Courtyard House: The Chef's Intelligence System

Li Jiuzhou poured some tea for the two of them, then lit the cigarette Jia Dongxu had given him, took a deep drag, and said:

"Dongxu, it's understandable to increase the nutrition for the child. As parents, we all want our children to have a better life."

"Let me first tell you about the prices of milk powder and malted milk powder."

"It's not expensive in stores; a 500-gram can of malted milk powder costs 3.5 yuan."

"The milk powder is the same quantity and the same price."

"Our family uses about two cans of Iron Bull every month, which costs about 7 yuan."

"This is just the money; the tickets haven't been counted yet."

After listening to Li Jiuzhou's words, both of them nodded very seriously. Jia Dongxu asked:

"Are it easy to get coupons for milk powder and malted milk powder?"

Li Jiuzhou shook his head: "It's not easy to get it. Unless your wife has just given birth and is malnourished, the neighborhood office will issue a certificate, but you'll also need to bring her household registration book and a certificate of malnutrition from the hospital before you can get the ticket."

Yi Zhonghai and Jia Dongxu were speechless. This was way too difficult!

The thought of buying it would make an ordinary person's head spin; it's better not to eat it at all.

Yi Zhonghai asked the most crucial question: "So, Jiuzhou, what happened to yours? The neighbors in the courtyard all saw it today."

"Hehe..." Li Jiuzhou chuckled and continued, "Uncle Yi, I am, after all, the canteen manager of the steel rolling mill. The factory knows my son is young, so they give me two tickets every month, which is enough for me."

"Furthermore, my mentor knows a lot of people and occasionally helps me find a few tickets."

"And my second uncle, who is the logistics director of the factory, would occasionally spare some for me."

"If it weren't for these connections, I would have to go to the black market to buy them. A ticket for malted milk powder and milk powder costs 7 yuan."

"With the cost of malted milk powder and milk powder, a can costs over 10 yuan."

"To be honest, if you can't afford it, don't eat this stuff. It's way too damn expensive."

After saying that, Li Jiuzhou shrugged.

Li Jiuzhou's words made Yi Zhonghai and Jia Dongxu click their tongues in disbelief; that was really damn expensive!

Yi Zhonghai looked at Li Jiuzhou with a pleading expression and said:

"Jiuzhou, do you have any more at home? Why don't you lend us two cans?"

"Don't worry, Uncle Yi won't take advantage of you. You'll get exactly what you're owed."

Upon hearing this, Li Jiuzhou fell into thought. He had twelve cans of malted milk powder and milk powder left at home, enough for his son to drink for half a year.

In addition, he had a lot of coupons, all given to him by the factory leaders, and he couldn't use them all.

It's impossible to distribute the milk powder coupons to the Jia family; they have to buy them themselves. However, we can sell them two milk powder coupons and two malted milk powder coupons.

After thinking it through, Li Jiuzhou said, "Uncle Yi, Dongxu, we can't spare any. Not only does my son need to drink it, but my little sister does too. I'll have to send some to her another day."

"However, I can exchange two milk powder coupons with you."

The two were overjoyed upon hearing this, and Yi Zhonghai immediately took out 14 yuan and handed it to Li Jiuzhou.

"Jiuzhou, then we'll accept your kindness and give you two milk powder coupons."

"No problem." After taking the money, Li Jiuzhou went to his room to get two milk powder coupons and handed them to Jia Dongxu.

The two thanked him profusely before leaving the Li family home.

Bingbing then came over and said, "What are they thinking? Are they going to feed the hamster milk powder?"

"I was wondering why Tong Jie kept asking me questions like that. Oh, I see."

Li Jiuzhou pinched her delicate cheek and smiled, "It's alright, she's not taking advantage of our family."

"Let's help this once and see if the Jia family can afford it."

"Hmm..." Bingbing smiled.

The day after Jia Dongxu received the milk powder coupons, he went to the state-run store and brought back two cans of milk powder.

When Bang Geng saw this, his saliva dripped down his chin and onto his clothes.

