Siheyuan: Xu Damao's New Life

But Xu Damao stayed in the office overnight because it was too late yesterday, and didn't wake up until after eight o'clock. There was still a lot of work to do today, so Xu Damao didn't say anything and just rode his bike out the door. He had breakfast on the roadside first, and then went straight to his parents' house.

Soon they arrived at the courtyard of their parents' house. Xu Damao pushed the door open and walked in. He happened to see his father leisurely reading a newspaper. "Dad, aren't you going to work today? I just happened to talk to you about something."

"It's my turn to rest today, what could you do? Is it about that thing with Xiao'e?" Father Xu scolded him with a smile. His son has become much more sensible recently, which makes Father Xu very satisfied.

"Hehe, Dad, how's the matter with Xiao'e going? Has my mom been to Lou's house?" Xu Damao said with a silly smile.

"Yes, your mother went there the day before yesterday. The Lou family is very satisfied with you, especially Mr. Lou, who has praised you many times. They said that they don't have any requirements for the gift. Whenever you want to get married, just go through the process." Father Xu stretched out his hand and made a not-so-standard scissors hand gesture.

Seeing this, Xu Damao quickly took out his cigarettes and matches, took one for himself and then handed over the whole box. Xu's father took it and nodded with satisfaction, took out a cigarette and lit it, and then put his son's cigarettes and matches into his pocket.

"I analyzed the pros and cons of marrying into the Lou family for you last time. Since this is your choice, dad supports you. Speaking of which, the old man of the Lou family once saved my life. When I was fleeing during the war, I almost starved to death. It was the old man of the Lou family who took me in and gave me food. After that, I kept helping the Lou family until I met your mother and got married. Later, you and your sister were born. We owe the Lou family a huge favor. You must treat Xiao'e well when she marries you." Father Xu sighed.

"I understand, Dad. You don't have to worry about the betrothal gift. I'll prepare it. The Lou family can refuse it but we can't refuse it. We can't let Xiao'e down." Xu Damao took a long puff of his cigarette. "There's one more thing. I plan to renovate our house before the wedding. I've arranged to start the work today. I'll need your help moving things around. Hire a car to move the things I need over here. I'm going to give the things I don't want to my third uncle. I've asked his family to help dig a ditch so that we can bring running water into our house."

"Okay, your mom is out for a walk. I'll go tell the neighbors so she won't be worried when she comes back and can't find anyone."

Soon the father and son rode back to the courtyard, and on the way they found two carts to transport the furniture. At this time, the renovation masters had also arrived, and had sprinkled white lime on the areas that needed to be excavated, so they just had to dig according to the traces when digging later.

"Master Li and Master Zhao, you came so early. This is my dad, come here to help pack up." Xu Damao passed out a cigarette.

"Boss, you should come earlier and start working. How is the house site issue that we discussed last time going? If it is successful, we will have to prepare a lot more materials." said Master Li.

"Hey, how could I know this? I brought my dad here. He has lived here for decades and is familiar with the people in the street office." Xu Damao pointed to the vacant land in the south and said, "Dad, I want to get that piece of land and turn it into our homestead. Our place is too small and it will be inconvenient if we have children. Do you think this is possible?"

Father Xu stroked his chin and walked around the empty space several times. "Okay, it can be done, but it's a bit troublesome and will cost you some money. Don't worry about it, just leave it to me. I'll do it for you later."

By this time, the cigarette was finished, and Xu Damao said, "Masters, let's all lend a hand. Let's first clear out the furniture in the house so that it will be easier for us to work."

Everyone worked together to move out the beds, cabinets, desks, pots and pans, etc. Father Xu directed the cart driver to load everything they wanted and took it back home.

At this time, the decoration masters also started to work. Seeing that there was nothing to do, Xu Damao directly took the rice and flour from home and went to the third uncle's house. It was time to ask the two boys from the Yan family to work, and the third aunt was also needed to cook.

Only the three uncles and aunts of the Yan family were at home. The two older children went out to do odd jobs, and the younger ones ran out to play.

"Uncle, I will start work today, so we have to arrange lunch at noon. The yard has also been marked with white lime, so we can start work tomorrow." Xu Damao put the rice and flour next to the table.

"Da Mao brought so much rice and flour. Don't worry. Your third aunt went to buy vegetables early in the morning. She made sure they were fresh. She also bought a pound of pork and a chicken." Yan Bugui said.

