Go back to the prosperous days and become a layman

Chapter 937 936 Excellent Body
Fire is a major driving force of human civilization and an important tool for human progress.

People were very careful when using fire, and children were taught from a young age that "playing with fire during the day will lead to bedwetting at night."

There is no necessary connection between bedwetting and playing with fire, but children are curious about fire and countless times they have burned clothes or set fire to piles of firewood. In order to prevent their children from causing trouble outside, parents can only scare them with bedwetting, which is what children care about most.

Although Tang Zhitong was an adult, he dared not let the fire leave his cheat range. If the fire burned down his house, he would really have nowhere to cry.

At noon, Tang Zhitong gathered all the burning firewood into his spatial dimension and went to find Xiao Wang to have lunch.

"You guys eat first tonight. The wall is drying a bit slowly, so I'll heat it up with fire. I'll be back a little later," Tang Zhitong told Xiao Wang while eating.

"Okay, do you want me to come with you?" The house was almost cleaned up, and Xiao Wang felt that she had nothing to do when she got back, so she thought of keeping her husband company.

“No need, you still need to pick Fengzhi up. Tomorrow morning, take Fengzhi to the Women’s Federation dormitory and go directly to Dashizuo Hutong. After loading the truck there, someone needs to watch over here.” Tang Zhitong shook her head, refusing Xiao Wang’s suggestion. If she was there, she wouldn’t be able to use the cheat to tidy up the campfire, which would slow down the process.

"Okay. What about Mom? Are you going to bring her over?"

"Director Fang will find a truck, and Mom can come with it. I'll ride my bicycle slowly." Tang Zhitong had thought about how to get here before. If they used a handcart, Zhang Guifang would have to walk with Liben, but with a truck, they wouldn't have to. The truck bed is big enough to fit several people.

"Okay, then drive carefully. Mom and I will stay here and watch over you. Nothing will happen," Xiao Wang said softly, worried that her husband might be a little rash on the way.

"Don't worry, it's fine. I've walked this road countless times." Tang Zhitong smiled, swallowed a mouthful of cornbread, and asked Xiao Wang, "How many newspapers have you collected in your office? I'll take them with me later and use them to cover the earthen bed this afternoon."

Whether it was the recent farm work or the recent surge of newspaper consumption by the staff of the transport depot, the demand for newspapers has been enormous. Currently, the transport depot has very little newspaper in stock.

"There's quite a lot. I'll tidy it up in a bit." Little Wang pointed to the corner of the wall. They get a newspaper every day, and little by little, it's already a thick stack, more than enough to cover the bed.

After lunch, Tang Zhitong didn't linger there. He picked up the newspaper and returned to Dashizuo Hutong.

First, remove the firewood pile and continue baking it, then prepare to make the paste.

A bed would require about a scoop of flour. Tang Zhitong didn't go to the grain store specifically for that scoop of flour; he just took it from his spatial storage. He hoped his mother wouldn't notice these details.

The iron pot was readily available, so Tang Zhitong made a paste and then patiently sorted through the newspapers.

The bed can be used for about ten years after it is pasted. Although the newspapers are all placed under the bedding, Tang Zhitong did not want to leave any hidden dangers due to laziness. So he picked out the pages with pictures and instructions from the newspapers and used the rest to paste.

Since there were no cooking brushes here, Tang Zhitong simply used his special skills, spreading the paste evenly and cleanly.

"I'm a painter, and I'm very skilled at painting. I'm going to paint that new house beautifully..."

Tang Zhitong hummed a little tune as he pasted newspapers.

The song "The Painter" was originally a Polish children's song, which had already been introduced to China by this time, although the lyrics had not yet evolved to the version hummed by Tang Zhitong.

"Well, that's why they say art comes from life. If it weren't for labor, I really wouldn't have remembered this nursery rhyme. Now I've got all three songs I promised Yang Lin." Tang Zhitong hummed until the lump was clean, looking at the spotless bed with a great sense of accomplishment.

Tang Zhitong took two burning firewood sticks and stuffed them into the stove under the bed. He added a few more sticks and pushed them in, hoping that heating would dry the paste quickly enough so that the mattress could be laid directly on it the next day.

After finishing all this, Tang Zhitong carefully checked the wiring in each room to make sure there were no aging or leaking wires.

While checking the electrical circuits in the west wing, Tang Zhitong felt like he had forgotten something, but couldn't quite recall it.

Based on the principle that "anything I can't remember is unimportant," Tang Zhitong planned to put it aside for now. However, as soon as he stepped out of the west wing, he realized that he had forgotten something.

screen!

According to the plan, after moving tomorrow, Jingying and Jingmin will come and stay with us for a while. All the little ones will live in the west wing. Without a screen, it will be inconvenient for them to live together.

