Back to 1979: Sending the Educated Youth’s Wife Back to the City

Chapter 229 How to Solve It
What Lin's father and Fang Mingche were talking about was how advanced the industry was in Tokyo, and how we now have to import so many things.

Fang Mingche comforted him, "Dad, Chinese people are ambitious and good at learning. Japan's most thriving industries are automobiles and home appliances. Although our related industries are still in their infancy, they will definitely rise to prominence. Veteran technicians like you, university-graduate engineers, and millions of ordinary workers will all succeed. Back then, we were poor and backward, but we still developed our nuclear weapons and satellites, didn't we? That was the result of your generation's efforts. Each generation has its own responsibilities; we must believe in the wisdom and commitment of future generations."

After thinking for a moment, Lin's father said, "What you said makes sense. Chinese people do have ambition."

As for whether he envies his in-laws who are going to buy a big house, of course he does. However, his retirement pension is less than 100 yuan, so he doesn't have the financial means to afford the mortgage.

The Japanese need collateral to borrow money from banks. Since his in-laws are borrowing from his own son, they feel even more justified. As for himself, although a son-in-law is considered half a son, he doesn't feel so justified because he also has a son. It would be different if he only had one daughter, Ayan. After all, you can't take a house with you when you die.

However, when he went back and told Lin's mother, she said, "We have another son, so it's true that we can't be so confident. But our in-laws also have another son. Which son will they leave the big courtyard to after they buy it? Besides, I'm not cursing him, but if he says he's borrowing money and the money isn't paid off, according to the rules, wouldn't his eldest son get half of the courtyard?"

Lin's father said, "Don't get involved!"

Lin Yan arrived a little later; they all had assigned rooms here. Fang Mingche followed her in and quietly told her that his father wanted to borrow 30,000 yuan to buy a courtyard house, and then pay it off in installments with interest.

Lin Yan blinked. "Why go through all that trouble? If Mom and Dad feel that the small courtyard is not spacious enough, then we can just buy another courtyard house for them. Why make Dad, who is over fifty, take on debt? Besides, if we really pay it back with interest as he says, it will probably take more than ten or twenty years."

It's like a small side courtyard, where her father-in-law, brother and sister-in-law, nephew and niece live, and she has no objections at all. After all, the house is still under her and Mingche's names.

But since the money borrowed to buy the house would most likely go to her brother and sister-in-law, she was still somewhat unhappy about it.

If they leave a message saying, "If you're doing well, this house will be left to your brother and sister-in-law," how can they go back on their dying wish? It sounds bad, but it's not.

Fang Mingche said, "This is what I was thinking. You had 60,000 yuan saved up to buy a house in the Overseas Chinese Apartment complex when it became available. We asked the landlord recently, but he's not buying it. He doesn't plan to take it back for another three to five years. Why don't we rent it for a few more years? We can lend 30,000 yuan each to the elderly in both families to buy a house."

His father was right; no one at the travel agency could compare to his own father in terms of treatment. The only one who could rival him was his father-in-law. It's best to treat everyone equally!

Lin Yan hesitated after he said that.

"Isn't this bad?"

Fang Mingche said, "As long as you and I are happy, there's nothing wrong with it. The house belonging to your parents-in-law will go to Lin Yi and Han Mei from now on. As for my parents' house, we won't fight over it; we'll let my brother and sister-in-law have it. That way, whether they want to buy a shop or a minibus in the future, they can just mortgage the house to the bank themselves."

Lin Yan thought for a moment, then said, "Okay! I have no objection."

Her own parents already had a set, and it was going to Lin Yi in the future. So naturally, she had no right to complain about her in-laws' set going to her brother and sister-in-law. Perfect, since it was going to her brother and sister-in-law, then they could support it together.

As for their parents' version of the rules, that's for Lin Yi and Han Mei to follow. It's already the end of 82, and the news of unpaid leave has started circulating. They say that starting from New Year's Day next year, an official document will be issued, giving everyone something to consider.

Then let Lin Yi take a leave of absence without pay and work full-time as a driver for the travel agency. He's actually a pretty steady driver. As long as he doesn't respond to tourists' questions and requests with a stern face or in a very impatient manner, that should be enough. He should be able to earn 200 a month. Add that to Han Mei's 300, and paying the mortgage won't be a problem.

