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

Chapter 148 Jia Zhangshi sweeps the streets, and Sha Zhu falls into the trap (4k)

miserable!

Seeing Jia Dongxu and Qin Huairu like this, Li Hongbing felt no sympathy whatsoever.

He brought this upon himself, so he has no one else to blame but himself.

Even if Li Hongbing wanted to retaliate and deliberately target them, it was their own fault for being in the first place.

otherwise.

It's impossible for Officer Yang and his team to make such a disciplinary decision against them based on just a few casual words from Li Hongbing.

At this critical juncture, with the government fully implementing the policy of unified sales and purchase, Jia Zhangshi recklessly engaged in unauthorized grain resale and deception, undoubtedly adding insult to injury by defying the government's policies.

At present, Jia Dongxu can be said to hate but not speak out. However, since he dared not target Officer Yang and the others, he attributed all the reasons to Li Hongbing.

However, he still dared not make any move.

If he dares to cause trouble for Li Hongbing over this matter, or even utters any complaints or negative remarks, it will be considered dissatisfaction with or objection to the enforcement team's punishment, which means their attitude of admitting their mistake is problematic. In that case, it won't be as simple as just confiscating those stockpiled grains.

Moreover, Jia Dongxu and Yi Zhonghai are still suspected of harboring and being accomplices, so seeking out Li Hongbing at this time would only make things difficult for them.

As Officer Yang and the enforcement team left, the other people in the courtyard also dispersed one after another, none of them staying to cause trouble.

Just now, quite a few of them had spoken ill of the Jia family and Jia Zhangshi. Even though Jia Dongxu had incurred public wrath first, no one wanted to stay and further escalate the conflict.

The night is getting late.

When Li Hongbing went outside to use the restroom and was about to go back to rest, he ran into Qin Huairu outside.

We all live in the same compound, so we see each other all the time. And there's only one public toilet around here, so this kind of chance encounter isn't the first time.

However, because of Li Hongbing's relationship with the Jia family, Qin Huairu and Li Hongbing have not exchanged a single word since Qin Huairu married into the Jia family more than a year ago.

Even when they bumped into each other, they went their separate ways, skipping the greeting altogether.

for these.

Both Li Hongbing and Qin Huairu were already used to it.

Or rather, a tacit understanding has been formed.

Despite having just reported the Jia family that evening and running into Qin Huairu, a member of the Jia family, Li Hongbing felt nothing and prepared to leave as usual.

however.

Just then, Qin Huairu suddenly spoke up.

"Li Hongbing, why do you insist on making trouble for our family?"

Upon hearing Qin Huairu's words, Li Hongbing was stunned, looking at her with some surprise and incomprehension.

More than a year has passed.

The two resumed their conversation, and Qin Huairu actually asked such a brainless question.

Is he at odds with the Jia family?
"Qin Huairu, please use your brain before you speak. Who started this conflict? Did you give birth to a child and also develop a brain?"

Li Hongbing felt utterly speechless.

It's unclear whether Qin Huairu is genuinely naive or just pretending.

However, Li Hongbing still felt that the latter was more likely.

at the same time.

Faced with Li Hongbing's novel way of roasting people, Qin Huairu's mind was a little slow to process it.

Although she began to realize that Li Hongbing was mocking her for being brainless, she couldn't think of any rebuttal.

Because her question was completely unfounded, it's no wonder Li Hongbing had such a complaint.

"sorry!"

An embarrassed Qin Huairu first apologized to Li Hongbing. When she saw Li Hongbing looking over, she pitifully shed a tear and then said, "I didn't come here to cause you trouble. What happened in the past was wrong of Dongxu and my family. I apologize to you on their behalf..."

Qin Huairu's sudden apology left Li Hongbing somewhat puzzled, but he didn't express his opinion. Instead, he wanted to see what Qin Huairu was really up to.

Li Hongbing neither disliked nor sympathized with Qin Huairu; he simply treated her like a stranger, not even as good as a neighbor in the courtyard.

it's OK.

The reason is that the people who caused trouble before were Jia Dongxu or Jia Zhangshi, and Qin Huairu was not involved.

Moreover, she had a very low profile with Li Hongbing.

As for the lack of sympathy, that's actually quite understandable.

Regardless of what happened before, ever since Qin Huairu married into the Jia family, she has been a member of the Jia family and is implicitly considered to be in the opposing camp.

Aside from the day Qin Huairu came to his door for a blind date, the two exchanged a few brief words and had no interaction whatsoever. Whether she was good or bad, it had nothing to do with Li Hongbing.

"...We were wrong before, but I hope you can let our family off the hook. Let's call it even from now on, and we can all live in the same courtyard and get along amicably from now on. What do you think?"

Seeking peace?

Hearing Qin Huairu's words, Li Hongbing was speechless.

Qin Huairu's actions were like children playing house; her thinking was far too simplistic.

"Qin Huairu, have you consulted Jia Dongxu and Jia Zhangshi about what you're saying?"

