Silly Zhu's Moving: The Old Neighbor's Nightmare

Sha Zhu wiped away the footprints he had left after kicking the gate and walked into the yard.

The passageway leading to the courtyard is spacious, nearly 4 meters wide and 7 meters long.

From the exit of the passageway, the view of the courtyard is immediately apparent; the three main rooms are located towards the back.

If it weren't for the kitchen against the wall in the yard, it would feel quite empty.

The courtyard has a lot of space; if it weren't for the kitchen and grape trellis taking up some space, four or five side rooms could be built on each side.

The grape trellis, stone table, and stone chairs have all been set up, and the grape seedlings have all been planted, so Sha Zhu doesn't need to worry about anything.

At Sha Zhu's request, the house should have firewalls, and it should be sturdy and discreet.

Therefore, Boss Zhang arranged for all three main rooms to be constructed using bricks from the city wall.

The fire resistance is even better than the bricks we bought, but the old bricks were used up in the kitchen and toilet.

They do seem low-key now, and even the neighbors would just say they're thrifty and know how to save money.

This is not a new house at all; it's an old house with an old door and old bricks piled up.

It just looks clean and tidy, and the courtyard is quite large, which is something many urban dwellers can only dream of.

I just didn't know that the calls to protect the city walls had emerged in the 80s.

What if they demolish my house and take back these city wall bricks? But by then I probably won't have just this one house.

Stepping into the main living room, one notices that the ceiling has been fitted with a suspended ceiling, setting it apart from the ceilings of other courtyard houses.

Unlike other courtyard houses where the roofs of the rooms are empty and you can see the top, this one is different.

Sha Zhu scanned the area with his mind and found that all the partitions were made of high-quality wood.

Other doors, windows, columns, and beams were all made of sturdy wood, and the waterproofing and fireproofing measures were all very well done.

There are four doors on the left and right sides of the living room, and the east and west rooms have been divided into two separate rooms.

Sha Zhu's east room has two separate rooms, each with a door. Inside, there is only a heated kang (a traditional Chinese bed) and a wardrobe.

Mr. Zhang opened the wardrobe and found a button on the top. Pressing it automatically revealed a small opening in the bottom panel of the wardrobe.

With a gentle push, the entrance to the basement was revealed.

Sha Zhu went into the basement, turned on the light, and took a look. It was very well built, and the waterproofing had been done.

Sha Zhu went to check the other rooms. Yu Shui's room only had a heated kang bed, which could comfortably accommodate three or four people lying down and rolling around freely.

The room can only fit a wardrobe and a desk now; if we add a bed, there won't be any room to even step inside.

I'll ask Yushui again. If she's not used to the heated kang (a traditional Chinese bed), we'll have to move her to the inner bedroom in the east room. It's empty now, and we could easily fit two more beds in there.

Sha Zhu went to check the toilet again from the corner. The toilet had two stalls, one inside and one outside. The inner stall had a wooden door with a hidden lock, which couldn't be opened without a key.

The inner room was small, with a squat toilet installed on the floor; it was large enough for one person to squat in comfortably. There was a window in the wall for ventilation.

Mr. Zhang said that the alleyway outside was too small, so he built the septic tank directly in the yard. He said that in two or three years, he could just have someone clean it in the winter.

Sha Zhu was wondering if he should just use his mind to collect them all into the black soil of the space; the image of that was too much to bear.

Sha Zhu and Boss Zhang came to the courtyard and saw that the walkway connecting the main house, kitchen, under the grape trellis, and toilet was all made of cement.

It's not bad that we didn't use bricks as Sha Zhu requested.

Although your shoes will get wet walking on it in the rain, the advantages outweigh the disadvantages.

Using bricks will make you dirty when you step on them in the rain; they don't look as clean as cement floors, and they're also slip-resistant.

Sha Zhu took an overall look and was quite satisfied; there were no major flaws.

The ground level was significantly higher than the outside, and all the windows were fitted with glass, making the room bright and clear, eliminating the need to frequently cover the windows with paper in winter.

I chatted with Mr. Zhang about some maintenance issues in the yard and then settled the final payment.

