The Reborn Sidekick Rejected The Male Lead
Chapter 111 - 109: The Troublesome Siheyuan

Chapter 111: Chapter 109: The Troublesome Siheyuan

"I have a buddy who works at the city’s Housing Management Bureau, I’ll take you to see him later and ask about it."

When Lu Jingqiu heard the news, she felt quite happy, as having a friend makes things easier: "Okay."

The two walked around the courtyard before heading over to the city government.

Jiang Nanzhou’s childhood friend was named Li Qi, a friend from the Government Compound. As a child, he lived there with his mother for several years until he moved in with his grandfather when he started junior high school.

Even when he reached junior high school, he never lost contact with Li Qi and his buddies.

The Housing Management Office was located in two rooms next to the city government building. Upon entering the lobby, there were several people handling documents and working. There were also some empty seats, probably because some were out on official business.

Jiang Nanzhou found Li Qi’s desk and knocked on the door of his office.

"Come in." As Li Qi looked up towards the door and saw Jiang Nanzhou, he quickly got to his feet to greet him, "Brother Zhou, when did you get back?" Before he finished speaking, he caught sight of an attractive female comrade behind Jiang Nanzhou, and he paused, taken aback.

Jiang Nanzhou hurriedly introduced them, "Ah Qi, this is Comrade Jingqiu, my fiancée... This is Li Qi, a dear friend of mine."

"Nice to meet you, Comrade Li."

When Li Qi heard Brother Zhou had brought his partner back, he was incredibly surprised; among their group of close childhood friends, he was the only one left unmarried.

Li Qi himself had gotten married the year before last, and his child was already a few months old.

"Sister-in-law, please have a seat," he said, going to pour them some water.

Lu Jingqiu felt somewhat embarrassed being called ’sister-in-law.’

Jiang Nanzhou said jokingly with a smile, "Director Li, you shouldn’t have to trouble yourself with pouring water for us."

"Brother Zhou, don’t make fun of me."

Lu Jingqiu spoke up, "Director Li, we came to see you today to ask for your help with something."

"Sister-in-law, you’re too polite. Just call me Ah Qi or Li Qi. What do you need assistance with?"

Seeing no one else in his office, Jiang Nanzhou got straight to the point, "Ah Qi, my fiancée is looking to buy a house around here and we were hoping you could help us find something suitable."

Lu Jingqiu added, "Yes, Comrade Li, we’ll be troubling you this time."

Li Qi asked, "Sister-in-law, what kind of house are you looking to buy?"

"Any kind will do, the cheaper the better, and it doesn’t matter if it’s a bit run-down."

Li Qi said, "Brother Zhou, sister-in-law, there aren’t any suitable houses available through the Housing Management Office right now; our side mostly manages properties.

Last year, there were a few cases of exoneration, and the superiors replaced their houses for them. There are three courtyards; Brother Zhou, when would you like to see the houses?"

Jiang Nanzhou said, "I only have a two or three-day holiday, can we see the houses now?"

"Let’s go, I’ll take you there to have a look," he said, leading them out of the office. After giving instructions to someone next to him, they headed out directly.

Once outside, Jiang Nanzhou asked, "Ah Qi, are the three courtyards far from here?"

"Two of them are not far, but one is almost in the suburbs and a bit dilapidated."

The three of them rode bicycles over, and after about ten minutes, they stopped in front of a quadrangle courtyard.

Inside lived an old lady, who saw them and asked, "Who are you looking for?"

Li Qi smiled and said, "Auntie, I’m from the Housing Management Office. Aren’t you looking to sell your house?"

Upon hearing this, the old lady hurriedly let them in. Once in the courtyard, she began to introduce them, "This yard is a single entry, with three main rooms, two wing rooms, two rooms each in the east and west wings, and four rear rooms connected to the gate."

It looked similar to the specification of Jiang Nanzhou’s place, except the yard wasn’t as large and there was no backyard garden.

Lu Jingqiu asked, "Auntie, how much for this house?"

