Courtyard House: A System Connecting Two Worlds, Resources for the Nation

The next day at noon, Xu Damao brought Yu Haitang back from outside, carrying a box of pastries, looking quite pleased with himself.

Without the interference of the two Qin sisters from the original novel, his relationship with Yu Haitang was basically settled!

In addition, Liu Haizhong, who had provoked them before, brought this upon himself and was completely dealt with. Now, Xu Damao is riding high.

If an official doesn't act arrogantly, isn't that like wearing fine clothes in the dark?

"Da Mao, why did you buy these pastries? That stingy old man is my sister's father-in-law. Is it really necessary to buy such expensive things?"

Yu Haitang glanced at Xu Damao and said, "That stingy old man might not even be willing to eat these snacks. He'll probably just resell them to someone else."

"Hey! Isn't this just proper etiquette? We're about to get things done, and he's your elder, so we can't skip the proper formalities. Besides, I'm an official now, what's a little bit of this compared to what I need?"

As they talked, the two arrived at the front yard of Yan Bugui's house.

The Yan family's gate was wide open at this moment, and Xu Damao paused in his steps before he could even speak.

Yan Bugui sat in a chair in the main room, his face pale, his hands resting on his knees.

The three women sat on the stool next to them, wiping away their tears.

"What happened?"

Xu Damao hid the snacks in his hand behind his back, looked at the expressions of the two people, and asked cautiously.

If someone in the Yan family had a funeral, and he came to deliver good news, that would be incredibly inconsiderate.

Yan Bugui looked up at him, his lips trembling slightly before he spoke, "Da Mao...you've come at the right time, I have something I want to talk to you about."

Hearing this, Xu Damao swallowed hard and cleared his throat: "Third Uncle, please tell me, what happened?"

Yu Haitang also sat down with some curiosity next to Xu Damao, looking at the old couple from the Yan family.

Normally, Yan Bugui always maintained that intellectual air, so this was the first time she had ever seen him so dejected.

Yan Bugui remained silent for a while before squeezing out a few words through gritted teeth: "The subdistrict office came to inform us... that Jie Cheng is to go to the Shanxi coal mine to support its construction."

Xu Damao raised an eyebrow but remained silent.

They went to support the construction of coal mines in Shanxi Province…

Just from the name of this project, you can tell it's all about doing manual labor.

Moreover, it will definitely be a hard labor mission that lasts for several years, and it's uncertain whether they will be able to come back.

"How...how could you let him go there?"

"It's all because of that old man! All he does is teach my son how to scheme!"

Before Yan Bugui could speak, the three older women sitting next to him suddenly raised their heads, their eyes red as they glared at him: "Before, because of the chicken distribution incident, Jie Cheng forged a certificate and got a criminal record! Now the neighborhood office is checking for unemployed people, and those with criminal records are given priority for construction support. Jie Cheng is the first one!"

Seeing the tears welling up in his wife's eyes, Yan Bugui sighed and didn't say anything in response.

"Da Mao, can you help me think of a way? How old is Jie Chengcai? He and Yu Li don't have any children yet, and he went to that kind of place..."

The older woman became increasingly distressed as she spoke, and tears streamed down her face uncontrollably.

Xu Damao pursed his lips and remained silent for a long while before looking at Yan Bugui: "Third Uncle, was this a notice issued by the neighborhood committee?"

"Yes!" Yan Bugui slapped his thigh, his voice tinged with anger. "The director of the subdistrict office personally brought people to say that the list has been submitted and we have to leave next week. Nothing I say makes a difference!"

He suddenly looked up at Xu Damao, a glimmer of hope in his eyes: "Damao, tell me the truth, your words carry weight at the steel mill. Could you put in a good word for me with the neighborhood committee? We'll take any bribes or favors, as long as they don't label me as going to that kind of place!"

Xu Damao's lips twitched.

He does have influence at the steel rolling mill, but that's because Li Huaide trusts him now and gave him the position that Liu Haizhong originally held.

But the neighborhood committee had absolutely no connection with him. What was a team leader from a steel rolling mill compared to the director of the neighborhood committee?

"Uncle, this matter..." Xu Damao rubbed his hands together, "I can get in touch at the steel mill, but I really don't know anyone at the neighborhood committee office..."

Yan Bugui's face paled, as if he had completely lost his spirit.

Xu Damao felt bad looking at him, but there was really nothing he could do about it.

Even if it were true, how much would it cost to change Yan Jiecheng, who had already been reported, to someone else? Does Yan Jiecheng deserve it?

Just as he was about to refuse outright, Yu Haitang suddenly tugged at his sleeve.

The latter looked at him with a hint of pleading in her expression.

Xu Damao swallowed hard, forcibly changing the refusal that was on the tip of his tongue: "...Okay, I'll go check on Jiecheng's situation first, and then make a decision."

Yan Bugui's eyes lit up instantly, and he stood up abruptly, thanking him repeatedly: "Da Mao! You're really great! Much better than Lao Liu! Please help me out, even just asking around would be helpful!"

Xu Damao waved his hand and led Yu Haitang out of the Yan family's gate, heading towards the room where Yan Jiecheng lived in the outer courtyard.

"No, I really can't help with this. Why are you pulling my arm?"

Once outside the Yan family's house, Xu Damao lowered his voice and glared at Yu Haitang beside him.

The latter rolled his eyes at him: "Are you stupid? If it can't be done, then don't do it. Just agree first, and then say it didn't work out. Otherwise, they'll keep bothering you!"

"Hey! It has to be my wife, amazing!"

"Pah! Pah! Pah! You can't expect anything good to come out of a dog's mouth!"

At the same time, Zhou Feng, who was leaning against the windowsill drinking milk tea, inadvertently glanced at Xu Damao and Yu Haitang outside the courtyard, and vaguely heard the sighing sounds from the Yan family.

"What happened to Old Yan's family? Do you know?"

Qin Jingru, who had just made milk tea and was sipping it with her eyes half-closed, suddenly widened her eyes and excitedly began to speak: "Brother Zhou Feng, you wouldn't believe it! Last night, I heard from my sister's mother-in-law that Yan Jiecheng has been selected by the local government to go to Shanxi Province to support the construction of a coal mine!"

"How far is Shanxi Province? Will Yan Jiecheng be able to come back if he goes there?"

Zhou Feng paused slightly in the hand holding the cup.

Is Yan Jiecheng going to support the construction of coal mines in Shanxi Province?

Is this passage in the original work?

Seeing his surprised expression, Bai Ling smiled and said, "This matter is also related to you!"

???

Bai Ling gracefully sat down opposite Zhou Feng and smiled: "During this period, our Dragon Kingdom has a specific map of mineral distribution and equipment obtained from you. We have also opened up multiple mines and many factories. We were short of people at the time, so we arranged for the idle young people in the city to go there."

"Yan Jiecheng had a criminal record, so we prioritized assigning him to more strenuous jobs—it's labor reform, after all!"

Zhou Feng instantly understood; this really was directly related to him!

Tsk tsk tsk, this butterfly flapped its wings hard enough to blow away the "Up to the Mountains and Down to the Countryside" movement and send Yan Jiecheng and his group to the coal mines!

Looking at the Yan family across the street, Zhou Feng felt no guilt whatsoever; in fact, he was even a little excited.

If Yan Jiecheng were sent to a coal mine, the treatment and emotional support he would receive there would be far greater than in the hospital!