Chapter 213 Buying an Old Western-
style House Fang Mingche only had two classes on Saturday morning, so the flight to Shanghai was scheduled for Saturday afternoon.
On Friday night, Lin Yan packed him a set of clothes and some things he needed. A 15-inch small box was enough.
When Fang Mingche came in, he saw the "Marriage Law" lying on the table. He knew that she had been reading this before. He picked it up and flipped through it. It was about the provisions on the ownership of property after marriage. According to
the current "Marriage Law", after a man and a woman have been married for four years, all major properties except cars and houses are common property of the couple. Regardless of whether it is pre-marital property or post-marital property. After eight years of marriage, cars and houses also become common property of the couple.
So now when getting married, the man provides the house and the woman provides the decoration and furniture.
Yan looked at this, probably to see how the common property of Lin Yi and Han Mei is defined. It should not be that they want to divorce themselves, considering how to divide the family property at that time.
Fang Mingche said, "Lin Yi and Han Mei got married in October 1979. If Han Mei really has any ideas, she will definitely get divorced before October 1983."
Otherwise, she will have to give half of her earnings to Lin Yi.
Lin Yan nodded, that's right. It's January 1982, and they have been married for more than two years. Most of the young people who got married at the same time in the factory have become fathers and mothers now. That's why her mother is very anxious.
Fang Mingche said, "By the way, how does Han Mei's salary belong to?"
He used to be too lazy to care about the couple's affairs, and Lin Yan didn't mention it in front of him when she knew about it. However, Han Mei's monthly income is 300, and it is estimated that the Han family and the Lin family are paying attention.
When the two families first discussed the marriage, they had a dispute over Han Mei's income after marriage. At that time, Han Mei didn't have a job! She didn't even have a job selling eggs.
At that time, they even fought over it, and even he was called by his father-in-law to help out. He also beat up Han Mei's two brothers. But now, the two brothers and Han Mei's parents greeted him politely when they saw him.
There is no reason why they didn't quarrel over Han Mei's high salary now. Before, the Han family asked Han Mei to take ten yuan home every month after marriage, saying that it was not easy for the family to raise her to go to high school.
Lin Yan said: "Of course there was a quarrel. But my mother and my aunt fought back, and even my uncle got involved at that time. He said that it was all earned by relying on the relationship with the Lin family. It was agreed that ten yuan a month, and it was ten yuan a month."
Fang Mingche said in surprise: "Your uncle is still so fearless to the outside world?"
"Isn't that just borrowing your power?"
After Mingche said these things, he didn't care. But it didn't prevent the Lin family and relatives of the Lin family from using him as a backer when they confronted others. It was because of Mingche that the uncle was so confident.
The reason why Lin's father didn't let his son-in-law come forward when he made a fuss later was because he didn't need to come forward directly.
Fang Mingche asked, "What happened next?"
"It was the same as before. But the Han family also said that the money would be kept in the names of Han Mei and Lin Yi, and my mother couldn't get her hands on it. Otherwise, they would continue to make trouble. As far as I know, they deposited 240 a month, and the two of them kept the passbook themselves."
Why 240? Because 250 doesn't sound good. Anyway, including the interest, it would not be less than 3,000 a year. Well, it wasn't that much at the beginning. Han Mei's salary was also low at the beginning.
Fang Mingche said, "If four years have passed, it is indeed the common property of the couple. Lin Yi is so confident, isn't it? He doesn't think Han Mei will divorce him before October 1983. And my mother-in-law has this worry, so she wants to force Han Mei to have a baby even more."
Lin Yan said, "If I intervene now and force Han Mei to go back and have a baby, it will become the style of a feudal family. This will have a bad impact on our future distribution of work and the expansion of our business. So the most fundamental and most appropriate solution is for Lin Yi to be able to make progress."
Fang Mingche nodded. Mainland China is different from Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan, which have not been baptized by liberation. If these styles are exposed, it will reduce your points! Whether you are in the military, politics or business, you must pay attention to social impact.
