Courtyard House: The Thief System of All Realms

Chapter 32 Extravagant Purchase with Free Clothes, Upgraded Residence Space, and the Appearance of a

Sun Jingyuan glanced at the neatly arranged clothes on the shelf and, without much hesitation, picked out four simple yet elegant cotton dresses and skirt suits, along with two pairs of comfortable black leather shoes. He also grabbed some small accessories like hair clips, a round mirror, and hair ties. He paid for everything quickly and decisively, without the slightest hesitation. Qin Huairu stood to the side, completely at a loss, somewhat dazed, feeling as if she were walking on soft clouds, utterly disoriented.

In those days, every household struggled to make ends meet. Any spare money was carefully held onto, not a single penny dared to be spent recklessly. Take Uncle Yi Zhonghai, for example. His monthly salary was among the highest in the courtyard, yet he lived a life of frugality, patching and mending his clothes for years, never once buying himself a new item. Uncle Liu Haizhong's salary was also decent, but his family rarely ate meat; they might not eat meat even once every three months. Only Sun Jingyuan was always generous and carefree with money, buying these items without a trace of heartache in his eyes.

When Qin Huairu stepped out of the supply and marketing cooperative, her hands were stuffed full of seven bulging bags. The weight made her wrists ache slightly, but she still gripped them tightly, unwilling to loosen her grip even slightly. She walked beside Sun Jingyuan with her head down, her voice trembling with suppressed sobs, and said softly, "Jingyuan, there's really no need to buy me so much stuff. Two sets of clothes are enough for my daily work."

Sun Jingyuan glanced at her sideways, noticing the water droplets dripping from the ground out of the corner of his eye. He immediately smiled and softened his tone, teasing, "It's just a few sets of everyday clothes and a few small items, nothing expensive. Why are you crying?"

"I'm not sad, I'm just so happy." Qin Huairu quickly raised her hand and wiped her reddened eyes haphazardly. Her nose was still sore. When she looked up at Sun Jingyuan, her eyes were full of unconcealed emotion. "I've never had anyone treat me so well in my life. I always felt uneasy, afraid that after you get married, I would miss you."

Sun Jingyuan stopped walking with interest, his gaze falling on her flushed cheeks, and casually asked, "When that day really comes, what are your plans?"

Qin Huairu tightened her grip on the bag, her voice barely audible, yet utterly earnest: "If you have your own home, I'll quietly wait for you there. If you have time and want to come talk to me, I'll wait; if you don't come, I'll keep waiting."

"What you're doing isn't in the proper way in the eyes of outsiders," Sun Jingyuan teased her deliberately, his tone tinged with amusement.

Qin Huairu raised her head, her eyes showing no hesitation, and replied earnestly, word by word, "As long as I can protect you, I don't care about anything else."

"If this gets out, people will say you're shameless." Sun Jingyuan smiled, reached out and gently pinched her smooth cheek, then turned and ran forward quickly, not giving her a chance to say anything more.

"Sun Jingyuan, don't run!" Qin Huairu was stunned for a moment, then reacted and hurriedly chased after him with the bag in her hand. The two ran one after the other in the streets and alleys, their eyes filled with smiles, just like a couple deeply in love.

Instead of returning directly to the courtyard house, Sun Jingyuan took Qin Huairu to Quanjude Restaurant and ordered a whole authentic roast duck. The crispy duck skin, coated with sweet bean sauce and tender scallions, was bursting with flavor with every bite. Qin Huairu ate with great delight; she had never tasted such delicious food in her life. Even the leftover duck carcass was carefully wrapped in clean oil paper, not wanting to waste a single piece, intending to take it back to their residence to make soup. This sight made Sun Jingyuan chuckle.

After finishing their roast duck, it was completely dark. Sun Jingyuan took her to the cinema to watch a movie, and only when the streets and alleys grew quiet late at night did the two slowly walk back to the courtyard house side by side. As soon as they stepped into the central courtyard, a figure blocked their way.

