Chapter 8: Successfully Renting a House

It was still just around noon. The two of them ate some dry steamed buns and drank a bit of water.

For the first time, Feng Yanwen felt that making money could be such an enjoyable thing.

The mother and daughter duo stuck to the same division of labor as before—one sliced the watermelon and called out to attract customers, while the other was in charge of handling the money, collecting the trash, and managing logistics. Once they got busy, there was nothing else in their minds except making money. And as time went on, they got even busier. Neither of them felt hungry or thirsty. By the end of the day, they had sweated quite a bit, and didn’t even need to use the restroom.

Around noon, business got even better. By about three in the afternoon, the watermelons were sold out.

But Xu Meng didn’t plan to go get more.

First, it was the hottest time of day, and going back and forth would be physically exhausting. Second, she wanted to go back and find some tools. They couldn’t keep selling watermelons by relying solely on their shoulders and hands. Besides, the two of them needed to return home to tally up the accounts and see exactly how much money they had earned today.

The two of them hurried back home. Chang Xi happened to be home at that moment. Seeing them return so soon, she happily ran out.

“Did you make money?”

Xu Meng nodded cheerfully. “I’ll head inside and do the math first.”

“Alright.” Chang Xi went back to watch TV again.

“Mengmeng, I didn’t even keep track of how much money we made.” At the beginning, Feng Yanwen had been silently counting in her head, but later on she couldn’t manage it at all. Her hands were constantly busy. Eventually, just listening to Xu Meng chat with customers, she felt that time had flown by so quickly.

Xu Meng quickly packed up everything. Today had truly been exhausting.

“Mom, let’s not talk about the money just yet.”

There were things they hadn’t considered today that needed to be addressed in the evening.

Feng Yanwen was still brimming with excitement. She had never realized that making money could be this easy.

By a reasonable estimate, the entire summer was peak tourist season in the capital. At the end of August, there would be another wave of people bringing their children to school, and there would be even more crowds. During this period, she planned to sell watermelons near the train station.

The two of them lay on the simple wooden bed board, counting money. There was a big pile of small bills, and it took quite a bit of effort to tally it all. The cost of the eight watermelons was 33.6 yuan—Zhang Guifen had even waived a few mao and rounded it down to 33. But this trip, the two of them had sold the watermelons for 61.3 yuan, earning nearly 30 yuan in profit.

What did thirty yuan mean in this day and age?

An average factory worker earned just a little over two hundred yuan a month. Teachers and civil servants had slightly more stable jobs and better benefits, and with some additional income from self-run projects within their units, their total monthly pay might come to three to five hundred yuan.

But the two of them had made nearly thirty yuan in just one day of doing business.

That was equivalent to the income of two teachers.

Never in her life had she imagined they could earn money like this. Feng Yanwen’s heart was pounding like a drum.

Xu Meng was full of confidence about their future. “Mom, now that we’ve got money, let’s not go back. Wouldn’t it be great to live our life depending on ourselves from now on?”

Feng Yanwen hesitated for a moment, then nodded.

If not for everything that had happened today, she definitely wouldn’t have dared agree with her daughter.

But after so many years of not earning a penny herself, this was her first time experiencing what it felt like to run a small business. Feng Yanwen had finally gotten a taste of it, and now she understood why so many people were rushing to go into business. Doing business really did bring in money.

Back when Li Xiuzhi used to look down on her for not having a job, she had felt helpless. After all, she was a university graduate. But jobs were all assigned by the state. If the leadership at the unit didn’t like you, they could easily replace you with someone from their own family. There was nothing one could do about it. Once you were pushed out, it became very difficult to find another job.

But thinking about it now, there were actually many ways to live. Why trap oneself in such a narrow little world?

Feng Yanwen walked out and poured a cup of cooled boiled water for her daughter. Watching the water ripple gently in the cup, she suddenly felt a deep sense of calm settle in her heart.

When she returned to the room, Xu Meng had already fallen asleep.

She must have been too exhausted and drifted off quickly. The room was stifling hot, and she wasn’t sleeping soundly, tossing and turning like a fish being pan-fried.

Feng Yanwen took out a palm-leaf fan and began fanning Xu Meng slowly, one stroke at a time. With her other hand, she pulled out the money and counted it again and again, a faint smile appearing at the corners of her mouth.

