After the incident with Sun Jianguo, Song Cheng realized that her parents had suddenly come to see her as much more reliable. It wasn’t that she had been unreliable before. In her parents’ eyes, even though she had become much more mature lately, understood how hard they worked, and started taking the initiative to do housework, she was still a child—and children needed to be looked after. But after what happened with Sun Jianguo, Dad Song and Mom Song realized that as Song Cheng grew older, she was beginning to think about things in a broader, more long-term way.
Mom Song asked her, “What did you mean when you said last time that our neighborhood would be demolished? Was that something you came up with yourself, or did you hear it from someone?”
Song Cheng wanted to tell her that the government would announce the policy early next year, and that only a few short months would pass between its announcement and the start of demolition. The process would be remarkably fast. It seemed the plan was to turn the new eastern district into a more livable park city, as Yicheng’s center of development gradually shifted east.
But Song Cheng had no way to tell her family where she had gotten the news. Otherwise, they’d probably send her to the hospital to have her head examined. Her eyes darted around as she said, “I was just thinking that Yicheng is bound to become an international metropolis in the southwest of Huaguo. The government’s encouraging investment inland, isn’t it? The south of the city is the central district, and the north, where the clothing wholesale business is concentrated, has undergone major redevelopment in recent years. The east is flat, the air is clean, and Deshi is just beyond the city to the east, with a stretch of mountains connecting the two cities. People are placing more and more importance on their living environment. Maybe one day Chengdong District will become a park-city center where people and nature exist in harmony.”
Her words left Dad Song and Mom Song completely taken aback. Dad Song looked at her. Song Cheng did her best to keep a calm, composed expression, as if to say, I’m just throwing out an idea. What’s so strange about that? Meanwhile, she was carefully going over what she had just said, checking for any holes in her reasoning. Fortunately, neither of them said anything.
That night, lying in bed, Mom Song said to Dad Song, “When did our daughter get so clever? The more I think about what she said, the more it seems to make sense. When my brother came over last time, he said No. 1 High School would be opening a new campus, probably somewhere to the east. After all, it can’t be too far from the main school, can it? Do you think Chengcheng might actually be right? Our daughter’s going to be something special.”
Dad Song said, “I’ve heard similar things at work. And honestly, her analysis makes more sense than what I’ve heard there. I don’t think there’s much point in worrying about it—we’ll see what happens. What I am thinking about is that our daughter’s about to start at No. 1 High School. It isn’t far, but evening study ends after nine, and it takes forty minutes to get there by bike. I’m worried she won’t adjust to living at school, but I can’t pick her up and drop her off every day. Should we have her stay at her uncle’s?”
Mom Song thought it over. “That’s probably what my brother had in mind too, but Chengcheng definitely won’t want to. You know what her aunt is like. She’s always resented the fact that her husband treats his niece better than his own son, and she’d surely make snide comments. I don’t want Chengcheng to have to put up with that.”
“True. How about we ask Chengcheng what she thinks tomorrow? There’s no point in us deciding without her. Our daughter knows her own mind. Let her decide for herself.”
The next day, Mom Song asked Song Cheng about it, but Song Cheng couldn’t make up her mind either. In her previous life, she hadn’t lived at school at first. Later, after her family moved farther away, she did. She hadn’t had any major conflicts with her classmates, but having no privacy had been very inconvenient. Now she had the System too, and there was more and more for her to learn. If she lived at school, she’d be in other people’s sight much of the time, which would be very inconvenient.
Then Mom Song asked, “Isn’t Yaozhi going to No. 1 High School too? I wonder if you’ll be in the same class. Will she live at school, or will a driver take her?”
“I think Yaozhi’s family has a place downtown. Her dad’s business is doing pretty well, so they’ll probably move there. It would help him expand his business.” In her previous life, they had moved after Yaozhi got into No. 1 High School, so the two of them hadn’t seen each other as often afterward. “Besides, her dad’s wanted to move for ages. He was just putting it off until after Yaozhi’s middle-school entrance exams,” Song Cheng added.
Dad Song and Mom Song exchanged a look. They had both thought of the same thing: buying a house.