"Sister Qin, you're finally back." Sha Zhu had been waiting at his door without sleeping. Hearing footsteps, he immediately ran out, his eyes fixed on Qin Huairu.

Qin Huairu was in a very good mood tonight, and she gave him a rare, gentle smile, speaking softly, "Zhuzi, why aren't you resting yet, it's so late?"

"My God, how much stuff did you buy?" Sha Zhu's eyes widened instantly when he saw the bags in her hands. His face was full of astonishment, and his tone was full of disbelief. "This is like you emptied the supply and marketing cooperative."

"Don't talk nonsense. I just started working at the steel mill, so I need to buy a few decent work clothes. I borrowed money from Jingyuan to buy these." Qin Huairu's smile faded a bit as she subtly found an excuse to cover up her words, not wanting to say too much to Sha Zhu.

"Sister Qin, Sun Jingyuan is a cunning fellow. Don't get too close to him!" Sha Zhu immediately became anxious, taking a step forward and speaking urgently, "If you ever need money, just come to me. I have plenty of money; I can give you all of it!"

"I understand. I'm exhausted after a whole day of running around. I'm going to go back to my room to rest." Qin Huairu yawned and replied in a flat tone. Not wanting to argue any further, she turned and walked towards her residence.

Sha Zhu obediently nodded in agreement, but showed no intention of going back inside. He stood straight at Qin Huairu's door, guarding her without moving.

After a while, Qin Huairu felt uneasy in the room. She quietly went to the window, peeked out through a crack, and saw Sha Zhu still standing straight in the doorway. Instantly, goosebumps rose all over her body. She immediately made up her mind that she could not stay here any longer. If she continued to stay, Sha Zhu would cause trouble sooner or later, and her affair with Sun Jingyuan would be exposed. She had to start looking for a new place to stay first thing tomorrow morning.

The next morning, Sun Jingyuan quickly tidied up and went straight to the subdistrict office to settle the remaining payment for the house repairs with Lei Aniu. In those days, there was no such thing as private construction; all construction teams belonged to the government. Lei Aniu's construction team was under the jurisdiction of the subdistrict office, and all payments had to be settled through the subdistrict office after the project was completed.

Rules may be rigid, but there are always ways to be flexible in their implementation. When Lei Aniu repaired Sun Jingyuan's house, the quote he submitted to the street office was twenty-five yuan, of which five yuan went to the street office as a management fee, and the remaining twenty yuan was the construction team's wages. The street office was actually vaguely aware that the actual cost far exceeded the quote, but these kinds of things were never easy to investigate thoroughly. Even if they changed to another construction team, the procedure would be the same, so they simply turned a blind eye.

In front of Director Wang of the neighborhood committee, Sun Jingyuan promptly paid the remaining twenty-five yuan. The neighborhood committee also issued an official document on the spot, confirming that the house repair project was fully completed and stipulating that if any problems such as leaks or wall damage occurred within five years, Lei Aniu's construction team must provide free on-site repairs and maintenance. After receiving his wages, Lei Aniu thanked Sun Jingyuan profusely before leaving happily.

After Lei Aniu left, Director Wang warmly invited Sun Jingyuan to stay for tea, and the two chatted casually in the office. Sun Jingyuan's gaze inadvertently swept over the property registration documents on the table, his eyes flickered slightly, and he immediately asked, "Director Wang, I'd like to ask, are private transactions of properties in this area currently prohibited?"

"Of course, absolutely not." Director Wang's face instantly turned serious, and he explained earnestly, "Take the courtyard house you live in, for example. You are the registered owner, but the property rights belong to the state. Individuals only have the right to reside there, and private sales are strictly prohibited."

"What if it's a house gift? Would that be feasible?" Sun Jingyuan rephrased the question and continued to press.

Director Wang's expression softened considerably, and he immediately smiled, replying in a low voice, "The gift is compliant, but it must be formally registered with the subdistrict office; only with complete procedures is it valid. Take Xu Damao in your compound, for example; the room he lives in was a gift from his father some time ago."

