Chapter 195 Renting a House

Chapter 195 Renting a House

After walking for about fifteen minutes and asking around, they finally found the Lihua Hutong the couple had mentioned.

This alley is obviously much wider than the other alleys. There is a sturdy pear tree at the intersection. Under the tree, a few girls and boys are playing shuttlecock.

Gu Tang broke the oil cake in his hand into several pieces, walked forward to distribute them to them with a smile, and asked them if they had a yard to rent.

The children who got the oil cakes were very happy and asked Gu Tang to wait under the tree while they went back to the alley to help ask every household.

These children all live in Lihua Hutong. They are very familiar with the people living in the hutong and know every family by name.

Gu Tang sat on an exposed tree root and waited for a while. Then a group of children came running over and said they had asked for her.

"The Guo family in the alley has a yard for rent, but the yard is a little small, but the house is nice, with three rooms and each has its own door and door."

"Three rooms? That's great. I'll go take a look first. If the rooms are well built, a smaller yard won't be a problem."

Gu Tang stood up and asked the children to lead her over.

The children led people into the alley and walked all the way to the end of the alley before arriving at the door of the Guo family.

This alley runs from north to south, and the courtyard doors of the houses on both sides face east and west respectively.

The Guo family's courtyard is on the west side, and the gate faces east.

I knocked on the door of Guo’s courtyard, and it was Old Mrs. Guo who opened the door.

The old lady was not young, with gray hair and wrinkles all over her face, but her face was very kind and she loved children very much. She gave each child who came to her house a handful of roasted melon seeds.

The children who got the roasted melon seeds ran away happily, leaving Gu Tang alone in Guo's house.

Seeing that Gu Tang was young, Old Lady Guo was very hesitant about her renting a house. "You want to rent a house? Where are your parents at home?"

Gu Tang smiled and made up a story: "My parents are small business owners, and they are busy in the shop right now. Don't look at my young age. I have been helping my mother manage the household since I was about seven or eight years old. Now, I make all the decisions on all the big and small matters in the family."

"I see. I thought so. Renting a house is no small matter. How come you, a kid, come here alone?"

"I can't help it. Although the shop is not big, there are many things to do. My parents are reluctant to spend money to hire people, so they have to work alone. If they can take care of the shop, they can't take care of the family. I have to help manage the house."

These words touched the heart of Old Mrs. Guo. When she was young, she also worked in the shop with her husband. When she was busy, she naturally had no time to take care of her family.

She pointed to the house next to the Guo family: "This small courtyard is to be rented out. It was originally together with the courtyard where we live. Later, my son said that there are few people in the family and it is a pity to leave the house unoccupied. It is better to separate it and open another door, and rent it out to a tenant. At least it can supplement the family income..."

While muttering to herself, the old lady took out the key and opened the gate to the courtyard next door.

When he heard that it was a small courtyard separated from the big courtyard, Gu Tang had an idea in his mind. This should be the back house facing south.

The Guo family's house faces south and is a quadrangle courtyard with three main rooms, three rooms in the east and west wings, and three back rooms.

This small courtyard is separated by a wall, separating the three rooms into a separate small courtyard with another gate.

When we arrived at the yard, we found it was indeed narrow, but the three rooms in the back were quite nice. They were all made of bricks and tiles, which was much better than the adobe house.

After Old Lady Guo opened the three rooms one by one, Gu Tang went in and took a look. It was empty, with nothing inside. The three rooms were not connected to each other, and each room had one door.

"Although this yard is a bit small, these three rooms are quite spacious. If separated, they can accommodate five or six people. Cooking is also easy. You can build a shed in the yard as a kitchen. By the way, are you renting this yard to your family or to someone else?"

"They are my mother's relatives, three brothers. They don't look good and their legs and feet are not very agile, but they are good people. My mother lost her parents when she was a child, and it was all up to their parents to raise her.

Now that the three brothers’ hometown has been hit by disaster, they have come to seek refuge. My mother said she would rent them a small courtyard and let them live there first. After the beginning of next spring, she would ask someone to find them a job. They don’t ask for much money, just to avoid starvation.

Old Mrs. Guo nodded, with no dissatisfaction on her face. At her age, what matters is not whether a person is handsome or ugly, or whether his legs and feet are strong or bad, but whether his temperament is good or bad.

As long as the person is good, she is willing to rent him even if he is as ugly as a demon.

Gu Tang noticed her reaction and thought that it was fine. This was the right one. It was rare to meet such an open-minded old lady. As long as she didn't look down on the three brothers, it would be fine.

"I like this yard. Please tell me the price. If the price is right, I will pay and rent it!"

Old Mrs. Guo laughed and said, "Although this house is made of bricks and tiles, this yard is an eyesore. I know all this, and I don't ask for much. Just give me 150 copper coins a month."

One hundred and fifty copper coins a month was not expensive, especially for a well-maintained alley dwelling in the south. The old lady did not ask for much.

"Okay! Since you are so honest, I won't look for another place. I will stay with you."

Old Mrs. Guo was even happier, and handed the key in her hand to Gu Tang: "Take this key, let's find someone to be a witness. Today is the 20th of the winter month, and I will collect the rent every 20th of every month from now on."

When ordinary people rent a house, there is no lease or deposit. They just find a witness and decide on a certain day of each month as the rent collection day, and everyone consciously fulfills the spirit of the contract.

It's not okay to be unconscious, unless you want to do a one-time deal. If you want to collect rent for a long time, you have to be honest.

There was an old scholar in his early fifties living in the alley. Old Mrs. Guo took Gu Tang to find the man and gave him two bags of snacks. The old scholar then agreed to be a witness.

As for how much rent to pay at one time, there is no particular requirement. You can pay it once a month or once every three months.

Gu Tang thought that the New Year was approaching, so with the old scholar's witness, he simply paid three months' rent and gave Mrs. Guo four hundred and fifty copper coins.

Old Mrs. Guo really didn't expect to receive three months' rent at once. She thought that since the house was given to relatives, she should pay it monthly. Unexpectedly, the family was so generous to their relatives and gave three months' rent in one go.

Carrying a string of copper coins, Old Mrs. Guo smiled so hard that two gaps in her teeth were exposed. She sent the copper coins home, and then personally sent Gu Tang to the entrance of the alley. She watched Gu Tang leave before going back.

Gu Tang, who had finally finished his work, happily returned to his own yard. On the way, he also bought a chicken and planned to stew a pot of chicken soup.

In cold weather, hot soup is the most tempting thing.

Gu Tang, who was lighting a fire and killing chickens in the kitchen, hummed a little tune while scalding the chicken feathers with hot water, and completely forgot about the little beggars.

Little did she know that the little beggars had taken her words to heart and were trying to wake up the unconscious boss.

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