Chapter 147: For the Dream

Wu An didn't answer right away, asking, "Are you also planning to drop out of school?"

Mai Hangyu said hesitantly, "Um... this... probably not, but I really want to do something; staying home every day is so boring."

"Okay, then like this: before you start school, you'll help me with work; whenever you're on break, you're welcome to come back." Wu An thought for a moment and said, "No matter what, the house definitely needs to be bought; you handle this first, and later I'll give you a share."

"As for starting a company, that can't be rushed."

"I don't really understand; I need to consult a professional."

Time waits for no one.

It's already 2012; who knows when the travel trend will blow in—if we catch wind of it, no fool would sell the old house again.

He needs to act quickly.

But he truly doesn't have that much energy to deal with it; Mai Hangyu is eager to help, and he doesn't mind bringing this young man along.

Although he hasn't interacted much with Mai Hangyu, he knows what kind of person Lao Mai is, so with Lao Mai around, Mai Hangyu's side shouldn't be a problem.

As for Lao Mai saying he doesn't want to cooperate,

but his grandson is already on his thief ship—can Lao Mai really ignore everything?

When something comes up, Lao Mai will definitely have to step in.

Having Mai Hangyu is equivalent to letting the grandfather and grandson help him.

This deal is very worthwhile.

Mai Hangyu said somewhat excitedly, "Brother An, I'll definitely do a good job; today I'll go contact the house seller."

Lao Mai quickly said, "This can't be rushed."

"If you rush up to them, they're not fools—they'll surely take the chance to raise the price."

"Let them come to us willingly, then we can get a lower price."

Wu An laughed, "Lao Mai, it's still you."

He had thought Lao Mai would only help if trouble arose, but unexpectedly, right at the start, Lao Mai couldn't hold back from giving pointers.

Mai Hangyu muttered, "Old sly fox, then I'll listen to you."

Lao Mai kicked out and scolded, "You little brat, no respect—who are you cursing at?"

Mai Hangyu let out two strange cries.

It's clear the grandfather and grandson have a good relationship; otherwise, Mai Hangyu wouldn't come back to his hometown during summer break to keep Lao Mai company.

Wu An listened to the grandfather and grandson's banter and couldn't help laughing out loud.

Lao Mai asked, "A An, you weren't still planning to buy a fishing boat, do you really have that much money? This isn't the city where you can get a mortgage; here we have to pay in full upfront."

He didn't mention a loan.

If Wu An said he wanted to buy a house with a loan, he would immediately advise Wu An to give up and wouldn't allow Mai Hangyu to get involved.

Wu An said, "To be honest, I actually have only about 200,000 in total."

This 200,000 is actually not real, because we still have to count the compensation money from the Chen Family later.

Lao Mai clicked his tongue: "This..."

Mai Hangyu was also shocked: "Brother, that's all you have?"

Wu An asked, "This money... for the dream, is it too little?"

Mai Hangyu's eyes lit up: "Not little at all, not little at all!"

Lao Mai shook his head: "A An, why are you also spouting this nonsense..."

Speaking of this.

Suddenly he froze.

He suddenly realized that Wu An is actually only a few months older than Mai Hangyu.

All along, he had treated Wu An as an ageless friend.

He had forgotten, Wu An is also a young person of this age.

In his eyes, Mai Hangyu is a kid; using today's youth slang, he's a bit chuunibyou, always daydreaming about impractical things.

Actually, Wu An is no different.

Lao Mai gave a wry laugh, then said no more—let them mess around; as Wu An put it, at worst it's just 200,000 for the dream.

If they really lose money, at worst he'll chip in his own funds.

……

Wu An hung up the phone, noticed Mei Yueqin staring at him intently, touched his face, didn't notice anything unusual, and asked, "Sister-in-law, what's wrong?"

Mei Yueqin asked, "You want to buy a house in town?"

Wu An nodded.

Mei Yueqin grew anxious: "You weren't planning to tear down the old house and build a new one—why suddenly think about buying a house in town?"

