Don't underestimate the poor and elderly; I was thrilled to refuse the class beauty's adva

Outside the Sichuan restaurant, Zhang Rongshan followed Liu Guilan to a roadside tree.

"Why did you drag me out here?"

Zhang Rongshan lowered his voice.

"There are still people sitting inside, and they run out before all the food has been served. What kind of behavior is that?"

"A person sitting here? Does Fang Zhiyuan even deserve to be called a person?"

Liu Guilan crossed her arms and gave him a disgruntled look.

"I'm asking you, are you really planning to find out which houses are for sale for him?"

Zhang Rongshan frowned: "As long as it's not about lending money, it's just asking about a house, a small favor, I'll help."

After all, he's your cousin. If he goes around badmouthing us to all our relatives because we didn't help, could you handle that?

It doesn't matter to us, but Xiaofan is going to get into a prestigious university. It wouldn't sound good if this got out.

It's better to avoid trouble. I've inquired about it for him; whether he can buy it or not is his business.

"I'm not saying you can't help him."

Liu Guilan glanced in the direction of the Sichuan restaurant, making sure Fang Zhiyuan hadn't followed her out, before taking half a step forward and lowering her voice.

"I think that there are few houses for sale in our community, and even if there are, they are only listed for around 200,000 yuan."

Since Fang Zhiyuan is determined to buy a house in this neighborhood anyway, why not sell ours to him?

Zhang Rongshan was stunned for a moment, then subconsciously shook his head: "Are you kidding me? Where would we live if we sold you?"

"Let me finish!"

Liu Guilan interrupted him, her speech quickening.

"We've rented the shop, the renovations are almost finished, and we'll be opening soon."

The 300,000 yuan my son gave me—renting a shop, buying equipment, decorating—all of that costs money.

Although I haven't spent it all yet, there's not much left.

My son is about to take the college entrance exam. Tuition and living expenses—which of these costs money?

You can't let your child get into a good university, only to find that you can't even afford to give them a decent living allowance, can you?

"You've suffered so much with us all these years, and now you have to struggle to afford college. How can you, as your father, live with yourself like that?"

Zhang Rongshan opened his mouth, but no words came out.

He lowered his head and used the tip of his shoe to grind a small pebble on the ground, back and forth, the pebble making a soft rustling sound as it scraped against the sidewalk.

"Our house is dilapidated and old, but didn't you hear last year that someone sold it for over 200,000 yuan? With that 200,000 yuan, you can have working capital to open a shop and your son can go to university with a guarantee."

If we can't find a house, we can rent one first. Once the shop is open, with your skills, you'll definitely make money.

"Tell me yourself, with your cooking skills, who wouldn't give you a thumbs up after eating it?"

Zhang Rongshan remained silent for a long while.

He remembered the look on his son's face the night he slapped the scratch-off lottery ticket on the coffee table, his wife's hands red and frozen as she sorted vegetables at the market, and the shoe cabinet with its peeling paint and the water pipes that could never be repaired.

If it's sold, it's sold.

As long as the store is up and running, Zhang Rongshan will never let his wife and children suffer with him again.

"OK."

He raised his head, his tone much firmer than before.

"It doesn't matter who we sell it to. We've had enough of this dilapidated house anyway. We can sell it and rent one closer to the shop. It'll be more convenient for opening the shop in the future."

Go back and ask Fang Zhiyuan how much he can offer. If the price is right, sell it!

Liu Guilan breathed a sigh of relief and patted the dust off his arm: "Then let's go in and talk to him. Remember, it's 230,000, not a penny less."

Zhang Rongshan nodded, opened the glass door, and the two walked back to the Sichuan restaurant one after the other.

The two returned to the table, where all the dishes had been served.

A large hole was dug in the pine nut and corn dish. Fang Jiahao was kneeling on the chair, his chubby little hands gripping chopsticks as he picked out corn kernels from the plate. His cheeks were bulging like a hamster's, and his mouth and hands were covered in oil as he ate.

Upon seeing the two return, Fang Zhiyuan immediately stood up, his face once again beaming with a warm smile.

