Spring Breeze Twenty Years

Chapter 1300 Sending You a Photo

The car was parked at the entrance of the yard. When it was renovated, the front garage was moved inward to create a parking space; otherwise, there wouldn't have been enough room for several cars. Parking on the side of the road would block the way, as the street here is a bit narrow.

The garage door slowly opened, and everyone got out of the car.

Zhang Bing and Wang Xiuli went to the lakeside to enjoy the scenery, and everyone else followed.

Wang Xiuli looked around: "This lake is huge. Can we even go boating? Does it cost money?"

Xiao Wei said, "This is a park, so there's definitely an entrance fee for boating. If you want to go boating, Xiao Bing can go with you tomorrow. The park gate is over there."

Zhang Bing looked at the water and then south: "Second Brother, isn't that Zhongnanhai over there?"

Xiao Wei turned his head and glanced over: "Over there, this is Luogu Alley. The trees are blocking the view, so you can't see it from here. This is Qianhai, and if you go to Beihai, you can see it directly from there."

Wang Ma reached out and touched the old willow tree: "This tree is really strong, it's been around for a long time."

Wang Xiuli asked, "There's not much blocking it, just this one railing. Who would go to the main gate and pay for it? Wouldn't the park lose money?"

Xiao Wei said, "There are things to see and do on the lakeside over there, like renting boats. Here, you can just stand here and look, but you can't do anything."

Zhang Bing pointed to the water: "You can still swim there, right?"

Everyone turned to look, and saw several people splashing in the lake. Chen Hui said, "Swimming should be prohibited here, right?"

Xiao Wei said, "No. These people should all live in this area."

An old man chimed in, "Nobody used to care. Everyone grew up splashing around in the lake. Now they're not allowed, so hardly anyone goes in anymore. Before, when the weather got hot, the lake was full of people—bathing, fishing. My family even had a wooden boat back then."

The owner of the nearby convenience store, a cigarette dangling from his lips, leaned over and asked, "You lot, do you live in this compound?"

Xiao Wei turned to look at him and nodded: "Yes, that's right. Is there something you need?"

The convenience store owner said, "I'm fine. Someone asked me to inquire whether you're renting out these few shops in the front area. They're offering 100,000 right away."

Chen Hui asked, "What do you do?"

Xiao Wei shook his head: "No. This is my garage; there's nowhere to park if I rent a car."

The convenience store owner said, "They said they wanted to set up a recording studio, and they took a liking to your front. The 100,000 was just a casual remark; I reckon they could raise it if they talked to you. You can park your car anywhere, it's not worth it to be taking up a proper storefront."

Xiao Wei glanced at the garage, smiled, and shook his head: "Really not renting. Thank you."

The old man next to him, fanning himself with a large palm-leaf fan, said to the shopkeeper, "Hey, don't you have any sense? Look at these cars parked here, they're all worth hundreds of thousands or even millions. Do you think they'd be short of rent?"

The shopkeeper wasn't angry at all. He chuckled and patted his bald head. "It's just a bit of a shame, this is his main house. Sir, I see Ma San'er and his wife coming to your yard all the time, they work here, right?"

Xiao Wei nodded and said, "Yes, my third brother and sister-in-law are helping me out. Okay, let's talk later, everyone. My relative just arrived and hasn't even entered the yard yet."

A group of people entered through the gate.

The convenience store owner said, "What a rich man. I went inside to take a look when this courtyard was being renovated. He bought the whole thing, right up to the back edge. Ma San'er has been looking for this courtyard everywhere lately, saying that this owner is buying it up. He's going to upgrade it to an apartment building with an elevator."

My second aunt's house was exchanged for theirs; the agreement is signed, two to one. They gave her a smaller house, 650 yuan per square meter, and the price difference is 20% of the original price.

The old man shook his head: "I only want the area around Gulou. I asked Ma San'er, and he doesn't want any from this area. And it has to be a whole courtyard."

……

The front yard was filled with laughter and chatter, as several children in swimsuits and life rings splashed around in the pool.

Today is Sunday, and Uncle Chen and Aunt Chen stayed home, waiting for Wang Jiwei's family.

"Dad," Beibei called out when she saw Xiaowei.

"dad."

"dad."

"Grandma!" the children called out, splashing as they swam toward them.

Wang Yan'er, being the most energetic, was the first to arrive. She looked up and wiped her face with water, saying, "Grandma, Grandpa, Auntie. You...you've come to see me?"

Mr. and Mrs. Wang were talking to their granddaughter while holding onto the benches on the veranda. Meanwhile, Aunt Chen and Xiaowei's mother came ashore and put on bath towels: "Xiaowei, you and Xiaobing come down and keep the child company for a while."

Xiaowei said, "Xiaobing, go ahead. Xiuli, go play. Jihong."

Zhang Bing said, "This is great. Awesome, they've even set up a swimming pool. Come on, let's go down there, the three of us."

Xiao Hong pointed to the private rooms in the pool: "The second room is the women's changing room. The swimsuits hanging on the wall are unclaimed, so you can just pick one. The men's room is the third one, and they also have swim trunks there."

Beibei splashed water and asked, "Daddy, are you coming down?"

Uncle Wang said, "Let's go to the backyard first, so everyone can get to know each other and chat. We'll have plenty of time to spend with the kids."

Wang Jihong, Zhang Bing, and Wang Xiuli went to change their clothes. Hou Qiang and Zang Yuanwei returned to the central courtyard. Xiao Wei's father, Uncle Wang, Wang's father, Wang's mother, Xiao Wei, Chen Hui, Xia Maosheng, Wang Jiwei, and Qin Xuemei came to the backyard together.

Aunt Chen and Xiao Wei's mother were taking a shower and changing clothes.

Old Chen was reading in his study when he saw everyone come in and came out of the study.

Uncle Wang introduced everyone, and then they all sat down in the pavilion. Xiao Liu immediately arranged for tea to be served. Just as the tea was poured, Xiao Wei's mother and Aunt Chen came over, and there was another round of introductions and handshakes.

Old Chen said to Xiao Wei and Chen Hui, "You three don't need to stay here. Go and do your own thing."

The three of them went out to the front yard, sat down by the pond, and watched the children play while talking.

Zhang Bing, Wang Jihong, and Wang Xiuli had already gone into the water. Xiao Hong, Chen Xiao, and Xiu'er were talking to Wang Xiuli. Wang Jihong and Zhang Bing had already swum out. The little ones crowded around the edge of the pool, looking enviously at Wang Jihong, who was swimming like a big fish in the water. Their little faces were full of admiration: "Wow."

Xia Maosheng said, "You guys live such comfortable lives. I should have taken a leave of absence without pay back then. The difference is too great. I'm in Fengtian every day, attending meetings and writing documents. You guys have it so good, so free and enjoying yourselves."

Chen Hui glanced at Xia Maosheng: "Come on, what are you going to do if we ask you to come out? Are you willing to give it up? There's no such thing as a win-win situation. Besides, why don't you say that we've worked so hard to earn money for you? Isn't it a waste to spend it like this?"

Xia Maosheng lit a cigarette, leaned back in his chair, and thought for a moment: "Not bad. I don't feel anything."

Xiao Wei patted Xia Maosheng on the shoulder: "You, keep it up. When you get a good job somewhere, we'll move the whole family there and be happy together every day. Right now, just hang in there and we'll make money."

Xiaohui and I have already decided that when we're in our mid-thirties or forties, we'll retire, hire a general manager, and then take our wives and kids to travel all over the beautiful landscapes of our country, seeing all the sights. We'll mail you photos then.

Xia Maosheng raised his middle finger.

(End of this chapter)