Chapter 33: The House

Chapter 33: The House

"Qian Fu has been arrested," Ye Changjun got the good news from a friend, and it turned out even better than they expected.

"Besides gambling, he also seriously assaulted a police officer. He’s looking at two or three years in prison, at least."

Ye Changyuan clapped his hands: "That’s awesome!"

Ye Xiaoxiao asked, "Is that young widow doing okay?"

After all, they had hired someone to play a part in the scheme. They paid, but they didn’t want to cause too much trouble for her.

Ye Changjun: "You don’t know, that young widow is a real piece of work. After Qian Fu got into trouble, she moved on quick and hooked up with someone else. Qian Fu’s fiery mom went to stir up trouble and got her butt kicked."

Ye Xiaoxiao: "The Qian family are all bark and no bite."

Ye Changsheng: "Big sister getting out of the Qian family is like escaping a living hell."

Ye Changjun patted his two younger brothers on the shoulders: "Tomorrow we’re heading home with big sister. You’ll be starting school soon too. After school starts, focus on your studies and keep an eye on Xiaoxiao at school."

Ye Changyuan made a bitter face: "Ugh! Time’s flying by!"

After sorting out Ye Lian’s situation, Miao Cuifang finally noticed something was wrong.

"Where’s the third kid? I haven’t seen him around lately."

Ye Changsheng widened his eyes: "Didn’t third brother head home?"

Miao Cuifang was also stunned, "No, I haven’t seen him since I sent you to town."

Ye Jianguo remembered something and slapped his thigh, "That little rascal took off. He’s always talked about going out to make something of himself. He probably took this opportunity to run off."

Miao Cuifang immediately started to worry, "Why are they all running off? What if something goes wrong?"

Ye Xiaoxiao weakly comforted: "Mom and Dad, third brother’s a grown-up. He’ll be fine."

Miao Cuifang was both angry and anxious, warning the children at home, "From now on, you gotta let the family know before you go out. If anyone sneaks off without a word, I’ll break their legs."

The kids in the yard didn’t dare say a word.

Although Miao Cuifang wouldn’t hit the children, Ye Jianguo definitely would.

Miao Fengshan looked at his daughter and son-in-law and advised, "The kids are grown and have their own minds. Let them be. But the third child should be criticized. He should’ve at least written home, not just disappeared like that."

Because of Ye Changning’s matter, everyone’s emotions were stirred, which actually diluted the matter of Ye Lian’s divorce.

...

Two days before school started, Ye Mei came to Grandpa Miao’s house.

She had heard that her eldest sister had divorced and came back specifically to see.

But by this time, Ye Lian had already returned to Baichuan Village with her parents.

Ye Mei was in a hurry, "It’s a good thing she divorced, really. I think our family should set off firecrackers."

Ye Changyuan: "Second sister, did you come for something?"

Ye Mei patted her brother’s head: "Xiaoxiao asked me to help find a house near the school. I’ve found an idle unit house. The environment is good, and it’s close to the school. I’ll take you over to check it out."

Moreover, Xiao Xiao needs to give the school a heads-up about her enrollment. I’ve already contacted the principal.

Thanks to Grandpa’s connections, the principal agreed to let Xiao Xiao join the class as a transfer student."

Ye Changyuan: "When did Xiao Xiao say she wanted to look for a place?"

Ye Xiaoxiao stepped forward: "I was the one who asked Second Sister for help. The school’s dormitory environment isn’t great, so I thought of renting a place where we could all live off-campus."

Ye Changyuan: "Then what are we waiting for? Let’s go check it out."

Miao Fengshan chuckled, "Since your Second Sister has already arranged everything, I’ll sit this one out. If you need money, just ask Grandpa."

Ye Xiaoxiao had enough money to get by until after the college entrance exams, so she wasn’t worried about living expenses at all.

As for university, under the current policy, not only is tuition free, but she could also get a scholarship.

After thanking Miao Fengshan for his kindness, Ye Xiaoxiao gathered her books and clothes. If the place wasn’t finalized yet, she would leave them at Ye Mei’s place.

Remembering her master who hadn’t returned yet, she wrote a letter and left it at the pharmacy.

She wrote that she had already started school and would come back every Sunday.

Ye Mei rode back on her bike, but she couldn’t take the three boys with her.

Fortunately, they met a mule cart halfway and caught a ride.

It was Ye Xiaoxiao’s first time in the county seat. Although the streets were still dusty, they were wider than the ones back in the village and town.

Every few streets, there were four or five-story residential buildings, and the town was starting to develop.

Baichuan No.1 High School was the best high school in the county, boasting the best teaching resources. There were many students and teachers, but the standards were uneven, and only a few students got into university each year.

The house Ye Mei found was in the housing complex behind the high school.

The house originally belonged to a couple who were faculty members, but they had other properties, so this one was left empty.

The entire housing complex was three-story buildings, built four or five years ago, and still in decent shape.

Ye Mei unlocked the door: "The place I found is in Building 2, Room 203. There are two small bedrooms, a combined living room and kitchen, and a bathroom.

The rent here is expensive because each unit has its own bathroom, and most of the neighbors are teachers.

I thought it would be safer for a girl like you to live here at night.

Otherwise, there are plenty of old vacant houses in the alleys."

Ye Xiaoxiao walked in and was quite satisfied with the place, but the bedrooms were completely bare. "Second Sister, why is there no bed in the room?"

Ye Mei: "The owners must have moved out. Don’t worry about the beds; I’ll have your brother-in-law find some wood and build two new beds and bring them over."

Ye Changyuan: "This place is nice, but I wonder how much the rent is."

Ye Mei: "I discussed it with the owner. You can pay eighty yuan after the college entrance exams, and the monthly water and electricity bills are separate."

Ye Changyuan was shocked, "That’s so expensive!"

Ye Changsheng also frowned, "Is there a smaller place? Changyuan and I can continue to live in the dorm."

Ye Changyuan: "Yeah, yeah."

Ye Mei smiled helplessly, "You two troublemakers are finally learning to save money. Don't worry, I'll cover the cost for you."

Ye Xiaoxiao, on the other hand, felt that the price was within her budget. She had observed the surroundings on her way here and noticed that each floor was quiet, without any noisy disturbances. "Second sister, we'll go with this place. I have the money, so you don't need to pay for it."

Eighty yuan was almost three months' worth of Ye Mei's wages, so she couldn't possibly accept such a kind offer lightly.

Ye Xiaoxiao had already prepared the money, counting out eighty yuan from her pocket to give to Ye Mei.

"Second sister, before we pay, let's sign a contract with the landlord to avoid any issues later."

Ye Mei replied, "No problem at all. The house still needs some tidying up, so you can stay at my place for now."

Ye Xiaoxiao said, "Second sister, you go home first. I want to check out some things for sale. We'll come find you at your place once we're done."

Ye Mei agreed, "That works. Here's the key, but when you go out to buy things, buy a new lock. Just make sure to keep the landlord's original lock safe."

Ye Xiaoxiao nodded in agreement.