“Sounds good.”
Chen Guangze raised his teacup.
“I’ll drink tea in place of wine. Let’s put this behind us and work well together from now on.”
The three of them clinked their cups, and the atmosphere eased.
Zhou Ye ordered several dishes. The food hadn’t even arrived before the liquor was served.
Chen Guangze kept observing Zhou Ye.
The man was straightforward, decisive, and loyal.
He seemed like someone worth doing business with.
Zhou Ye raised his glass.
“This time, we got to know each other through a fight. Let’s become friends. If you ever need anything, come find me.”
The three of them drank until they were all swaying slightly. When they left, Zhou Ye personally saw them out.
Holding Chen Guangze’s hand, he said,
“Boss Chen, please take care of that home-appliance business.”
Chen Guangze shook his hand in return.
“Sure. I won’t be heading back to Shenzhen for another half a month. If you’re interested, why don’t you come with me and take a look?”
“Sure. It’s a deal.”
Zhou Ye happily watched Chen Guangze and Lin Si leave.
One of Lin Si’s men came to pick him up on a motorcycle.
He tossed a helmet to Chen Guangze.
“I’ll take you back to the hospital?”
Chen Guangze put on the helmet and climbed onto the back.
“Sure. Thanks for today, Linzi.”
Lin Si started the motorcycle.
“Don’t give me that sentimental crap!”
He dropped Chen Guangze off at the hospital before roaring away.
The next morning, everyone at the hospital had just finished washing up.
They hadn’t even eaten yet when Lawyer Chu Yang arrived.
As soon as they saw him, everyone quietly returned to their beds.
Chu Yang sat beside Chen Guangze and explained the Zhang family’s position.
“Boss Chen, I negotiated the compensation down to 8,000 yuan.
“The Zhang family has agreed, but they don’t have that much cash.
“Ms. Zhang Qiulian said she owns a small two-story building near No. 2 Primary School.
“Each floor is 100 square meters. The first floor is a shop, and the second floor is residential.
“She wants to use the property as 4,000 yuan of the compensation.
“She said she bought it for 3,700 yuan, and since it’s been two years, it should be worth around 4,000 now.”
Chen Guangze looked at his brothers.
Chen Guangming and Chen Guanghui had no objections and waved their hands dismissively.
Chen Guangyao muttered,
“What a hassle. We’ll have to figure out how to sell that house later.”
Chen Guangming waved him off.
“Fourth Brother, don’t worry about the house for now. Let’s just settle this matter first.
“I never want to stay in a hospital again. I feel awful all over.”
Chu Yang took a sheet of paper from his briefcase.
“This is the settlement agreement I’ve drafted.
“Take a look. If there are no problems, sign it.”
Chen Guangze handed the agreement to Hu Yan, who carefully read through it.
Chu Yang took out a pen.
“Once you’ve signed, we’ll transfer the property title. The Zhang family can then be released, and you can all be discharged from the hospital.”
After reading the agreement, Hu Yan nodded at Chen Guangze.
Chen Guangze signed his name.
“Do I need to go with you this time?”
“Yes. You need to be there personally for the property transfer.”
“Then shall we go now?” Chen Guangze asked.
After Chen Guangze left with Lawyer Chu, everyone in the Chen family looked at Hu Yan.
Hu Yan couldn’t help laughing.
“Come on, let’s go. We can be discharged now.
“Except for Fourth Sister-in-law. She still needs to stay in the hospital and rest.”
Tang Lijuan pouted.
“You just love making sarcastic remarks. I still need to rest for a few more days before going back to the village.”
Hu Yan packed her things while reminding her,
“The doctor said you need to stay in bed. Don’t rush back to the village.”
Lin Xiulan also smiled reassuringly.
“Fourth Sister-in-law, just rest easy. We’ll go home and tidy things up first.
“It’s been empty for several days, so I’m sure everything’s covered in dust.”
The Chen family began packing and preparing to leave the hospital.
Hu Yan went to settle the hospital bill.
The total came to 459 yuan.
