In the next two days, Mingyue had nothing to do so she wandered around.
She talked to people from all walks of life and inquired about all kinds of information about the city. Soon she figured out the surrounding vegetable markets and the most basic prices, and also decided on the locations and prices for her snacks.
When Meng Zhen's factory had a holiday, Meng Zhen said hello to her colleagues and took Mingyue to see the two houses.
Both houses belong to Meng Zhen's colleague. That colleague has a good relationship with Meng Zhen and he did not hide anything from Mingyue, explaining the disadvantages of the houses very clearly.
A house a little further away is where my colleague lives. They rent out the loft upstairs with a separate staircase. The advantage is that it is an independent space with a large area. The price is also cheap, only 7.5 yuan a month. The disadvantage is that it is not convenient to wash. To go to the toilet, you have to go to the pit behind the house. The kitchen is not available.
The other one is near the factory, in a corner of a large courtyard with a small kitchen. The previous tenants had just moved out, and the house was still a bit messy. The disadvantage of this house is that the surrounding environment is not very good. There are all kinds of people living in the courtyard, and it is very easy to cause disputes. The advantage is that the location is relatively convenient. The kitchen and independent bathroom are very convenient for Mingyue. This house costs 8.8 yuan a month, and it can be discounted if it is a long-term lease.
After looking at both houses, Mingyue chose the second one without any hesitation.
Whether in terms of distance or house configuration, it is obvious that the second house is more suitable for her needs.
But when Meng Zhen heard Mingyue said she wanted a second set, she immediately pulled Mingyue aside and said with a frown: "Mingyue, you better think about it. There are all kinds of messy people in that compound, and you are a weak woman. What if you meet someone with bad intentions..."
Mingyue understood what she meant and knew that she was worried about her safety.
But Mingyue also had some thoughts in her mind, so she patted her sister-in-law's arm and said, "Don't worry, Third Sister-in-law, I made this choice after thinking it through. It's okay."
Seeing that she was determined to do this, Meng Zhen had no choice but to put aside her concerns and go to bargain with her colleagues.
Meng Zhen's colleague was also easy to talk to. The rent was finally set at eight yuan and thirty cents a month. Mingyue was also very straightforward and paid half a year's rent directly, which made her colleague's attitude even better.
After the colleagues left, Meng Zhen helped Mingyue clean up the house inside and out, and moved the bottles and jars in with Mingyue. They also went to the wholesale market to buy daily necessities and kitchen utensils. Finally, the house became a little lively.
Seeing that everything was packed up, Meng Zhen said she wanted to go back.
She had been helping out running around under the scorching sun today. How could Mingyue let her go back like this after a busy day? That would be too unkind of a person.
Mingyue stopped her immediately and said, "Third sister-in-law, I don't treat you as an outsider. I have to trouble you to go back and say hello to my aunt and third and fourth brothers, and tell them to have dinner at my place tonight. I'm going out to buy some groceries now, and I'll cook something delicious for you to taste in the evening."
Mingyue pointed at the pots and pans and smiled, "You can't refuse. Just treat it as if I'm moving into a new house today. You can celebrate with me."
Now that she had said this, Meng Zhen really couldn't say no.
"That's fine," Meng Zhen thought for a moment and then said, "But you just need to buy some vegetables. I'll ask your third brother to use the meat coupons to buy meat, and I'll get you a few more coupons. Oh, and you'll have to ask your fourth brother to get you some more coupons."
In fact, before Mingyue came to the city, Old Man Zhou gave her two grain coupons, two pork coupons, two cotton cloth coupons and two oil coupons, but they haven't been used yet!
However, looking at Meng Zhen's sincere eyes, Ming Yue did not refuse and smiled and said "OK". These days, the factory where they worked on Wednesdays and Thursdays received a batch of urgent orders, and they were working overtime every day. The brothers came back late from get off work, so Meng Zhen went to the workshop to talk to them about this.
Zhou Sanming had accompanied Meng Zhen to see a house before, and he still remembered the way. When he heard Meng Zhen say it was a slum, he knew his younger sister's final choice.
The two brothers naturally agreed. Zhou Siming also asked Meng Zhen to help ask Ning Ning if she was free. He wanted to take this opportunity to introduce Ning Ning to his younger sister.
Meng Zhen was exhausted today, but she never treated Zhou Laosi as an outsider. Besides, she and Ning Ning had met him several times and they were already familiar with each other, so she was happy to help.
So when Mingyue returned to the new home again, what she saw was Meng's mother and Bao'er pulling the grass in the yard, and Meng Zhen and a young girl wearing bell-bottom pants and a high ponytail were talking at the door.
Before Mingyue came close, Meng Zhen saw her coming back and hurried over to help take a few bags of vegetables. She couldn't help but scolded, "Why did you buy so many vegetables? How can we eat them all?"
"Not much. Besides, it's rare for me to be the boss. I can't have enough meat, but I can't have less vegetables!" Mingyue said, winking at her and asking, "Third sister-in-law, who is this female comrade?"
"Look at my memory. I even forgot to introduce them to you." Meng Zhen slapped her forehead and said to Mingyue, "This is Ning Ning. She is your fourth brother's girlfriend. You can just call her Sister Ning." Then she said to Ning Ning, "This is Mingyue. She is the fourth brother's younger sister."
"Hello Mingyue, the time for our first meeting is a bit tight, and I haven't been to the department store to carefully choose a gift, so I'll give this to you first. I hope you don't mind." Ning Ning took out a box that looked very exquisite from her bag. She originally wanted to put it in Mingyue's palm, but when she saw that both her hands were full of vegetables, she stuffed it directly into her pocket.
Meng Zhen smiled and shook her head, saying jokingly, "Tickets for this type of ladies' watch are hard to come by. Mingyue, why don't you thank Sister Ning quickly?"
"Thank you, Sister Ning." Mingyue blinked and continued the conversation.
Ning Ning breathed a sigh of relief. She was a generous and cheerful person. What she feared most was meeting someone with a timid personality. Fortunately, Meng Zhen and Mingyue were neither of those people.
"I'm glad you like it. Let's go into the house first." Ning Ning said with a smile.
Mingyue nodded, put her hand on the door, took out the key and opened the door, and said to Meng Zhen: "Third sister-in-law, you stay with Sister Ning and chat for a while, I'll go and prepare the dishes first."
"Okay, Ning Ning, you sit inside for a while." Meng Zhen took down the two bags of meat hanging at the door and carried them into the kitchen: "Mingyue, I put the meat here."
After hearing Mingyue's agreement, she asked again, "You really don't want my help? Although I'm not very good at cooking, I can still wash vegetables."
Mingyue waved her hand and said, "Third sister-in-law, you should help me entertain the guests. I'm fine here by myself."
Seeing that she could pick a dish in just a few seconds with her hands like a twirling rope, Meng Zhen decided not to stay and make trouble.
(End of this chapter)