Chapter 70: Repairing the House

Even though he didn’t waste too much time in Jing City, it was already past seven when Zhou Yu returned to Taoyuan Village. The sky was gradually turning dark.

Zhou Yu drove his car into the village, not attracting much attention. With Taoyuan Village open to tourism, even some luxury cars were no longer rare sights, let alone his domestic-brand car.

He parked the car in a parking lot not far from Guomin Food Stall and got out. A staff member at the parking lot saw him and couldn’t help but say with surprise, “Xiao Yu, you bought a car?”

“Yes, Uncle Wu. I got a car for convenience,” Zhou Yu nodded in greeting. This Uncle Wu was a low-income householder in the village, living alone and not well-off, so he was assigned to watch over this parking lot, earning a little over a thousand yuan a month.

After a few words, Zhou Yu bid Uncle Wu goodbye and slowly made his way to Guomin Food Stall. He was stunned by the scene before him.

Looking around, the area outside Guomin Food Stall was packed with people sitting at tables, with constant shouts for food to be served quickly.

A strange look crossed Zhou Yu’s face. Could all these people have been attracted by the dishes made with Immortal Flavor Fruit Powder?

Just then, Huzi, who had been lying at the entrance of the food stall, seemed to pick up a scent and suddenly rushed toward Zhou Yu.

Wang Fugui, who was helping out inside the food stall, hurried over after him. Seeing Zhou Yu, he immediately smiled. “Brother Universe, you finally remembered to come back.”

“Oh, Gouwa, do you have a problem with that?” Zhou Yu hugged Huzi, ruffling its head, and asked Wang Fugui with a laugh.

“How would I dare? Huzi has been waiting for you. I’ll go deliver food now. Ever since Uncle Li showed off his secret skills yesterday, business has been booming like crazy,” Wang Fugui said, pointing to the packed shop behind him.

Zhou Yu smiled and walked into Guomin Food Stall with Huzi. At that moment, Li Tianbiao was busy in front of the grill, sending out plate after plate of grilled fish to the tables.

“Brother Universe, you’re back.” Seeing Zhou Yu, Li Tianbiao greeted him while still busy working.

“Business looks really good. Can you handle it all?” Zhou Yu looked at the surrounding customers filling every seat, feeling emotional inside. Even adding just a little Immortal Flavor Powder could greatly enhance the food’s taste.

“Heh, my dad hired a few more helpers. We can manage well enough,” Li Tianbiao said with a smile. This was all thanks to Zhou Yu’s seasoning. Otherwise, they’d be lucky to have half the current number of customers.

“This grilled fish is really delicious, even better than any I’ve had before. Boss, bring me another piece.”

“Bring me one too.” All around, there were constant praises and calls for more food, making the whole food stall seem lively and bustling.

Zhou Yu nodded and walked into the kitchen. Li Guomin and his wife Fang Huimin were busy cooking, with two helpers beside them responsible for delivering dishes.

Seeing Zhou Yu, both of them greeted him with joyful expressions. Good business naturally made people happy.

When only Li Guomin and his wife remained in the kitchen, Zhou Yu asked about the usage of the seasoning. Basically, only the evenings had many customers, so the seasoning was almost sufficient.

Hearing this, Zhou Yu felt a bit more at ease. After all, the Immortal Flavor Powder was mixed with salt, and unlike other seasonings, it didn’t need to be used in large quantities. Using it sparingly could last a while longer.

After helping out at the food stall for a while, Zhou Yu took Huzi, drove his car back to the Old Family House, and fed the food he brought back to Dabao and Xiaobao.

Before leaving that morning, he had already prepared food for the three dogs, letting them eat by themselves when hungry.

Moreover, given how clever the three dogs were now, they would probably find food on their own even if he didn’t prepare any.

Under the light, he looked at the plants inside the Main Spirit Gathering Array. The Immortal Flavor Fruit, as he had predicted, wouldn’t mature until the day after tomorrow. As for the two bamboo shoots he had just planted today, they had only grown a tiny bit.

Zhou Yu shook his head. He guessed that Jade Sound Bamboo was different from other plants. At this rate, they might not even mature in twenty days. However, these two bamboo shoots were obtained unexpectedly, so he didn’t mind too much when they would fully grow.

The next day, after breakfast, he began preparing for the house repairs. He went to town and bought some opaque black shade cloth, covering the Main Spirit Gathering Array from top to bottom tightly. As for the Jade Dew in Shanzhai No. 2 Array, he didn’t plan to cover it.

