Siheyuan: Cutting off at the beginning

Chapter 65 News
When Second Aunt thought about what she had seen before, she always felt that Old Yan might have suffered a great loss.

Yan Bugui smiled and said, "What a coincidence, we were talking about literature."

"literature?"

The second aunt felt that this touched upon her cognitive blind spot, "Oh, you guys chat, I have to hurry back to cook.

By the way, Qin Huairu is back. She just washed the clothes and is cooking. "

"Okay, I'll be back in a minute."

Li Zhiguo stopped his bicycle and went to Yan's house while chatting with Yan Bugui. When he came out, he had a few more books in his hands. Wasn't this a way to kill time again?

"Old Yan, why did you give the book to Li Zhiguo? Can you get it back?"

The third aunt was not in a position to interrupt at the moment, and only reminded people after the people left.

"Yeah, why did I give him the book? It's broken, and I didn't protect it."

Yan Bugui was deeply distressed, and was so happy chatting that he got fooled again.

"Forget it, it's just a few books, and it didn't cost any money. What we earned today is cash."

Yan Bugui and the third aunt looked at each other and both laughed. After a while, they saw that the four children were all sleeping soundly, so they laughed again. Didn't they save another meal?

Siheyuan, middle courtyard!

Jia Zhang stood there, looking anxiously.

"Li Zhiguo, you're back, why aren't Dongxu and Bihua here yet?"

"I guess he went to buy food!"

Li Zhiguo responded casually, saying that it was not good to discourage others, and the Dongxu brothers would definitely eat alone.

"Then I'll wait!"

Jia Zhang also had the same guess, with a miserable look on her face. This son was unreliable, not as good as Li Zhiguo. At least he didn't let Qin Huairu starve.

To say that Li Zhiguo is a bad person is true, but he is not completely bad!

He went to the backyard and didn't see Xu Damao again. He always felt like he was avoiding him recently.

"Brother, you're back!"

"Well, no luck today, I didn't catch anything."

Li Zhiguo arranged the bicycle, benches, fishing rods and other things in order.

"The meal will be ready soon. There's some wine on the table. I bought some dried tofu when I got home from get off work. You can drink it first."

Qin Huairu didn't come over because she was cooking in the pot and couldn't leave.

"Okay, I'll take a couple of bites first."

Li Zhiguo walked into the room, took the washcloth from the washbasin rack, wiped his face, and threw it into the basin. That was it.

Peanuts and dried tofu were already placed on the dining table, and the wine bottles and glasses were also placed there.

After unscrewing it, I poured half a cup. Wine is a fine food and nourishes the stomach.

All he really needs is a radio, which he will buy next month. Now, he is already one of the upper-class residents in the compound, so he doesn't have to be so poor anymore.

You can say that Qin Guangming is working, but don't say what he is doing specifically. Anyway, he also receives his brother-in-law's salary every month.

To the outside world, the brother and sister support him together, which is great. It is said that marrying a wife is equivalent to supporting the other party's entire family, and vice versa is actually the same.

"The food is here!"

Qin Huairu entered the main room carrying a winnowing basket which contained some flour and two plates.

"Yeah! Eat and talk."

Li Zhiguo picked up a piece of potato, took a sip of wine, and asked, "What was discussed in the factory meeting this afternoon?"

“After listening to the opinions of our workers, several large shareholders voluntarily withdrew their shares, and the steel mill will no longer have private shareholders.

Director Bi also came today and asked about you. He also said that the pencil sharpeners are selling very well and we can provide labor insurance next week. I will take your share back as well."

Qin Huairu picked up a piece of white flour, broke it in half out of habit and put half of it back, having to eat it sparingly.

"Yeah, I got it!"

Li Zhiguo was also worried that he would be volunteered one day. It seemed that he had to quickly arrange for his father-in-law to work in the city.

"I have to go to the street again tomorrow. When you get off work in the evening, go directly to the courtyard and talk to Guangming about helping him save money."

"Okay, we have to explain it to him clearly. He is only seventeen years old. How old is he? How can he manage money?

When he can cook, don't give him five dollars for living expenses, that's too much. Four dollars a month is enough, and you can save the rest for him."

Qin Huairu put a piece of meat into the man's bowl, and the family's life would only get better and better in the future.
"Bah! How immoral!"

In the front yard, Yan Bugui watched Jia Dongxu and his wife enter the yard and couldn't help but curse in a low voice.

He was so smart. Looking at the expressions on the couple's faces, he knew they had come back from eating outside.

