Courtyard House: I, the eldest son of the Jia family, have returned from the battlefield.

Have you had breakfast yet?

Jia Dongming responded with a smile, his expression as ordinary as any uncle or elder in the alley.

Bang Geng followed beside him, his chest puffed out unconsciously, his eyes filled with bright admiration.

After seeing Bang Geng off at the school gate, Jia Dongming, as usual, took out a dime and handed it to him: "Study hard."

Bang Geng clutched the banknote tightly and said solemnly, "Uncle, I will definitely study hard and become a useful person in the future."

Jia Dongming smiled and rubbed his head, watching the small figure disappear into the school gate before turning around and riding his bicycle towards the steel mill.

The truck was already waiting quietly in front of the factory's security building.

When Zhang Guoping saw him arrive, he quickly went to greet him:

"Section Chief, the car is ready. Shall we set off now?"

As Jia Dongming saw Zhang Guoping approaching, he casually handed him the two packs of Peony cigarettes that he had been carrying under his arm, a warm smile on his lips: "Guoping, take these cigarettes with you."

My old comrade-in-arms in Changping Commune was obsessed with this cigarette; he couldn't live without it.

When you see him, please give him this small token of my appreciation.

Zhang Guoping quickly took it with both hands, unconsciously straightening his posture: "Section Chief, don't worry, I'll definitely bring it."

Jia Dongming nodded in satisfaction, raised his hand and gently patted Zhang Guoping's shoulder, his voice softening: "That's good."

Be careful on the road. If anything happens, don't hesitate to call the department immediately.

Around three o'clock in the afternoon, the scene in front of the two heavy iron gates of the steel rolling mill was somewhat unusual.

Dozens of figures in uniforms stood there, craning their necks and staring intently at the end of the drab street outside the door. The scene looked as if they were waiting for some important figure to arrive.

"Old Zheng, did Section Chief Zhang really say that on the phone? Why haven't we seen him yet?"

A man who looked to be in his mid-thirties rubbed his hands together and couldn't help but speak to the person next to him, his eagerness barely concealed in his eyes.

The man called Old Zheng clicked his tongue and frowned: "Big-headed Guo, how many times have you repeated this to yourself? It's been less than twenty minutes since we started standing here! Aren't your ears tired? My tongue is calloused."

Caught off guard, the man surnamed Guo realized he had indeed been asking too many questions. A hint of embarrassment appeared on his dark face as he chuckled sheepishly, "I'm just... I've run out of food, and my cravings are getting the better of me."

"Brother Zheng,"

A younger man nearby leaned over, his eyes sparkling. "That pig you mentioned earlier, it really weighs over 250 pounds, right? You weren't lying to us, were you?"

Old Zheng puffed out his chest, his tone resolute: "It's a done deal! Divided among everyone, each person in our department will get at least half a pound of real meat!"

No sooner had he finished speaking than someone with sharp eyes in the crowd shouted, "They're here! It's Section Chief Zhang's car!"

The sound was like a stone thrown into water, and all heads turned in unison in the same direction.

At the end of the road, a gray-green car was seen sluggishly moving towards the factory gate.

Old Zheng immediately perked up and shouted into the gatehouse, "Old Wang! Quick! Open the gate wide! The truck carrying the treasures is back!"

Inside the truck cab, Zhang Guoping saw a large, dark crowd at the entrance from afar. He chuckled and said to the driver next to him, "Master Zhao, could you please stop by the gate for a moment?"

The truck, panting heavily, came to a stop in front of the crowd.

Zhang Guoping rolled down the car window, leaned out halfway, and looked at the eager faces around him. He joked, "Wow! Such a big show? I can't take it, comrades."

Old Zheng pretended to spit in the crowd, laughing and scolding, "Section Chief Zhang, when did your shamelessness become as thick as the corner of the city wall? We're the 'heroes' welcoming the back of that car, it has nothing to do with you!"

"Section Chief! Section Chief!"

Chen Bin from the security department rushed into Jia Dongming's office, still out of breath, and hurriedly reported, "Section Chief Zheng and the others are back! The truck carrying the pigs is already at the factory gate!"

Upon hearing this, Jia Dongming immediately stood up from his chair, a smile spreading across his face: "Let's go take a look."

