Becoming a Russian Oligarch After Rebirth
Chapter 573: Returning to the Rightful Owner_1

Chapter 573: Chapter 573: Returning to the Rightful Owner_1

That night, as they had dinner in the top-floor restaurant, Wang Ye with a smile brought up the matter to Nalan Yaqi.

"I’ve just bought a courtyard house in the capital, located in Houhai, now we have a place to stay when we go back home."

As Nalan Yaqi was also a native of the capital and had grown up there, she should know the area, hence Wang Ye mentioned it to her.

As expected, upon hearing this, Nalan Yaqi immediately became interested and asked, "Houhai? That must be a quadrangle courtyard. How come you like this type of old house? I thought you’d prefer high-end apartments."

Indeed, in Moscow, if Wang Ye wanted, he could simply buy any large mansion or villa.

But Wang Ye preferred to live on the top floor of the Xiao Ying Hotel, which could also be considered an apartment.

So Nalan Yaqi found it hard to imagine that Wang Ye would buy an old and dilapidated quadrangle courtyard in the capital.

Wang Ye just smiled and explained, "It’s not exactly a quadrangle courtyard. It was originally a large garden, almost thirty thousand square feet. I heard it used to be the Prince’s Mansion. I can redesign and renovate it after I buy it. Wouldn’t living there be much more comfortable than in an apartment?"

However, Wang Ye didn’t get a response from Nalan Yaqi for quite a while.

Curious, he looked up and saw Nalan Yaqi sitting across from him, her lips trembling, her eyes reddening and looking as if she wanted to say something but couldn’t.

Wang Ye was quite surprised by this.

He asked worriedly, "What’s wrong?"

With teary eyes, Nalan Yaqi said, "That courtyard ... was my family’s place a long time ago ..."

At first, Wang Ye did not grasp the full meaning of it.

He chuckled, "Don’t joke around. If your family had such a large courtyard in the capital, your mother wouldn’t need to work hard ..."

But midway through his sentence, Wang Ye stopped. He had remembered something and exclaimed in surprise, "Did this courtyard once belong to Nalan Mingzhu?"

Nalan Yaqi nodded her head, seeming to have calmed down slightly, and explained, "The courtyard was originally built by our ancestor scholar Nalan Mingzhu. Later ... after our family fell into misfortune, it was bestowed on a prince, and it became known as the Prince’s Mansion."

Wang Ye was really unaware of this.

He had unknowingly bought Nalan Yaqi’s ancestral home.

He didn’t know if it was a coincidence or ...

"Hehe, now the courtyard could be considered as returned to its rightful owner," Nalan Yaqi joked. It seemed like she had regained her composure.

Wang Ye gave her a look, "No, it belongs to me now!"

"Well, whatever’s yours is mine too. Why the need to clarify that? The next time we return home, I must stay there for a few days," Nalan Yaqi said teasingly.

"That might have to wait for a year or two. The courtyard needs to be renovated after we buy it. It won’t be ready in less than a year or two," Wang Ye replied noncommittally.

No matter what, Zhang Xiaoxi was efficient in handling things; it seemed he had chosen the right person for the job.

This minor incident, of course, wouldn’t affect Wang Ye. After all, it was just the purchasing of a courtyard, it didn’t cost much.

He was content to let Zhang Xiaoxi continue dealing with it, he didn’t bother to get involved.

As for the renovation, Nalan Yaqi was more than willing to coordinate with Zhang Xiaoxi to discuss and handle it together.

Wang Ye agreed to this, but insisted that he had the final say on the remodeling plan.

...

As August arrived, the weather in Moscow started to turn cold. It seemed like it would start snowing again soon.

Before the regular meeting of the Duma this month, Wang Ye brought together Speaker Grezlov and Vice Speaker Rilinov, and put out a prepared bill to solicit their opinions.

This was a bill to extend the term of Duma Members from four years to five!

After reading the bill, both Grezlov and Rilinov fell silent, neither of them rushed to say anything.

Instead, they were considering what changes the passage of this bill could bring to the Duma ...

Bear in mind, this was no small matter. It even involved amendments to the constitution!

Seeing that neither of them said anything, Wang Ye stayed silent too, only watching them with an amused smile.

After a long while, Rilinov was the first to speak up. He frowned and asked, "Misha, what’s the purpose of this proposal?"

An extension of one year seemed trivial, but both Rilinov and Grezlov, being cunning old foxes, understood its implications.

If the term of the Duma Members can be extended, couldn’t that of the members of the Federal Council also be extended?

Even the term of the one residing in the Kremlin ...

This involved a chain of related matters, one triggering the other. Once one was changed, this would set off a chain reaction.

The proposal that Mikhail brought up now, might just be the "fuse" for this!

Grezlov also nodded, agreeing, "Indeed, this proposal, while it should not be hard to get passed, it may not sound very good once publicized. Those who do not understand may think that we in the Duma are trying to benefit ourselves."

Indeed, as the Duma already possesses legislative power, using this power to extend its own term of service would indeed not sound very good outwardly. It might even cause some people to gossip.

Wang Ye just grinned, nonchalantly saying, "Who would say that? Besides, no matter what we do, there will always be people picking fault. We can’t simply do nothing just because we are afraid of this and that."

Well, those words did indeed match Wang Ye’s character.

Rilinov remained silent, calculating in his mind what changes this proposal could bring.

But Grezlov seemed to be more perceptive than Rilinov, after mulling it over, he couldn’t help asking.

"Is your proposal still incomplete?"

"It’s already complete. If there’s still something that’s been overlooked, please supplement it, Mr Speaker. That’s why I’ve sought both of you today. After all, you both have more experience and more comprehensive thinking than I do," Wang Ye said cheerfully.

Grezlov kept his face impassive, but inside, he was cursing.

This crafty Mikhail!

However, he also kept his feelings hidden as he looked at Rilinov. While thinking, he said:

"Rilinov, you should know that if we want to implement Mikhail’s proposal, besides getting it voted in the Duma, it still needs approval from the Upper House and finally the Kremlin’s approval by signing.

Currently, the proposal only suggests an extension of the Duma Members’ term. Is this inappropriate?

How will the Upper House and the Kremlin see this?"

Rilinov suddenly realized, he slapped his thigh and said:

"I knew it!

I always felt that something was missing!

That’s easy to handle. Just add in the Upper House and the Kremlin to the proposal, and extend everyone’s term to five years.

This way, they wouldn’t have anything to say.

You know what, this proposal that Misha has put forward, it’s impossible for it not to pass, it’s good for everyone!"