Reborn in 1977

The group strolled through the alleyways. At first, Liu Juan and Ma Lan would point things out, mentioning the names of the places and alleys, and what could be found there.

But they had barely started when they obediently shut their mouths.

It wasn't anything special. It was mainly because Chen Fan, as they walked along, knew everything about the buildings with regulations. From the gates of the courtyard houses, he could discern the layout inside. He knew what had happened in this area historically, explaining the origins of customs and habits and how this culture had been passed down.

These little stories, full of knowledge, were much more interesting than their dry introductions.

Later on, even they were captivated, feeling like they were gaining knowledge. They didn't dare act as tour guides anymore.

They couldn't help but sigh inwardly, thinking that a great writer was indeed a great writer. This kind of knowledge was something ordinary people couldn't compare to.

However, there was one thing they were slightly better at than Chen Fan, and that was their familiarity with this area, which was much stronger than Chen Fan's.

When they had seen enough of this area, Liu Juan pointed to a small grove of trees ahead and said, "If you pass through this grove and then go east, you'll reach North Luogu Lane and South Luogu Lane. There are even more alleys there than here, and many of them are the residences of high-ranking officials and nobles from that time."

"Moreover, there are many former residences of famous figures from modern times. If you're interested, you can go and take a look."

Zhou Yali hadn't gotten tired of wandering yet, so she immediately waved her hand, "Then what are we waiting for? Let's go."

Last time she returned to China, she had already visited the must-see attractions such as the Forbidden City and Tiananmen Square. This time, she didn't have the idea of going there, but instead, she specifically chose to explore the small alleys.

Although the discussions of those older women made her blush, if it didn't involve her, the other things were quite interesting to listen to.

Seeing that she was so interested, Chen Fan naturally had no objections, and Jiang Lili and Jiang Tiantian would not object either.

So, the group set off again.

Before long, they walked into the small grove. Chen Fan looked at Shichahai not far away, as well as the low-rise residential buildings, and couldn't help but feel a sense of being in another world.

How lively Shichahai was in later generations! Although there were no tall buildings, it was crowded with people everywhere, and there were various shops and ancient buildings. It was definitely a bustling area.

But now this place, apart from the tourists they had just encountered in the alley, only had retired elderly people gathering by the lake, fishing, chatting, and playing chess, truly a holy land for the elderly.

Moreover, Shichahai hadn't undergone a comprehensive tourism renovation yet, and some places were still dirt roads, making it even more unique.

Just as Chen Fan's thoughts were running wild, he suddenly frowned slightly and looked at the several people who were surrounding them from different directions.

Liu Juan, who was leading the way in front, had already stopped and was holding hands with Ma Lan, cautiously taking two steps back.

Zhou Yali, on the other hand, frowned slightly, her eyes scanning them back and forth.

As for Jiang Lili and Jiang Tiantian, they remained calm from beginning to end, as if nothing was happening.

Chen Fan walked a few steps forward, came to the front, put his hands in his pockets, looked around, and smiled lightly, "What's up, fellas? You don't look like you have good intentions."

These people were all wearing the most common white undershirts and large shorts in summer. Even if two of them were wearing long pants, the cuffs were pulled up to their calves. They were wearing sandals or cloth shoes. If it weren't for the cloths covering their faces and the wooden sticks in their hands, they would be no different from the increasingly numerous unemployed young people on the streets.

Seeing Chen Fan surrounded by his men, yet daring to joke around as if nothing was wrong, the leader couldn't help but be stunned for a moment, carefully sizing up Chen Fan.

His first impression was that he was quite tall, and also good-looking, but looking at his arms and legs, there were no traces of practicing kung fu. And that skin, damn, it was even more tender than a woman's?

Someone like this, he could beat three of them with one hand.

He immediately rolled his eyes and said, "You're quite arrogant. Originally, we just wanted to get some money to spend, but now we're very unhappy. If you stand still and let us beat you up, nothing will happen. Otherwise, we'll send you to the hospital for a few months."

Chen Fan looked at the 8 people surrounding him and sighed softly. He really couldn't muster any interest in these people.

Then he whistled softly.

The next second, a scream rang out, "Ah..."

Two black shadows shuttled between the trees and the crowd, making it impossible to see what they were.

But those people, one after another, clutched their bodies, emitting screams one after another.

Chen Fan snapped his fingers in front of the stunned Liu Juan and Ma Lan, "Let's go."

Then he walked straight through the fleeing crowd and continued forward.

Liu Juan and Ma Lan came back to their senses and quickly followed behind.

