The Girl Who Dared to Blossom

CHAPTER 20

Mingyue laughed when he saw her mother in this situation and promised to buy her a television "when I start making money."

A black-and-white television these days costs about 500 yuan. She could not afford it. Tough,because her purse was currently thin.

Xiumei swiftly waved her hand and said, "That's not necessary! Too Shufench money is being wasted! If we had the money, Yangyang, I would rather send you to school than purchase this idiotic item. It cannot keep you warm or satisfy your hunger. Why bother?" A country person's only chance to stand out from the crowd was through education.

Mingyue gave a small smile and put down his words.

"You quickly teach me how to turn on this television," Xiumei said.

Xiumei learned how to turn on the television and switch between shows from Mingyue. TVs at this time lacked remote controls, and all of the buttons had to be manually pressed.

Xiumei was extremely intelligent, despite never having attended school. She only needed one lesson from Mingyue to understand.

Xiumei watched TV till late that evening while perched on the bed. In contrast, Mingyue went to bed early.

The next day,Ping, the person who lived next door, knocked on the door as the sky was starting to lighten.

"I'll take you guys out for a special Beijing breakfast. After we eat, we can move out."

Even today,Ping was still well-groomed. They were so different from Xiumei and her daughter.

Despite her shabby attire, Mingyue did not appear inferior to Ping when she was in front of him.

In her case, it was the exact opposite of the saying that "clothes make the man." Her aura was visible even through her torn clothing.

They all four went off to eat breakfast.

Beijing wasn't as prosperous at this time as it would later become, and the administration wasn't as rigid either. There were vendors selling food on both sides of the road, and many areas remained undiscovered. It was really animated.

They had soy milk and fried cakes for breakfast, which tasted very authentic.

The trackless tram carrying the three adults and one child left forPing's house in the neighbourhood after breakfast.

The trackless tram shared many characteristics with the modern bus, including frequent station stops.

Despite the lack of crowding in Beijing traffic at this time of day, people were packed into the buses, standing nearly shoulder to shoulder.

They arrived at Ping's house after almost two hours of driving andShufenltiple bus changes.

The location was on Beijing's northwest periphery, with Wujin City to the east and Yanjiao Province to the west. Travelling by train to the city took only thirty minutes, and the journey was easy.

With the exception of convenient transportation, this area was very similar to the farmland in contrast to the hustle and bustle of the city.

With mountains on every side, they relied on farming for their subsistence.

"Mingyue, Mingyue's mother, this is my home,"Ping said, gesturing to the home with four courtyards behind him.

The house with four courtyards appeared to be quite old, with pink walls and grey tiles, giving it a charming appearance.

"Ping, your house is really grand." With astonished eyes, Xiumei studied the four-courtyard house in front of her.

Although the Shufen family owned only five brick homes, they were previously regarded as prosperous in Dam Village. This elegant four-courthouse home Shufen must be worth a pretty penny.

For a little while, Mingyue abandoned her dream of owning a home after seeing the four-courtyard house. Her meagre holdings of a thousand yuan were insufficient to purchase a house spanning four courtyards. She decided to give it some more thought when she had some extra money.

With a slight smile and a hint of melancholy in her eyes,Ping answered, "What's the point of having a house when there's no one left?" She continued in a different tone, saying, "Let's go, I'll show you around."

Encircling almost a thousand square metres, the courtyard was enormous and contained more than a dozen rooms.

"I usually live on this side, you two figure out whether you want to live in the east, south, or west,"Ping said, gesturing to the main house in the north. There are five rooms on each side, plus the kitchen and bathroom. Everybody pays the same rent each month—15 yuan."

15 yuan?

So costly!

Xiumei gasped; they had already spent close to 200 yuan on their journey to Beijing, and she knew that Mingyuehad the 1,000 yuan that Zhou Changzheng had given them. Not just a thousand yuan, but even a mountain of gold could burn through if they continued to spend in this manner.

Xiumei pulled at Mingyue's sleeve, saying, "Yangyang," since she had grown accustomed to depending on Mingyue to take the initiative.

"I have a plan," Mingyue patted her hand to reassure her.

While fifteen yuan was a lot of money for the rental of five rooms in Beijing, it did not seem excessively pricey when viewed in that light.

"I'll take the house, Auntie Mingyue. Let's cover the whole rent amount up front." Mingyue handedPing the 180 yuan that she had taken out of her pocket.

Mingyue agreed so quickly that Ping was taken a back. She had thought Mingyue would deal; 180 yuan was a substantial sum.

Normally, who would rent a house on the outskirts of town? Mingyue was like the God of Wealth to Ping; this was essentially free money.

Ping laughed and said, "Okay," taking the money. "You two can get to work tidying your rooms. Everything in the east rooms is available for use. Please let me know if you need anything at all." Mingyue could not have been avaricious now that she had been so honest.

"Thank you Auntie Ping," Mingyue thanked her and then accompanied Xiumei into the eastern chambers.

The furniture in the eastern rooms was all piled up beneath a layer of dust and a web of spider webs, indicating that they had been abandoned for some time.

Xiumei started cleaning the room with Mingyue after organising the bed for Ni Yen to sleep on.

"Mom, you are not allowed to touch cold water and are still in postpartum confinement. I will take care of this." At this time, women were genuinely powerful. After giving birth to five children, Xiumei never experienced postpartum confinement. In the present day, the scenario would be unfeasible and might even result in serious health issues.

Xiumei answered, "I'm not made of glass," while clearing a table. "So far, I've succeeded, have I not? I also can't let you clean these five rooms by yourself. That would require a very long time." Xiumei didn't want to be a burden any longer; as a mother, she already felt horrible for not being able to protect her daughters.

Mingyue had no choice but to grant her wishes.

The mother and daughter pair spent the entire day working, eating only biscuits for lunch. They had cleaned all five rooms by the evening.

Five rooms were connected by a hallway: the living room was in the centre, Mingyue and Xiumei's beds were in two more rooms, and there was an unoccupied room off to the side.

"You two put in a lot of effort. You've transformed this place in less than a day!" "These are steamed buns I made,"Ping grinned as she arrived at the door holding a plate. You can try them out that I brought."

Grinning broadly, Mingyue Accepted the plate from her and remarked, "Thank you, Auntie Ping. Would you mind helping me out tomorrow? Could you take me to the committee for the village? I have some paperwork to file.

They intended to remain here for an extended period of time after moving from an outside area. Of course, in order to facilitate future cooperation, they had to notify the local government and take the required actions.

Mingyue was a former boss, so he was well aware of the importance of such details.

Ping grinned and replied, "Sure, no problem. I have a day off planned for tomorrow anyway." You can go there with me."

"Thank you, Auntie Pingi."

At that moment, Xiumei emerged from the kitchen carrying a bowl of noodles and said, "Ping, are you still without dinner? Tonight we are having noodles. Please come along with us."