1990s: Spring Water Family

Chapter 11 Changes of the Times

"Xi Yu, do you know?"

The older generation reacted very differently. My aunt frowned and asked, "What did that reporter mean by demolishing the old city?"

"do not know."

Lin Xiyu was taken aback, her eyes showing apology: "I only heard her say one sentence, I didn't ask in detail."

"We need to get to the bottom of this."

My uncle's face was grave: "If our family's situation is really going to be demolished, I'm afraid it won't be optimistic. When Jingqi Road was being demolished, the difference between living in public housing and not living there was huge."

"Snapped."

My aunt trembled, and the bowl and chopsticks in her hands fell to the ground.

-

Lin Xiyu's great-grandfather, who was also her maternal grandfather's father, was a craftsman whose ancestral home was in Shanxi.

During the late Qing Dynasty, the old man came to Jinan from Shanxi to make a living. After settling down, he brought Lin Xiyu's maternal grandfather with him.

The old man had a strong desire to return to his roots. He had been working in Shanxi for many years but had never been able to buy a house of his own.

After the founding of the People's Republic of China, during the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea, the old man, filled with patriotic fervor, donated all his life savings.

Not long after donating his belongings, the old man suffered a stroke and died on the spot, unable to return to his hometown before his death.

My maternal grandfather borrowed money from all sides to pay for the old man's funeral, leaving him with a mountain of debt. From then on, the family was destitute, and their life became extremely difficult.

-

My maternal grandmother's family had always lived in rented public housing. During the Great Leap Forward in 58, every household had to hand over their ironware for the Great Leap Forward.

When the villagers ran out of kitchen knives, getting food became a problem. So the neighborhood committee turned the courtyard at No. 11 Pangong Street, where my grandmother used to live, into a large canteen, and relocated the families living in the courtyard.

My maternal grandmother's family moved to No. 9 Donghua Street around that time, along with the Zhang and Wang families. They have lived there since 58, for over 30 years.

Over the past 30 years, through thick and thin, and through the changes of the times, many things have happened, and there have been quite a few frictions between neighbors.

The largest conflict occurred in 84.
The state has introduced a new policy that all confiscated and expropriated private houses belonging to overseas Chinese must be returned.

Mr. Huang's family are relatives of overseas Chinese, and No. 9 Donghua Street is their private property.

As soon as the policy was announced, Mr. Huang's son, who was living abroad, had an idea: to kick out the other three families and sell the old house to a southerner doing business in Jinan.

The old town is just inside the moat, a tiny area with a large population and few houses.

The neighborhood committee couldn't solve the housing problem, so the three families had nowhere to go and were unwilling to relocate.

So they almost broke off all relations over the house.

Grandpa Huang's son instructed his brother-in-law in China to hire some thugs to vandalize the yard and force the three families to move out.

At the time, Lin Xiyu's biological father was still alive, and he and his comrades gave them a severe beating.

The brother-in-law was so scared of being beaten that he abandoned the matter and never showed his face in the yard again.

This matter caused quite a stir at the time. It involved not only Mr. Huang's family, but also other families in the same compound, and the dispute lasted for a long time.

In the end, the neighborhood committee intervened and, out of consideration for the long-standing relationship between neighbors, Mr. Huang agreed to allow the three families to continue living there. The public rental housing was changed to private rental housing, and the rent was increased from 5 yuan per month to 30 yuan.

-

"Clang."

The porcelain bowl fell to the ground and shattered, the sudden sound striking the hearts of everyone present.

Grandma's legs went weak, she staggered back two steps, and fell onto the bed.

(End of this chapter)