At this time, Zhou Yali no longer had the panic she had just had, but instead, her eyes were shining. She trotted to Chen Fan's side, grabbed his arm, and asked, "What was that?"

Jiang Lili took two quick steps to come to her side and said with a soft smile, "Half Jin and Eight Taels, didn't you see them?"

Zhou Yali was immediately stunned, her eyes full of disbelief, "Half Jin and Eight Taels? Those two cats?"

Jiang Tiantian also caught up, glanced at the two black shadows chasing the enemies, and said with a smile, "Half Jin and Eight Taels are not ordinary tabby cats, but wild cats that are very difficult to tame, also called leopard cats or civet cats."

"Don't look at them being small, about the same size as domestic cats, but their habits are very different and particularly ferocious. Ordinary civet cats in the wild basically feed on small animals such as mice and hares, and can also hunt snakes and lizards."

"Moreover, Half Jin and Eight Taels have been specially trained by Xiaofan, and they are more than ten times more powerful than ordinary wild cats. Dealing with these few people who haven't practiced kung fu is not a problem at all."

Hearing this, Zhou Yali was even more surprised. She turned to look at Chen Fan, "You can train cats too?"

Chen Fan shrugged, "I know a little."

Seeing that he didn't want to show off, Jiang Tiantian and Jiang Lili held back the words they hadn't finished saying.

But in their hearts, they couldn't stop being proud.

It's not just training cats, training dogs, training horses, training snakes, training birds, and even training pandas, there's nothing Xiaofan can't do.

Before long, the 8 people who had been fierce and evil before fled in panic under the pursuit of Half Jin and Eight Taels, even leaving their wooden sticks behind, making Chen Fan sigh that they were not professional at all.

After leaving the small grove, Chen Fan looked back and then looked at the dazed Liu Juan and Ma Lan, and asked, "Are you okay?"

The two immediately shuddered and shook their heads in unison, "We're fine, we're fine."

The people were fine, but they had indeed been quite frightened just now.

It was too terrifying. First, they were robbed by a few hooligans, and before they could react, those hooligans were driven away by two cats?

They couldn't even see the shadows of those two cats clearly. Were they sure they were cats?

Wild cats weren't that outrageous either.

Seeing that the two of them gradually recovered their complexions, Chen Fan skipped over this and instead asked, "Is this kind of situation common now?"

Liu Juan finally snapped out of it and quickly said, "Not much, mostly just fights. Many educated youths returning to the city haven't been assigned jobs. Although the neighborhood committee is trying its best to arrange things and find ways for some people to support themselves or start cooperatives, it can only arrange for a small portion. Most people are still idle."

She pointed in a certain direction, "There's a patch of wasteland over there, not far from the West Sea, which has become a place where they often gather."

Then she turned back, "But usually, even if they have conflicts, they won't provoke ordinary people. The neighborhood committee and the police station don't have that much energy to manage them. Anyway, as long as they don't come out and harm people, they're left to their own devices.

But there are still some people who act like that just now. It's said that there aren't many, but sometimes there are several cases a day.

Their offenses aren't too serious. Even if they're caught, they're only detained for a few days, but the money is already spent, and the police station can't do anything about it, so it's becoming more and more unmanageable."

As soon as she finished speaking, Ma Lan suddenly thought of something and said indignantly, "Robbing money is okay, but there are even worse things. Some people deliberately stop girls on the street, saying they're looking for girlfriends, but they're actually harassing women. They don't even get detained for this kind of thing. Even if they're caught, they're only given a warning."

After listening to her words, Chen Fan clicked his tongue, somewhat speechless.

How should he put it? If it was when he had just transmigrated, he might not have understood.

But now, after reading some law books in his spare time, he knows a little more about the current situation.

First of all, there is no such thing as the 'picking quarrels and provoking troubles' crime that many people know about in later generations.

Many people in later generations think that in this era, there is a great distance between the sexes, and if a young man has contact with a woman in public, something bad will happen.

Actually, that's not the case.

This crime of 'picking quarrels and provoking troubles' will not be introduced until 1979.

Before that, even if someone did it, the punishment would not be too severe. If the girl was not injured, it would not even be enough for detention. At most, it would be a verbal warning or street sweeping.

So in this era, there are also many unconventional young people who are keen on having a temporary romance with the opposite sex, and there is no shortage of those who act excessively in public places.

Of course, this is only a very small number of people. Most people are still good young people with correct values.

After all, most people still care about face.

So the overall social atmosphere is still okay.

