Courtyard Houses: Starting with the principle of hard work paying off

Chapter 109 Shamelessness Makes One Invincible (4k)

"Master Hu, thank you for taking the time out of your busy schedule to come and help us. This is a small token of our appreciation. We hope you will accept it."

As the midday banquet came to a successful close, Mr. Zhao made a special trip to Chef Hu, who had been in charge of cooking that day, to express his gratitude and present him with a red envelope that he had prepared beforehand.

The amount of money in the red envelope was not small.

Zhao's father had inquired beforehand and learned that chefs of Master Hu's caliber rarely take on private jobs, and they are not from ordinary families, so there is no fixed price; it all depends on the employer's wishes.

Being able to take charge of cooking is already more than just a matter of money.

Zhao's father knew that the other party was able to come today entirely because of Li Hongmei's younger brother, Li Hongbing, and even his master.

However, as the saying goes, even hiring an ordinary cook requires payment, let alone a top chef like Master Hu from Fengzeyuan. Zhao's father is not a clueless novice.

Some money shouldn't be saved.

not to mention.

Li Hongbing had subtly hinted at this before, and Zhao's father even specifically consulted with Li Hongbing.

Today's wedding banquet was prepared by the chef from Fengzeyuan Restaurant. They also introduced the suppliers of ingredients, which reduced the cost significantly compared to buying them themselves at the market. This way, they saved face and money, preventing Mr. Zhao from being criticized at the end.

"You're welcome."

Faced with Mr. Zhao's polite gesture, Master Hu smiled and did not refuse.

Seeing that he accepted it, the two kitchen apprentices he had brought over to help also happily accepted their own red envelopes.

The red envelopes they received were certainly not as generous as Master Hu's, but for them, it was still a decent amount of extra income.

Today's work wasn't in vain.

the other side.

Li Hongbing looked at Guo Youzhong, who had drunk quite a bit, and felt somewhat worried.

"Master, let me take you back!"

"No need, no need, it's just a little bit of wine, your master... I'm not drunk yet!"

"Junior brother, don't worry, we're here for you!"

"You still have things to do here, so we'll take your master back for you. Don't worry."

"Then I'll have to trouble you, senior brother."

"What are you saying? This is your master, and he is also our master."

"Let's get together more often when we have time, and if you need anything, just ask your senior brother!"

"See you later, senior brother!"

"..."

Li Hongbing breathed a sigh of relief as he watched them leave.

Guo Youzhong had drunk quite a bit earlier, and Li Hongbing was really worried about him going back alone. Fortunately, he had his fellow students like Liang Damin with him.

Everything went very well today, and Li Hongbing was in a good mood.

"Red Soldier!"

At this moment, Zhao Weiguo came looking for him.

"Brother-in-law!"

Looking at Zhao Weiguo, Li Hongbing smiled.

Li Hongmei and Zhao Weiguo have now completed all the procedures and are now a real family. Li Hongbing has also changed his address to Zhao Weiguo.

"There's something I forgot to tell you. This morning, I got the keys to the new house and had someone come and clean it. Once everything is completely finished here, your sister and I plan to move in. Do you have anything else planned for this afternoon?"

Zhao Weiguo asked.

"The factory housing application was approved so quickly?"

Li Hongbing was a little surprised, thinking he would have to wait two more days.

"I didn't expect it to be so fast either."

Zhao Weiguo was also a little happy when this was mentioned.

In fact, he and Li Hongmei had already obtained their marriage certificate yesterday and submitted an application for housing allocation to the factory.

Although all the necessary arrangements have been made, there's still a procedure to follow.

I thought I'd have to make Li Hongmei stay here for a couple of days, but I didn't expect to get results this morning.

He went to pick up his bride today, actually a little late, just to deal with this matter.

There was simply not enough room here. Even Zhao Weiguo usually lived in the food factory's dormitory. He felt bad about asking Li Hongmei and him to make do here for a couple of days.

Fortunately, good news kept coming, and everything was so timely and just right.

"Brother-in-law, what are you saying?"

If Zhao Weiguo and Li Hongmei needed help moving, Li Hongbing naturally wouldn't refuse: "Even if I'm busy, I'll put down what I'm doing and come help you move."

Moreover, everything you do today is my big deal.

Brother-in-law, why didn't you tell me about this sooner?

My senior classmates hadn't left yet, so I can still ask them for help..."

Li Hongbing sounded somewhat frustrated as he said this.

It's not just a matter of having more manpower; Liang Damin and his group also have two tricycles, which will definitely be useful for moving.

Now that they've all left, Li Hongbing doesn't want to call them back for this matter.

"It's alright, we have enough manpower!"

Zhao Weiguo understood what Li Hongbing meant and immediately smiled.

Today is his wedding day, and many relatives and friends have come, not to mention his close colleagues and former comrades-in-arms. There is no shortage of manpower at all.

The reason for seeking out Li Hongbing was not because of a shortage of manpower.

