Chapter 89: Homeland
Shanhai Town was planned by the city to be built into a tourist attraction, which required a complete overhaul. Housing relocation was a matter of time.
The policy treatment given by the city was good. Besides compensation for the houses and demolition, a portion of the town’s job quotas were also provided. After the tourist attraction was established, some staff would be needed for daily management, and local recruitment was the best. This also calmed down the last few who had objections, and they peacefully prepared to move.
The city sent special personnel to inspect and survey, and began to prepare for the town’s relocation project.
Anyone engaged in demolition work was worried about encountering “nail households.” Shanhai Town did not have many people, and the local customs were simple. As long as the compensation was handled properly, there were generally no major problems. The city was most worried about the Bai family.
The old residence of the Bai family had been specially protected by a notice from Beijing. Although it had been sealed in the 1960s, no one had been allowed to enter. Although the wooden buildings inside looked old and dilapidated, they were all old objects from over a hundred years ago. To put it bluntly, they were antiques. How could they be moved? It was a headache just to think about it.
The city leaders had originally been afraid that Old Bai would not be willing. They had made a trip in person, but the old Mr. Bai had waved his hand and said to them, “You young people these days, you think too much! This old man has worked for the country his whole life. Of course I’ll be the first to support it! Just follow the normal procedures. You don’t have to worry about me. I’ll fully cooperate.”
With his words, the city leaders were also relieved. When they talked about the compensation again, because the amount was too large, they wanted to discuss compensating with a piece of residential land. Old Bai nodded in agreement to this. He was not short of money, and an extra piece of land was not bad.
The city was very happy, and Old Bai’s side was also satisfied. The two mountains behind were not touched, and the Bai family’s residential area had doubled in size. Although it was not as quiet as before, it was also convenient to live in the town. After the old residence was expanded, the area was large, and trees were planted around it. There was also a moat around it, which was a quiet place in the middle of the noise, no worse than before.
Although Old Bai agreed, the younger generation did not dare to let him give up the old house like that.
Luo Jiangjing knew how much the old Mr. Bai valued this old house. She would come back with her husband to stay for a few days every year. The old Mr. Bai would sweep the grave for his late wife and then eat vegetarian food for a few days. It had become a habit for so many years. She was in the real estate industry, so it was also convenient for her to do these demolition and reconstruction matters. There was a professional team in her company that could better dismantle the wooden buildings and transport them over, and then rebuild them.
She did not trust others and specially had Mi Zehai bring an engineer over to survey, planning to move it over intact.
Most of the Bai family’s old residence was a wooden structure, without any iron nails. As long as they were careful, they could completely achieve the replication requirements in terms of technology. Other things like the stone lions, stone screens, and other large trees in the courtyard could also be moved over, doing everything possible to maintain the original appearance.
Mi Zehai personally took people to discuss with Old Bai, and the planning for this part was detailed. The old Mr. Bai was very happy to hear that the things could be moved over and asked, “Can they all be moved? Let’s take the few trees in the backyard with us. There are two persimmon trees and a fig tree. My old wife planted them herself. Every autumn, I feel like something is missing if I don’t eat a couple of fruits.”
Mi Zehai said, “Of course. The trees are no problem. I guarantee they’ll be planted well for you. This is the preliminary plan for the residence. You can see if there’s anything else you want to do and just tell us. We’ll start work after everything is planned, completely according to your wishes.”
Old Bai took the blueprint and glanced at it, then beckoned for Bai Luochuan to come over. They looked at it together for a while and discussed in a low voice. The old Mr. Bai had always been a man of action, but he also doted on this only grandson of his. Even for such an important matter as relocating the residence, he did not have any intention of looking down on Bai Luochuan because of his young age. In fact, when Bai Luochuan pointed out something, he would circle it with a red pen. Whatever he wanted, the old man would nod and give it to him.
After Bai Luochuan pointed out the stable and the garden, Old Bai asked him, “Okay, is there anything else you want?”
Bai Luochuan thought for a moment. “I want to take the blueprint back and think about it again tonight.”
Old Bai nodded in agreement, gave him the blueprint, and said to him, “Take it back and look at it for a couple more days. There’s no hurry. Grandpa will be waiting for you.”
