I became a poor little sophora japonica in the courtyard

In the afternoon, Ma Hua accompanied the master back home, and the two of them set up the small bed again. As soon as the bedding was laid out, Liu Lan came to Sha Zhu's house with her luggage.

"Come on! Sorry to trouble you this time." Sha Zhu looked a little embarrassed.

"It's okay! I just happened to be feeling a little bored at home, so I'm here to relax while you stay for a while! You two go to work, I'll leave this here."

Liu Lan was very calm and looked around the two-bedroom apartment. There was no woman in the house to do the housework. It was really hard to describe.

"Okay! Here are the keys to the front door and the room door. We usually come back after dinner, and there are some dishes in the refrigerator. You can prepare dinner by yourself."

Sha Zhu handed Liu Lan a bunch of keys that he had prepared long ago, and he pulled his apprentice Ma Hua out of his house. He walked downstairs very quickly, with a sense of fleeing in panic!

"Master, it's still early to leave the company for work. Where are we going now?" Ma Hua kept asking him behind him.

"Anywhere is fine! I feel a little uncomfortable staying in the house. This is all your bad idea. Now I feel like a thief." Sha Zhu complained as he walked.

"What's there to be uncomfortable about? Liu Lan and you, Master, have known each other for decades and are very familiar with each other. Don't you always joke with her?" Ma Hua asked again in confusion.

"It's because you know her too well that you feel uncomfortable. You wouldn't understand even if I told you!"

Sha Zhu quickly rode his bicycle, and the two returned to Nanluoguxiang. Xu Damao saw them coming back so early at the gatehouse, and hurriedly invited them in, asking how things went in the afternoon.

When he heard that Liu Lan had come, Xu Damao was also happy for Sha Zhu. On normal days, he would have teased Sha Zhu, but now he had to hold back because of the important business.

After dinner, the three of them went to Sanlitun Shazhu's home with wine and food. Sanlitun is now very lively at night and has become a cultural and commercial district in the old city.

Because this is also an embassy area, there are many foreigners, so the nightlife is very rich, with bars, nightclubs and bathing centers everywhere.

At night, this place is full of young people. Handsome men and beautiful women are enjoying the bright lights and the music is extremely loud!

"Master, the development here is so fast! I remember when we were working in the steel rolling mill in Erlizhuang, Sanlitun was still part of Daxing County, a completely rural area." Ma Hua couldn't help but sigh as the three of them rode side by side on the road.

"Zhu Zi, how much money did you spend when you bought the house? You must have made a fortune now, right?" Xu Damao asked enviously.

"I spent more than 80,000 yuan on that house ten years ago. Now, second-hand houses in Xingfu Village 2 cost more than 8,000 yuan per square meter. With housing prices so high now, who can afford a house?" When talking about his house, Sha Zhu was a little proud.

"I think the housing prices will continue to rise! I don't have any money, otherwise, I could buy a few houses and I would never have to worry about food and drink in the future."

Such a good business opportunity is right in front of him, but he can't do anything about it. Xu Damao also sighed, alas.

"No matter how much the prices of commercial housing outside increase, can they be as great as the courtyard houses in Nanluoguxiang? Do you have a business vision as far-sighted as the beautiful boss? No matter how hot the real estate speculation is outside, our boss won't even touch it. You see, the business done by our beautiful boss is high-end." Ma Hua couldn't help but interrupt.

"Who can compare with Boss Jingyi? Others are still playing with real estate, while Jingyi is playing with capital. They are not on the same level!" Xu Damao retorted.

"I heard that the boss not only has a family business in Hong Kong, but also invested in a large winery in France two years ago. The vineyard alone covers several hundred acres." Ma Hua couldn't help gossiping again.

"That's enough! Stop talking! You're blocking the road!"

The three of them rode side by side, completely blocking the slow lane. The cyclists behind them began to point fingers, and Sha Zhu quickly asked them to get out of the way.

Soon they arrived downstairs of Sha Zhu's house. The three of them looked up and saw that the lights were on in Sha Zhu's house.

Sha Zhu opened the door, and Xu Damao and Ma Hua carried wine and food in. This house had undergone a huge change, the house was in perfect order, and even the lights were much brighter.

