Chapter 1362: Chapter 1362: Borrowing Money

Lu Yixuan’s family returned from the Yue Family in the afternoon, and Gu Qianru and her family left after dinner.

They arranged to meet at the Luo Family Old Residence tomorrow.

That evening, Luo Qiao received a call from Ji Lin, who said she was doing quite well in Boston. Before the school holiday, she’d attend classes whenever she had free time, and she had indeed learned a lot.

Earlier this year, her mom flew over to accompany her. They agreed to return to China together after she gave birth. Neighbors on both sides learned that she was Luo Qiao’s friend, so they were very kind to her, even asking her to send their regards.

Luo Qiao also asked her to pass on well-wishes to Hannah’s family and Auntie Mary’s family, and said they were welcome to visit China when they had the time.

After hanging up, Luo Qiao had just picked up a book when Lu Yichen walked out of the bathroom: “Did you finish the milk I made for you?”

Luo Qiao nodded. “I finished it.”

Lu Yichen reached out his hand: “Give me the cup, I’ll rinse it for you.”

He set aside the towel he’d been using to dry his hair, took the cup, rinsed it clean, then filled it with hot water and placed it on the bedside table before getting into bed.

Luo Qiao turned her head to glance at him. “Your hair’s still wet.”

Lu Yichen tilted his damp head toward Luo Qiao: “Wife, help me dry it.”

Luo Qiao reached into the bottom drawer and pulled out a hair dryer. “You’re getting more and more pretentious.”

Lu Yichen laughed. “I’m only pretentious with my wife.”

Luo Qiao chuckled. “You wouldn’t manage to be pretentious with anyone else—you’d just end up scaring them away.”

Lu Yichen laughed, then pulled Luo Qiao closer by wrapping his arm around her neck. “As long as my wife knows my other side, I couldn’t care less about anyone else.”

With that, he gave Luo Qiao a kiss on the cheek before releasing her, laying his head on her lap and letting her fuss over him.

Suddenly, something came to his mind: “After the New Year, let’s move back to the residential compound. Homes on both sides of the street will start being torn down soon, and it’ll be impossible to drive in or have peace and quiet.”

“A few days ago, Elder Rong was telling me that he and his wife want to go back to Changzhou for a while. They’re planning to arrange their graves ahead of time so they’ll feel settled.”

Luo Qiao paused her actions. “Why not have Qi Ling accompany them? Just letting the elderly couple go alone makes me uneasy.”

Lu Yichen hummed softly in agreement. “Alright.”

The next day, the seven of them set off for the Luo Family Old Residence after breakfast.

When they arrived, Luo Haotian and Gu Qianru had already returned.

The children ran off to play with their cousins as soon as they entered the house. Now that they were older, there was no need to keep an eye on them all the time.

Luo Jialin walked over. “Qiaoqiao, come with me upstairs. I want to talk to you about something and get your advice.”

Luo Qiao followed Luo Jialin upstairs. “What’s the matter, Sister Jialin?”

“Qiaoqiao, during the New Year dinner at my mother-in-law’s house, my two sisters-in-law openly asked me for a loan. They said they want to buy houses, but they’re asking for a ridiculously large amount—each family wants 30,000.”

“What does your husband think about it?”

“He got drunk that day, and his two older brothers sweet-talked him until he didn’t know what was going on. He agreed without even thinking.”

“And what about now? What does he say after sobering up?”

“He said he’ll head back there in a few days to straighten this out. Honestly, what a mess.”

“Why didn’t you address it at the time and make things clear to them?”

“I didn’t even know he had agreed to his two older brothers. I only found out when we were already in the car heading back, and they brought it up.”

“Why do both families need to buy houses at the same time?”

“It’s for collective housing from the textile factory. Housing prices are much higher now compared to before. The factory knows everyone’s circumstances, so they’ve split the payments into three phases: first, 30% upfront; another 30% when the structure is completed; and the remaining balance when the keys are handed over.”

After hearing this, Luo Qiao asked, “Based on their years of employment, how large of a house can they buy? What price did the factory set?”

“Both families can buy a 70-square-meter house. After the factory subsidy, the price is calculated at 1,500 per square meter.”

Luo Qiao responded coolly, “They’re treating you two as pushovers. For 70 square meters, 30% is 31,500. That means they each only have 1,500 in hand right now, and they’d need to borrow again when the structure’s ready.”

Luo Jialin, clearly annoyed, said, “Exactly. My husband and I said the same thing.”