This is different from Li Zhiguo. At least others eat dinner with Qin Huairu, and they also give Qin Huairu living expenses for lunch, so they can afford to eat in the factory cafeteria.

In the backyard, after Li Zhiguo finished his meal, he carried a chair and went outside.

"Da Mao, wash the dishes!"

"Yeah, wash the dishes!"

Xu Damao wanted to go back with the basin in his hand, but he was afraid of losing his momentum, so he had to bite the bullet and go to the sink.

But in my mind I thought of the girl I saw in the afternoon. She was the daughter of Director Lou.

She is pretty and of the right age. She even wandered around the Propaganda Department and spoke to him.

It's a pity that he's married...

After waiting for a while, Qin Huairu also came out with a basin. The sink was also a washing table, so it didn't affect several people washing dishes.

"Sister Qin, you're already pregnant, can't you let Li Zhiguo do something too?"

Xu Damao always felt that he was insulted. Why did he have to work every day just to marry the same wife?

"This job isn't tiring. It only takes a few seconds to wash the dishes for two people."

Qin Huairu is quick and skillful at work.

“It’s not tiring!”

Xu Damao looked numb, but this job was annoying.

Just then Tang Chunyan came out of the house, saw Li Zhiguo there, hurried over, squatted beside him and started chatting in a low voice.

"Sister Qin, you don't care about this?"

Xu Damao was heartbroken. Although he believed in his wife's loyalty to him, he did not believe in Li Zhiguo's character.

Qin Huairu turned around and saw her husband shaking off his cigarette ash and whispering something to Tang Chunyan. She couldn't help but smile and said, "They are chatting about something. My man is popular in the courtyard, you know that."

“Is this what you call chatting?”

Xu Damao wanted to smash the bowl, but he just thought about it and decided to continue washing it.

Suddenly Tang Chunyan shouted, "Da Mao, Li Zhiguo just talked about your childhood."

"No, what bad things did he say about me?"

Xu Damao was stunned. Why were they still talking about him?

"It's either bad things, or funny things."

Tang Chunyan covered her mouth and started chatting with Li Zhiguo again. She found him interesting.

At this time, the second aunt also came out with the dishes and chopsticks to wash them. Every family has dinner at this time, and it’s almost the same.

Although it was not the first time she had seen this scene, she still felt it was inappropriate!

"Second Auntie, you came at the right time. How much is your radio?"

Li Zhiguo stood up and stopped talking to Damao's wife. This girl doesn't work and is not as reliable as the second aunt.

"Thirty-two dollars, are you going to buy a radio? Oh, you already have two of the four major items, so you'll have to buy the full set if you buy one more."

The second aunt was surprised. Could it be that she had cheated Old Yan? That couldn’t be possible. Old Yan was so stingy!

Xu Damao also pricked up his ears. This was definitely not normal. The situation of the Li family was obvious. They relied entirely on Sister Qin's work to earn money and the support from Sister Qin's parents.

In addition, that idiot He Daqing lent money to others, so the reason why the Li family could afford the big purchase was because of the salary and bonuses that Li Zhiguo had saved before.

"I plan to buy it next month. Qin Huairu's salary this month is barely enough to spend."

Li Zhiguo has a plan. Next month, we will be able to hear some news at home and pay attention to major events.

Xu Damao was anxious, "No, what are you going to buy next month?"

Qin Huairu had already washed the dishes and was about to go back to the house, but now she took over and said, "My brother will go to the city to work this Monday. From now on, my husband will collect his salary and help him save it."

This was discussed during the meal. She could talk about her brother, but she wouldn't talk about the street in front of the door. "What?"

Second Aunt and Xu Damao were stunned, and Tang Chunyan was also stunned. She had been in the hospital for some time and had long known Li Zhiguo's source of income. Was there a new one?
"Li Zhiguo, this is not good!"

Yan Bugui's voice was heard. He came to take care of the potted plants, but he heard explosive news.

Qin Huairu continued, "What's wrong with that? My brother is only seventeen years old and doesn't have much money to spend. It's enough to leave him four dollars a month for food."

"Cough cough..."

Li Zhiguo coughed and took the opportunity to announce, "Huai Ru's brother Qin Guangming can't stay in the village and insists on going to the city.

Just last week, Huairu and I went back to the countryside for this matter. It just so happened that Huairu had a relative who had connections, so she arranged for Guangming to work as a clerk.

