I feel right at home in the world of the courtyard house.

Third floor of the guesthouse

3rd floor of the guesthouse

"Uh... are you all better now? Come up here," a male voice said.

"I can't," female voice

"Stop fucking talking nonsense," the male voice said, sounding a little angry.

"Helping"

"sit"

"You're doing just fine, why do you have to make me angry?"

~

Half an hour later, the office door opened.

Wang Caixia came out and went to the restroom.

The rest of the time, Li Jing'an drank tea and read the newspaper.

Nothing happened that day.

As the sun set, the steel mill workers dragged their weary bodies back to the courtyard house. Liu Haizhong walked into the backyard with his hands behind his back, but his face didn't show any relief at leaving get off work—he had something on his mind.

Yesterday, he specifically instructed his second aunt to prepare a gift, as he was going to "visit" Li Jing'an at the Intermediate People's Court today.

Although Li Jing'an was young, he was a popular figure in the factory and was said to have connections with the leaders.

Liu Haizhong had worked in the workshop for most of his life, confident in his skills and with a large group of apprentices; all he lacked was an opportunity to impress the leaders. If Li Jing'an could mention his name at the right time…

He was pondering this in his mind when he pushed open the door. His eyes swept across the table, and his face instantly darkened.

On the table were two cartons of "Daqianmen" cigarettes and two bottles of "Erguotou".

"That's it?" Liu Haizhong raised his voice, tapping the table with his finger. "I told you to prepare something decent, and this is what you throw together? Can this even be presented as a gift? What kind of taste does Li Jing'an have, that he'd even consider this?"

The second aunt huddled by the stove, muttering to herself, "This is already pretty good... we still need tickets..."

"What do you know!" Liu Haizhong slammed his hand on the table, making the teapot lid jump. "You can't catch a wolf without risking your cub! Go, kill that speckled hen in the yard and clean it up!"

"That hen is laying eggs!" Auntie Er frowned, feeling distressed.

"Just go because I tell you to!" Liu Haizhong glared at him. "You're all talk and no action! Are a few eggs more valuable than my future?"

Seeing that he was really angry, Auntie Er didn't dare to argue anymore and went to catch chickens in the yard while grumbling.

Liu Haizhong sat on the stool, lit a cheap cigarette, and squinted as he pondered: chicken plus cigarettes and alcohol, while not top-notch, would be passable. The key was to get the message across and let Li Jing'an understand his intentions.

As dusk fell, Liu Haizhong moved a small stool to sit under the eaves of his house, listening intently to the sounds coming from the courtyard.

Finally, a familiar bicycle bell rang out from afar, followed by Li Jing'an's clear voice: "Zhu Zi, you're back so early."

"Hey, Director Li! Weren't we not entertaining you today?" That was Sha Zhu's loud voice.

Liu Haizhong immediately stood up, straightened his faded work jacket, picked up the slaughtered chicken and the bundled cigarettes and alcohol, took a deep breath, put on a big smile, and strode towards the central courtyard.

---

Inside the courtyard, Li Jing'an was pushing his bicycle and talking to Sha Zhu.

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Qin Huairu washing clothes by the pool. As she bent over to lather the soap, her coarse cloth clothes outlined her voluptuous figure.

Li Jing'an sighed inwardly, "This Qin Huairu..." but his face remained expressionless as he quickly looked away.

Qin Huairu seemed to sense something, lowered her head even further, and focused intently on rubbing the clothes in the basin, never glancing in their direction.

Li Jing'an took out a cigarette case from his pocket, flicked one out, and handed it to Sha Zhu: "Want one?"

Sha Zhu took it and exclaimed, "Wow, 'Peony'! Brother Li, this is a good cigarette!" He lit it with Li Jing'an's match, took a satisfying puff, and said, "This tastes just right!"

"A friend gave it to me," Li Jing'an chuckled. Only when offered a cigarette should he be called "brother." He lit one for himself and casually asked, "How was the cafeteria today?"

