Two additional roasted ducks were ordered, making it a total of three, which made for a considerable addition to the three gentlen’s al. Unlike the later generations where a duck could clearly yield three plates worth, and if you order one, you’d only get two plates, now you would get as many plates as they could carve. An array of three ducks ca in four large plates of duck at, accompanied by several cold and hot dishes.
Lu Ping’an loved the crispy duck skin most; Li Xianglu helped him to slices repeatedly. However, Qin Xi’s neighbor, Qin Zhen, was so reserved that he barely ate, which made Li Xianglu glance over several tis.
Lu Xun took the initiative to pay the bill before Mr. Li had a chance to say a polite word. With a sense of emotion, he said, "Ah, I don’t even know what to say. First it was my son, then Yun i, and now Anna. I just don’t know what to say anymore, it’s just a al, Mr. Li, please don’t be too courteous."
Mr. Li was an open-minded man and smiled, "Well then, I shall thank you for your hospitality today, Young Lu."
Lu Xun laughed and said, "You’re too kind, I’d treat you to as many als as you’d like."
Li Xianglu had the remaining duck carcasses packed up; she planned to stew them into a soup later that evening.
On the way back, Qin Zhen pedaled his bicycle so fast that Li Xianglu had to smack his back to feel better: "Are you crazy? Why are you riding so fast!"
Qin Zhen, feeling sowhat guilty, didn’t say much and just humd sadly before slowing down. Li Xianglu felt that sothing was off with him; he was fine before going to the duck restaurant, but his mood seed different once he arrived, remaining low the entire ti.
Just when Li Xianglu wanted to ask why, they had arrived at the bank. The four entered again, Li Xianglu bringing the entire household registry and the remittance slip. This ti the remittance was substantial, nearly two hundred thousand. The bank didn’t have enough reserves, so an appointnt was made for the next morning to withdraw the funds, and the four people left the bank.
They didn’t head straight back ho but went to take a look at a house around the corner. Before they even arrived, they saw an elderly lady and a young man waiting anxiously there.
As soon as the old lady saw Li Xianglu, her heart settled down, and she patted her chest saying, "Oh my, where have you all been? I was worried that... "
Li Xianglu glanced at the ti. It was no wonder the old lady was worried – it was already two forty. Without responding to her concern, she smiled instead, "This is my grandfather; he has already made contact with the relatives on the other side and ca over specially to look at the house."
Seeing that she ca with an elder, the old lady felt reassured, and she quickly said sothing to the young man beside her. The young man, looking to be in his late twenties, ca forward to greet, "This house belongs to my uncle’s family, please feel free to have a look first."
Qin Xi took the keys and opened the door, and everyone entered. Li Xianglu intentionally lagged behind a little, and the clever old lady did the sa.
When everyone reached the front yard, she quietly murmured to Li Xianglu, "Nowadays, the house is in my nephew’s na and he can make decisions about it. He was initially unwilling to sell at the price; he thought it was too low. I, the old woman, had to talk until my mouth was dry, explaining the situation to him thoroughly. Then he made a call to Shanghai, and they said if it’s sixty thousand, it would be okay, but the paynt has to be made in one go."
Li Xianglu smiled and nodded, "Grandma, rest assured, once we sign the contract and pay the deposit, I’ll give you five hundred imdiately."
The old lady’s eyes sparkled at these words, clapping her hands, she said, "Great, then it’s settled like that."
Li Xianglu had looked at this house several tis and had already decided on the price; as soone from an archaeology background, she was quite familiar with the structure, size, and area of the old quadrangle houses.
Entering from the outermost main gate led to a small courtyard, known as the first entry. Then, passing through the adorned gateway (second gate) led to the typical quadrangle courtyard, which beca the second entry. Walking further in, there was another courtyard, the third entry, and even further back, there would be a fourth entry courtyard. From an aerial view, it had the feel of four entrances coming together.
The so-called four courtyards were on the standard aning of quadrangle courtyards. Four entries already counted as a luxury house. How could a luxury house lack gardens, pavilions, towers, and the like? So you’d have to include all kinds of pavilions, towers, and decorative covered walkways, with the last courtyard usually featuring a garden. Therefore, a good quadrangle courtyard should be at least a thousand square ters, while this one at most spans a little over eight hundred.
This courtyard wasn’t as regulated; its wall plaster was peeling severely. It was no match for the three-entry small courtyard where Li Xianglu lived.
Speaking of it, Li Xianglu and her family were living in their current courtyard at a steal—they bought it for a little over ten thousand. That courtyard had its own small issues, though. The first entry, so-called, was actually just a gatehouse and a storage room, followed by the gate, and only after that were two more entries of the courtyard. So, essentially, their place was at most a two-entry courtyard.
After examining all the courtyards, Mr. Li nodded to his granddaughter, and Li Xianglu said with a smile to the granny, "My grandfather is quite satisfied. Next, let’s discuss the price."
The granny hurriedly went to talk to the younger folks, and after a while, she ca over with a face full of joy, saying, "Alright, let’s quickly draft the agreent. This courtyard is in high demand. You should complete the transfer as soon as possible to avoid soone else knocking on the door, which might change the price."
Li Xianglu pouted her lips. Could this place even be inhabited now? It needed a good clean-up for sure. However, she understood the old lady’s eagerness, so they negotiated a bit, drafted an agreent, and used the five thousand dollars she had carried with her as a deposit. Then the hoowner handed over the property deed as a sign of sincerity.
Having accomplished a great task, Qin Xi decided not to go scavenging that afternoon and instead rest, waiting until the next day to talk about transferring the property.
The following morning, everyone headed straight to the bank. In front of witnesses, they withdrew the money, counting out fifty-five thousand dollars, and then there was the remaining one thousand five hundred dollars needed for the brokerage fee.
The young people received the money and imdiately went to the community center to handle the property transfer, putting it directly under Li Xianglu’s na. The granny was left agog, wondering how such wealthy folks were still out scavenging, and what this family was thinking.
With Director Wang there, things went smoothly. They completed the handwritten transfer procedures on spot. The young man had a lot of money in hand and was anxious to leave first, not feeling secure, leaving the granny all alone.
Li Xianglu then handed over a bulging handkerchief with a smile.
The granny’s eyes lit up, she quickly accepted it, and turned around, counting several tis before she could relax, confirming it was the exact amount, down to the last penny.
Seeing that the granny had counted the money, Li Xianglu smiled and asked, "Granny, is the amount correct?"
The granny replied with a smile, "It’s all correct. You’re a straightforward young lady!"
Li Xianglu continued with a smile, "Have you seen a strong and healthy boy?"
The granny didn’t quite understand and nodded, "What about him?"
Li Xianglu said with a troubled expression, "He’s getting married but has no house!"
The granny was taken aback at first, then suddenly realised it ant they wanted to buy a house, which was an easy task. She could help look for one!
After taking down Li Xianglu’s phone number, the granny assured them that she was very familiar with this area. If there were any houses available, she would help negotiate.
ps: I went out for a walk this afternoon and didn’t co back until after eight. When I got back on, I saw the monthly tickets had increased a lot. Too lazy to check the comnts section, afraid I might see sothing heartbreaking, so I’ll just pretend that you all are supporting . Please forgive my ostrich ntality; whenever I face a problem, I tend to run away. Updating is important; I won’t stop it, so you all can rest assured.
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