Chapter 85

**Chapter 85**

Someone called out to He Xiaofeng from behind.

"Xiao He, Xiao He, wait up! I need to talk to you."

"Mr. Li?" He Xiaofeng turned and saw it was Old Man Li.

Old Man Li was the landlord who rented the house to her.

"Xiao He, I've been waiting for days—finally, I caught you," Mr. Li said, clearly relieved she was back.

If he'd missed her again, he would have grown even more anxious.

"Mr. Li, what's wrong?"

He Xiaofeng wondered why he was waiting for her—she always paid her rent on time.

"I need to apologize," Mr. Li said guiltily.

Her eyes widened a little. "Mr. Li, what’s going on? Why are you apologizing?"

That threw her off.

"Xiao He, you’ll have to find another place to rent—I can't keep renting to you anymore."

There was hesitation in his voice, and guilt in his tone.

"But everything’s been going well, right? I’ve always paid on time."

She had never missed a payment or caused any trouble. Why wouldn’t he rent to her now?

"It’s not about you—it’s on me."

It had nothing to do with anything Xiaofeng did; it was entirely Mr. Li's decision.

"Mr. Li, why can’t you keep renting to Xiaofeng? Is there something wrong with the place?" Jiang Yiwei asked.

Jiang Yiwei had visited several times before and knew Old Man Li.

With him backing out now, it probably wasn’t about Xiaofeng—it must be something about the house itself.

After a pause, Mr. Li finally explained, "I want to buy a position for my daughter. We’re still short on funds, so my wife and I decided to sell the house to make up the difference."

They’d already put together some savings, but not enough. Selling the house would help them secure a job for their daughter.

"Oh, I get it," Jiang Yiwei and He Xiaofeng both said.

They felt for Mr. Li—they could understand why he had to do this.

"Xiao He, I’m really left with no choice—I have to ask you to move since we’re selling the place."

"If we're selling, then I need to know when so I can start looking for a new place."

She wanted to know the timeline so she could plan ahead.

"There’s no set date yet, but someone’s already talking numbers with me."

Li Uncle still had no idea when the house might sell, but someone was already haggling over the price with him.

If they settled on a price, He Xiaofeng would need to move out soon and find a new place.

He Xiaofeng and Li Uncle talked about moving timelines and whether Li Uncle knew of any rentals nearby.

They didn't notice how Jiang Yiwei's expression changed when she heard that Li Uncle's house hadn't been sold yet. She looked up, studying the house intently.

As if making some kind of decision, her eyes took on a determined look.

"Uncle Li, how much are you planning to sell the house for?"

Li Uncle blinked in surprise but still answered, "I plan to sell this house for four hundred bucks."

Four hundred bucks.

Jiang Yiwei’s gaze returned to the house, while He Xiaofeng watched her face carefully.

"Li Uncle, I'll take it!"

Jiang Yiwei's words left both He Xiaofeng and Li Uncle speechless—she wanted to buy the house.

"You're...serious?" Li Uncle asked. "You really want to buy the house? It costs four hundred bucks."

He looked skeptical that Jiang Yiwei truly intended to buy it.

Where would a girl her age get that kind of money?

Li Uncle had rented the house to He Xiaofeng and knew she dabbled in selling things, but even if she were in business, she probably didn’t earn much.

Could Jiang Yiwei really come up with the cash?

"Xiao Jiang, don’t joke about something like this," he added. His house was genuinely for sale—Jiang Yiwei wouldn’t do that.

Jiang Yiwei gave a soft laugh. "Uncle Li, I'm not joking. I'm serious."

"I really want to buy your house."

Jiang Yiwei sincerely intended to purchase Li Uncle's house.

"Yiwei, are you for real?" He Xiaofeng still couldn’t believe it—was she actually serious?

The house seemed fine for renting, but if she were to live there herself, He Xiaofeng felt it couldn’t hold a candle to the Jiang family courtyard where Jiang Yiwei currently lived.

"Yes, I want to buy Li Uncle's house." Her expression was set—she had truly decided.

Since Jiang Yiwei was serious, He Xiaofeng naturally supported her. "Well, I've got your back then."

He Xiaofeng would stand by Jiang Yiwei's decision.

"Uncle Li, any wiggle room on the price?" she asked.

He Xiaofeng jumped in to help Jiang Yiwei bargain.

Li Uncle could see they meant business—they really wanted to buy his house.

"If you want it, I’m willing to knock a bit off the price for you," he said. "I can come down some."

After all, Xiao Feng had been renting from him for a year or two, and during that time, the rent had always been paid on time without any issues.

Moreover, Xiao Feng occasionally gave him small gifts.

