do you think this is a good fit?"
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