Following Aunt Wang's shortcut, they arrived at the courtyard gate in a matter of moments. It was indeed an ordinary courtyard, just as Aunt Wang had described, not very large, and the neighboring courtyards on both sides were just a short distance away.
Aunt Wang knocked on the door, and an elderly man with white hair and kind brows emerged. He was clutching an ancient book. He looked quite old, likely in his seventies. He wore clean clothes, not a patch on his face, and had a rosy complexion. He certainly didn't look like someone struggling financially and needing to sell his house. The old man was in excellent health, not deaf, and was surprised to see them standing outside.
The old man asked curiously, "Comrade Wang, are you bringing them here to look at the house? Comrade, you didn't bring your female relatives to look at it?"
Zhou Xiaozheng replied, "As long as my son-in-law likes this yard, it's fine. It's mainly for my daughter, son-in-law, and their newborn grandson to live there. My daughter is still in confinement after childbirth, and her mother is taking care of her. My husband and I are both soldiers and don't have time. If it's suitable, we can decide. Uncle, is it convenient for you to look at the house?"
The old man nodded with a smile and made way. "Come in. We're planning to sell and move in with our eldest son. Usually, it's just the two of us living at home. You can look around the house for yourselves. I'll have my wife come over and show you around."
As Zhou Xiaozheng entered the courtyard, he nodded secretly. While the exterior may seem ordinary, the interior is filled with fine materials. It seemed the old man had a very wealthy family and had put a lot of thought into building this courtyard; he was a very clever man. Aside from the high walls, which were made of adobe and stone, the main house and the east wing in the courtyard were all brick and tile.
The yard is not big, and there is a flower bed at the right corner of the wall. The entire yard is empty except for the land near the flower bed, and the ground is all paved with small stones.
As soon as they entered the remodeled main living room, Zhang Guoqing and his father-in-law looked at each other in surprise. They both saw that this family didn't look like they were going to sell the yard.
It seems that there is no change from the outer room of an ordinary house, but the wood used for the tables and chairs in the living room is very special.
In addition to the mahogany eight-immortals table and several chairs placed in the front, there are also several ordinary-looking armchairs, and a set of tea sets is placed on the coffee table in the middle.
The living room furniture looked old and dated. Someone undiscerning might dismiss these shabby tables and chairs as useless. But in the eyes of Zhou Xiaozheng and his son-in-law, these pieces of furniture were truly valuable. The materials even exuded a delicate fragrance. Especially the complete set of armchairs.
The old man asked the old lady to take Zhou Xiaozheng and his son-in-law to see the house, and he took Aunt Wang to sit down and chat. It seemed that he deliberately avoided the other party to visit the room.
The two rooms on the left are connected. The outer room, a study, is elegantly furnished. The earthen kang (kang) by the window is spotless, devoid of any kangqin or quilt, but only a specially crafted Go table with a chess board on it. Opposite the kang, two rows of bookcases line the wall, each filled with a wide variety of books. Inside, a large desk, still covered in freshly painted calligraphy and paintings, and a scroll of cursive script hangs on the wall, revealing the scholarly heritage of this family.
In the adjacent bedroom, an unfolded quilt lay on the earthen kang (kang), suggesting the old woman had just gotten off. Two thick quilts, all made of silk and fine cotton, also sat atop the kang. Against the wall opposite the kang stood an old-fashioned wardrobe. Not far in front stood a round table and two large armchairs. A complete set of furniture, all made of the same wood and style, harmoniously arranged within the room.
A hint of worry flashed across Zhou Xiaozheng's eyes. It seemed this old man was no ordinary person. He had just carefully observed that no matter how simple the furniture in the study and bedroom was, beneath the paint was precious wood.
From the moment he entered the yard, he discovered that except for the warehouse and a few mud and thatched houses against the right wall, everything else seemed ordinary, but the effort and money spent on it were definitely not small.
He asked a few questions, intentionally or not, as the old lady explained. After a while, he relaxed a little. The other party's family situation had nothing to do with him; it was a matter of mutual consent.
To the right of the living room, one of the two rooms is a guest room with a kang (a heated kang), while the other is immaculately kept, with old quilts and mattresses neatly arranged on top of the wardrobe. The wardrobe against the wall is clearly new, made of ordinary wood. The elderly woman explained that it contains their out-of-season clothing and some stockpiled fabrics. It seems this elderly couple appreciates living and has a high standard for quality of life.
Outside the main house, the east wing should have three rooms according to the area. The two outer rooms were directly converted into a large kitchen, becoming what Aunt Wang called the "two rooms".
Their family must have paid particular attention to food. Besides a regular earthen stove, there's also a stove modified from a briquettes, where something is currently being stewed. The earthen stove is located next to the other room, connecting to the earthen kang (kang) in the adjacent room. The briquettes supply the kitchen's fire wall. There's also a pressurized water well in the corner of the kitchen entrance, and a large water tank against the wall.
There were traces of jars lined up under the window. Even after cleaning, the air still smelled of pickled vegetables, mingling with the aroma of soybean paste. A large table sat in the middle of the kitchen, likely where the elderly and their children often ate. The cabinets, table, and stools against the back wall were perfectly tidy, evidence of regular maintenance.
The old woman opened the hidden cellar door at the back of the kitchen and peered inside. It wasn't really a cellar. It was more of a basement. It was immaculately clean, its edges and borders freshly paved with dirt. It was usually used to store rations and dry goods, but now it was completely empty. She'd heard there was another cellar in the yard, used to store cabbages and radishes during the winter.
Next to the kitchen was an empty room with a kang (a heated bed). Aside from the kangqin (a musical instrument), there was nothing else there, and it was immaculately clean. The old lady said this was the room of the hired aunt.
The old woman led them to the right side of the courtyard, near the corner of the flowerbed. Three mud and thatched huts were half-hidden by piles of firewood. Aside from a toilet that doubled as a bathroom, the remaining rooms housed farm tools, baskets of miscellaneous items, and a small amount of coal briquettes. The outermost room was the old couple's unused storage room.
Finally, the old lady took them to see the cellar and well outside the house, and laughed and said that the two east wing rooms were built to allow servants to live separately and avoid the smoke from the main house. Now that there are no servants, the old couple occasionally cook noodles directly in the main living room.
The father-in-law and son-in-law already had an idea. The entire courtyard was a layout of five rooms plus two bedrooms. Zhou Xiaozheng had just discovered that there was a fire wall inside the innermost wall of the main house. After asking about the heating system in the main house and the kitchen, he nodded.
The owner of this house is a clever man. Besides the prominent kang (fired bed) in the main room, he also concealed a fire wall. The living room's earthen stove, after a modification, has increased its capacity and is hygienic and safe, serving the main room's kang and fire wall. He isn't worried about the high overall heating costs. However, this courtyard is beyond the reach of ordinary people, so he's getting a bargain.
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