Courtyard House: Starting as an engineer, crushing a yard full of poultry

“This… this… a guy named Li Xiangdong has taken a liking to me, and he keeps asking me to give him these things. He told me to go see him tomorrow morning.” Yu Li said awkwardly, “He said he’s an eighth-level engineer in the factory, and also the head of the technical department.”

"How is this possible?" Yu Dajiang exclaimed. "We have a top student who came to our factory. He's an eighth-level engineer and the head of the technical department."

"But why would he be interested in you?"

Huang Guihua was unhappy: "What do you mean Lao Yu doesn't deserve my daughter?"

"She really isn't good enough for me. Look at her status," Yu Dajiang said with a wry smile. "What kind of wife can't she find?"

"Looking for a country girl?"

Huang Guihua also became suspicious: "Yes, Yu Li, please tell us the details, so you don't get fooled."

Yu Li then recounted the whole story in detail, and concluded with a touch of pride, "He wouldn't lie to me, otherwise he wouldn't have asked me to meet him at the factory gate."

"He also said he'd get me a job and transfer my household registration to the city!"

Yu Dajiang and Huang Guihua also hesitated. This didn't seem like a scam. There were no scammers like this!

"Alright then, I'll hide behind the gatehouse early tomorrow and keep watch. I've seen Section Chief Li once from afar," Yu Dajiang said. "If it really is him, then our ancestors' graves are emitting auspicious smoke."

Chapter Twenty-Two: Preparing for Bird Fighting (Seeking flowers and votes!)

Li Xiangdong and Yu Li hadn't gone far when they saw Jia Zhangshi and Qin Huairu rushing back into the factory. Needless to say, they knew Jia Dongxu was in trouble.

Yu Li sat in Li Xiangdong's car, her heart pounding. It felt like she was sitting on a swing, being pushed and swayed by Li Xiangdong.

From yesterday until now, Yu Li has been wondering if she's dreaming. She's twisted her arm many times, but each time it hurts so much that she knows she's not dreaming.

Li Xiangdong took Yu Li to a hot pot restaurant and ordered about three catties of various kinds of mutton. The two of them started eating.

"Dong-ge, how could you possibly fall for me?"

Yu Li still had this question in her mind.

“Because you look exactly like the wife I’ve always imagined,” Li Xiangdong blurted out. “And I can tell at a glance that you’re very shrewd; that’s exactly the kind of woman I want.”

"And you must be saying that you're from the countryside and don't have a food ration coupon or something. But that's no big deal to me."

"I'll just find you a job. By the way, do you like what I have in mind?"

Seeing Li Xiangdong smiling at her, Yu Li's legs went weak. But she still bravely said, "Yes, yes, I will follow you for the rest of my life!"

There were no vows of eternal love, but Li Xiangdong knew that when Yu Li said those words, she would never leave him, no matter what hardships they faced.

"Okay, I'll go buy you some clothes later," Li Xiangdong said with a smile. "I'll bring you back some cotton-padded coats and jackets."

"I'll go to your Zuojiazhuang next Sunday."

Yu Li said with a happy expression, "Okay, I'll be waiting for you next Sunday. But you don't need to buy anything. The ten yuan you gave me is still with me. Add the four big fish, and consider it the betrothal gift."

"Don't worry about saving money for me, I'll buy you clothes later." Li Xiangdong said with a smile, "I have money! I saved up a lot of money when I was in school. Now I earn even more a month."

"But we have to live our lives together from now on," Yu Li said shyly.

"It's alright, listen to me," Li Xiangdong waved his hand.

After lunch, Li Xiangdong took Yu Li to buy her a set of cotton-padded clothes. Then he took Yu Li to the vicinity of the courtyard house and asked her to wait for him at a distance. He rode his bicycle home by himself.

Upon returning home, Li Xiangdong slipped into the mysterious space. In the labor protection warehouse, he picked up two large cloth bags and filled them with five sets of cotton-padded clothes and five cotton-padded overcoats.

Li Xiangdong took out six pairs of those thick, fur-lined cotton shoes. He had just asked Yu Li her foot size. Yu Li, embarrassed, finally said size 37.

Li Xiangdong brought these items to Yu Li and first handed her the fur-lined cotton shoes that were placed to the side.

"Yu Li, change these for me. You've lost your shoes, haven't you?" Li Xiangdong said. "These are size 38. I've put some felt insoles in them and they'll fit perfectly."

Li Xiangdong stuffed more than twenty pairs of felt insoles into his bag.

Yu Li stopped refusing and lowered her head to change out of her worn-out cotton shoes. She seemed somewhat reluctant to throw them away.

"Brother Dong, how come you have so many cotton-padded coats?" Yu Li asked in surprise when she found out what was in the two big bags.

“I was transferred from Guangzhou in the south,” Li Xiangdong said. “These were all prepared for me by my parents’ comrades-in-arms. They even prepared things for my girlfriend.”

"Take it back now and give it to your parents and brother to wear."

"I'll find someone better in the future."

Yu Li was deeply moved, but she didn't say thank you. She just gave Li Xiangdong a deep look before lowering her head.

"Where should we go now?" Yu Li asked shyly.

“You want to go back, right? I’d like to get you a car, but we don’t have the ration coupons.” Li Xiangdong rubbed his nose and said, “I’ll go to the scrap yard this afternoon and get some old parts to assemble one for you. I’ll buy you a new one when we have the coupons.”

"Don't waste your money, Dong-ge. I don't need it," Yu Li said softly. "Giving me too much will have a bad influence in the village."

"It will make too many people envious."

Li Xiangdong thought it made sense, so he decided to wait until later.

“Then I’ll be at Zuojiazhuang at eight o’clock next Sunday morning,” Li Xiangdong said. “It’s not convenient for you to come to my house now, but it will be about right next time. I’ll go back and make some furniture.”