"At such a young age, how come your brain is like it's been injected with a fake vaccine?" Tang Zhitong shook his head self-deprecatingly, turned around and went back, counted the bricks on the ground, roughly estimated the width of the west wing, then removed one firewood stick from each room. After the fire subsided a bit, he went straight out to the alley entrance.

The south entrance of Dashizuo Hutong is a prime location; to the east lies Jingshan Park, to the west Baihai Park, and to the south the Forbidden City.

Although there is no concept of a tourist city yet, many people will visit the attractions in the inner city, whether they are on business or visiting relatives.

Thanks to the constant flow of people, business at the entrance of the alley was good; in addition to newspapers, large bowls of tea, there was also a public phone booth.

Tang Zhitong called Zhang Bo to tell him that he needed to replace two screens and gave him the dimensions, asking him to deliver them together the next day.

As for the money, Zhang Bo didn't ask, and Tang Zhitong didn't mention it either, but he planned to pay it all off tomorrow.

On the surface, he had more than twenty yuan on him, and the two screens cost at most forty yuan. He could ask his classmate Xiao Wang to make up the difference.

When we changed rooms, Xiao Wang gave us 400 yuan, so she probably still had some left over.

If you really don't have any, borrow some from the security guards who are helping with the move, and give them back the money after you sell the fish.

"Young man, I've seen you come and go several times. Did you just move in? You look unfamiliar." The old man guarding the public phone asked as I paid after hanging up the phone.

"You're right, I'll move in tomorrow." Tang Zhitong replied cheerfully, first handing over the phone bill, then taking out a cigarette and offering it to him.

Tang Zhitong had seen this public phone booth many times while escorting Xiao Wang to and from get off work, and knew that the old man was someone similar to Mr. Zhu, the director of the Information Center.

These kinds of people aren't that important, but they have timely access to information about the area, so it's still necessary to make them familiar to others.

"Is it the building of a chemical raw materials company? Residents nearby have complained several times about the strong smell. I saw them vacate it a while ago." Upon hearing Tang Zhitong's admission, the old man immediately guessed. "Yes, they listened to the residents' opinions and swapped houses with me. What's your surname, sir?" Tang Zhitong was reluctant to reveal too much about his own family and instead inquired about him.

"My surname is Zong." Old Man Zong took out a match, lit his cigarette, and before the match went out, he held the matchstick and asked Tang Zhitong, "Won't you have one?"

"Thank you, Uncle Zong, but I'm trying to quit smoking, so I won't smoke for now." Tang Zhitong waved his hand, declining Old Zong's offer to light a cigarette for him.

"This kind of smoking is hard to quit. If you can quit, then don't touch it again, otherwise, the addiction will only get stronger each time," Grandpa Zong said sincerely, flicking out the match.

"I'll give it a try, and I hope I can succeed this time. Uncle Zong, I heard someone singing opera in the back this morning. Do they sing it every day?" Tang Zhitong smiled, not telling him that he had quit for more than half a year.

"I wish she could sing every day, so I could enjoy a show without leaving home, but she only sings a few lines when she's in a good mood, and it's not enough to satisfy me." Grandpa Zong shook his head, his face full of regret.

"At least it's free, and it's much clearer to listen to than on a talk show." Tang Zhitong didn't want to sing every day. People who like Peking Opera are captivated by it, but for someone like him, listening occasionally is fine, but listening to it every day is just too much.

"That's right, she was a well-known leading lady in Beijing back then. Later, she got married and moved here." Grandpa Zong lowered his voice, with a hint of regret in his words.

"It's quite nice. I can hear the erhu accompaniment, so it's a harmonious match." Tang Zhitong didn't understand where Grandpa Zong's regret came from. Although being a courtesan was a lowly profession, it was still much better than being a prostitute.

"There's no harmony to speak of. She was a concubine, and her husband ran away before Liberation. The erhu player used to be in an opera troupe. He was interested in her, but she wasn't willing." Grandpa Zong's voice was even softer this time. If Tang Zhitong hadn't had such good hearing, she might not have been able to hear him clearly.

"..." Tang Zhitong didn't know what to say after hearing this. It's true that there are always sycophants in any era. The other person is already unhappy, and they still have to play the sycophant.

She was someone's concubine before liberation, and she must be over thirty now. If she continues to fawn over others, she might not even be able to have any offspring.

"The chemical raw materials company's building is nice, but they've ruined it over the years. It's almost rotten, isn't it? I saw they were repairing it a couple of days ago." After gossiping, the old man began to probe Tang Zhitong's background in a friendly manner.

"Not bad, the workers at the housing management bureau are quite efficient. Oh dear, look at my memory, I'm still warming myself by the fire over there, I have to go back and check. Uncle Zong, you go ahead with your work." Just then someone came to make a phone call, Tang Zhitong quickly said goodbye, otherwise, if he stayed any longer, Old Zong would probably try to get information out of him.

Once Tang Zhitong went inside, he stayed until dark before going home.

