However, in this era, it is not a simple matter to get a house. Without an intermediary agency, you can only get one through the street office or introductions from acquaintances.
In fact, He Yuzhu has been looking for opportunities since years ago, but he has never been able to find the right one.
Some houses are too far away from the steel rolling mill, making it inconvenient for him to commute to get off work. Some houses are in suitable locations, but the problems behind the houses themselves are too complicated.
In addition, He Yuzhu is only carrying out this plan secretly, so until now, the plan has not been implemented.
But when I was cooking at Deng Baoying's house a few days ago, I happened to meet an old man delivering firewood to her house.
He Yuzhu recognized this old man because he was also delivering firewood to the steel rolling mill.
It’s just that for some unknown reason, this old man is extremely wary of people other than Deng Baoying and never talks much.
Even though he had met He Yuzhu in the kitchen of the steel rolling mill, the two of them were familiar, but now that they had met elsewhere, the old man was not at all happy about him "meeting an old friend in a foreign land".
To be able to burn firewood in the city these days, apart from the canteens of individual units or factories, private households must at least come from wealthy families.
For example, in the courtyard where He Yuzhu lives, there is no qualification to burn firewood, and every household uses coal stoves.
Moreover, this coal stove is not something you can just use if you want. You have to apply for it first, and then go through the street to get approval. A family can only get one approval, not more.
In the previous life, the two brothers Liu Guangfu and Liu Guangtian had a fight with Liu Haizhong and broke up the family. They took advantage of the dark moon and high winds to evacuate the house, including the only coal stove in the house.
This also caused Liu Haizhong and his wife to not even be able to cook, and the second aunt became so anxious that she was admitted to the hospital.
Whether it's the big leader's house or Deng Baoying's house, they all use firewood and are not controlled by coal, so the smell of cooking with firewood is much better than that of coal stoves.
At the same time, various units are also very strict in checking people who deliver firewood, and they must be clean.
He Yuzhu originally thought that the old man delivering firewood either considered himself innocent or was keen on clinging to the powerful, so he didn't say much to the cook. He found out later when he chatted with Deng Baoying.
The old man who brought firewood to her family was a descendant of the Zhenghuang Banner of the Manchu Qing Dynasty. His name was Andala Abu, and he was considered a proper nobleman in the Qing Dynasty.
But later on, he fell into despair due to some reasons, and because of the turbulent years, he was unable to marry and have children, so he was a lonely old man.
In order to make a living, Abu also spent a lot of money to get this job of delivering firewood. After all, these days, you can't buy food just with money, you must have a ticket.
What's more, most people don't dare to accept his old ancestral items. He boldly went to the pigeon market, but was bullied by a few masked young people. He didn't say anything about the items, and he couldn't get the tickets. After experiencing turmoil and these sad past events, Abu also used "isolation" as his protective color.
Perhaps the old man saw that Deng Baoying was a righteous person and kind-hearted, so he was willing to tell her these things. When he said this, he burst into tears. Deng Baoying was also in tears when he heard it, and his heart was full of sympathy.
After Deng Baoying learned that Abu also delivered firewood to the steel rolling mill, she repeatedly "threatened" He Yuzhu to take good care of the elderly.
And He Yuzhu and Abu gradually became familiar with each other because of Deng Baoying's mediation.
Only then did He Yuzhu find out that Abu had a small courtyard with a separate courtyard in the Andingmen area. It was not large in area and was passed down from his ancestors. There was no problem with the background of the house.
And Abu is now old. His long and hard work has made his skin dark, his face full of wrinkles, and his hands covered with calluses.
In addition, he was dressed in rags and was always hunched over. He would gasp for breath after saying a few words. He looked like he came out of a coal kiln, and there was no trace of the sassiness of a descendant of Zhenghuang Banner in his body.
Maybe he felt that his time was running out, so he wanted to find a suitable buyer through Deng Baoying to sell his ancestral yard.
The geographical conditions of Abu's yard are good. It is located in the inner city. It has seven rooms in total, a separate courtyard and a backyard. It is considered a very popular property.
Deng Baoying was also enthusiastic and found a group of friends of her own, but in the end they were unable to negotiate, mainly because Abu had his own plans.
Abu sells this yard for no money but only supplies, but now is the time of famine, and everyone has to count the rice to cook. How can he get so much extra food to buy a house?
There are people who can get a large amount of food, but such people are not happy with Abu's second request.
Abu only has this yard, so he requires that after the yard is sold, the buyer must leave him a house to live in until a hundred years later.
Those who can get food to buy Abu's house want to live in peace, and naturally they don't want an irrelevant person to live in their own yard.
What's more, he is a strange old man who seems to be withdrawn and gasps for air without saying a few words.
Considering that large quantities of grain will attract the attention of the street office, if we conduct a detailed investigation at that time, I am afraid it will cause unnecessary trouble.
For these reasons, Abu’s house was sold for a while, but he was unable to sell it in the end.
For He Yuzhu, these two conditions from Abu are nothing. After all, he has plenty of food.
Moreover, the seven-room courtyard is enough for him and Lou Xiao'e to have a family of children, so it is not a big deal to have a house for Abu to live in.
It just so happens that Abu is coming to deliver firewood to the steel rolling mill today, so you can go directly with him to see the yard. Anyway, there is not much to do in the kitchen in the afternoon.
When He Yuzhu walked to the back kitchen, he happened to meet Abu unloading firewood into the warehouse, so he hurried forward to help.
"Hey, Zhuzhu? Aren't you busy right now?"
When Abu saw He Yuzhu coming to help, he was very happy. In fact, whenever He Yuzhu saw him unloading firewood, he would come up to help.
It's just that because of his past experiences, Abu doesn't have a good impression of outsiders, and he doesn't want to have too much contact with others.
But this He Yuzhu is a good person that Deng Baoying has promised, and after he got in touch with He Yuzhu, he found that he was indeed a good person, so Abu is also very enthusiastic about He Yuzhu now.
"Uncle Abu, it's not that I'm not busy. I'm just counting the time. You have to unload firewood now, so I'm here to help you..."
"Hey, that's great!"
With He Yuzhu joining in, the load of firewood was quickly unloaded, and Abu thanked He Yuzhu repeatedly.
He Yuzhu handed Abu a cigarette, lit it, and said directly:
"Uncle Abu, don't rush to thank me. I have something to ask you...
I heard Baoying said that you want to sell your yard. Do you think you can take me to see it this afternoon?"
As soon as Abu heard what he said, he immediately thought of the bad things he encountered when selling his house before, but since the other party had already spoken, he couldn't refuse directly.
And he really wanted to change the status quo. After thinking for a moment, Abu said:
"It's okay to take a look, but my request... Baoying must have told you, right?
If you can't meet my requirements... it's better not to watch it, so as not to waste your time.
I'm getting old, and I won't be able to do the job of delivering firewood any longer. I just want to trade this yard for a place where I can enjoy my old age..."