Lin Yan said: "I shouldn't have been persuaded by my mother to let Han Mei join the travel agency. I should have let her continue to sell eggs, and let her take over my father's job after a few years when my father retires. But it's too late to say this now."
Fang Mingche thought: When your father retires normally, he probably won't be able to take over. There are still four years before the succession system will be completely abolished.
"What do you think the Marriage Law is for? We are not planning to divorce."
"I just want to understand. Lin Yi probably thinks that everything will be split in half after getting married, and thinks Han Mei won't be willing to give up. Don't worry, I won't say anything. They haven't put divorce on the agenda. Why am I talking about this with white eyebrows and red eyes?"
Fang Mingche didn't ask any more. As for the brother-in-law, let's wait until the official document of suspension of unpaid leave comes out.
The next day, he was taken to school by the driver. After the second class, he left the school gate. The driver had gone back to pick up Fang's father and the suitcase and headed straight to the airport.
I will have dinner at a more affordable restaurant near the airport. They are now familiar with the land.
It must be economy class. Business class is so much more expensive, his father will teach him a lesson if he knows.
It must be the first time for Fang's father to take a plane in his life, so he followed Fang Mingche. Fang Mingche had to go to the front to check in and wait for the formalities, and came back from time to time to see if he had caught up. After getting on the plane and settling in, he relaxed.
Fang's father whispered: "Who would have thought that there would be a big iron bird that could travel thousands of miles a day."
Fang Mingche smiled, "This sounds familiar. I remember that Lord Ding Ruchang said something similar when he first took a ship to go abroad."
He saw it in the TV series "The Sino-Japanese War of 1894-1895".
"It's very rare. When you were young, I carried you to the county town on my back."
At that time, a ticket cost 30 cents, which was quite expensive for farmers. It's only ten kilometers. He carried other things on one end and his youngest son on the other end, and went there on foot.
Fang Mingche didn't remember this. "What were we going to do?"
"To attend a meeting. When I was young, I had a few years of education and was once elected as a People's Congress representative in our district. Attending such meetings requires work points, which is much easier than working in the fields. Your mother also went to the fields, and she also took your brother with her. Your grandparents passed away early, and there was no one to take care of you at home, so I took you with me. Anyway, you don't like to make noises. It's not surprising, some female comrades even carry babies in slings. During the meeting, I'll just put you together to play."
Fang Mingche was surprised and said, "Don't you give me round-trip travel expenses?"
"Yes. But I only earned 60 cents by walking back and forth. I can just find two tickets to claim reimbursement. At that time, we were given meal coupons after the meeting to eat in the canteen. The canteen was set up by the government for cadres, with good food and generous portions. The one-person portion was enough for both of us. Your eyes sparkled when you ate the meat."
The younger son was smart since he was young, and he was willing to take him everywhere. Sure enough, the younger son lived a much better life than the older son when he grew up. So now, he prefers the older son who lived a worse life.
Changchang is now fat and plump. But Minghua and Mingche were skinny when they were young. There was really nothing to eat in the countryside at that time.
Fang Mingche didn't expect that there would be such a past, and he sighed for a while. Then he heard Fang's father say happily: "Now I can take a plane with you to Shanghai."
Fang Mingche said: "I'll take you to see the Bund in Shanghai later."
Pudong today is still a muddy ferry. It will take a few years for it to be developed. The only place you can watch is Puxi.
After hearing what he said, Fang's father asked, "Puxi, is it the area west of the Huangpu River?"
"Yes."
At this time, Chow Yun-fat and Zhao Yazhi's "The Bund" should have been filmed. However, they did not shoot on location, but in the studio of Hong Kong TVB.
He went to complete the purchase of the old western-style building and will come back to prepare for the final exam. This winter vacation, he will not go abroad, but will go to Hong Kong and Macau.
He and A-Yan will apply for business visas, and it will be easy for their two underage children to go with them. Unfortunately, the mainland has not yet introduced the procedures for Hong Kong videotapes. If you want to watch them, you can only buy parallel imports from Guangzhou through Brother Mingfeng's channels.