After arriving home, they quickly ate a bite to eat, handed the completed documents to Zhang Guifang, and the whole family went to bed early.

Tang Zhitong didn't mention the matter of rewriting the lyrics for "The Painter" to Xiao Wang, because the things in the side room had already been put away neatly and were just waiting to be loaded onto the truck early the next morning. They would have to unpack the bundle and find the pens and paper again, which would be a bit of a hassle.

July 13th, the 7th day of the sixth lunar month, is an auspicious day for weddings, visiting relatives and friends, moving, moving to a new house, planting, setting up a bed, opening a granary, installing a door, hanging plaques, dismantling, erecting a monument, and breaking ground.

The family got up very early; some were making the bedding, and others were making breakfast.

After breakfast and getting everything ready, Fengzhen went to school. Xiao Wang carried a basket containing Beibei in front of her and carried Fengzhi in the back to Chunshu Hutong. The mother and daughter waited at home for their colleagues from the security office to come and help.

These days, there's no such thing as pregnant women not being able to touch cats and dogs. Tang Zhitong couldn't use toxoplasmosis to persuade Xiao Wang to stay away from Beibei, so she could only use a medicated dewormer to treat Beibei from time to time.

It's no exaggeration to say that Beibei is the cleanest female cat in Beijing.

"I'm really reluctant to leave," Zhang Guifang said, looking at the lush greenery in the yard with a sense of longing.

"Mom, you weren't this reluctant when I offered to mortgage the house for a new job, were you? Besides, we have a new courtyard to live in now. You can go and see for yourself. I guarantee you'll like it." It's hard to leave one's homeland. Although it's just moving to the inner city, this courtyard holds Zhang Guifang's youth and emotions, so it's inevitable that she'll feel nostalgic. Tang Zhitong understands, but she can only try to persuade her in a positive way.

“You don’t understand. I’m taking some vegetables to your Aunt Ma. Once she moves away, I don’t know when we’ll see each other again.” Zhang Guifang smiled at her son, picked and chose some ripe tomatoes and cucumbers in the yard, put them in a basket, and went out the door.

Although her son said that the vegetables here would still belong to their family after they moved, Zhang Guifang, at her advanced age, didn't die young.

Xiao Huang from that company came to my house many times. When he saw the yard full of vegetables, his eyes almost popped out. Why would they go to such lengths to help me find a place to live?
In Zhang Guifang's view, there was a shortage of non-staple foods everywhere in Beijing, so people must have been looking for the vegetables in their own yards.

Zhang Guifang went out, and Tang Zhitong wandered around the yard, looking here and there. Although he was trying to persuade his mother, this was, after all, the place where he grew up, and it held many memories of him and the old lady.

After wandering around, Tang Zhitong came to the eaves. The swallow couple had already had their offspring, and a nest of baby swallows was chirping inside, as if they were saying they hadn't eaten enough.

Swallows symbolize good fortune, but Tang Zhitong couldn't help them move.

Swallows build their nests piece by piece, and you can't just take them away and reattach them in a new yard. Besides, swallows are sensitive to their environment, and if the environment changes, the swallow couple might abandon their nest and fly away.

The first to arrive was Zhang Bo from the lumber mill.

Zhang Bo led seven or eight people, pushing three carts. On the carts, in addition to the furniture that Tang Zhitong had ordered, there was also a thick stack of felt cloth: "We have extra felt cloth to wrap the furniture when we load it onto the carts, so we won't be heartbroken if it gets bumped or damaged."

"Thank you, Director Zhang. You've gone to so much trouble. Here, have a smoke." Tang Zhitong was surprised by Zhang Bo's thoughtfulness and took out cigarettes from his pocket to offer them to everyone.

"Is everything at home ready? Let's start unpacking and load it onto the truck when it arrives. That way we can save time," Zhang Bo asked after lighting a cigarette.

"It's all packed up. Thank you for your help, masters. The cigarettes and matches are on the windowsill. Take a smoke and rest if you get tired." Tang Zhitong put the remaining cigarettes on the windowsill, and then, feeling it wasn't enough, took out another pack and put it down.

Apart from the bed, the furniture in the west wing did not need to be dismantled. The lumber mill workers moved the screen and other furniture to the side to make room for dismantling the bed.

As the group lifted the bed out and searched for the mortise and tenon joints to disassemble it, the mahogany bed creaked a few times, much to their displeasure.

"You're really fit, you're quite strong." Zhang Bo heard the bed groaning, gave Tang Zhitong a mischievous grin, and teased her.

The other craftsmen, though not responding, all wore knowing smiles.

Zhang Bo's implication was clear: Tang Zhitong certainly couldn't admit that she and Xiao Wang were practically rocking each other every day, so she could only let her sister take the blame without batting an eye: "Hey, my sister likes the smell of this room, she comes over every day and jumps around on the bed."

(End of this chapter)