I didn't make much money, only 16 yuan a month at the beginning. I helped him save 12 yuan, and together with Huairu's salary, I made 34.5 yuan a month.

It's tight, it's not a problem to buy a radio, it's about the same as when I was working before, I only earned thirty-three dollars at that time."

Everyone was confused. Is this the same thing? You used to work, but now you don't do anything.

It turns out that two siblings are working together, you give each of them five dollars, and the other keeps four dollars, so there is more than thirty dollars left. There is no such good thing in the world.

Aren’t you afraid of crushing the Qin family?

What is even more speechless is that both Qin Huairu and Qin Guangming are still apprentices, and their wages will increase in the future. Doesn’t this mean that Li Zhiguo will no longer have to live a hard life from now on?
Yan Bugui pushed up his glasses and said, "Your brother-in-law will have to get married sooner or later, so don't waste all your money."

Li Zhiguo said calmly: "Huai Ru has a third brother who will be able to work and earn money in two or three years.

And Huairu is pregnant now. When her belly gets bigger, my mother-in-law will come to help take care of her.

By then, my father-in-law will also go to the city to find a temporary job, doing odd jobs, which can at least supplement the family income.

I don't have any elderly people to help me at home, so I can only rely on the Qin family. Huairu, thank you for your hard work."

Qin Huairu said happily, "Why should I be hard-working? You are the one who is working the hardest! Brother, I'm going to sew some clothes. Come back from your walk and rest early."

"Hey! I'll listen to you."

Li Zhiguo handed the bench to his wife and asked her to take it back, saving him the trouble of making a trip.

"This can't be done!"

Xu Damao cried out in his heart, who on earth made the profit? He obviously married a city girl, but she had to do the laundry and cooking every day, and even had to rush early to buy groceries.

Why is it that this kid Li Zhiguo only takes advantage of the situation once, and dares not do any work every day, yet can earn a large sum of money every month? Sister Qin's family of five all work for Li Zhiguo.

"Li Zhiguo, you need to talk more with the Third Uncle in the future."

Yan Bugui's eyes turned red. In terms of scheming, he was more than one step short. If he had this awareness when he was young, he could have found a wife with many brothers-in-law!

"That's great! Can you introduce these potted plants to me? I don't recognize many of them."

Li Zhiguo thought it would be good to learn it, so that he could engage in landscaping and sell green plants in the future and open a flower market.

The second aunt couldn't suppress her raging fire of gossip any more, so she didn't even wash the dishes and went to the central courtyard to get some news.

"Li Zhiguo, can you also teach Uncle San how to be as good as you and make money without doing anything?"

Yan Bugui spent most of his time thinking about how to accumulate wealth, but compared with Li Zhiguo, he was nothing.

"Uncle, you... you're overthinking it. You have four children!

Raise them well, arrange jobs for them early, and you can collect their wages directly. Don't rush the children to start their own families.

You have three sons, and you are still worried that they cannot carry on the family line. So let them pay their wages for a few more years. Whoever is honest and obedient and does not resist will be given priority to marry a wife.

After you get married, continue to ask her to pay rent and living expenses, and then add the pension money. Don't forget Jia Dongxu's lesson, be careful not to raise an ungrateful person."

In fact, he just expressed Yan Bugui's idea, but increased the quantity and the price.

"Li Zhiguo, this has to be you! You said it very well."

Yan Bugui will never be able to rely on his wife and brother-in-law for support in his lifetime, but he has children.

When his salary is added, five people will earn money but he will spend it alone.

"Hey, isn't that Lao He's idea? Why are you helping Lao He so much?"

Yan Bugui suddenly realized that He Daqing had saved up three people's wages and was using it to buy alcohol every day. That was not good.

This idea is absolutely correct. With the examples of Lao He and Li Zhiguo, this is the path of life!
Li Zhiguo said with a smile: "Although Lao He has bags under his eyes and looks anxious, he is silly enough, uh, and he is also very loyal.

He could run away with the money for the White Widow and leave nothing for the family. This is good for outsiders. I asked him to borrow money, and he answered without hesitation. He even refused to let me pay back the remaining thirty-five.

Uncle, you are not bad. You gave me so many potted plants and helped me take care of them, so I am happy to help you!"

"Oh, that's right. Don't worry, I will take good care of this potted plant for you. Don't you like reading? I will find a few more books for you when I go to school. Please be polite to the third uncle."

Yan Bugui felt that he was not far from the upper-class residents in the courtyard, and he had to follow Li Zhiguo's footsteps and lead him in the direction of immorality.