As he led Chen Bin to the front of the three-story red brick building of the security department, they saw the large truck slowly driving towards them from the direction of the gate.

The truck finally came to a smooth stop in front of the small canteen on the side of the building.

Zhang Guoping jumped out of the car and strode over to Jia Dongming, his face beaming with barely suppressed joy: "Section Chief! The fat pig has arrived, mission accomplished!"

Jia Dongming nodded, walked a few steps to the back of the truck, and stood on tiptoe to look into the open cargo compartment.

The big, fat pig, which was tightly bound with ropes, was panting heavily.

He withdrew his gaze, his tone carrying a hint of Mingxian's consolation: "You've worked hard, Guoping."

"Quickly, get a few people to carry the equipment down and take it to the canteen. Ask the cooks to prepare it overnight."

He paused, then raised his voice so that the team members who were gradually gathering around could hear him clearly, "When Mingtian goes to work, everyone remember to bring two lunchboxes! The canteen is adding extra dishes for us, so each of you should get two portions to take home and let your wives and kids have a taste!"

Although rumors had leaked out yesterday, hearing the undeniable news directly from the section chief's mouth still caused the team members to burst into cheers and whispers.

Jia Dongming's gaze slowly swept over the excited, simple faces, the smile on his lips deepened, and a hint of understanding flashed in his eyes.

He knew in his heart, as if it were a mirror, that from this moment on, the hearts of most people in the security department had been drawn to him, the new department head, by the real smell of meat.

Before any further instructions could be given, several burly team members had already climbed onto the truck bed, rubbing their hands together, ready to unload the heavy "trophies."

Please come down.

Zhang Guoping got off the truck carrying a gray cloth package, took a few steps to Jia Dongming, bowed slightly and handed it to him: "Section Chief, Deputy Director Xiao asked me to bring this, saying it's a small token of our appreciation from the countryside."

Jia Dongming took it, untied the bag, and looked inside.

The aroma of shiitake mushrooms mixed with Chinese sausage is irresistible.

He frowned, but a smile played on his lips: "That old Xiao! I told him a thousand times on the phone not to do these things, but he just ignored me."

As he finished speaking, he gathered the cloth bag together, then suddenly remembered something and turned to look at Zhang Guoping: "I plan to go into the mountains for a while."

Guoping, it's no fun to enjoy this alone—go to the canteen and get a few meat and vegetable coupons for the drivers who are working today, and tell them it's on me.

"From now on, we'll still need their help to borrow vehicles to transport our game."

Upon hearing "going into the mountains," Zhang Guoping...

His expression tightened: "Section Chief, wild animals roam those mountains, you'll need to bring more people with you."

Jia Dongming waved his hand, a distant glint in his eyes: "Back then, when we were surrounded on the mountaintop, wasn't it these wild animals that kept us alive? Don't worry."

Seeing this, Zhang Guoping said no more, but bowed and said, "Then I'll go find Master Yang to arrange for the pig slaughtering."

Deputy Director Xiao also conveyed the message that Changping Commune welcomes you to visit anytime.

As the sun began to set, Jia Dongming rode his bicycle into the alley.

The chrysanthemums in the front yard were being watered, and Yan Bugui was hunched over, clutching a broken iron kettle in his hand.

The cloth bag on the back seat swayed with the bumps.

Yan Bugui stopped watering the plants, his gaze fixed on the bulging bag.

"Third Uncle, tending to the flowers and plants?"

Jia Dongming, supporting himself on one foot, said, "These flowers are blooming so beautifully; you really know how to grow them."

Yan Bugui then came to his senses and forced a smile: "Section Chief Jia is back? Just tending to some flowers and plants for fun."

He spoke lightly, but his eyes were still glancing at the bag.

Seeing the calculation in his eyes, Jia Dongming suddenly became interested.

He sighed, shaking his head as he stared at the red and yellow flowers: "What a pity... what a real pity."

Yan Bugui froze, the iron kettle hovering in mid-air: "What's the pity? Did I... ruin my flowers?"

Jia Dongming didn't answer, but instead took two steps closer with his hands behind his back, his fingertips brushing against a plump petal: "The soil in this yard, this pot, this effort—if you planted scallions, peppers, and cabbage seedlings here, the money saved on vegetables in a year would be enough to buy meat so many times over."