Fang's father asked, "Can't go to Taiwan?"
Fang Mingche shook his head, "We have to wait until Xiao Jiang agrees to the three links. They are still in the policy of 'no contact, no negotiation, no compromise'. In order to make phone calls, the chief designer even asked the local government to repair the grave of his mother Mao Fumei."
The three links will have to wait until 1986.
It is Hong Kong and Macau. It is difficult to go there from the mainland now. Their family has been to Europe, the United States, and Japan, and returned as scheduled. So it is easier to get a visa. Moreover, he went there this time to investigate the opening of stores in Hong Kong and Macau.
The Ministry of Culture and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs have both given the green light. Their overseas stores are booming, and the amount of foreign exchange they pay in monthly is increasing.
Fang Mingche continued: "It is more comfortable to spend a warm winter in the south. When the time comes, you two elders can go south with us and settle in Guangzhou or Shenzhen. When we come back from Hong Kong, we will spend the New Year in the south. Brother Mingfeng and his family will also go."
Well, the two elders can bring Kang Kang and Fang Fang with them. Fang Jian will stay in the noodle shop to help, and then he will take the train with his parents.
Mingfa said that he would go back to his hometown when Fang Jian has the winter vacation. Although he will only be in the capital for three months by then, he still wants to go home for the New Year. Or, his brother and sister-in-law can close the noodle shop and follow him on the plane. As for the airfare, he paid for it all.
Fang's father said, "Has Mingfeng's house been delivered?"
"It's almost ready! And even if it is, he still hasn't had time to decorate it. We can all stay in the guesthouse this time."
Fang's father shook his head, "No, it can't be that no one will go to worship the ancestors."
"Let's go back during the Qingming Festival. Grandpa and grandma won't mind. By then, it will be spring and flowers will bloom, and life will be better. The main thing is that we don't have an airport where we are. It takes too much time to fly to Chengdu and then take a long-distance bus or train from Chengdu to Leshan."
The plane took off. Fang Mingche paid attention to his father's condition and was relieved to see that he didn't feel any discomfort.
Fang's father said, "If Changchang can take a plane, why can't I?"
Last night, the old lady asked him if he was afraid of taking a plane for the first time, and this was his answer. He really thought so! Otherwise, it would be inevitable to be nervous for the first time.
When they arrived in Shanghai, the father and son took a taxi to the travel agency. They were busy here and couldn't send people and cars to pick them up.
The taxi stopped, and Vice President Cheng Changdong came out. When he saw Fang's father, he said, "Is it Uncle Fang?"
He had been interviewed by Fang Mingche when he went to the capital, and he looked a bit like him.
Fang's father nodded, "Is it Xiao Cheng?"
"Yes, I am Xiao Cheng."
Cheng Changdong said as he nodded to Fang Mingche who got off the car, and then went to the trunk to help take the luggage.
Fang Mingche said, "I don't have a suitcase. I didn't bring anything with me for two days."
Fang's father stood at the door and looked around. This old western-style building was really something that only capitalists could afford to live in.
"Can you see the three buildings you want to buy from here?"
Cheng Changdong had already seen it, and hurriedly pointed it out to him, "The three buildings over there."
Fang's father nodded, "Nice houses. Why are there plane trees everywhere on this street?"
Fang Mingche said, "In order to pursue Miss Meiling, Chiang Kai-shek sent people to France to get them back and plant them. The third Miss Song likes French plane trees."
Fang's father said, "If the protagonists weren't these two, it would actually sound quite romantic."
Fang Mingche laughed.
After a short break, they had dinner. Three fellow villagers came here to work before and they were all together. When they saw Fang's father and Fang Mingche, they hurried over to say hello.
Fang's father nodded, "Are you used to it?"
"I am used to it, Uncle Seventh|Uncle Seventh Fang."
"Okay, do a good job!"
After dinner, Fang's father walked over to take a look.
Cheng Changdong said, "The owner is not living in it anymore, and the door is closed. We have to notify him to deliver the key."