"Six thousand for this set, no bargaining," she replied.

Lu Jingqiu felt somewhat disappointed, as she didn’t have that much money.

Eventually, Li Qi took her to see another place not far away. After a fifteen-minute bike ride, they arrived at a double-entry courtyard house, priced at seven thousand.

Lu Jingqiu came out disappointed and said to Li Qi, "Brother Li Qi, I’m really sorry, but I don’t have that much money. At most, three thousand."

Li Qi understood. Now, who had that much money to spare? That’s why these few houses had been listed at the Housing Management Office for three or four months now.

"Sister-in-law, because of the cheap price in the suburbs, it’s just over two thousand. The place is cheaper, and the houses aren’t as good as these two, but it’s a bit far, so they are harder to sell. Let’s go and take a look at those later."

Jiang Nanzhou checked the time and said, "Let’s go, let’s eat first. After eating, let’s go. Today, my treat."

Li Qi didn’t decline, "It’s a pity. Wenhong that kid has been missing lately, otherwise we brothers could have gotten together." Zhang Wenhong, that kid, went to the countryside on behalf of his sister a few years ago. I heard he even got into college, but as soon as summer vacation started, he disappeared.

"Didn’t he come back to the city?"

"He went out with a classmate from school. I don’t know where they went. When he left, he even borrowed a few hundred yuan from me."

Jiang Nanzhou said, "That kid is not one to stay put."

The group arrived at a state-owned restaurant near the crossroads. They ordered stir-fried green pepper and meat, a dish of fried vegetables, osmanthus fish, three bowls of rice, two bottles of beer, and got a bottle of old soda for Lu Jingqiu.

While waiting for their meal, Li Qi happened to meet an acquaintance, a refined man in his thirties, who said to him, "Comrade Li, the bricks in the corner of our house are loose. You need to come and fix it for us quickly. The temperature is going to drop soon, and we can’t delay it, otherwise, I won’t pay the rent."

Li Qi looked at the man with a bit of impatience and said, "Comrade Zhang, my aunt already said, we don’t want your rent anymore; you can do whatever in the future."

Upon hearing this, Comrade Zhang, afraid he might change his mind, hurriedly said, "You said this yourself. If you don’t fix it, I won’t pay this month’s rent."

"Yes, I said it."

Jiang Nanzhou frowned slightly and asked in a low voice, "What’s up with your aunt’s house?"

Li Qi sighed and said helplessly, "A few years ago, my aunt had some problems, and the whole family went to the countryside. When they came back, they had to return the house, but unfortunately, people were already staying there, and we couldn’t kick them out. The government decided each room had to pay my aunt two yuan in rent per month, but even after collecting, we still had to fix their houses. There are some who don’t take care of the place, constantly asking my aunt for repairs. Just repairs alone cost one or two hundred yuan a year. Pure loss. Just like that guy just now, I’ve already spent tens of yuan this year alone fixing his house. There are five families living there, and my aunt is so worried about this house she can’t eat.

My uncle just got a transfer order; he’s been assigned to Shaanxi. They’re probably going to settle there, so they’re no longer concerned about this house. A few days ago, she even asked me to find someone to sell the house."

Upon hearing this, Lu Jingqiu brightened up, "Brother Li Qi, where is the house?"

"Just inside a lane off the crossroads up front."

"Could you take me to see it later?"

Li Qi hurriedly said, "Sister-in-law, although the house is my aunt’s, it’s too much trouble. You can neither live in it nor collect rent, and you still have to pay property tax. It really isn’t worth it. We have some vacant houses at our Housing Management Office that haven’t sold, not to mention there are people occupying this one. I’ve privately inquired for quite a few people who want to buy a house. Normally, nine rooms could sell for one hundred eighty yuan in the current market, that would be one thousand eight hundred yuan, but unfortunately, no one is willing to take it even for one thousand yuan."

Lu Jingqiu laughed, "I am not afraid of the trouble."