He spoke slowly, but every word struck a chord with Yan Bugui.

Yan Bugui stared wide-eyed, as if he were nailed to the spot.

After a while, he exclaimed, "Ouch!"

He slapped his thigh and exclaimed, "Ten yuan! At least ten yuan a year! That's a hundred yuan in ten years!"

Jia Dongming got into the car, turned back and smiled: "You're busy."

Then they turned and went into the moon gate.

Yan Bugui remained standing there, staring at the flowers in full bloom, muttering to himself, "What a loss... what a huge loss..."

Three middle-aged women poked their heads out of the house, spatula in hand: "Honey, are you possessed? What did you lose money on?"

Yan Bugui turned around, pointing painfully at the row of flowerpots: "If only we had planted vegetables! These pots are all money!"

As the saying goes, you learn from the people you associate with.

After listening to Yan Bugui's analysis, Yang Ruihua agreed and nodded hurriedly, "That's right! Old man, why didn't you realize this earlier? If you had thought of this sooner, our family could have saved at least a hundred yuan."

The mere mention of that hundred-odd yuan made Yan Bugui feel as if a needle had pierced his heart. He instinctively raised his hand to his chest, muttering involuntarily, "Money... my money... a hundred-odd yuan, how many days would it take to save up enough..."

As Jia Dongming pushed his bicycle into the courtyard, Xiao Dang, who was playing nearby, spotted him and immediately ran over, tilting her little face up and calling out in her sweet, childish voice, "Uncle! Uncle! Xiao Dang wants to ride in your car!"

"Run slowly, don't fall."

Jia Dongming bent down and gave him some instructions with a smile.

When the little one ran up to him, he picked him up and gently placed him on the crossbar of the bicycle, then slowly pushed the bike forward, saying, "Let's go, let's take the bike home."

Hearing the noise, Bang Geng, who was doing his homework inside, dropped his pen and rushed out, excitedly shouting, "Uncle's back!"

Jia Dongming responded, looked around, and not seeing Jia Zhangshi, who usually sat in the courtyard sewing shoe soles, he asked Bang Geng, "Where's your grandmother?"

Bang Geng then remembered what his grandmother had told him after school and quickly said, "Grandma went to Wang the matchmaker's house at the other end of the alley. She said she wants to arrange a marriage for you and asked me to stay home and look after Huaihua."

Jia Dongming is twenty-eight years old this year.

These days, many people get married at eighteen, so it's quite rare to see someone his age who hasn't married yet.

Last night at the dinner table, Jia Zhangshi mentioned the blind date.

At that time, Qin Huairu interjected, saying that she wanted to marry her younger sister Qin Jingru from the countryside to him, but was scolded by Jia Zhangshi.

In Jia Zhangshi's view, her son was the head of the security department of the steel rolling mill, earning a monthly salary of over one hundred yuan. Although he was a bit old, he should at least find a girl from the city. How could he be like Jia Dongxu, who married a rural wife again?

After asking about his mother's whereabouts, Jia Dongming parked the car against the wall, picked up Xiaodang from the crossbeam, and told Bang Geng, "My comrade brought me a bag of winter apples today, which contain a few big apples."

Go get two, wash them clean, and share them with your sister.

Upon hearing about apples, Bang Geng's eyes lit up: "I've eaten apples before! They're crisp and sweet, so delicious!"

Jia Dongming carried the cloth bag into the main room, untied the bag, took out two bright red apples and handed them to Bang Geng: "Here, one for each of you."

In Bang Geng's memory, apples were always greenish-yellow and only slightly larger than a fist.

But the two apples in front of him were not only plump and bright red, but also looked completely different from any he had ever seen before.

Bang Geng took the apple with both hands, and a sweet aroma wafted into his nose. He couldn't help but exclaim, "Uncle, this apple smells so good! It's different from the ones I've had before!"

After Bang Geng and Xiao Dang washed the apples clean, Bang Geng felt a surge of pride and a desire to show off.

He told Xiaodang to stay in the yard to eat, while he took the red apple and strolled to the central courtyard.

The second son of the Zhang family, who was about the same age as Bang Geng, saw the bright red fruit in Bang Geng's hand and his throat moved involuntarily. He asked expectantly, "Bang Geng, is this an apple? I've never seen one this big before... What does it taste like? Can I have a bite?"