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

Ever since that commotion at Zhou Feng's doorstep that morning, the winds of change within the courtyard have indeed quietly shifted!

Although Sha Zhu promised Qin Huairu that he wouldn't cause trouble for Zhou Feng, how could he not feel the subtle changes in life?

Not only in the courtyard, but also from many of the neighbors' homes, the smell of steaming rice can be smelled from time to time.

Every now and then, the aroma of scrambled eggs would occasionally waft out from the homes of Xu Damao in the backyard, Yan Bugui in the frontyard, and even the neighbors in the side room between the middle and front yards!

Sha Zhu, a cook in a steel mill, is nothing special, but the Jia family in the Central Courtyard is really finding it hard to resist; they're craving it.

"What a despicable bastard! He's always hogging the food, doesn't he worry about choking on it? Huai Ru, look, isn't that Xu Damao's family frying eggs again? They must have gotten them from Zhou Feng, I wonder what kind of junk they used to get them!"

Qin Huairu felt uneasy listening to her mother-in-law's nagging.

These past few days, Banggeng has been coming to her every meal asking for eggs, but where can she get them?

The factory didn't even issue egg coupons, so are they expecting her to go to the pigeon market to buy them at a high price?

"Mom, what's the use of this?"

Qin Huairu sighed helplessly: "They all have connections; our family simply can't compare."

"What do you mean 'can't compare'!"

Jia Zhangshi's triangular eyes widened immediately, and she slapped the kang (a heated brick bed) under her buttocks hard.

"Didn't Shazhu get you a chair before? It looks pretty new to me, why don't you take it over and try it out?"

Qin Huairu sighed, glanced at the chair that Sha Zhu had moved over to the corner of her house yesterday, and felt a little uneasy.

She still vividly remembered being kicked out by Zhou Feng. She and Sha Zhu even had a scene at his doorstep. How could she possibly have the face to go back to him now?

Unfortunately, her son was making a fuss, and her mother-in-law was nagging, both of them pressuring her to do things.

All she could do was wipe the chair clean again, then carry it towards the front yard.

This time, Zhou Feng's house was much more lively.

Xu Damao was excitedly introducing the blue and white porcelain vase he had placed on the table to Zhou Feng.

"Comrade Zhou Feng, just look! This is absolutely genuine Qianlong imperial porcelain! This is from my father-in-law… just look, it's guaranteed to be authentic!"

Yan Bugui, also holding an inkstone, leaned closer to Zhou Feng and interjected, "Take a look at mine first; this Duan inkstone is a fine piece from the Kangxi era!"

Zhou Feng gestured for Yan Bugui to place the inkstone on the table first. Then, he slowly picked up the porcelain bottle, examined it carefully against the light, and flicked it lightly with his finger, listening to the sound.

Staring nervously at Zhou Feng's expression, Xu Damao even held his breath, not daring to make a sound.

"The condition is good, just a minor flaw at the bottle opening, but the painting is decent. It'll probably contain 20 jin of rice and 5 eggs!"

Zhou Feng put down the bottle and nodded under Xu Damao's expectant gaze.

The latter's face immediately lit up with a smile: "Great! Absolutely perfect! Thank you, Comrade Zhou Feng!"

In recent years, supplies have been extremely scarce. Sometimes, even if you have money and tickets, you still can't buy them.

When he takes these 20 jin of fine rice and 5 eggs home, E'zi will definitely praise him a lot.

"Alright, Xu Damao, stand aside for a moment and let Comrade Xiao Zhou take a look at my things."

Pushing Xu Damao aside, Yan Bugui once again pushed the inkstone he had brought over toward Zhou Feng.

After carefully examining the inkstone, Zhou Feng shook his head helplessly: "Uncle, this inkstone of yours is from the Republic of China era, it's not much of a good thing. Why don't you take it back, or I'll give you three catties of rice as a token of my appreciation?"

"Alright, three catties of rice it is!"

Yan Bugui's expression changed several times, but he still accepted the price offered by Zhou Feng.

This was the reputation Zhou Feng had built up through so many exchanges, and Yan Bugui believed that Zhou Feng wouldn't cheat him out of a pittance because of this inkstone.

Xu Damao, who was standing to the side, scoffed. He really thought that the Third Uncle could find something from the Kangxi era, but it turned out to be a fake.

Before Yan Bugui could speak, Qin Huairu had already carried her chair in.

"Sister Qin, what are you trying to do now?"

Zhou Feng's expression wasn't very pleasant, so Qin Huairu had no choice but to bite the bullet and move the chair she was carrying forward a little.

"Zhou Feng, this is the chair that Zhu Zi found for me before. Could you take a look and see if you can exchange it for something better?"

Without even needing to examine it closely, Zhou Feng could tell the quality of the chair with just a glance.

"Sister Qin, I've already said I only like old things. This thing of yours isn't even as old as me. They're only a dollar a bunch at the flea market. You should keep it for yourself!"

Qin Huairu's face instantly turned bright red, and she could even feel the gazes of Xu Damao and Yan Bugui beside her, which made her feel quite uncomfortable.

"Um... Zhou Feng, can't you be a little more accommodating? Our little guy is still growing, could you spare a few eggs for him..."

"stop!"

Zhou Feng interrupted her directly: "This isn't a charity. If you really want eggs or something, go find Sha Zhu. He's so capable, he'll definitely be able to get them!"

After being rebuked by him, Qin Huairu could only freeze in place, caught in a dilemma.

Xu Damao, standing nearby, sarcastically remarked, "Sister Qin, why don't you go home and search around? Maybe you've got a chamber pot or something hidden under your bed. You could take it as a treasure and maybe even exchange it for a couple of eggs!"

If it were before, Xu Damao might have spoken up for Qin Huairu.

But now that he can get so many supplies from Zhou Feng, what is Qin Huairu compared to rice, noodles and eggs?

Xu Damao is not like Sha Zhu, who can't resist a widow!

Amidst the slightly mocking glances of the two men, Qin Huairu bit her lip, picked up the broken chair, and slunk back to the central courtyard once more.

"No, what happened? Did he kick you out again?"

Sitting on the kang (a heated brick bed), Jia Zhangshi exploded: "That damned little bastard, Zhou Feng is deliberately trying to make trouble for our family, isn't he?!"

Qin Huairu slammed the chair to the ground in a fit of anger, tears welling up in her eyes.

"Mom, look, I told you a long time ago it wouldn't work, but you insisted I go. Now we're really making a fool of ourselves, and who knows if any of the neighbors will laugh at us!"

Madam Jia was so angry that she paced back and forth in the room, and finally gritted her teeth and stomped her foot.

"Good, very good. Doesn't Zhou Feng look down on our family? Huai Ru, go report him to the neighborhood committee and say he's engaging in speculation and profiteering!"

"No... wait, he hasn't sold them yet. It's just a personal hobby. Report him for having a large quantity of unidentified supplies!"

This startled Qin Huairu: "Mom! You can't just make baseless accusations like this, it'll create a blood feud! Besides, we have no evidence..."

"How can you say there's no evidence or proof!"

Jia Zhangshi glared and pointed towards the backyard: "How much stuff did Xu Damao exchange with Zhou Feng? Did they have that many grain coupons to exchange for that much rice? Isn't that evidence?"

Just as they were arguing, Yi Zhonghai walked in with his hands behind his back.

"What are you two arguing about? We can hear you right here in the yard. There's a whole-yard meeting tonight to discuss Zhou Feng's matter, so don't forget!"

The old woman relayed the deaf old lady's words to him, but he had always been the one who held the power of speech in this courtyard.

Now that this rebellious fellow has appeared, he has to deflate his arrogance.