The 1970s: Married First, Fell in Love Later-Chapter 143 - 142: House Hunting

"Dear, this is for you—a betrothal gift and a little something for our meeting. It’s back pay I received from my superiors when I returned last year. It isn’t much, but please, take it and spend it."

Zhang Qian glanced at Xue Xingzhou, who smiled and said, "If he’s giving it to you, just take it."

"Thank you, Dad."

Only then did Zhang Qian bashfully accept it. She felt the envelope for a moment. ’Why does it feel a little hard?’

She was too embarrassed to open it right then, so she put it away for the time being.

Soon, the sliced roast duck was served. Zheng Guofeng, worried they had never had it before, gave them a demonstration.

The roast duck was served with sauce, cucumber strips, and shredded scallions, all to be rolled up in a thin pancake. Xue Yue followed suit, and after rolling one up and taking a bite, she found it was delicious. ’So you can eat duck this way, too.’

He Lang had already rolled one for each of the two children, then rolled another and handed it to Daya.

"Thank you, Uncle." Daya timidly took the wrap and held it, watching how everyone else was eating before taking a small bite. Her eyes lit up, and she began to eat in big mouthfuls.

Eating too much of the roast duck could be a bit rich, but pairing it with the duck bone soup was a different kind of delight.

After they finished their meal and left, Zheng Guofeng went back to work. Xue Yue and the others weren’t in a hurry to return, wanting to walk around Beijing City and see if they could find any real estate agencies to look at some houses.

They did find an agency, where a young man greeted them. Hearing they wanted to see some houses, he asked, "Are you looking to buy or rent?"

"Buy."

"Rent."

The one who said "buy" was Xue Yue; Zhang Qian had said "rent." Zhang Qian turned to Xue Yue in surprise. "You’re looking to buy?"

Xue Yue nodded. "That’s the plan. We have a lot of kids, so renting isn’t convenient. Besides, I want a permanent home. It gives you a sense of security."

Zhang Qian stared. ’Was that what I meant? I’m talking about the price!’

"Um, I’d like to ask, are the houses here expensive?" Zhang Qian asked, looking at him expectantly.

"My surname is Zhou, you can call me Xiao Zhou. House prices in Beijing City vary quite a bit depending on the district and size. There are options at every price point. I don’t know which district you’re considering or what your budget is, but once I do, I can find something suitable for you."

Xue Yue and He Lang exchanged a glance. "Are there any houses near the Foreign Language University? Our budget is in the high thousands, maybe. We’d prefer a standalone house with its own courtyard, but a smaller one is fine."

Hearing this, Xiao Zhou’s demeanor instantly became more enthusiastic. "You must be here to attend university in Beijing City, right?"

Xue Yue smiled and nodded. "How did you know?"

"It’s not just you. A lot of university students have been looking for houses recently. Some, like you, have their whole families with them, and they all want to be near the university. But because the college entrance exam was reinstated last year, the prices of houses near the schools have been rising steadily. A lot of people get discouraged as soon as they hear the prices."

Zhang Qian asked him, "Is Transportation University close to the Foreign Language University?"

She was hoping the two families could live as close to each other as possible, whether they bought or rented.

"Yes, they’re quite close. They’re in the same district."

Zhang Qian looked at Xue Xingzhou, who understood what she meant. "Let’s go take a look first." He didn’t mind if their place was a bit farther; he could just leave earlier in the morning. It was impossible to have everything work out perfectly for everyone.

Getting around was quite convenient; they could get there by bus for a very small fare.

Since they would be looking at houses, which would likely involve a lot of walking, He Lang worried the children would get tired. He took Ziqing, Daya, and the others back to where they were staying first.

The first house Xiao Zhou showed them was right behind the Foreign Language University, only about a ten-minute walk to the campus. However, the house was very small, and there was no toilet in the courtyard—they would have to use the public toilet outside. He Lang took one look and rejected it.

"A little farther away is fine, but it must have a toilet in the courtyard. We have a large family, so we need at least three rooms."

"Okay."

Then they went to a second house. Although it was farther than the first, the courtyard looked quite spacious, and there was a toilet in one corner. In addition to the main building, there were two rooms on the west side. The only issue was that the house was old and would need some repairs before they could live in it.

"How much is this house, roughly?"

"This house has been listed with our agency for a few years now. Because it’s an old house, the price hasn’t gone up. You can buy it for four thousand."

’Four thousand, and it would need major renovations just to be livable.’ It didn’t seem worth it. Xue Yue wasn’t impressed.

"Do you have anything better? This house is too run-down. It looks like it could collapse any day."

Xiao Zhou nodded. "I do. Not far from here, there’s a courtyard house—a single-courtyard layout. The owner just listed it with us last month, but it might be over your budget."

"Let’s go see it," said He Lang.

It was indeed not far; they arrived after a three to five-minute walk.

He opened the door and they went inside. The courtyard wasn’t as large as the previous one, but in addition to the main building, it had east and west wings, as well as smaller side rooms on both sides that would be perfect for a kitchen or storage. Though it was also an old house, it looked relatively well-kept.

In the western corner of the courtyard stood a bare jujube tree.

"How much for this house?"

"Ten thousand."

The number startled Xue Yue. It was way over their budget. But she really liked this courtyard; it even looked a little like their house back home. ’Could the gold bars we brought even sell for that much?’

He Lang also thought the house was nice. He examined it carefully before asking, "Can you go any lower on the price?"

Xiao Zhou hesitated. "I can talk to the owner, but even if he agrees to a lower price, it probably won’t be by much."

He Lang nodded. "In that case, please discuss it with the owner first. We’ll go back and think it over as well."

"Okay."

He Lang gave him the address of Zheng Guofeng’s home. "If the owner is willing to lower the price, come find us here."

Xiao Zhou wrote it down.

"By the way, is there a black market around here?" He Lang asked in a low voice.

Xiao Zhou looked at him in surprise. "There is. If you want to go, it’s best to go around three or four in the morning. It’s busiest then."

If this had been last year, Xiao Zhou definitely wouldn’t have dared to tell them, for fear of getting into trouble. But things were different now. People weren’t as cautious as before; many went openly at night, and law enforcement had also become more relaxed.

"Good, thank you." He Lang took note of the address and expressed his thanks.

Seeing that it was getting late and they couldn’t look at any more places for the time being, they headed back. On the way, they passed by a food market and bought some vegetables and meat, deciding to cook dinner at home.

When they got back and walked through the door, they saw the children sitting obediently on the sofa eating snacks. Zheng Guofeng was already home.

"The children told me you went to look at houses," Zheng Guofeng said. "If you can’t find anything, just stay here for now. Take your time looking; you’ll find something suitable eventually."

He Lang said with a smile, "It’s not easy. The ones we like are too expensive, and we don’t care for the ones that are cheap."

"Since the college entrance exam was reinstated last year, housing prices in Beijing City have all gone up a bit. Still, I’d advise you to buy as soon as possible if you have the money. The way I see it, these prices are only going to keep rising."

Xue Xingzhou glanced at Zheng Guofeng, a sense of admiration rising in him. ’This old man is pretty sharp,’ he thought. He had been planning on saying the exact same thing to He Lang and the others when he got back.

Xue Yue sighed. "That single-courtyard house we saw last today... I thought it was quite nice, but they’re asking for ten thousand. It’s just too expensive."