With all this in mind, Uncle Li was willing to cut them a deal.

"Uncle Li, how much then?"

"Three-eighty—that's my bottom line."

The price Uncle Li could offer Yi Wei was 380 yuan.

He wouldn’t give this price to anyone else.

It was only because of Yi Wei and Xiao Feng that he agreed.

Three hundred and eighty yuan—Yi Wei mulled over the number.

The price was a bit pricey, but this was Beijing, and she needed a shop. Uncle Li’s house seemed just right for it.

"Uncle Li, three-eighty it is."

Uncle Li beamed, his face wrinkling like a dried persimmon. He had expected Yi Wei to try to talk him down, but she agreed just like that.

"Alright, it's settled then."

Yi Wei and Uncle Li began discussing when to complete the transfer and payment.

They settled on doing the transfer the next day, and Yi Wei would pay him immediately afterward.

The following day, after completing the transfer, Yi Wei forked over the 380 yuan to Uncle Li.

Uncle Li then handed her all the keys to the house.

"Xiao Jiang, Xiao He, I still need to take my daughter to make a payment, so I’ll be on my way now."

Now that the money was in hand, Uncle Li was eager to secure that job for his daughter before someone else snapped it up, leaving him unsure where else to find work for her.

Yi Wei and Xiao Feng watched as Uncle Li left.

Yi Wei stared at the deed in her hand—this was her first property.

She flashed the papers triumphantly. "Xiao Feng, the house is mine now!"

"Yeah, yeah, it’s yours. I won’t have to pay rent anymore," Xiao Feng joked, though she didn’t mean it.

She wouldn’t mooch off Yi Wei like that.

She still planned to pay rent as usual.

"I couldn't care less about the rent," Yi Wei said, unconcerned.

Seeing that Yi Wei really didn’t intend to charge her, Xiao Feng insisted, "I'm paying whether you like it or not."

Then, Xiao Feng finally asked the question she had been dying to ask since yesterday.

"Yi Wei, why were you dead set on buying Uncle Li’s house? I mean, you could live there, but I don’t think it’s nearly as nice as your place."

She had assumed Yi Wei planned to move in.

Jiang Yiwei froze briefly. "I wasn't planning to live there."

Jiang Yiwei bought Old Man Li's house without intending to move in.

"What?" Now it was He Xiaofeng’s turn to be surprised. If she wasn’t planning to live there, why had Jiang Yiwei bought Old Man Li’s house?

"If you weren’t planning to live there, why did you buy Old Man Li’s house?" No matter how much He Xiaofeng thought about it, she couldn’t figure out Jiang Yiwei’s reasoning.

"I want to turn it into a store."

That was Jiang Yiwei’s plan all along—to convert the house into a shop.

"Huh?"

He Xiaofeng was even more confused now.

"You're opening a store there? But almost nobody goes around that area. You wouldn’t get any customers if you opened a shop there."

If she opened a store there, He Xiaofeng thought it would be completely unsuitable.

Because there were barely any people nearby—just residential buildings.

Almost nobody went there, so if Jiang Yiwei opened a shop, she wouldn’t get any customers.

"Not yet, but there will be."

Because according to the story’s plot, that area would eventually become downtown Beijing.

Back when He Xiaofeng told Jiang Yiwei she had rented a place just to store her things, and Jiang Yiwei had gone with her, she remembered that this place would one day be incredibly valuable.

She had even felt envious—this area would later be worth a fortune, and just the rental income alone would be enough to make someone rich overnight.

If anyone was selling property there, Jiang Yiwei would be the first to buy.

But over the years, she’d never found anyone selling their house. Now that she had this chance with Old Man Li, she wasn’t about to pass it up.

"But how long would we have to wait?" Even if Jiang Yiwei said people would come eventually, there was no telling how long that might take.

Wouldn’t it be better to look for a busier area to open a store?

"However long it takes, it doesn’t matter. Even if nothing happens, I can always tear it down and rebuild—maybe three or four floors—and then rent it out. Eventually, I’ll make my money back."

Even if nothing came of it, Jiang Yiwei didn’t mind.

She planned to rebuild it as a commercial property—maybe two or three floors, or three or four. She could keep the ground floor for herself and rent out the upper levels.

What an opportunity.

Besides, this was Beijing. Jiang Yiwei was confident she wouldn’t lose money.

He Xiaofeng, however, had a lightbulb moment because of Jiang Yiwei’s idea.

"Yiwei, you’re right. If we build three or four floors and rent them out, the rent money would pile up over time. Sooner or later, it'll pay off."

Jiang Yiwei’s idea was actually pretty smart.

