To please others? It's better to please yourself.

Xu Jing'an left the space at almost 6 a.m.

Most importantly, she discovered that the space now had a search function. So what was she waiting for? She immediately started looking for houses for sale nearby. Living in a dormitory was unavoidable, but wouldn't it be better to live on her own if she had the means?

The steel mill, a heavy industry facility, was located in the western part of the city. Closer to the mill were dormitories and family housing, while further away were several surrounding rural areas and military bases. The housing here was allocated by the work unit, not owned by individuals. Xu Jing'an searched persistently for a long time but ultimately had to give up.

Shift your gaze eastward, and beyond the railway lies the city center. Shopping malls, grain depots, police stations, savings banks… all are located in this area, and housing here is extremely scarce.

A significant portion of the housing consists of company-provided apartments, with a considerable number also being private residences. A few families do want to rent out rooms, but they're usually squeezing out one or two rooms to supplement their household income. But what's the difference between that and her living in the dormitory?

H City is located in the Central Plains region, with few mountains and forests but a large population. Moreover, transportation is currently inconvenient, the country is stable, and there is little population movement. 90% of the residents are people whose ancestors have lived here for generations.

The city is bordered by a power plant to the east and a water plant to the south. Too far for Xu Jing'an to consider.

There are no mild winters these days. When it snows, it's at least half a foot deep, and sometimes up to the calves. How are we supposed to get to work then?

There was no way to turn our attention back to the area near the steel mill. The surrounding rural areas were out of the question, but there was a police station and a commune not far south of the steel mill. There were more people there, and the houses were in good condition, mostly brick and tile. The main point was that this area was for urban residents, while the area behind the commune was for rural residents.

Xu Jing'an inspected the houses in the area one by one and found two households that intended to rent or sell.

Xu Jing'an quickly tidied herself up, slung her bag over her shoulder, and left the guesthouse. As she approached the area near the houses, the information about the two houses in her spatial dimension became more detailed.

The first house is spacious, but it's quite dilapidated and will take a lot of work to clean. Most importantly, it's too conspicuous!

The second house was located in a hutong (traditional alleyway). The house was in better condition, but it was smaller. It only had one main room, one kitchen, and one bathroom with a shower and toilet.

Upon seeing this, Xu Jing'an immediately made up her mind. The second house best met her current requirements.

As soon as I reached the entrance of the alley, I saw the young couple carrying two children coming out.

Upon seeing the unfamiliar Xu Jing'an, he asked, "Comrade, who are you looking for?"

"Hello comrade, my name is Xu Jing'an. I just transferred to the steel plant and work in the data room." Xu Jing'an showed the other person her work ID. "As you know, there are a lot of people at the steel plant, and the dormitories are not enough to accommodate everyone, so I thought I'd come here to take a look."

Upon hearing this, the young couple opposite them beamed with joy: "Then you've come to the right place, comrade, please come and visit our home."

The couple turned around and walked back. When they reached the innermost part of the house, they opened the door. The woman, carrying the child, introduced herself as she walked: "My name is Qin Caifeng. I'll call you 'sister' since you don't look very old."

"Then I'll call you Sister Qin," Xu Jing'an replied with a smile.

"Honey, this house was built five years ago when we got married. It's not big, but it's enough for you to live in by yourself."

Xu Jing'an looked around and found it quite nice, more realistic than what she had just seen in her mind.

"Sister, I have running water in my yard and kitchen, which makes cooking and washing clothes very convenient. Also, you can shower and use the toilet at home. There are drainage pipes underground, so it's easy to clean up with water without having to go out and suffer." The two children were restless and wanted to get down and play, so Sister Qin put them down and let her husband watch them.

"Sister Qin, are you twins?" Xu Jing'an asked with a smile, looking at the two identical boys.

"That's right, she had two babies at once, and one person can't even take care of them all, let alone go to work." Although Sister Qin was complaining, the smile on her face never stopped.

"Now that we've transferred jobs back to our hometown in Northeast China, our elders can help out, so the house is vacant now. What do you think, girl?"

"If it works out, I'll sell it. It's better than asking someone else to look after it or renting it out!" The Northeast is far from here, and if it goes on for too long, there might be trouble with the house.

"Sister, I'm not kidding, I really like it. How much are you looking for?"

Xu Jing'an was in a hurry to check in, and Sister Qin and her husband were also in a hurry to leave by train at noon.

Neither side had time to haggle. After some bargaining, Xu Jing'an finally paid 300 yuan for the house.