Spring Breeze Twenty Years

Chapter 465 Transitional Housing

(These books are free for a limited time, so you can read them for free, but could you leave a vote to prove you were here?)

More than half an hour later, Director Qin appeared at the door of the private room carrying a black briefcase.

Xiao Wei stood up and said, "Come in, Director Qin, have a seat. We're all family. This is my father-in-law and mother-in-law, surnamed Wang, they work in the Construction Department. This is my girlfriend, Xiao Hong. This is Xia Maosheng, from the Sichuan Prefecture Government Office. This is Lao Xia's wife, Geng Hui, she works at a bank. I don't need to introduce Xiao Hui and his wife, do I? Uncle and Aunt, this is Director Qin, he helped Xiao Hui and me a lot in Andong."

Uncle Wang stood up and shook hands with Director Qin. Chen Hui and Xia Maosheng also greeted Director Qin, and everyone sat down again.

Director Qin put his briefcase aside, took off his coat, and asked, "Brother Wang, are you in the Construction Department? Which area are you in charge of?"

Uncle Wang said, "I've been assigned to the Urban Construction Bureau next week, and I'm temporarily in the General Affairs Department. Where have you been transferred to?"

Director Qin said, "The criminal investigation team hasn't been told the specifics yet, but it's all the same anyway. They'll just do whatever we're assigned to. We don't have any decision-making power."

Xiao Wei asked, "Director Qin, didn't your family come with you?"

Director Qin said, "She'll have to wait. I'll pick her up after I've settled things in. There's still a lot to take care of, like the child's school and her job. She hasn't even found a job or a place to stay yet, so how can she come?"

Xiao Wei said, "That's true. You should be able to provide a car, right?"

Director Qin nodded and said, "We'll definitely get a small leadership position here, and we'll definitely have a car, even a jeep." He used to be a section chief, and no matter what he does in the department, he should be able to get a deputy director position.

Xiao Wei said, "I didn't know exactly when you were coming. I promised you about the house, but I haven't done it yet. I just came back from Xingcheng and spent a few days there taking care of some things."

I built my own house in Wanliu, and I can move in at the end of October. If you can wait, you can use my current house temporarily until the end of next year when the housing project funded by the Construction Bureau is completed. The houses there are bigger and newer, definitely more comfortable than the old one, and closer to your workplace.

Director Qin thought for a moment and nodded, saying, "Alright, I won't stand on ceremony with you. I'm unfamiliar with this place and there's really nowhere to look for a place, plus I have a lot of family members. I'll just wait to live in your current place. There's no need for the subsidized housing. You should keep the new house for yourselves. That would be too much trouble."

Xiao Wei said, "I talked to my uncle about this last night. There are plenty of houses over there, more than enough for you, so don't worry. It's settled then. This house is by Nanhu Lake, a bit far from your workplace. Why are you being so polite with me?"

Director Qin asked Uncle Wang, "Brother Wang, you don't live here? It's a subsidized housing project."

Uncle Wang smiled and said, "Xiaowei and I live together. His house is big and spacious. Besides, this time the housing fund in the hall is a bit special. The time is tight and the task is heavy, so the hall gave us some preferential policies. I bought a few more, so don't worry about it. We're both from the east. You're from An Dong and I'm from Bei Xi. It's only right that we look after each other. Besides, we're practically acquaintances and friends here, so don't be shy."

Director Qin nodded and said, "Okay, I'm new here, I'll listen to you. Why don't you live in an apartment building and instead build your own? Living in an apartment building is so comfortable, with running water in the bathroom and heating. Building your own must cost a lot of money, right? Are there any places to build houses in Fengtian city now?" Director Qin turned to ask Xiao Wei.

Xiao Wei said, "You're used to it, right? It's nice to have your own house, build a yard, grow some crops, and it's spacious. The Wanliu area hasn't been developed much yet, so we had the opportunity to get two plots of land. Xiao Hui also built a house there and is going to move in." Xiao Wei pointed to Chen Hui.