"No need, isn't it tomorrow morning? I'll just take a look outside the hollow iron gate."
"Okay, I'll lead the way."
The three fellow villagers naturally went over together, and they surrounded Fang's father and talked.
Walking all the way, the feeling of old Shanghai was very strong. Fang's father thought to himself that it should be okay to open a homestay. Many people like this tune.
Fang Mingche asked Cheng Changdong, "How is your English? In a company like a foreign travel agency, English must be considered for promotion."
Cheng Changdong also knew that he needed an opportunity to become a regular employee. But now there is no one in Shanghai who is putting pressure on him, and he really gets about 500 a month.
Hearing Fang Mingche say this, he knew that his work in the past year was recognized.
He said: "I have been studying hard, and now I can basically talk directly with foreign guests."
"That's good, wait until Qiu Yin and the others come back from Europe."
"Okay." That's only five months, he can wait.
Everyone stood outside the big iron gate and looked at it. It was indeed a good house, with a fountain at the entrance. There was no more to see. Walking around the outer wall, it was quite large.
The next day, the owner of the house came. He was very interested when he heard that the real owner had come
. Fang Mingche was quite satisfied after seeing it, and he did not bargain for the price. If you buy such an old house now, you will make a profit. The key is to have money and be well-informed.
Both parties agreed to go to handle the transfer on Monday morning.
Fang's father looked at Fang Mingche twice, and did not give him face in front of outsiders. But when no one was around, he could not help but say: "At least you should bargain for a price. It would be good if you can get it down to a few thousand. You are a big boss and it is not easy for you to come forward. Then let A Yan come."
Fang Mingche said: "Dad, the price has increased by that much every month. I have picked up watermelons, so I am too lazy to care about sesame seeds."
Fang's father thought about it. He was in debt of 300,000 yuan, and the interest was 20,000 yuan a year. The monthly income is probably in the unit of 10,000 yuan. You have to worry about your image in front of others.
"No, Dad. What image do I have? This kind of house is very popular, and we are not the only ones who come to see the house."
"Is that so." It doesn't matter if someone competes.
"Come on, I'll take you to the Bund, Yu Garden and other places. Then we'll go see the site of the First Shikumen Congress."
Fang's father said, "Can we go see the fishing boats in Jiaxing, Zhejiang?"
"Yes, it's very close. Our travel agency has this route. Ask if it's full. If not, just add us in."
The remittance from Lin Yan was sent earlier. But that's slower than the plane and won't arrive until Sunday. Fang Mingche got the remittance slip, drove to pick it up and then deposited it at the Agricultural Bank.
There is no Postal Savings Bank now, otherwise you can deposit it without leaving the door.
When the transfer procedures were completed on Monday, Fang Mingche told Cheng Changdong to quickly have someone take it to the bank for a mortgage loan.
He asked Fang's father again, "Dad, I have to go back to prepare for the final exam. Why don't you just follow the travel agency's car to Suzhou and Hangzhou? Then have someone take you to the airport."
Fang's father thought about it and said, "Okay, let's arrange it this way."
Anyway, the homestay was operating normally, and he arranged it.
When Fang Mingche returned, Fang's mother heard that the old man had gone to Suzhou and Hangzhou, and couldn't help but curl her lips and said, "He is quite cool."
He went to Shanghai, Suzhou, and Hangzhou.
Fang Mingche said, "Mom, you can also go and be cool. When spring comes, you can go on a trip together, and explore new routes for the travel agency."
Fang's mother was a little moved. The youngest son and daughter-in-law took Yanyan and Changchang to the United States and Europe. The old man has also gone to the south of the Yangtze River. The area of East China is the south of the Yangtze River that Kangxi and Qianlong went to.
She also wanted to go out and take a look. She was reluctant to spend money, but the youngest son said that he asked them to explore the way, which is a business trip.
Yuan Shufen and Fang Minghua next to them also looked over. This day is too beautiful!