After Bai Luochuan left, the engineer Mi Zehai had brought with him did not say much, but the other architect was still looking in the direction of the door. He had just returned from abroad and had not been working in the company for many years like Mi Zehai and the others. He did not know this young master Bai and was just a little surprised to see an old man dote on his grandson so much—there was also some envy in it. In his opinion, such a large fortune was like it was being casually played with by the little young master.
After leaving the Bai family’s old residence, the architect still couldn’t help but look back at the large residence and sighed in a low voice, “This is really, the first time I’ve seen such a large residence. If it were taken out, it could be exchanged for a few good top-floor swimming pool luxury houses in a prime location in Shanghai. The old gentleman is really generous, as if he were giving it to the little young master.”
Mi Zehai said, “More than that.”
The young man was taken aback for a moment. “There’s more?”
Mi Zehai smiled. “From here, look back. The two mountains behind are also his. Besides these in Shanhai Town, what CEO Luo in Shanghai has built up… will also be taken over by the little young master in the future.”
The young man was speechless. “How much of a huge sum is that?” He then thought back to the young master Bai’s appearance just now. Now, he wished he were inlaid with diamonds, automatically glowing as he walked.
Bai Luochuan took the blueprint and went upstairs. Mi Yang was taking a nap in his bedroom, his little face flushed from sleep, his complexion very good. He sat on the edge of the bed and gently woke him up, having him get up and look at the blueprint with him. “I plan to put a stable here, and then expand the garden a little more. But I feel like something is still missing. Can you help me take a look?”
Mi Yang rubbed his eyes and looked for a while. Hearing Bai Luochuan explain, he only then understood that this was the new blueprint for the relocation and reconstruction of the Bai family’s old residence. This was something that had not happened in his previous life. The old residence had never moved, but Bai Luochuan had renovated a lot here. At that time, he had even taken Mi Yang for a special tour. Mi Yang pointed out the few places he remembered and also gave some suggestions on earthquake prevention.
These designs were, after all, the ideas of the adult Bai Luochuan, much more brilliant than the current teenage young master Bai. And they were the same person, with very similar ideas and aesthetics. After he said a few things, the current teenage Bai Luochuan kept nodding, expressing his approval.
The young master Bai said with satisfaction, “You think the same as I do. We’ll just add these. The rest can be discussed with Grandpa and the others.”
Mi Yang sat on the bed. There was a life-sized teddy bear by his side, a gift from someone on Bai Luochuan’s birthday a few days ago. Mi Yang thought it was comfortable to hug and used it as a pillow to sleep. Now, hearing that he was satisfied, he also sat there, his eyes curving into a smile.
Bai Luochuan’s heart itched. He touched his cheek and then pinched his earlobe. “Little Good Boy?”
Mi Yang looked up at him, with complete trust.
Bai Luochuan pinched his earlobe again and smiled. “Next time we come back, how about we raise fish in the pond together? I’ll buy a lot of koi, and we’ll also plant some lotus flowers. It will definitely be beautiful.”
Mi Yang thought of the pond from before. The first time Bai Luochuan had taken him to see it, the other had stood in the pavilion with him and had also asked him with a hint of pride, “What do you think? This pond I built is not bad, right? There are only lotus leaves now, so you’ll have to make do with admiring the fish. In June, I’ll invite you to see the lotus flowers and have a whole fish banquet…”
…
Bai Luochuan’s palm waved in front of his eyes, curious. “Little Good Boy, what are you thinking?”
Mi Yang blinked his eyes, looked at the young man who still had a hint of a youthful air, and smiled. “How about we raise some other fish too? In the summer, we can watch the lotus flowers in the pavilion and have a whole fish banquet.”
Bai Luochuan pinched his nose. “You glutton.”
As he said this, he still lowered his head and marked it with a red pen, making a serious note.
The relocation of the Bai family’s side went smoothly, and the city also sent special personnel to the other families in the town to actively do their work.
When Mi Zehai went home, he happened to see someone coming out of Mi Hong’s small courtyard. Mi Hong was relatively calm and did not see the guest off, but he was also not welcoming.