"I never knew there was such a trick to it." Sun Jingyuan feigned surprise, then pointed to a house marked on the document and asked with a smile, "Director Wang, look at this house. It says it's to be given away, but it doesn't specify the recipient. What's going on? And judging from the address, it's a house in our courtyard house."

"You have a good eye, you've taken a liking to this?" Director Wang didn't answer directly, but first solemnly warned, "Xiao Sun, I know you're well-off, but in the current situation, you must not take more than you can afford. You need to think this through."

"I understand that principle, I'm just asking about the situation." Sun Jingyuan nodded with a smile, his tone sincere.

"These are two side rooms next to the moon gate in the courtyard, with a total area of ​​about 70 square meters. The original owner left Beijing for the south some time ago and specially came to the subdistrict office in advance to register the transfer of ownership," Director Wang said slowly in a low voice. "The condition for the transfer is 500 yuan."

Sun Jingyuan lowered his head and pondered for a moment, then looked up at Director Wang and said confidently, "Director Wang, if I were to transfer this apartment to Qin Huairu through the proper gifting procedures, do you think it would be legal?"

Director Wang's expression changed instantly, his eyes filled with incomprehension. In his view, Sun Jingyuan was young and promising with a respectable job, while Qin Huairu was divorced and raising a child alone. The two were simply not a good match. He hesitated to speak, clearly indicating his disapproval.

Sun Jingyuan saw through his thoughts at a glance and quickly explained with a smile, "Director Wang, please don't overthink it. I have no other intentions. It's just that Qin Huairu is now divorced and single, and the steel mill doesn't have any housing allocations. She hasn't had a stable place to live in the compound. I'm giving her this house first, and then I'll have her sign a gift agreement that won't be registered with the public. Later, the ownership of the house will be transferred back to me. It's just a formality."

Director Wang suddenly realized what was going on, but still couldn't help asking, "Why are you going through all this trouble for this side room? What are you after?"

"As you know, the neighborhood in the courtyard is complicated, and I really can't get along with many people." Sun Jingyuan revealed a hint of helplessness, speaking frankly, "Once I get this side room, I can install a door at the moon gate to completely separate myself from those people in the main courtyard, so I can have some peace and quiet. Moreover, installing a door requires the consent of the original owner, otherwise there won't be any paperwork to go through."

The reason was perfectly reasonable and flawless. Director Wang immediately nodded in agreement and promised to help with the entire donation registration process.

After chatting for a few more minutes, Sun Jingyuan got up to take his leave. Just as he stepped out of the street office, a clear and cold system notification sounded in his mind. Immediately afterward, an invisible force pulled his thoughts into the Myriad Realms Thief Space.

Upon entering the space, Sun Jingyuan immediately saw that all the fruits, vegetables, and livestock produced in the previously divided planting and livestock breeding areas had reached their maximum value threshold. The energy accumulated in the space was completely saturated, automatically triggering the upgrade mechanism.

The core area, which was originally only one acre in size, was completely enveloped by a layer of soft white light, becoming an absolutely safe zone. Outside the safe zone, the originally empty void suddenly turned into a vast, boundless forest. The trees were dense and the mist was thick, stretching as far as the eye could see, making it impossible to see the details deep within the forest.

Sun Jingyuan stood at the edge of the white-light safe zone, staring at the unfamiliar, unknown forest before him, a hint of inquiry flashing in his eyes, but he did not rashly step out of the safe zone.

He stood quietly for a moment, memorizing the spatial layout before him, and then with a thought, he exited the Thief Space.

Back in the real streets, Sun Jingyuan walked steadily toward the courtyard house. He had already made up his mind that after dealing with the follow-up matters of Qin Huairu's house donation, he would find time to enter the space again, step out of the safe zone, and thoroughly explore this suddenly appeared unknown forest to find out its details.