The Reborn Sidekick Rejected The Male Lead
Chapter 296 - 287: Helping Second Cousin Buy a House

Chapter 296: Chapter 287: Helping Second Cousin Buy a House

Lu Jingqiu came back to the courtyard that day and was now busy in the kitchen.

She had cut chives from the small building’s vegetable yard and made a chive and egg box, and also stir-fried some green veggies.

A portion of shredded pork with green peppers, a portion of smashed cucumber, a portion of Dongpo pork and she had steamed some rice.

Three people ate; it was more than enough.

Comrade Lih had been spending all day in the hospital, mostly eating the communal meals from the canteen, so today’s lavish spread was a rare treat. He joked with Jiang Nanzhou, "Having a woman at home really does make a difference. Look at these dishes; no wonder the guys in the crew think about their wives all day long. Having a wife is great."

"It’s better to find one yourself than to envy others."

"That goes without saying. Believe it or not, my mom probably already arranged a few matchmaking dates for me."

Jiang Nanzhou smiled and nodded, making him a cup of coffee.

He had initially found the coffee hard to swallow, but after drinking it while pulling all-nighters studying this week, he had gotten hooked.

Knowing that Lih enjoyed it too, he had prepared it in advance.

Today, Jingqiu had somehow found fresh milk and added it to the coffee, along with some sugar, making it taste quite good.

After taking a sip, Lih said urgently, "This coffee is good. How much do you have at home? Give it all to me."

Jiang Nanzhou raised an eyebrow and said, "My wife entertains you with her goodies, and look at you, you’re already setting your sights on them."

"Oh, cut it out. Don’t hide behind Comrade Lu. Your good buddy is leaving, and that’s all the sentiment you have? I came here, following you to this place without a second thought to keep you company."

"Stop, don’t play the victim here, I’m not in charge of that."

Seeing him react this way, Lih chuckled quietly, "I would have never thought, the fierce and domineering captain in the crew is whipped."

"I like it that way. Eat it or leave."

The two of them bantered back and forth until Lu Jingqiu sat down to eat, then they got serious.

Aside from a few colleagues from the hospital, Lih didn’t really have any friends here.

"Comrade Lih, now that you are going back this time, will you be settling down for good?"

"Still uncertain; it all depends on what the leaders have planned. But once I go back, I probably won’t be moving for a few years."

Jingqiu was genuinely happy for him that he could get settled. It was always more convenient to be near one’s own doorstep.

Lih, in fact, didn’t really want to leave. At least he had Nanzhou here; back home his job would be the same, but family expectations were strict, and there was less freedom.

Always being pressured to marry and start a family, he wasn’t averse to it, just that he hadn’t met the right person yet; he simply didn’t want to get married.

Jiang Nanzhou naturally knew his good friend’s concerns, but there really wasn’t much he could do to help with them.

There was nothing wrong with matchmaking; meeting more female comrades, chances were he might find the one he liked.

It was just like when he met Jingqiu, and the feeling of love came to him.

At noon, the three chatted while eating their meal. Old friends together, there was never a shortage of things to talk about.

In the end, Lih successfully conned half a box of coffee from Lu Jingqiu and left with a thief-like cheer.

The next morning, Jiang Nanzhou saw him onto the bus, and even asked him to pass on a message to Grandpa. Jingqiu had prepared thermal underwear for Grandpa Jiang and asked him to bring them back as well.

Although it was still summer, in a month or two, those clothes would come in handy.

She also planned to buy a few kilograms of wool in a few days to knit a sweater and pants for Grandpa Jiang. Keeping warm was the most important thing for the elderly.

Lu Jingqiu went back to her routine of going to and from work. After getting off work in the afternoon, she would wander around the residential area to see if there were any suitable houses, continuing to stockpile properties for her second cousin.

Today, the old gentleman had caused a disturbance at the office, going directly to Editor Ban.

He hassled Editor Ban to the point that she was too afraid to come to the office for work.

Fortunately, Xinyue didn’t come over.

Lu Jingqiu also felt uncomfortable, as it was initially her involvement in the matter that had led Editor Ban and Xinyue into such a troublesome situation with her suggestion.

Feeling upset, she didn’t rush home after work but went straight to Luo Xinyue’s house instead.

On the way, she also bought some marinated meat, only to realize her impulsiveness upon arrival.

Shang Ze was probably off work by then, and it seemed inappropriate for her to visit.

Just as she was considering whether to leave, Luo Xinyue and Shang Ze, the lovely couple, came out of the kitchen and saw her: "Jingqiu?"

"Ah... did I come at a bad time?" she said with an embarrassed smile, lifting the marinated meat in her hands.

Luo Xinyue laughed and said, "You came just in time; it’ll be an extra dish for us today."

Shang Ze also greeted her with, "Welcome, Comrade Lu."

This made Lu Jingqiu quite embarrassed.

Luckily, Luo Xinyue was just complaining about making too much food that day, and now that Lu Jingqiu had arrived, she could help them finish it.

"You didn’t have to look for a house today, so why did you run over here?"

"The old gentleman came to our office today, wanting us to reprint a new edition for him. The office disagreed, and Editor Ban has been trying to mediate. Ah, it’s also hard for me to watch, and I’m partly to blame for this."

Luo Xinyue didn’t mind and laughed, "I didn’t take it to heart, so why are you feeling bad?"

Shang Ze nodded and added, "In both life and work, it’s normal to encounter troublesome matters, and they can be resolved gradually. Your office has its reasons for not wanting to compromise with that gentleman, who was being somewhat unreasonable. You just have to follow the office’s arrangements."

In her previous life, Lu Jingqiu had never worked in an office environment, so there were some things she didn’t understand as deeply as Shang Ze did.

His words seemed to untangle her worries.

"Jingqiu, Shang Ze just mentioned that there will be a batch of land for sale in the city soon. Maybe you should take a look," Luo Xinyue suggested.

"Land? Which side?"

"The north side. It’s not for sale, but they’re planning to turn it into a wholesale agricultural market. Currently, it’s just in the planning stage."

"If it’s still in the planning stage, then the news isn’t out yet, right?" Lu Jingqiu said with a big smile on her face.

Shang Ze laughed and shook his head, "The news is already out. It’s on the outskirts of Culture Road, between two villages. The villagers are already aware, and if you want to buy, probably no one would sell to you now."

The smile that had just spread across her face instantly fell, "Ah, that was quick."

Shang Ze explained, "It’s not that fast anymore. It was already planned last year and only announced last week. Exactly when it will start is still pending notice. But once the plan was released, the villagers saw the benefits and definitely wouldn’t sell."

Lu Jingqiu expressed her disappointment, "That’s true."

Though disappointed, Lu Jingqiu still took the opportunity on Sunday to take a look at the planning map at the government office.

After learning the exact location, she rode her bicycle to have a look around.

She seemed to remember that there actually was an agricultural market here later, which was quite popular in the ’80s and ’90s. Later, with the urban expansion, the market was moved further out.

Lu Jingqiu inquired and found out that the villagers were already aware of the planning, and many were in high spirits, just waiting for the government’s compensation.

Buying at this time was out of the question. Lu Jingqiu looked around the area – if she couldn’t buy here, she could consider buying across from or behind the agricultural market.

However, the surrounding area was all land, and she had no idea who owned which parcel.

But this gave Lu Jingqiu an idea. Her second cousin was in business and would eventually have his own company, which would naturally need to rent office space. Knowing this, why not look for a piece of land now?

Recently, Lu Jingqiu wasn’t just busy with painting, but also helping her second cousin scout for land.