In the evening, Gu Shoufou and his three sons returned from collecting grain. Zhang Xiaoju and Gu Xingping also returned with their children from the supply and marketing cooperative.
In September, Zhang Xiaoju had given birth to a big, healthy baby girl. The child looked exactly like Gu Xingye. She was now just over four months old and still needed to nurse. Zhang Xiaoju was also busy managing the cooperative alone, so Gu Xingping, who was home on vacation, went to help her look after the baby.
"Third sister-in-law, why didn't you say you were coming back earlier? Are you back alone? Can you stay for a few more days this time?" Gu Xingping was very happy to see her return and quickly linked her arm through Chen Lishu's.
"It's already December. I can only stay for a little over a week at most. Otherwise, it'll be difficult to buy tickets at the end of the year. After all, your third brother is the only one at home, and I have to go back to spend the New Year with him."
"It's not just Third Sister-in-law who came back alone. Didn't you see she brought a little one?" Liu Yuemin chimed in with a smile, her eyes glancing at Rui Rui, who was playing with Gu Song and the others not far away.
In her opinion, since Chen Lishu had the money to raise someone else's child, she might as well spend more on her own nephews and nieces. She had seen early on that the child she was wearing and using was much better than her own two boys.
It was pure extravagance! "Rui Rui, come here." Chen Lishu waved at Rui Rui with a smile, asking him to come over and greet them.
Dinner was soon ready, and the whole family split into two tables, one on the ground and one on the heated brick bed. Li Xiulan took the children to the bed table, while the other adults ate at the ground table.
In the evening, Chen Lishu specifically added hot water to the pot. After the mother and son finished washing up, they also brought water to soak their feet together before getting into bed to sleep.
This was the first time Rui Rui slept with Chen Lishu. His eyes were bright all night, and even a smile touched the corners of his mouth as he looked at Chen Lishu.
"What makes my son so happy?"
Chen Lishu reached out and poked his little nose. Rui Rui smiled sheepishly, revealing a few tiny white teeth the size of rice grains. He said with his eyes curved, "Mom, Big Brother gave me two marbles and two pieces of paper today. Can I take them home to play with Brother Yanchao?"
Chen Lishu smiled and nodded, "Of course."
As the mother and son chatted, Chen Lishu reached up and pulled the light cord. The room quickly plunged into darkness.
After a day of traveling by car and walking, both mother and son were a bit tired. They closed their eyes and fell asleep in no time.
After resting at home for another day, early one morning, Chen Lishu dressed Rui Rui after breakfast, reminded Gu Song to take good care of his younger brother, and then bid farewell to Li Xiulan. Chen Lishu then put on her hat and scarf and walked towards the town.
Lin Qi had been waiting in the small courtyard since early morning. The room was also heated warmly. When Chen Lishu entered, a wave of heat hit her face. Her eyes, which had been numb with cold, suddenly felt itchy from the sudden contact with the heat.
"Sister Chen, as you said, I've been to several places these past two days and asked around. Only two places are willing to sell their houses. One was introduced by Brother Nan, behind their department store, and the other is next to the train station."
In those years, few people bought houses, and even fewer sold them. Often, a family of more than a dozen people would squeeze into a small house.
Now that she could find out about two houses for sale at once, Lin Qi must have gone to many places.
"Have you made an appointment with the homeowners? Is it convenient to see the houses today?"
Lin Qi nodded, "They are all currently occupied, but it's no problem to view the houses."
"Alright then, let's go to the closer one first."
Soon, the two locked the courtyard gate and went behind the department store.
The location of the house was not as good as imagined. It wasn't on the main street. Although it was on the first floor, the area was small, only about twenty square meters. The lighting was not very good either. Especially since many people lived in the house, it was crammed full of things, making the room seem even narrower and more cramped, with almost no standing room. "Don't look at my house not being big, the only advantage is that it faces the department store, less than a hundred meters from its back door. It's just that my family is too large and we can't move around, so I want to sell the house and buy a bigger one further away. Otherwise, this location really wouldn't be for sale."
The woman was a salesclerk at the department store. Her vision and knowledge were more than others. Seeing Chen Lishu frown, she immediately added, explaining its advantages.
Chen Lishu gave a wry smile, "Big sister, I'm buying a house to live in. What's the use of being close to the department store? I'm not an employee there. I can't pay several hundred more dollars just because it's convenient to buy things, can I?"
Lin Qi had already briefly told her about it when they came. This house was priced at six hundred yuan, and it had not been sold because the price was too high.
Chen Lishu didn't like it at first glance. However, considering the potential to attract customers due to its proximity to the department store, she could reluctantly consider it for at most four hundred.
The woman frowned when she heard Chen Lishu's words. Had she guessed wrong? Did the other party have another purpose for buying the house? Lin Qi glanced at the woman's reaction and turned to Chen Lishu, saying, "Sister Chen, how about we go see the other place? That one is not far from here and is a bit more spacious. They say it can be cheaper if you finalize it before the New Year."
The woman was initially holding firm, as there weren't many people selling houses at that time, especially in such a good location. But upon hearing Lin Qi's words, she couldn't help but panic a little. After all, she had been trying to sell it for over half a year, and everyone who looked at the house frowned and left upon hearing the price.
"Young man, I've lived here for a long time. Which house are you talking about?"
Lin Qi smiled at her, "Big sister, these are two houses for sale. How can I say it? Please don't make it difficult for me."
The smile on the woman's face froze for a moment. "Don't you two run around in this cold weather. If you like my house, and since it was introduced by Manager Nan, I'll give you a fifty yuan discount."
Chen Lishu smiled, neither agreeing nor disagreeing, and said to Lin Qi, "You said the other place is willing to sell for four hundred? Let's go see that one."
Four hundred?
The woman almost shrieked. She wouldn't even consider selling her house for four hundred yuan.
The flat house she had her eye on cost eight hundred yuan. She had originally planned to sell hers for six hundred and add some money herself.
Thinking this, the woman didn't stop them. With a displeased face, she said, "Since someone is willing to sell for four hundred, you should go buy elsewhere. I don't have this price here."
Chen Lishu was already not very satisfied. The usable area was only just over twenty square meters. Excluding the bathroom, fitting room, counter, and storage space, if a few more customers came, there wouldn't be enough room to turn around.
Seeing the two leave without looking back, the woman began to hesitate again. Several people had already looked at the flat house she was interested in. It had three rooms and a small courtyard, which was definitely much more spacious than hers. If someone really decided to buy it, she wouldn't find a more suitable one.
Thinking this, the woman quickly called out to the two, "Comrades, please wait. If you really like it, the price can be negotiated further. Five hundred, and it really can't be any lower. My location is here."