"Can your words represent the Jia family?"

"Let's call it even, wipe the slate clean, and live in harmony from now on?"

What sweet dreams are you having?

"Go back and ask Jia Dongxu if it's possible."

"If you're afraid of getting into trouble along with them, then tell Jia Dongxu and Jia Zhangshi to keep quiet and stop causing trouble. Just don't let me get any leverage over them..."

"..."

Li Hongbing's words silenced Qin Huairu completely.

The very first thing she said made her so embarrassed she wanted to disappear into the ground.

Although her status and treatment in the Jia family are now significantly higher than when she first married in, because she gave birth to Banggeng, a male member of the Jia family.

But to be honest, Qin Huairu is not yet at the level to represent Jia Zhangshi, or even Jia Dongxu.

She still had little say in the Jia family.

Her decision to seek reconciliation with Li Hongbing was made on her own initiative, but Li Hongbing immediately exposed her scheme.

"Li Hongbing, the day I went to the city for a blind date with Jia Dongxu, I asked you about the Jia family, and you recommended Xu Damao to me. Was that on purpose?"

Just as Li Hongbing was about to go back, Qin Huairu spoke again, saying something completely unrelated.

"What, is there a problem?"

Li Hongbing was stunned for a moment.

Qin Huairu's sudden remark to him was certainly not without reason.

"You knew Xu Damao wasn't a good person and that his relationship with my Dongxu wasn't good either, yet you still made me go to him to inquire about the Jia family. Were you trying to sabotage my blind date with Dongxu?"

Li Hongbing wasn't too surprised that Qin Huairu had guessed the truth.

But the fact that she suddenly brought up the matter again at this time and voiced her suspicions directly was clearly for ulterior motives.

Threaten him?
From the very beginning, Li Hongbing could tell that Qin Huairu was no innocent girl. Although she eventually married into the Jia family, she behaved herself for over a year, and Li Hongbing didn't pay much attention to her.

However, Qin Huairu's current pretentious behavior has made Li Hongbing dislike her.

At the same time, Li Hongbing became even more aware of one thing.

From the moment she became a member of the Jia family, Qin Huairu's interests and stance were completely tied to the Jia family. Even though she held the lowest position in the Jia family, her heart was always with the Jia family.

"Qin Huairu, you're really quite ridiculous!"

"I thought you were quite honest and upright, and that you weren't the same kind of people as Jia Dongxu and the Jia family." "Now it seems that the saying 'birds of a feather flock together' is quite true."

"No matter what the reason, the fact that you're bringing up something from over a year ago to make a fuss and smear me shows that you're not a very good person."

"You know my relationship with the Jia family back then. You're asking me about the Jia family. Do you think I should say bad things about them or good things?"

"Besides, Xu Damao's father was a big shot in our compound back then. The Xu family and your Jia family weren't like they are now, sworn enemies. You want to secretly find out about the Jia family's actual situation? I'm telling you to go find the son of one of the big shots in our compound. Is there a problem?"

"You can't tell right from wrong, that's exactly what I mean by someone like you!"

"..."

Even if Qin Huairu guessed correctly, Li Hongbing wouldn't admit it; instead, he would rebuke her without any politeness.

At the time, he "pointed the way" to Qin Huairu by introducing Xu Damao to her, which was indeed intended to sabotage her matchmaking with the Jia family.

Perhaps he didn't want the Jia family to benefit from his scheme, but to say he had any ill intentions towards Qin Huairu would be absolutely untrue.

From Li Hongbing's perspective, the Jia family was a living hell, and Qin Huairu's future after marrying into it was not likely to be good.

But Li Hongbing forgot.

For Qin Huairu, who was then focused on marrying into the city, a city family like the Jia family was exactly what she needed.

Given her current stance, looking back at the time, Li Hongbing naturally appears to have ulterior motives.

Even now, Li Hongbing doesn't think he made a mistake back then.

Qin Huairu's marriage into the Jia family was her own choice, and if she regrets it later, it has nothing to do with Li Hongbing.

Qin Huairu is overthinking things by wanting to bring up old grievances and find fault with him now.

With her petty tricks, she thinks she can outsmart me?

After saying those words, Li Hongbing went straight back.

As for Qin Huairu, she was left alone, feeling awkward and bewildered.

Originally, I wanted to find Li Hongbing to help the Jia family resolve their conflict, but I didn't expect to offend him instead.

For a moment, Qin Huairu was filled with regret.

……

Two days passed in the blink of an eye.

Madam Jia returned to the courtyard house, and the punishment for her was announced.

They were forced to do a year of labor education, which involved sweeping the streets without any wages or subsidies.

Don't underestimate this light punishment. Although there are now policy terms for speculation, the main purpose is to crack down on illegal vendors who disrupt market stability and hoard goods. The punishment is mainly to shut them down, which is essentially to "end the illegal state" and does not constitute a criminal offense.

