Chapter 10: It turns out that the courtyard is full of birds! (I)
Director Wang looked at Liu Zhiye in front of him. His sharp eyebrows, starry eyes, and nose were like hanging gallbladders. His clean and fair face was angular and cold. He was more than 1.8 meters tall, wearing a straight yellow-green military uniform on his strong body, which made him look extraordinary and heroic.

Good! What a heroic young man.

Director Wang liked him more and more, and he wished he had a girl by his side who would marry him on the spot. Director Wang did have a girl at home, but it was a pity that they had been married for more than two years and their child was almost out of the house.

I asked a question after admiring him:

"Xiao Liu, are you dating someone?"

Liu Zhiye immediately replied: "Director Wang, I am still single. I just got transferred back from the military and haven't had time to think about personal issues yet."

"Oh~ Don't worry, wait until you're settled. I'll introduce you to someone when I have time, I guarantee you'll be satisfied~"

"Hey~ Then thank you!" Liu Zhiye didn't take it seriously, thinking it was just a polite remark. He just replied casually.

Chatted for a while.

"Xiao Liu, I understand your situation. According to your level after demobilization, our street is obliged to arrange accommodation for you."

"Logically speaking, considering your rank as a regular section chief, it's not too much to arrange a building for you."

"But the current situation is that our street doesn't have any buildings, let alone any good courtyards. The remaining ones are just shabby and messy large courtyards. If you want to live in one, you don't know how to clean it up, and it's not appropriate to give it to you."

"To be honest, it's not just our street, but also the district and city that are extremely short of housing. Some officials who came to Beijing, including their families, are also crowded in small rooms in some large courtyards, waiting for arrangements."

Liu Zhiye actually knew about this situation. He understood Director Wang and knew that she was not deliberately making things difficult for him.

Since the army entered the city, it has been nearly ten years since the founding of the country. In 1949, the total population increased by nearly 2.5 million, with an average annual increase of nearly 300,000 people.

There were only so many public houses, and most of them were confiscated enemy property or donations from patriotic businessmen and capitalists.

Although some houses were built after the founding of the People's Republic of China, they were only a drop in the bucket. They were all used by important factories and enterprises, government schools, senior leaders and their families, military compounds and scientific research institutions, foreign experts, and friendly countries' institutions in Xia.

At this time, it was not like later generations that were developing cities! The old city was so small, and outside the second ring road was all rural. Factories and enterprises were still crowded in the city, and individuals were not allowed to buy land and build houses.

The country had also been through a long period of war and was in a state of complete blankness. The only funds available were used for the war and for the priority development of light and heavy industries and other important sectors, while infrastructure and other people's livelihood construction were extremely backward.

So with so many people pouring in over the past few years, the houses have almost been divided up.

So Liu Zhiye also understood Director Wang very well. He said, "Director Wang, you don't have to be embarrassed. Don't worry, I am a party member. If the organization has difficulties, we can't hold them back. I am not just being polite. I have some awareness. If I really can't arrange a place, I will go home and squeeze in with my parents. When there is a house available on the street, they will arrange one for me."

Director Wang said happily: "Oh, what a good child. Your father and I are acquaintances. You can call me Aunt Wang from now on."

"Okay, Aunt Wang."

"Since you already call me aunt, then you can't call me aunt in vain. How about this, you go back first, and Aunt Wang will find a suitable house for you in the next few days. I can't let you down!"

"Also, your household registration has been moved back. Do you want to get a separate household registration booklet, or combine it with your parents'?"

"Auntie Wang, I'll stay with my dad's first. If there are any changes in the future, I'll come to you."

"to make!"

"By the way, you didn't know your family had moved, did you?"

Liu Zhiye: "Auntie Wang, my family has moved? So where did we move to?"

Liu Zhiye was confused. He really didn't remember moving. He only remembered that he had contacted his family by writing letters or mailing them to his father's school. He didn't remember that the letters from home mentioned this matter, and it was possible that he had forgotten about it.

"In 55, the owner of the Kai Tak Steel Mill near your home, Lou Bancheng, donated half of the factory's shares to the country."

"We chose to establish a public-private partnership with the state and changed the name to Red Star Steel Rolling Mill."

"Later, in order to vigorously develop the steel industry, the state merged several nearby steel companies into the Red Star Factory." "This made the Red Star Factory larger and larger, with employees expanding from more than 1,000 to more than 15,000 workers and cadres, and tens of thousands of family members."

