Siheyuan: Relieve stress and relieve worries

Chapter 1086 Changes in the King's War
The donation ceremony at No. 95 Courtyard concluded in a conventional manner. From the perspective of the street office, this performance by the person in charge of the courtyard was just a minor affair. Director Wang only agreed to it out of consideration for the deaf old lady in the backyard.

For Yi Zhonghai, the biggest gain was winning over the Jia family. At least after the conference, the Jia family and the Yi family became very close, and Qin Huairu, despite being heavily pregnant, went to the Yi family to help an older woman with chores.

As for Sha Zhu, he has completely moved on from his last heartbreak, but things aren't going well at the factory either. The small catering service has long been discontinued because the purchasing department simply can't buy good ingredients, especially meat. Sha Zhu occasionally brings one or two boxed lunches, but those are just leftovers from lunch, and they're not very oily anymore.

For Yan Bugui, the loss of three yuan meant that his family would have to tighten their belts again for the next month. Each of his children had half a steamed bun, and all of his children, except for Yan Jiedi, complained during meals.

Xu Wude was even less willing to get involved in the future affairs of the compound. Once this donation started, it could become increasingly uncontrollable. Moreover, everyone knew what the situation was like outside. Every family was living their own lives, and it was already difficult enough to make a living for their own family. This made Xu Wude more determined in his plan and urged Xu Damao to speed up the process.

For Liu Haizhong, this was a trivial conference. Even if he spent thirty yuan, he wouldn't really care. He thought the conference went quite well and should be helpful for his eldest son's wedding later.

Yan Jiekuang's meals were halved, a decision made by Yan Bugui. It's not that Yan Bugui was particularly sharp-eyed; it's just that Yan Jiekuang was at the age where he was growing. In the second half of the year, everyone in the family was getting thinner and thinner, while Yan Jiekuang and Yan Jiedi were visibly getting fatter.

Yan Bugui suspected that the two children often went out to eat alone, but he couldn't figure out how the two children, who had neither money nor food coupons, managed to find food.

Finally, after failing to get any more sweet potato chips, Yan Bugui snapped. He cornered Yan Jiekuang in front of Xiao Wu, first trying to reason with him and appeal to his emotions, but when that didn't work and the third brother wouldn't open his mouth, he started resorting to threats and intimidation, pressing Yan Jiekuang about whether he had eaten out, what kind of food he had, and whose food it was.
When Yan Jiekuang was cornered, he knew things were going to go wrong, but he knew he couldn't say anything. If he did, he would have to say goodbye to the Wang siblings for the rest of his life, and it might even bring trouble to his family. So he gritted his teeth and refused to say a word.

Finally, Yan Bugui was so angry that he jumped up and down in the main room, cursing wildly. He even looked at Yan Jiedi, who was sitting next to Yang Ruihua. Yang Ruihua glared at him and said, "Don't you dare lay a finger on my daughter, get out!"

Yan Bugui stomped his foot angrily and announced that Yan Jiekuang's food rations would be halved, starting tomorrow. Yan Jiekuang didn't come out of the small house, but he breathed a sigh of relief.

In the following days, Yan Jiekuang discovered that he was being watched. His father was watching him at school, and his second brother was secretly following him after school. Yan Jiekuang was very depressed, but he couldn't think of any good solutions, so he could only obediently go to school, which was the only way to get around the school.

After observing for several days, Yan Bugui found that his third child seemed to be normal, and he even began to wonder if he was overthinking things.

Little did he know that Yan Jiekuang had no other choice, but he could ask for help. Don't forget that Wang Li was still studying at this school. So, he wrote a note asking for help. Wang Li didn't take it seriously and gave it to her brother, who was building a chicken coop in the garden, when she got home.

The next day, Wang Zhan asked Wang Li to give Yan Jiekang a pack of Daqianmen cigarettes, instructing him to secretly give it to his second brother after school. When Yan Jiekang found out, he was very confused and wanted to ask why this pack of cigarettes could solve the problem. Wang Li rolled her eyes and said, "A pack of cigarettes? It costs 21 cents."

After school that day, Yan Jiekuang secretly found his second brother and gave him a cigarette. Yan Jiefang smiled and said, "Don't worry, third brother, I won't follow you anymore. Don't worry, I'll take care of Dad."

After saying that, Yan Jiefang turned around and left without any hesitation. Yan Jiekuang was stunned. While thinking about this, he walked towards Wang Zhan's house.

Just then, Wang Li and Zhang Erya, hand in hand, skipped and hopped to the gate. The three of them entered the yard together. Yan Jiekuang looked around the front and back yards but didn't find Wang Zhan, so he asked Wang Li where her brother was. Wang Li pointed to the small garden and said, "He should be cleaning the chicken coop."

Yan Jiekuang put his schoolbag in the main room and ran into the small garden in the west. As soon as he entered the moon gate, he saw Wang Zhan building a chicken coop in the east corner. He saw that Wang Zhan had laid out a lot of planks and timber and was setting up a frame.

Yan Jiekuang went over to help, but Wang Zhan stopped him, saying, "With your skinny arms and legs, do you need my help? Haven't you had enough to eat for days? You're here to beg for money again. Are you trying to cling to me?"

"How could that be, Brother Zhan? I'm so young, I'm just learning from my older brother," Yan Jiekuang said with a grin.

"Hmm, not bad, you've improved," Wang Zhan nodded and said.

"Right? I think I've improved too. By the way, Zhan-ge, where do you think I've improved?" Yan Jiekuang was waiting for Wang Zhan to praise him.

Wang Zhan didn't even look up, and said, "Your skin has gotten even thicker."

Yan Jiekuang was both amused and exasperated. He chatted with Wang Zhan while occasionally handing him materials or tools.

When Yan Jiekuang looked up again, he was immediately amazed by the chicken coop. Although it hadn't reached the roof yet, the frame was already set up. There were three independent chicken coops side by side, half a foot above the ground, with two levels on top, each a half-square-meter independent space. Yan Jiekuang pointed to the lower level and asked, "What's the sloping level at the bottom for?"

Wang Zhan said, "After the hen finishes laying the eggs, they will automatically roll down this slope into the trough at the edge of the nest. It's convenient, and we can clean up chicken droppings and other waste underneath without disturbing the hen. You wouldn't understand even if I explained it to you, just see for yourself when it's done."

"By the way, brother, how did you know my second brother could be satisfied with just a pack of cigarettes?" Yan Jiekuang asked.

Wang Zhan said, "I saw your second brother and Liu's son secretly smoking. I know his preferences. Besides, don't you know what kind of people your second brother and eldest brother are? They'll take advantage of any opportunity. You can bribe them with a little favor. Alright, isn't this matter resolved? What do you want to eat? There's still half a piece of cured meat at home, and there might be a few eggplants in the greenhouse. Go pick them. I'll wash my hands now, and we'll get ready to eat."

Yan Jiekuang walked towards the greenhouse, thinking as he went. He felt that Wang Zhan was a little different. What was different about him? He was picking eggplants while he was still thinking.

As he reached the door, Yan Jiekuang suddenly realized something. He thought to himself, "I know! He used to always leave things unsaid, but today he was unusually talkative and made himself very clear. Why is that?"

(End of this chapter)