The current issuance of flour purchase certificates and grain purchase certificates, and the unified purchase and sale of grain, is only the beginning of a planned economy. When we fully enter the era of ration coupons, the severity and scope of the crackdown on speculation will gradually increase and expand.

Since Jia Zhangshi was not a merchant and did not have any business premises, there was no way to seal up or shut her down. However, confiscating the stockpiled grain was one of the main punishments.

The punishment of making her sweep the streets and do manual labor was aimed at her fraudulent activities, her previous lack of cooperation, and her ideological awareness.

As for Li Hongbing's report about Yi Zhonghai and Jia Dongxu's cover-up and conspiracy.

Because Jia Zhangshi took the blame herself, and there was no clear evidence, Yi Zhonghai escaped punishment.

As a member of the family, Jia Dongxu, even if he was not an accomplice, could not escape suspicion of covering it up, and was eventually reported to the steel rolling mill.

Thus.

The probationary period for the salary reduction was supposed to end in about two months, but it was extended again because of this incident.

Jia Dongxu works as a junior fitter in the workshop and can only continue to receive an apprentice salary of 180,000 yuan a month.

The New Year has passed.

The year was 1954.

This is Li Hongbing's third year in this era.

Another six months of peaceful days have passed.

in a blink.

September has arrived.

As autumn approached, an important event occurred.

Following grain, cotton cloth was also fully included in the unified purchase and sale system, and cloth coupons were introduced.

This incident had a significant impact on ordinary people and also had a considerable impact on Chen Xueru's silk shop business.

When it comes to cotton fabrics, there are not only cheap and inexpensive options, but also many high-quality varieties.

Cotton cloth entered the unified sales and purchase system, covering all products containing cotton, including fabrics, clothing, mosquito nets, bed sheets and socks, etc. Chen Xueru's silk shop, as a private individual business, naturally did not have the qualifications to supply and sell.

The government took over all production and sales channels. All machine-woven cotton fabrics and machine-spun/hand-spun cotton fabrics produced by state-owned, cooperative, joint state-private, and private weaving, dyeing, and handicraft factories were to be purchased by the state-owned cotton yarn and cloth company and were not allowed to be traded freely.

This means that Chen Xueru can no longer source any cotton textiles from the factories or business partners she previously worked with.

Even the cotton fabrics that were originally in the store were bought back by the higher-ups at cost price.

The only thing to be thankful for is.

This unified purchase and sale of cotton cloth did not include silk.

Silk belongs to the "silk fabric industry," and its main production areas are currently in Jiangsu and Zhejiang provinces. Its production and distribution system is separate from that of cotton cloth, and it is an independently operated business.

If it weren't for this, Chen Xueru's silk shop could have simply closed down without waiting for the subsequent public-private partnership.

Fortunately, Chen Xueru had always wanted to focus on developing and expanding mid-to-high-end businesses, and this time her wish came true.

Before this, Li Hongbing had secretly stockpiled some cotton cloth, and with the rewards from upgrading his clothing design skills, he basically didn't have to worry about running out of clothes in the future.

Silk fabric is good, and they can afford it now, but it will obviously be very inappropriate when the wind picks up later.

……

this day.

Li Hongbing had just returned from get off work at Fengzeyuan when Shazhu excitedly ran over to share some "good news" with him.

"Red Soldier, I've completed my apprenticeship!"

Hearing Sha Zhu's excited voice, Li Hongbing couldn't help but say, "Sha Zhu, congratulations!"

Li Hongbing was not surprised at all by this.

Calculate the time.

It has been three years since Sha Zhu became an apprentice at Emei Restaurant and became a disciple of Sichuan cuisine chef Dong Congyou.

Sha Zhu already had a solid foundation. If he had been an apprentice for three years and then learned the craft for another three years but still hadn't graduated, it would either mean that his master, Dong Congyou, was too strict or wanted to continue to focus on training him, or that Sha Zhu's talent and skill level were simply lacking.

"There is also good news."

Seeing Li Hongbing's calm reaction, Sha Zhu, who had come specifically to share the "good news," was clearly somewhat dissatisfied. So he took the initiative to say, "I'm a junior cook now, and I've gotten a job in the steel mill's canteen. I don't have to start as an apprentice anymore; I'm directly the head chef, earning 270,000 a month, a full 100,000 more than before..."

"You went to the steel rolling mill?"

This news was indeed very sudden for Li Hongbing.

Although in the original drama, Sha Zhu was a cook at the steel rolling mill, it was never explained how he went from working at the Emei Restaurant to becoming a factory cook at the steel rolling mill.

"That's right!"

Noticing Li Hongbing's surprised expression, Sha Zhu puffed out his chest with a smug look.

"Why did you go to the steel rolling mill all of a sudden?"

Looking at Sha Zhu, Li Hongbing couldn't help but guess, "Could it be that Yi Zhonghai came up with this idea for you?"

(End of this chapter)