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

When He Yushui returned home from school, she was very confused to learn that she had swapped houses with Li Jianguo.

Fortunately, her side room was untouched, but she still had a big argument with Sha Zhu.

He then declared that he would tell He Daqing about this situation next time he visited him.

Sha Zhu didn't know how to explain this either.

He couldn't tell He Yushui about Qin Huairu's affair either.

I could only listen to the nagging of the rain.

Seeing that Sha Zhu remained silent, He Yushui lost interest in continuing the conversation.

She went straight back to the side room.

The next two months passed peacefully, and no trouble arose in the courtyard.

However, the backyard is often filled with the smell of Chinese medicine being brewed.

This caused everyone to complain and speculate about what illness Xu's mother had.

Li Jianguo guessed that Xu Damao must have realized he was failing, and that's why he'd been taking medication to manage it.

I don't know what the old Chinese medicine doctor who treated Xu Damao said.

Did you mention any external injuries or anything like that?

However, judging from his behavior towards Sha Zhu, he hasn't yet suspected Sha Zhu.

When Li Jianguo went to the silk shop as usual that day, he found that Chen Xueru was not there, and there was only a young maid serving at the shop.

"Brother Li, Sister Xue Ru is in the backyard. She's in a really good mood."

"Okay, I understand. You go ahead with your work."

Li Jianguo went to the backyard, wondering what had happened to Xue Ru.

Pushing open the door, I saw Chen Xueru lying motionless on the bed.

She heard a noise at the door, looked in the direction of the sound, and saw Li Jianguo.

Chen Xueru looked at Li Jianguo with teary eyes, without saying a word.

When Li Jianguo saw her red and swollen eyes, he quickly went over and patted her back.

"Sister Xue Ru, what's wrong? Why are you crying?"

Chen Xueru threw herself into Li Jianguo's arms.

"Brother Jianguo, my husband is heartless, he ran away."

He probably went to America; this guy doesn't even want his kids.

He dumped Hou Kui on me and took all the money from the house.

That guy deserves to be struck by lightning; he's shameless.

"Sister Xue Ru, what did I tell you? I could tell at a glance that your husband is no good."

Don't worry, Sister Xue Ru, don't cry, you have a younger brother.

Your younger brother will definitely take good care of you.

"Brother Jianguo, you're the best to me. You're the only one I have by my side now."

You can't abandon me.

After saying that, Chen Xueru hugged him even tighter.

"Alright, alright, Sister Xue Ru, don't worry, I will never abandon you."

Li Jianguo hugged and patted Chen Xueru's back to comfort her.

After crying for a while, Chen Xueru finally stopped crying.

"Sister Xue Ru, I just heard you say that your husband gave you a surprise."

Did he steal all your money? Do you want me to give you some more?

I still have a lot of gold here.

"Brother Jianguo, you're so kind to me. No need, he didn't steal them all."

I hid some of the money and the gold ingots you gave me in another place.

He didn't know, so the shop can still operate smoothly, don't worry.

"Speaking of the shop, Sister Xue Ru, how long has it been running?"

Didn't you say you were going to donate the shop? Why is it still open?

Chen Xueru rubbed her swollen eyes and glanced at Chen Jianguo apologetically.

"Brother Jianguo, this is my family's ancestral property. I really can't bear to sell it."

"Sister Xue Ru, didn't I tell you? I have plenty of money."

I have the money to buy 10 or 20 of these kinds of items from the store.

You should donate the shop right away, and I'll give you some more gold.

You should just find a regular job; opening a shop really won't work.

"Really? Brother Jianguo, you actually have so much money?"

Where did they all come from? Could something have happened?

"Oh, Sister Xue Ru, don't worry."

I found it in a secret room in an abandoned courtyard house.

I wonder which rich person forgot to take it with them when they ran away.

There are several large boxes, all filled with gold ingots and antiques.

We could eat it all in several lifetimes.

Chen Xueru hugged her excitedly.

"Jianguo, you're amazing! I'll listen to you, brother."

I'm going to sell the shop in the next couple of days, but after selling it...

Should I really find a factory job?

I really don't want to go to work. My sister has grown up so much since she was little.

I've never worked before, and now you're suddenly telling me to find a factory job.

I really can't get used to it.

Li Jianguo considered it for a moment and then said.

"How about this, Sister Xue Ru, would you like to come and work as a purchasing agent at our steel rolling mill?"

I have plenty of food and drink; I can help you submit the task later.

Now we only need to go to the factory once a month.

Each time, I would write a note requesting to go to the countryside, and then I could wander around outside for a month.

Just submit the task at the end of the month.

Chen Xueru also thought about it carefully.

"Brother Jianguo, it's too conspicuous for us to work in the same factory."

What if I get caught? Since the purchasing job is so easy, I'll go to another factory.

I'll buy a purchasing job, ta-da! We've got a deal.

You must complete my monthly tasks for me.

I don't want to run around everywhere to complete a task.

"Don't worry, Sister Xue Ru, I can definitely complete the task for you."

"Jianguo, are you under a lot of pressure to complete the purchasing task for two people all by yourself?"

If all else fails, sister, you could find a different job, something like sitting in an office and writing.

Chen Xueru suddenly became worried, after all, he had to complete twice the workload of others.

It's not that I'm worried he won't be able to have fun, but I'm mainly worried he'll get tired.

"Don't worry, Sister Xue Ru, I can definitely do it for you."

I've been a purchasing agent for so many years, I have connections.

"Look how much you've cried, your face is all stained. Hurry up and boil some water so he can take a bath."

Chen Xueru, realizing how disheveled she looked, went to boil water, feeling embarrassed.

Li Jianguo also went to the table and poured himself a cup of tea.

Chen Xueru is living a pretty good life.

Not only did they have coffee, but the tea was also noticeably better than what I had.

Speaking of tea, Li Jianguo suddenly thought of the original Da Hong Pao tea tree, which seems to be related to the reconstruction of Wuyi Mountain.

It's really too far from Beijing, probably about 1,600 kilometers away.

However, I still want to have the transplant done, so let's schedule it for next spring.

We'll uproot all the mother trees and transplant them into the space.

Spring is the perfect season for transplanting, and I suppose someone should be looking after them by now.

However, stealing a few trees shouldn't be a problem if I use my skills.

Just as Li Jianguo was pondering this, the sound of rushing water came from inside the room.

It seems Chen Xueru has already started taking a shower.

Hearing the sound of water, Li Jianguo couldn't resist and rushed in for a romantic swim with his partner.

After the two finished tidying up, they helped Chen Xueru sit down at the table.

Li Jianguo then went to the kitchen to get busy, as he was expending too much energy.

Both of them were starving, their stomachs practically touching their backs.

after eating.

"Sister Xue Ru, I'll be going now. You should take care of the shop as soon as possible."

"Okay, I understand."

Chen Xueru readily agreed to Li Jianguo's request.