Chapter 31 : Finally Separated

After she finished speaking, the room fell silent.

The captain and several witnesses shook their heads silently, feeling that Old Han and Yang Lanhua were utterly shameless, and their children were equally disrespectful.

Especially the young girl, such a character! Who would dare to marry her in the future?

And the second son’s wife, who seemed gentle and kind, also joined her mother-in-law and sister-in-law in bullying the eldest sister-in-law. It truly shows that appearances can be deceiving.

After a moment, Han Zhenyu said, “Captain, please write.”

“Alright,”Hongbing nodded, picked up a pen and paper, and drafted the document in triplicate.

Han Zhenyu ensured all members of the Han family signed and fingerprinted the document. The witnesses present also signed their names.

Han Baoguo took one copy, Han Zhenyu kept another, and the third copy was filed at the brigade headquarters.

As Han Zhenyu escorted the captain out, he apologized, “Captain, and to both uncles, I apologize for keeping you busy until now without being able to treat you to a meal. Once my house is built, I’ll invite you over to celebrate.”

Sun Quan laughed and replied, “Alright, we’ll come after the house is done.”

Han Youming asked, “Zhenyu, when are you planning to start building the house?”

“I’m going on a trip in a couple of days. I had planned to start after I return, but given everything that’s happened, I’ll head to my grandfather’s house tomorrow and ask for help from my uncle, grandfather, and eldest uncle to begin construction sooner,” Han Zhenyu explained.

Han Youming nodded. “It needs to be done soon otherwise, you won’t have a place to stay before winter. I have some spare bricks and wood. If you need them, let Han Lei know, and he’ll bring them over.”

“I’ve also got some supplies this year, so count me in,” Sun Quan added.

Han Zhenyu expressed his gratitude, “Thank you both, uncles. I was planning to ask Sun Dahan for some help, but it’s too late now. I’ll use yours first and settle the costs later.”

“What’s the point of talking about money? Just use them,” Sun Quan replied.

He then asked, “How many rooms are you planning to build? Including the yard, these materials might not be enough. Should I ask around the village for you?”

After a brief pause, Han Zhenyu responded, “Uncle, don’t worry. Tomorrow, I’ll head to the city to see if I can get some bricks.”

“Wow, Zhenyu, you’re really resourceful. You can even manage to get bricks?” Sun Quan said in amazement. Though he knew Han Zhenyu wasn’t as idle as people thought, he didn’t expect him to have such connections.

Han Youming and the Captain, who knew Han Zhenyu better, weren’t surprised by this.

Han Zhenyu replied modestly, “Uncle, I just know someone who manages these things, but I’m not sure if it will work out.”

Sun Quan, however, was confident. From Han Zhenyu’s tone, he knew it was practically a done deal.

The captain then asked, “I heard you say you’re moving out tomorrow. Have you found a place to live?”

Han Zhenyu shook his head. “Not yet. I plan to look for a rental in the city tomorrow. If I can’t find one, my wife can stay with my grandmother or aunt for a while until the house is built.”

Hongbing, impressed by Han Zhenyu’s potential, decided to help. He thought for a moment and said, “Why not stay near the brigade headquarters while building your house? There’s an empty place nearby. You can rent it for a small fee each month.”

“That’s amazing. Thank you, Captain! This will be a big help,” Han Zhenyu said, relieved to have found a temporary residence. 

The road was now flanked by cornfields. If Su Xieqiu had to travel back and forth every day, it would have been a significant burden.

Han Zhenyu sent the three visitors back, requested leave from the team leader for the next day, and then returned to the Han family home.  

Old Man Han and his two sons were sitting in the yard enjoying the cool evening air when they heard Yang Lanhua’s cursing coming from the kitchen.  

Han Zhenyu went straight to their room. The door was slightly ajar, and the dim kerosene lamp cast a flickering glow.  

On the kang table were leftover corn tortillas from the morning and a large bowl of chicken kidney bean stew.  

Su Xieqiu was sitting on the edge of the kang, smiling as she listened to Yang Lanhua’s relentless cursing, which sounded like a theatrical performance.  

“What are you laughing at?” Han Zhenyu asked as he closed the door.  

“I’m listening to an opera. She’s been cursing for so long without repeating herself. Her vocabulary is truly impressive,” Su Xieqiu said with a chuckle.  

“Don’t mind her. We’re moving out tomorrow morning.”  

“Wait, but the house isn’t built yet. Where are we going to live after moving out?” Su Xieqiu suddenly realized they had no place to go.  

“There’s an empty room at the brigade headquarters. The brigade captain offered to let us stay there for a while.”  

Su Xieqiu asked, “When will the house be built?”  

The brigade headquarters didn’t have a kang, which was fine in the summer, but winter without a kang would be unbearable.  

“I have to go away soon, so I can’t oversee the construction myself. I plan to ask Grandpa and my uncle to gather people to help build it. You can help by cooking lunch for them. How does that sound?”  

“That’s no problem,” Su Xieqiu agreed readily.  

“Then I’ll clean the room at the brigade headquarters early tomorrow morning, move our belongings there, and then head to the city to buy some cooking utensils.”  

Su Xieqiu smiled and nodded, handing him a pair of chopsticks. “It’s getting late. Let’s eat first, and we’ll figure everything out afterward.”  

By now, it was nearly dark. After a long day, she guessed it must already be nine o’clock.  

As they ate, they discussed plans for the house.  

Han Zhenyu said, “I’m thinking of building four brick houses with a partition for the bathroom and kitchen. The kitchen will connect to the kang, with firewalls surrounding it. The toilet will be as you suggested, an enclosed design placed next to the firewall so it won’t be cold during winter trips to the bathroom. We’ll also build a simple outdoor kitchen in the yard for cooking during the summer.”  

“Four brick houses? That must be expensive!” Su Xieqiu exclaimed in surprise. “Bricks are hard to come by. Can we even buy enough?”  

She vaguely remembered reading that during this era, one needed official approval to purchase bricks. Most houses in the Sanhua Brigade were adobe, with only a few made of bricks.  

“Don’t worry about the money. I’ve saved enough over the past few years to build the yard. This morning, I met a friend in the city who managed to get me approval for bricks.”  

Originally, Han Zhenyu hadn’t planned on building a brick house, as he didn’t want to stand out in the village. But yesterday, Su Xieqiu mentioned wanting a flush toilet and bathroom, features that wouldn’t work well without bricks.  

Since she didn’t want to return to the city, he decided to fulfill her requests.  

After all, they were husband and wife. No matter what the future held, he would treat her fairly within his means.  

And if things didn’t work out between them in the future, he would leave the house to her, completing their fate.