Chapter 48

The next day, Thursday, Tian Pengfei and Lin Min took a day off from work. After breakfast, Tian Pengfei rode his bicycle to contact several homeowners, while the whole family accompanied Song Haowen to view houses.

The first one was a small courtyard, with an offer of only five thousand yuan. However, Song Haowen wasn’t satisfied because the alley in front of the gate was too narrow, making it inconvenient for future cars to enter and exit.

The second one was also not chosen because it had turned into a large messy courtyard, with random structures everywhere. Buying it would mean reconstruction, and the price was steep.

The third one was a two-entry courtyard, divided into front and back yards. The gatehouse and the reversed main room in the front yard were well-preserved. Connecting the front and back yards was a drooping flower gate made of valuable pear wood.

The structures in the back yard—east wing room, main room, and veranda—were relatively intact, without serious damage. Moreover, the main building was two stories high.

Most of the furniture in the large courtyard was in the Ming and Qing styles, made of mahogany, yet the asking price was only ten thousand yuan. Most importantly, the street where this courtyard was located was relatively wide, with the west wall facing the river, and one of the two rooms can be renovated as garage.

After looking at it, Song Haowen was very satisfied and didn’t bargain. He immediately agreed, signed a contract with the homeowner, paid the deposit, and arranged to go to the housing management office in the afternoon to complete the transfer procedures.

The fourth one was a small courtyard with only one entry, located at the entrance of an alley, making it convenient for vehicles to enter and exit. Although the asking price was a bit high at six-thousand-yuan, Song Haowen still decided to buy it without hesitation.

They looked at several more houses in a row, but each had its shortcomings, and Song Haowen didn’t consider them.

The last courtyard they viewed was located in Guihua Street, a jointly owned property of several families. It had a golden pillar gate, three entry courtyards, and two side courtyards.

The back building was two stories high with a total construction area exceeding one thousand square meters. It used to be the residence of a Qing dynasty official, complete with gate piers, screen doors, gardens, ponds, rockeries, and more.

The elaborate carvings, painted beams, and golden brick floors, combined with late Qing dynasty mahogany furniture, gave it a luxurious appearance.

The asking price was thirty thousand yuan, but it was negotiated down to twenty-six thousand yuan. Song Haowen agreed on the spot once again.

In this way, after half a day, Song Haowen finalized the purchase of three courtyard, spending a total of forty-two thousand yuan. This surprised Tian Yuxi’s family, but he was content and very happy.

In the afternoon, with the company of Tian Yuxi’s family, Song Haowen went to the district housing management office to complete the transfer procedures for the three courtyard he had chosen.

When he held the keys to the three houses, he felt extremely excited. Therefore, he invited Tian Yuxi’s family to have dinner at the Qianmen Grand Hotel to thank them for helping him find suitable houses.

He also mentioned that in the future, if someone was selling a house, he would go check it out, and if it was suitable, he would buy it.

After dinner, Song Haowen, concerned about matters in the store, bid farewell and headed home. Watching his slender figure disappear onto the bus, the Tian Yuxi family couldn’t help but feel a myriad of emotions.

Back home, Song Haowen found only Zhu Hongyu at home and asked why Wang Li wasn’t accompanying her. She was a bit annoyed and said, “Fart! You just returned to the city, didn’t stay for a night, and went out for two days without asking about the shop?”

Song Haowen had to smile apologetically, “Sorry, sister. I’ve been quite busy. How about I make it up to you?”

Zhu Hongyu giggled, “You probably didn’t want to bother with the shop. Welcome back, anyway.” After a brief pause, Song Haowen decided not to tell her about buying the houses for the time being. “Tian Jie’s family was too hospitable. I couldn’t refuse their offer to stay an extra day. I had to agree.”

Zhu Hongyu teased, “Maybe they want you to be their son-in-law.”

“Pfft, stop talking nonsense.” Song Haowen “Sis, don’t make things awkward. If it spreads to their ears, it’ll be embarrassing.”

“What’s embarrassing about it? Maybe they secretly want you.”

“We have a pure friendship, just classmates. Don’t make it vulgar. Besides, I’m a country bumpkin. How could a princess from the capital ever be interested in me?”

“Why is dating vulgar? Why can’t you maintain a pure relationship? What are you thinking?”

“Sis, I’m not even of legal age yet, okay? Let’s not get into this lovey-dovey stuff. If everything goes well, Tian Jie might be going to the United States for studies next semester. Then, we won’t have many chances to meet, and gradually, we’ll grow apart.”

“That could be a problem.” Zhu Hongyu thought of her own situation. “You two are a perfect match. If it doesn’t work out, you’ll regret it in the future.”

“Who said there must be a love relationship between a man and a woman? Our friendship as classmates is good, isn’t it? Beautiful things in the world aren’t limited to just romantic love.”

“Hmph, a little kid like you doesn’t understand emotions! You talk as if you know everything.”

“Okay, okay. I don’t understand. It’s getting late; I need to rest. We can talk tomorrow.”

“As if I’m going to keep you talking. Hmph! Goodbye!” Zhu Hongyu stomped her foot and pretended to be angry as she went back to her room.

Song Haowen watched her leave, smiled, and then went back to his room to rest.

The next morning, Song Haowen dealt with the backlog of tasks in the store, including the electrical appliances that Zhu Hongyu couldn’t fix. In the afternoon, unable to sit still, he told Zhu Hongyu and Wang Li that he had something to do and went to the newly bought houses.

He went from one to another, admiring them and thinking about where renovations were needed and what items to add. However, he was now faced with a headache: he had bought the houses, but how should he manage them? Renting them out seemed a waste, and he wasn’t short of money.

