Courtyard House: The Chef's Intelligence System

The New Year is just around the corner, and the Jia family is very busy, with their wood-fired stove running non-stop.

Because there are so many orders for Sachima, we are simply too busy to keep up. Jia Dongxu originally thought that he could relax a bit during the holiday, but he is even busier than before.

The family of three was so busy they didn't even have time to cook, but of course, they couldn't hide their joy at making money.

Many people come to the courtyard to buy Sachima all day long, and Aunt Yi goes over to help.

Yi Zhonghai took on the easiest job: taking care of children.

I carried the hamster around the yard, teaching it to say "Grandpa!" whenever it was free.

Even though the dog was yelling and screaming, Yi Zhonghai was still beaming with joy.

On the morning of New Year's Eve, Yan Bugui burned incense and bathed, then set up a table at his doorstep to write couplets.

He didn't ask for a fee, but the neighbors who came to ask for couplets would bring something with them. It was an unspoken agreement; he couldn't just let people write couplets for free.

The red paper was even provided by Yan Bugui, how could you go empty-handed?

Even neighbors from the next courtyard would come over to ask for Spring Festival couplets.

Many residents in the courtyard set up incense tables and offerings at their doorsteps to welcome the spring, and some people also set off firecrackers.

Customs vary from region to region, and each region has its own way of celebrating.

Li Jiuzhou's family has no elderly members, and he's too lazy to bother with all that. He just wants to live a normal life. Anyway, his family worships the Kitchen God on the first and fifteenth of every month.

From 9 to 11 o'clock, Li Jiuzhou gently peeled off the old image of the Kitchen God and pasted on a new one in the kitchen. He also placed some offerings and burned incense to welcome the Kitchen God back to his place.

The sounds of children's laughter could be heard both inside and outside the courtyard; they were playing with small firecrackers.

The adults couldn't stop; they had to clean inside and outside the house, and wash the tables, chairs, benches, and dishes.

He Daqing brought his wife and children to help out in the morning. He still prefers to spend the Spring Festival in his hometown and have a reunion dinner.

The deaf old woman was already dressed in a presentable manner and sitting in the main room of Sha Zhu's house.

She can also help with some chores, such as taking care of the children and tending the fire.

What kind of family does Sha Zhu come from? Do you really think they'd support him? Dream on.

The Jia and Yi families celebrate the New Year together, it's an old tradition, and the neighbors in the courtyard are used to it.

Yi Zhonghai prepared many things, spending some money for the sake of celebration.

He has a reputation for being kind and righteous; he even provided the lanterns at the entrance of courtyard number 95.

It was lit in the evening.

Li Jiuzhou prepared ten dishes, symbolizing perfection.

The family enjoyed their meal while listening to the firecrackers outside, creating a warm and cozy atmosphere.

The younger sister, Fengjiao, couldn't wait to go out and play; even the delicious food on the table couldn't tempt her.

Li Jiuzhou gave her a New Year's gift, not much, just 10,000 yuan. He was afraid that if he gave her more, she might lose it while playing with it.

After dinner, firecrackers are set off, and the front door of the house is left wide open, waiting for neighbors who have come to offer New Year's greetings.

Not long after Sha Zhu finished setting off firecrackers, he came over with his younger siblings to visit, clasping his hands in a fist and spewing sweet nothings at them.

Li Jiuzhou gave out New Year's money, but Sha Zhu didn't; he was afraid that giving it to him wouldn't be enough to keep the money.

The son, Li Chuan, was not frightened by the sound of firecrackers; instead, he was very curious and kept looking outside.

At 8 o'clock, Jia Dongxu went around inviting the younger generation to his home for tea and a chat.

Li Jiuzhou went there, and Jia Dongxu took out dice and said he wanted to play a few rounds for fun.

Normally it's fine to refuse, but now it's Chinese New Year, and my family won't say anything if I gamble a little. Isn't a little gambling harmless?

Just like last time, they rolled dice. Jia Dongxu was the initiator and the dealer.

Bet 1 on reaching the top!

Li Jiuzhou was going to give them face, so he directly put down 1, Sha Zhu followed suit, and the others put down several thousand or so.

"I'll bet 5000." Jia Zhangshi squeezed through the crowd and slammed the money onto the octagonal table.

Jia Dongxu smiled wryly:

"Mom, why are you getting involved?"

Jia Zhangshi replied with a smile, "It's the New Year, let Mom have some fun and see how her luck is."

