My wife and I are both time travelers.

Chapter 42 The Little Western-Style House

"Aunt Wang, didn't the price just go up in July? It's only been two months, isn't it a bit inappropriate to raise it again now?"

Lin Ying's face was rather unpleasant. The rent had already increased twice before, and now, less than three months later, it was going to increase again. The rent for a mere attic was already eighteen yuan, and now, according to Aunt Wang, it was going to increase by another six yuan, bringing the total to twenty-four yuan. This price was simply outrageous.

"Oh dear, I didn't want to do this either."

Aunt Wang looked troubled and said, "It's not easy for you out-of-towners in Shanghai. The rent is a bit high, but who else would lend you their property besides mine? Go ask around and see who would be willing to take the risk in your situation. If there's another place like this, I'll change my name today. Besides, your business is doing quite well now, you must be making a lot of money, right? You can even drink chicken soup whenever you want, why would you care about such a small amount of rent?"

"Besides, this rent increase isn't going into Auntie's pocket. I'm just helping you avoid trouble. Spending a little money to save yourself a lot of trouble is worth it. You understand this without me having to explain it to you."

Aunt Wang's face was disgusting, and Zhou Jiye wished he could punch her and make her face look like a mess.

Seeing that Zhou Jiye's expression was off, Lin Ying quickly stepped in front of him, glancing at the greedy woman who kept saying she was doing it for their own good.

"Twenty-four yuan, that's no small amount. Although my husband and I have made some money from our business, you can see how hard we work every day, Aunt Wang. These days, how much does an ordinary worker earn in a month? You're renting such a small attic for so much, isn't that a bit...?"

"You can't say that," Aunt Wang said with a forced smile. "The rent for the attic isn't expensive, but the cost of covering things up for you is high! Let me do the math for you. There are so many places and people involved—the street office, the police station, the neighborhood committee—I have to smooth things over for you, right? A decent pack of cigarettes costs several yuan these days, plus a few bottles of wine and stuff. It adds up to a lot. I have to run around for you. I can't help you for nothing, can I? Xiao Lin, don't you agree?"

Lin Ying frowned and thought for a moment before saying, "Could you let us consider this? After all, the price has increased so much all of a sudden."

"Sure!" Aunt Wang readily agreed, but then added, "Of course I'm open to considering it, but Xiao Lin, you'd better hurry up with this. The neighborhood committee will be checking next Wednesday, so you need to give me an answer by next Tuesday, otherwise I won't be able to help you."

"Okay, okay, we will definitely give you an answer next Tuesday."

"Okay!" Aunt Wang said, then looked at the tea eggs that were boiling: "Are these tea eggs ready? I need to go back and rest. If I go back too late, my husband will worry about me."

"Alright, alright, I'll get it for you." Lin Ying said hurriedly, found a bowl, put two tea eggs in it, and handed it to Aunt Wang. Aunt Wang happily took it and left. After the sound of her kicking her slippers disappeared behind the door, Lin Ying's face instantly turned very ugly, and her chest heaved slightly with anger.

After packing their things and sealing the stove door, the two returned to the attic.

After locking the door, Zhou Jiye, who had been unable to contain himself any longer, began to curse under his breath, hurling insults at Aunt Wang's entire family and their ancestors for eighteen generations.

"You should have just snapped back. Now that we have residency, why are we afraid of this old woman?"

"Fight back? Easier said than done!" Lin Ying was also quite angry at the other party's shamelessness. This was the first time she had encountered such a shameless person. They were pushing their luck to the limit. She was speechless.

"It's easy to have a fight, but what happens after that? If she kicks us out, where will we go?" Lin Ying retorted. "Sleep on the streets? Even if we stay in a hotel for a few days, what about our business? Where will we put our supplies? Besides, don't forget we're selling food. If she deliberately sabotages us by putting something in the pot when we're not looking, we'll be the ones who suffer if people get sick from it. A small act of impatience can ruin a big plan. Do you think I won't be angry?"

"She just said she'd give me an answer next Tuesday. Today's Thursday, and there are only a few days left until next Tuesday. Does that mean she really agreed to raise the rent?"

"Agree? Agree my ass!" Lin Ying rarely swore, and said angrily, "I'd rather throw this money at a beggar on the street than give it to her. Raise the rent? Dream on!"

After saying that, Lin Ying said to Zhou Jiye, "Buy fewer chickens these next few days, and come back from your stall earlier each day. Go and secure a place as soon as possible. Once we find a place, we'll move in immediately. Once we have a new place, we'll just pack up and leave. I want to see what kind of expression she'll have then. Humph, she wants twenty-four yuan for such a tiny pigeon coop? Bah!"

"Row!"

Zhou Jiye readily agreed. He and Lin Ying had been keeping an eye on this matter for the past few days. Strangely enough, before the household registration was settled, they had several houses, some of which were quite suitable. But as soon as the household registration was completed, all the previous houses were rented out, and now it wasn't so easy to find a place to live.

Renting a place also depends on luck, and Zhou Jiye and Lin Ying don't want to rent the same kind of place again. Even if they rent from a landlord, it would be best to have some private use, so as to avoid encountering a landlord like Aunt Wang again.

