Spring Breeze Twenty Years

Chapter 337 Construction Begins

April 30th. The wind was a bit strong, and the weather was a bit gloomy.

At 8 o'clock, Xiaowei, Chen Hui, and Xia Maosheng, along with the restaurant staff, held a grand opening ceremony for Anji Restaurant at its main entrance.

Xia Maosheng lit the firecrackers, and with the crackling sound, Xiao Wei and Chen Hui pulled hard together, and the red cloth that had been covering the signboard of Anji Century-Old Restaurant fell off. The lights under the row of large metal characters above the signboard were turned on, and everyone applauded and cheered, beaming with joy. An Laowu looked up at the signboard, extremely excited.

Anji Restaurant, a century-old establishment, is officially open for business starting today.

The waiters on duty hung small wooden plaques engraved with the names of the dishes one by one on the wooden wall next to the screen wall at the entrance, which is a tradition in Chinese restaurants.

The restaurant was featured in newspapers and on the radio, having started its promotion ten days in advance. However, to be honest, the results these days are predictable. No ordinary person would be willing to spend tens of dollars to eat a plate of ribs here; they could buy half a rack at the market.

Chen Hui stayed behind to watch the shop. The restaurant had just opened, so he would need to stay there for a few days. Xiao Wei and Xia Maosheng drove to Xiaoheyan.

The pig farm in Fengtian has already started operating, and the entire An family has moved there.

The old An family's pig farm has been completely demolished. Even the original cement on the ground has been smashed and taken away. The entire plot has been cleared into a flat, square earthen site.

The construction company workers are marking lines on the earthwork site. Construction has officially begun on Xiaowei's private residence in Fengtian. Xiaowei came here today specifically to see it, and he's quite excited.

"The soil on the entire plot needs to be replaced. We're drawing lines now, and after that, we'll start excavating, replacing it section by section. The soil around the main building needs to be replaced to a depth of three meters. We'll excavate this soil and give it to farmers in the suburbs for composting. Then, we'll build a concrete wall underneath to create a basement. The foundation for the courtyard wall also needs to be dug to a depth of two meters, and the soil layer in the courtyard is planned to be replaced to one to one and a half meters. Actually, this soil is quite good for farming; it's already been composted."

Xiao Wei bent down and carefully examined the soil under his feet, saying, "What would happen if we didn't change it?"

Construction manager Wang said, "It won't be a big problem, but there will be a bit of a smell in the summer, a foul smell, and it will take one or two years for it to dissipate. The whole area below has been completely rotten by pig manure, probably about ten meters deep."

Xiao Wei sniffed, and Engineer Wang laughed and said, "It's only May, what can you smell? The smell won't be strong until June or July. It won't be particularly smelly, but it will always be there. If the room isn't well-ventilated, it won't smell very good."

Xiao Wei stood up and said, "No need to change it, it's not worth the trouble. We'll plant flowers and trees everywhere in the yard except for the house, and we'll also leave some vegetable gardens. The soil is fertile and the plants will grow well. I come from the countryside, so this little bit of smell won't affect me. Besides, once we plant something, it'll be ready in about a summer."

Engineer Wang looked at the blueprints and gestured, saying, "That's the main building, that's the annex, there are three storage rooms and three garages over there against the wall, and this is an open space in the middle. We need to build some hard ground in front of the main building, and there's also a road. The space is still a bit small; it would be perfect if it were twice as big."

Xiao Wei smiled and said, "That's fine, it's good enough. What more could you want? An apartment isn't that big anyway. What's the annex for?"

Engineer Wang said, "It can be used as a living space or an office; how you use it is entirely up to you."

Xiao Wei scratched his head, turned to Xia Maosheng, and asked, "Old Xia, do you think this annex building is useful?"

Xia Maosheng said, "This was built according to the design of a government unit. Government units usually have an annex building. Anyway, there are many government employees, and you never know when they will need it. This is a residence, so it doesn't matter whether it has one or not. You can decide for yourself."

Engineer Wang said, "There's enough space. Even after everything is built, you'll still have such a big yard. We can build some hard ground under the main building, and then slope it towards the warehouse and garage. We can build some artificial hills and a pavilion on that corner, and plant some trees and flowers along the wall here. If you want to plant some land in the yard, you can plant it here and there. It's enough space."

Xiao Wei looked up at his surroundings, then at the blueprints, and said, "It doesn't look very big, so how can it build so much stuff?"

Engineer Wang said, "The plot of land doesn't look very big after it's been leveled. Even if it's only one acre or so, five or six acres won't look that big after leveling. But the size of the house is limited. Your main building is designed to be 2.55 meters wide and 14.6 meters deep, which is enough. Build three and a half stories, with balconies in every room, and a terrace on the roof. The annex is two and a half stories, a little smaller than the main building, with a little over 200 square meters per floor."

Xia Maosheng asked, "Who made these blueprints?"

Engineer Wang said, "These blueprints were provided by a designer from Hong Kong Island. Back then, they were building villas around Peace Square, and these blueprints were from there. But they weren't used in the end, because they were afraid it would have a bad influence. It doesn't matter for your own house; it will definitely look beautiful when it's built."

Xiao Wei pointed to the blueprint and asked, "What's this?"

Wang pointed to the empty space and said, "That's over there. It's a fountain. They'll put some artificial hills and stuff in it. It'll be a scenic spot."

Xiao Wei shook his head and said, "No, what's the point of having this thing? It's useless. It's frozen for half the year. We'd be better off planting more flowers."

After thinking for a moment, Engineer Wang said, "Okay, then let's not install this thing. It'll save us some trouble. The plumbing and electrical connections are a hassle. So, let's just leave it out? I'll move this piece to the side a bit and add a flower bed in the middle."

Xiao Wei nodded and said, "Okay, if we don't want the flower bed anymore, we can still plant some land. The pond is useless. Can we move the garage a little further in? That way, the car can go directly into the garage from the outside, saving us the trouble of driving into the yard. Leave doors at both ends, so we can drive the car in from the outside and then enter the yard from the inside door." He gestured.

Engineer Wang looked over there and thought for a moment before saying, "It's feasible, but we'll need to back in four or five meters and build a dam outside, otherwise the vehicles won't be able to maneuver."

Xiao Wei said, "Then let's fix it. Bring the car in from outside."

Engineer Wang took out a pen and marked on the drawing, then asked, "Anything else? Tell me all your ideas at once. Are there any other requirements for the main structure?"

Xiao Wei looked around, pondered for a moment, and shook his head, saying, "That's about it. I don't know much about the main building or anything like that, so let's just follow the blueprints. The main thing is practicality. Make sure you get the drainage system right, so there won't be any trouble later."

Engineer Wang said, "No, don't worry about that. We've been building houses for a long time."

Xiao Wei asked, "How long will it take to get it done?"

Engineer Wang said, "The construction will be quick. It should be finished in about a month. The interior decoration will take a little longer, but it should be done by October anyway. You can definitely move in before the New Year."

Xiao Wei asked, "How do you keep warm?"

Engineer Wang said, "We'll connect you to the municipal heating system, and then we'll add an electric heater to the house. Don't worry, there won't be any problems."

(End of this chapter)