Li Zhong arrived half a day earlier than them. He returned to the small courtyard alone. He cleaned up the inside and outside of the house. He moved a stool and sat at the spot where the second master usually sat. He was in a daze for a while, and then he leisurely picked up the clothes from his coat pocket next to him.
I took out half a pack of cigarettes.
This courtyard is the courtyard where he lived since he was about ten years old when he returned to the capital from Haishi.
I heard from my second uncle that this alley used to be the property of the Li family, and his father was responsible for purchasing it.
Later, when the Li family suffered a disaster, he was less than one year old. His second uncle took all the female relatives of the Li family to live here in seclusion. After two or three months, the situation in the capital became increasingly severe.
They also used the property in the entire alley as reward in exchange for the opportunity to leave the city.
When they came back, there was only one main house in the whole alley for the two of them to live in.
The second uncle seems to be a very unattractive person. He used to be a well-known dandy in the capital circle. However, he is easy to make friends and is righteous. He has accumulated a lot of connections whether in the capital or in Haishi.
.
When he was young, he was someone who could speak both black and white.
If there hadn't been those decades of turmoil, he would have been a very important figure in the Li family.
During that special period, he completely curbed his sharpness and could raise his brothers with peace of mind.
later......
Among their brothers, he was the only one left. These brothers became his most painful past, but he became his second uncle's most precious person.
So much so that I completely missed my second aunt back then because of him.
Their relationship was actually very awkward when he was a teenager.
He knew that his second uncle had sacrificed too much for the Li family and for him in his life, so he wanted to push him away and not let his second uncle continue to worry about his affairs.
So he gave up the opportunity to continue school and chose to join the army.
Later, when he changed careers, he also avoided places close to the capital. This was perhaps the most regretful thing he had done in his life.
"Dingling bells..."
The phone rang in the room, and Li Zhong was pulled away from his thoughts, only to find that the cigarette in his hand had been extinguished long ago, and his son's eyes were soaked with tears.
"Dad, didn't you agree to live in the small second floor next to the school, why did you go back to the alley again?"
Li Boshan's father should have arrived early, but there was no trace of him in the house.
"I came over to clean up. I'll be there in a moment."
"I'll pick you up and buy some things on the way." I just came back and there is nothing here. The market over there is big and you can buy everything at once.
Li Boshan held the car keys and went upstairs to take a look at the mother and son who were in the children's room.
Hanghang had already fallen asleep. As soon as Li Boshan opened the door, Feng Yanhong raised her head.
He lowered his voice and said, "I'm going to pick up Dad and buy some things on the way back."
"Okay, drive slowly and pay attention to safety." Feng Yanhong was not sleepy and slowly took her arm out of Hanghang's arms.
She had hired a cleaner to clean the house. The house was very clean. Now she had to go downstairs to boil some water. When the little one woke up, he would probably be clamoring for something to eat.
When she takes her child with her, her schedule can't be too tight.
Feng Yanhong walked around the kitchen. As expected, there was nothing in the cupboard. She couldn't make anything for him.
Li Boshan made a big purchase in the small market, buying all the firewood, rice, oil and salt. He also bought Feng Yanhong's favorite jujube snacks. After spending all the dozens of dollars in his pocket, he went home.
The original appointment with Professor Meng was to meet at her old house tomorrow morning. Unexpectedly, Professor Meng came to her home that night, bringing with him a thick stack of design drawings.
"This is the plan I made based on the original appearance of your house and historical data. It can basically restore the original appearance of this house more than 400 years ago."
When Professor Meng explained the design drawings, the gleam in his eyes was hard to ignore, and the pride in his bones made Feng Yanhong admire him very much.
Professor Meng's passion for ancient architecture has penetrated deep into his bones. It is also because of his national self-confidence that he reveals his pride.
Except for Professor Meng and his students, everyone else in this room seemed to understand these things.
However, they all knew very well that this plan must be one that Professor Meng came up with very carefully and after careful consideration.
By the time the explanation of the plan ended, it was already late at night, and Professor Meng's tea cup had been replaced with tea leaves two or three times, but he still maintained his enthusiasm as before.
"You are the owner. If you feel there is anything you are not satisfied with, we can discuss further improvements."
Feng Yanhong and Li Boshan looked at Li Zhong in unison.
"Dad, what do you think?"
Feng Yanhong had consulted some relevant information since she took over the house, but her little knowledge reserve was not even superficial. If she wanted to give opinions, I am afraid it was not her turn.
Li Zhong didn't say anything, but took out the penultimate drawing.
"This is my family's former ancestral hall. I've seen it and the structure inside is basically untouched. I want to do only basic repairs here without making any changes. It will still be used as an ancestral hall in the future."
Professor Meng immediately marked it on the drawing, looked at the original photo again, and found that this place was really the best protected place.
After arriving at the site the next day, Li Zhong again proposed that the small pond in the garden should not be rectified. Professor Meng pushed up his glasses and, although he frowned, he nodded in agreement.
This pond is very small. Originally, in his plan, it was to be filled in and built into an octagonal pavilion. The owner wanted to keep the original appearance, so let's keep it the same.
Li Zhong put forward a few insignificant opinions and asked some questions at the scene.
Professor Meng patiently explained them one by one. It seemed that he really knew the history of this house.
This house was built about five hundred years ago for a prince. Later, the prince's descendants committed a crime, the whole family was exiled, and the family property was confiscated.
It sat idle for decades, and was later given to a high-ranking official by the emperor at the time. The fate of that high-ranking official was not very good either. Later, it changed several generations of owners over the past one or two hundred years. Until the late Qing Dynasty, the people doing business in that era
The Li family spent a lot of money to acquire this house from the royal family.
In fact, it had only been a hundred years since the Li family had acquired this house. However, the Li family had been reluctant to hand over the title deed to the house since its decline.
Later, it was requisitioned by the warlords at that time and used by the government for so long. No one has ever done serious repairs. Over time, it became dilapidated and became what it is now.
"However, once it is repaired, it will be fast. After all, the original things are still there. If it is more detailed, it can be completed in a year at most."
"I've made a list of the prices of the materials, so you can just pay me the labor costs."
After all, Professor Meng is not a businessman, so when he talks about money, his expression is a bit cryptic.
"Oh, don't worry, I've personally checked the materials. There won't be any problems."
"With your supervision, of course we can rest assured. You'd better discuss the labor costs with the construction team, we can't treat you badly."
Feng Yanhong has seen the list of materials. The total price is more than 200,000 yuan. The price is much cheaper than on the market. This is all thanks to Professor Meng. Then she will not treat Professor Meng badly in terms of labor costs.
.
In the end, the renovation of the old house was finalized at a price of 200,000 yuan each for repair materials and labor costs.