"Oh, how could he do this!"

Jia Zhang wailed, but in fact she was mad with jealousy, "How will Li Zhiguo live a hard life in the future?"

"Jia Zhang, please stop yelling. You always say that Li Zhiguo will have to suffer sooner or later because of his bad behavior, but others have never suffered after marrying Qin Huairu."

Some aunties were also jealous, because Li Zhiguo's life was better than she had dreamed of.

"He will find a way to prevent himself from suffering. Since he can't support Qin Huairu alone, he will also bring her younger brother along. I heard that there is another younger brother waiting behind."

The third aunt watched Li Zhiguo rise step by step. A great talent has emerged in this courtyard.

You say Li Zhiguo has no job and dares to hang around like this day in and day out, sooner or later something will happen to him, but others are sick and have to wait for work.

Qin Huairu is willing to support him, what can you do to reason with her?

They were just chatting about gossip here, and they wouldn't dare to say anything to Li Zhiguo's face when he really came.

“This is shameless!”

Jia Dongxu muttered to himself that he originally thought his wife was okay, but when compared to Qin Huairu, she was far inferior.

It was obvious that Qin Huairu had a blind date with him first. He would remember this for the rest of his life. If he was just a little bit away from replacing Li Zhiguo.

Sha Zhu was also listening not far away. He felt a tightness in his chest and his voice became hoarse when he opened his mouth.

Yi Zhonghai frowned. There was nothing wrong with this idea, but he couldn't use it because his salary was too high.

"Hey, Third Uncle, you're back after your work!"

When Mrs. Chen saw someone coming out of the backyard, she hurriedly greeted him and wanted to ask for some gossip. It was already this late, and if Li Zhiguo wasn't there, she was afraid that he wouldn't come out for a walk today.

"This is not called being busy. I used to take care of potted plants every day."

Yan Bugui was in high spirits. What he learned from Li Zhiguo far outweighed his efforts, so it was still a good deal.

"Uncle San, don't leave so quickly. Does Li Zhiguo really want to buy a radio?"

Aunt Jiang also asked. Her house was on the right side of the corridor, and the door was in the corner of the middle courtyard, which was quite hidden.

"He will buy it next month, and he can afford it. In a few days, his father-in-law will also come to the city to find a job to help support the family. Then, three people will support him."

Yan Bugui thought that he would be supported by four people in the future, which was not bad. It just took a little longer to wait, but he would be able to enjoy his life when he was old.

"I won't chat with you anymore. I got up early to queue up to buy food. I have to go back and rest early."

Yan Bugui stayed up almost all night last night. Even though he made money, he was too excited to hold on.

As soon as the others left, Aunt Jiang started yelling, "Everyone should be careful. In our courtyard, Old He is helping Li Zhiguo, and Old Yan looks so happy, I'm afraid he has also been infected. We have to be careful."

This is a courtyard house after all, and the ordinary residents are not fools. They all know to be prepared for danger in times of peace.

"Oh, now that you put it that way, I think I understand Li Zhiguo's plan.

He first deceived Qin Huairu, then deceived the whole family, and then took down Lao He and Lao Yan. It seems that Jia Zhang was also deceived..."

Mrs. Chen is also a capable person. Last time, she even persuaded Yi Zhonghai to give a gift to Li Zhiguo.

Jia Zhang refused to agree when she heard this. "Don't talk nonsense. How did I fall for it? Li Zhiguo wanted to plot against me, but he was still a little short."

"Come on, your wife has been stolen from you, and the shoes he's wearing weren't made by you?"

Sun Erniang lived next door to the Jia family. She always disliked them and would take advantage of them whenever she got the chance.

These three women are a drama, not to mention the gathering of aunts. They are not all there yet. There are three aunts in the front yard, two aunts in the middle yard, and more in the back yard.

This is also because it was only a few years after the founding of the People's Republic of China, and the elderly people in the upper class are basically gone. Each family is managed by an aunt, and there is no mother-in-law to put pressure on them, so the family is so active.

I gave those shoes to my wife, but Li Zhiguo taught her how to use a sewing machine, and it costs money to do it outside.

I have so many shoes at home, so what's wrong with giving him a few pairs? It won't hurt me."

The aunties are so embarrassed. If they had known that you, Jia Zhang, were so easy to cheat, they would not have made shoes for you and would have just taken advantage of you.

But it's just a thought. Without Li Zhiguo's ability, he couldn't deceive Jia Zhang.

"Uh-huh!"

(End of this chapter)