Mom Song and Dad Song weren’t the sort to let their daughter go without. Song Cheng and Lu Yaozhi were so close, and it was only natural for best friends to compare themselves with each other. Mom Song didn’t want Song Cheng to feel left out. Since Mom Song had opened her clothing store, business had been booming for years, so the Song family had built up some savings. On top of that, Dad Song seemed likely to be promoted soon, which would bring a substantial increase in his salary. Even if business at the clothing store slowed down later, it wouldn’t affect their standard of living. If Song Cheng had known what Mom Song was thinking, she would have said, I’ve already felt left out in my previous life. The Song Cheng of this life won’t.
When Mom Song suggested it to her, Song Cheng was delighted. She hadn’t expected that, just because No. 1 High School was far from home, her parents would buy her a place near the school. She was so moved she could have cried.
Song Cheng wholeheartedly supported their decision. In her previous life, Yicheng had developed at a breakneck pace, and housing prices had climbed steadily along with it. Prices in the city center had multiplied several times over. No. 1 High School was a key high school in the province, and because of the later changes to how school districts were assigned, homes around it would become so sought-after they’d be nearly impossible to find. A house bought there would double in value in three years. They could also rent it out if they didn’t live in it, so it was an excellent choice whether they planned to live there or treat it as an investment. Once the family had agreed, they decided to look at houses near No. 1 High School that weekend.
That night, Song Cheng lay in bed, excited. Ever since her rebirth, she had worried that something else might happen and damage her family’s finances. Now her parents were talking about buying her a house, and she was genuinely happy. In her previous life, it had taken several years after she graduated from university before her parents helped her buy a place near work, and even then it was a small apartment. Mom Song had told her, “This is your premarital property. You may never need it, but it’s good to have something of your own to give you confidence.” In this life, after she had prevented Dad Song from being deceived, the family’s circumstances had kept improving, and Dad Song was about to be promoted too. It was wonderful.
That weekend, the three of them drove to a neighborhood near No. 1 High School to look at a house. Dad Song had already contacted an agent. The neighborhood was called Yihe Garden. It was very large and densely built, with more than ten buildings, each twenty-eight stories tall. It had been built five or six years earlier, so most of the apartments were occupied.
The house the Song family looked at had three bedrooms and was on the third floor. It was a little over a hundred square meters and cost around 500,000 yuan. It had been given a basic renovation, but had no furniture or appliances. It was also close to the street, and the entire street-facing side of the building was lined with shops, making it very noisy. Mom Song was quite unhappy with it. Song Cheng herself didn’t think it was bad. Perhaps because, compared with prices in the future, the house seemed dirt-cheap to her, she felt that finding anything at all was a good deal.
The agent could tell the family wasn’t very satisfied. After learning that they were looking for a place for their daughter to live while studying, he hesitated before recommending a new development beside a park, just across the street from the back gate of No. 1 High School. It was called Huanjing Garden.
That neighborhood had also been rebuilt after demolition. The park beside it had been designed to feel very natural, but the government had decided the area was damaging the city’s appearance, so it had put the redevelopment project out to bid.
The agent recommended a mid-rise building with an elevator and only seven floors. To match the park theme, the neighborhood had a very low floor-area ratio and a large amount of green space. As soon as the Song family walked in, they liked it. There were plenty of plants, the air was fresh, and the whole neighborhood was clean and tidy.
The agent also told them that most of the residents were highly educated. Some parents with children studying at No. 1 High School had bought homes there, and they were all very pleased with them. It was quiet, the air was good, and it was especially suitable for families with children preparing for the gaokao. Each floor had two apartments sharing one elevator. As the agent led the Song family farther in, he explained, “The buildings out here are from the first phase, and they’re mostly occupied. The two buildings farther back were only completed last year. The apartment I’m showing you is on the sixth floor.”
As he entered the passcode, he added, “Security here is pretty reliable. Residents need a key card to get into the neighborhood, and there are security cameras throughout.”
He opened the front door, and the Song family went inside. The apartment had been fully renovated. It was a two-bedroom, one-living-room layout, with a large living room.
“The owner bought it last year intending to live here, so the renovation was done to a very high standard,” the agent said. “But something came up in the family, and they have to sell it, so it may be a little expensive.”
Dad Song asked, “How big is it, and roughly how much does it cost?”
“It’s 103 square meters. It only has two bedrooms, but there’s a small storage room. Your family isn’t large, and if you plan to live here, you could turn the storage room into a study. The price per square meter is about 500 yuan higher than the place near the front gate, but it’s fully renovated. All told, this apartment will probably cost around 600,000 yuan.”