"The same as always," Sha Zhu said, exhaling smoke rings and making small talk.

Li Jing'an glanced in the direction of his own courtyard and said to Sha Zhu, "Zhu Zi, you go ahead with your work, I'll go back and put the car away."

"Alright, wait a minute." Sha Zhu waved his hand.

Li Jing'an pushed the cart towards the front yard, and behind him he heard Sha Zhu talking to Qin Huairu: "Sister Qin, Li Jing'an was here just now, why didn't you say hello? You were just washing your hands with your head down."

Qin Huairu's voice was soft and gentle, revealing no emotion: "We're not very familiar with each other, so there's not much to say."

"Whether we're familiar or not, just talk a bit more and we'll become acquainted, right?" Sha Zhu's tone rose a bit. "Li Jing'an is a good person, and he's a cadre, who knows, he might be able to help us? Your family..."

Qin Huairu didn't reply, only responding with even louder scrubbing of clothes. Sha Zhu, feeling awkward, sheepishly hummed an off-key tune.

Li Jing'an had just arrived home and put down his bag, and hadn't even had a chance to pour himself a glass of water, when he heard a voice with a distinctly obsequious tone coming from outside the front gate: "Chief Li? Is Li Jing'an home?"

He walked to the gate of the courtyard and saw Liu Haizhong standing outside with a slight bow, the heavy net bag in his hand particularly eye-catching. He forced a bright smile on his face, every wrinkle revealing his deliberate effort: "Director Li, you're off work? I've been wanting to visit you since you came to our institute, but I was afraid of disturbing your work. Today, seeing that you have some free time, I took the liberty of coming over to chat with you and get to know you better."

Li Jing'an's gaze lingered on the net for a moment, then he immediately put on a polite smile and quickly stepped forward to open the courtyard gate: "It's Second Uncle! Please come in, please come in! You can call me Li Jing'an, or Little Li, it's fine either way. I hope everyone calls me that, after all, we're all neighbors."

"You've come all this way, no need to bring anything, it's too much of a formality." He said politely, but then casually ushered the person inside.

After entering the house and taking a seat, Li Jing'an poured Liu Haizhong a glass of water and offered him a cigarette: "Second Uncle, have a smoke."

"Hey, thank you, Jing'an." Liu Haizhong took the cigarette with both hands, lit it with Li Jing'an's light, took a puff, and showed an intoxicated expression on his face, as if this was some kind of divine product, even though this cigarette was no different from the "Da Qianmen" he brought.

He began to speak at length: "Jing'an, to be honest, I've worked in Workshop 7 of our steel rolling mill for almost twenty years. I'm not bragging, but in terms of skills, there are few in the workshop who are better than me! Several of the apprentices I trained are now key members of their teams. The workshop director also values ​​me highly; whenever there's any difficult or urgent work, he always specifically asks me to do it..."

Li Jing'an sat opposite him, maintaining a gentle smile on his face, nodding occasionally and agreeing with "Is that so?" or "Second Uncle is truly a master craftsman."

But he knew exactly what Liu Haizhong was thinking. He guessed seven or eight parts of what Liu Haizhong was planning the moment he walked in.

This person may have the skills, but he is snobbish and petty.

As darkness fell completely outside the window, Liu Haizhong showed no sign of leaving. Instead, he became more and more animated, talking about everything from workshop techniques to his apprentice's filial piety, subtly steer the conversation toward "the leader's appreciation."

Li Jing'an picked up his teacup, took a small sip of the now-cold water, glanced at the clock on the wall, and said with a smile, "Second Uncle, the factory must have seen all your skills. But... look how late it is, haven't you eaten yet? I need to get something to eat too."

Liu Haizhong was getting into the conversation when he was suddenly interrupted and didn't react for a moment: "Huh? Eating... Oh, right, it's time to eat."

