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After kicking Jiang Yuan out, Jiang’s mother immediately finalized the details with Zhou Jinchuan and Su Yi.
The three of them then prepared to go to town to handle the transfer of ownership.
When asked whose name to put on the deed, Zhou Jinchuan didn’t even hesitate before stating Su Yi’s name.
Su Yi, knowing his identity wasn’t suitable for buying a store, didn’t say anything.
Only after the paperwork was finished did she jokingly say, “I think you’ve been tricked. And you’re so confident I can make back the money?”
Zhou Jinchuan smiled, his lips pressed together, “Yeah, my gut tells me you can. Even if you don’t make it back, it’s fine. I’ll just support you.”
Su Yi blushed and rolled her eyes at him, reminding him to be careful about what he said in public.
However, finding a satisfactory house and completing the transfer within a single day was something Su Yi hadn’t anticipated. She was naturally overjoyed.
When they returned together, the house was already emptied of its contents.
Jiang Yuan looked at the house with a pained expression, locking the door before reluctantly handing the key to Su Yi.
“Can I come back to visit when I miss home in the future?”
Su Yi awkwardly tugged at the corner of her mouth, “You can, but it’ll cost you. I run a hotel here.”
Liu Zi saw that the two were completely on different wavelengths.
Unable to hold back, he burst out laughing, “Comrade Su, don’t worry. If we pass by in the future, we’ll come take care of your business.”
After saying this, he took Jiang Yuan and left in the car.
After receiving the key, Su Yi originally wanted to go back in to take another look inside.
After all, it was her first time buying a house.
Zhou Jinchuan glanced at the time and urged, “Let’s go eat first. If we delay any longer, we won’t even have food after mealtime.”
There was only one state-owned restaurant in town.
The four of them had no other choice.
Once they arrived and sat down to wait, Zhou Jinchuan asked, “Have you decided what dishes you’ll sell at your restaurant?”
Su Yi paused for a moment before honestly replying, “Sichuan cuisine!”
During her time working in the canteen, she realized that people here actually enjoyed spicy food quite a bit.
Every time they ordered the “sand pot rice noodles,” there were always many who opted for medium spice or even extra spicy.
Plus, the number of male comrades in this area far exceeded the number of female comrades, so their palates tended to be heavier too.
Spicy dishes were also good for accompanying rice, had unique flavors, and were more appealing than home-cooked meals.
They left a lasting impression on people, making them crave them long after finishing their meal.
As for modern trends like hot pot and barbecue, they weren’t really suitable for the 1980s.
At this time, people who went to eat at restaurants usually did so for gatherings with friends and relatives, or for important occasions.
They generally preferred ordering multiple dishes, which also looked more impressive.
After listening to her explanation, Zhou Jinchuan expressed his agreement, but still cautioned her, “Running a restaurant means you’ll need a lot of people inside and out. Don’t try to do everything yourself. You need to hire more people. I know some people here, I’ll help you keep an eye out.”
Su Yi smiled and nodded, “Okay! I’ll go to the house these days and do some simple cleaning. Once we have enough staff, we’ll do some simple renovations.”
Seeing her eager expression, it almost seemed as if she wanted to rush over and start cleaning right after finishing her meal.
He quickly offered a suggestion, “You can’t handle all that heavy work. Wait two more days. I’ll introduce you to some people when everyone gets back.”
Su Yi blinked, “That’s not very good, is it? People might say you’re using your position for personal gain.”
Zhou Jinchuan chuckled, “It’s not just anyone. It’ll be Old Lu and Xiao Xie, they can help you out during their breaks. It’s not too much, right? They’ve come to our place for meals often enough, a little bit of effort isn’t much.”
Su Yi immediately laughed, “Then okay, I’ll treat them to a meal before they come to help.”
…
Two days later.
The soldiers who were on leave began to return to the base, one after another.
Su Yi also moved back to the dormitory ahead of time.
That day, Su Yi heard that she could apply for a change of household registration. She was immediately excited and went to discuss it with Zhou Jinchuan.
She wanted to register the two children’s household registration with her own.
This way, it would also prevent the children’s mother from using this as leverage to take Nuannuan away in the future.
Originally, Zhou Jinchuan had planned to adopt the two children himself.
He thought that as a young woman, taking in two children at such a young age could lead to gossip and criticism.
But now things were different. Su Yi had agreed to date him.
They would inevitably be on the same household registration book in the future.
Considering this, it made more sense to register the children under her name for now, as the process was simpler.
He heard that the capital was soon going to issue an adoption law, and that the requirements for adoptive parents would likely become much stricter, and the approval process would become more complex.
Considering these factors, Zhou Jinchuan agreed readily.
At the same time, he silently submitted his marriage application.
He would officially propose to Su Yi once the marriage report was approved.
Seeing his agreement, Su Yi was overjoyed and followed him.
Although Zhou Jinchuan didn’t go with them, he’d already spoken to the person in charge of household registration beforehand.
The three of them went to submit their documents, and they quickly received their new household registration books.
After leaving the office, Su Yi excitedly took out the new document and examined it carefully.
From now on, she was an independent individual.
She was no longer under the control of that family.
Household registration records at this time were still handwritten.
The “relationship to the head of household” column for the two children listed “mother and son/daughter.”
She still hadn’t quite adjusted to the fact that the children had initially called her “elder sister” before changing to “aunt.”
But these few words held profound meaning for her.
They signified that she had finally found true family in this world.
Ye Xiaowu’s eyes also welled up after seeing those small words.
Although he couldn’t express it verbally, in his heart, Su Yi had become a mother figure to him.
Without her, he and Nuannuan would truly have become what other children in the compound called them – children without a mother.
But now things were different. Ever since Su Yi came, he and Nuannuan had become the envy of other children.
Su Yi carefully examined the document again, her eyes becoming moist before she put it away.
She smiled at Ye Xiaowu and Ye Nuannuan, “Today is a good day, worth celebrating. I’ll go buy some groceries and we’ll eat at home tonight. What do you two want to eat?”
Ye Xiaowu and Ye Nuannuan were too excited to think about what they wanted to eat.
“Aunt, we have nothing to do anyway, let’s go with you to buy things.”
“Yeah, we can help Aunt carry things.”
Su Yi nodded and smiled, “Okay, let’s go together. We’ll buy some snacks for you two in town later.”
The three of them chatted and laughed as they walked towards town.
But suddenly, Ye Xiaowu, who was running ahead, stopped and took several steps back.
Su Yi looked up and saw several people gathered at the entrance of the hotel, seemingly causing trouble.
They didn’t look like they were from the compound. Looking more closely, she finally recognized a familiar face.