"Is the rent too low?" Xu Nian’an asked doubtfully.
Others would kill for rent that might as well be free, yet Xu Nian’an seemed to think it was too little?
Xu Nian’an explained, "Brother Cheng, I’ve inquired about several shops before, and each one was either exorbitantly expensive to take over, or they flat-out refused to transfer the shop."
"Maybe..." Pei Yicheng paused, then said, "I’m handsome."
Xu Nian’an’s mouth twitched, and he almost reflexively retorted, but when he looked up and saw Pei Yicheng’s stern face, he swallowed his words.
"Brother Cheng, let’s go inside first. I’ll give you the rent stated in the contract in a moment," Xu Nian’an said as he led Pei Yicheng into the house, then asked, "By the way, where’s Ling Dong? Wasn’t he with you? We can’t just leave him alone."
"He’s still behind," said Pei Yicheng, and just as his voice fell, Ling Dong drove in.
Two men, two cars, were they showing off their vehicles?
Xu Nian’an mumbled to himself and quickly realized that Ling Dong was driving a truck, a truck that was parked outside the furniture factory.
"Brother Cheng, the goods have been brought here," Ling Dong said as he opened up the truck, which was full of glass and mirrors, along with top-quality hardware pieces.
"I found out about these a few days ago during a chat with your uncle. There’s a shortage of glass in the county, and mirrors too, and they’re expensive. I happened to know some people, so I helped bring in a truckload. Nian’an, hurry and get some people to unload, and be careful," Pei Yicheng reminded.
Xu Nian’an slowly came back to his senses, looking at Pei Yicheng with a complex expression and thinking to himself: this was a sugar-coated shell.
But Pei Yicheng did all this from the heart, as if it was perfectly natural for him to do these things. Xu Nian’an thought this too was Pei Yicheng’s sincerity, his unmistakable desire to help. They couldn’t push it away, they had to find another way to repay this kindness, no matter what, they couldn’t let his little sister be moved by all these favors.
As the cold wind howled, he quickly went back into the house to call for help.
With the truck parked outside the furniture factory, Xu Yuchun’s family also came over, and upon knowing that the glass and mirrors had been brought in specially, all three sturdy laborers in Xu Yuchun’s family came to help.
After Xu Qinghe and Xu Yuchun explained, Xu Yuchun quickly expressed his gratitude, "Qinghe, we really have to thank him properly. The quality is better than what we bought before, and the price is quite a bit cheaper."
"Yicheng is a good kid," Xu Qinghe praised. Ever since the talk with Ji Ying about Pei Yicheng, Xu Qinghe always felt a bit uneasy whenever he saw him.
Yet, with Pei Yicheng considering so much for their factory, and also for the matters at the Chili Factory, Xu Qinghe felt, the kid really put his heart into it.
The unloading was done quickly, and Xu Yuchun even warmly invited them to his home to celebrate the New Year together. Knowing that Xu Qinghe’s family had invited Nian’an’s master and his family, they didn’t say much else, but kept thanking Pei Yicheng sincerely.
The New Year’s Eve dinner, a big round table laden with dishes, steaming hot, the light not particularly bright, yet exceptionally warm and cozy.
Du Chang was happy, holding his cup and clinking it with Xu Qinghe’s from time to time. Since his partner passed, the house felt particularly lonely every holiday.
New Year’s was better; although Yining wasn’t around, Yicheng always spent the season with him year after year.
But during Dragon Boat Festival and Mid-Autumn Festival, it got lonely, with just him, an old man, by himself. Now, seeing a table full of people, it had been a long time since he had seen such a scene.