CHAPTER 52: CHAPTER 52 CAN I GO SEE THAT HOUSE?

Yunyi was particularly adept at gauging people. After everyone else had introduced themselves, Yunyi did too. "Chuyunyi, from Beijing."

Once everyone had introduced themselves, Wang Jianhui smiled and said, "I had meant to ask the other sent-down youth in the village to come meet you, but I didn’t know exactly when you would arrive, so I didn’t tell them ahead of time. However, we sent-down youth all work together. I’ll introduce you to them the day after tomorrow when we go to work. For now, let’s eat."

It wasn’t that they didn’t want to notify those few people to come over; it was simply because the in-laws of the few female sent-down youth who had married kept them under tight control. Every time the women came over, their in-laws would show up right on their heels, making the people at the Zhiqing Point feel like criminals. After a few such incidents, nobody dared to suggest including them in anything, as no one wanted to be scolded for no reason.

As for those who built their own houses, those individuals simply looked down on mixing with the others. After all, they came from better-off families and had only come to the countryside as a formality; when the time came, they could return to the city.

The meal was satisfactory to everyone.

Wang Jianhui called Li Rongjuan and Cheng Hongjun and led the new sent-down youth to find the accountant Lu Dahai to receive the 30 jin of grain provisions loaned by the village to each new youth.

Afterward, they borrowed a cart from the production brigade. Cheng Hongjun led the male sent-down youth to push the grain they had received back to the Zhiqing Point, while Wang Jianhui and Li Rongjuan took the female sent-down youth directly to the Branch Secretary’s home.

When they arrived, the Branch Secretary’s family had just finished their meal and were cleaning up.

Seeing Wang Jianhui bring the sent-down youth over, the Branch Secretary furrowed his brow. "Sent-down youth Wang, why have you all come?"

Wang Jianhui got straight to the point. "Branch Secretary, the house at the Zhiqing Point can’t accommodate so many people. The kang in the room is just right for five people; with six, one can hardly turn over. Now with seven female sent-down youth, it’s really impossible to fit everyone."

He had no sooner finished speaking than a cool male voice came from outside the main gate, "The male sent-down youth’s quarters are also too crowded."

Everyone turned to look and saw Liu Chenglin standing ramrod straight at the main gate. His meaning was clear to them all.

The Branch Secretary was also troubled. "But the village has no spare houses right now. If you really can’t fit, then you’ll have to lodge with some of the villagers."

At this moment, the Branch Secretary’s third daughter-in-law, Ge Lihua, came out, visibly pregnant. "Dad, isn’t the house that Sent-down Youth Jiao and Sent-down Youth Yan vacated when they returned to the city still empty?"

She was thinking that rent could be collected for those houses. She didn’t understand what her father-in-law was thinking, suggesting they lodge with villagers instead. One was income for the village, the other for individual families; how could he not see the difference?

The Branch Secretary’s wife, Hu Shanmei, rolled her eyes at her daughter-in-law. "It’s not like you don’t know about that house. A few days ago, when the village was felling trees, one struck it. Many of the roof tiles were shattered. Worse, the tree hit right between the two sections of the house, and a corner of each collapsed!"

Upon hearing this, Yunyi’s interest was piqued. "How long would it take to repair that house?"

The Branch Secretary looked at Yunyi and said frankly, "Repairing the house wouldn’t take too long. The main issue is that it has a tiled roof, so the repair costs are considerable. The village just hasn’t been able to spare the funds or effort yet."

It would surely be faster than building a new house, Yunyi thought. Besides, they were supposed to return to the city by the end of next year, so there was no need to build an entirely new one. "May I take a look at that house?"

The Branch Secretary was already worried about the village’s empty coffers and the delayed repairs on the house. When Yunyi said this, an idea immediately sparked in his mind.

He went inside to get the keys and a flashlight, then led the group towards that house.

The house wasn’t too far from the Zhiqing Point. There were two other courtyards nearby. Wang Jianhui explained at the right moment, "Those two courtyards also house sent-down youth. However, they’ve formed their own little clique. Apart from work, they have almost no interaction with our Zhiqing Point."