Most of it was spent on Tang Lijuan’s emergency treatment.
The Chen family was discharged together and returned to Liushu Bay.
The city wasn’t far from the village, so they didn’t take the bus.
They simply walked home.
Most of the villagers were busy with the autumn harvest in the fields, so they didn’t run into many people.
The group entered the village from the east.
Chen Guangze entered from the north.
They happened to run into each other at the entrance of the Chen residence.
Chen Guangming’s eyes widened.
“Fifth Brother, you’re pretty fast! Everything’s already taken care of?”
Chen Guangze shrugged.
“It was just a property transfer. How long could it take?”
Everyone entered the courtyard.
Chen Guangze placed the 4,000 yuan in compensation and the property deed on the stone table.
Teacher Bai and Old Man Chen came out of the main house.
When they saw that all their sons and daughters-in-law had returned safe and sound, they clasped their hands together and murmured,
“Amitabha.”
Old Man Chen even scooped up a large basin of burning embers from the stove.
“Everyone step over this. It’ll get rid of all the bad luck.”
Chen Guangze grinned and put an arm around his father’s shoulder.
“Dad, we’ve already made it inside. Isn’t this a little too late?”
Everyone else obediently stepped over the brazier.
Old Man Chen shook off his youngest son’s arm.
“Go step over it. And stop being disrespectful.”
Although Chen Guangze wasn’t superstitious, he still stepped over the brazier.
The family gathered around the stone table beneath the sour-fruit tree.
Everyone stared at the money.
“Mom, the compensation is 8,000 yuan.
“4,000 in cash and a 4,000-yuan property in the city.”
Teacher Bai turned to Hu Yan.
“Fifth daughter-in-law, how much have you spent these past few days?”
Hu Yan took out all the receipts and checked them one by one.
“The hospital bill was 459 yuan. The lawyer cost 400 yuan. Food and other expenses add up to around 1,001 yuan.”
Teacher Bai took 1,000 yuan from the money and handed it to Hu Yan.
“You two have been paying for everything these past few days. Take this.”
Chen Guangze counted the money, then handed it to his wife.
Teacher Bai couldn’t stand the way her youngest son fawned over his wife and simply looked away.
“There are 3,000 yuan left, plus the property deed.
“What do you all think we should do with them? Let’s hear everyone’s opinions.”
Hu Yan spoke first.
“Mom, sell that property to me. I’ll buy it for 4,000 yuan.
“I haven’t touched my dowry, so I’ll use it to buy the property.”
Everyone was surprised.
They already had a house in the village. Why would she want a house in the city?
Teacher Bai asked curiously,
“Fifth daughter-in-law, are you planning to live in the city?
“Fifth son isn’t home most of the time. Wouldn’t it be dangerous for you to live there alone?”
Hu Yan shook her head with a smile.
“No, I’ll still live in the village.
“It’s just that property prices in the city have been rising these past few years.
“I can buy it and rent it out. The first floor is a shop, and the second floor can be used as living space.
“It’s also close to a primary school, so the location is pretty good. It shouldn’t be difficult to find tenants.”
After hearing Hu Yan’s reasoning, the Chen family thought it made sense.
Teacher Bai asked everyone again,
“If none of you have any objections, then we’ll sell the property to Fifth Daughter-in-law?”
At this time, most work units provided housing to their employees.
Ordinary people therefore weren’t particularly obsessed with owning property.
Having a house was nice, but not having one wasn’t considered a big deal either.
The Chen family had already been wondering what to do with the property.
Since Hu Yan wanted to buy it, everyone was happy with the arrangement.
Chen Guangze looked particularly proud.
“See how clever I am?
“When I transferred the property earlier, I put Yan’er’s name on the deed.
“So we don’t even have to transfer it again.”
“Wife, isn’t your husband amazing?”
Hu Yan pushed him away and went into their room.
She took out the 3,000 yuan they had saved and added the 1,000 yuan she’d just received.
Exactly 4,000 yuan.
She handed the money to Teacher Bai, who casually gave her the property deed in return.