Just as she was lost in thought, a woman’s voice came from outside the door.

“Is Chang Xi home?”

———

Chang Xi stepped outside and exchanged a few words. When she came back, she brought with her a plump middle-aged woman.

“Aunt Feng, this is Sister Liu from our neighborhood office.”

Chang Xi briefly introduced the visitor, and the woman immediately struck up a casual conversation with Feng Yanwen. Once Feng Yanwen heard she was there to help with housing, she listened attentively. It turned out that Sister Liu was a staff member at the neighborhood office. She had just returned from her parents’ home and, upon hearing that there were two women at Chang Xi’s place looking to rent a house, came by to ask about it. As they chatted, they discovered that they were actually from the same hometown.

“So you’re from Laoliu Township too?” Sister Liu burst out in cheerful laughter. “Me too, me too! I got recruited into the city back in ’79 and later married into the city. When did you come?”

When folks from the same hometown meet, their eyes well up with tears. Feng Yanwen also opened up and started sharing. She told Sister Liu when she had come to the city and why she had moved out. In the end, she added, “You see, in my situation, if we rent a place where there’s a man, people might gossip, so…”

Sister Liu slapped her thigh. “Perfect timing. The house I want to introduce you to only has three kids living in it.”

That family lived right in this very alley, in a courtyard just like Chang Xi’s—one of those single-entry compounds. The children’s father had originally worked in the fire brigade, but he died in the line of duty last year. Their mother, deeply traumatized, fell ill and also passed away. The children were supposed to be taken in by their paternal grandparents or other close relatives.

“Their uncle from their mother’s side wanted to take them back, but the eldest boy is quite strong-willed and refused to go. No matter what, he insisted on staying in the capital and keeping the capital household registration.” The eldest child was already around seven or eight years old, old enough to understand things. He was fully aware of the situation on his mother’s side of the family, and deep down, he knew keeping the Beijing household registration was just an excuse.

Although the fire brigade provided them with a living subsidy and the neighborhood office organized people to help clean and look after them, it still wasn’t the same as having their parents around.

Not long ago, the youngest child in the family came down with a serious illness. By the time the adults discovered it, the child’s body was already burning with a high fever.

Sister Liu let out a sigh. “Someone happened to mention that you were looking for a place to rent, so I thought I’d come take a look. First, if the house can be rented out, it could at least help cover some expenses. Second, having an adult in the house means that if anything happens, someone can notify us. You can go take a look at the place first and see if it suits you.”

Seeing that Feng Yanwen was still sitting there in a daze, she added, “We’re not asking you to take care of the children. These kids are already quite sensible, and the neighborhood office has arrangements in place. Someone goes over regularly to help clean and tidy up. It’s just that with an adult in the house, outsiders won’t dare act recklessly, and if something comes up, there’ll be someone there to inform us. You don’t need to worry about anything.”

Only then did Feng Yanwen snap out of it. “No, no, it’s not that I was worried. It’s just that the arrangement sounds so good I didn’t quite know how to respond for a moment. Can we see the house now?”

“Yes, you can.”

“Alright then, shall we head over now?”

Xu Meng had just woken up. When she heard they were going to look at a house, her spirits immediately lifted. Chang Xi, also quite enthusiastic, joined them, and the group set off in high spirits toward the rental house.

Starting from Chang Xi’s home, it was only about seven or eight hundred meters away. There was a small courtyard with its gate open. The sun was nearly setting, and in the yard, three children were playing. The eldest and the second child were squatting on the ground, while the youngest—who looked to be around three years old—was sprawled out boldly on the ground. The pavement was burning hot at that hour, and when Feng Yanwen saw this, she quickly stepped forward and picked the youngest child up. She glanced at the child, who was still smiling.

Sister Liu, being plump, walked a bit slower and lagged behind. She kept saying, “Oh dear, how can the youngest be rolling on the ground? It’s scorching hot right now.” When it came to children raising children, you really couldn’t expect too much.

The eldest boy saw them arrive and immediately stood up, calling out, “Auntie.” Then he glanced at the second child with the corner of his eye.

Only then did the second child get up from the ground, stiffly greeting the visitors. This child had especially good looks, with bright, darting eyes—a face full of cleverness.