Chen Fan glanced at the grove again and sighed softly. In the next few years, I'm afraid it will only get worse.

At this moment, Zhou Yali suddenly pointed excitedly at the woods, "Ah, Ban Jin and Ba Liang are back!"

As soon as she finished speaking, two black shadows darted out of the woods and landed in front of Chen Fan, looking up at their master with their heads held high, meowing obediently a few times, "Mission accomplished."

Zhou Yali jumped out immediately, wanting to hug the two cats, "Oh, how cute..."

Before she could finish speaking, Chen Fan grabbed her back.

She looked back at him with a blank face, "Brother, what's wrong?"

Chen Fan pointed at the cats with disgust, "Didn't you see the bloodstains on their paws? Aren't you disgusted?"

Zhou Yali immediately turned her head to look, blinked her eyes, and suddenly froze.

The two cats didn't know that their master was disgusted with them, and they were still looking at him with clear eyes, waiting to be praised.

Chen Fan let go of Zhou Yali and made a few meows.

The two cats immediately turned around excitedly a few times and then rushed towards Shichahai not far away, jumping into the lake with two splashes.

Zhou Yali's face was dull, "What's wrong with them?"

Chen Fan turned his head and walked forward, saying at the same time, "It's okay, I asked them to wash themselves clean."

Zhou Yali widened her eyes, "Can you do that?"

Liu Juan and Ma Lan quickly followed, their faces similar to Zhou Yali's.

Only Jiang Lili and Jiang Tiantian were left behind, unable to help but giggle.

Originally, this kind of thing should have greatly affected the mood of the tour, but saved by the two cats, Zhou Yali became even more interested.

Led by Liu Juan and Ma Lan, they walked all the way from Beiluoguxiang to Nanluoguxiang.

It's just that the commercial atmosphere is not strong now, and the architectural styles are not very different. In half an afternoon, they actually finished shopping in this area.

Dinner was eaten in a restaurant. The taste was okay, just a little better than Liu Juan and Ma Lan's cooking, not as good as Jiang Lili and Jiang Tiantian's.

Well, this comment came from Zhou Yali, who, as a typical representative of eating without doing, has the full right to comment.

When they returned home, it was already dark.

Liu Juan and Ma Lan immediately entered working state, ran to heat water, Chen Fan and others sat in the living room to drink tea and rest.

After half a cup of tea, Zhou Yali finally recovered, "So tired."

Chen Fan looked up at her, "Then are you still going shopping tomorrow?"

Zhou Yali thought for a while, pursed her lips, "Well, I won't go shopping. I want to buy."

Chen Fan raised his eyebrows slightly, looked at her and asked, "Buy what? A courtyard house?"

Zhou Yali nodded repeatedly and smiled, "Brother, do you think I can buy a courtyard house? If not, then buy it in your name."

Chen Fan shrugged, "Why bother? Courtyard houses look good and have historical and cultural heritage, but after all, they are old houses from a hundred years ago and lack many basic facilities, such as kitchens and toilets with gas.

Now many places in Beijing have not yet been connected to underground channels, especially the two areas we visited today. The middle area generally lacks sewage pipes and can only use public toilets. Public toilets are also dry toilets, which are regularly pumped away by dung trucks. You are sure you want to buy a place like this to live in?"

Zhou Yali was dumbfounded when she heard this, "Ah? Is that so?"

After a pause, she looked at the house again and asked, "Then what about your place? But I see that you have gas and flushing toilets here?"

Chen Fan chuckled twice and said, "When I bought this place, it was a large open space with only a few houses. I redesigned and renovated it, and then connected it to the sewage pipes on the main road to build it into what it is now.

If you want to buy a courtyard house, not to mention the problem of renovation, if the location is not suitable, I am afraid that even a toilet cannot be built."

He looked at Zhou Yali again and asked again, "Are you still sure you want to buy it?"

Zhou Yali's face was tangled. If there is no toilet, it is indeed a big problem.

At this time, Jiang Tiantian thought for a while and said to the side, "Xiaofan, are courtyard houses expensive?"

Chen Fan turned his face and said, "It's not expensive. A standard courtyard house with three entrances, covering an area of about 600 square meters, including the land and yard, should be about 10,000 yuan."

Jiang Tiantian couldn't help but be a little surprised, "So cheap?"

In comparison, houses in Shanghai are much more expensive.

Chen Fan smiled and said, "It's not cheap. Ordinary people have to save money for decades to buy a house."

Then he heard Zhou Yali say, "So cheap, it's okay for me to buy it and put it there for looks!"