The sky collapsed, and in the blink of an eye, I found myself transported to Nanluoguxiang.

On the way back, Li Kaixin walked and thought.

The first transaction with Li Huaide went smoothly, and now I have more than 4,500 yuan in hand.

Back in the courtyard, the main house was still brightly lit.

Li Kaixin pushed open the door and went in. His father, Li Mingde, and mother, Qin Xiuli, were still sitting and waiting for him.

Upon seeing their eldest son return, the two men visibly relaxed.

"Dad, Mom, why aren't you resting yet?" Li Kaixin asked with a smile.

Qin Xiuli, Li Kaixin's mother, gave her a disapproving look:

"I'm just washing the dishes, and you run off without a word in the middle of the night. How can we sleep soundly?"

Li Kaixin then remembered that she had only said goodbye to her father when she left home.

So he quickly apologized: "Father, Mother, it's my fault, I'm sorry for making you worry."

When Qin Xiuli heard her son apologize, she nodded and said nothing more.

Father Li Mingde added, "Get some rest."

He and his wife then turned around and went back into the inner room.

They're here simply to wait for their eldest son to return.

The next morning, Li Kaixin arrived at courtyard house number 94 early to wait for Master He.

At this moment, an older woman came up and chatted with Li Kaixin casually with a familiar smile.

"Is that Li Mingde's eldest son, Li Kaixin, from courtyard number 93?"

"Auntie, who are you?" Li Kaixin asked in confusion.

The woman smiled and said, "My surname is Lu, and I live in the house across from yours. Just call me Aunt Lu!"

"Hello, Aunt Lu!"

Li Kaixin greeted him politely, then followed up by asking, "Did you come here for something?"

"I came here early this morning to ask if you're moving in."

"It's still a long way from moving in. I need to fix up the house first. That's why I'm here early this morning waiting for the renovation workers," Li Kaixin replied.

No sooner had he finished speaking than Master He, carrying his toolbox and followed by two young men, walked toward them.

The two young men were each carrying some tools.

"Aunt Lu, let's talk later, the renovation workers are here." After saying that, Li Kaixin turned around and went to greet Mr. He.

Upon approaching, Li Kaixin greeted him first, "Good morning, Master He!"

Then, turning to the other two, he asked, "Who are these two?"

Master He put down his tools and introduced with a smile:

"These are my two apprentices, Dazhuang and Erniu. You can keep an eye on this house; the three of us will definitely make it look beautiful for you."

Seeing this, the two young men nodded earnestly to Li Kaixin.

"Thank you for your hard work, Master He and your two brothers."

As Li Kaixin spoke, he took out his key and opened the door:

"As for the specifics of how to handle the rest, I'll have to ask you for your help."

Master He and his two companions entered the house and immediately began to work. Upon seeing this, Li Kaixin immediately withdrew.

After coming out of the room, I noticed that Aunt Lu hadn't gone back inside yet, so I quickly went up to her and called out to her:

"Aunt Lu, are you free right now? I'd like to ask you for a favor."

"What's up? I'll definitely help if I can."

Although Aunt Lu readily agreed verbally, she was secretly having doubts.

Li Kaixin said sincerely, "I would like to ask you to introduce me to the neighbors in this courtyard."

"Oh, what is it? This is easy, leave it to me." As soon as Aunt Lu heard it was about this matter, she immediately became enthusiastic.

Li Kaixin was delighted to see that Aunt Lu readily agreed: "That's wonderful, Aunt Lu. Please wait a moment, I'll go get something and come back to invite you later."

After saying that, he quickly walked out of the courtyard.

When he returned, Li Kaixin was carrying a thermos in one hand and a cloth bag in the other.

He went to his room first and saw that Master He and his two apprentices had already started working.

Li Kaixin gently placed the thermos in the corner, walked over, and took out three packs of Daqianmen cigarettes from his bag.

He handed them to the three men in turn: "Master He, brothers, take these and have a smoke to relieve your fatigue."

Upon seeing that it was Daqianmen, Master He quickly declined, saying, "Master, this is too much of a waste, no, no."