"Brother Dong, you can do carpentry too?" Yu Li's bright eyes were full of surprise.

"Yes, you'll see next time you go. I made all the furniture myself," Li Xiangdong said proudly.

Li Xiangdong saw Yu Li off at the station and watched her struggle to carry two large bags onto the train. Only after the train left did Li Xiangdong ride his bicycle home.

Li Xiangdong returned home around 2 PM. He busied himself building a chest of drawers and several stools and chairs, and had just finished applying a coat of varnish when he heard wailing outside.

Li Xiangdong stood at the screen door looking outside. It was 4:30 in the afternoon, and people who had finished get off work or school were returning home.

A coffin was carried into the central courtyard, followed by a door panel covered with a white cloth. There was also a tin bucket on the door panel.

Li Xiangdong immediately understood what was in the tin bucket. It must be Jia Dongxu's mangled lower body.

Li Xiangdong shook his head, looking at Jia Zhangshi, who was crying her heart out, and Qin Huairu. He knew that Shazhu was about to fall into a real trap.

"Tsk tsk, Jia Dongxu died...at a bad time." Xu Damao rushed in front of Li Xiangdong and said, "The New Year is just around the corner!"

"Tsk tsk, the scene today was really tragic," Li Xiangdong said, shaking his head.

"Luckily I wasn't there, or I would have been in big trouble." Xu Damao shuddered and said, "Many of those who were there at noon today couldn't eat their meals. By the way, Section Chief Li, were you there?"

"So what did you have for lunch today?"

"Hot pot lamb, I treated my girlfriend to it," Li Xiangdong said casually.

"Tsk tsk, you're really something. You can still eat." Xu Damao said obsequiously, "By the way, their funeral is tomorrow morning."

"Jia Zhangshi was causing quite a ruckus at the factory. In the end, she only received a 500 yuan compensation. Also, Qin Huairu took over her work position."

"Yi Zhonghai is going to hold a big meeting later to give instructions on tomorrow's funeral arrangements. This is such a pain in the ass."

Li Xiangdong snorted coldly and said, "This Yi Zhonghai just likes to use other people's things to do favors. He's like someone else's child who's always getting killed."

"Only you can stand up to Yi Zhonghai." Xu Damao said with a wry smile, "I'll go back and discuss it with my wife to see if we can get away. That old bastard Yi Zhonghai will definitely make me carry his coffin!"

"Go back, but don't hide," Li Xiangdong sneered. "I'm going to make things difficult for him today."

Chapter Twenty-Three: Jia Dongxu's Encoffining (Please give me some flowers and votes, my friends!)

Li Xiangdong's dinner was simple: he steamed rice in a small pot on a coal stove and made sweet and sour carp on the kitchen stove.

That carp, weighing over a pound, is perfect for making sweet and sour carp.

As for white sugar, Li Xiangdong has a lot. There are about twenty tons in the cold storage. Each bag weighs one hundred jin (50 kg), neatly stacked on the shelves.

The Jia family in the Zhongyuan Court is preparing Jia Dongxu's body for burial, and the funeral will be tomorrow. This is in accordance with the terms agreed upon with the factory. Only after the burial will they receive the 500 yuan compensation and the substitute worker benefits.

Jia Zhangshi was incredibly troublesome; she caused quite a scene at the steel rolling mill. She managed to demand an extra hundred yuan, forcing the factory leaders to take precautions.

Madam Jia sat by the coffin, weeping bitterly, while Qin Huairu fainted again. She was over three months pregnant, and her belly was already showing signs of pregnancy.

The person who prepared Jia Dongxu's body for burial was, of course, a professional. They hired a coffin maker from a coffin shop.

"Dongxu, Dongxu, how could you be so cruel, making me, an old man, bury you, a black-haired man!" Yi Zhonghai's eyes were also red from crying.

If the caregiver passes away, you have to train a new one. Luckily, you had a backup plan beforehand.

Sha Zhu stood beside Qin Huairu, a faint smile playing on his ugly face.

"Damn, they just shut it down like that?" Xu Damao glanced at it from the side and felt his stomach churn.

The earthworkers first placed Jia Dongxu's upper body in the coffin. They secured it with wood shavings wrapped in straw paper on both sides to prevent the body from shifting inside the coffin when it was lifted.

The upper body was done, but the bucket was a mess of flesh, blood, and bone fragments. This gave the earthworker a headache.

In the end, all they could do was dump these frozen things into the coffin.

Xu Damao happened to witness this scene. He ran to his doorstep but couldn't hold it in any longer and vomited up everything he had eaten that morning.

The earthen workers who were preparing the body finally lifted the coffin lid and placed it on top of the coffin. At this moment, you could still see Jia Dongxu's狰狞 (zhengning - ferocious/hideous) and bloodless face.

"The family members have come to see each other one last time!" the geomancer reminded them, explaining that this was the proper procedure.

Jia Zhangshi knelt beside the coffin, weeping uncontrollably.

“Sister-in-law, you can’t let your tears fall into the water.” Aunt Zhang Cuilan and Aunt Yang Yuhua hurriedly advised, “Alright, move aside. Let Banggeng and Xiaodang come and take a look.”

After Qin Huairu glanced at it, she tried to throw herself onto the coffin, but Sha Zhu grabbed her and pulled her aside.

Someone brought Xiao Dang and Bang Geng over, let them see them briefly, and then closed the coffin lid.

Banggeng knew what had happened to his father, and he started crying too. But Xiaodang was only four years old and didn't understand anything. But he was also frightened and started crying loudly.

At this moment, a shovel worker picked up a hammer and a large nail: "Son, when I'm hammering in the nail, shout 'Dad, get out of the way!'"