MING LAN

Chapter Twenty: Phase Two

Phase 1 housing project is completed after eight months. Three rows of double storey shophouses are close to the main road. Divided by a broad road in the middle. Six rows of double storey terrace houses on the inner part.

    Buyers come in and out of the office house, seeing the house plan almost everyday in the sales room. Filling in loan forms in the accountants’ office, getting their house keys and so on from the architect’s room.

    I bought the first row of shophouses, facing the main road with eight doors. Ming Lan bought two doors on the second block with her savings, saying it is for her old age back up. She applied for the bank loan to make up for the total cost, not wanting my help at all.

    “I want to see how much property I can own before I retire, since other expenses are taken care of. It’s bad to waste money anyway”. She grins at me saying that. As far as I can remember, Ming Lan is not a spindrift person. She must have saved up all her money and is making use of it now.

    The house and shop owners are given their respective keys on a specific date, collecting them from the office house. Complaints are welcome within a month of taking the keys.

    People begin moving into their houses and shops opening one by one. After a month I see a tuition centre renting, a few fast food restaurants, stationery, hardware, pharmacy opening up. It is slowly turning into a small town by itself. It is going to be busier with the marketplace coming up soon. My father’s idea is a brilliant one.

    We hardly have time to go for our break at Amma’s house nowadays. Everyone seems to have lots of things to handle endlessly.

    Sometimes my father comes back home with Ming Lan. He told me that he is teaching Ming Lan slowly about this housing business. He is preparing her to take over, I think.

     Well, I am busy enough keeping my business going in order to make more money. She is going to be a very busy wife one day, a mother, teacher and business woman. I am lucky to have a capable wife in my life, besides those capable and loyal assistants at my office.

    By the time Phase 2 is starting, Phase 1 is 99 percent sold out. Phase 2 consists of shophouses forming a U shape around the market building facing the main road. With a broad road for ample parking space around the market. A hawker’s stall eatery next to the market.

    There are three rows of single terrace houses forming an L shape. Hoping that hawkers would set up their carts for night eatery by the fenced up market place.

    I get the latest updates from Ming Lan. She drives there from school and comes back with Appa almost everyday.

    The Phase 3 would be five bungalows and blocks of luxury three storey houses stretching till the end towards the lake, with a guard post at the entrance. There would be a park by the lake and the river for the residents there to jog and have a picnic. The place allows residents to pitch up tents for small functions too.

     All roads from the housing estate would meet at a point leading to the fenced up lake park.

    I am looking forward to our holiday bungalow by the lake if everything goes smoothly as planned. I am taking good care of my business for my family. My father’s project with his friends seems to be doing well. He is planning to buy the neighbouring lands too, asking for the empty land owners address from the land office.

    He is setting up more medium cost residential houses in two years time for phase 4 project. That would cover a wide piece of land, maybe the biggest and his last project. That is what Dad told us one day.

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