Ning Shu’s eyes lit up upon hearing this. “Is that possible?” She didn’t want to wait any longer; she wanted the stuff at home to be resolved quickly.

It was bothersome and unsightly.

Yu He said, “Of course it’s possible. I’ll go call people.”

Lin Guodong asked, “It’s already dark. Is it still easy to find people?”

Yu He replied, “Yes, it’s fine. My father has many people at the police station. We can just invite everyone for a late-night meal afterwards. I’ll handle the arrangements.”

Since Yu He said it like that, Lin Guodong didn’t insist further. “Thank you for your help. I’ll cover the cost of the late-night meal.”

Yu He didn’t comment much on the offer. He turned around and went to call people.

With the police helping with the move, Ning Shu felt more at ease.

She wouldn’t have to worry about potential trouble.

It didn’t take long for Yu He to return with around ten men, including seven in police uniforms and three not.

They also brought a tractor.

“Guodong, the people are here, and we’ve borrowed a tractor. What do you want to move first?” Yu He asked.

The tractor was borrowed, and he would privately cover the diesel cost.

Although the cost was minimal for such a short distance, it would still create a favor.

With Yu He and Lin Guodong, both strong and young, moving the items went quickly.

The brightly lit small villa of the Lv family attracted quite a bit of attention as people outside watched.

The Lu family’s villa had many items: sofas, TVs, coffee tables, refrigerators, beds, cabinets, and dressing tables.

The tractor couldn’t carry everything in one trip.

So, the first trip involved Yu He and Lin Guodong taking some items to Lu Qingshan’s place with the tractor, while Ning Shu stayed behind to continue organizing with the others.

At the courtyard

By this time, it was past 8 PM.

Although it was the late 1970s, the area of the capital they were in was still very quiet at night.

The sound of the tractor was particularly loud in the stillness of the night.

Many people lying in bed heard the noise and were curious but did not get up to check.

After a while, someone knocked on a door.

Knock, knock… knock, knock…

After a long while, no one answered.

Knock, knock… knock, knock…

Accompanied by the knocking, a voice called out, “Police, please open the door.”

When the noise was heard, no one dared to ignore it.

When the police knock on the door, who would risk not opening it?

Soon, someone came to open the door.

Not only did someone come to open it, but many neighbors also came out, probably drawn by the commotion to see what was happening.

When the door opened, the scene at the entrance was surprising, as there were a lot of people.

It seemed that all the tenants inside had come out.

“Excuse me, officers, what’s the matter?” asked the man who opened the door.

When they heard it was the police, they didn’t dare delay and came to open the door right away, as everyone was anxious about what was happening.

Police Officer: “Is Comrade Lu Qingshan here?”

The Lu family was naturally worried and wondered if the police were looking for Lu Qingshan.

“I’m here,” Lu Qingshan came out from behind the crowd. “Officers, what…” He stopped speaking when he saw Lin Guodong.

He was confused about why Lin Guodong was here.

Was it because of the furniture in the small house or something else?

With the police here, it must be something else.

“It’s not us looking for you, it’s Commander Lin,” the police officer, who was a regular officer sent by Yu He, and was familiar with Lin Guodong from helping with the move, said.

The officers were keen to help, especially since Lin Guodong was a young commander.

Helping him was a good way to build connections.

Although the army and the police were not in the same system, helping a commander, especially a young one, was something they were eager to do.

It was a chance to make a valuable connection.

“Comrade Lu, we agreed yesterday that you would come to the small house to move your belongings at 3 PM today.

However, we waited until evening and you didn’t show up or give any reason, so we asked the police to help with the move,” Lin Guodong explained. “The police witnessed the entire process of moving the items, so you don’t need to worry about any damage.”

Lu Qingshan looked a bit embarrassed hearing this. “I’m really sorry. I had something come up today and forgot about the move. I was planning to come tomorrow, but you’ve already moved everything. I’m very sorry for the trouble.”

With everything already moved, he couldn’t really say much.

And since the police had helped, he couldn’t complain.

He was also surprised that the other party was willing to set aside their pride.

Moreover, he was now just an ordinary person.

From what the police officer said, this young man, who looked about thirty, was already a commander, showing how capable he must be.

Lu Qingshan’s wife, Liu Yinghong, pouted and said, “This place is so small, where can we fit all this stuff? You’re being unreasonable. The small villa is so big; it wouldn’t matter if the stuff stayed there for a few days.”