The others echoed:

"Yeah, Dongxu, what's wrong with letting your aunt have some fun? It's the New Year."

Jia Dongxu sighed helplessly, "Fine, fine, let's play then."

This event was something Jia Dongxu had gone to great lengths to get through to his wife, Tong Jie; he just wanted to try his luck.

He applied for 50 yuan, which is a lot. Tong Jie was very generous this time.

It was also because their family earned a lot during the Chinese New Year period.

"Come on, place your bets now!" Jia Dongxu shouted, throwing the dice directly into the large bowl with a clanging sound.

When the three dice stop, the numbers become clear: three threes, a triple!

Jia Dongxu was incredibly excited; he got a leopard right at the start and quickly collected his winnings.

After that, Jia Dongxu's score was quite high for several consecutive rounds, which earned him a lot of money.

More and more neighbors gathered to watch.

Amidst the crowd, Liu Haizhong sneered a few times, then turned and walked out of the courtyard.

On the way, Liu Haizhong happened to run into Li Shanhe, who was going out to buy firecrackers for his younger sister, and the two greeted each other.

Li Shanhe glanced back at Liu Haizhong's back and wondered where he was going.

Then he remembered that his older brother was gambling at Jia Dongxu's house, and a bad feeling arose in his heart, so he secretly followed Liu Haizhong for a while.

When he saw him walking towards the military control committee, Li Shanhe ran into the courtyard like lightning.

When Li Shanhe entered the Intermediate People's Court, he didn't shout or yell. Instead, he tugged at his elder brother's sleeve, indicating that he had something to say to him.

Just as it was time to place bets, Li Jiuzhou took the opportunity to leave the crowd.

"What's wrong?"

Shanhe whispered directly in his ear: "I just saw Liu Haizhong go to the Military Control Commission."

"Holy crap!" Li Jiuzhou exclaimed, turning around to see Sha Zhu and his son gambling loudly and spitting everywhere.

The neighbors watching were also engrossed, and the scene was extremely noisy; it was practically a casino.

If no one reports it, it's fine, but if someone reports it, they'll definitely come and arrest you.

Li Jiuzhou originally wanted to go in and tell Sha Zhu and He Daqing so that they could get away, but he immediately heard messy footsteps coming from the front yard.

Li Jiuzhou calmly pulled his younger brother back, shielding everyone in front of him.

Liu Guangtian had sharp eyes; he was on the periphery and small, so he wasn't even qualified to gamble. So he shouted:

"The military control commissioners are here!"

The scene fell silent for a second, and the expressions on the faces of the people around the gambling table changed wildly.

Yi Zhonghai reacted the fastest, shouting, "Run the hell out of here!"

After saying that, he grabbed the bowl on the table and threw it out of the Jia family's window.

But running away isn't that easy; there are so many people that the Jia family's gate is completely blocked.

Sha Zhu was extremely anxious. Being agile, he leaped out of the window.

His father, He Daqing, was dumbfounded and shouted:

"Zhu Zi, you bastard, aren't you going to take care of your father?"

Sha Zhu doesn't care about his father. When disaster strikes, everyone flees for their own lives. He was arrested once recently and doesn't want to go back in.

The people inside the Jia family's house couldn't get out, and the comrades from the military control committee outside couldn't get in either; the scene was extremely chaotic.

Xu Damao rushed into Jia Dongxu's room and his eyes lit up when he saw Banggeng lying on the bed. He jumped onto the kang (a heated brick bed) without even taking off his shoes.

He picked up the stick and hugged it to his chest, then covered himself with the blanket and pretended to be asleep.

Jia Zhangshi's methods were much more sophisticated. She quickly took out Old Jia's memorial tablet, placed it down, and then picked up three incense sticks to worship.

In the midst of the chaos, they didn't even light incense, but just started praying, emphasizing sincerity.

Some people tried to imitate Sha Zhu by breaking windows, but they were caught as soon as they jumped out.

Some people rushed out of the Jia family's house and jumped over the wall to escape, not even going home.

Seeing that those who jumped out of the window had all been arrested, He Daqing had a sudden inspiration.

With a flick of his right hand, a smirk, and a tremor of his foot, he declared, "I am disabled, I do not gamble."

Liu Guangqi jumped directly onto the kang (heated brick bed) where Jia Zhangshi was sleeping and buried his head in his sleep.

Where is Jia Dongxu? He had already run away with Sha Zhu through the broken window; he was the first to jump over the wall and get out of the yard!