"Don't be shy, take it," Li Kaixin said, stuffing the cigarettes into their hands.

Seeing that he couldn't refuse, Master He turned around, looked at his two apprentices, and nodded to them.

The three of them accepted the gift, their faces beaming with gratitude, repeatedly saying, "Thank you, sir!"

"Don't mention it, thank you for your hard work." Li Kaixin said with a smile, then turned and walked out.

Before they had gone far, they could hear Master He inside the house giving instructions to his apprentice in a low voice:

"Our employer is generous, so we'd better do our job even more meticulously."

Hearing Master He say this, Li Kaixin's lips curled up slightly; this was exactly the effect he wanted.

Upon arriving at the house across the street, Li Kaixin gently knocked on the door.

Aunt Lu opened the door and, seeing it was Li Kaixin, her face beamed with smiles.

Li Kaixin immediately took out a pound of beef jerky and a pound of walnuts from the bag.

"Aunt Lu, here's some beef jerky and walnuts, please have a taste." He said, handing them to Aunt Lu.

"Oh dear! This is far too precious, you can't accept this!" Aunt Lu waved her hands repeatedly in refusal.

Seeing that Aunt Lu wouldn't accept the money, Li Kaixin quickly explained:

"Aunt Lu, please listen to me. I have to go to work tomorrow, and I'll need your help keeping an eye on things here while the house is being repaired."

"If you don't accept it, I'll feel terrible. I can't let you go to all this trouble for nothing!"

"You mean this? No problem, Auntie guarantees she'll take good care of it for you."

Aunt Lu didn't refuse anymore, and accepted it with a smile. She continued, "Kaixin, wait here for me a moment. After I've settled everything, I'll take you to see each place!"

He had barely finished speaking when he turned and went inside.

When they came out again, he led Li Kaixin straight to the backyard.

Only then did Li Kaixin realize that the layout of courtyard house number 94 was similar to that of courtyard house number 93, with two courtyards, one in front and one in back.

I looked at the house earlier and left without ever coming in to look inside.

Aunt Lu first led Li Kaixin to the door of the house of the steward of No. 94 courtyard.

He called out into the house, "Sister Ye, our new neighbor wants to see you. Come out and get to know her."

That clear shout drew the attention of several nearby households, who peeked out to look.

"Coming, coming!" As soon as the voice fell, a middle-aged woman, who looked to be in her fifties, opened the door.

Li Kaixin immediately stepped forward with a smile:

"Hello Aunt Ye, my name is Li Kaixin, this is a gift for you."

He handed over a small cloth bag containing about an ounce of beef jerky and five or six walnuts.

Aunt Ye quickly refused, "No need, no need, I can't accept this."

"Aunt Ye, please accept this! My renovation work has inevitably affected your rest, so this is my way of apologizing."

Li Kaixin spoke sincerely, gently pushing the cloth bag over.

Seeing that Li Kaixin said this, Aunt Ye stopped refusing and accepted the offer with a smile:

"You're too kind, child. Okay, then thank you very much."

After visiting Aunt Ye, Aunt Lu took Li Kaixin to visit other people in succession.

Although this courtyard house has the same layout as courtyard house number 93, it is obviously more crowded here, with a total of eight households including Li Kaixin.

About an hour later, the last house in the front yard was also visited.

Aunt Lu was about to go back.

"Aunt Lu, please wait a moment."

Li Kaixin called her again, took out the last small cloth bag she had prepared from the bag, and handed it to her.

"Kaixin, didn't you already give this to me? I really can't accept this," Aunt Lu said, puzzled.

Li Kaixin explained with a smile:

"This is different. The previous one was a separate thank you for looking after the house for me."

"This is the same gift we give to the other neighbors; every household receives one. If you don't accept it, it would seem like we're being distant."

Aunt Lu understood, and readily took the cloth bag, her face beaming with joy: "That makes sense! Then I'll shamelessly accept it again."

After saying goodbye to Aunt Lu, Li Kaixin turned and left courtyard number 94.