Chapter 658
After returning to the gate of Jiayinyuan and picking up the car, the group went to see other courtyards.
Tang Ziyi glanced at the list of candidates and said, "Let's go and look at the one near the Drum Tower first. It's not too far from here. I heard it used to be the house of a pawnshop owner."
The car passed through several alleys and stopped in front of a gray brick gatehouse.
Su Miao looked up at the slightly dilapidated building and commented, "This gate is quite nice, but it looks a bit old."
The door of the house was wide open, and the sound of children's laughter and shouting could be heard from inside.
The four people stood outside the door and saw three children of different ages playing marbles in the yard, and a big white dog sleeping under the eaves.
Su Yuanzheng reached out and knocked on the door. The big white dog looked up at them and lay down again, without any alertness.
Su Miao couldn't help but think with disdain: It's far worse than the loose soil in their Gui area.
The oldest child in the yard, who looked about 7 or 8 years old, stood up and asked:
"Who are you looking for?"
"Hello, little friend, are your parents here?" Su Yuanzheng said in a gentle tone.
The child looked at them for two seconds, then suddenly turned around and shouted into the house: "Grandma! Grandpa! Someone is coming to see the house!"
An elderly couple hurried out from the inner courtyard. The old man, wearing a white sweatshirt and holding a large fan, greeted them enthusiastically:
"How many of you are here to see the house? Please come in!"
"Hello, my last name is Su. I heard that your yard is for sale, so I brought the children to take a look."
"Okay, okay. My last name is Meng. The yard is for sale. I'll show you around."
The homeowner invited a few people in and showed them each room one by one.
It is also a two-entry house, but it is much smaller than Grandpa Qin's house. And probably because there are more people living there, daily necessities are piled up here and there, making it look very messy.
It was a very ordinary house, with pillars, beams and walls all covered in gray.
However, the front yard is mainly a functional area and is well-maintained. It is only when you reach the inner yard that you are surprised.
The originally square courtyard was divided beyond recognition, with two low brick houses built in the courtyard and clotheslines hung with all kinds of clothes.
Su Miao said with some regret: "Why did you build a house in the yard?"
The old man sighed, "During the special period, it was divided among seven families. Without the addition, it wouldn't be enough. I only later gradually replaced the entire yard.
I have a big family. My two sons, two daughters and their families all live here. We have been living together for so many years and it has been so lively that we don’t want to separate.
Now my second son-in-law's family has a piece of land in the suburbs that's much bigger than this one. We've pooled our money to build a new yard, so we're thinking of selling this place and moving there."
"Suburbs? Then is it convenient for your children to go to work?" Su Yuanzheng asked.
"It's OK. Their workplace isn't far away. Even though it's in the suburbs, there are buses and you can ride a bike. It takes only half an hour to get there.
The main thing is that the house there is twice as big as here, and it’s a new house, so I don’t know how comfortable it will be to live there.”
Su Miao walked around the yard and whispered to his father, "If we buy this house, the added part will have to be demolished, and the other rooms will have to be renovated. The cost may be quite high."
Su Yuanzheng nodded and politely asked the price.
"Fifty thousand! Fifty thousand will be fine, but I have to move everything in this yard. You have to prepare your own furniture."
"Okay, let's go back and discuss it."
The words were polite, but everyone had already given this courtyard a bad review and immediately went to the next courtyard.
The courtyard of Shichahai is hidden under the shade of a locust tree. The copper ring on the red-painted gate is polished to a shine. A tall young man opened the door.
This is a courtyard with one entrance, only slightly larger than the one the Su family is currently renting.
In terms of house area, there are only two people in the Su family, father and daughter, and even if Meng Sui is added, they can still live in a very spacious house.
The young man’s surname is Guo. He is an elementary school teacher and the owner of half of the yard. Why half? Because two families live here together.
"The house was left to me by my parents, and the other half belongs to his colleague and his family, who are also veteran teachers at our school. This year, the school built a collective dormitory, and both our families were allocated a place.
Originally we were thinking of renting out the yard and collecting rent, but now the house prices are higher than in previous years. We calculated that we would have to collect rent for more than 20 years to cover the selling price.
It still needs maintenance and renovation, and it might not be possible to find a tenant, so it would be better to sell it directly and have some money in hand.
Don't worry about the property rights. We've already processed all the certificates two years ago. When the time comes to transfer ownership, you can just combine them into one booklet."
It must be said that although this courtyard has only one entrance, it is very well maintained because the residents are all particular people.
The courtyard is neatly and warmly arranged, and all the house structures are well preserved.
The corridors on both sides connect the east and west wing rooms, and all the doors and windows are original wooden lattices with swastika patterns.
What surprised everyone the most was a living well in the courtyard, with the words "Drink water and remember its source" engraved on the wellhead. She looked in and saw that the water in the well was very clear.
Teacher Guo said: "We like to use the well water. We think the food we cook tastes different. We clean it out about every six months. In the summer, we soak watermelons in it, just like putting them in the refrigerator."
He pointed to a lush pomegranate tree in the corner of the yard and said, "Look at that tree. It's watered with well water, and every year the fruit it produces is sweeter than other trees."
Su Miao thought that there was actually a well in Grandpa Qin's house, but it had been abandoned. Because he was in poor health and it was too difficult for him to draw water, he always used tap water.
If you can buy that place and hire someone to repair a well, you can also have water as clear as this one.
"Teacher Guo, how much is your yard for?" Su Miao asked impatiently.
"We both quoted 20,000, so the whole yard is 40,000 before tax. You've seen the yard with your own eyes, there's nothing wrong with it. You can basically buy it and move in right away. It's even better than many renovated properties."
Teacher Guo pushed his glasses and said sincerely:
"To be honest, this price is very fair in the Shichahai area. Both our families are honest people and we don't want to waste time just to pay a few thousand more dollars."
Su Yuanzheng looked around, his eyes lingering on the well-preserved carved doors and windows, and said to Teacher Guo:
"The house is really nice and has been cleaned up very well. Let's go back and discuss it and contact you later."
The four of them returned to the car, and Su Yuanzheng asked, "What do you think?"
Su Miao said with sparkling eyes: "Dad, I like this yard, it's well maintained, it's just like what Teacher Guo said, we can buy it and live in it.
It’s a pity that this is a one-story courtyard. It would be great if there were two-story courtyards of the same quality. After all, two-story courtyards will definitely be more scarce than one-story courtyards in the future.”
Ye Jiayin took out a notebook and made notes on it: "The yard is well preserved, the property rights are clear, and the location is good. It's very close to Houhai. It must be very comfortable to go out for a walk after a full meal in the summer.
It also saves the cost and time of difficult renovations, so 40,000 yuan is really not expensive."
Su Yuanzheng also nodded. "Looking at that Mr. Guo, he's a cultured and well-educated person. His colleagues should be good people too. It's best to meet someone who's easy to talk to when doing business. Otherwise, it's just a waste of time and energy."
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