Chapter 17: I wan to buy land

Before Chen Jin left the house, she first called the furniture factory to arrange a time and place to meet at Xiuli (beautiful) Community, then set out with her third uncle. Her third aunt, Tian Miao, and Chen Yongan stayed home in case someone came during the day to return a rental.

In the house for rent, the only piece of furniture that belonged to them was a bed they had found someone to make before renting it out. However, this bed was quite simple, and Chen Jin felt that moving it to the rental at beautiful Community would lower the quality of that place. Since the house was going to be torn down anyway, the other furniture in the rental belonged to the tenants. After they moved out, she would hire someone to clear out all the furniture in the house.

After waiting a long time for the bus, when it stopped at Qiaoxi Village, Liu Shisheng’s second brother got on the bus, who was also Chen Jin’s nominal second uncle.

Liu Erbo loved to act with the airs of an elder. Upon seeing Chen Jin, he remarked, “Did your dad come to Qiaodong Village to find you last time, and your uncles chased him away? Chen Jin, I’m not saying this to hurt you, but you’re a Chen; however, you are also a girl from the Liu family. You’re wrong when it comes to respecting your elders.”

He rambled on for more than ten minutes, while Chen Jin and her third uncle just watched him in silence.

When Liu Erbo finally ran out of steam, he noticed Chen Jin smiling at him as if watching a clown, which made him furious. But inside, he was cursing his own younger brother, Liu Shisheng.

If it weren’t for the fact that fourth child had made things so difficult, how could Chen Jin now hold a large sum of money without giving any to her elders? He had heard that people from Qiaodong Village had received compensation and were all buying houses in the city, some even buying entire buildings, claiming they would rent them out.

Their family already had four buildings for rent, which brought in quite a substantial income. How much would the rent be for a building in the city center? He couldn’t even calculate it!

The more he looked at Chen Jin, the more she resembled a god of wealth holding a golden ingot.

“Last time you came home, you didn’t even get to eat. Your grandfather said he wanted you to come back once; this time, don’t mingle with the villagers. We’ll only have our family here.” Liu Erbo was quite good at finding ways to save face for himself. Chen Jin didn’t respond, but he managed to continue speaking.

“I heard that Qiaodong Village will move the ancestral graves on the third of next month, and after that, everyone has to move. Since you don’t have anything else going on, let’s make it the fourth. I’ll go back and tell your grandparents. On the fourth, you can come over early and chat with your brothers and sisters.”

“Okay, I’ll come over early on the fourth.”

Her third uncle suddenly turned to Chen Jin, puzzled as to why she wanted to go to the Liu family. Those people were only interested in her now because they saw she had money; they must have ulterior motives. What if they asked her for money when she got there?

Chen Jin smiled reassuringly at her third uncle. “Don’t worry, Third Uncle. I know what I’m doing.”

Liu Erbo didn’t expect Chen Jin to agree so easily, and he was overjoyed. He immediately replied, “Great! I’ll go back today and tell your grandparents to make a few dishes you like. By the way, your favorite is cold tossed pig ears, right?”

Just mentioning it reminded Chen Jin of a fight that had broken out the last time she went to the Liu family over a plate of pig ears. She had beaten up her third uncle’s cousin, earning the nickname “Troublemaker Jin” from that time.

Clearly, Liu Erbo had forgotten about that incident. Some grievances you remember deeply are trivial to others. If you insist on bringing them up, you might only get a light response like, “Is this little matter worth your continued concern?”

Chen Jin let out a light snort.

Liu Erbo got off at the bus stop for the factory in the suburbs, and only then did her third uncle ask, “What are you thinking?”

“We’ll talk after we get off the bus.” There were still people from Qiaoxi Village on the bus, and she didn’t want them to hear her.

When they arrived at beautiful Community, her third uncle pressed for answers, so Chen Jin said, “On the day I went to the city center with eldest Uncle to buy a house, he mentioned that our Qiaodong Village and Mutang Village are designated for a tech park and an industrial park. The factories in that suburban area will likely be relocated in the future, leaving vacant land, which along with the area of Qiaoxi Village, may be developed for real estate. eldest Uncle suggested I try to see if I could buy some land in Qiaoxi Village.”

