CHAPTER 392: CHAPTER 300: FATHER AND DAUGHTER (PART 2)

Zhou Xiaozheng burst into laughter, "He spent five years coming up with this set of chess pieces. If it weren’t for the fact that the old man’s family was secretly planning to go abroad, he wouldn’t have sold it. It’s not expensive, not at all. There’s another set of black and red Ming Dynasty agate chess pieces, real antiques. Everyone knows about that family’s chess pieces, it’s not safe."

Zhou Jiao knowingly nodded. Her first feeling when she entered the courtyard was that this family was going to have bad luck, but she didn’t expect them to slip away quickly. No wonder they used gold for the transaction.

Zhou Xiaozheng drove away from this courtyard house, suddenly remembering there was something he hadn’t told Zhou Jiao. In the past two years since the private and public sector merger, the wealthy in Beijing were all terrified, and those who could leave the country tried every way possible to do so. Some families even started returning to their rural hometowns, dispersing their children across the country.

For safety reasons, after he went to work, he arranged for two old subordinates from families in distress to move into the big courtyard house. Rather than renting it for free to the public, he might as well do a favor for these people.

"Jiao Jiao, Dad will take you to the Big Courtyard to meet some people. Now, aside from the last inner courtyard which is locked, the front two courtyards I lent to some soldiers. Their hometowns are remote, and since they haven’t served long enough, they can’t be assigned to family quarters, so they rent on the outskirts. I dismissed the help hired by your grandmother and had those two families move in. Having military families in the house makes it safer."

Zhou Jiao was delighted and praised him, "Dad, you’re really smart! Also, lend the two remaining courtyards to people. Then I won’t have to go anymore, and see if the lease for the small courtyard ends soon, you could lend it to people too."

"I’m not planning to lend it out anymore. Currently, there are two military wives living there, and it’s fine for now. We’ll see in the future. The small courtyard is still lent to the Women’s Federation. Lending it to private individuals easily leads to disputes. If it weren’t for those two families being under my command and having good character, I wouldn’t have wanted them to move in. I’ll take you to meet them so they remember you, and you can come and go as you please. Also, there’s a secret chamber inside; I’ll take you to see it while no outsiders are around."

"Does Mom know?"

Zhou Xiaozheng smiled meaningfully. A cunning rabbit has three burrows; how could he own such a large courtyard without some preparation?

The five-entry courtyard is located in the Houhai area, which is the most famous Shi Hai area in Beijing.

Zhou Xiaozheng found a place to park the car and pulled Zhou Jiao into the alley. Watching his dazed daughter, he smiled and cheerfully introduced the surrounding residents and local attractions. When it came to the landmarks, he spoke fluently and enthusiastically.

Zhou Jiao felt a multitude of emotions as she touched the front door. Lin Lishan had praised the big courtyard, and she hadn’t thought much of it. Now it seemed that if her dad hadn’t come back, Gu Ruyi certainly wouldn’t have given up this ancient-style courtyard.

No wonder this courtyard historically didn’t bear the Zhou surname. Without her dad, she couldn’t hold onto this ancient residence.

"Dad, will this courtyard affect your personal rating?" Zhou Jiao quietly asked, taking advantage of the absence of people around them. Now the place was occupied by many high-ranking political figures, distributed here later on. The original owners either faded away from the world or fled during a purge.

Zhou Xiaozheng patted her, shook his head with a smile, and, after introducing Zhou Jiao to the military family living there, led her to the last of the inner courtyard.

Entering the courtyard along the way, Zhou Jiao became desensitized. She strongly disagreed with Zhou Xiaozheng’s introduction of the courtyard as hers. This should only be the ancestral residence of the Zhou Family in the future. In the years ahead, she wouldn’t be able to guard it; only her dad’s military merit in his uniform might barely sustain it. Her mind raced with thoughts on how to avoid calamity, weighing heavily on her mood.

Zhou Xiaozheng laughed heartily inside the room. The spacious hall echoed his rare laughter. He ruffled his daughter’s hair, looking at her worried face with a cheerful smile.

"So you’re scared? Dad has contingencies. Rest assured! Don’t frown; it looks terrible. Come quickly, let’s take a look at the secret room and cheer you up a bit. Remember the switches later."

Zhou Jiao, hearing him say he had contingencies, hesitated, observed his expression, and sighed softly with relief. Following him into the servants’ quarters, she carefully noted the switches, tried them once, and followed him inside—thankfully, there was no treasure.

Zhou Xiaozheng, holding back his laughter, pulled her up and said, "You can also store valuable furniture here. Find time to bring Xiao Wu over and have him move while you guard outside."

After saying this, he thought better of stimulating his daughter for now. Initially, he wanted to take the child to the suburbs, but decided against it now. Besides, leaving it for her just in case is good. As good as Zhang Guoqing may be, you can never fully know a person’s heart.

"Gu Ruyi knows everything clearly. Should we make some preparations?" Zhou Jiao was extremely disappointed with the old lady. She didn’t even dare touch the two boxes in the room now.

Zhou Xiaozheng nodded. He didn’t care, his openly displayed possessions were comparable to the old lady’s. The old lady might even be worried about him reporting her. But since the child was worried, he would comply.

"Handle it yourself. Throw outside whatever you don’t like."

Returning to the Big Courtyard, under the streetlight by the entrance of the Zhou Family, Lin Lishan was anxiously pacing. Seeing the father and daughter laden with bags, she quickly went to take them from Zhou Jiao, chiding them for really knowing how to shop, completely forgetting to eat.

Zhou Jiao was most afraid of her nagging, and quickly explained that Zhou Xiaozheng took her to the Big Courtyard to see the dowry.

As expected, upon hearing this, Lin Lishan immediately changed the topic, starting to talk about other matters.

After dinner, back in the bedroom, Zhou Jiao held the child and fed him before beginning to zone out. She now didn’t even feel like appreciating her favorite things.

Zhang Guoqing, seeing her frown, thought she was worried about the child. He hurriedly took the child and reassured her that the cold weather wouldn’t spoil the expressed milk, and Ping’an had been feeding with no issues.

Zhou Jiao softly explained where the Big Courtyard was, who lived there now, and what specific valuables were inside, puzzled by his smiling nod.

Zhang Guoqing had already known since Lin Lishan told him about the Big Courtyard in Houhai. The Zhang Family inherited a set of courtyards worth over a billion situated in Houhai. He had seen the layout and renovation pictures of the courtyards and initially planned for the family to move in after their child was born and spend some time there.

How could he not know how prominent it was? Since his father-in-law had foresight and arranged for military families to live there, no matter how the future unfolded, his central-positioned father-in-law certainly had contingencies. He fully trusted his father-in-law’s judgment. Since he mentioned having contingencies, he could rest easy.