The Beginning of a Courtyard House: Sixty Years of Internal Strength

At this moment, Li's mother came out of the kitchen and said, "What kind of woman are you looking for? Fair-skinned, beautiful, and with long legs? Are you looking for a celestial being? I think you're asking for a beating." Li's mother slapped Li Jianguo on the back.

"Mom, what are you doing? I'm just doing this according to my own aesthetic standards. I like it this way."

"Alright, don't make things difficult for the child. Just search according to these conditions for now. If you really can't find it, we'll think of another way," Mr. Li quickly said to stop him.

"Yes, right? My dad is right. I'm looking for it myself, searching around. Don't worry."

"You can't go out and act like a hooligan, Sanqingzi," Li's mother warned her troublesome second son.

"Don't worry, Mom, that will absolutely not happen," Li Jianguo quickly assured her.

Li Jianguo stayed at home and chatted with the two of them for a while, then got up and left when he saw that it was getting late.

On his way home, Li Jianguo opened the system and looked at it. He had done so much, even ruining Yi Zhonghai's hand, but the progress was only 6%.

Holy crap, so slow? Logically, Yi Zhonghai should have a lot of screen time; I even crippled his hand. Yet his luck stat only increased by a tiny bit.

When Li Jianguo arrived at the entrance of courtyard house number 95, he found that Yan Bugui was not guarding the gate.

As he entered the courtyard, he noticed the noisy central courtyard. "I wonder if there's some kind of excitement to watch again?" Li Jianguo wondered excitedly as he walked towards the central courtyard.

Unexpectedly, Old Man Yan set up a table and started writing couplets, saying all he wanted was some melon seeds and peanuts.

How many years has it been? I didn't expect Yan Bugui to start setting up a stall and writing couplets so early.

"Sigh," Li Jianguo sighed, "I thought there would be some excitement to watch."

Li Jianguo stood beside him and started reading. He was surprised to find that Yan Bugui's writing was actually quite good. Although he couldn't see any particular style, at least the characters were neat and legible.

"Jianguo, how's my writing? Should I write one for you too?" Yan Bugui said as he ground the ink.

"You absolutely must write one. It's the New Year, so if you write me an auspicious one, I'll get you some melon seeds as soon as I get home."

"Okay, no problem," Yan Bugui said, and began to write.

He hadn't seen her because of the crowd, but now Li Jianguo turned around and saw Qin Huairu squatting by the pool washing clothes. What a lovely peach-shaped bottom! She didn't seem cold at all; after walking a few steps, he looked closer and saw that her hands were red with cold.

He glanced towards the Yi family's house but didn't see anyone. He did see Sha Zhu sitting at his own doorstep, leering at the pool.

Li Jianguo was speechless. They'd been eyeing Qin Huairu for so long, and so blatantly at it; no wonder they'd been manipulated their whole lives.

Li Jianguo quietly walked up to Sha Zhu and whispered, "Is Zhu handsome? You're drooling, wipe it off quickly."

He Yuzhu heard the sound but didn't react immediately, so he quickly wiped his mouth.

Feeling like there was nothing there, I realized that someone was playing a trick on me. Just as I was about to curse, I turned around and saw that it was Li Jianguo.

"Brother Jianguo, stop teasing me, I didn't see anything." Shazhu scratched his head sheepishly.

"What's there to be embarrassed about? Just look. Who doesn't like looking at beautiful women, right?" Li Jianguo also glanced at Qin Huairu, who was washing clothes.

The younger version of Aunt Thirteen is only eighteen or nineteen now. She's much prettier than when the series started, when she was probably in her thirties.

Looking at his face now, full of collagen, with fair skin and a high bust, she's the kind of voluptuous beauty with a large frame, but her figure is still quite well-proportioned.

I wonder if she had an affair with Yi Zhonghai? But with her looks, it's no wonder she's kept Sha Zhu hooked for so many years.

"Brother Jianguo, stop teasing me. Have you had lunch yet? It's almost noon. Come to my house and let's have a drink. I haven't properly thanked you for what happened to my dad yet." He Yuzhu looked at Li Jianguo sincerely.

"Sure, I've heard from the people in the yard that you've been learning to cook since you were little. I've been wanting to try your cooking for a long time. Go cook, and I'll bring a bottle of wine so we can have a good drink together."

At this moment, Yan Bugui, who was in the center of the courtyard, shouted, "Jianguo, your Spring Festival couplets have been written for a long time, come and get them quickly."

"Okay." With that, Li Jianguo quickly went home, grabbed a handful of melon seeds, put them on the table, and took the couplets.

Li Jianguo went home, made some paste, and stuck it on directly. No one was watching, and it was a bit crooked, but he just left it like that, not caring too much about it.

After putting up the couplets, I had nothing to do at home. I locked the door, grabbed two bottles of Erguotou (a type of Chinese liquor), and headed straight for the He family's house.

"Zhu Zi, this smells delicious! Your cooking is really good." Li Jianguo smelled the aroma of meat wafting towards him; it must be braised pork.

"Brother Jianguo, please have a seat. I'll be done in a minute," He Yuzhu called out to the living room.

"Okay, no rush, take your time." Li Jianhua looked around the room and thought, as expected of the main house in Zhongyuan, it was really spacious! Moreover, the rainwater was supplied from the side rooms next door.

As expected of the main house in the courtyard, it's much better than my own small and cramped house.

Shouldn't we change our accommodation? The problem is that the courtyard houses are quite full now, except for the west wing, which is empty. But the houses there were destroyed by artillery fire, and if we were to move in there, we would have to rebuild them, which would be too expensive.

I have plenty of money, but I don't have a reasonable reason to take it out. It's hard to explain why I suddenly had so much money. Sigh, I can only wait another two years before deciding.

Before long, He Yuzhu brought the dishes to the table: spicy stir-fried cabbage, Kung Pao chicken, braised pork, and a plate of peanuts to go with the drinks. Not bad!

"Brother Jianguo, wait a moment, I'll go call Yushui." After saying that, He Yuzhu went out the door and called Yushui from the side room.

After they finished speaking, the three of them began to eat and drink at the table.

"Zhu Zi, I haven't had a proper talk with you since your father passed away. How are things? Where's your job going?" Li Jianguo asked He Yuzhu after clinking glasses with him.

"Brother Jianguo, I'm cooking big pot dishes at the steel rolling mill now. When you need to get food, come to my window, and I'll give you extra." He Yuzhu said happily.

"Okay, no problem. I'll come find you whenever I eat at the factory. By the way, have you made arrangements for Yushui? She's not young anymore, she should be old enough to go to elementary school by now."

He Yushui's eyes lit up when she heard Jianguo's words. Actually, she really wanted to go to school, but because of the constant problems at home, she never had the chance.

"Oh dear, I forgot about that. Luckily you reminded me. I'll send her to school after the New Year." He Yuzhu slapped his forehead in annoyance.

"Okay, you see. Generally, first grade should start in the summer."

If you're going, you can ask if she can transfer into the class directly.

If you can't go directly to first grade, you'll have to wait until next summer to enroll. You can ask Ms. Yan from the front yard about this.

He teaches elementary school, so there shouldn't be any problem. However, this guy might try to rip you off; you should know Yan Laoshi's notorious stinginess.