Qiao Qinglu said, "Brother Yong, please help me change the lock on the Xie family yard. You have one key and I have one. I won't have to go back and forth to get the key when I put the goods there."
Brother Yong answered simply, "僢."
Qiao Qinglu thought of the courtyards in Houhai again. She took out 120 yuan and two keys and handed them to Brother Yong. "Brother Yong, which brother will help me take care of the two courtyards in Houhai? Here is the annual rent and the keys to the courtyards. Please help me arrange them."
Brother Yong called out one of his younger brothers, handed him money and a key, and brought him to Qiao Qinglu and Xiao Qinyun. He said, "Yuqian'er, meet your sister Qiao and brother-in-law. This guy is Yu Jinlai, and we all call him 'Yuqian'er.' He lives in Houhai, in the alley behind your second courtyard. If there's any trouble in those two courtyards, just go find him in that alley."
The three of them greeted each other, and Qiao Qinglu and Xiao Qinyun said goodbye as they had things to do in Wangfujing.
Upon hearing this, Brother Yong stopped trying to persuade him to stay and agreed to trade on the day off in the next day, and then the two left.
When Qiao Qinglu and Xiao Qinyun arrived at the second courtyard of Wangfujing, the masters had been waiting for a while, but fortunately not for long.
Xiao Qinyun opened the gate and welcomed several masters in. Master Wang, Master Han and Master Lu each started to check the situation in the yard.
Xiao Qinyun and Qiao Qinglu were chatting with Master Jin in the main room.
After the three of them finished looking, they gathered in the living room of the main house to talk. According to their experience, this yard did not need major renovations, and the specific construction methods would depend on their ideas.
Xiao Qinyun and Qiao Qinglu had discussed this long ago, so Xiao Qinyun said directly, "We plan to construct this courtyard in three stages. The first stage is to renovate the east wing within three days, including installing a waterproof layer on the roof, renovating the floor, replacing the glass windows, varnishing the beams and columns, and painting the walls white; and renovating the bluestone slabs on the outer courtyard."
The second step is to renovate the west wing and transform it into a kitchen. The process is based on the renovation of the east wing, and water and sewage treatment is added; the east wing is renovated and transformed into a bathroom. The process is based on the renovation of the west wing, and sewage treatment is added.
The third step is to renovate the main house, west wing, back house, east and west wing side rooms in the same way as the east wing; renovate the bluestone pavement in the inner courtyard, and renovate the entire inner wall, archway, and vertical gate.
"That's all the work we need. We're moving in four days, so starting tomorrow, you have three days to complete the renovation of the east wing and the flagstone path. Can you complete the renovation of the entire courtyard within a month?"
The three craftsmen discussed it and confirmed it. Then, Master Wang responded directly on behalf of the other two craftsmen, "Time is a bit tight. We need to complete these renovations within three days, so we need to find other helpers. Please first tell us how to calculate the wages and how to provide the materials."
Xiao Qinyun and the others had already calculated the cost. "You guys are responsible for all the materials. You need the best quality. I'll find someone knowledgeable to inspect them. The labor and materials are 600 yuan each. I'll give you a 200 yuan deposit first. How about that?"
The three craftsmen each calculated the required materials and working hours. It wasn't long before Master Wang replied, "Hey, Master Jin recommended us here. Since you think highly of us, let us take care of the materials and labor. We will definitely clean up this yard for you. Please go ahead."
As soon as Xiao Qinyun saw that the matter was settled, the two parties signed three copies of the renovation contract, which stated the requirements and time. Master Jin acted as the middleman, and each of the three parties held a copy.
Then, he readily took out two hundred yuan (which Qiao Qinglu had just given him) and a key and handed them to Master Wang. He then asked, "Master Wang, do you have any ready-made large beds, large cabinets, boxes, or other furniture? We're planning to order a batch. If you have something suitable already, we'll buy it directly."
Master Wang quickly agreed, "My house is not far from here, and I still have a few pieces of furniture in stock. If you have nothing to do, you can come over and sit with me."
The work here was done, so after saying goodbye to Master Jin, Master Han, and Master Lu, the two followed Master Wang to his house to look at furniture.
Xiao Qinyun and Qiao Qinglu pushed the cart and walked with Master Wang for more than ten minutes before arriving at a large courtyard nearby. Master Wang's home was in the back room of this three-courtyard house.
His house is a three-room house on the east side, with a good location and a large area.
After entering, they saw a large bed, a set of four-door cabinets with top boxes, three large wooden boxes, and a dressing table with a mirror and a dressing stool in the room on the left.
Although these pieces of furniture had no carvings and were only painted with varnish, the wood had straight grain and beautiful lines, and they were simple and attractive. Xiao Qinyun and Qiao Qinglu fell in love with these pieces of furniture on the spot.
Master Wang gave them the cost price. These were ash furniture, the bed was 60 yuan, the large cabinet was 80 yuan, three wooden boxes were 40 yuan, the dressing table and dressing stool were 30 yuan, and the whole piece was 210 yuan.
Xiao Qinyun gave a deposit of 20 yuan, Master Wang wrote a receipt, and agreed that Master Wang would deliver it to the yard four days later.
Qiao Qinglu also made an appointment with Master Wang that after the courtyard project was completed, she would have Master Wang custom-make a few elm wood cabinets for the yard, and they would then negotiate the price after providing both the labor and materials.
After that, the two said goodbye to Master Wang and prepared to go to the state-owned restaurant for dinner.
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