Chen Hui said with a smile, "I snatched it from Xiao Wei, and it's almost all built. My mom said she'll move in with us after we're done, and she likes it too."

Xiao Wei asked, "Are you just leaving Uncle Chen alone in the provincial party committee compound?"

Chen Hui said, "My dad listened to my mom and naturally moved in with us. It's a detached house, not an apartment building."

Xiao Wei said, "If Uncle Chen and Aunt Chen move in too, let's go and transfer the household registration to your name, okay? Let's not cause Uncle Chen any trouble."

Chen Hui said, "No need, changing it would only cause trouble. We have a partnership agreement, so it's fine."

Xiao Wei nodded and stopped insisting, believing that Chen Hui wouldn't have any problems in this regard.

Xiao Wei turned to Director Qin and asked, "Director Qin, once things are settled here, will you still be short-staffed?"

Director Qin took a sip of tea and said, "Of course we're short-staffed. The criminal investigation department is currently undergoing adjustments and will likely become independent in the future. The staffing is all based on the overall situation. We don't need to be short-staffed, and we can't just transfer people around. Just tell me what's on your mind."

Xiao Wei pointed to Uncle Wang and said, "My uncle has a comrade-in-arms who is the deputy director of our county bureau. Let's see if there's a chance for him to be transferred. He's also a retired veteran, and he's very close to my family."

Uncle Wang said with a smile, "Old Li and I came from the same unit. When we were in the army, we were from the same hometown. My name was Jianshe and his name was Zhongguo. People always called us by combining our names, so we always got along well. When we retired, we came back together. At that time, I was the battalion commander and he was the company commander."

His hometown wasn't originally a small city; he moved there with me. Now that I've left, I'd like to help him move around if there's a chance. We're both getting old now, and it's good to keep each other company.

Director Qin said, "It's alright, this should be easy to handle now. I'll just ask about it before the report tomorrow."

Xiao Wei said, "Okay, then I'll trouble you, Director Qin. This isn't urgent; we can take care of it after you've settled in."

The waiter opened the door and came in to serve the food. Xiao Wei said, "We don't know what you like to eat or if you have any dietary restrictions, Director Qin. We just ordered randomly. See if it's okay, and if not, we'll order more."

Director Qin said, "I can eat anything, as long as I'm full. People in our line of work aren't picky eaters. When a mission comes, we have to eat whatever we can find."

Uncle Wang nodded and said, "That's true. Our generation is tough. We can survive anything. Back in the day, when we were marching, if we got thirsty, we would just lie down in the ditch by the roadside and drink our fill, and we didn't get sick or injured."

Before the 80s, troops in Northeast China, especially in Liaodong, had annual training exercises—marching, fully armed marches—to intimidate foreign enemies. At that time, foreigners perceived the Chinese as always ready to fight, too warlike, with frequent troop movements.

Back then, you could often see troops marching on the defense roads in rural and mountainous areas. They would go there during the day and come back in the dark at night, and then go there again during the day. At that time, the army's unit number was kept secret, and the uniforms of the entire army were the same from top to bottom, which completely baffled the Americans.

Chen Hui poured wine for Uncle Wang and Director Qin, and everyone started eating. After seven o'clock, the sky outside gradually darkened, the sun began to turn red, and the entire city of Fengtian was bathed in the afterglow of the sun, vivid and beautiful.

Around eight o'clock, the sky became completely dark, and it was no longer clear what was in the distance. The river began to glow, and the farmhouses and houses disappeared into darkness. Strings of streetlights on both sides of the road were lit up, like stars scattered on the night sky, forming strips of light that stretched diagonally across the earth.

Streetlights, houses, traffic, shops—more and more lights of all colors are appearing, some still, some flowing, some flashing. The earth is becoming more and more lively, as if the whole city has suddenly come alive.

Little Red leaned on the railing, gazing intently at the city below, and whispered, "It's so beautiful."

Xiao Wei sighed, looked into the distance below the tower, and said, "Uncle Chen and the others are really making money."

(End of this chapter)