The loud firecrackers on the morning of the first day of the Lunar New Year woke up everyone who was still in bed trying to continue sleeping.
Little Chou Bao probably slept too late last night, because he slept soundly this morning. Even the loud firecrackers couldn't wake him up.
The courtyard was filled with the sounds of people exchanging New Year's greetings, and only the two little ones were beaming with joy as they held the red envelopes they had received.
I don't know what's there to be happy about; in just a few minutes, it won't belong to you anymore.
I really don't need to go out today. After eating dumplings this morning, three mahjong tables were set up at home.
Those three guys who had been playing cards all night still weren't thinking about going to sleep and continued their game.
"Mom, I need to discuss something with you. Don't rush to disagree with me. Let me finish speaking first, and then we can discuss it. What do you think?"
Ding's mother had just come out of the living room, about to go to the kitchen to grab some more peanuts, when Li Chu stopped her.
"Huh? What are you planning to discuss?" The old lady was a little dumbfounded. In her memory, the first time her son-in-law came to her house, he was so serious.
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"Let's go to the kitchen, it's a bit cold outside."
"Mom, there's a good opportunity recently. We should be able to buy a courtyard house in this area. I mean, I'll help look for one, and once we've negotiated the price, we'll have Jianguo pay for it."
Ding's mother's eyes widened when she heard this. She didn't understand why her son-in-law brought this up, but she didn't interrupt and waited to see what else he would say.
"The reason I said to buy another courtyard is that I know that since we moved there, neither you nor my dad have been living comfortably for the past year."
We were living comfortably here before, so let's not go into why you insisted on moving. As an elder, you must have had your own reasons. But no matter what, we have to make sure we're comfortable first, don't you think?
Look at my dad! Since we moved over there, have you ever seen him laugh as happily as he did last night and today? And what about you?
From a doctor's perspective, assuming no other illnesses, a person's mental state is definitely a major factor in whether they live a long life. I imagine you wouldn't want to pass away before seeing Kai Kai get married and have children, right?
Li Chu stopped there. Ding Ma was deep in thought. Nothing else mattered, but Kai Kai was absolutely her lifeblood. On this point, even Xiao Chou Bao had to take a backseat, since he was surnamed Li, not Ding.
After moving there, my grandson didn't have as many playmates anymore, and he didn't seem as happy as when he lived here. But look at him when he came over yesterday, he was having so much fun, with such a happy smile on his face. It feels like I haven't seen him like that in a long time.
"Xiao Chu, do you mean it's still possible to buy a detached house now?"
There's a chance!
"More or less. I can't say for sure that I can buy it, but I should be able to. Don't you know my abilities?"
“We have to pay for the yard ourselves, including the maintenance afterwards. And if we can move here in the future, you have to take back the house we live in now.”
It's done!
"Mom, are you trying to distance yourself from me or what?"
"Don't talk nonsense. I understand your feelings, but this place is still under the Ding family name. It's fine for you and Qiu Nan now, but what about the future? I don't want things to turn out badly for Kai Kai's generation or even their descendants over some property."
So let's make things clear from the start. There's an old saying that even close brothers should keep clear accounts. It's fine if you and Nannan give me and her dad money, and we're happy to accept it. But whenever Jianguo is involved, let's settle things clearly. That way, our relationship can last."
Although the old lady was somewhat sexist, as many people from the old society were like that, she was a sensible person at heart.
"Okay," Li Chu nodded with a smile, "We'll do it your way. I'll help you find a courtyard, and you can handle the rest after we've settled things."
"Hmm, don't tell them yet."
"Okay, Mom, you can go inside and play cards now."
“Okay,” Ding Ma said, picking up the enamel bowl next to her and scooping out a bowl of peanuts. “I think the water is about to boil, so keep an eye on it.”
"Okay, you don't need to worry about it."
After Aunt Ding left, Li Chu sat on a small stool next to the stove, staring at the kettle, and soon his mind wandered off.
There are still two years left. Who knows if some things will happen again? He has done a lot of things over the years, both openly and secretly. If nothing can change this, then he has no other choice.
The biggest change is that he takes very good care of many of the older men. With these pillars of strength around, many things become much easier to resolve.
Many people thought that Li Chu was getting close to these old men in order to find himself a powerful patron, but he never thought that way.
Indeed, these old men had all provided him with considerable help to varying degrees, but apart from Uncle Wang who truly treated him like his own child, the others all had their own ulterior motives.
This is also because he has his own value.
To put it bluntly, if he were just an ordinary person like his sister, he could at most have a full belly and live a slightly more comfortable life than the average person. As for climbing the social ladder, he's probably dreaming.
That's how relationships between people are. If he hadn't been so capable, Old Master Shen would never have allowed his only grandson to marry Wenhui.
Li Chu was well aware of this. He had his own selfish motives; who wouldn't want to live a more comfortable life, and who wouldn't want to enjoy a good life?
But while he had his own selfish desires, he also had a sense of public duty. He wanted the place where he lived to be better than the place he had lived in before!
"Waaah..."
A whistle blew, startling Li Chu from his deep thoughts.
The water on the stove boiled, so he stood up, picked up the kettle, and poured the water into the thermos next to him. Then he filled a kettle with cold water, sat back down on the stove, and carried the two thermos flasks into the house.
There were two groups of people playing cards in the living room, while Wang Ziwen and a few others were smoking in the back garden.
The little rascal, who was running around on the floor and sofa, ran over to his grandpa as soon as he came in and asked to be held. Then he pointed outside, indicating that he wanted to go out and play.
It's not easy to go out in this cold weather. It's warm at home and you can wear less clothing, but you have to be fully bundled up when you go out.
As soon as he stepped out of the living room, the little rascal pointed at the snowman he had built that morning: "Grandpa, snow... snow..."
"Yes, that's a snowman!"
"people"
"Yes, a snowman!"
"Snowman"
"Great!"
"Giggle..." Upon hearing his grandfather praise him, the little rascal clapped his hands happily.
On a snowy day, all the children running around outside are children; I don't know where they get their energy from.
When Hao Hao and Kai Kai saw him come out, they rushed over one after the other, one calling him "Uncle" and the other "Uncle-in-law." The group of little boys who were playing with them also came over, some calling him "Grandpa" and some "Uncle," a variety of names.
After the boys ran off to play, he carried his grandson to the intersection. In just a few steps, the grandfather and grandson were covered in a layer of snow.
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