"It has evolved from only being able to produce rolled steel to a full range of smelting and processing, as well as steel equipment manufacturing. It has become a large state-owned steel enterprise with the majority of state assets and a minority owned by capitalists such as Lou Bancheng."

"With such a large development, the existing land is definitely not enough. We had no choice but to expand around the factory, so the houses in the nearby streets, including yours, were demolished."

"Most of the residents here were arranged together with the cadres and workers of the Red Star Factory in Nanluoguxiang and several nearby communities."

Liu Zhiye then asked, "Aunt Wang! Where do we live now?"

Director Wang said with a mysterious expression: "Haha, I knew you didn't understand."

"It's getting late. Aunt Wang will accompany you to find the door."

"Thank you for your help, Aunt Wang."

"Hey, why are you being so polite to your aunt? I haven't seen your father for a while. I'm here to check on my son's academic performance."

"This naughty monkey is not an easy person to deal with~"

So the two of them walked out of the neighborhood office compound together. After leaving the house, Aunt Wang asked him to wait outside for a while while she went in to get something.

After a while, I saw Aunt Wang coming out with a net bag in her hand and pushing a Noritz brand 26-model high-end women's bicycle.

I told him, you take me with you on your bike, and you can take these things home together.

看见王姨递过来一网兜东西，里面有一条大前门(大约4.3元)两瓶白色65度红星二锅头(大约1.4元/瓶)，再加上十几个国光苹果。这礼可不轻啊接近10元钱。在这个一级工每月才挣33块钱的年代，10块钱可不老少了。

"Auntie Wang, what are you doing? I can't have this. Please take it back."

"You naughty child, this is not for you. The cigarettes and alcohol are for your dad, and the fruit is for your mom and your younger brothers and sisters."

"You just came back, how can you go back empty-handed? It's too late to buy anything now. Take these things first. If you feel bad, just come visit Aunt Wang more often in the future, hehe~"

Aunt Wang smiled nonchalantly, but her tone was unacceptable. Little did she know that Liu Zhiye had already prepared. Before he was discharged from the hospital, he had asked someone to buy gifts for his family. But just to make things easier, he threw them into the system warehouse.

It was not convenient for him to bring it up in front of others at this time, so he could only go along with it and agreed with a pinch of his nose.

"Thank you, Aunt Wang!"

"You are really my aunt. If it weren't for you, I wouldn't have thought of this."

"You have been in the army for too long and haven't adapted to the living habits of ordinary people. It will be better if you gain some experience after you come back."

As they were talking, the two of them rode their bicycles through the streets and alleys, and came to the gate of a large courtyard house made of blue bricks and gray tiles.

There is a house number on it, marking No. 95 Nanluoguxiang.

This is a courtyard house under the jurisdiction of Jiaodaokou Street and Nanluoguxiang Residents Committee.

Nanluoguxiang is a famous alley with a long history and one of the oldest neighborhoods in the old city. It is located on the east side of the central axis of the old city, starting from Gulou East Street in the north and ending at Ping'an Street in the south. Di'anmenwai Street is to the west and Jiaodaokou South Street is to the east. It is 786 meters long and 8 meters wide, covering an area of ​​0.84 square kilometers.

Nanluoguxiang runs from north to south, with a total of 16 alleys on the east and west sides, neatly arranged in a fishbone shape, also known as Centipede Street. Nanluoguxiang was formed when the Yuan Dynasty built the capital. During the Qianlong period of the Qing Dynasty, this place belonged to the Bordered Yellow Banner. From the end of the Guangxu period to the Xuantong period, this place belonged to the Inner Left Third District, and during the reign of the Republic of China, it belonged to the Inner Fifth District.

Nanluoguxiang has been a veritable "community for high-ranking officials" since ancient times. There is an old saying in the old city: the East City is rich, the West City is prosperous, the Xuanwu is poor, and the Chongwen is poor. Nanluoguxiang, due to its special geographical location (close to the imperial city), has been a gathering place for dignitaries and their mansions since ancient times. Among them are princes, generals, prime ministers, ministers, as well as some social celebrities and literati.

Well-known ones include the palace of Senggelinqin, the former residence of Grand Secretary Wen Yu and President Feng Guozhang, and the headquarters of Jiang Guangtou. There are also residences of cultural celebrities such as Qi Baishi and Mao Dun. There are also religious sites such as Zitong Wenchang Temple, Fuxiang Temple, Tongming Temple, etc.

(End of this chapter)