After leaving the house and parting ways with Boss Zhang, Sha Zhu had nothing to do. Seeing that it was still early, and considering the empty house, he decided to go to the market.

I rode my bicycle to the Dongdan Secondhand Market. The sign at the entrance read "Dongdan Dadi Secondhand Market".

The Dongdan Dadi Secondhand Market originated after Japan's defeat in 1945. The market was initially located at the southwest corner of the Dongdan intersection.

At that time, many of the small notebooks sold furniture, clothing, and other items that they could not take with them when they were repatriated.

These items, known as "confiscated goods," were bought up by vendors and sold in the Dongdan area, gradually forming a 24/7 secondhand market.

Initially, the Dongdan Dadi Secondhand Market mainly sold secondhand clothing, furniture, and general merchandise.

But as time went on, the market gradually expanded, adding stalls selling snacks, candy, tobacco, and other items, making the market more prosperous.

Although the Kuomintang government had attempted to shut down the market because it affected the city's appearance,

However, due to the vendors' strong pleas and willingness to donate, the market was eventually allowed to relocate to the woods north of Dongdan Road to continue operating.

After the founding of the People's Republic of China, the Dongdan Dadi Secondhand Market attracted a large number of merchants, forming a bustling commercial district.

Sha Zhu walked into a secondhand furniture store, and the owner immediately dropped the teapot he was holding and stood up from his recliner to greet him.

The store is very spacious and filled with new furniture.

Furniture made of woods such as huanghuali and zitan is also placed everywhere.

There was no need for Sha Zhu to go around picking things out. Sha Zhu asked the boss in confusion why there was so much brand-new furniture.

The boss glanced outside the gate and whispered to Sha Zhu,

"It's all because of those landlords, rich peasants, and capitalists, who live in constant fear and trembling."

Everyone's thinking about escaping here, so they're packing up and selling their furniture cheaply. A lot of this is what I've collected in the last couple of days.

Sha Zhu laughed and said, "Aren't you scared?"

"Tch, I'm just a secondhand furniture seller, my shop is rented, I don't make much money, just enough to support my family, what's there to be afraid of?"

Besides, we haven't harmed any ordinary people. If you ask me, those who are thinking of running away are just hiding something.

Look at those people the government arrested for feeding peanuts; aren't they all utterly wicked and have harmed ordinary people like us?

Young man, would you like to buy some furniture? I'll give you a discount.

It's true that timing is everything; these fine pieces of furniture will probably be picked up by discerning customers within a few days of being displayed here.

Sha Zhu selected some tables, chairs, and benches made of huanghuali wood, three huanghuali wood chests, a single-person bed made of zitan wood without carvings, and two zitan wood recliners in the shop.

After haggling with the boss, the price wasn't much cheaper; it was almost the same as the price Sha Zhu paid for ordering from Bald Zhang.

That damn middleman! He promised a cheaper price, but it's only a little cheaper than the freshly made one.

With a dark expression, I negotiated with the boss to have the goods delivered to my door. After paying, I went out and brought out my bicycle, waiting for the boss to load it onto the vehicle and deliver the goods.

On the surface, their own house was already built using free city wall bricks, so the cost was almost negligible.

Buying some secondhand furniture made of good quality wood shouldn't seem out of place, right?

If those neighbors get jealous, they'll have to deal with them one by one.

Sha Zhu returned to his home in Nanluoguxiang with the deliverymen. The two horse-drawn carriages, loaded with furniture, aroused the curiosity of the neighbors, who all gathered around to take a look.

An older woman from the neighborhood came over and asked Sha Zhu, "Zhu Zi, is your house finished and you're ready to move back? Where did you buy the furniture in this truck? Why is some new and some old?"

Last time, Sha Zhu beat up the uncle and nephew surnamed Liu. During their argument, Sha Zhu said that it was wrong to call him by his nickname.

The uncle and nephew are still working on the road construction team and haven't been released yet, but no one in the neighborhood is openly causing trouble for them anymore.

I guess some are just whispering behind my back, or they haven't encountered anyone else trying to cause trouble yet.