The whole family was captivated by the milky aroma as soon as the jar was opened.

Jia Zhangshi scooped some out with her index finger and licked it into her mouth; the taste was exquisite.

Tong Jie and Jia Dongxu also tried it and found it very appetizing, but since it was for their son, they decided to skip it.

Suddenly, Jia Dongxu remembered something and said to his mother:

"Mom, please don't steal your precious grandson's milk powder."

Madam Jia was speechless. She had wanted to sneak a bite, but her son's way of saying it made things very pointless.

So she said irritably, "Fine, Dongxu, you've forgotten your mother now that you have a son."

"Is your mother really that bad in your eyes?"

"Mom isn't short of money. If you don't want to be filial to your mother, can't she just go out and buy it herself?"

"Let's just split up and fight separately. You can give me some retirement money every month."

Tong Jie's expression changed drastically upon hearing this. This was not something to be said; if it were to be separated from her husband, their spines would be broken.

Jia Dongxu had only one mother, and Jia Zhangshi had only one son, Jia Dongxu.

If Jia Dongxu dares to neglect his elderly mother, he will be cursed to death by his neighbors.

So he said:

"Mom, please don't say that. Dongxu doesn't know how to talk, please don't take it to heart."

"I'll make your favorite braised pork tomorrow."

Upon hearing her daughter-in-law's words, Jia Zhangshi smiled and said, "My daughter-in-law is so filial. My son is like a blockhead."

Jia Dongxu pursed his lips and did not refute.

At this moment, Banggeng stared with wide eyes and said, "Grandma, I'm Banggeng, not Bangchui!"

Madam Jia picked up her grandson and laughed, "My dear grandson, I wasn't talking about you, but Grandma said your dad's a blockhead!"

Banggeng laughed too, and shouted loudly, "I'm Banggeng, and my dad's a stick!"

"Hahahaha..." Tong Jie and Jia Zhangshi almost died laughing.

Jia Dongxu shook his head helplessly, deciding not to argue with his son, and went back to his room to sleep, exhausted from a day's work.

The next day, while playing with other children his age in the yard, Banggeng started showing off:

"My name is Banggeng, and my dad's name is Bangchui."

The children didn't really understand what "bangchui" meant, but they remembered the key point: Banggeng's father was called "bangchui".

Today, because of a major cleaning in the cafeteria, Li Jiuzhou left work with the workers.

A vast blue ocean, filled with workers in overalls.

Li Jiuzhou, Yi Zhonghai, and the others chatted and laughed as they returned to the courtyard. They all had bicycles, so the return trip was quite quick.

As soon as I entered the front yard, I saw several children playing.

"Dad, Father, Papa..."

Several children rushed toward their fathers using different names.

They would also greet their uncles and elders politely. They saw each other every day and became familiar with each other, knowing how to address them.

Tie Niu called out to everyone one by one, starting with Sha Zhu, Yi Zhonghai, and others.

When it was Jia Dongxu's turn, Tie Niu scratched his head and called out to him:

"Hey, you're Uncle Bangchui!"

Liu Guangfu, Yan Jiekuang, and other children also gathered around, pointing at Jia Dongxu and shouting "Uncle Bangchui!"

Li Jiuzhou and the others had smiles on their faces. Sha Zhu picked up Tie Niu and asked:

"Tie Niu, tell your uncle, why do we call him Uncle Bangchui?"

After thinking for a moment, Tie Niu said in a childish voice, "Bang Geng said his dad's name is Bangchui, so I should call him Uncle Bangchui, right?"

Sha Zhu, suppressing a laugh, said, "That's right, Tie Niu is the smartest!"

Jia Dongxu was both angry and amused by Tie Niu's words. What kind of mess was this?

My son is called Banggeng, and I'm called Bangchui?

Outsiders would assume they were brothers from the same clan, and that he was inexplicably a generation younger.

From then on, Jia Dongxu gained another nickname: "club"!

It was his own son who put it on; no one can take it off!