And renting out properties would be way easier than selling clothes or hair ties. They could just kick back at home and collect rent.

Now that's an idea.

"You make it sound so easy. How many families are actually willing to sell their homes? If it weren't for Li Eldest Master trying to secure a job for his daughter, he probably wouldn’t have considered selling either."

There are too many people crammed into too little space.

Just look at how many families bring in a new bride and then have to squeeze into such small rooms—some homes are split into two or even three tiny rooms.

For families with lots of kids, it's even harder—some end up sleeping in the living room—or even the hallway.

And those working in factories all hope the factory will assign them housing so they can move out of their cramped quarters.

Nobody would willingly sell their home unless they had no other choice.

But even if someone wants to sell, they still need to find a buyer. After all, you'd need at least a few hundred yuan to buy a house.

So don't think houses are easy to come by these days.

"Of course I know all that. But Yi Wei, I actually do know someone who wants to sell a house—just not around here."

He Xiaofeng knew exactly what Jiang Yiwei meant.

Because her own family was like that—too many people in too small a space. Right now, she was stuck sharing a room with her sister-in-law and her young nieces.

Whenever her oldest brother came home on leave, He Xiaofeng got booted to the living room.

She kept praying her second brother would get his own place soon, so she could finally have her own room and wouldn’t have to move out every time her eldest brother returned.

But as for who was selling a house, He Xiaofeng had actually come across someone who knew one.

"Where is this house?"

"If you think it’s good, you could actually buy it. If you don’t want it, just let me know."

Jiang Yiwei liked the idea of being a landlady.

She still had enough money to make the purchase.

"Come on, I’ll take you there."

He Xiaofeng then led Jiang Yiwei to the house she had previously heard was for sale.

After some back-and-forth, Jiang Yiwei and He Xiaofeng each bought a house.

As time passed, it soon came to the day of Cui Kaiming and Yao Mingzhu’s wedding banquet.

Due to their families’ high status, many guests were invited—many of them clearly high-ranking officials or officers.

Whether intentional or not, Jiang Yiwei and Fu Xunian were seated at the table next to Cui Yunfeng’s.

As she ate, Jiang Yiwei glanced at Fu Xunian. "It’s their big day today—you could at least crack a smile."

Since they’d decided to come, there’s no need to look so grim.

Whatever issues they’d had before, today was Cui Kaiming and Yao Mingzhu’s happy occasion—they ought to at least be polite.

Maybe Jiang Yiwei’s scolding got through to him, or maybe for some other reason, but Fu Xunian’s expression did soften considerably.

Seeing him soften, Jiang Yiwei picked up a piece of spicy pig’s ear salad and put it in his bowl.

"This dish is really tasty—try it."

"It really is good," Fu Xunian said after taking a bite.

"Do you like it? If you do, I'll learn to make it and cook it for you sometime."

Fu Xunian assumed Jiang Yiwei liked it, so he thought about learning how to make it for her.

Yiwei's eyes brightened as she nodded. "I do! I'll wait for you to learn, and then you can make it for me."

Suddenly, Yiwei felt a jab in her right arm from Gu Xiaolei. She turned to her friend with a puzzled look.

"What's her deal?"

Gu Xiaolei glanced at Fu Xunian, then whispered in Yiwei's ear, "Yiwei, does Fu Xunian have any brothers?"

Yiwei was even more confused and instead asked, "Why are you asking that?"

"If he has a brother who's single, could Fu Xunian set us up?"

Can you blame her? Fu Xunian was gorgeous—especially sitting next to Yiwei. Together, they lit up the room. Today was supposed to be Yao Mingzhu and Cui Kaiming's banquet, but you couldn't help but notice everyone’s eyes drifting toward their table.

No doubt—it was because of the gorgeous couple.

If Gu Xiaolei had been sitting at another table, she wouldn’t have been able to stop herself from checking them out either.

Luckily, everyone could tell Jiang Yiwei and Fu Xunian were together—otherwise, they'd be the hottest singles in the room, getting hit on all night.

And if they *weren’t* together, just friends, Gu Xiaolei would totally beg Yiwei to hook her up.

Gu Xiaolei was suddenly jealous.

Both Yao Mingzhu and Yiwei had landed such hot boyfriends. She had no idea what hers would look like—if he's ugly, she absolutely couldn't handle it.

She can't deal with an ugly guy.

Truthfully, why Gu Xiaolei liked Yiwei so much was mostly because of her looks—she just loved beautiful people.

"You're my only hope," Gu Xiaolei pleaded, staring at Yiwei with big eyes.

Yiwei naturally understood exactly what Xiaolei meant.

With a sigh, she replied, "Xu Nian's an only child. He doesn't have any siblings."

