Courtyard House: The Chef's Intelligence System

Lou Bancheng left after listening to Li Jiuzhou's advice.

Li Jiuzhou then took out paper and pen and wrote something.

Lou Bancheng is the first example of his kind, at least among capitalists.

There have been such cases before, but those families were loyal guardians of the Party in their early years, and their family assets had already been donated.

Even if they were investigated and punished after the founding of the People's Republic of China, they would not be held accountable. On the contrary, they would be rewarded for their meritorious service.

During the Cultural Revolution, it might not be safe anymore; things were too chaotic then, and it was hard to say.

Lou Bancheng didn't rest after returning home. After dinner, he locked himself in his study.

After writing all night, revising and rewriting, he finally managed to produce a 1,500-word letter with special significance.

The next day, after reading through the letter, Li Jiuzhou glanced at Lou Bancheng and joked:

"Well written, don't write like that again..."

Lou Bancheng was furious upon hearing this, and his defenses crumbled:

"I'll never write this stuff again in my life, damn it..."

Li Jiuzhou smiled, knowing full well that writing this was indeed frustrating.

To protect his family, he sincerely expressed his family's desire to integrate into the community.

In the end, he was willing to donate all his properties and a portion of the Lou family's wealth in exchange for a normal life like any other ordinary person.

Li Jiuzhou didn't know if the higher-ups would agree, after all, Lou Bancheng wasn't the kind of person who needed to be overthrown.

On the contrary, they have a heart full of righteousness. They took the other party's property, and now they want real estate and money. If word gets out, it will affect their image, and they are afraid of being accused of being too shameful.

If it were those speculators, those capitalists who exploit the people, confiscating their property would be one thing, but Lou Bancheng…

Li Jiuzhou shook his head. He was just a middleman in this matter, playing a guiding role.

How they will operate in the specifics is beyond their control.

Li Jiuzhou asked Lou Bancheng again seriously:

"Uncle Lou, it's not too late for you to regret it now. Are you sure your family can adapt to integrating into the group?"

"Ordinary people can't eat meat every day anymore, and they can't ride in cars every day. Life is completely different from before."

"You won't be able to take it back then."

Lou Bancheng nodded firmly:

"Jiuzhou, I have no regrets, and neither do my family."

"Staying at home all day, everyone is filled with anxiety; life is worse than that of a dog."

"Being an ordinary person is fine too; at least you can open your eyes to the world and step out into a vast and boundless world!"

"You don't need to persuade me anymore. My mind is made up. Jiuzhou, please grant my wish!"

"Alright, come with me to the Ministry of Metallurgy!" Seeing that he had already said so much, Li Jiuzhou stopped trying to persuade him.

Inside the Minister of Metallurgical Industry's office, Elder Li and Minister Wang sat on the sofa. After taking turns reading Lou Bancheng's letter, they remained expressionless, but were satisfied in their hearts.

Lou Bancheng made a request, but to them it wasn't even a request.

His only request was to provide his two sons and daughters-in-law with formal worker positions.

One special requirement is that we must stay in the courtyard house at No. 95 Nanluoguxiang.

However, there were no houses available. But Lou Bancheng suggested that Li Jiuzhou had a piece of land, which he bought to build a courtyard house.

He planned to build a house only for his own family, and the extra space could be distributed to other workers.

Is this request excessive?

It's really not excessive. Lou Bancheng paid for everything himself, so how is that excessive?

Of course, Minister Wang and Elder Li couldn't decide this matter on their own; Lou Bancheng's letter was destined to end up on the desk of the top leader.

Only he can make the decision.

Minister Wang told Li Jiuzhou and Lou Bancheng to go back and wait for news, while he went directly to see the top leader.

Despite his busy schedule, the top leader met with Minister Wang and smiled after reading the letter personally written by Lou Bancheng.

"You didn't force them, did you?"

"Absolutely not, he told us this himself," Minister Wang replied.

The top leader nodded:

"Then agree to it. It's good that you're aware of this. Integrating into the group is the right thing to do."

"We should take better care of them in the future. There aren't many people like this. Now that they've appeared, we can't let them suffer too much."

"OK……"

Minister Wang returned to the Ministry of Metallurgy and immediately summoned Li Jiuzhou to oversee the integration of Lou Bancheng's family into the collective.