Fang Mingche said, "You two should work hard to earn money, and you will have everything in the future. By the way, I want to arrange for the whole family to go to Guangzhou for a warm winter this year. We will go by plane, together with Brother Mingfeng and his family. I will pay for the round-trip air tickets."
Yuan Shufen and Fang Minghua looked over, and were obviously tempted.
"Thank you very much, second brother!" Fang Minghua said somewhat awkwardly.
But he didn't have the confidence to say that he had to pay for the five-member family by himself, as he hadn't earned that much yet.
"You're welcome. You don't have enough accumulation now. Work for a few more years, buy a storefront, buy a house, and then it won't be difficult to go out for a trip."
Yuan Shufen and Fang Minghua looked at each other. Buy a storefront, buy a house, and travel?
Lin Yan smiled and said, "What's impossible? As long as the business keeps going well, everything is possible."
In comparison, Brother Mingche and his wife are much better than her disappointing brother. They got rich through hard work. Speaking of their background, they are far inferior to Lin Yi, who was born in a slum in the capital and grew up eating commercial grain.
Only because Mingche was admitted to university and the catching of blind migrants is not so strict now, they can come to the capital to make a living.
Lin Yi is still clinging to the iron rice bowl of a formal employee of a state-owned factory. But in fact, his income is much lower than that of Mingche's brother and sister-in-law. That is to say, there are still benefits such as housing allocation, medical reimbursement, and pension.
But my parents have two rooms, and it is not Lin Yi's turn. There are many young employees in the factory who do not have houses, and people like him who have a place to live will not be taken into consideration. Pensions are still far away, and as for medical reimbursement, more than 95% of people use it as a guarantee.
Lin Yan really doesn't think that an iron rice bowl is better than a well-performing self-employed person. With the income of Mingche's brother and sister-in-law, it is really possible to buy a storefront in two years and a house in four years.
Fang Mingche looked at Ayan who was talking affectionately with his brother and sister-in-law. Having Changchang in his life would greatly promote family relationships, especially the relationships between brothers and sisters-in-law. With Changchang, his mother would not think of adopting Kangkang to him! When
Fang Minghua heard that if they wanted to continue to open the noodle shop for a few more days, they would be divided into two groups and leave, he waved his hand and said, "Then let's leave together. Anyway, it's a private restaurant and we can decide when to open and when to close. It's reasonable to close it half a month before the New Year. If we go to the airport by ourselves, we will be in the dark. Taking the train is a waste of time."
He heard Mingfeng say that if they took a plane, they could have morning tea in Guangzhou in the morning and eat roast duck in the capital at noon. How convenient!
This matter was settled. Fang Mingche looked at his eldest brother and himself, and found that neither of them was as persistent as the old man in going home to worship their ancestors. It seemed that the younger generation really did not value this matter as much as the
older generation. Yuan Shufen said, "With so many of us, are we all going to live in Mingfeng's house? It would be too crowded, during the New Year."
Fang Mingche said, "His house will not be delivered until a few months later, and it will have to be renovated after it is delivered. It will be good to be able to move in during the New Year next year. Besides, there are only about a hundred square meters in total, and his family has seven people. Let's all live in the guesthouse, and then find a guesthouse on the seaside to live in."
Fang Jian's eyes lit up. The kid who grew up in Sichuan loves the sea. And Chu Liuxiang lives on a big ship on the sea.
He said, "Dad, are there still people living on boats now?"
"Yes, there are fishing boats and yachts. Well, our family of four will go to Hong Kong and Macau halfway, which will take about a week. You and your family will live in the guesthouse with grandpa and grandma, and you can eat more seafood. It's warm in the south, and it's more than 10 degrees during the New Year. Be careful when you bring clothes."
Fang Minghua looked at his brother, "Are you going to Macau to gamble?"
"My money is not enough for a night in the casino in Macau. I won't go!" Fang Mingche shook his head.
However, I heard that some people who claimed to have lost a lot of money there were actually just transferring assets through the casino. The casino has its own ways and charges a certain percentage of handling fees.