"Are you back from get off work? Xu Damao, I didn't expect you to be here." Liu Lan heard the door open outside and came out to check. Seeing that it was Sha Zhu and the others who came back, she greeted them.

But when Liu Lan saw Xu Damao behind Sha Zhu, she was totally surprised. Xu Damao and Sha Zhu used to be a pair of mortal enemies, fighting to the death. Unexpectedly, these two would end up together.

"Look how surprised you are! Zhuzi and I grew up together, and no one is more familiar with us than us. Liu Lan, come and have a drink with us."

Xu Damao knew that Liu Lan could drink very well. When they were drinking in the small restaurant of the steel rolling mill, Li Huaide often asked Liu Lan to come over and drink with him.

"You guys drink! I'm a little tired from cleaning up today, so I won't accompany you. Put the wine on the table after you finish drinking, and I'll come out to clean it up tomorrow morning."

Liu Lan yawned and took out the tableware from the kitchen cupboard. Like the real hostess of this house, she helped them arrange everything, then said goodbye and went back to her room to rest.

As soon as the three of them sat down, Ma Hua nudged the master with his elbow and whispered, "Not bad, Master! You cleaned the house in just one afternoon. Liu Lan is more capable than my lazy wife! This is what it feels like to be at home."

"Liu Lan is well-known for her ability in the steel rolling mill. Otherwise, she would not have been in charge of the small restaurant all the time. It's just that she is a little talkative! I guess she will be better when she gets older." Xu Damao also responded in a low voice.

Liu Lan's big mouth made Xu Damao feel scared. He had been in trouble for several things in the past because of Liu Lan's big mouth.

When Liu Lan was young, her husband ran away from home for several years. She had to take care of her elderly parents-in-law and her two-year-old son. The pressure of life was very heavy! She had no choice but to become the lover of Deputy Director Li.

The three people present knew all this, but no one looked down on her. Now they were all old and could take things easy.

"Master, since this is the case, you can just get along with each other slowly. It's okay if we do everything you want. Even though you are still working in the company of a beautiful boss, I estimate that you will only work there for two or three years. When you go home, you will be alone, so you should find a companion." Ma Hua persuaded again.

As Sha Zhu looked at the clean and tidy house, he began to feel relieved. He was only 68 years old, and it was impossible for him to be alone all his life. He knew Liu Lan well, and she was not seriously ill. The two of them would be together in their old age, and they could probably spend another decade together.

He had promised Qin Huairu to take in Banggeng, but he had not said that he could not remarry. When he and Liu Lan left together, if Banggeng really came back and there was no place for him in the family, it would not be considered a breach of his promise.

After figuring out his problem, Sha Zhu felt relieved. He started toasting Xu Damao and his apprentice with a wine cup. These two people finally did him a good thing.

"Xu Damao, don't blame me. You should also consider your own affairs. You can't always stay in Jingyi's company and let Jingyi take care of you in your old age, right?" Sha Zhu asked Xu Damao a very realistic question.

"I'm not like you two. I resigned in 1985 to do business with Liu Haizhong, so I don't have any pension or medical benefits. I've thought about this problem too! When I can't work anymore or get seriously ill, I'll leave secretly and never bring any trouble to Jingyi."

After Xu Damao said this, there was silence at the dinner table for a long time. The atmosphere was a bit dull! When you get older, you always think about your own affairs after death. Now Xu Damao can understand the urgency of the deaf old lady and Yi Zhonghai at that time.

"Have you ever thought about going to Qin Jingru to restore the relationship? She has always been single. She retired last year at the age of 55 and now lives in the compound of the District Education Bureau." Sha Zhu quickly gave Xu Damao some advice.

"Why should I implicate others?" Xu Damao shook his head and smiled bitterly.

His ex-wife had always been lucky! When he was the deputy director of the Revolutionary Committee of the steel mill, he once got Qin Jingru to work as a teacher at the Iron and Steel Technical School. Later, she was seconded to the District Education Bureau. Unexpectedly, she actually found a foothold in the District Education Bureau and enjoyed the welfare benefits of a public institution.

"Come on, drink! Don't think too much about unhappy things." Ma Hua quickly changed the subject. This kind of thing basically has no solution, and they can't help Xu Damao.

Sha Zhu had an idea in mind, he didn't want Xu Damao to end up on that path either. He decided to talk to Qin Jingru first, to see if it would work.