If he didn’t rent them out, he couldn’t keep them closed indefinitely, right? Over time, the houses and furniture would become stale.

At this moment, Song Haowen even thought, it would be great if his parents were willing to move to the city and live here.

They could pick any house, help him manage the properties, hire a couple of workers to assist, engage in some sideline business during their free time, making it neither tiring nor boring.

Moreover, his younger siblings could spend money to come to the capital for their education. As for his second sister, since she was about to take the college entrance exam, they could discuss it when she got accepted into a university in the city.

Thinking about this, Song Haowen felt a bit more settled. However, even if his parents were willing to come, it would have to wait until his second sister finished the college entrance exam.

By then, the land contracting in the production team would be mostly finished, and they could transfer their own land to others. They might not even need to bother with contracting barren land or buying tractors.

Back at the branch office, Song Haowen decided to temporarily set aside the matters concerning the courtyards and focus wholeheartedly on the current tasks.

On the fifteenth day of the first lunar month in the afternoon, unexpectedly, Tian Nana came to the store with Tian Yuxi and invited Song Haowen to go shopping.

Song Haowen immediately handed the store over to Wang Li, called Zhu Hongyu, and went shopping with the Tian sisters.

The four young people first visited Beihai Park and Ditan Park, then went to Xidan for shopping. As a result, Tian Nana bought a lot of items for herself and her sister and even picked one or two items to give to Song Haowen and Zhu Hongyu, making Zhu Hongyu quite embarrassed.

For the evening meal and moon-viewing, Song Haowen took charge. They chose a stylish restaurant with a bit of elegance.

After a round of toasts, Tian Nana said to Song Haowen, “Little brother, I’m really afraid to sing outside now. As soon as I step on stage, there are always fans shouting your name. Can you help me and perform with me a few more times? I’m begging you.”

Tian Yuxi also advised, “Little brother, I really enjoy listening to your songs. Even if you don’t want to sing, you should have a farewell performance.”

Zhu Hongyu added, “Little brother, we’re all familiar with your songs. It would be great if you could come up with a new one.”

Song Haowen was a bit hesitant. “This path of being a singer is really not something I like. I feel a lack of a sense of accomplishment.” To others, this might sound like bragging, but he genuinely felt this way.

After all, using someone else’s famous songs, even if they were from his previous life, made him somewhat guilty.

Tian Yuxi, puzzled, said, “I don’t understand how you think. Clearly, you have so much talent, but you hide it and don’t want to become famous. Some people only have a half-baked talent, but they show off everywhere, afraid that others won’t know.”

Tian Nana laughed, “He has stage fright. Many people have this problem.”

“I don’t have it. Well, maybe just a tiny bit.” Song Haowen found it a bit hard to explain.

Zhu Hongyu sarcastically said, “Aren’t you always boasting about being part of the ‘New Generation of the 1980s’? Why do you have this kind of inferiority complex?”

“Alright, alright. If I don’t come out again, who knows what kind of trouble thing will arise.” Stirred by Zhu Hongyu’s words, Song Haowen suddenly remembered a song from his past, “Young Friends Gathering,” with lyrics by Zhang Mei Tong and music by Gu Jianfen.

The song was about to become popular in the next years. Without much thought, he waved his hand towards the waitress. “Could you bring me pen and paper?”

The young waitress had recognized the famous stars Song Haowen and Tian Nana long ago, but due to the rules in the restaurant, she refrained from revealing that she knew them.

Now, seeing him suddenly ask for pen and paper, she felt excited, thinking he might be asking for an autograph. She promptly handed him the pen and paper.

The three young women were thrilled, thinking Song Haowen might be composing a new song. Tian Nana, overcome with excitement, kissed him on the cheek, earning the strong disapproval of the other two girls.

Feeling his face burning, Song Haowen dared not dwell on it and immediately began writing the song on the paper.

He wrote while thinking, making them believe he was spontaneously creating. What he never expected was that, in their hearts, they were all admiring him like a literary god.

Everyone held their breath, watching as Song Haowen’s pen danced across the paper. They dared not make a sound, fearing it might disrupt his thoughts.

Only when he put down the pen and began humming the song did they secretly breathe a sigh of relief. After checking the lyrics from start to finish, he handed the paper to Tian Nana.

The three girls crowded around to read the lyrics, and Tian Nana, while reading, softly hummed:

“Young friends gathering today,

Sailing a small boat, the warm breeze gently blows.

Flowers fragrant, birds singing, the intoxicating spring,

Joyful songs and laughter echo amidst the colorful clouds.

Ah, dear friends,

To whom does this splendid spring belong?

To me, to you,

To our new generation of the 1980s!

Twenty more years, we’ll meet again,

How magnificent our great country will be!

The sky is new, the earth is new, the spring is even more beautiful,

Radiance shines in every city and village.

Ah, dear friends,

Who will create this miracle?

Me, you,

Our new generation of the 1980s!

Hopefully, when that time comes, we’ll meet again,

Raise our glasses to praise heroes, glory belongs to whom?

For our motherland, for the Four Modernizations, how much sweat has flowed?

Looking back on the past, do we feel any regret?

Ah, dear friends,

May we proudly lift our glasses,

Stand tall, smile with pride,

Glory belongs to the new generation of the 1980s!”

Tian Nana had just finished humming the song, and the waitress standing on the side couldn’t help applauding and praising, “Beautiful.” Seeing everyone staring at her, she blushed, stuck out her tongue, and lowered her head.