Fang Mingche nodded, "Then you can go and talk to your parents, brothers, and brothers' wives later. I'll talk to my parents and my brother and sister-in-law. Or we can get everyone together to talk to them."

Lin Yan nodded, "Okay."

To put it bluntly, it was her brother and sister-in-law who benefited. And she thought that was okay! Mingche probably thought the same way about her family.

Fang Mingche smiled and said, "No matter what, now that I can earn money, these things are much easier to solve. So, you see, money can almost solve all the conflicts in life."

His dad probably didn't think that much about it at first. He just saw how much the Japanese were paying for their houses, and there was an expectation that the prices of courtyard houses in the capital would rise. Come to think of it, his dad only earns 300 yuan a month now, and he probably doesn't know how to spend it.

Before, she was supporting her grandchildren. But now that her brother and sister-in-law have moved in, and their noodle shop is doing quite well, she naturally has to take on the responsibility of supporting her children herself.

The old man, who has lived for 60 years, would certainly be reluctant to spend the remaining money on food, drink, and entertainment. But he would be willing to spend it on buying land and houses, especially if prices are expected to rise.

We're resting after our long trip, so we haven't been in a hurry to talk about it.

Lin Yan also invited Lin Yi and Han Mei to the courtyard for dinner.

After dinner and tidying up, Fang Mingche said, "Mom and Dad, Father-in-law and Mother-in-law, Brother and Sister-in-law, Lin Yi, Han Mei, and Ayan and I have something to say. You younger ones can stay and listen if you want, or go out and play if you don't."

Finally, even Changchang sat down on a small stool, laughing and joking, to have a family meeting.

Fang Mingche explained the situation, even mentioning that the 60,000 yuan was intended for buying an apartment in the Overseas Chinese Apartments. Otherwise, they would be accused of constantly complaining about owing money, and how they could suddenly come up with 60,000 yuan.

As for anyone wanting to borrow money from him privately to buy a house, don't even ask. Even if you did, you wouldn't get it! Everything will be based on the benefits previously announced by the travel agency.

It was only now that Mr. Fang realized he had perhaps created a problem for his youngest son. He thought that by borrowing money to buy a house and paying it off himself, he wasn't getting a good deal. But it was true that once the money was paid off, he would be approaching seventy, a time when life is considered sparsely enduring. He needed to consider who would inherit the house.

Moreover, with such a large income gap between the eldest and second eldest sons, he would definitely have to take care of the eldest son, who was not doing so well. It would be easy for Mingche to accept, but Ayan would definitely be dissatisfied. Now it's better this way; the two of them are even.

He nodded, "Okay, let's do it this way. When we find a suitable house, the eldest son and his wife will help us pay off the debt."

Fang Minghua and Yuan Shufen nodded. Of course they were happy! They had already planned to buy a house. And the old man was contributing his own money to buy it together, so the large courtyard would still belong to them. Fang's mother was a little unhappy; Lin Yan was already married into the Fang family, and a married daughter was like water spilled from a bowl! Besides, the money was mainly earned by her son. However, since the old man had already expressed his opinion, she couldn't very well disagree!

As for the Lin family, Han Mei knew that Lin Yi could complete the procedures for taking a leave of absence without pay next month. The trial of leave of absence without pay in some areas has been quite successful. As the office director, she also knew that this policy was about to be introduced.

As for the fact that the two elders don't earn as much money as Uncle Fang, well, it'll all be hers and Lin Yi's money anyway, so it doesn't matter if they contribute a little more. But what if they get divorced?

We can discuss this with Lin Yi privately later. For now, let's wait for my father-in-law's opinion. Since the younger generation is willing to do this, they will definitely wait for the patriarch of the family to express his opinion.

Lin Yi was quite happy about it. If her brother-in-law hadn't brought it up, her family wouldn't have been as assertive as his. Besides, her brother-in-law was right. They could borrow money to buy a big house, and then use the house as collateral for a loan if they wanted to buy a minibus later. Even if it wasn't enough, it wouldn't be too far off.

That way, he can save money. Besides, since Han Mei has invested all her money in the house, the possibility of divorce later is lower. After all, the house is currently registered in his father's name, not under the rule that it becomes joint property after eight years of marriage. This also prevents his in-laws from asking Han Mei for money if they want to buy a house.

Seeing his son and daughter-in-law, the two main contributors to the finances, staring expectantly at him, Mr. Lin thought for a moment and nodded, "Okay!"

