Chapter 128 - 128

Chapter 128 The First ApartmentBecause she lives in a dormitory, Yun Ting rarely goes into her space, which is really inconvenient. So, she plans to look around the school area to see if she can rent a small courtyard. If she finds a suitable one, buying it is not out of the question.That weekend, Yun Ting went out early in the morning to look for a place to live.Since buying and selling houses is not allowed at will, we can only do it secretly.Finding a secluded spot, Yun Ting took out her bicycle from the storage space and rode it.The alleyway was filled with the smoke of coal stoves. An old woman sat by the wall, fanning herself with a palm leaf fan. She noticed that the girl in the blue cloth jacket and braided hair was unfamiliar to her and kept staring at her.Yun Ting continued riding inwards."Young lady, whose house are you looking for?" an old man asked with a smile."Sir, I'd like to ask if there are any courtyard houses or bungalows for sale around here?" Yun Ting asked in a low voice, his eyes glancing at the courtyard houses with gate towers deep in the alley.Buying a house is a rare thing these days, and the old man also looked around warily.Pointing ahead and lowering his voice, he said, "It seems Old Zhang's family at the end of the alley is moving. Their little courtyard is quite nice, with two rooms and a small kitchen. Why don't you go ask them? But it won't be easy; selling a house privately these days has to be done secretly...""Thank you, sir. Here, have some candy to sweeten your mouth." Yun Ting handed him twoWhite Rabbit Milk Candies as a thank you.Yun Ting thanked the old man and quickened her pace.The gate to the courtyard deep in the alley was ajar, the verdigris on the door knocker gleaming in the sunlight. She pushed it open, and an old man wearing reading glasses was weaving a bamboo basket. Seeing her enter, he looked up and said, "You are...?""Grandpa, I'm a student at Peking University and I'd like to find a place to stay nearby. I heard that you have a place here…" Yun Ting hadn't finished speaking when she saw a hint of wariness flash in the old man's eyes, so she quickly added, "It's inconvenient for me to stay in the dormitory. I want to read quietly and I definitely don't want to cause any trouble."The old man put down his bamboo basket and looked her over for a while: "Girl, this courtyard has been passed down from our ancestors. If it weren't for my son working in Shanghai and urging me to move, I wouldn't be willing to sell it. How much can you offer?"Yun Ting's heart skipped a beat. Was there a chance?She feigned reluctance and said, "Sir, I really want to buy it, but I don't know much about housing prices. Could you give me a fair price? Let me see if I can afford it. If it's too high, then I'll have to give up."The wind blew pomegranate leaves down to her feet. Looking at the pleading in her eyes, the old man suddenly sighed: "Alright, you seem like a dutiful child. I'll sell this courtyard to you for a flat price of two thousand two hundred dollars, just please don't ruin the old things in the house."She could clearly see the reluctance in the old man's eyes. Yun Ting looked around the yard; it was very nice, well-maintained, and the ground was paved with stone slabs so it wouldn't get muddy when it rained."Sir, could you make it a little less?""You can go inside and take a look. This house of mine is a good deal at this price. I've given you a fair price. If it weren't for that... well... never mind."Yun Ting went inside and took a look. As she had expected, the house was well-preserved."Grandpa, I want this house. Luckily, my family scraped together the money, and this amount is just right. If it were any more expensive, I wouldn't be able to afford it. Sigh..." Yun Tingpretended to be having a very difficult time."Shall we go and transfer the ownership now?""Let's do it now! By the way, don't you need to discuss it with your family?" Yun Tingimmediately asked, just to avoid any unforeseen complications, but she still asked as a formality, just in case there was trouble later.The old man waved his hand, "I can make my own decisions."It's about a half-hour walk from here to Peking University, but there are bicycles available, so it's relatively close.The two walked together toward the Housing Authority, with Yun Ting pushing her bicycle and following the old man.Why doesn't she ride her bike? She's afraid to give the old man a ride, worried that he might fall off. If he falls because of his age, she can't afford to pay for the damage.The housing management office is a drab two-story building with some peeling paint on the walls. A wooden sign that reads "XX District Real Estate Management Bureau" hangs at the entrance, with the paint on the lettering somewhat faded.Upon entering, a strong smell of ink and old paper hit you. Several staff members dressed in blue Zhongshan suits were hunched over a wooden counter, writing something, with the abacus beads clicking loudly." Comrade, we're transferring the property title." Grandpa Zhang pulled a cloth bag from his pocket, unfolded it layer by layer, revealing the property certificate and several yellowed deeds.The staff member raised his eyelids slightly and pushed up his black-rimmed glasses: "Both the buyer and seller are here? You brought your household registration documents?"After saying that, he glanced at Yun Ting, who was standing to the side.Yun Ting quickly handed over her student ID and a certificate from the school—she had specifically asked the department to let them know that her family was going to buy some properties in Beijing and needed proof of identity, and it had taken her a lot of persuasion to get it. The staff member took the documents and tapped his finger on the table: "Private property transfer? Fill out the form according to the regulations, go check the records over there first, and see if there are any disputes over this house."Yun Ting thought to herself, "Is this really that troublesome?" Luckily, she had prepared the materials in advance.After waiting quite a while for the records to be checked, the comrade in charge of the records finally pulled out a roll of kraft paper file folder, blew off the dust, and took out the drawings and records inside: "This courtyard of the Zhang family existed during the Guangxu era. It was private property that was divided up during the land reform, and there were no disputes."The procedures were more complicated than Yun Ting had imagined. Filling out application forms, verifying the house dimensions, registering the purchase price—Grandpa Zhang filled in "1,700 RMB" in the "price" column, 500 RMB less than what Yun Ting actually paid. He secretly winkedat Yun Ting: "Fill it in less, pay less in fees." Yun Ting felt a warmth in her heart and quickly lowered her head, pretending not to see.The staff spent a long time calculating with an abacus, and then had them press their red handprints on several forms. The ink was the kind with a strong cinnabar smell that lingered on their fingertips for a long time.Finally, he handed over the new property certificate stamped with a red seal. Yun Tingsaw that the owner's name on it had been changed to " Yun Ting," and the handwriting was done with a brush, exuding a sense of solemnity.Haha~ She finally has her first house of her own.As they walked out of the housing management bureau, the sun was already high in the sky. Grandpa Zhang stuffed the property certificate into Yun Ting's hand: "Girl, with this certificate in your hand, this house is truly yours. I'll move out tomorrow. Live here peacefully from now on and don't let anyone else know the details of this transaction. These days, it's better to avoid trouble."Yun Ting had already given him the money before he came to the housing authority, so now they were truly even."Sir, I understand, thank you."Yun Ting put the property certificate in her bag, but it was actually already lying in her storage space.The aroma of lunch wafted through the alleyways on the wind, and she suddenly felt that in this vast city of Beijing, she finally had a corner that truly belonged to her, which made her feel much more at ease.After Grandpa Zhang had walked away, Yun Ting returned to the housing management bureau."Miss, is there anything else?" comrade, who had just processed their paperwork, asked with a puzzled look.Yun Ting handed her a handful of milk candy and lowered her voice, "Sister, I wanted to ask if there are any traditional courtyard residencesfor sale? A relative of mine likes one and asked me to inquire."The woman pushed the candy back to her, saying, "I can't help you with this right now. There isn't a Traditional courtyard residencehere."Yun Ting stuffed the candy back into her hands. "It's okay, sis. Keep these candies. Please keep an eye out for them for me. If you find any, let me know immediately. Don't worry, I won't let you do this for nothing."The older sister then accepted it with a smile, saying, "Okay, I'll remember it. I'll let you know if I get any."