Siheyuan (courtyard house): My name is Shazhu!

With no excitement to watch, He Yuzhu went home to read, and the onlookers dispersed.

"Dongxu, are we really going to stay in that house? It used to be Lu Sanlu's house, an old man's room that no one has cleaned, it'll be very dirty." Jia Zhangshi was being picky again.

"Our house is uninhabitable on snowy days. Lu Sanlu's house is dirty, but if we clean it up, it's still habitable. There's no use in us being picky. If we don't live here, where will we live?"

Huai Ru, grab the broom you use for cleaning the house. I'll bring over some coal; we can't do without a fire in this weather. See if we need anything else? "Jia Dongxu has nowhere else to stay; there's nowhere else to go."

"Dongxu, the house is a bit dirty, but it can be cleaned up in no time. It's just that we're missing a bed; there's only a single bed in the room." Qin Huairu said as she entered the room and saw the situation.

"Bring our double bed over and hold out for a few days. There's no other way." Jia Dongxu understood the situation.

"Okay, I'll clean the room first."

"Dongxu, our roof has collapsed. Do we have to pay for the repairs ourselves? Don't the military control commission care?" Jia Zhangshi was distressed about the money.

"We're already being kind by being given a place to stay; nobody cared about this a few years ago. Asking them to pay for it is impossible; many houses in Nanluoguxiang have collapsed roofs, and they can't possibly manage everyone."

"That little bastard He Yuzhu, he doesn't even bother to clean my roof, what a despicable scoundrel! He only cares about his own house. I'll go tell everyone about him tomorrow."

"If you're not afraid to go in, then go outside and say it. If he finds out, he'll beat you half to death. Why should He Yuzhu be the one shoveling snow for our family?" Jia Dongxu's mind was still relatively clear.

"He got off easy this time." Jia Zhangshi still thought she was so great.

Jia Dongxu felt helpless at his mother's appearance and stopped talking. After turning on the stove, he helped Qin Huairu clean the room.

When the people in the courtyard saw this, no one helped them, so they brought beds and bed boards from their homes.

On the other side of the passageway, Liu Haizhong and his wife were also tidying up two rooms. Their family of five would still live here, unlike Jia Zhangshi who was picky.

On the evening of the second day of the Lunar New Year, the Jia and Liu families were busy tidying up the houses they had been assigned to. The others slowly drifted off to sleep.

On the third day of the Lunar New Year, almost all the men in the courtyard were shoveling snow off the roofs, worried that the roofs would collapse. It wasn't that everything would be fine once the snow stopped.

After breakfast, He Yuzhu and his sister began clearing the snow from the middle courtyard, starting from He Yushui's side room, to Tan Guilan's house, to their own front door, and finally to the passageway.

Tan Guilan also came out of her house to shovel snow. She could manage this small task; she couldn't rely on others for everything.

Fully equipped, He Yushui played and shoveled snow, occasionally throwing snowballs at He Yuzhu, and seemed quite happy.

The three of them chatted and laughed as they swept the snow out of the yard. The snow was up to their calves; it was the heaviest snowfall since last winter.

Luckily it was during the Lunar New Year, otherwise going to work would have been a hassle. Riding a bicycle to work is a bit far, so walking would have been better because the snow was too deep!

When Yi Zhonghai returned from the deaf old lady's house, he silently took out a shovel and first shoveled the snow, then swept the accumulated snow. No one cared about the snow in front of the Jia family's house.

After sweeping away the snow and piling it into three large snowdrifts, they went back to wash their hands. At this time, Jia Dongxu and Qin Huairu returned. Seeing the state of the courtyard, they understood what had happened and each swept the snow in front of their door.

The two people grabbed brooms and shovels and started sweeping the snow in front of the door, also worried about their own family members slipping and falling.

.......

"Jia Zhangshi, what are you doing? Stealing my coal, who gave you the guts?" Liu Haizhong's loud voice came from the front of the hallway.

