Starting a new chapter in life

Liu Qiang was also amused by him: "This is the first time I've ever seen anything like this, even as a native of Northeast China. It seems that Zhang Meizi is really honest and has a lot of food. She's worried that we brothers won't have enough to eat. Come on, eat up. Don't let her good intentions go to waste. If we eat well and are full, then we can do a good job."

The group didn't put on airs. After all, they had spent almost a month together and weren't strangers. Once they started eating, they devoured everything in no time. There was so much food and bread, and in the end, there wasn't much left. If you count the soup, there was only a shallow bowl of soup left. Everyone felt a little sorry for it, thinking that if there was rice, it would be delicious to soak rice in the soup.

Jingyan and Yuan Xiaoling tidied the dining table and kitchen, while the four men continued working on the chicken coop. They were quick workers; by the time they finished, it wasn't even dark. Jingyan looked around and saw that the area where the materials had been piled up, making it look somewhat messy, had been cleaned spotless.

The chicken coop next to the outer wall is built with bricks, which looks much better than the old brick coop in Beidahuang. Moreover, because it is built on a cement floor, the chickens will have a large area to move around in, and it will be easier to clean.

Liu Qiang explained, "Currently, each household is only allowed to raise four chickens, so there was no need to build such a big coop. However, I was thinking that if the policy changes in the future and there are no longer any restrictions on poultry, this coop could easily hold seven or eight chickens."

It was mainly made using the materials we had left. I didn't see any other place where we needed bricks, and the rest were just taking up space and not very useful, so we used them here.

Jingyan was very satisfied: "It's good that it's a bit bigger. The main thing is that our yard is big enough, so there's no need to make it too small. Besides, the little fence you made is very exquisite. I'm very satisfied." After Jingyan finished speaking, she handed four yuan to Liu Qiang. Liu Qiang gave one yuan to each person, but Yuan Xiaoling still didn't get paid.

The other three men were a little embarrassed to receive the money. After thinking for a moment, Mr. Chen said, "Sister Zhang, this chicken coop is still missing a gate. We have some spare wooden planks where we are staying now. We'll go back tonight and put together a wooden gate. Qiangzi will come and install it for you tomorrow. We had a good lunch today, and the wages are quite high. If we don't do something for you, we'll feel bad."

Jingyan naturally wouldn't stand on ceremony. If she were raising chickens, without a door to block them, they would run all over the yard, leaving chicken droppings everywhere. Just thinking about it gave her a headache. She had been thinking of looking for someone with boards to get and have Liu Qiang make a door for her. Now that they were offering it to her, she naturally wouldn't refuse. She quickly agreed, thanked them, and saw them out.

The next morning, Liu Qiang and his wife arrived on time. It only took Liu Qiang half an hour to install the door to the chicken coop. After finishing the work, he left first. Yuan Xiaoling pulled her aside and said, "I'll take you to see the desk and bookshelf."

Jing Yan perked up: "Where is it? Is it far?"

"It's not exactly close, but it's not far either. We have to take the bus. There's a villa area in Xuhui District, which is where the subdistrict office is located. But now they're returning the private houses to their original owners, so the subdistrict office has found a new office location."

The new place isn't as big as the current one, and a lot of the office furniture can't be moved because there's no room there. So, they're saying they need to get rid of the excess furniture.

"A friend of my mom's works there. She called my mom a couple of days ago to talk about this, thinking that since my mom knows a lot of people, if there are any buyers, she could go and take a look, and they could help find a car," Yuan Xiaoling said.

Jingyan immediately became interested: "Can we be back before noon? I made an appointment to pick up rapeseed oil today at noon."

Yuan Xiaoling glanced at her watch. "If all goes well, we should make it in time."

"Did you bring your measuring tape? Help me measure the space in the room so I can know if it will fit if I find something I like," Jingyan said to Yuan Xiaoling.

Yuan Xiaoling smiled and took out a measuring tape: "Now when I go out, a measuring tape, paper and pen are essential items. Come on, let's measure it."

The two of them worked together to record the approximate dimensions of the space in the main room where a sofa and tea table could be placed. As long as the dimensions were within the acceptable range, they could buy the furniture. They also measured the bedrooms upstairs and downstairs, including desks and bookshelves. They also needed to leave room for a wardrobe upstairs. Downstairs was fine, as the kang (heated brick bed) was long enough to fit a kang cabinet at the end. If all else failed, they could simply fold up the quilts and pile them on top, but that wasn't urgent.