The main reason is that as Li Hongmei's only younger brother and now her brother-in-law, he always has to come over to meet the new family and make a fuss in the new house.

After a while.

As the guests left, the tables, chairs, and benches that had been placed in the courtyard were removed and returned to their respective owners, and the finishing work was basically completed.

At this very moment, Li Hongmei is quietly discussing the arrangements for her dowry with Zhao Weiguo.

When moving to the new house, Li Hongmei will definitely have to move her dowry with her, but she plans to leave some of it behind.

Even though we'll be living separately from now on, we'll still be family.

Zhao Weiguo's parents are her in-laws and her elders; she can't ignore them completely.

“Hongmei, I think we don’t need to. My parents don’t need these things right now. You should keep them for yourself.”

Faced with Li Hongmei's arrangement, Zhao Weiguo felt a little embarrassed and was also afraid that his brother-in-law, Li Hongbing, would have objections.

"What?"

Upon hearing this, Li Hongmei rolled her eyes at Zhao Weiguo and said in a serious tone, "We are family now, and your parents are my parents too. Hongbing prepared a lot of dowry for me. Let's keep some for our parents as a way of showing our filial piety."

After all, we won't be living together anymore, and we can't be there to take care of each other every day like my older brother and sister-in-law do. We can't let others gossip about us.

Although her dowry was prepared by her younger brother Li Hongbing, she is now married and, according to traditional customs, the dowry belongs to her. Therefore, there is no need for her to discuss with Li Hongbing how to arrange and distribute it.

Based on her understanding of her younger brother Li Hongbing, Li Hongmei knew that Li Hongbing wouldn't care about these things.

Moreover, it's somewhat unreasonable to move all the dowry here today, when we're about to move to the new house, and take it all with us untouched.

Li Hongmei still planned to leave some money for her in-laws' family, no matter how little.

Of the six quilts she brought, she planned to keep two, one for winter and one for summer, as well as one thermos, one washbasin, and a few other items.

As for the sewing machine and bicycle, Li Hongmei isn't stupid, so she naturally wouldn't leave them behind; she'll definitely take them to her new home later.

After making the decision, Li Hongmei asked Zhao Weiguo to speak to her parents-in-law on her behalf.

She didn't know how to bring it up directly, so it would be better to find a "middleman".

Although they married into the family and established a new relationship and identity, their feelings couldn't be transferred so quickly.

"Dad, Mom, Hongmei just talked to me about it, she's planning to use her dowry..."

Having accepted Li Hongmei's "mission," Zhao Weiguo had no choice but to turn to his parents.

"This...this isn't right! You have these things at home, you should keep them for yourselves."

Whether or not they had such thoughts, it was unreasonable for them to take away the bride's dowry on the first day of their marriage.

Zhao Weiguo and Li Hongmei knew that they were planning to move to the new building near the food factory today.

Not only did he not have any thoughts about it, he was actually quite happy.

It's not that they can't accept Li Hongmei, their new daughter-in-law, and Zhao Weiguo, their youngest son.

There's simply not enough room in the house anymore.

The food factory allocated them housing, and they moved there, which was clearly more comfortable than living here with them. "This is Hongmei's idea!"

Zhao Weiguo emphasized.

He wouldn't take all the credit for himself.

finally.

Mr. and Mrs. Zhao reluctantly accepted the money, though they didn't show it too obviously on their faces, they were secretly overjoyed.

Not only did they receive filial piety gifts, but they also felt the filial piety and goodwill of Li Hongmei, their new daughter-in-law.

They were determined not to make things difficult for Li Hongmei, their youngest daughter-in-law.

Not to mention having a younger brother like Li Hongbing, and so many senior brothers and masters supporting them, Li Hongmei herself has a job and income, so they wouldn't be so foolish as to want to cause her trouble and make things difficult for themselves.

A dual-income family is something others can only envy.

Zhao Weiguo and Li Hongmei have lived their lives well, and they are already very content as long as they occasionally show filial piety to their elderly parents.

Li Hongbing knew all this, but said nothing.

As a daughter-in-law, it is only natural to be filial to one's parents-in-law.

As long as Li Hongmei is not bullied in the Zhao family and lives a happy life, none of this matters.

Li Hongmei isn't stupid; she only gave her parents-in-law a small portion, keeping the majority for herself.

If we don't live together in the future, it's a way of fulfilling our filial duty in advance, and it will save us a lot of trouble in daily life.

Distance produces beauty.

No matter how good the relationship is at the beginning, conflicts can easily arise over time, especially between mothers-in-law and daughters-in-law.

While not absolute, this is generally true.

With this matter settled, Zhao Weiguo called for his men to move their belongings, and the group headed towards their new home.

The food factory is not far from Nanluoguxiang.

Zhao Weiguo had pulled some strings, and the housing he was allocated was factory-owned housing in this area.

Li Hongbing looked around and saw that although there was only one room, it was a large room.