Lin Guodong replied in a calm, flat tone, “Who puts their furniture in a stranger’s house? Lu Qingshan retired a month ago. That means the stuff has been there for a month already, not just a few days.”

His voice was cool and devoid of emotion, and his gaze was indifferent, causing Liu Yinghong to shiver involuntarily.

“Alright, let’s just move the stuff in for now. We’ll see what to do about it tomorrow,” Lü Qingshan said.

Being a former officer, he didn’t want to lose face in front of Lin Guodong, the current officer.

He was a retired leader who didn’t want to make a fuss about it.

Liu Yinghong had initially thought of leaving the stuff behind, letting the new occupants use it, and then charging them for it as if selling it.

However, she didn’t expect the new tenants to come and move the stuff in overnight.

When Lu Qingshan told her about it yesterday, she hadn’t taken it seriously, thinking they would just wait until someone wanted to buy it.

Plus, moving and organizing the stuff was too exhausting for her; she had never done housework and didn’t want to handle such tasks.

However, the new tenants had moved the stuff in overnight.

Liu Yinghong, though proud and accustomed to a better lifestyle, could only complain a bit but wouldn’t do anything else.

She still cared about her reputation and didn’t want to cause a scene.

With Lu Qingshan and Liu Yinghong cooperating, the move went smoothly.

By the time the moving was done, it was almost 11 PM.

While 11 PM might be a normal time for a late-night snack in modern times, it was quite late for that era.

However, this wasn’t a problem for Yu He, who knew exactly where to get a late-night snack.

He took everyone out for a late-night meal.

Lin Guodong didn’t join them, as he was concerned about Ning Shu being alone in an unfamiliar place.

When Lin Guodong returned to the small villa, Ning Shu asked, “Did everyone go back?”

Lin Guodong replied, “Yu He took everyone out for a late-night meal. I gave him the money for it, but he didn’t accept it, so I didn’t press the issue. I’ll treat him another time.”

Ning Shu nodded, “Yu He is quite enthusiastic.”

Lin Guodong said, “When I first met him more than ten years ago, he was just like this. After over a decade, he hasn’t changed at all… It’s getting late. Let’s tidy up and head back to the guesthouse.”

Ning Shu replied, “I’ve already tidied up. You go take a shower first.”

After Lin Guodong had his shower, they both returned to the guesthouse.

The next day, when Lin Guodong went to work, Ning Shu went back to the courtyard to find Zhang Cuilan.

“Aunt Zhang, this small house is so big, and I can’t manage it alone. Do you know anyone who does cleaning around here?”

Zhang Cuilan immediately understood, “Many households here have maids. I can call a few to clean up. Since the families are at work now, the maids are resting. Is that okay with you?”

Ning Shu agreed, “That’s fine if they’re available. I just don’t know the going rate. How much should I pay them for cleaning?”

Zhang Cuilan said, “I’ll get four or five maids. Pay them about 20 cents each. With more people, the work will be done quickly.”

She explained that these maids usually had their food and accommodation provided and earned around ten dollars a month, so a little extra pay was quite attractive to them.

Zhang Cuilan then asked, “Comrade Ning, do you need a maid for your home?”

Ning Shu thought about it.

With someone already doing the laundry, housework, and cooking, hiring a maid just for cooking and cleaning seemed unnecessary.

Since she had no problem with the food being taken care of, she felt it was fine.

However, she thought it wouldn’t be fair to have Lin Guodong do all the household chores, especially with the children about to start middle school.

Their study time would be tight, so she didn’t want them to be burdened with housework.

But the main issue was that she herself didn’t want to do the work. “I was considering it, but it’s still early. I’ll be returning to my old unit soon. The kids are still studying there, so I’ll only think about hiring a maid when they come over for the winter break.”

Zhang Cuilan understood and didn’t press the issue further but kept in mind that she had friends who might need work, and she would see if they could come to work for the Ning family.

Zhang Cuilan brought four maids, and with herself and Ning Shu, they cleaned the small house quickly.

Ning Shu had just received a list of local specialty shops from Zhang Cuilan, who also gave her directions on how to get there.

With this information, Ning Shu planned to buy some local goods before heading back home.

She missed her three children and was worried about them, even though she knew they were in a safe place.

The past few days had been a mix of excitement and homesickness for her children.

Initially, they were thrilled with their newfound freedom and the company of Yang Wenjie and others.

However, as the days went by, they began to miss their parents.

“Hey…”