The person who came out knew Mi Zehai. They had met at the Bai’s house before. Now, it was a little awkward, but when they met, they both smiled helplessly and hid this distance. The other person said in a low voice, “We’re also just doing our job. We really can’t help it…”
Mi Zehai nodded but couldn’t say anything, feeling a little uneasy in his heart.
He saw these people off and, as usual, went to the kitchen to cook. He also opened a bottle of wine and placed it on the small table, calling for Mi Hong to eat with him. The two of them sat there and had a drink.
Mi Hong drank a small glass of white wine and, while eating, said to him, “The heat for this stuffed meat is still not right. It was taken out of the pot too late and was stewed for too long.”
Mi Zehai agreed. “I’ll pay attention next time.”
Mi Hong took another bite and said slowly, “Cooking is like being a person. If you have something on your mind, you can’t just drag it on.” He watched as Mi Zehai poured wine into his small wine cup and suddenly said, “Did I make things difficult for you?”
Mi Zehai poured a little too much wine, and some spilled out. He quickly wiped it clean and shook his head. “No.”
Mi Hong looked at him and didn’t say anything.
Mi Zehai’s eyes were dry, and he said softly, “Dad, if you’re really not willing to move, I’ll go and apply again…”
Mi Hong interrupted him. “Apply to move a few days later? Forget it. It’s meaningless.”
The father and son finished their meal in silence. Mi Zehai was about to clean up when Mi Hong stopped him. “No hurry. You can go for a walk with me.”
The old man had not stepped out of the small courtyard for a long time. When Mi Zehai heard this, he naturally quickly followed.
Mi Hong walked for a long way and did not say much to his son on the way. The father and son were half a step apart. One was at an age where he had to bend his back to walk, and the other was in his prime. Even after sitting in an office for a long time, he still maintained the walking posture from the army, upright and straight.
Mi Hong took him to a grove of trees at the foot of the mountain. A grove of camphor trees was planted there, lush and verdant, with lush branches and leaves. Walking under the trees, you could smell a faint fragrance.
In this grove, Mi Hong walked and talked to his son, “The people who came today, you should have thanked them. The one following behind was Captain Wang of the search and rescue team, the one who had saved Yangyang on the mountain… To have found this person to be a lobbyist, they’ve really put in some thought.” His tone was very light. He saw through it but was not annoyed, as if he were stating a fact.
Mi Zehai’s throat rolled a couple of times, and he called out “Dad.”
Mi Hong walked slowly and said to him, “I was a forest ranger here when I was young. At that time, I had just come to Shanhai Town with your mother and was guarding this grove of camphor trees. I also brought you here when you were little, but you probably don’t have much of an impression. Actually, I’m not a local. I had to look for a long time with your mother back then before I found this place and settled down. A few years later, I adopted you.” He patted a thick camphor tree beside him and looked up at its crown. “Did you know? This grove was actually your mother’s dowry that she had been saving since she was a child. We had a custom here that from the day a girl was born, a grove of trees would be planted for her to use as a dowry when she got married. But now it’s public property.”
He was silent for a long while before he sighed. “When your mother was in good health before, I would often bring her here for a walk, to look around.”
Mi Zehai didn’t dare to speak, his heart aching.
Mi Hong looked at the surrounding trees with a reluctance in his eyes and asked him, “Will this grove at the foot of the mountain still be here?”
Mi Zehai said, “It will.”
Mi Hong asked again, “Can I apply to stay here as a forest ranger?”
Mi Zehai choked out, “Mm, I’ll go and apply for you.”
Mi Hong then nodded. “The relocation agreement has already been signed. It’s on the table. You can take it to them later.”
Mi Zehai agreed beside him, but Mi Hong didn’t let him follow anymore and waved his hand. “You can go. I want to be alone here for a while.”
Mi Zehai’s eyes were red as he stopped, his voice hoarse, “Okay.”
Mi Hong gradually walked away. His steps were much slower than when he was young, but they were still steady and strong. He would touch the tree trunks from time to time, very familiar with every tree here. As he walked, he looked, patted a tree trunk, and chuckled. “Guizhi, I’m watching over it for you. I’m not going anywhere.”
He said, “I’ll just be here with you.”
