Courtyard Houses: Starting with Li Yunlong's Comrades-in-Arms

Liu Shuanzhu waved his hand, interrupting him: "It's the New Year, the courtyard can't be empty. The people in the courtyard will definitely come to pay their respects early tomorrow morning, and it wouldn't be appropriate for them to come if we weren't home. Besides, your Aunt Liang is right, the stove in the house can't be cold; someone has to light the fire, it's like having someone around."

He put on his cotton-padded coat, buttoned it up, and patted the hem. His tone was firm and left no room for argument: "Here's what we'll do. Let Erhe, Tingting, and Yixuan stay here for the night and go back tomorrow morning. Fangfang will stay here too; she's quite far along in her pregnancy, and it's not convenient for her to travel back and forth. Your mother and I will go back first; we can't leave her there unattended."

Hearing this, Wang Xiuhe stood up from her chair, wiped her hands quickly, and nodded to Liu Shuanzhu: "Your dad is right, someone needs to be home. Let Fangfang and the others stay here for the night, and they can go back tomorrow morning."

Seeing that the two elderly people were adamant, Liu Yuheng knew that further persuasion would be useless, so he could only nod helplessly: "Alright, I'll call a driver then."

He walked to the telephone in the corner of the living room, picked up the receiver, dialed a number, said a few words briefly, hung up, and turned back: "The car will be here soon."

While waiting for the bus, Yao Qingwan and Liang Fangfang got up and went into the kitchen. A little while later, they came out each carrying a cloth bag.

Yao Qingwan handed the bag in her hand to Wang Xiuhe, and then handed another bag to Liang's mother: "Mom, Aunt, these are the dumplings I made today, and there are some that haven't been cooked yet. Take them back and you can cook them tomorrow morning, so you won't have to do anything else."

Wang Xiuhe took the bag, glanced down at the neatly stacked dumplings inside, and then slung the bag over her arm. Mother Liang also took the other bag, thanked her, and smiled warmly.

Liu Yuheng then took out two packs of cigarettes and two bottles of wine from the cabinet and handed them to Liu Shuanzhu and Liang Cheng respectively: "Dad, Uncle Liang, take these back with you. They'll be good for entertaining guests when they come tomorrow."

Liu Shuanzhu glanced at it and was about to wave his hand to refuse when Liu Yuheng had already stuffed the item into his hand: "Take it, I don't need this here, I have more at home."

Liu Shuanzhu then stopped refusing.

A moment later, the sound of a car engine came from the doorway. Liu Yuheng pushed open the door, and a black Volga was already parked there. The driver got out of the driver's seat and opened the car door for the group.

Liu Shuanzhu, Wang Xiuhe, Liang Cheng, and Liang's mother left the house one by one.

Wang Xiuhe walked to the door and looked back one last time, then instructed Liang Fangfang and Yao Qingwan, "Qingwan, Fangfang, you two go to bed early tonight, don't stay up late. Tingting, keep an eye on Yixuan, don't let him run around."

Liu Tingting responded crisply.

Liu Yuheng escorted the four elderly people to the door and watched them bend down and get into the car.

Liu Yuheng told the driver to "drive slowly," then waved to the back seat. The car smoothly drove away from the entrance of the small building, its taillights gradually fading into the distance in the winter fog, and disappearing into the night after turning past a row of holly bushes at the intersection.

Liu Yuheng stood at the door for a few more seconds, the cold wind making his coat flutter slightly. He watched until the taillights were completely out of sight before turning back inside. The door closed, and the warmth of the heater enveloped him again. The house suddenly became much quieter; without the four elders present, the spacious living room felt somewhat empty.

As Liang Fangfang slowly walked back to the sofa and sat down, supporting her back, Liu Yixuan was already lying on Liu Tingting's lap, yawning.

Liu Erhe stood in the middle of the living room, scratching the back of his head. As if he had suddenly remembered something, a troubled expression appeared on his face: "Brother, my bicycle is still parked at the door, plus my father-in-law's. I can't ride both bikes back by myself."

Liu Yuheng was taking off his coat and hanging it on the coat hook when he heard this. Without turning his head, he laughed and said, "That's easy! You and Tingting can each ride one, right? Doesn't Tingting know how to ride a bike?"

Liu Tingting, who was hugging and playing with Liu Yixuan, immediately looked up upon hearing this, raised her chin, and said, "I want to ride in a car! Send a car to take me home tomorrow morning! I'm not riding a bike; it's so cold, my hands are freezing."

Liu Yuheng shrugged and spread his hands towards Liu Erhe: "Then I don't care, you two figure it out yourselves. If it really doesn't work, Erhe can make two trips, ride Uncle Liang's bike back first, and then come back to ride his own."

Liu Erhe's face immediately fell, and he muttered, "That's going to kill me." He turned to Liu Tingting and said in a somewhat ingratiating tone, "Tingting, can you ride one for your second brother? It's only a half-hour ride back. I'll treat you to candied hawthorns tomorrow."

Liu Tingting shook her head and wagged her index finger: "I don't want to ride. I want to ride in a car."

Liu Erhe gritted his teeth and lowered his voice: "Five cents! Here's five cents for your pocket money! Help me ride back."

Liu Tingting rolled her eyes, tilted her head to look at him, and held up one: "One yuan. Not a penny less."

Liu Erhe glared, his lips moving as if he wanted to bargain further, but seeing Liu Tingting's "no discussion" expression, and then glancing at Liu Yuheng and Yao Qingwan standing by with their hands folded, he could only grit his teeth, pull out a one-yuan bill from his pocket, and slap it into Liu Tingting's hand: "Fine! One yuan it is! You'd better ride your bike back obediently tomorrow morning!"

Liu Tingting took the money, her face immediately lighting up with a smile. She unfolded it, examined it carefully, folded it neatly, and put it in her inner pocket. She patted the pocket, then turned to Liu Yixuan, who was lying on her lap, and said, "Yixuan! Auntie will buy you some firecrackers tomorrow! Let's go set them off!"

Liu Yixuan was already so sleepy that his eyelids were drooping, but when he heard the words "firecrackers," he lifted his head off Liu Tingting's lap, his eyes lit up, and he mumbled "firecrackers, firecrackers" indistinctly, which made everyone in the room laugh.

Liu Yuheng smiled and shook his head, then walked to the center of the living room and clapped his hands: "Alright, alright, stop fooling around. It's getting late, everyone should go and rest. Qingwan and Fangfang are both pregnant, they can't stay up late. Erhe, you take Yixuan to the guest room on the right upstairs, and Tingting can sleep in the one on the left. The bedding is clean, just tidy it up yourself."

Liu Erhe responded and bent down to pick up Liu Yixuan, who was so sleepy he could barely keep his eyes open. The little guy's head rested on his shoulder, his little mouth slightly open, and his eyelids were mostly closed. Liu Tingting also stood up, dusted off her pants, and went upstairs.

Liang Fangfang slowly stood up, holding onto the sofa armrest. Yao Qingwan came over and gently supported her arm. The two of them went upstairs together.

The people in the living room gradually left, and the sound of footsteps faded away on the stairs. A few soft sounds of doors closing came from upstairs.