At this time, the third aunt who was busy in the kitchen also poked her head out and asked, "Da Mao, how many people are here?"

"Auntie, there are six of us here. We all work hard and eat a lot. Please do more."

"Your Third Aunt is cooking, so I'll go over and take a look. If you have something else to do, go ahead and do it. Third Uncle promises to keep an eye on it for you."

Xu Damao really had something to do, he wanted to go on a date with Lou Xiaoe. So he said, "Uncle, I'm leaving first. I can't come back to live here because I'm renovating. If you have anything to do, go to my parents' place or ask the workers in our compound to tell me something."

After Xu Damao finished speaking, he rode out of the compound and headed straight for Wangfujing Street. At present, that was the most prosperous area in the city. The department store there had the most complete range of goods and many foreign goods. As they were getting married soon, Xu Damao wanted to give Lou Xiaoe a gift. It happened that his apprentice had given him two watch tickets last time, so he wanted to buy a pair of watches, one for each of them.

It took Xu Damao more than half an hour to reach the department store, locked his bike and went straight to the watch counter on the second floor. "Comrade, please help me get a pair of Shanghai watches." Xu Damao had no choice but to only buy Shanghai watches, which were durable.

The saleswoman took one look at Xu Damao and saw that he was well dressed, so she asked, "Are you buying the right watch to get married? Do you have a ticket?"

"You guessed it right. We are getting married in a few days. I happen to have two tickets here." Xu Damao said as he took out two watch tickets from the space.

When the elder sister saw that there were tickets, she stopped talking and happily took out an open box and handed it to Xu Damao. Inside the box were two Shanghai brand watches, one large and one small.

Xu Damao looked at it carefully and curled his lips in dissatisfaction. He had to say that the materials and workmanship were really impeccable, but the style was really ugly from the perspective of future generations.

The saleswoman had been staring at Xu Damao, so she naturally noticed his curled lips. "What's wrong, comrade? Do you have any objections?"

"No, no, why would I have any objection? I heard that we have foreign goods here. Can you show me?"

"Wow, you have high requirements. Okay, since you are financially well off, foreign ones don't require tickets but the prices are higher." The elder sister said and went back to get something. After a while, she took out three boxes and opened them one by one to show them, "This one is Patek Philippe, this one is Cartier, and the last one is Rolex."

The elder sister introduced the watches enthusiastically. The main reason was that these foreign watches had been waiting for a long time but had not been sold, and it was very troublesome to return them. The department store manager was also anxious and promised to reduce the price appropriately, and whoever sold the watches would have a special reward. Therefore, the elder sister was very patient because she saw that Xu Damao looked like a rich man.

Xu Damao carefully looked at the three pairs of world-famous watches. He liked the other two except Cartier. The Rolex watches were high-end, classy, ​​and full of metallic feel, suitable for people with successful careers. The Patek Philippe dials were red and blue, shining brightly and very beautifully. These things would be antiques in the future, and it would definitely be worth buying them. "How much are the Rolex and Patek Philippe?"

"The Patek Philippe is 420 yuan, and the Rolex is 500 yuan. Both pairs of watches are imported to ensure quality, and they have been here for a long time but have not been sold."

Xu Damao looked at the money in his space and hesitated. The money was only enough to buy a pair. He still had a lot of points, but it was not worth exchanging them for money. Hearing that it had not been sold for a long time, he was moved, "Can you give me a discount on those two Patek Philippes? If you can, I will buy them."

"I can't make the decision on this. The leader said that we can offer a discount. I'll go and ask for instructions." After saying that, the elder sister took the things and left. After a while, the elder sister came back with the things, "The leader said the minimum is 360 yuan. If you want it, you can take it."

"Okay, big sister, here's the money." Xu Damao took out thirty-six big black tens and handed them over.

The elder sister took the money, wrote a receipt, and put it in the watch box and handed it to Xu Damao. "Brother, I see you are rich. Remember to come to me next time you come to buy something. I will be here when the department store opens. I can give you an internal price." The elder sister said with a wink.

Well, this is still a person who wants to get some kickbacks, and he probably said that because he thinks he is in good condition. "Okay, sister, I will come to see you next time. I have something else to do, so I will leave first." Xu Damao took the watch and left the department store, riding his bike straight to Lou Xiao'e's house.