The train journey from Shanghai to Beijing takes 22 hours. Fortunately, there are several trains available, and the group chose the one that departs around noon, so they would arrive in Beijing in the morning when it's not so hot.
Liu Yun: "The three of them will all start school at the same time, but they have three days. We can take Beibei to register a day early, and then send Tuantuan and Yuanyuan to Shanghai. But what about Dangdang and An'an?"
Tuantuan: "We already know where the school is, and we've bought everything. We can just go to the school to register ourselves."
"No, I'm worried." Liu Yun said, then looked at Yu Qianhe. "Isn't your school about to start? You'll be going back to work soon too. Why don't you take An'an and Dangdang back first?"
Upon hearing this, Yu Qian touched his nose and said, "Because I knew I would have to take Tuantuan, Yuanyuan, and Beibei to school, and the school understood, I took a few days off in advance."
Upon hearing Yu Qianhe's words, An'an and Dangdang jumped up immediately, "I want to ask for leave too! I want to ask for leave too!"
"Mom, we can take two days off too, and go back together then."
"Yes, yes! School won't teach anything in the first few days after it starts, and we can just go back and make up for it with a couple more days of classes."
"Mom, let's go back together! I want to see my older brother and sister off too, please."
"Please."
Looking into their big, watery eyes, Liu Yun felt a little reluctant to refuse.
"Alright! But you have to catch up on the lessons you missed when you get back, and if I find out your grades have dropped in the midterm exams, then you two will have to stay home for tutoring this winter break and won't be allowed to go out and play, understand?"
An'an/Dangdang: "Okay, thank you, Mom. I love you the most."
Liu Yun: "That's good. Your homework is still a problem! I remember you haven't finished your homework yet! Don't let it prevent you from registering."
An'an/Dangdang: "Write it right away, I'll definitely finish my homework before school starts."
After saying that, the two of them each dragged a box to use as a stool and started writing on the bed.
Seeing how impulsive and unpredictable the two were, the others found it amusing.
Liu Yun agreed to ask them for leave not because she couldn't bear to refuse, but because she saw that Yu Qianhe had already asked for leave and clearly wanted to send Tuantuan, Yuanyuan, and Beibei to school. He had already made plans, so she wouldn't force him to go back.
The train was very quiet this time without Dangdang and An'an making a ruckus, so the group simply closed their eyes and rested for a while, since the journey was still long.
You can immediately feel the difference between Beijing, Xicheng, and Shanghai as soon as you get off the train.
It's late August, and since it's not yet noon, there's no scorching heat at all. If it were in Xiangshi, you'd probably feel like you've stepped into a furnace full of hot water as soon as you get off the bus—it's stuffy and hot.
They didn't have a place to rest in Beijing either, but Yu Qian was very familiar with Beijing, after all, it was where he spent four years of university, and he often came here on business trips afterward.
As soon as the nine people got off the train, they found a few tricycles and headed to the hotel. Having had the experience in Shanghai, they checked in as usual.
When Liu Yun came to Beijing, the thing she wanted to do most was to see the flag-raising ceremony. This was her biggest wish when she came to Beijing. She had wanted to go back in the 21st century, but she didn't have the means to go. Now she was determined to come and see it.
When she went to Shanghai, she was mainly there for the houses, but it was different in Beijing. Although she also valued the courtyard houses, there were many places here that she had always wanted to see but never had the chance to.
Tiananmen Square, the Forbidden City, the Summer Palace, the Great Wall, the Temple of Heaven, and so on.
Liu Yun was having so much fun every day that she didn't want to leave. Not only Liu Yun, but everyone except Yu Qian was like that.
And what was Yu Qianhe doing? His main job was to be a tour guide for the eight people.
Not only that, he also needs to contact his old classmates. Although his wife is having so much fun that she doesn't care about anything else, time flies by. Soon it will be time for school to start, and he will have to send Tuan Tuan and Yuan Yuan back to Shanghai before going home himself.
If he doesn't manage to buy the courtyard house he's been longing for, he'll definitely regret it to death. He'll keep nagging about it and regretting it every day, and he'll have a lot of time to nag.
But now I'm so engrossed in having fun that I've completely forgotten about it. I'm having so much fun every day. The Forbidden City and the Temple of Heaven are so big, and the Great Wall is so difficult to climb. Now my back doesn't ache and my legs don't hurt. I have the energy to do anything.
After a whole week of sightseeing, the group only visited four places. Every morning they would get up early and eagerly wait at Tiananmen Square. Yu Qian and others were at a loss for words.
Liu Yun finally managed to suppress her excitement when she got to visit the school.
Yu Qianhe: "Wife, are you still planning to buy a yard?"
Liu Yun got excited as soon as she heard the word "courtyard." She couldn't help it; in Beijing, the word "courtyard" immediately reminded her of a traditional courtyard house.
When the topic of courtyard houses came up, she realized that she didn't even have a house in Beijing!
"A courtyard? What courtyard? A traditional courtyard house?"
Yu Qianhe: "We also have small courtyards and traditional courtyard houses. Would you like to buy one?"
Liu Yun: "Yes, yes, yes, it's not a question of whether I want to buy or not, but how much I can afford, okay? How much? No, where did you find out about these properties?"
Yu Qianhe: "As soon as I arrived in Beijing, I contacted a classmate who used to stay in Beijing and asked him to keep an eye out for me. Now I have some news."
Liu Yun: "How many are there? Can we afford them?"
It wasn't that Liu Yun lacked confidence, but rather that courtyard houses in Beijing were too expensive—an astronomical figure even in the 21st century, and certainly wouldn't be cheap now.
Back in the 1970s, they were worth several thousand or even tens of thousands of yuan. Now it's 1982, and I don't know how many times the price has increased.
Seeing Liu Yun's cautious demeanor, Yu Qianhe smiled and said, "Don't worry, with your savings, buying a few apartments shouldn't be a problem."
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