The youngest wasn’t familiar with Feng Yanwen and didn’t want to stay in her arms for long. He quickly wriggled down from her and ran off to find his big brother.

The eldest boy looked at the visitors warily. Once he confirmed they weren’t relatives from his mother’s side, he turned a puzzled gaze toward Sister Liu.

Sister Liu smiled and said, “Liu Jin, I mentioned this to you before. Once I found suitable tenants, I’d bring them over to take a look. This is Auntie Feng. She and her daughter are looking to rent a room, so I brought them here to see if it might work out. What do you think?”

The eldest first looked at Feng Yanwen, then at Xu Meng. Seeing that it was just two women, he hesitated for a moment before nodding.

They had considered finding tenants before, but most of the men were sloppy and unclean. Not only were they unable to help care for the children, they also tended to leave the house in a mess. When the neighborhood office later sent people over to clean, it raised the question of whether they were helping war hero orphans or serving those unhygienic grown men.

So although they had rented the place out once before, the arrangement was terminated shortly afterward when the neighborhood office stepped in.

Feng Yanwen nodded toward the children, then signaled for Xu Meng to go ahead and look at the room.

This was a single-entry courtyard. The house was quite old, but it had been kept very clean, and the interior looked like it had been repainted a few years ago.

There were four rooms facing south from the north, with no side rooms. Behind each of the two main rooms, there was an additional attached room. These back rooms were connected to the rear row of houses and had only small windows, but the roofs were fitted with translucent tiles, so the lighting wasn’t too bad. At present, the three children were living in the back room of one of the main houses. In the front room, there was a desk and some simple furniture. The neighboring room showed signs of previous occupancy, but it was now locked. Through the window, one could see that it was almost empty inside.

Each room was about a dozen square meters in size—two self-contained units, independent of each other.

Three sides of the courtyard were enclosed by walls, and beside the wall was a small room, which was likely the kitchen.

The courtyard wasn’t large, but it was tidy and well-kept. Feng Yanwen took one look and immediately liked it. She glanced at Xu Meng and saw that Xu Meng was also showing a satisfied expression.

The two self-contained units being separate from each other—she absolutely loved that. If they rented this house, she could sleep in the back with her mother, while the front room could be used as a study or a living room.

The two of them didn’t want to disturb the children too much, so after looking around, they stepped back outside.

“What do you think?” Sister Liu had the authority to make decisions; now it all depended on Feng Yanwen and her daughter.

“It’s quite nice. Are you looking to rent out both rooms?” Feng Yanwen was worried it might be too expensive, but the house was truly wonderful—she couldn’t help but be tempted. “You already know our situation. To be honest, I can’t afford anything too expensive.”

In fact, there were entire courtyard homes for rent outside, but the rent was at least over one or two hundred yuan.

“Fifty yuan a month, electricity included. Their household electricity is already covered by the neighborhood office—ten yuan a month for unlimited use, so there’s no need to calculate separately,” Sister Liu said openly. “This price is really not expensive. If it weren’t because you two are both capable and reliable, you definitely wouldn’t be getting it for this rate.”

Renting the house at this price also came with the responsibility of helping the neighborhood office keep an eye on the children.

Feng Yanwen was immediately tempted. But fifty yuan a month—she and Xu Meng together didn’t even have that much at the moment.

Xu Meng, however, was filled with excitement. She truly liked this house.

She had already begun planning in her mind—buy two single beds, she and Feng Yanwen could sleep separately, with a curtain drawn between them. The room was large enough that even divided in the middle, it wouldn’t feel cramped. Outside, they could place a desk. This room had even been freshly painted—whereas the room she had lived in back at the Xu family’s hadn’t even been repainted once. As for sharing the courtyard with the three children, she didn’t mind at all. The units were completely independent, each household going about its own life, without interfering with one another. The neighborhood office’s requirements were simple: if the children got a cold or fever, the adults should keep an eye on them. That was no different from looking out for a neighbor.

Xu Meng couldn’t help but look toward Feng Yanwen.

Feng Yanwen gritted her teeth. “It’s just that we’re a bit tight on money right now. Would it be alright if we paid the rent in half-month installments?”

Sister Liu slapped her thigh. “Alright, half-month it is. I’ll call Liu Jin over in a bit. If he doesn’t have any objections, then it’s settled.”