The booming era begins with the director of the Propaganda Department!

Chapter 398 The Five Little Gentlemen in the Siheyuan!!

The Zhang family’s dinner party did not end until one o’clock in the morning, which was one o’clock in the morning on the first day of the Lunar New Year.

The children of the Zhang family had already gone to bed. The deaf old lady was sent home by Sha Zhu, and Grandma Zhang also got on the kang.

As the New Year's bell rang, Zhang Shenfei, Zhang Shenliang, Sha Zhu and others went out and gathered in the middle courtyard of the quadrangle to set off firecrackers.

Not only them, but also other young and middle-aged people in the courtyard, as well as other people in the courtyard.

The air began to be filled with the unique smell of gunpowder. It was not a pleasant smell, but it was a smell that was ingrained in the Chinese people’s bones.

In the Yi and Yan families' houses, the sleeping little ones were awakened by the sound of firecrackers, and were coaxed back to sleep by their mothers gently stroking their backs.

In the yard, everyone wished each other Happy New Year.

Snowflakes began to float in the sky, and the same simple yet earnest expectation emerged in everyone's heart.

Auspicious snow indicates a good harvest. This year will definitely be a good year.

According to the rules of the old city, people do not visit relatives on the first day of the Lunar New Year. Zhang Shenfei took a few nephews and carried Zhang Weiguo all the way to the Changdian Temple Fair, paying for all expenses.

The young men had never spent so much money in their lives and were so happy that they went crazy. In the end, each of them bought two things. After returning to the courtyard, they, led by the second brother, began to bow to thank the second uncle.

Ten years have passed,

The young men are no longer young and immature. The oldest, Zhang Pingan, is already 21 years old. The next ones are 19, 18, 17...

Because of adequate nutrition, none of the Zhang family boys were short, and before the age of sixteen, they were all 1.8 meters tall. In that era, this was very rare.

Everyone in the courtyard looked at the Ten Vajras standing opposite Zhang Shenfei like little white poplars, and their earth-shaking roars of "Uncle Xie" tore through the clear sky, and they couldn't help but shiver.

Some people who felt guilty couldn't help but reflect in their hearts whether they had offended the Zhang family in the past years???
Zhang Shenfei has been the bully of the courtyard since he was a child. He is the god of war in Dongcheng District and no one dares to offend him.

But what about Zhang Shenliang?

When I remembered that there seemed to be some old issues, I immediately thought that I should find a day, bring some gifts and go to the house to reconcile.

Although Zhang Shenliang has not shown it over the years, but when he has a hammer in his hand, everyone looks like a nail.

When the ten great warriors of the Zhang family grow up, maybe Zhang Shenliang will remember those grudges and start revenge on himself?
It is better to resolve a feud than to create one. The Zhang family has a grown-up son, and it is not shameful to be humble at this time.

So, in the next few days, Zhang Shenliang was inexplicably invited by several people to drink and eat, which left him completely confused.

After drinking heavily for two consecutive times and being sexually assaulted by his wife, he finally couldn't take it anymore and went to his brother to confide his troubles.

"Starting from the first day of the Lunar New Year?" Zhang Shenfei held a cigarette in his hand, not smoking it, just playing with it.

"That's right. It started on the night of the first day of the Lunar New Year. That night, Xu Damao invited me to drink, and then Chen Laosi..." Zhang Shenliang counted them one by one on his fingers, his eyes full of confusion, "I usually have an average relationship with them, why did they rush to treat me one by one???"

He couldn't figure it out, but Zhang Shenfei immediately figured out the key to the matter.

He smiled and patted his elder brother on the shoulder: "Just bear with it. Even if I want to repay your troubles, I can't do it!"

"Ah? Actually, drinking is nothing, but the main thing is that I can't stand your sister-in-law... You know, she always beats me." Zhang Shenliang felt aggrieved. What kind of man would be beaten by a woman all the time?

"Da Fei, don't we say in our city that men are the masters? How come your sister-in-law doesn't know how to respect me?" Zhang Shenfei was very annoyed.

Zhang Shenfei smiled secretly. Seeing his elder brother's resentful eyes, he quickly put on a serious look: "Brother, you have to think like this. The master is the sky. If my sister-in-law dares to fight the sky today, she will dare to fight the world tomorrow.

Just follow her and wait for happiness!!"

After saying that, he patted his eldest brother on the shoulder and went home to coax the child.

……

The second day of the new year,

Zhang Shenfei took his elder brother, elder sister-in-law, Tian Xiaozao, Zhang Shunsui and He Yushui to Fangshan to visit his uncle and aunt.

He Yushui has already been engaged to Zhang Shunsui, and this time he went there to recognize his relatives and to establish his relationship with them.

The remaining Eight Vajras were so excited about receiving red envelopes during the Chinese New Year that they were reluctant to go to Fangshan and make another big move.