Her third uncle pondered for a long time, somewhat skeptical. “Is there any profit in developing that area?” He had spent half his life doing labor-intensive work and couldn’t grasp the current state of economic development. But he did understand that his older brother had a broader perspective and foresight; just following behind him to earn a bit would be enough for his needs.

Take Qiaodong Village, for example; if it weren’t for eldest Uncle advising them to add extra stories to their houses and plant peach trees early on, they wouldn’t have received so much compensation. Although the peach orchard wasn’t included in the demolition zone, they indeed received the money.

The families that heeded eldest Uncle’s advice to add stories to their houses praised him for his foresight.

Chen Jin didn’t understand this at first, but eldest Uncle had analyzed it for her, leading her to believe that Qiaoxi Village would eventually be subject to demolition as well.

“Third Uncle, think about it. Since Qiaodong Village and Mutang Village are being converted into a tech park and an industrial park, the workers inside will need somewhere to live, right? Even if those companies provide housing, there will still be people who prefer to live in their own houses or rent apartments. That’s where Qiaoxi Village and the suburbs come in. Even if Qiaoxi Village isn’t demolished, having a plot of land there could allow for building houses to rent out.”

Her third uncle nodded. “That makes sense. But can Qiaoxi Village give you a residential land grant?”

Chen Jin shrugged. “I’m not sure, so I’m going to give it a try.”

The two of them waited at the entrance of beautiful Community for more than ten minutes until the furniture factory’s delivery truck arrived. Since they couldn’t bring everything at once, they made several trips. Chen Jin registered at the security desk at the community entrance and followed the truck to Building 2.

The houses they bought were in Buildings 2 and 4, and Chen Jin and her third uncle went upstairs to open the door for the workers to move the furniture in. At noon, Chen Jin went out to buy some boxed meals and returned to eat. Around one o’clock in the afternoon, her sister-in-law Meng Lin came over with the keys to the 25 apartments eldest Uncle had bought.

As soon as Meng Lin arrived, she sought out Chen Jin to ask about her house purchase in the city center—what complex she bought in, the size, and the cost. Chen Jin recounted everything in detail.

Meng Lin seemed thoughtful. “You can eat well, and the whole family doesn’t need to worry. It’s normal to buy a good apartment.” Suddenly recalling something, she snorted, “Tingting also said she wants to buy a house in Hanlin Garden.”

Chen Jin smiled and remained silent.

She sensed her sister-in-law’s dissatisfaction, likely because she thought Chen Ting was asking for too much—over a million for a house. However, even with her close relationship with eldest Uncle, she had no standing to comment. The money was in eldest Uncle’s hands and didn’t concern her.

When her sister-in-law went downstairs, her third uncle quietly said to Chen Jin, “Your sister-in-law thinks they should get half since they’re the long-term residents, but your eldest Uncle’s construction company still needs to manage cash flow, so he doesn’t plan to share it with them. That’s why he used the money to buy the properties for them.”

With a sigh, he added, “Children are a burden.”

Chen Jin chuckled, as both eldest Uncle and her third uncle had said the same thing.

By two in the afternoon, Chen Jin went downstairs to wait for several potential renters who had agreed to come look at the houses. They brought along eight friends.

The organizer was named Bai Xinping, who worked at a trading company in the Xicheng (West) District. He was from the north, graduated over three years ago, and had recently been promoted to supervisor with a substantial salary increase. Initially, he was hesitating about whether to move, but the demolition of Qiaodong Village had pushed him to expedite his moving plans.

Fortunately, as he was looking for a house, the landlord had one for rent. It only took thirty minutes by bus from beautiful Community to his workplace.

Chen Jin took the group upstairs to view the furnished apartments.

“Building 2 has all one-bedroom, one-living room layouts, and the furniture was delivered just today. There are ten apartments in total, all on the eighth floor. Some units have better lighting depending on their orientation. Since you’re the first to come, you can choose whichever one you like.” From apartments 801 to 810, they were all hers, making them easy to remember. eldest Uncle’s and her third uncle’s apartments were on the sixth and seventh floors, respectively. Although each floor had 15 units, they had all chosen adjacent units.