After taking all the measurements, the two locked the door and headed straight to the bus stop. After wandering around for half an hour, Yuan Xiaoling pulled them off the bus. Not far away, they saw that the area was full of small Western-style houses. Jing Yan looked at them in amazement and said, "The people who used to live here must have been very rich and powerful. The scenery is beautiful, and the houses are nice too."

Yuan Xiaoling nodded: "It should be. I heard that the people who lived in this area back then were the first to be purged. They must have been people of status and position. I just don't know how many have come back now. Oh well, it doesn't matter anyway. Let's go look at the furniture."

Jingyan nodded and followed happily into the small villa by the roadside. Yuan Xiaoling spoke to someone in the local dialect, and the person recognized her and gave her directions. The two found Yuan Xiaoling's mother's friend, an aunt who knew her and immediately took them to see the furniture in several rooms.

Yuan Xiaoling told her that Jingyan was her friend, but she couldn't understand the local dialect. So the aunt introduced her to them in Mandarin, which was not very standard. Although it sounded a bit awkward, at least they could understand it.

These are all office furniture, mainly desks, filing cabinets, wooden sofas, and wooden coffee tables. Of course, there will also be plenty of office chairs. "We have a total of twelve rooms here, not including the kitchen and storage room. The new office space we found only has seven rooms available for working. We can't take about half of these pieces of furniture with us. You can choose from these offices on the second floor."

Jing Yan nodded: "Then can I put a piece of paper on the ones I pick and write my name on it?"

The aunt nodded: "Okay, you should also write down which office needs which items, so that you don't forget anything later."

After the aunt left, the two began to choose. The sofa and coffee table in the main room were the first to be selected. They didn't know what kind of wood it was, but it looked nice. The color was mahogany, and the sofa back had carvings, giving it a high-end feel.

They originally wanted four bookshelves, not too big, and easy to move, but the two of them liked this one and that one too, and in the end they chose six that were relatively new.

The desks are all of the same style and are relatively new. Four desks were ordered directly from one office, and each desk's chair was also labeled.

I walked around twice, but there wasn't a wardrobe to put my clothes in. The office cabinets were all for storing files, and the shelves weren't very high, so unless I folded my clothes, I couldn't use them at all. And I was too lazy to fold them.

Finally, they found the aunt and handed her the list of items they had selected: six bookshelves, four desks, a sofa, and a coffee table. The items weren't a lot, but they weren't few either. The aunt was very happy and led them to the director. The director looked around and asked for 500 yuan, plus 20 yuan for shipping.

Jingyan knew that the price was actually quite reasonable. The wood of the bookcase looked good and there were no major signs of wear. Twenty yuan a piece was indeed a good deal. The desk and chair set was forty yuan, which was also affordable. The sofa and coffee table were two hundred and twenty yuan in total. Although the price was not unreasonable, there should be room for negotiation.

Jingyan and Yuan Xiaoling exchanged a glance, and then secretly held up three fingers. Yuan Xiaoling looked at her fingers, thought for a moment, nodded, and began to bargain with the director of the neighborhood office. After a while, they finally agreed on 350 yuan. Jingyan thought it was acceptable and added, "Delivery to your home is included, and it will be placed in the corresponding location in your home."

The neighborhood committee director felt his ears ringing. He'd never encountered such a persistent woman before. He'd been in the neighborhood committee for years, and the residents generally held him in some respect. Suddenly faced with two hotheads, he was quite helpless.

But he really couldn't move all these things. He wouldn't sell them if the new office space could accommodate them. He even brought back a sofa and coffee table from his home. Nowadays, a set of furniture can last for three generations. Nobody lacks furniture. Where would he put it if it was stuck in his hands? After hesitating for a while, he finally gritted his teeth and agreed.

Jingyan gave him two hundred yuan first, and the manager gave her a receipt, left his address, and agreed that he would pay the remaining one hundred and fifty yuan after the furniture was delivered and he confirmed that everything was in order. Only then did the two leave and take the bus home.

Jingyan asked Yuan Xiaoling to watch the house. If the delivery person arrived, she could ask someone to help unload and check the goods. If Jingyan hadn't returned by the time everything was done, she asked Yuan Xiaoling to stay behind for her. Then, Jingyan hurriedly grabbed an empty oil can and ran to the place she had arranged to meet the egg seller the day before.