Tang Danniu kicked them both on the buttocks. The older one took a step back and the younger one fell to the ground. After standing up, he stayed at home with the old lady obediently and did not dare to mention going up the mountain again.

Before leaving, Tang Danniu prepared some dishes, as well as the fried food she made during the Chinese New Year and the bowl-sized white flour buns she steamed on the 28th day of the twelfth lunar month. She put all of them in the steamer and could just find a King Kong to heat them up and eat them at noon.

The Zhang brothers can all cook. Although they can’t cook big dishes, they can prepare some home-cooked meals.

The two brothers, along with their wives and children, carried bags of gifts, including some hair oil for their aunt-in-law, and set out from Sijiu City at eight in the morning. They took a bus and then a donkey cart, and finally arrived in Fangshan before lunch.

Zhang Shenfei and Zhang Shenliang gave red envelopes to Qian Tiezhu's children and ate a sumptuous farm meal prepared by their aunt-in-law.

My aunt-in-law had met He Yushui in the courtyard before, but this time they met as elders, so it was different.

He immediately took He Yushui's hand, praising her for being beautiful and working in a tobacco factory, and saying she was a good child.

"Our family found you, and we got it right!!"

Turking to turn his head and look at Zhang Shun: "Your kid has to be better for the rain. If it is not good for her, let's let your grandfather beat you !!! Your dad will have the advantage of hurting his wife in this life, you can learn it well."

These words criticized Zhang Shunsui, praised He Yushui, and gave a more decent explanation for Zhang Shenliang's fear of his wife.

Zhang Shunsui nodded repeatedly and said frankly that he would be good to Yu Shui and never leave her.

"I have loved rainwater since I was a child. I still remember when I was a child, the whole yard ate milk white bread except for rainwater. I specially gave half of mine to her."

"He's a good guy. He knows how to love his wife since he was young." The aunt-in-law expressed her satisfaction and took out two red envelopes and gave them to him and He Yushui.

It was He Yushui’s first time going up the mountain. He heard that it was suitable to hunt rabbits when there was snow, and he immediately became interested.

Qian Laosen then arranged for Qian Tiezhu to take her and Zhang Shunsui into the mountains, while the others stayed at home chatting.

"Last autumn we had a good sweet potato harvest, which solved our urgent needs.

The people have enough food to eat and have the energy to work. In addition, there was a few snowfalls since the beginning of winter last year, so I think next year will be better." Qian Laosen sighed while smoking a pipe.

"It's not that bad. In the fall, there was a bumper harvest of sweet potatoes, so everyone had enough to eat and had enough energy to lie on the kang.

So far, 17 women in our village have become pregnant. I heard that this situation is not limited to our village, but also in other villages in the commune. Some people even gave these pregnant children a name, calling them "sweet potato children."

My aunt sighed as she packed up the hazelnuts to give to Zhang Shenfei and the others.

In the past three years, due to food shortage, there have been basically no newborns in their commune.

The number of newborns in the whole country also dropped rapidly, from 1959 million in to million in . But soon, starting in , the number of newborns rebounded strongly, entering the second wave of baby boom after the founding of the People's Republic of China, and the number reached an astonishing million.

The number reached its peak in 1963, with 2975 million newborns.

Children mean hope, and having children means there is always something to look forward to in the future.

Only with children can a family have the motivation to strive and someone to rely on when they are old.

This is also why Chinese people always have the obsession of having a child.

The family gathered together to drink tea and chat, and finally couldn't help but sigh together: "We made it! No matter what, we finally made it.

From now on, we will have endless good days!!!"

……

My uncle's house is far away, and it takes a whole day to go back and forth.

On the third day of the New Year, Liu Guangqi went door to door looking for people early in the morning.

He said that he hadn't been back to Siheyuan for a long time and missed his brothers very much. How about the five gentlemen get together in the evening? ?

Zhang Shenfei and the others naturally agreed readily. At 7:30 in the evening, the five of them gathered in the north room of Sha Zhu's house.

Since marrying Liu Lan, Sha Zhu's life has become better. Not to mention anything else, the house no longer smells of stinky socks, and the color of the bed sheets has returned to its original state.

People arrived one after another.

Xu Damao brought two bottles of Liulingzui, and Sha Zhu made a big pot of boiled fish and fried peanuts.

Liu Guangqi brought the Shijiazhuang specialty roast chicken, and Yan Jiecheng was also busy this time, bringing a large plate of spicy and sour potato shreds.

As for Zhang Shenfei? Needless to say, a few Harbin red sausages are enough to kill anyone in seconds.

Seeing a large plate of spicy and sour potato shreds on the table, Sha Zhu started to complain again: "Oh my god, Jie Cheng's life is really good now. He actually made such a large plate of potato shreds. He must have used two kilograms of potatoes? If my uncle Yan knew about this, wouldn't he dream of being chased by potatoes tonight?"