Including Bai Xinping, a total of fourteen people came. They had already learned about the rent before coming; only two were looking to rent a one-bedroom apartment, and both were married. Bai Xinping was one of the married ones, but his wife couldn’t make it today as she couldn’t take leave.

“You all take a look too. After checking this one, we’ll go to Building 4, where the two-bedroom and three-bedroom apartments are located.” Chen Jin started showing them Apartment 801, noting that everything inside was the same, with only the orientation of the units differing.

Bai Xinping looked through the doorway and saw that the floor was tiled with ceramic, and the walls were freshly painted white. As they stepped in, to the left was the kitchen, and to the right was the bathroom. The kitchen had a stove installed, but they would need to buy a gas tank to use it or could opt for electric appliances. The bathroom was clean and bright, with a sink and a showerhead already installed, although the quality of the showerhead appeared a bit poor.

From the entrance, they could see the entire living room layout: a fabric sofa and a coffee table. Unlike the rental apartments in Qiaodong Village, the bedroom was a separate room with a bed, wardrobe, and desk.

From the moment Bai Xinping stepped inside, he had already decided to rent the apartment from the landlord. As he looked more closely at the furnishings and layout, he became even more satisfied.

Bai Xinping turned to his friend, who was also married and looking to rent a one-bedroom apartment, and asked for his opinion. Seeing that his friend was also pleased and planned to secure the apartment today, they went together to check out the layouts of the other units. In the end, they chose apartments 801 and 803, becoming neighbors.

Chen Jin immediately handed over the three keys for the two apartments to them. “There are only a few days left until August. You can start moving your things in whenever you’re free. I’ll come back to have you sign the contract on August 1st, and we’ll collect the rent and deposit together. The rent for the one-bedroom apartment is 170 per month, with the deposit due when you pay the rent.”

“Uh.” Chen Jin thought for a moment and added, “In the next few days, check to see if there are any issues. I don’t usually stay here, so if there are any problems with the furniture, utilities, or anything else in the house, you’ll need to find someone to fix them yourself. I won’t cover the repairs. However, if it’s not caused by you, I will pay for the repairs.”

She said this for the benefit of the other renters as well, so she wouldn’t have to repeat herself later.

After that, they went to Building 4, where the furniture had been delivered but not yet assembled. Chen Jin took them to see her uncle’s apartment, which was already furnished.

“This is my uncle’s place. My rental apartment is on the eighth floor, just like the one in Building 2. You can first check out how the furnished apartment looks, and then later we’ll go up to choose the units.”

The furniture in each bedroom was the same, leaving little room for choice. However, the sizes of the bedrooms in a single unit varied, and she had set the rent for the entire unit; how the tenants divided it was up to them.

These people clearly already knew the rental prices for beautiful Community and several nearby complexes, so they recognized that Chen Jin’s set rent was quite reasonable. Moreover, since these were new apartments with new furniture, they were even more eager to rent. After discussing among themselves, the remaining twelve finally decided on two three-bedroom and three two-bedroom units, all on the same floor for easy access.

Chen Jin handed them the keys for the five apartments. “I estimate that the furniture for my apartment won’t be assembled until tomorrow, so I’ll keep one key. I’ll return it to you when I come over on the first to sign the contract and collect the rent. Oh, by the way, you all have Sundays off, right?”

“Yes, we’re all off that day. We’ll be home.”

“Great, then I’ll come over in the morning on the first.”

With this in mind, she realized she had a lot to do at the beginning of August.

Since Bai Xinping and the others wanted to check the apartments further, Chen Jin went along with them, specifically mentioning, “If you have friends or colleagues looking to rent, you can contact me. My other two uncles’ apartments are available at the same price.”

One of the renters shook the large key ring in her hand, making it jingle, and joked, “Little landlord, why not leave your contact number in case someone wants to rent?”

“Oh right!” Chen Jin felt annoyed that she hadn’t thought of that. “I’ll leave a number when I come over on the first since I’ll be busy for the next few days.”

She really should get a phone!