The Spiritual Energy inside Shanzhai No. 2 Array was only slightly better than ordinary conditions. Those Jade Dew plants grew very slowly inside, so no one would notice anything unusual. Besides, most of the Jade Dew there had already matured.

The main array, however, was different. Some Jade Dew inside hadn’t fully grown yet, and there were ten Immortal Flavor Fruit Trees.

The four pieces of Mutton Fat White Jade he bought in Jing City yesterday, costing over three hundred thousand yuan, he planned to set up after the house repairs were finished.

After covering the Main Spirit Gathering Array tightly, Zhou Yu returned to his room. He put the Radio, Spirit Stabilizing Liquid, Spirit Beast Pill, and several jars of Immortal Flavor Fruit Powder into his bag to carry with him. As for that painting, he decided to take it home and lock it in a cabinet. This house repair wouldn’t involve completely demolishing the house; it was only a general renovation.

After finishing up, Zhou Yu went home, locked the painting in his room’s cabinet, and told his parents he bought a car and wanted to repair the Old Family House. After all, it was the family’s ancestral home, so informing his parents was necessary.

Thanks to the build-up from previous events, although his parents found it sudden, they adapted quickly and told him to do as he saw fit.

After speaking with his parents, Zhou Yu contacted Wang Fugui, telling him he wanted to repair the house and asking him to find a few reliable people to help.

Wang Fugui’s father, Wang Yongsheng, was in real estate development. Although he only operated in nearby tourist villages, he had accumulated wealth unimaginable to others, which was why Gouwa, aside from having fun, had no other pursuits.

Hearing Zhou Yu’s request, Wang Fugui naturally agreed. He then asked his father for a few workers skilled in house repair and brought them to the Old Family House.

“Brother Universe, open up! I brought people over.” Arriving at the Old Family House, Wang Fugui knocked on the door and shouted.

Zhou Yu looked at the tightly covered Main Spirit Gathering Array and walked over with a smile. Meanwhile, Huzi, Dabao, and Xiaobao ran over, barking all the way. People rarely came to the house, so now that strangers were here, it was finally time for them to show their might.

“Huzi, what’s all the barking for!” Hearing the dog barks behind the door, Gouwa said somewhat annoyed.

Zhou Yu walked to the door, patted the three dogs’ heads to quiet them down, and then opened the door.

Wang Fugui peeked inside and was immediately startled. “Brother Universe, besides Huzi, you have two more dogs?”

“Of course. I plan to have all three of them go surfing with you in the future. What do you think?” Zhou Yu pointed at the three dogs.

“That sounds exciting! Hurry up and train them,” Wang Fugui said eagerly. “Oh, these are the house repair experts from my dad. Let’s see how you want to fix this place first.”

Zhou Yu nodded and invited the men inside. After entering the courtyard, Wang Fugui said in surprise, “Brother Universe, being close to the Sea here is different. It feels more comfortable than outside.”

“Haha, obviously. Otherwise, why would I live in this old, broken-down house?” Zhou Yu laughed. The Spirit Gathering Array concentrated the surrounding Spiritual Energy in one spot. During the gathering process, some would inevitably disperse.

However, it only made people feel slightly more comfortable, far from the noticeable feeling inside the Main Spirit Gathering Array.

“Are these the flowers you planted? They’re so beautiful!” Entering the courtyard, Wang Fugui immediately spotted the Jade Dew planted in Shanzhai No. 2 Array. He hurried over, his face excited.

“To be precise, these aren’t flowers but plants. Some are even more beautiful than flowers. The cacti we often see belong to the same category—they’re all succulent plants.” Zhou Yu looked at these mature Jade Dew plants and smiled.

The workers also showed surprise seeing the Jade Dew. They looked for a while and then asked, “Young man, how do you plan to repair the house? We need to calculate materials and labor.”

“Re-roof it, paint the inside, and most importantly, widen the gate so a car can enter.” Zhou Yu pointed at the gate. He couldn’t leave his newly bought car outside every day.

The lead worker roughly estimated. The whole job would cost a few thousand yuan. If they worked fastest, it could be done in two days, but they’d need extra pay.

Hearing this, Wang Fugui immediately became unhappy. He spoke a few words with the lead worker and bargained the price down by a few hundred yuan, making Zhou Yu chuckle. Gouwa had truly defected from his father’s camp.

After settling the price, Zhou Yu asked them to start in the afternoon. That way, they’d likely finish by the afternoon of the day after tomorrow, just in time not to interfere with his next batch of Immortal Flavor Fruit harvest.