If we hire a bricklayer, we can easily divide it into two rooms, so that even if we have children in the future, they will have their own separate rooms.

“Hongbing, you stay here with your sister. I’ll take some men to the carpenter’s place and bring back all the finished furniture.”

After unloading everything, Zhao Weiguo said goodbye to Li Hongbing and then left with his men.

Although they moved here temporarily, applying for this housing was something Zhao Weiguo and Li Hongmei had planned long ago. Zhao Weiguo had even hired a carpenter to make new furniture for the house.

The furniture has been made, but there's not enough room at Mr. and Mrs. Zhao's house, so it will have to be temporarily stored with the carpenter until the house here is ready.

"Sister, do you have any wedding candy here?"

"What do you want these for?"

"Congratulations on moving to your new home! Today is also your wedding day with your brother-in-law. Since everyone in the courtyard will be our neighbors, we should at least give them some wedding candy!"

"Oh dear, I forgot about that. I'll ask your brother-in-law when he gets back."

"No thanks, I still have some at home, I'll go get them."

"Then you go slower on the road."

"..."

Getting married and moving—so many things happened all at once today.

The house and keys only arrived today, so Zhao Weiguo probably wasn't fully prepared. Li Hongbing naturally had to help him sort things out.

Li Hongbing rode his bicycle and quickly returned to the courtyard house.

"Red Soldier, you're back?"

"I came back to pick up some things."

"Still going out?"

"Ok!"

"..."

When Li Hongbing returned, the wedding banquet at the Jia family's residence in the central courtyard had already ended, and those who had helped had all returned to their respective homes.

The wedding candies at home had actually been distributed in the alley outside that morning, but Li Hongbing had deliberately bought more when he went shopping and stored them in the system space.

He went back into his house and closed the door.

Besides sugar, Li Hongbing also took out some melon seeds and peanuts, packed them up, and went out again.

The two sides are not far apart, otherwise Li Hongbing would have just found a secluded place outside and taken care of all this.

……

Not a moment later.

After Li Hongbing left the courtyard, Sha Zhu, who had just sent his master back, returned around the same time.

only.

His face didn't look good.

At this moment, the Jia family was closing their doors to count the money everyone had given them as gifts that day when Sha Zhu came knocking on their door.

"Silly Zhu, what's up?"

When Jia Zhangshi came out to open the door, she was in a very bad mood.

When she was counting the money given as gifts, she found that several families had given too little.

It's no wonder she was in a bad mood after discovering this.

"Aunt Zhang, let me ask you, did you not give my master a red envelope today?"

Sha Zhu only realized what had happened after he sent his master back and was scolded by his senior brother.

He was so embarrassed that he wanted to disappear into the ground.

It was so busy at noon that Sha Zhu didn't pay any attention, assuming that Jia Zhangshi or Yi Zhonghai would arrange these things.

"Red envelope? What red envelope?"

Madam Jia was stunned.

"Payment? My master came here specifically to cook for your family and worked all morning. Shouldn't you pay him?"

"Silly Pillar said irritably."

For celebratory occasions like this, the chef is usually paid by putting the money in a red envelope.

On the one hand, it's for the sake of celebration.

on the other hand.

It also looks better and less tacky.

"Didn't your master come to help? Why do you need money?"

Upon hearing Sha Zhu's words, Jia Zhangshi's triangular eyes widened in shock.

"Jia Zhangshi, what are you saying?"

As soon as Jia Zhangshi opened her mouth, Sha Zhu was so angry that he almost blew smoke. He said angrily on the spot, "My master specially switched shifts with the other chefs in the kitchen today so that he could help your family cook. If it weren't for my sake, do you think it was just to make money off your family?"

"I could tolerate you making me work for your family for free before, but you can't expect my master to do the same. Don't you know the rules? Do you even know how to handle things?"

Sha Zhu was truly furious this time.

So this Jia Zhangshi intended to get something for free from the very beginning, without even paying any compensation.

It was already quite an achievement for him to be able to invite his master over.

The Jia family's actions were a direct slap in his face.

When I sent my master back just now, he didn't mention a word about it.

Thinking of this, Sha Zhu, who always cared about his image, couldn't help but blush.

If his senior brother hadn't reminded him, he would have been the subject of much gossip if this got out.

While it's a matter of courtesy, a red envelope still needs to be given.

Even if the Jia family gave him less, he wouldn't say anything.

"Hey! So you're saying we have to pay your chef to come and cook for us?"

Upon hearing Sha Zhu's words, Jia Zhangshi became even more displeased and immediately said with disdain, "If that's the case, why would we need to come to you?"
Don't even mention your master. As long as you have the money, you can hire any chef from any restaurant or eatery. Why would it be your turn?

Sha Zhu, you've already taken this favor and are now planning to ask for money. You're really not losing out at all!
We're all from the same compound. It's such a joyous occasion for our family, what's wrong with asking your master for a favor?"

(End of this chapter)