chsdbacks Chapter 232 Licheng Villa
Chapter 232 Licheng Villa
Everything in the yard has been prepared.
Shen Li suddenly breathed a sigh of relief, feeling all the strength in her body suddenly dissipate—now she was truly free.
The shop's trivial matters had always been handled by Lu's mother, so she didn't have to worry about it; the only thing she had to worry about before was the construction of this new courtyard.
Now that everything has settled, she feels a strange sense of emptiness and contentment.
The name of the courtyard, however, caused quite a bit of debate among the group.
Shen Li initially wanted to call it "Lu Mansion", since it was her home with Lu Cheng; however, Lu's mother and family members felt that calling it "Shen Mansion" was also appropriate, saying that since Shen Li had funded the purchase of the courtyard, it should be called "Shen Mansion".
Both sides stuck to their own versions of events, and neither could convince the other.
In the end, it was Lu Cheng who suggested calling it Li Cheng Villa, which would include both Shen Li's name and Lu Cheng's courtesy name, making it more thoughtful than simply calling it a "something residence".
Once the name was mentioned, everyone felt it was appropriate.
The courtyard is located right on the street, and the four characters "Licheng Bieyuan" are easy to pronounce and sound elegant.
Shen Li still had some concerns, asking, "Won't my older brother have some reservations?"
Lu Cheng's tone on the phone carried a hint of mockery: "Don't worry, your older brother has always wholeheartedly supported your decisions. Why would I have any objections?"
"Really?" Shen Li raised an eyebrow, clearly not believing it.
Lu Cheng leaned closer and coaxed in a low voice, "Why would I lie to you?"
Shen Li was finally relieved and simply named the courtyard "Licheng Villa"—the same name as their company.
In this way, neither she nor the Lu family members would feel like they were living under someone else's roof; instead, they would show a close, intimate relationship.
The renovation of this courtyard cost fifty to sixty thousand yuan. For an ordinary family, it would cost at least one hundred thousand yuan.
Fortunately, half of the furniture and all the lamps were taken from the space by Shen Li, which saved most of the expenses.
Shuanzi, who was in charge of the renovation, was honest and didn't earn much money from Shen Li; he basically only took a small fee for his hard work.
However, these two deals have given him a lot of experience. Now he has rented a 300-square-meter storefront in Beijing and started his own decoration company. He has already received several orders.
His first major client was Shen Li's "Muxi Beauty Salon".
Every customer who has ever visited Muxi has been attracted by the store's novel decor, which has become the best advertisement for Shuanzi.
As for Licheng Villa, although it is not open to the public, Shuanzi took some photos of the public areas for promotion, which attracted many customers.
The garden design of the courtyard was personally decided by Shen Li, and her eldest and second uncles also followed her ideas and helped Shuanzi with the construction.
When the courtyard was completely completed, everyone praised it highly—the old buildings inside had been renovated and the layout was very thoughtful.
Shen Li's main courtyard was the largest and most spacious, while Lu's mother and father lived in the second courtyard next to it;
Grandpa Yu's house is next to the front yard, making it convenient for him to eat and visit neighbors.
Xiao Nan and Xiao Zhou are not married yet. They live in the same courtyard, not far from Shen Li's main courtyard, but a little far from the front yard. To eat, they have to walk through three corridors.
However, Shen Li had already considered this point and specially built a circular corridor so that even on rainy days, people could travel between the courtyards without using an umbrella.
Water is also readily available; each courtyard has hot water and heating in its toilets, so you no longer have to suffer from the cold when taking a shower in winter.
There are far too many electrical appliances in the house, and the current power supply is simply not enough.
Shen Li bought a lot of solar panels and also prepared a generator. It took a lot of effort to install them, but fortunately they are finally running normally now, otherwise they would probably trip the circuit breaker every day.
Each courtyard's bathroom is exquisitely designed, complete with double-basin vanity, wet and dry separation, and bathtub.
Shen Li's master bathroom was even more extreme. At first, he wanted to install a double sink, but felt it wasn't enough. Installing a third sink would have looked out of place, so he simply installed two sets of double sinks facing each other, which was both practical and aesthetically pleasing.
The bed was also replaced with a larger one, measuring 2.5 meters by 2.2 meters, which didn't feel cramped in the spacious master bedroom.
Speaking of the master bedroom, it is truly magnificent—a walk-in closet, a large bed, a dressing table, and a desk are all provided, yet it still feels empty.
Shen Li smiled as she touched the soft bedding. Sleeping alone was indeed a bit lonely; but with so many people at home, it would be lively enough.
Such a large courtyard would feel deserted and frightening if there were fewer people.
She has always enjoyed lively and bustling days.
With a larger yard comes more chores, and the family alone simply can't handle it all, so hiring a servant has become the most urgent matter.
During lunch on the weekend, Shen Li looked at Chen Haisheng at the table and softly called out, "Brother Haisheng."
Chen Haisheng put down his chopsticks, looked up, and replied, "Xiao Li, what's up?"
"What is your sister-in-law doing now?" Shen Li asked slowly, ladling a bowl of soup.
Chen Haisheng smiled, his tone tinged with helplessness: "I work odd jobs in a garment factory, earning fifty yuan a month. The work is quite tiring."
"Is your cooking good, sister-in-law?" Shen Li asked again.
Mentioning his wife's cooking skills, Chen Haisheng's eyes lit up: "Absolutely! It tastes much better than mine. If you hadn't only been hiring male workers before, I would have wanted her to work here, and I would have gone to the factory to do odd jobs."
He sighed, "She looks strong, but working in a garment factory is physically demanding, and I always feel sorry for her getting tired."
Shen Li listened and had an idea in mind.
Initially, she didn't plan to hire a family like Chen Haisheng's with three children. However, after getting to know them, she found that his three children were very well-mannered and knew how to speak and act appropriately. So she changed her mind and decided to hire Chen Haisheng as the housekeeper and have his wife manage the kitchen.
Ultimately, good character is the most important thing; minor shortcomings can be addressed with compromise.
As for the other servants, three or four more will be enough: one to help with kitchen work, and two or three to be responsible for cleaning.
After thinking it over, Shen Li put down her chopsticks and said seriously, "Brother Haisheng, you should know that I bought a new house, right?"
Chen Haisheng nodded, but a question arose in his mind: Xiao Li suddenly asked about his wife and mentioned the new courtyard. Did he mean to fire him and make him find another way out? His heart sank, and a look of dejection appeared on his face.
Shen Li, oblivious to his expression, continued, "I'd like to ask my sister-in-law to work for me, eighty yuan a month, to be responsible for three meals a day at home; also, I'd like to ask you to be the housekeeper at the new courtyard, one hundred yuan a month. What do you think?"
Chen Haisheng abruptly raised his head, his eyes wide open, forgetting to swallow the food in his mouth: "This...this...is it real?"
He pinched himself, gasping in pain before he could believe he wasn't dreaming. "What...what does a butler do? I've never done that!"
Shen Li couldn't help but laugh and patiently explained, "It's just managing household chores, like fixing things up or down. If you can make the decision, just arrange for someone to do it yourself; if you can't, just tell me. It's not difficult."