Li Jiuzhou had no choice but to comply, and his and Lou Bancheng's first stop was the Nanluoguxiang Subdistrict Office.

Find Director Wang and show her the official document that was approved by the higher authorities.

Director Wang was completely bewildered; she had never seen such a large official document before.

After learning what had happened, she admired Lou Bancheng somewhat.

Of course, this is a good thing for the subdistrict office, as having an extra property means they can accommodate more people.

Anyway, the neighborhood committee doesn't have to pay a single penny.

That plot of land is over 1500 square meters, enough to build a compact three-courtyard house.

Li Jiuzhou's suggestion was to build something like this, with the second and third courtyards allocated to the Lou family, since their family had thirteen members.

Let others live in the front yard.

With over 300 square meters of open space remaining, Li Jiuzhou decided to make use of it and build two more rows of one-story houses.

Each room is 50 square meters, and there is room for six more families to live in.

This design doesn't look crowded. Besides, what's wrong with being a little cramped? It's good enough to have a place to live.

Lou Bancheng had no objections and followed Li Jiuzhou's arrangements throughout the process.

Director Wang had no objections, but he eventually raised a question:

"Jiuzhou, the land is yours, and Mr. Lou funded the construction of the house. So, who will own the house in the future?"

Before Li Jiuzhou could speak, Lou Bancheng spoke first:

"It still belongs to Kyushu, of course."

Li Jiuzhou shook his head:

"Forget it, I don't want this cheap deal. You can keep it. Just give me some money later and I'll transfer the land deed to you."

"To avoid trouble later."

Lou Bancheng listened and nodded after a moment's thought:

"That's fine. Once the house is built, I won't charge rent to anyone who moves in; I'll give it to the neighborhood committee."

"So I'm the one who's really benefiting," Director Wang laughed.

"Director, please take care of me in the future." Lou Bancheng cupped his hands in greeting to Director Wang.

"Don't worry, Comrade Lou, I will do my duty," Director Wang said.

The matter was settled, and Li Jiuzhou drove Lou Bancheng back to the villa.

Lou Bancheng pulled Li Jiuzhou into the study.

Lou Bancheng moved two wooden boxes and placed them beside Li Jiuzhou, saying without further ado:

"This box contains large yellow croakers, and its total value should be around 50. This box contains 50 in cash, which is considered the money for buying your land, Li Jiuzhou."

"Don't refuse. Money is like toilet paper to the Lou family right now; it's completely useless."

Li Jiuzhou was speechless with astonishment upon hearing this:

"Is my land really that valuable?"

Lou Bancheng smiled and shook his head:

"It's not that the land is valuable, it's you, Jiuzhou. Once I move in, I'll be relying on you for protection."

"You understand what I mean. I know that you, Jiuzhou, have good intentions towards me, otherwise you wouldn't have repeatedly advised me to leave."

"Please accept this money; I'm genuinely happy to let you spend it..."

Li Jiuzhou couldn't help but laugh and scold:

"Damn, Uncle Lou, if I don't accept your offer, I'll be ungrateful."

Lou Bancheng burst into laughter upon hearing this:

"Hahaha, don't you even know what time it is? We have money but nowhere to spend it, what's the use of having money?"

"I've donated everything I could. What I have left is enough for my Lou family to live on for generations. Don't worry, I'm not that stupid."

Li Jiuzhou could only nod helplessly. After chatting for a while, he carried the two boxes downstairs.

After getting on the vehicle, the boxes disappeared; they all went into my spatial dimension.

Lou Bancheng's money was certainly his, and he wouldn't be foolish enough to tell anyone.

Li Jiuzhou also made a windfall.

Of course, having taken the money meant that Li Jiuzhou would truly be protecting the Lou family from now on.

Li Jiuzhou decided to take it one step at a time. If all else failed, he would send the child away. He had the ability to do that and could do it.

He's already a deputy director-general level official. Although he's only working in the small area of ​​Hongxing Steel Rolling Mill, he still has connections.

My second uncle's connections are my own, so it was easy to send Lou Bancheng's family away.

The strictness now doesn't mean it will be the same in the future; there will be plenty of opportunities.