In addition, living in this kind of attic is really uncomfortable. There is no toilet here, so I have to go to the public toilet every day. If I have diarrhea and there are no seats available, it can be very frustrating.

When they first arrived, they were desperate and had no choice but to try anything; they were lucky to even have a place to live. Now that they had some money, they figured they should find something better. For the next few days, besides going to the countryside to collect chickens and eggs and setting up a stall at the market, Zhou Jiye kept an eye on houses, even asking Lao Wen to inquire about them. But finding a suitable place in such a short time was no easy task. Sunday arrived in the blink of an eye, and there were only two days left until Aunt Wang's ultimatum.

Zhou Jiye was very anxious because he hadn't been able to find a place to live, but he was helpless.

This isn't the future; finding a place to live isn't that easy now. In the future, you could just search on a mobile app or go directly to a real estate agency and find tons of rental listings. But right now, that's all a pipe dream. Plus, with so few people owning their own homes, it's even more difficult.

That day, Zhou Jiye had almost sold out of his chickens by 10 a.m. and was planning to pack up and then wander around the neighborhood to inquire about rental information. Suddenly, a regular customer who had bought chickens from him several times asked Zhou Jiye a question that surprised him.

"Little Northwest! I heard you're looking for a place to rent?"

Seeing Zhou Jiye's stunned expression, the other party smiled and said, "It seems that this matter is true. I know someone who has a house she wants to rent out. It's a good house and not far from here. However, this person doesn't like to deal with outsiders, but she knows you and thinks you're a good person. If you really want to rent the house, you can go and ask her yourself."

"Really? Auntie, you're not kidding me, are you?" Zhou Jiye couldn't believe his ears.

"You little Northwest, I only said this to you because I think you're a very honest person. I wouldn't bother saying this to anyone else." The aunt was a little unhappy. Seeing that the aunt was angry, Zhou Jiye quickly apologized and said, "Auntie, I'm sorry, it was my fault. I said the wrong thing."

She raised her hand and gently patted her mouth: "You're so kind, I'm so grateful for your help in introducing me."

The aunt laughed when she saw his expression, shook her head, took out a piece of paper from her pocket and handed it to Zhou Jiye: "Here, this is the address. Go and ask for it yourself. I won't interfere with anything else. Remember not to go too early, as people need to take a nap at noon. Go after 3 pm."

"Thank you, Auntie, thank you!" Zhou Jiye was overjoyed. He took the note and thanked her quickly. After the auntie finished speaking, she waved and left with her shopping basket. After the auntie left, Zhou Jiye looked at the note in his hand. When he saw the address on it, he was stunned again because the address was very close to the bungalow that he and Lin Ying had looked at last time. It was in the same community.

Zhou Jiye was quite pleased to see the address. It was the best neighborhood in the area, and although the houses there were old, they were all traditional townhouses built in the old days. In addition, they had water, electricity, and gas, as well as private bathrooms. If they could rent a house there, it would be perfect for Zhou Jiye and his family.

Zhou Jiye stuffed the note into his pocket, greeted Lao Wen who was busy, went home to put his things away, and then went to the movie theater to find Lin Ying.

When he arrived at Lin Ying's place, he took out the note and told her about it. Lin Ying became very interested and immediately decided to close up shop early today and not do business in the afternoon.

After 2 o'clock, they packed up their stall and took their goods home. When it was almost time, they headed towards the residential area. When they arrived, they found the small building on the north side of the bungalow they had visited last time, following the house number.

They walked up the steps, rang the doorbell, and after a short while, they heard footsteps inside. The door opened with a click, and a middle-aged woman dressed in ordinary clothes appeared in front of them.

Compared to their current landlady, Aunt Wang, this middle-aged woman had a kind and gentle face. Although her clothes were ordinary, they were very clean and tidy. She spoke very kindly, asking them in a soft voice who they were and who they were looking for.

Zhou Jiye explained his purpose, and the middle-aged woman immediately understood, smiling as she gestured for them to enter.

"Auntie, what's your name?" Lin Ying asked politely as they entered the building.

"My surname is Tang, you can just call me Aunt Tang," Aunt Tang said with a smile.

"Aunt Tang, is this all your home? I'd like to ask which room you'd like to rent out?" Lin Ying looked around. The building was quite old, bearing the marks of time. The wooden floors and stairs, though worn, were kept clean. Some parts still showed signs of its former grandeur, but after so many years, due to a lack of maintenance, it had inevitably fallen into disrepair.

But no matter what, this place is much better than Aunt Wang's house. There is a small hall when you enter, and a spiral staircase on the right leads to the second and third floors.

The kitchen is on the left side of the first floor. The kitchen is quite large. Even just standing at the door and glancing inside, you can tell that it is at least eight or nine square meters, which is about the same size as the attic where they are currently living.

Next to the bathroom in the hallway south of the kitchen, Lin Ying couldn't see the layout inside because it was far away and the door was closed.

Continuing along the corridor, you'll find two rooms side by side facing south. The room on the left is slightly larger, while the one on the right is smaller, both around ten square meters. Both rooms have small balconies, doors, and stairs leading to the south-facing garden.

(End of this chapter)