Spring Breeze Twenty Years

Chapter 1153 Recognizing the Door

Liu Xiaodong shook his head: "Our place is too damn small, what's there to do? In the summer you can go up the mountain and see the water, but in the winter it's all covered in snow. We can't go to those places in the city. It's mostly just eating and singing, and there's basically nothing vegetarian, vegetarian food doesn't make money. And then there's the hot springs, but they're a bit far."

Xiao Wei asked, "Is Guanjian Pavilion finished yet?"

Liu Xiaodong shook his head: "No, they've started filling the tanks. I estimate it'll be ready by next year. It would be nice to bring a boat and go boating around in the summer then."

Xia Qiu stamped her foot: "Are we just going to stand here like idiots?"

Xiao Hong said, "Let's go see my sister first, and then we'll talk."

Everyone got into the car. Liu Xiaodong was driving a Santana, following behind Xiao Wei's car towards Wang Guifang's new home.

By this time, many buildings had already been built in the county town, mostly four or five stories high. There were no residential complexes; they just stood one by one along the roadside.

After two turns, it's less than a kilometer to the destination.

After getting off the bus, Liu Xiaodong pointed to the north and said, "It's quite close; I live in that building."

Everyone, go upstairs to the third floor.

Wang Guifang opened the door, and Beibei's grandmother came out from the inner room upon hearing the sound: "Oh my, Xiaowei and Xiaohong, you're here! Xuemei is getting prettier and prettier."

Xiao Hong said, "Auntie, this is my classmate Xia Qiu, and this is her boyfriend Liu Xiaodong, who lives next door."

Grandma Beibei went over and tidied up the things on the sofa: "Sit down, why are you here so early? Have you eaten yet?"

Wang Guifang said, "Mom, don't bother. We just ate out and came here to sit and get acquainted with the place for a while."

Grandma Beibei smiled and said, "Then you all sit down, I'll go back to what I'm doing." She went inside.

Everyone found a place to sit down, and Wang Guifang went inside to ask, "Mom, have you eaten yet?"

Grandma Beibei said, "You've already eaten. Why aren't you eating so late? I left some in the pot for you."

Xiao Hong looked at the house's structure and asked Xia Qiu, "Did you build all of this?"

Xia Qiu nodded, and Xiao Hong said, "If you're going to build like this in the city, you shouldn't add any more work. I'll help you get a new set of blueprints when I get back to Fengtian. This structure is outdated."

Liu Xiaodong said, "We currently have two construction sites, and Uncle Xia has two more. We expect to complete three more by next fall. There's no sign of any other projects yet. Besides, we don't get to decide what kind of buildings are constructed in the city; it's up to the client. We're just the contractors. The only projects we're developing ourselves are the two that Uncle Xia has."

Xiao Hong said, "Try it! If you have a good plan, why wouldn't the client use it? You'll become famous little by little. We still need to find a way to acquire land and develop it ourselves. Building houses for others isn't a sustainable solution sooner or later. In the future, the government will basically stop building residential buildings, and we can't rely on factories or mines."

Xia Qiu said, "The city is renovating the western cemetery. If you put it that way, that's a really big deal. We can't get it."

Xiao Wei turned his head and asked, "Is the city building the Western Graveyard? That place should be done too. Bicycles can't even get in there. If something happens, it'll spread like wildfire."

Xia Qiu said, "We did manage to do it, but we dare not touch it. We would have to pay upfront, and whether we could get it back is another matter. The city has no money at all; they are just relying on Beigang to contribute some funds."

Xiao Wei said, "This isn't something the government can handle at all. You're just used to being the subcontractor. If you think it's feasible, just talk to the government, set aside a piece of land for redevelopment, and then sell the houses, isn't that enough?"

Xia Qiu said, "How much money would we have to put in? The land would cost money too, right? And then there'd be demolition and compensation. My God, even if you sold everything you own, you still couldn't afford it."

Xiaohong said, "What compensation? Just return the house, isn't that enough? Whatever you return, you can sell the rest for profit, and the government compensation will be directly transferred to you."

Xia Qiu looked at Liu Xiaodong, who thought for a moment and said, "I'll go ask someone. I don't know the specifics either."

Xia Qiu said, "My dad didn't make any arrangements, I guess there's something going on inside that he doesn't want to get involved in."

Wang Guifang washed some frozen pears and asked Qin Xuemei, "Xuemei, how old are you this year?"

Qin Xuemei said, "I'll be twenty-five this year."

Wang Guifang asked, "Is it your actual age (by the Chinese age reckoning)?"

Qin Xuemei said, "My age is 23, according to the traditional Chinese age reckoning."

Wang Guifang said, "I knew it! I don't look like it at all. I'm 25, no doubt about it."

Qin Xuemei said, "You don't look like it either. If I didn't tell you, no one would believe that Beibei is your child."

Liu Xiaodong said, "Why don't you come to my place for a while? They've changed the shops downstairs; you can sing and play billiards there."

Xiao Hong asked, "Are you open for business?"

Liu Xiaodong said, "No, I don't run any business. It's just for my own enjoyment, and it's a place for friends to come over."

Xia Qiu said, "That's because he's showing off. He doesn't sell or rent out his perfectly good shop, but sets up a billiards table, and you hardly ever see him play a few times a year."

Xiao Wei said, "Hey, don't even mention it, I'll also take a case back tomorrow. If I'm free, I can play a couple of rounds with Xiao Hui."

Xiaohong said, "We're moving next year, what are you going to do with the house when you get back?"

Xiao Wei slapped his forehead: "Oh right, I forgot. Let's talk about it next year then. Would you like to get a karaoke system or a movie theater set up at home?"

Xiao Hong said, "Let's talk about it next year. Who knows what will come out next year? Besides, there's an activity center right next door, there's everything there."

Xia Qiu asked, "What's an activity center?"

The group walked out towards Liu Xiaodong's side.

Xiao Hong said, "We've developed several upscale residential areas, including an employee housing complex. The activity center is complete with swimming, fitness facilities, table tennis, badminton, billiards, bowling, basketball, and all sorts of other sports. There's also a bathhouse, a movie theater, and a gas station. Xiao Wei, what do you think about setting up a large karaoke room?"

Xiao Wei laughed and said, "Why don't you just open the restaurant there again?"

Xiao Hong said, "Why not? You're going to move your supermarket, convenience store, and shopping mall there anyway, and you've already designed the hotel, so the restaurant will definitely work."

Xiao Wei thought for a moment and said, "Then we'll have to hire someone to design a commercial street. I'll go back and discuss it with Dean Cheng; it's not impossible."

Liu Xiaodong asked, "You did all of this? So many different things? Could you possibly manage it all?"

Xiao Hong said, "Sure, you don't have to do it yourself. The subsidiaries all have managers. Xiao Wei basically doesn't handle the lower-level operations anymore. He and Xiao Hui are just buying land and investing everywhere. This year, they're investing in supermarkets."

Xiao Hong covered her mouth and laughed: "He didn't even know that supermarkets and convenience stores spent 300 million this year. He was shocked when he saw the financial statements."

Xia Qiu said, "My goodness, how much money do you guys have now? A subsidiary company can avoid the boss spending so much."

Xiao Hong said, "No, each company can expand independently, but they still have to report. There are still financial restrictions, but administratively, I don't know why, if they don't report it, the matter is completed. Several companies have ledgers."

(End of this chapter)