A flicker of surprise and disappointment crossed his face. He had specifically asked his second aunt to kill all the laying hens and clean them thoroughly, hoping that Li Jing'an would invite him to stay for a meal, which would bring them even closer. Unexpectedly, Li Jing'an simply served tea and saw him out.

"Then...then I won't disturb Jing'an's rest any longer." Liu Haizhong stood up hesitantly, his steps a little faltering, taking several steps back before moving out, as if hoping Li Jing'an would change his mind. "Jing'an, then I'll go back first. In the future...in the future, let's keep in touch."

"No problem, no problem, Second Uncle, take care." Li Jing'an escorted him to the entrance of the courtyard and politely closed the door.

Turning back into the house, Li Jing'an shook his head as he looked at the things Liu Haizhong had left on the table. Perfect timing; he had a day off tomorrow and planned to visit his uncle. He'd take the cigarettes, the liquor, and the two pieces of cured meat Xu Damao had given him yesterday—they'd come in handy.

---

In the Intermediate Courtyard, Sha Zhu was tending to a few wilted scallions in front of his house when he saw Liu Haizhong approaching from the direction of Li Jing'an's courtyard, carrying an empty net bag and looking ashen-faced. He immediately shouted, "Hey, Second Uncle! You just got back from 'reporting to Director Li's'? Oh, didn't I offer you anything to eat? I brought the chicken and the wine..."

Liu Haizhong, embarrassed, forced himself to straighten his chest and said, "Nonsense! Jing'an was just being hospitable by asking me to stay! It was me... I was thinking that I had dinner ready at home and didn't want to trouble him!"

"Come on, you!" Silly Zhu chuckled. "Trying to keep you here so warmly? Look at your face, it looks like a wilted eggplant. You got a cold shoulder after offering your warm welcome, didn't you?"

"Silly Zhu! You..." Liu Haizhong was hit where it hurt, but he didn't dare to shout loudly for fear that Li Jing'an would hear him. He could only turn red in the face, glare at Silly Zhu, and quicken his pace toward the backyard. His back looked a little disheveled.

As soon as they entered the backyard, before even reaching their own house, they bumped into Xu Damao, who was leaning against the doorframe.

Xu Damao, holding a melon seed in his hand, spoke with a forced smile: "Second Uncle, you've got some action going! I saw your chickens and dogs in a panic... oh wait, the chickens are gone, but I don't know if the dogs were in a panic. So, how's the 'communication' with Li Jing'an going...?"

Liu Haizhong was seething with anger and had nowhere to vent it, but Xu Damao was a cunning and treacherous man, and for a moment he was speechless.

"Da Mao, say less and come home for dinner." Lou Xiao'e poked her head out of Xu Da Mao's house, pulled him back inside, and closed the door behind her.

Liu Haizhong finally caught his breath and pushed open his own door.

Auntie Er was standing by the stove, lost in thought. Seeing him return empty-handed, she asked in surprise, "Why are you back? Didn't you say... you were eating at Li Jing'an's? The chicken's all gone..."

"Eat, eat, eat! All you ever do is eat!" Liu Haizhong finally found an outlet for all his pent-up frustration and anger, but dared not utter a single word about Li Jing'an. He slammed his hand on the table, making the bowls and chopsticks bounce around. "It's all because of those two worthless bastards, Sha Zhu and Xu Damao! They're so sarcastic and spew filth!"

The second aunt was startled: "Then...then are we still going to cook?"

"Do it! Why wouldn't you do it!" Liu Haizhong plopped down in the main seat, panting heavily. "Scrambled eggs! I'll drink!"

The second aunt looked towards the empty chicken coop and muttered softly, "The chickens are all gone... the eggs were exchanged for cigarette and alcohol coupons this morning... there are no eggs left..."

Upon hearing this, Liu Haizhong felt even more choked up, and a surge of anger rushed to his head. Looking at the bland food and empty wine bottles on the table (the good wine had already been given away), he felt that he had really made a terrible mistake today.