Yan Jiecheng felt very embarrassed by what he said and scratched his head: "Hey, let's not talk about my dad anymore.

Didn't Yu Li and I move to the back house in the front yard? We live separately from my dad and his family. From now on, I won't follow his way."

Even if others don't tell him, he knows how much he has eaten and drunk with his brothers over the years.

But I had no money at the time, so I could only play dumb, wipe the skin off my face and put it in my pocket.

Fortunately, Yu Li gave birth to a child some time ago, and with the help of some gifts and some money borrowed from her parents' home, the couple finally moved out and bought a new home in the 10-square-meter back house.

The ten-square-meter house is a bit small, and a space for cooking needs to be separated, but it is better than the rat hole before.

What's more, there are only three of them in this small house, so they can discuss everything together and no longer have to look at his father's face.

Although they are close by, just a short walk away, most of the time, they live their own lives behind closed doors, and only visit their parents during the holidays.

"You bastard, you should have separated from your father, that old guy, long ago. Over the years, because he held you back, your reputation has been ruined." After hearing what Yan Jiecheng said, Sha Zhu commented.

Xu Damao is not stupid: "It is said that a dragon gives birth to a dragon, a phoenix gives birth to a phoenix, and a mouse's son will dig holes.

I think you are not stupid, Yan Jiecheng. A pound of potatoes costs two cents, and your plate of spicy and sour potato shreds, including oil and salt, does not cost more than five cents in total."

The two bottles of Liulingzui he brought with him were worth a total of six dollars.

Sha Zhu's big plate of fish and fried peanuts also cost more than one yuan.

Not to mention Zhang Shenfei's Harbin red sausage, which comes from afar, and regardless of the price, it is simply not available in the inner city. The same is true for Liu Guangqi's braised chicken.

Compared to these, Yan Jiecheng still made a fortune. He could make money just by eating a few bites of food and drinking a few sips of wine.

After the analysis, Xu Damao concluded: "You really did a great job with a small amount of money."

Yan Jiecheng felt embarrassed when Xu Damao bluntly told him what he was thinking: "My family is not rich, so I can't compare with my brothers...

Besides, we are all brothers, and we get together to talk about our true feelings, so we don’t care about this.”

"Hey, these few words really have the style of Mr. Yan." Sha Zhu was intoxicated and couldn't help smacking his lips.

"Well, let's not talk about me, let's talk about everyone." Yan Jiecheng began to change the subject.

"We're talking about you. We're going to expose your ugly behavior!" Sha Zhu raised his arms and shouted, causing everyone to laugh.

A few people were joking around, and the atmosphere seemed to have returned to a few years ago.

Seeing this, Liu Guangqi couldn't help but sigh with emotion:
"We, the Five Young Gentlemen of Siheyuan, were formed in 1952. At that time, we could be regarded as the role models of young talents in the Nanluoguxiang area.

Just think about it, Jia Dongxu must have felt so upset because we didn’t take him to play. "

"That's right! Every time we drank and sang together, he would hide outside and pick at the door frame. One time, he picked at the door frame so badly that Brother Dafei and I caught him and made him pay three cents for repairing the door." Sha Zhu took a sip of wine and grinned wickedly.

"That's right. I still remember that Jia Dongxu was wiping his tears and swearing viciously, saying something like "Don't bully the poor young people!!!" Xu Damao also laughed.

Yan Jiecheng sighed: "Alas, at that time, Brother Damao, you said that he was now shouting "Don't bully the poor young people", and later he would say "Don't bully the poor middle-aged people", and later he could say "Don't bully the poor old people"...

But who could have thought that he would pass away before he was even thirty..."

"If I had known he would have a short life, I would not have said that." Xu Damao was rarely rude, and there was a hint of loneliness in his eyes.

"It's a good thing that Zhang Cuihua, the old pious woman, married Old Qin and gave birth to Qin Lao Er. Otherwise, she would have lost her husband in middle age and her son in old age. I don't know how this old widow would have lived her life..."

Sha Zhu and Jia Zhang were sworn enemies before, but for some reason, he suddenly felt sorry for the other person.

A few people drank some wine and talked about the great changes in the Siheyuan over the past ten years, feeling full of emotion.

Liu Guangqi had something on his mind, so he couldn't help but drink a few more glasses. Soon he spoke out his worries with a lisp.

When Sha Zhu heard this, he was immediately happy:
"Brother, let me tell you, what you did was really a rubbish.

You said that, although your father often beat you and your two younger brothers, he really held you in his hands for fear of dropping you, and held you in his mouth for fear of melting you, right?

You are so good! You just turned around and ran to Shijiazhuang with your wife. Isn't this slapping your uncle and aunt in public? ?
You don’t know, because of this incident you caused, the third uncle and the others have laughed at the second uncle behind his back countless times.

You are a child, even if the old man is wrong, you can't do it like this, right? ? "

(End of this chapter)