He couldn't very well say something like, "You yourselves still owe so much money. Saying it would sound like he was accusing your in-laws of not considering their daughter and son-in-law's feelings." Besides, since Mingche dared to say it, it shouldn't be too difficult for him to bring it up.

Seeing that they all agreed, Fang Mingche said, "Then that's settled. You can all go find houses. The maximum is 30,000 per family. We can't afford any more."

Phew, finally, everything's resolved happily. And they've supported such a big decision as buying a house. It's perfectly reasonable for them to not interfere with other matters later. No one can criticize them then!

Fang Mingche said, "Alright, that's settled then. I need to go back and continue reading."

Both Mr. Fang and Mr. Lin said, "Yes, you go about your business."

Both sides then went off to look for suitable accommodations, agreeing to find places close together for easy access. They'd just ask Lin Yan for the money later; after all, she managed the finances at the travel agency and at home.

Fang Mingche continued to review, and during the final sprint, he was almost oblivious to everything else.

He was busy with this until he finished the postgraduate entrance examination in January 1983, at which point he finally breathed a sigh of relief. He had filled in everything he could, and the outcome was beyond his control.

As for the final exams later, those are no big deal. There are only one or two major courses and a few electives left. Just use what you know from the postgraduate entrance exam and do whatever you want.

His parents and in-laws have been looking for an apartment for over a month, but haven't found anything yet. As for Lin Yi, as soon as the official document came out on New Year's Day, he submitted an application for a two-year unpaid leave. The maximum leave is two years, but it can be extended. He's now officially working as a driver for a travel agency.

Since learning that retirees with 35 years of service can receive 90% of their original salary, Mr. Lin has been quite interested in the idea. Retirees already receive slightly less than those still employed, roughly 90% to 95%.

This means that retiring now or retiring at the appropriate age doesn't make much difference. He's unlikely to get promoted now; at most, he'll get a raise based on his years of service. So, he should just retire.

Once he had this idea, Lin Yan, Lin Yi, and their mother took turns whispering in his ear. Finally, they agreed that he would finish his last shift and complete the early retirement procedures before the Lunar New Year. As for the money from selling his job, they would directly use it to pay for the house.

The elderly couple and Han Mei have already contributed their savings. The couple saved 2000 yuan, and Han Mei also contributed 2000 yuan. Adding the money from selling their jobs, they should have at least 1000 yuan. Then they'll only need to borrow 25000 yuan.

Fang Mingche left the examination hall and got into his family's car. The driver had come to pick him up and drove directly to Old Wang's club outside the city.

Lin Yan recharged 1,000 yuan and received a bonus of 200 yuan. However, the expenses for the four children's martial arts training are included in the tuition. Neither of them has had time to use the money yet.

Fang Mingche planned to rest for a few days after driving over there. He then turned onto another exam site and picked up Gao Xiang.

The exam venue is determined by the university you apply to, so the two of you will not be in the same place.

Gao Xiang even had Xie Ping send him some things. Fang Mingche is the boss, so he can take a break. He still has work to do. The period after New Year's Day is the busiest time for finance staff. He'll take a day off and then get back to work. It's a good opportunity to go to the club with the boss; food and lodging are included.

Fang Mingche called to Xie Ping, "Come on, let's go inside and have some fun. There are things inside that are suitable for you to play."

Xie Ping waved her hand, "No need, you two can go in."

If Lin Yan isn't going, what would she do there? Besides, she's a breastfeeding mother.

In this freezing weather, Xie Ping definitely didn't ride a bicycle herself. A small truck brought her here. She waved and got on the truck, and then they parted ways.

Fang Mingche and Gao Xiang both looked exhausted; taking the postgraduate entrance exam is by no means easy.

Once inside, the club was quite quiet. Fang Mingche was somewhat surprised, "Business isn't good?"

He originally thought business was good, and even called Lao Wang to reserve a standard room for him.

Seeing that there were no outsiders in the car and that the driver was someone Fang Mingche had been using for a long time, Gao Xiang said, "After the end of October last year, these second and third generation rich kids quieted down a lot. Business here naturally became much quieter as well."

Before that, it was indeed very popular for half a month. Many people knew that a high-end entertainment venue had opened here, where you could ride warhorses and fire real guns. There were also many people coming to negotiate business, and many others coming to support the business for various reasons.

(End of this chapter)