boyutpedia Chapter 299 The vacant house became a hot commodity
Chapter 299 The vacant house became a hot commodity
Chapter 299 The Vacant House Becomes a Hot Commodity
A major decision was made – after discussion, the two families decided to move, and they planned to return the house allocated to them by the cotton mill.
Huang Ling harbored a hidden worry. Her daughter, Xiaoting, and Lin Dongzhe were inseparable, even classmates, living under the same roof every day. They were childhood sweethearts.
Although the children are usually right under their noses, there are always times when the adults can't see them.
She was not only worried that this would affect Xiaoting's grades, but also afraid that the confusion and impulsiveness of adolescence would lead the two children to do things that crossed the line.
After all, in these kinds of situations, girls are often the ones who are more likely to get hurt.
Zhuang Chaoying was definitely not someone who coveted the house. Like Huang Ling, he was reluctant to part with this small courtyard and with his neighbors, Song Ying and Engineer Lin.
Here, they spent countless warm days together, sharing the joys and sorrows of life.
But now that Xiaoting and Pengfei are about to enter their senior year of high school, a quiet and independent study space is still very important during the intense preparation period for the college entrance examination.
In addition, Tu Nan will be squeezing in with Lin Dongzhe when he comes back.
In fact, Zhuang Chaoying had been thinking about moving for a long time. The new house was very spacious, with four rooms, but she hadn't brought it up yet.
This time, Huang Ling spoke up, and he readily agreed.
He also hoped that he and Huang Ling would finally have a private space, where they wouldn't have to be so careful and sneaky, afraid to make any big moves, and could enjoy their own private time together after the children were asleep, without having to stay up until the middle of the night.
When Song Ying heard that Huang Ling was moving, her first thought was to follow Sister Ling.
Her family only has one child, Dongzhe, and the two rooms they currently live in are spacious enough, so it doesn't really matter where they live.
I bought a house before but didn't move. I still live here, partly to keep Huang Ling company. The two are as close as sisters and take care of each other.
Secondly, Teacher Zhuang can help look after Dongzhe and supervise his studies.
Song Ying genuinely likes Sister Ling and her two children. Xiao Ting usually looks after Dong Zhe, and Tu Nan looks after him during holidays.
Now that Sister Ling is moving out, she thought about it and felt that there was no point in staying here any longer, so she decided to move with her.
The two families still live next to each other in their new homes, across the hall from each other.
This move of two families means we're finally living our own lives. The yard, kitchen, toilet, and backyard that we used to share were like one big family. No one cared who used more or less than others.
Once the decision was made, the news of the move spread like wildfire through the alleyways, becoming the hottest topic of conversation. The neighbors, familiar with each other, reacted with surprise, reluctance, and mostly envy, all coming to inquire about the situation.
As for whether they hated Zhuang Chaoying, he didn't know, but he thought they definitely did. Wang Yong and Zhang Amei must have hated her to the core. Anyway, the house had been handed over, and whoever could earn it would depend on their own abilities.
When Song Ying and Huang Ling returned home from get off work, they were carrying small leather bags and wearing dresses, looking like a pair of beautiful sisters.
"Song Ying, Huang Ling, wait a minute!"
A shout came from behind them. The two turned around and saw Aunt Li hurrying out of her small shop, carrying two stacks of snakeskin duffel bags.
"Our Yiming heard you're moving," Aunt Li said with a smile as she approached.
"He brought this back especially for you. He uses this when he goes to Shanghai to buy goods, saying that this bag is very sturdy and can hold a lot. Congratulations, Song Ying and Huang Ling, you've finally moved into a big house! I'm so envious!"
Song Ying quickly took the bag, her eyes filled with gratitude. "Then I won't stand on ceremony with Yiming. Aunt Li, you must come over for a visit after we finish moving!"
Huang Ling chimed in, "Aunt Li, please thank Yiming for me. This child is so kind."
Now that the family's financial situation has improved, Huang Ling and Song Ying no longer take sweater orders. Zhuang Chaoying feels sorry for her and is afraid that she will hurt her hands again, so she refuses to let her knit sweaters anymore.
Aunt Li waved her hand dismissively, saying, "Don't mention it! When Yiming was taking the college entrance exam, he troubled Teacher Zhuang with his studies every day. And our relative's child got good grades on the high school entrance exam thanks to Xiaoting and Tunan's notes. We're old neighbors, this is nothing!"
Huang Ling nodded and said enthusiastically, "After we finish moving, Song Ying and I will cook some nice dishes, and everyone can come over to our place for a lively get-together!"
"Okay, I'll take it seriously and definitely go!"
Aunt Li smiled and agreed, leaning against the door frame of the convenience store, and casually took out a handful of sunflower seeds from her pocket and started cracking them open.
At this moment, Sister Liu spotted them from afar. After Song Ying and Huang Ling left, she hurriedly approached Aunt Li.
Aunt Li handed her a handful of melon seeds.
As she spoke, Sister Liu smacked her lips, spitting sunflower seed shells onto the ground. Her expression held a mixture of envy and a hint of sourness. "Does Aunt Li know that Song Ying and Huang Ling are moving? I heard they bought a house, a three-story detached house with a courtyard."
Aunt Li laughed. "Teacher Zhuang and Engineer Lin are really capable. One is a great writer who earns a lot from his writing, and the other is a senior engineer who makes a lot of money. Sigh, all the capable men are always someone else's."
Sister Liu stood to the side, nodding, but her mind was already elsewhere.
All he could think about was the house that Song Ying and Huang Ling had vacated.
Sister Liu's family is of modest means, with only two rooms, yet three generations of her family are crammed in.
Every day the house is a mess, the kids are crying, the elderly are coughing, and the space is so small it's suffocating.
The thought of the soon-to-be-empty house made Sister Liu's eyes flash with urgency. She leaned forward and asked in a low voice, "Does Aunt Li know when those two families are moving out?"
Upon hearing this, Aunt Li understood perfectly. She knew exactly what Sister Liu was thinking; she was simply after that house.
Aunt Li smiled. Her son, Yiming, was good at making money and had married a woman who worked at the railway bureau. This year, the factory allocated them a large single room, and they had been living in a spacious apartment building for a long time.
She said slowly, "I don't know, you'll have to ask them both."
After saying that, he spat out the sunflower seed shells from his mouth with a "pfft," clapped his hands, turned around, and slowly walked into the convenience store, leaving Sister Liu standing there alone.
While Sister Liu was still pondering the house issue, the news reached Zhang Amei's ears.
Upon hearing this, Zhang Amei's eyes lit up instantly.
Her family is quite large, and her daughter, Xiaomin, is approaching marriageable age. However, the family only has this small house, and Xiaomin won't even have a place to live if she gets married.
The more Zhang Amei thought about it, the more she felt that Song Ying's two houses with backyards were practically made for Xiao Min.
She rushed into the house and saw Old Wu sitting in a chair fiddling with the TV. She reached out and nudged Old Wu's shoulder hard. "Old Wu, take the gifts to the housing management department tomorrow. If you can get Song Ying's apartment, Xiao Min will have a place to live after her wedding."
Old Wu's hand trembled when she pushed him, and he almost dropped the screwdriver in his hand.
He looked up at Zhang Amei with a troubled expression. "We already have this house, can the factory give it to us?"
Upon hearing this, Zhang Amei glared at Old Wu with disdain.
“I’ll go with you. How do you know the factory won’t give us anything if you’re not going? We’ll go tomorrow.”
After saying that, he glared at Old Wu, slammed the door, and strode out.