NOVPUB
Chapter 587: Chapter 587: Bad Idea
After coming out of the Housing Bureau, the three of them discussed and decided to first go back to Guo Jinnian’s house to get the house purchase receipts. Then, they would take an ox cart to the countryside the next day to retrieve the household registration book.
Although Guo Jinnian’s house had been tidied up and aired out, there was still an unpleasant smell. However, it was much better than before and at least became habitable.
Guo Jinnian opened the wooden cabinet in her bedroom and searched for a while until she finally found the book she kept the receipts in. After flipping through it for a long time, she was unable to find the receipt. Guo Jinnian’s face gradually fell, as she shook the book but nothing fell out.
Gu Hongwei and Tong Yao looked at each other, both understanding what had happened.
Taking into account the fact that the door lock had been changed, it was clear that the receipt had been stolen by Guo Jinnian’s parents.
Guo Jinnian’s face became as unattractive as a rotted vegetable leaf, "I used to keep the receipt in this book, now that it’s gone, my dad must have taken it."
Tong Yao frowned and said, "If that’s the case, it’ll be tricky to deal with. They definitely won’t easily give back your household registration book and receipt."
Guo Jinnian sat down on the bed, disappointed, "It seems my parents really don’t want me as their daughter anymore. By doing this, they’re forcing me to break off ties with them."
If the house fell into her father’s hands, he would gamble it away before long. Then, he would still seek ways to trick her into giving him money.
Guo Jinnian couldn’t understand why she had such parents.
Tong Yao patted Guo Jinnian’s shoulder comfortingly, "Don’t worry, let’s think about how to get the household registration book and receipt."
Guo Jinnian shook her head, "Once my parents get the receipt, there’s no way they’ll give it back to me. The only option is to wait until my arm heals and confront them. My dad will outright cheat and not give it to me, my mom will claim that I, being an unmarried woman, don’t need a house, also that it’s the man’s family that should provide the house for marriage. They seem to believe that because I am single, everything I have, even the money I earned, belongs to them and should be spent on them."
She knew her parents too well. Now that they had the receipt, they would never give it back. Thinking of the house falling into her father’s hands, Guo Jinnian was so furious that she gritted her teeth. She wished she could break off relations with her father once and for all.
Hearing this, Tong Yao’s eyes lit up, "I have an idea."
Guo Jinnian’s eyes also brightened, "What is it?"
Gu Hongwei also looked at Tong Yao. Honestly, they didn’t have as many ideas as Tong Yao; they always had the feeling that she had an encyclopedia in her head, always finding opportunities in difficult situations.
Tong Yao looked at Gu Hongwei, cleared her throat, "Ahem . . . this idea is a bit rotten, not a good one. You guys just listen to it first, you don’t have to use it."
Guo Jinnian urged her, "Yaoyao, just tell me quickly! Stop being mysterious. As long as we can get the receipt back, I don’t mind how terrible the idea is."
Hearing this, Tong Yao said seriously, "Okay then, I’ll just say it, but this idea may offend you two, and it may not look good for your reputations."
Guo Jinnian and Gu Hongwei exchanged glances, full of curiosity. They didn’t understand what method Tong Yao had thought of that would harm their reputations.
Seeing that they were mentally prepared, Tong Yao slowly explained her plan. Afterward, Guo Jinnian and Gu Hongwei were both stunned; they had a strange feeling in their hearts.
Gu Hongwei didn’t speak, as if he was hesitant about whether to help or not.
Guo Jinnian, on the other hand, didn’t hesitate, and readily agreed, "Yaoyao, I wasn’t planning on getting married in Ancheng anyway, so I have no objections to this plan."
After saying that, she turned to look at Gu Hongwei, and in a tone of determination, she said, "Gu Hongwei, as long as you are willing to help me this time, I shall be at your beck and call in the future."
Gu Hongwei’s mouth twitched a few times, he had long been accustomed to Guo Jinnian’s mental state and nodded, "Then let’s do it this way and work out the details of our action plan."
The plan wasn’t really a loss for him. Considering that Guo Jinnian, a girl, wasn’t bothered by it, naturally, there was nothing more for Gu Hongwei to say.
When they both agreed, Tong Yao said, "Then let’s go back to the hotel to discuss it."
The three of them had dinner outside and discussed it until nine o’clock in the evening at the hotel before retiring to their respective rooms to sleep.
Early the next morning, the three of them rose early, ate breakfast, and hopped on an ox cart heading for Guo Jinnian’s hometown. Although Guo Jinnian’s home was in the countryside, it wasn’t too remote, being only about thirty li away from the city. Their countryside was a plain, without any mountains, so the roads were passable.
The ox cart was padded with straw, so the ride was smooth. The early morning was very cold, and the fog was dense. White frost covered the grass along the roadside, and there were no vehicles on the road, though occasionally, people on bicycles would pass by the ox cart.
The clean morning air hinted at the smell of grass. Apart from it being a little cold, everything felt wonderful — as if the rhythm of life had slowed down, vastly different from Kyoto.
The ox cart ambled along at a slow pace, and the man pulling it was a fifty-something-year-old uncle.
Normally, he earned a small income by providing transport services in the city and rural towns. He charged two cents per person for a single trip, and under normal circumstances, he could carry five people per trip. When business was good, he could make three trips a day.
However, most of the time, he could only make one or two trips.
Guo Jinnian gave him three yuan, asking to charter his cart for the day. Thinking that he’d met a big client, the uncle was relieved that the old ox wouldn’t have to work too hard, and he could earn the equivalent of three trips. He was very happy and started a conversation with the three of them.
"You guys must be doing business in the big city and coming back for the New Year, right? The state’s policies are getting better these years, those who make money outside are all living good lives, one person in our village went out for a year and came back having built a new tiled house."
The amount of money needed to build a new tiled house didn’t sound like much nowadays; it only required more than a thousand yuan. But for the farmers, the annual grain harvest only earned them a hundred or so yuan. After deducting the expenses for the family’s food and drink, they had very little left at the end of the year.
Accumulating a thousand yuan was not an easy task.
If a family built a new tiled house, the matchmakers would virtually wear a path to their doorstep.
Tong Yao and the others, having had past experiences, knew not to show off their wealth. Tong Yao chuckled and said, "We just work outside. We earn some money in a year, which we spend on clothing. We wanted to come back dressed in silk and satin so that we’d have some face in the village."
As soon as she said this, both Guo Jinnian and Gu Hongwei were stunned. They never expected Tong Yao to speak the local dialect of Jiang City so fluently. If they didn’t know, they would’ve thought she was a local.
Seeing their stunned expressions, Tong Yao playfully winked at them. 𝖓𝔬𝖛𝔭𝔲𝖇.𝔠𝔬𝖒