"The fire in my stove went out. Can I borrow a few pieces of coal to start a fire? We're all neighbors, we should help each other out. Liu Haizhong, you're an old comrade too, don't you want to lend me some?" Jia Zhangshi wasn't afraid of Liu Haizhong.

Hearing the noise, everyone in the courtyard came out to see what was going on. Judging from the voices, it was Jia Zhangshi and Liu Haizhong. He Yuzhu and his sister were also there.

He Yushui simply wanted to watch the excitement. He Yuzhu wanted to get a closer look at Liu Haizhong and see how this "Second Uncle" was doing now, since they had almost never interacted before.

"Jia Zhangshi, you talk as if you don't have any coal. You secretly came to my house to take coal, and I didn't see you taking advantage of me. When I saw you, it was just borrowing, and we were helping each other. You have such a big face."

"If you dare not let go and apologize, I'll send you to the military control commission. You don't believe me? Try me." Liu Haizhong was still relatively tough for the time being.

"Liu Haizhong, what nonsense are you spouting? Go find the Military Control Commission. If she dares to disobey, send her in. What's so great about that old shrew who's been to prison?"

"Liu Haizhong sent her in. She's a repeat offender; this time it was a few pieces of coal, who knows how much it'll be next time?"

"Liu Haizhong, don't hesitate, go to the military control commission to report to the authorities and demand compensation. We can't let a thief get away with this for nothing."

"Who's the thief? I'm just borrowing. Do you understand what borrowing means?" Madam Jia had her reasons.

"Taking without speaking is thievery, taking without asking is theft. Didn't your father from a wealthy family teach you anything? You're ill-mannered, a piece of trash who doesn't know anything, yet you want to act like an elder."

"Are you a thief or not? With the military control government around, what are you? You think you can call the shots? A petty thief, beating you half to death is too lenient. You're so clueless."

"Liu Haizhong is a real man. If you chicken out on Jia Zhangshi, she'll bully you and your family even more."

"In the bangs, slap her."

"Comrades, I'm sorry, there was no coal on the stove. I took it because it was closer and more convenient than my mother-in-law's. I didn't explain clearly. I'm sorry." Qin Huairu stepped in to play the good cop.

"You don't take things from your own house, even though it's only a short walk, but you take things from other people's. What kind of person is your mother-in-law? Does she think no one knows?"

"I just borrowed a few pieces of coal to start a fire, I didn't steal anything," Jia Zhangshi continued to argue.

"Your family is so shameless, borrowing things without even telling the owner. No wonder you never return what you borrow."

"Mrs. Jia, your daughter-in-law is alright. Can you borrow our house for a few days? We're short of people to do the work."

"Good idea, Madam Jia, lend it to us."

"Why bother telling her? We should learn from her: borrow anything without telling her, and don't return it after use. Everyone can use it without worry."

"Haha. Old Gou is right; Jia Zhangshi's approach is worth learning from."

"Jia Zhangshi, shut up! Everyone in the courtyard knows how awful you are. Don't think you're so great. You're nothing."

"Qin Huairu, you also need to work and earn money to buy more coal for your stupid mother-in-law and your useless husband."

"Uncle Liu, I'm sorry, my mother was being unreasonable. Here's 10,000 yuan to compensate you. We'll leave the coal here." Jia Dongxu stepped in, getting straight to the heart of the matter.

"Keep an eye on your mother from now on. We all know what kind of person she is. If you dare to do it, then stop making excuses and put down my coal." Liu Haizhong took the money and chose to let the matter drop.

"Old Liu, you're really something! Why did you let Jia Zhangshi go?"

"He's a coward too, go home."

"It'll be him again next time. Madam Jia Zhang likes to bully cowards like this. Just wait and see."

Jia Dongxu put down the coal, pulled Jia Zhangshi home, and the people in the courtyard dispersed.