The woman was actually quite anxious, but fortunately, because she was selling eggs, she was somewhat distracted when there were customers. By the time there were no more customers, it was past noon. The woman was a little disappointed. She packed up the egg basket and was just about to go home when she saw Jingyan walking briskly towards her from a distance.

Jingyan was relieved to see the person and waved to her, saying, "Big sister, wait for me, I'm late." When she got closer, she put the oil drum on the ground, bent over, and gasped for breath with her hands on her knees. The older sister was also surprised to see her flushed cheeks.

"I thought you weren't coming today, but why are you so tired? It's okay if it's late, I'll come later, there's no rush."

Jingyan had recovered somewhat by then: "We agreed to meet at noon today, but something came up and I had to make it. But I can't break my promise. Walking a few steps faster is fine. It's just that I'm usually lazy, and my body can't keep up. Whew~ I'm exhausted."

Seeing her anxious expression, the older sister calmed down considerably: "Then you rest first. I'll fill the oil drum for you. If you trust me, I'll give you your home address so I can check on things at home for you later, saving you from having to look for me everywhere."

Jingyan watched as the older woman inserted the oil dripper into the mouth of the oil drum, lifted the drum (weighing about 15 pounds), and poured the oil in effortlessly without spilling a single drop. "That's quite a skill," she said. "What's your surname, sister? What do you own? Tell me about it."

"My surname is Cheng, Cheng Chunhua. You can just call me Sister Chunhua. My family is from the countryside. We don't need to worry about vegetables, but we have rapeseed oil, eggs, and hens at home. We raise about ten chickens and a few ducks."

"There are people in our village who know how to make tofu. It tastes pretty good, but they only sell it to villagers. Some people trade it for soybeans, and others can buy it with money. That's about it," the older woman introduced herself.

Jing Yan nodded knowingly: "I will buy eggs and rapeseed oil from your family. As for tofu, I will buy it occasionally, but not too often. It's fine to buy it at the supply and marketing cooperative. There's no need to go far away. As for chicken, I only buy it when guests come to visit. Hmm, when the rapeseed oil is in season this year, you can come to my house and take a look. I will probably keep about 20 or 30 catties. Anyway, it won't spoil."

Sister Cheng nodded happily: "By the way, there is an orchard in our village. The fruit trees have been growing for three years and should be bearing fruit soon. I'll bring you a few to try when they're ready."

"Fruit trees? What kind of fruit do they bear?" Jingyan asked curiously.

"This year, only apple and peach trees should bear fruit. The pear trees are said to have to wait another two years. The sweet persimmons should be ready this year. They bore fruit last year, but in very small quantities. The people in our village ate some themselves, and they said they weren't astringent at all, but very sweet. Apparently, it's some kind of new variety, but I don't know anything about it. I'll bring some over for you to try when they're harvested this year," Sister Cheng recommended cheerfully.

Jingyan understood what she meant, so she readily agreed: "Then just bring it over to me when your rapeseed oil comes out this year. There's usually someone at home. I don't have any paper or pen with me right now, so how about I tell you?"

Cheng Chunhua shook his head: "My memory isn't very good. If you trust me, sister, I'll deliver this bucket of oil to your house and help you find your way, okay?"

Jingyan gave her ten yuan: "Then I'll trouble you, elder sister." She was in the early stages of pregnancy and wanted to avoid tiring herself out. Cheng Chunhua carried the goods on a shoulder pole and went with Jingyan to find the place. After taking her home, she said goodbye and left.

When Jingyan got home, the furniture hadn't been delivered yet. It was already afternoon, and the two of them were starving. They hurriedly cooked two bowls of vegetable noodles, two poached eggs each, and added a couple of drops of sesame oil. Wow, so delicious!

After quickly finishing their noodles and cleaning up the kitchen, they heard someone knocking on the front door. The two went out and opened the door, only to find a large truck parked in front. Jingyan opened both doors completely, and Yuan Xiaoling stood at the door while Jingyan went inside to direct the placement of things.

After confirming that the furniture was correct, Jingyan handed the remaining 150 yuan to the deliveryman. The man took the money, counted it to confirm that it was correct, asked Jingyan for the previous receipt, wrote a new one, handed it back to Jingyan, and then left with his men.

After closing the front door, the two of them looked around at the furniture they had brought in today, going upstairs and downstairs. Yuan Xiaoling said, "Jingyan, we've pretty much got everything in the house now. We're just missing two large wardrobes upstairs. Your room is already full, and there's no room for wardrobes. Do you want to consider getting a clothes rack?"