Unless you're going to settle in the city, villagers normally build houses in the village; even if land is insufficient, they still seek a homestead within the village.

Some people also buy houses in town.

Such people usually can't get by in the village, so they choose to leave their native village for town.

If Wu An does that, he's likely to be gossiped about.

Wu An said, "Sister-in-law, don't overthink it."

"I'm not trying to get far away from you."

"Once that old house is bought, I won't live there myself—I'll invest and develop it into a guesthouse."

Mei Yueqin curiously asked, "What's a guesthouse?"

"A guesthouse is..." Wu An froze, then realized that although the concept of guesthouses exists now, it hasn't yet become widespread.

Now the internet is still developing, and many people still don't use smartphones.

After all, the spread of 4G network won't happen until next year.

And homestays only began a sudden boom after the internet became widespread and the sharing model gained public acceptance.

He thought for a moment and explained, "It's similar to a hotel, but compared with a hotel it's more down‑to‑earth. For example, if tourists arrive, we host them to stay at our home, and then our home can be called a homestay."

"Of course, we also need to provide some essential services and facilities."

Mei Yueqin suddenly said, "It sounds so unreliable… But if you're going to do it, sister‑in‑law will support you unconditionally; if you need money, be sure to ask."

"…" Wu An smiled and said, "Got it."

The tourism wave hasn't reached here yet, and even locals think this place is remote and off‑the‑beaten‑path, so who with a hole in their head would travel a long way to play here.

If you really have the money, isn't a trip to Hainan Sanya fine?

But with the rise of agritourism and the widespread online saying "It's not that XX can't afford it; it's that XX offers better value," many people's travel plans no longer limit themselves to those few famous spots.

There are too many people domestically.

So many that once traffic hits a place, that place gets swamped by tourists.

Wu An wants to prepare in advance before this wind blows, ready to welcome this sky‑splattering fortune.

He kept talking.

The sky grew dark.

Wu An doesn't plan to go fishing; his Daily Luck is low today, only 5 points, and with that luck he'd earn only a few hundred yuan by fishing.

If A Qing follows, they could split out a few dozen yuan.

There's no point; better to rest. After a whole day of riding, shuttling back and forth, and the exam, he's a bit weary.

He let A Qing take some fruit back for Juan to try.

A Qing didn't hesitate, grabbed a plastic bag and left.

Sister‑in‑law Mei Yueqin also prepared dinner, took the lamb Wu An bought and walked into the kitchen.

Local lamb has little gamey smell; it's best eaten fresh—if frozen and then thawed, the texture suffers greatly.

Just as the dishes were ready, Wu Yingwei and Wu Ping returned home one after another.

Wu Ping washed his hands and said, "I heard something big happened in the Village today."

Wu Yingwei chimed in, "Your brother's masterpiece."

Wu An coughed and said, "Dad, we're family, but I'll still sue you for defamation. What does it have to do with me? At most I just made a cameo as 'Chaoyang Crowd.'"

Wu Yingwei smiled and nodded at him.

Wu Ping grew even more curious.

Wu An briefly explained the situation; Wu Ping gasped, "A An, you're becoming scary now, thank goodness you're my brother."

Wu An smiled; he actually wanted to say, "Even blood brothers can fall out," but held back, knowing that saying it would earn him a beating.

Such a good atmosphere at home shouldn't be ruined by a single sentence.

He had two drinks with Wu Yingwei and asked, "Dad, is there a place in town that can repair fishing‑boat engines?"

"Why are you asking that?"

"Of course it's to repair a fishing‑boat engine."

"That boat isn't yours; why are you so eager? Are you really planning to be a good person all the way?"

"I'm thinking the boat will eventually be mine, so I'm gathering information in advance."

"What if they refuse to sell it to you?"

"No, they will sell it to me."

Wu Yingwei shook his head, not knowing where this kid's confidence came from, got up, went back to the house and fetched a crumpled business card, saying, "This is the contact information of the town's repair shop owner; all the village's agricultural machines go here for repairs. If you mention my name, you won't be ripped off."