"Cousin and brother-in-law, you've been gone for quite a while. All the dishes are served, but the child is hungry, so I let him eat first. Please don't mind."

"Please sit down, please sit down. The food is still hot. Eat this boiled fish while it's hot; it'll get fishy when it cools down."

Zhang Rongshan didn't look at the pot of boiled fish.

He sat down and casually asked, "Zhiyuan, you just said you wanted to buy a house in our neighborhood. If you're going to buy one, how much are you planning to spend?"

Fang Zhiyuan was serving food to his son when he heard this and paused.

He put down his chopsticks, sighed, and said with a hint of helplessness in his voice:

"To be honest, I'm not exactly well-off."

I've saved up some money over the years, plus my housing provident fund, which adds up to about 200,000 yuan.

If I scrape together a little more, I might be able to squeeze out a small amount, but not much. You know I'm just an ordinary staff member in the Housing and Construction Bureau, with a fixed salary, unlike running a shop or doing business.

Although the buildings in your neighborhood are old, the school district is excellent, so around 200,000 yuan is about the right price.

After he finished speaking, he changed the subject, blinked, and asked in a tone that suggested, "I was just asking casually":

"Brother-in-law, why are you suddenly asking this? Did you contact a suitable seller while you were out? If so, could you help me make the connection? If it works out, I'll treat you to drinks!"

Zhang Rongshan picked up his teacup and took a sip.

The tea had gone cold. He put the cup on the table and looked up at Fang Zhiyuan.

"You don't need to look for anyone else. It doesn't matter who you buy from, you might as well buy from mine."

Fang Zhiyuan's chopsticks froze in mid-air.

"Your cousin and I just discussed it outside. If you can offer 230,000, we'll sell you this house. If you think it's too expensive, then just pretend I didn't say anything."

Fang Zhiyuan paused for a second.

Then a smile gradually spread across his face, stretching from the corners of his mouth all the way to his ears, and wrinkles appeared at the corners of his eyes.

He quickly lowered his head, picked up a tissue from the table to wipe his son's mouth, and used the tissue to cover his own mouth, which he couldn't suppress.

Those two idiots.

Before I could even speak, they came to me.

He spent the whole night going around in circles, only to be rejected when he tried to borrow money. He thought he was going to have wasted his time, but before he left, the couple brought the house to the table themselves.

Two hundred and thirty thousand? What's the difference between that and getting it for free?

Once the demolition notice is posted, this house will be worth at least one million, plus resettlement housing.

Fang Zhiyuan had worked in the Housing and Urban-Rural Development Bureau for so many years, he had seen all kinds of inside information, and this time he finally caught up with it.

That way he won't have to go around in circles.

He suppressed the elation in his eyes and threw the tissue on the table.

When she looked up, her face had changed to an expression of gratitude mixed with a touch of embarrassment, and her tone was so sincere it was as if she wanted to pour out her heart:

"Brother-in-law, cousin, how could I possibly sell the house to you? Where will you live?"

"We rent a place to live, it's close to the shop, and it's convenient."

Liu Guilan took over the conversation, her tone much gentler than before, but her eyes never left Fang Zhiyuan's face.

"If you really want it, go look at houses in the next couple of days, and we can talk about the specifics once you've found one you like."

"Okay, okay, no problem! My cousin's word is law!"

Fang Zhiyuan raised his teacup and toasted Zhang Rongshan with tea instead of wine.

"Brother-in-law, don't worry, this house is a transaction between relatives, I definitely won't treat you unfairly. Come on, Jiahao, toast your aunt!"

Fang Jiahao was engrossed in eating corn with pine nuts when his father tugged at him. He looked up blankly, his mouth still full of corn kernels, and mumbled "Auntie."

Seeing the child's chubby cheeks, Liu Guilan couldn't help but smile slightly and take a sip from her cup.

Just as Zhang Rongshan raised his teacup to finalize the sale of the house, Zhang Yifan's voice suddenly rang out:

"Wait a moment!"

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