The courtyard in Nanluogu Lane had a symmetrical layout.

The courtyard near Shichahai truly had a beautiful view, with a large lake steps away from the door… Liu Yong, who had just arrived from Pengcheng, could be forgiven for not calling it a “hai” (sea). Shichahai was originally a lake – how could a sea be in Beijing? During the Qing Dynasty’s entry, they adopted the grassland custom of calling water bodies “haizi” (seas), which led to the name Shichahai.

Back in Pengcheng, Liu Yong often saw the real sea, with its vast waves stretching endlessly – that was a true sea. This body of water before him, with its calm surface, was just a lake.

Still, the lake had its beauty. Shichahai had always been a popular spot for Beijing residents, and in 1984, the scenery was quite remarkable. Liu Yong thought this courtyard house would suit his niece perfectly.

His niece was such a vibrant young woman – shouldn’t she live in a place like this?

“Buy this one. If you don’t have enough money, your uncle can help with the rest.”

Xia Xiaolan was speechless. Fortunately, the uncle-niece pair had come to view the courtyard in secret. If the owner had been present and heard this, would they still be willing to lower the price? She wanted the house, but 100,000 yuan was far too expensive. Xia Xiaolan was firmly holding to her offer of 80,000 yuan. She could increase it somewhat, depending on how much the owner was willing to negotiate.

This house was even better than the one Liu Yong had bought. There weren’t many illegal extensions in the courtyard, so Xia Xiaolan wouldn’t need much renovation if she bought it. With just some furniture additions, she could move right in. While she couldn’t give up her dormitory at Huaqing, spending a few nights in her own house during holidays would be a rare pleasure.

After viewing the Shichahai courtyard, they arranged to have dinner with Kang Wei.

Kang Wei had been back in Beijing for over a week but hadn’t yet had the chance to dine with Xia Xiaolan. Now that Liu Yong was also in Beijing, Kang Wei insisted on being a proper host.

Beijing’s temperature dropped quickly. By late October, it was hot pot season. Just as Liu Yong had treated Manager Wu to a lamb hot pot, Kang Wei also invited him to the same. Shao Guangrong joined them as well – Xia Xiaolan hadn’t seen him for a couple of months.

These two had become quite familiar with Liu Yong through the preparations for “Anjia Building Materials,” affectionately calling him Uncle Liu.

Previously, Shao Guangrong had called Liu Yong “Uncle” only out of respect for Xia Xiaolan and Zhou Cheng. But the more they interacted, the more he understood Liu Yong’s capabilities. Now that they were business partners, why wouldn’t he respect Liu Yong?

Shao Guangrong knew that without his family background to help secure permits, plus his thick skin, what right would he have to be a shareholder?

Liu Yong was different – he had been a farmer just a year ago, but that didn’t stop him from becoming a boss now.

The three men were quite tipsy when Kang Wei shared a story: “Sister-in-law, you remember Tong Lili, right? The one who had that one-sided crush on my Brother Cheng?”

How could Xia Xiaolan forget? Tong Lili had shown up at the Japanese restaurant with a group, acting like a wronged wife catching her husband with a mistress, saying Xia Xiaolan wasn’t good enough for Zhou Cheng and that she and Zhou Cheng were more suitable matches.

That day after leaving the restaurant, Xia Xiaolan and Zhou Cheng even got into an argument.

Xia Xiaolan could tell that Tong Lili’s feelings for Zhou Cheng were completely one-sided, otherwise, the matter wouldn’t have blown over so easily.

“Go on, I remember her. She was close with Zhou Cheng’s cousin.”

Wasn’t Zhou Yi’s criticism all because of Tong Lili? Who would have thought that during their first meeting with the Zhou family, Zhou Yi’s behavior would help Xia Xiaolan make a good impression?

