Kang Wei had a proper job, and the Shao family wouldn’t let their only son run wild either.

Shao Guangrong only appeared at night because he had to work during the day.

His attendance rate was higher than Kang Wei’s, and he worked more diligently. This bachelor apartment was something Shao Guangrong had earned on his own merits. The small one-room unit had a bathroom and kitchen, one large room, but no separate living room or dining area. Of course, Shao Guangrong rarely cooked at home – he either ate at the cafeteria, went home, or dined out with friends.

Gong Yang took his tools and quickly measured the room dimensions.

“Kitchen is 5㎡, bathroom 6㎡, the room is 21㎡, and the outside balcony is 4㎡.”

Except for lacking a living room and dining area, the sizes of the kitchen, bathroom, and room met living requirements.

A bachelor doesn’t need a living room – coming home and flopping onto the bed is enough, but could a married couple live like that? Xia Xiaolan wanted to reorganize the layout. If Shao Guangrong didn’t have high cooking requirements, could they make the kitchen semi-open, expanding the space to include a dining area?

This would demand a lot from the range hood.

By 1984, range hoods existed in China – not domestic ones, but imported ones were available. However, Xia Xiaolan needed to investigate their effectiveness. Shao Guangrong’s renovation budget wasn’t as large as Kang Wei’s, but fortunately, the space was smaller… Of course, regardless of size, kitchens and bathrooms always cost the same to renovate.

“What style do you like? Pick one?”

Shao Guangrong didn’t even flip through the magazines. He didn’t care about style – as long as it looked good for 10,000 yuan. Xia Xiaolan knew his budget wasn’t as flexible, so they couldn’t choose expensive options like Kang Wei’s house. Small apartments were challenging – even experienced renovation companies in the future found them difficult. Shao Guangrong’s one-room unit was a standard small apartment, with only 36㎡ usable spaces including the balcony.

Was 10,000 yuan a lot?

In 1984, it certainly was, given that urban workers’ wages were generally low, with price increases coming after 1985. Wage increases followed price increases – 10,000 yuan before 1985 was substantial. But in terms of renovation, 10,000 yuan wouldn’t make much impact. Basic renovation just meant painting walls and laying tiles, buying a ready-made three-door wardrobe for over 100 yuan – if a wardrobe cost that much, how expensive could a bed be?

Xia Xiaolan wanted a more modern renovation.

The major expenses would be various electrical appliances.

With 10,000 yuan, to satisfy Shao Guangrong while ensuring Liu Yong made money, it all depended on how good her design was – Xia Xiaolan, an amateur, was being forced to become a professional interior designer. She had no choice – others were even more amateur compared to her.

At this time, the closest professionals might only be found in Hong Kong.

Could Liu Yong afford Hong Kong designers?

Xia Xiaolan had to fill in until Liu Yong could train two people to take over… Sometimes she even thought about studying architecture at university.

She waited for Shao Guangrong to inquire about range hood availability before starting the design.

Coincidentally, China’s first domestically researched range hoods suitable for Chinese cooking habits had just begun production in Shanghai, with only 600 units in the first batch. Six hundred units weren’t enough to fight over, so Xia Xiaolan gave up on buying domestically. How compact and elegant could a first-generation range hood be? Some of Shao Guangrong’s renovation budget had to be set aside for an imported range hood.

Xia Xiaolan discussed the plans with Gong Yang again.

Gong Yang sighed admiringly: “You never studied art? If you did, you wouldn’t need me at all.”

Xia Xiaolan had no spare time to study art.

After working overtime for a day, she prepared two sets of renderings for Shao Guangrong.

Shao Guangrong was stunned.

He’d proposed renovation out of guilt, wanting to contribute business to Xia Xiaolan. But when the designs came out, Shao Guangrong was genuinely moved.

“There’s an opening in the kitchen – is this a table?”

“It’s a bar counter. Since you don’t cook much, this counter works for daily meals and gives you a place to drink and chat with friends. The space underneath can store things, like your alcohol.”

Xia Xiaolan didn’t plan to enclose the balcony, just renovate it to fit a washing machine.

Opening up the kitchen truly enlarged the space. Xia Xiaolan created a small living area within the original 21㎡ rooms. Shao Guangrong didn’t understand these things – he just knew it looked good. Living in such a house would be worth 10,000 yuan:

“Can it be done for 10,000?”

“We’ll try our best.”

Since Shao Guangrong wasn’t as wealthy as Kang Wei, Xia Xiaolan had to try to save money for the client.

Both houses had central heating, so Xia Xiaolan didn’t need to invest there. However, they needed to plan enough power outlets – many homes’ renovations lasted over ten years, and appliances like air conditioners would surely be among the first modern conveniences Kang Wei and Shao Guangrong would try. They couldn’t break walls later to install wiring and switches, could they?

Better to prepare now than deal with it later.

After checking the range hood prices, Liu Yong quoted 9,800 yuan.

Xia Xiaolan thought it would go over budget, but not by more than 2,000 yuan – not impossible for Shao Guangrong. If he inexplicably spent over 10,000 yuan renovating his bachelor apartment, the Shao family wouldn’t pay, but if the renovation was mostly complete and just needed another 2,000 yuan, wouldn’t his family cover it?

Xia Xiaolan asked if his girlfriend should take a look since it was their future home.

The single Shao Guangrong chuckled, “She follows my lead, she’ll like whatever I choose.”

He was satisfied with the renovation renderings and planned to move in alone once it was done. His nonexistent girlfriend’s opinion didn’t matter – if she didn’t like his renovation, he’d find another girlfriend. Someone would surely share his taste!

With Shao Guangrong’s project following Kang Wei’s, Xia Xiaolan’s extended stay in Beijing brought unexpected business.

Liu Yong was naturally enthusiastic.

Gong Yang was surprised too.

Liu Yong’s two workers were happy to hear about more work – back in Shang Du, they didn’t have jobs every day. Liu Yong needed to supervise Kang Wei’s house’s plumbing and electrical modifications. For electrical work, they couldn’t let him lead the two workers blindly – they needed professional electricians.

How could Kang Wei not find professional electricians when he worked at the Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications? Whether his position was idle or not, he was still a ministry employee – finding an electrician wasn’t difficult.

Zhou Cheng told Xia Xiaolan to wait at the guesthouse; if he could get leave, he’d come find her.

The whole unit had just eaten the lamb Xia Xiaolan sent – how could they not approve his leave?

Zhou Cheng only asked for half a day, needing to report back to his unit before lights out.

Xia Xiaolan was studying in the guesthouse when she heard a knock. She guessed it was Zhou Cheng. Opening the door, a tall shadow fell across the threshold – it was indeed Zhou Cheng.