Chapter 1196: 1069: A Polite Refusal

In the northern room of the Cheng Family house, Old Mrs. Cheng nudged a plate pretending to be filled with pastries, "Eat, I noticed you didn’t eat much earlier. Is it not to your taste?"Zhou Jiao smiled and shook her head, "It’s quite plentiful."

"Can you guess why I asked you to come in?"

Zhou Jiao curiously glanced at her mother, Miao Lishan, then at the old lady. She truly didn’t know why they were invited in alone.

"Shanshan hasn’t told our Jiao Jiao yet?"

Miao Lishan nodded, "I don’t think it’s appropriate. Aunt, you should buy it yourself."

"What’s inappropriate? I asked the couple yesterday, and he had a point. His three sons are all gathered in one big courtyard, it’s okay not to buy."

Zhou Jiao blinked in surprise. Could it be what she was thinking?

"Luckily, the deal over there wasn’t finalized, otherwise changing hands later would be very troublesome. I really can’t bear to part with that courtyard. Otherwise, it would be nice to buy it for Jiao Jiao."

Zhou Jiao immediately chuckled softly, whispering, "Aunt would be jealous."

The old lady laughed cheerfully, patting her hands, and looked at Miao Lishan, "Didn’t you always want to buy a courtyard over there?"

Miao Lishan smiled embarrassedly, "I didn’t think it would be so soon. The courtyard with two entrances hasn’t even been sold yet, and our family can’t suddenly come up with eight pounds of gold."

After hearing her mother, Zhou Jiao’s eyes flickered as she lowered her gaze. Although she didn’t know why her mother chose to hide the truth from the old lady, she must have her reasons.

"How much do you have now? If you really want to buy a courtyard, I can help gather some for you first."

Miao Lishan hurriedly waved her hand.

The old lady pondered for a moment, "Alright, then I’ll first handle the matter of separating the two brothers and later find you a good courtyard."

Miao Lishan looked at her daughter and laughed, "I’m not in a hurry. Let’s wait until the weather gets warmer."

Zhou Jiao was puzzled by her look. She still remembered her mother recently imagining that each of her three grandsons would have a big courtyard.

What exactly was the plan here?

Based on the family assets she disclosed to her mom: they openly owned twenty pounds of gold, so there was no need to wait for warmer weather if they didn’t even want a courtyard.

"Alright, since you’re not in a hurry, I’ll have them take a look. You two sit here; I’ll be right back," said Old Mrs. Cheng as she promptly stood up and left.

Zhou Jiao watched Miao Lishan, who was stunned and dumbfounded after reaching out to hold onto her mom but failing, and couldn’t help but cover her mouth and laugh silently. Was there some reluctance?

Miao Lishan lightly slapped her, asking quietly, "Aren’t you curious why I refused?"

Zhou Jiao nearly burst into laughter, "Mom, are you distressed?"

"Hmph... I’ll definitely buy a bigger courtyard in the future."

After saying this, Miao Lishan looked at the door and whispered in her ear, "I originally wanted it, but just because your aunt-in-law is nice doesn’t mean your cousin-in-law is. Understand?"

Zhou Jiao frowned, "They give you a bad impression?"

"Not as good as Xiao Wu’s second sister-in-law."

Zhou Jiao still remembered her mom telling her Huang Cuilan was no match for Lin Juhua. At that time, she saw Huang Cuilan as a typical virtuous wife and mother, and thought her mom’s instincts were unreliable.

But as it turned out, her mom was right. She couldn’t help but think more about the few they had just met.

When Zhang Guoqing came in, he specially glanced at Zhou Jiao. Being suddenly called over by the old lady, he thought something had happened to his wife and was almost scared to death.

"Xiao Wu, your mom wants to buy a courtyard."

Upon hearing the old lady say that, Zhang Guoqing said, "Oh, then buy it."

"But she doesn’t have enough money," Old Mrs. Cheng said while giving a warning look to the eager Miao Lishan. Adults are talking, don’t interrupt like a child!

Zhang Guoqing raised an eyebrow, "Not enough? Don’t worry, you have me. Mom, whatever you want to buy, I’ll bring it back for you."

The old lady couldn’t help but laugh and shake her head, "You can’t really bring it back. Let your mom tell you, I’ll go chat with our Jiao Jiao."

Miao Lishan gave a detailed account...

Zhang Guoqing knowingly smiled, "Let Second Cousin’s family buy it first. Our big courtyards are still vacant, and the kids are still young, no rush."

As soon as he finished speaking, the two daughters-in-law of the Cheng family came in with their granddaughter-in-law. Seeing so many women present, Zhang Guoqing quickly wanted to leave.

"Wait, you and Jiao Jiao should come along too,"

The old lady instructed, and Zhang Guoqing immediately looked towards Miao Lishan and Zhou Jiao, nodding with a smile. If his wife was amazed at how fortunate the old lady was with this courtyard, then it should be quite good, perfect to go see the excitement with his wife.

Although he understood that the old lady bringing him along was a gesture of courtesy, since the Cheng family had already talked it through internally, he wouldn’t want the courtyard even if it were the Imperial Palace.

Who knows if it would appreciate in the future and the Cheng family’s descendants might feel they took advantage of the Cheng family. He had enough money to buy his own, and even if he couldn’t, he could buy land and build one later, right?

"Driving there is quick."

Following the address given by Old Mrs. Cheng, it really wasn’t far; they were all in the inner city. Especially being less than a half-hour walk from the Zhou family’s large quadrangle in the other direction.

Without even seeing how the courtyard was, given its location and surroundings, if the Cheng family hadn’t been contacted first, Zhang Guoqing surely would have gone for it. Not to mention eight pounds of gold; even ten pounds would be tempting.

When they arrived, the old lady placed both hands on the beast-headed door knocker and knocked "bang bang bang".

After waiting a while, footsteps came from inside, and then the door opened a crack. An elderly man in his seventies peeked out, with gray hair and beard, a face full of wrinkles and a slight limp, but looking in good spirits.

The old lady explained her purpose.

Upon hearing this, the old man opened the door without saying a word, inviting them in. Not to mention potential buyers wanting to bring family for a final check; as long as there’s interest, it’s fine.

He just wanted to take his grandson and leave this sad place as soon as possible. Every time he thought of his wife and children who died tragically, every time he thought of the enemy who once lived here, he wanted to get far away and never linger.

The old man led them through the various courtyards, introducing them along the way.

The residence was ancient and elegant, shaded by trees, with the main building having a classic and antique style. It was truly surprising that it was preserved so well after these ten years.

The old man was visibly saddened as he introduced the place, clearly deeply attached to the residence, naturally holding a hatred buried deep in his bones.

As expected, Zhou Jiao also learned who the so-called "fallen figure of authority" in question was. Considering that person’s past cunning means, it was no wonder.

Fifty thousand dollars?

Actually, it wasn’t expensive, didn’t you see how excited her second cousin’s daughter-in-law was, touching the furniture non-stop?

Sigh... speaking of value, it’s already a bargain.

If the old man wasn’t truly scared or if the residence didn’t weigh so heavily on him, the Cheng family wouldn’t have even had the chance to buy it. At least he had a grandson by his side in his later years.

Lastly, the old man hesitantly asked if the transfer of ownership could be processed the next day? He would hand over the property within 10 days, and Old Mrs. Cheng readily agreed.