Kang Wei chuckled, “Then you probably don’t know that Tong Lili and her mother went to the Zhou family home themselves. The Tong family wanted to arrange a marriage alliance with Brother Cheng, and the elders of both families had even settled on the marriage arrangement – this was the day before you and Brother Cheng went to meet his family! But then Brother Cheng announced he was bringing you home, and Tong Lili and her mother left in embarrassment… Of course, they weren’t going to admit defeat so easily and still had tricks up their sleeves.”

Zhou Cheng had originally planned to just take Xia Xiaolan home for a simple meal, only to find all his relatives present.

He had found it strange at the time but hadn’t thought too much about it.

Plus, Xia Xiaolan had made such a strong impression when meeting the Zhou family that Zhou Cheng had overlooked these unusual circumstances.

It had all been orchestrated by Tong Lili and her mother, who had arranged through Zhou Yi to gather so many Zhou family members to scrutinize Xia Xiaolan. Who would have thought that Xia Xiaolan’s college entrance exam results would shock the Zhou family? From any perspective, Xia Xiaolan’s personal qualities were excellent. Apart from her family background, they couldn’t find any fault with her.

The Zhou family didn’t place that much importance on family background anyway.

If Zhou Cheng chose someone of equal social status, that would be ideal, but if he chose someone from an ordinary family, the Zhou family wouldn’t object as long as the person wasn’t completely unsuitable for their social circle.

Tong Lili and her mother had essentially shot themselves in the foot.

“Zhou Yi was a good friend, you know. Sister-in-law, after you made such an impression on the Zhou family elders, Zhou Yi knew Tong Lili had no chance. The Zhou family elders wouldn’t oppose you and Brother Cheng, and Brother Cheng himself preferred you – how could Tong Lili come between you? But Tong Lili wouldn’t give up, and when Zhou Yi tried to kindly advise her, they ended up arguing… After you appeared on TV at the Tiananmen celebration, even the Tong family urged Tong Lili to give up.”

Any family looking for a daughter-in-law would choose the better candidate.

Putting Tong Lili and Xia Xiaolan side by side, if you ignored the difference in family background, who wouldn’t choose the ambitious and hardworking Xia Xiaolan over the idle Tong Lili?

As it happened, the Zhou family didn’t care much about family background, so Tong Lili suddenly lost all her competitive advantage.

The Tong family wasn’t foolish either. If Tong Lili remained obsessed, she would only get older and find it harder to find a marriage partner. So they started arranging blind dates for her. Kang Wei pointed at Shao Guangrong and laughed heartily:

“They introduced Miss Tong to Young Master Shao – a perfect match, perfect!”

Shao Guangrong’s expression couldn’t have been more gloomy.

“How could I possibly be interested in her?”

Everyone in their social circle knew how infatuated Tong Lili was with Zhou Cheng. Even if Shao Guangrong couldn’t find a wife, he wouldn’t marry someone who was in love with another man.

Yet the Shao family didn’t see any issue with it. So what if Tong Lili had feelings for someone else? Shao Guangrong himself wasn’t exactly a saint – he’d been dating girls since middle school and had gone through countless girlfriends with no sign of settling down. Maybe marriage would help him mature.

Since neither Shao Guangrong nor Tong Lili was perfect, they had no right to look down on each other. Kang Wei found the Tong family’s move quite bold, and the Shao family’s response equally impressive – neither family seemed to mind these circumstances.

Shao Guangrong was so frightened he almost quit his job to hide in the south.

Kang Wei was now teasing him about being afraid to go home.

Xia Xiaolan didn’t laugh though – Shao Guangrong was unhappy about it. It would be unkind of her to laugh: “So what are you thinking of doing? If you feel it’s not suitable, you should have a proper discussion with your family. You need to come up with a valid reason – though it’s better not to mention anything about Tong Lili liking Zhou Cheng, as your family probably doesn’t care about that.”

Shao Guangrong shot Kang Wei a fierce glare. Sister-in-law was offering real advice, while Kang Wei was just enjoying the show.

Shao Guangrong had recently been considering an idea, one that had taken root when he drove Xia Xiaolan to school and had been growing stronger:

“Sister-in-law, what do you think about me improving my education and going to university?”