Which meant Yiwei couldn't help her.

Fu Xunian was an only child.

"Wahhh!" Gu Xiaolei sniffled and clung to Yiwei. "I'm gonna die alone!"

Wahhh! She’d definitely never find anyone. Even if her mom forced her into marriage, if he's ugly, she wouldn't last.

She'd bail for sure.

"Come on!" Yiwei laughed. "Aren't there any hot guys at your school?"

Gu Xiaolei's school is a top-tier prestigious institution in the capital, full of talented people. There are definitely good-looking guys there—Jiang Yiwei saw quite a few when she visited Xiao Lei’s campus.

But Gu Xiaolei pointed at Fu Xunian and said, “No one comes close to him. I want a guy who looks just like him.”

There were some decent-looking ones, sure, but in Xiao Lei’s eyes, none measured up to Fu Xunian.

She wanted a guy who looked exactly like Fu Xunian.

Jiang Yiwei took her hand and pulled it back. “There's only one Fu Xunian in this world.”

“You'll eventually meet someone you like.”

Jiang Yiwei knew Xiao Lei’s shallow streak was showing again.

But she believed that someday, Gu Xiaolei would find someone she truly liked.

“What if they're ugly?” Xiao Lei couldn’t even bear to think about it.

Jiang Yiwei pressed her lips together, lost in thought for a moment before replying, “Relax, my kids will support you when you’re old.”

If looks were that important, Jiang Yiwei and Fu Xunian’s children would take care of her instead.

Xiao Lei pouted, thinking it over.

“What are you two whispering about? I’m here, and you’re ignoring me!”

Zhang Qiaoyun had arrived at the banquet unnoticed.

“Qiao Yun, you're finally here!”

Their faces lit up when they saw her.

As graduation approached, Qiao Yun got busier.

In fact, Jiang Yiwei had heard from Xiao Lei that Qiao Yun was planning to study medicine abroad and would give back to the country after finishing her studies.

“I came straight to the banquet after work.”

Having grown up in the same compound, Qiao Yun and Xiao Lei—along with other girls their age—had followed Yao Mingzhu around as kids.

“But what were you talking about? Xiao Lei’s on the verge of tears.”

Zhang Qiaoyun had no idea what they were discussing, but Xiao Lei looked miserable.

Xiao Lei hugged Qiao Yun and repeated everything she had told Jiang Yiwei.

“Qiao Yun, what should I do? I’ll never get married!” she whined, pouting.

“Then don’t get married. Since you can’t stand ugly people, they’ll only get uglier with age—it’ll only get worse. Why even get married then? You’d just end up hating them later.”

Qiao Yun knew Xiao Lei too well. She knew Xiao Lei was picky about looks and couldn’t accept ugliness. If she couldn’t handle it, why bother? It would only lead to resentment.

“Qiao Yun, you’re so heartless! You want me to die alone? That’s cruel!”

Yikes, that was colder than Jiang Yiwei’s jab.

Qiao Yun ignored her. “Just being honest.”

Everything she said was true—not a single word was false.

“There’s still plenty of time. What we say isn’t set in stone. You might soon find a good-looking partner.”

You never know—maybe Gu Xiaolei really would find someone she liked soon.

“Here, have some more.”

Jiang Yiwei kept piling food onto Gu Xiaolei’s plate, as if to keep her from talking.

Gu Xiaolei ate quietly, shooting annoyed looks at Jiang Yiwei, while glancing toward Zhang Qiaoyun to show her frustration.

“Yiwei, Xiaolei, Qiaoyun.”

Cui Kaiming, holding a glass of wine and wearing the wedding dress that Jiang Yiwei had made for Yao Mingzhu, stopped by their table.

Jiang Yiwei and the others stood up to congratulate the newlyweds. Gu Xiaolei, naturally lively, had Yao Mingzhu in stitches with her jokes.

“Xu Nian, let me toast you,” Cui Kaiming said, turning to Fu Xunian.

Jiang Yiwei got nervous for a moment, but then saw Fu Xunian raise his glass and say, “Congratulations,” before downing the wine in one go.

Cui Kaiming smiled sincerely. “Thank you. Dad and I are really glad you could make it.”

When Cui Kaiming had first handed Fu Xunian the wedding invitation, he hadn’t been sure whether he’d come. He was thrilled Fu Xunian came.

After finishing the toast, Cui Kaiming and Yao Mingzhu moved on to greet other guests.

Jiang Yiwei leaned close to Fu Xunian, mischief in her eyes. “You know what? I was seriously worried you’d be rude to them.”

It’s their wedding—you have to be polite, she added.