Mom Song thought the apartment was beautiful, but she remembered what they had seen when they first entered the neighborhood and asked, “The amenities around here don’t seem very developed. Wouldn’t it be inconvenient to live here?”
The agent replied, “That’s why I hesitated about recommending it. The layout, price, and nearby amenities aren’t quite what you told me you were looking for. But I only got this listing recently and haven’t started showing it yet. Since I ran into you today, I thought I’d tell you about it. Personally, I think it’s well worth buying. First, people are caring more and more about their environment, and this neighborhood borders the park. You can see the little lake in the park from the windows, so it’s a great place for a student to live. Second, even if the amenities aren’t developed yet, you can reach the outer ring road by walking through the park. The area around the outer ring is bound to flourish, and then won’t prices in the inner ring shoot up? To put it simply, aside from the lack of nearby amenities, this house is good in every way.”
Mom Song didn’t say whether she agreed. It wasn’t even convenient to get a meal. What if Chengcheng got hungry at night? Would she have to cook for herself?
Song Cheng, on the other hand, was very pleased with the place. In her previous life, she had had more than enough of noisy surroundings. To get such a nice environment at such a low price, and be able to move straight in, was a bargain.
The Song family went on to look at houses in two more neighborhoods, both near the front gate of No. 1 High School, but the three of them couldn’t agree. More than anything, Mom Song felt they couldn’t compare with the apartment at Huanjing Garden, so she found fault with every place they visited.
The agent was remarkably patient. By the end of the day, Song Cheng was dizzy, but he didn’t say a single thing to complain. He kept smiling the whole time. Song Cheng had to give him credit for his professionalism.
After getting Mom Song home, Song Cheng said to her parents, “Mom, I think the apartment by the park is really nice. The neighborhood is spacious and beautiful.”
“But what if you get hungry after evening study? It won’t be easy to buy something to eat. Maybe we should all move there after we buy it.”
“Really, there’s no need. I can stock up on food in the fridge, and I don’t even like eating out much these days. I can cook for myself. Besides, Dad would have a long commute if you moved there, and the clothing store will be busy once school starts. If you have to close up so late, it’ll be dangerous getting home.”
Mom Song thought for a while, then said, “That apartment only has two bedrooms. It just doesn’t seem like good value for money, and there aren’t many people around. It doesn’t feel safe.”
Song Cheng and Dad Song exchanged a look. Dad Song shook his head helplessly. At every house they had seen that afternoon, Mom Song had compared it with the one by the park. Now she was finding fault with that one too.
Song Cheng smiled and linked arms with Mom Song. “Don’t worry, Mom. The agent said every household has its own access card, so other people can’t get in, and there are plenty of security cameras. Guards patrol around the clock. I can take care of myself, and I’ve been learning taekwondo lately, remember? I’m almost as good as Yaozhi.”
Only then did Mom Song remember that her daughter had been learning taekwondo. She had even had the chance to watch Song Cheng spar with her instructor. If Song Cheng weren’t still so skinny, Mom Song would have worried she’d end up covered in muscles. And her daughter really wasn’t much worse than the instructor. Remembering that put Mom Song a little more at ease. She was about to say something else when Song Cheng urged her to wash up and go to bed.
The next morning, as soon as Song Cheng got up, Mom Song said, “Come on. We’re going to buy the house.”
Song Cheng turned to Dad Song in surprise. “Dad, what happened? Did you talk Mom into it last night?”
“I’m not that persuasive,” Dad Song said. “Your mom’s decided that your cousin can bring you home after evening study.”
Song Cheng had no objections. As long as it put her mother’s mind at ease, that was fine. Her cousin would just have to go to the trouble. She’d have to treat him better from now on.
When they contacted the agent, his smile grew even brighter. He kept saying, “Don’t worry, you absolutely won’t regret it. I just showed the apartment to another client, and I think they liked it too. You’re right to make your decision quickly.”
Since they were paying in full, the paperwork was completed very quickly. The deed was put in Song Cheng’s name. At first, Song Cheng objected, but Mom Song said, “You’re our only child. It’ll all be yours eventually, so it doesn’t matter whose name is on it.”
Song Cheng thought it over and didn’t say anything more.
A week later, they got the deed and the keys. The family went back to see what else the apartment needed. It had been renovated but never lived in, so it had none of the basic furniture or appliances. They spent another week buying everything and cleaning the place. Then Song Cheng moved her things in, getting ready for the start of school.