When they arrived at the residential area, Yuan Man was waiting for them at the entrance.
She said to Xiao Muyu, "Xiaoyu, I'm going home. Please wish Auntie a happy birthday for me."
After saying that, she wrinkled her nose, gave Jiang Xiaoli a soft snort, and turned to leave.
Jiang Xiaoli waved to her from behind, "Yuan Xiaoman, see you tomorrow!"
Xiao Muyu tugged at her arm, "If you keep doing this, what if Yuan Man stops playing with me?"
She put her arm around her shoulder. "Don't worry, she won't!"
When the two returned home, Li Guizhi was cooking for Xu Feng.
Hearing the noise, Xiao Jincheng came out of the study. "You two are back. Dinner will be served shortly. Xiao Lizi, come in with me for a moment."
In the study, Jiang Xiaoli knew what he was going to say as soon as she saw the architectural drawings spread out on the table.
"Is this the architectural design drawing for Uncle Han's new housing development?" She picked up a drawing at random.
Xiao Jincheng smiled gently, "That's right. He called me this morning specifically to pick it up, saying it's so you can get familiar with it as soon as possible. The interior designer in Hong Kong will submit the design to him at the end of November, so you need to hurry."
Jiang Xiaoli looked at the various data on the blueprints and felt a little confused. "Uncle Xiao, I'll have to borrow your Xue Bin for a while, otherwise I won't be able to finish it even by next November!"
"Haha, don't worry about that. From now on, Xue Bin is your man. You can have him cooperate with you whenever you need him," Xiao Jincheng assured him.
“Then I have no problem. But Uncle Xiao, I’ve heard Uncle Han say several times that he’s annoyed by the people of Hong Kong. What exactly are they doing?” She was curious about this question yesterday, but she was too embarrassed to ask.
Xiao Jincheng poured himself a cup of tea, blew on it, took a sip, and then began to speak.
"Old Han has developed three housing projects in Xijing. The first one is a modified version of the old-style tenement building, where each unit has its own kitchen and bathroom, but the floor plan design is a mess."
The second one was designed by an architect from mainland China. Mainland architects tend to prioritize practicality. The houses in this development aren't bad in any way, but they're far from the comfortable homes that wealthy people want.
The third one is "Champs-Élysées". This time, Lao Han gritted his teeth and spent a lot of money to hire a Hong Kong architect. The architect's design is indeed outstanding. Now, although the houses in "Champs-Élysées" are more expensive than other properties, they are hard to come by.
But do you know how much the architectural firms in the port city are asking for?
She boldly gave a number, "100,000?"
Xiao Jincheng gave a wry smile. "It's 1 million! This new project is even more outrageous, doubling the price again. And they still want to rip us off on the current renovation project."
She gasped, "They're treating Uncle Han like a sucker, trying to rip him off!"
"That's right. If it were just a matter of high prices, Lao Han could tolerate it. As you can see, the houses in 'Champs-Élysées' are selling well now, and Lao Han has made a lot of money this time."
What bothered him most was hosting this group of people from Hong Kong. They found fault with everything they saw on the mainland and acted superior all the time.
They don't even speak politely to Lao Han. They're always getting together and spouting their rubbish!" Xiao Jincheng often heard Han Xu complain, and he could practically recite those words by heart.
Jiang Xiaoli chuckled to herself, "Cantonese isn't some kind of gibberish, but the other party's bad attitude is really annoying."
Xiao Jincheng agreed, "That's right, Little Pear, you don't know, I don't know what's going on now, it's like outsiders can chant sutras better."
Just because someone says they're from Hong Kong or abroad makes them seem so important. They're all just here to make money off us in mainland China! Making money is one thing, but acting like they're giving charity is infuriating!
She refilled Xiao Jincheng's teacup with water. "Uncle Xiao, it's only a matter of time before we catch up with them in the mainland. It's not worth getting angry over this!"
"Little Pear is right. From my experience in engineering for so long, our country's economy is taking off!"
"Knock knock knock," Xu Feng knocked on the door and came in. "What are you two talking about? You've gotten all excited. Come and eat!"
Xiao Jincheng's excitement came to an abrupt halt, and he gave a dry laugh, "They're here, they're here!"
After saying that, he got up and went back to the living room with Jiang Xiaoli.
The round dining table next to them was laden with food; Xu Feng and Li Guizhi had put in a lot of effort to prepare a sumptuous dinner today.
Jiang Xiaoli's eyes were shining. "Auntie, I wish it were your birthday every day!"
Li Guizhi laughed and scolded, "You gluttonous cat!"
Xu Feng brought out a cream cake from the kitchen. "Haha, life is better now. It's not hard to celebrate your birthday every day, but it's hard to prepare something like this every day."
Xiao Jincheng took the cake from her hand and said, "Yes, my wife has worked hard."
Jiang Xiaoli picked out two number candles, 1 and 7, from the number candles and stuck them on the cake. Xu Feng laughed when she saw this, "Xiaoli, you've got it wrong, Auntie is 37 this year!"
She waved her hand, "That's right, that's right! Even in 10 years, Auntie will still look as young and beautiful as she did at 17!"
Xiao Jincheng laughed heartily, "Little Pear is right! My wife will always be young and beautiful!"
Xu Feng blushed at their praise, and she gently pinched Xiao Jincheng, "How old are you? Still acting like a child!"
Li Guizhi smiled and said, "Feng'er, you're already young and beautiful. This time, I'm going to stand with Xiao Li!"
Xiao Muyu took her arm and said, "Mom, happy birthday!"
Jiang Xiaoli then lit the candles and led the singing, "Happy birthday to you~ Happy birthday to you~ Happy birthday to you~ Happy birthday to you!"
After the group's cheerful singing ended, Xu Feng blew out the candles, put her hands together, and made a wish.
Xiao Jincheng took out a small gift bag from the side and stuffed it into her arms, saying, "Wife, this is your birthday present."
Li Guizhi also took a small box out of her bag on the sofa. "Feng'er, happy birthday!"
Xu Feng curiously opened the two gifts. Inside Xiao Jincheng's small bag was a car key. She looked at Xiao Jincheng in shock, "Old Xiao, you bought me a car?"
Xiao Jincheng nodded with a smile, "Yes, I'll enroll you in a driving school later and get your driver's license. That way, when I'm busy outside, you can go wherever you want, which will be convenient."
Xu Feng scolded him for wasting money, but she couldn't stop smiling.
She opened Li Guizhi's small box, inside which was a pure gold necklace with a delicate little phoenix pendant.
"Sister Guizhi, this is so beautiful!" She happily took it out and examined it carefully.
Xiao Jincheng simply got up and put it on for her, while Xiao Muyu brought a dressing mirror and placed it in front of her.
Xu Feng looked at it with delight for a while, then said, "Sister Guizhi, thank you so much! I love it!"
Li Guizhi smiled gently, her eyebrows arching. "I didn't know what to get you, so this afternoon I went to the jewelry store and immediately fell in love with this necklace. I thought it would suit you perfectly, and it is indeed beautiful!"
Xiao Jincheng placed the mirror on the sideboard behind him. "Alright, let's eat. We've been talking so much the food's getting cold."
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