Chapter 452: Renovation Trifles

Seeing that Xia De didn't understand any of this, Priest August stopped and looked at the morning scenery of Dawn Square outside the window in the corridor with Xia De:

"Xia De, you obviously can't supervise the workers' construction at home all day. Although the construction team I recommended to you is very reliable and won't cause you trouble, how will you handle problems during the construction process? Let them report once a day? And, are you really at ease with a group of strangers staying in your house?"

"This..."

The old priest patted Xia De on the shoulder:

"Ha, young people really don't do things reliably. Like this, I will send you a supervisor from the church as your representative to assist you in handling matters during the house maintenance and construction process."

"Then how should I pay the salary? Daily or weekly?"

Xia De asked immediately.

"Salary?"

Priest August looked at him curiously:

"Why pay a salary?"

"Um?"

"The church helps believers, and most of the time it doesn't ask for a salary. Not to mention just being a supervisor, even if you want to find someone to help you exorcise demons, or want to participate in the believer social gatherings organized by the church, or help you host weddings and funerals, does the church charge you money?"

Actually, it still charges some, but very little.

"Hamilton of Lei Jiede, you are a core believer of the Dawn Church in the Tobesk diocese, so there is no need to talk about money for this kind of thing."

The priest concluded the conversation and led Xia De to find someone to help. The young priests and nuns passing by in the corridor would greet Priest August very respectfully, and his reputation in this diocese was very high.

"However, your house is a 'haunted house' registered in the church after all. If there are any problems in the future, it is best not to handle them 'yourself', but to find the church to handle them."

He reread certain words, and Xia De nodded to show he understood:

"However, if I live for a few years and have been safe and sound,?"

"That's hard to say."

The priest was not optimistic about this:

"You see, the previous detective Sparrow Hamilton also lived for three years before something happened. So if you want to prove that your house is not a haunted house, you must at least live longer than Detective Sparrow and be able to move out healthily."

Xia De calculated that he had only lived at No. 6 for two months. And if he wanted to sell the house at the price of neighbors' normal houses, he had to live at least until the summer of 1856 of the Common Era.

"However, I have confidence in you. The current situation is a process of rapid wealth appreciation for you. This is more reliable than any investment, even the most profitable investment project rumored by nobles, participating in adventure groups exploring the New Continent, will not have such a rich return as the real estate of St. Theresa Square."

Priest August said with a smile, and the Outlander deeply agreed:

"Yes, I forgot, not only the house, but the real estate of No. 6 is also mine... Sure enough, no matter where you are, no matter what era you are in, real estate is the most value-preserving investment."

"It's really not easy for young people to realize this."

The priest said, touching his chin.

Because he didn't have a house in his hometown, the Outlander had no experience in building maintenance and renovation.

He thought this was a very simple matter, just sign a formal contract and meet the supervisor sent by the church. Unexpectedly, after the work started, he had to make decisions on all kinds of big and small things in the house layout, because in addition to renovation, he also wanted to decorate.

Besides, the horse-drawn freight transport team sent by Shi Shi Misi Galina this afternoon blocked half of St. Theresa Square, almost causing traffic chaos in the nearby blocks.

Xia De didn't expect that the maid would get so much furniture for him. He only wanted simple wardrobes, beds, and tables, but didn't expect the maid to be so detailed that she even chose the style of curtains, the style of gas lamps, and the oil paintings on the wall for him.

These furniture were first transported to the basement, waiting to be arranged after the renovation.

And in addition to the furniture transport team, Shi Shi Misi Galina had a temporary idea and also found masons to re-decorate the walls and fireplaces for Xia De's house, and sent carpenters from the manor to build shelves and a small amount of furniture that was not ready-made for Xia De.

So the masons and carpenters who were specifically responsible for maintaining the noble manor joined the renovation team recommended by Priest August, the gas company, and the pipeline layout personnel of the steam company invited by Xia De, and together they decided on a brand new house renovation plan.

Of course, this was without extra money, after all, the money Xia De originally paid had a premium.

Because of these complicated and messy things, Xia De was busy at home all day on Monday, without any leisure. This was even more tiring than going to Coldwater Port for an adventure; at least there was leisure time when going to Coldwater Port.

But fortunately, the house renovation documents were approved. I don't know who helped Xia De say hello at the City Hall, and all documents were stamped and filed in one day.

And when everyone left No. 6 in the evening, the specific renovation and maintenance plan was also formulated. Afterward, it only needed to be executed according to the plan. As long as there was no heavy rain that would affect the roof waterproofing construction, the project was expected to be completed within this week. By then, all rooms of No. 6 St. Theresa Square would be fully open to Xia De.

And such a big renovation, although it did not make Xia De pay extra expenses, attracted the attention of neighbors. Although St. Theresa Square did not have a neighbor mutual aid committee, the renovation of the block needed to consult the neighbors' consent due to the possible long-term noise and the entry and exit of strangers.

Therefore, in the evening, Xia De took the opinion form to visit his neighbors. And due to Xia De's abnormal working hours, this was the first time he saw his neighbors.

Among them, living at No. 5 St. Theresa Square was an old couple, the Smiths, in their fifties, who kept three small dogs at home. They politely invited Xia De to have a cup of tea, and after knowing it was just a simple renovation, they signed their names on the document.

The two knew Detective Sparrow who had lived here for three years, but it was also from Xia De that they heard that Detective Sparrow had passed away. After all, when the detective was alive, his relationship with the neighbors was not very close.

As for Mr. Shi Shi Misi and Mrs. Shi Shi Misi, the former was a retired kingdom civil servant who used to work as a secretary in the Kingdom Ministry of Finance. Those framed medals on the wall were the honors he had received. Just the ones Xia De knew included the "Draerion Iris Knight Medal," "St. George Loyalty Ribbon Medal," and "Kingdom Special Contribution Medal." In Draerion's five-level medal system, both were third-level medals, and the latter was a second-level medal. This meant that Mr. Shi Shi Misi was definitely not an ordinary department secretary before retirement.

Mrs. Shi Shi Misi was an employee of a non-profit public welfare department in Tobesk, belonging to the kind of volunteer-natured staff who only took the lowest salary.

Their two children also lived in Tobesk, but they had their own families, so they only visited occasionally.

The Smiths knew about "Hamilton of Lei Jiede," praised his loyalty, and wanted to invite Xia De to stay for dinner, but were politely declined by Xia De.

And from the conversation, Xia De also knew that the two old people had seen him before, but had never spoken to him, so they naturally accepted his taking over the detective agency.

It was also fortunate that Detective Sparrow did not let the original owner Xia De contact too many people, otherwise someone would definitely realize that in just a few months, the face shape and temperament of Xia De Hamilton had changed too much. ===== CHAPTER 453 =====