Song Qiming sat down across from Song Jinzhao.
“Elder Sister, now that half of Laocheng Camp is empty, shouldn’t we sell it?”
At the end of last year, all the prisoners whose crimes were minor and whose hands were free of blood were released and sent home. With fewer prisoners, half of Laocheng Camp now stood vacant.
When the camp was first built, they had said it would eventually be sold. Song Qiming felt that the time had now come.
Song Jinzhao said, “We can sell it, but we’ll need to build a ten-foot-high wall through the middle first. The remaining bandits all have blood on their hands.”
Song Qiming nodded firmly. “Don’t worry, Elder Sister. They all have their hands and feet shackled, and three hundred constables are keeping watch over Laocheng Camp day and night. It’s absolutely safe.”
They worked themselves to exhaustion during the day, then spent every night snoring. Not a single fight had broken out there in the past year.
Once word spread that the government was selling the houses, people crowded around the public notice boards.
“What’s so good about buying a house outside the city? There isn’t another person around.”
“People have died in those cells before. Has the government gone mad?”
“What kind of houses are they, and how much do they cost?”
“…”
Questions sprang up like bamboo shoots after a spring rain. The constable standing in front of the notice board raised his hand and shouted, “Quiet, everyone!”
“First, no one has died in the cells. Those whose crimes were minor were released and sent home at the end of last year.
“Second, the houses are just outside the city. There are homes with one main room and one inner room, as well as homes with one main room and two inner rooms. You can go and take a look for yourselves. Someone will be there to show you around.
“Third, a one-room house costs around three taels of silver, while a two-room house costs about six taels. Prices may vary depending on the location. Anyone who wants to see them can go now.
“Fourth, people without household registration in Suining City can have their registration transferred on the spot after purchasing a house. Those who came to Suining City from elsewhere to work within the past six months and signed a labor contract lasting more than three months may purchase a house at eighty percent of the original price. Supplies are limited, so it’s first come, first served. Does anyone have any other questions? Raise your hands, one at a time.”
The same scene unfolded in front of every public notice board throughout the city.
Before long, the temporary inquiry office set up at the entrance to Laocheng Camp outside the city welcomed its first group of prospective buyers.
A constable led one interested customer around the vast campgrounds in the west.
“The row of houses closest to the river costs an extra three hundred copper coins. All the others are the same price.”
The curious townsman looked around before pointing at the constables mixing cement in the distance.
“Officer, what are they doing?”
The constable smiled. “The prefect ordered a ten-foot-high wall to be built through the middle. There are also several hundred constables patrolling the other side day and night, all to ensure everyone’s safety.”
Hearing that the wall would be ten feet high and that several hundred constables would stand guard, many people felt somewhat reassured.
At the same time, the cement factory and the coal mine passed along a message to their workers.
“Workers who wish to purchase a house in Laocheng Camp may, after completing one month of work, draw up to three months’ wages in advance to pay for it. Anyone interested should register with their team leader.”
The moment those words were spoken, many workers’ heads began to buzz.
After a brief silence, the uproar nearly lifted the roof off the factory, especially among the migrant workers.
Beside a clay kiln in a corner of the yard, a man who had arrived less than two months earlier stared blankly at the departing overseer.
A one-main-room, one-inner-room house cost three taels of silver. A few days ago, he had sent five hundred copper coins home, leaving himself with four hundred. Even after adding three months’ wages, he would still be short by two hundred copper coins—and he would need money for the following three months as well.
Thinking of his parents, who were suffering from tuberculosis, and his younger brother, who was still a child, the man clenched his teeth. After a moment’s thought, he quietly set down the shovel in his hand.
He went to find the junior overseer who had just made the announcement.
“Manager Li, about what you said just now about buying a house… Could I draw four months’ wages in advance?”
Manager Li looked at the man.
He remembered him. The man was from Qingxia County. When he had arrived, he had said that both his parents were suffering from tuberculosis and that he had a younger brother who was not yet ten years old. With no money to buy medicine, he had been forced to come to Suining City to find work.
Manager Li sympathized with him, but there were rules at the factory to consider as well.
After hesitating for a moment, he eventually shook his head.
“Three months is the rule set by the people above. If I make an exception for you, what will I do when everyone else comes asking?”
The longing in the man’s eyes immediately faded.
Unwilling to give up, he fell to his knees and raised a hand in oath. “Manager Li, I swear I won’t tell anyone.”
Manager Li hurriedly helped him to his feet and patiently explained, “Everyone who leaves home to make a living has it hard. If you truly want to buy a house at Laocheng Camp, why not go home and sell your old house?”
The man froze. Sell the house back home? He had never considered it.
Manager Li continued, “If you bring your whole family here, you won’t have any use for the house in your old village anyway. You might as well sell it.”
“You’ve seen what Suining City is like. It’s bound to keep improving. Take advantage of this opportunity to transfer your household registration here. From now on, this can be your home.”
The man blinked as he thought, his mind in turmoil.
Manager Li reached out and patted him on the shoulder.
“Make your decision quickly. There aren’t many houses left at Laocheng Camp. If you wait too long, you may not be able to buy one even if you want to.”
With that, he turned and walked away, giving the man plenty of time to think.