Fang Mingche looked at Fang Jian. If he got on the gambling ship to the high seas, it would probably be about the same size as Chu Liuxiang's big ship. This kid's admiration for Xiang Shuai is as always. But he definitely won't take Fang Jian to that kind of place. He himself may not have enough self-control.
Fang Mingche and Lin Yan went back to work on the final exams. During the break between the two exams, they came to the courtyard and heard Han Mei talking about Xie Ping's miscarriage last night. It was late at night, and Geng Shan drove a tractor to take her to the hospital. She took a leave today to protect the fetus in the hospital.
Fang Mingche asked Lin Yan, "Has Gao Xiang's work been affected by family matters recently?"
Lin Yan thought for a while, "Not yet. However, after New Year's Day, he is the busiest, and he has final exams."
The financial year is over,
so he must be busy. Fang Mingche frowned, "It will be too late if he delays things. Han Mei, let him come to me after the exam."
Han Mei nodded, "Okay."
When everyone finished their exams in mid-January, Gao Xiang came to the courtyard to settle the accounts of the previous financial year. Han Mei told him, "Teacher Gao, Teacher Fang asked you to go find him."
Gao Xiang, who looked a little tired, nodded, asked Fang Mingche where he was, and walked into the side courtyard of the third entrance.
Fang Mingche was making snowmen with Yanyan, Kangkang, and Changchang. Everyone wore leather gloves so that their hands would not get frozen.
Yanyan took a small piece of carrot and placed it on the snowman's face. Changchang and Kangkang also took a button each.
Kangkang was the first to see Gao Xiang, "Dad, Teacher Gao is here."
Fang Mingche said, "Here he is, come in and sit down."
The two sat down in the main room, and Fang Fang quickly brought up a cup of tea on a tray. Fang Min had already taken the train back to her hometown with Mingfa. The five people who worked in the travel agency couldn't go back because they had to work overtime during the New Year. It was just the right time for the others to go back for the New Year.
"Teacher Gao, please have some tea."
"Thank you."
Fang Fang went out, and the three children outside greeted her, "Big sister, come and have a snowball fight."
Fang Fang was worried that they would get snow in their necks, "How about we go to the river behind to watch the fishermen?"
The three children responded enthusiastically to this suggestion. The four people said something to the adults, and Fang Fang led the team out. She carried Changchang directly, and Yanyan and Kangkang followed.
Fang's mother hurriedly followed, fearing that Fang Fang couldn't handle it alone.
Gao Xiang retracted his gaze, "Xiao Fang, I feel that your family relationship is very harmonious."
Fang Mingche said directly: "There are no green tea or extreme products in my family. So when the material is rich, everyone has fewer conflicts."
Gao Xiang said a little unhappy: "Do you mean that there are in my family?"
"You are so sensitive that you think it's the right thing to do. I didn't say that. Old Gao, if you feel that the work is hard, I can find someone to share some of the burden with you. You look tired. Let them find another financial manager for the vegetable stall and the scrap yard after this time, and you can just focus on the travel agency."
After the final exam, he and Lin Yan were in a very good state. Gao Xiang's family was obviously in a mess, and he was not in a good state.
Without the work of three, no, four places, the income must be reduced. Fang Mingche's scrap yard didn't ask him to do it, and Fang Mingfeng would definitely ask someone else to do it.
However, the atmosphere at home was not good recently, and he was indeed a little exhausted. It was still six or seven months before Xiaoping was born. Home should be a haven for rest. Now there are three women at home, making him feel exhausted.
Fang Mingche paused, "If you find it too much to run a travel agency alone, then hire someone with a major in finance to help you."
He was originally taking care of Gao Xiang, who had a patient at home, so he entrusted all his business to him to manage the finances. Gao Xiang has been quite competent in the past two years.
But if his family affairs are not sorted out and affect his work status, he will definitely not tolerate it.
The ancients said that self-cultivation, family harmony, governance of the country and peace in the world still makes sense. If you can't handle your own family affairs, how can you expect to do a good job at work?
Gao Xiang shuddered, "I know."
(End of this chapter)
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