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

The courtyard was already bustling with activity. Several middle-aged women had arrived early and were busy around the makeshift earthen stove in the backyard, some picking vegetables, some washing meat, and some chopping scallions, each doing their job in an orderly manner.

He Yuzhu was bending over to add firewood to the stove. The firelight illuminated his face, which looked older than his actual age, and a thin layer of sweat had already formed on his forehead. He straightened up, wiped his face with his sleeve, and looked down at the pieces of meat being blanched in the pot, smacking his lips in satisfaction.

"Zhu Zi, is it cooked enough?" A middle-aged woman helping out leaned over and asked.

He Yuzhu flipped the meat pieces with a spatula and nodded: "It's almost done. Blanch it for a little longer and then we can take it out."

The courtyard was bustling with activity when the gate was pushed open again, and Liang Cheng and his wife walked in one after the other.

Following closely behind were three other young men in their twenties, dressed in the blue overalls of the steel rolling mill. The three of them appeared somewhat reserved as they entered the courtyard, their eyes scanning the area. Seeing the lively scene, they involuntarily slowed their pace.

Liu Shuanzhu was the first to step forward, quickly walking to Liang Cheng and shaking his hand vigorously, exclaiming, "Old Liang! You're here! Come in, come in!" He then turned to the three people behind Liang Cheng, smiling warmly, and asked, "And who are these gentlemen?"

Liang Cheng turned slightly and waved to the three men: "These are some of my new apprentices at the factory. They work with me." He then turned to the three men, "This is Erhe and his father. You can call him Uncle Liu."

The three young men quickly stepped forward and bowed in unison: "Hello, Uncle Liu!"

Liu Shuanzhu quickly waved his hand, grinning from ear to ear: "Alright, alright! You're a guest, don't be shy! Come in and sit down!"

Hearing the commotion, Liu Erhe put down the stool he was holding and quickly came over. He first greeted Liang Cheng and his wife, then turned to the three young men with a smile on his face: "Junior brothers are here? Come in and sit down!" As he spoke, he stepped aside to lead the way, leading the group into the courtyard.

The three young men followed Liu Erhe inside, curiously looking around the courtyard as they went.

The three walked to the square table in the center of the front yard, which was covered with a red tablecloth. On the table was an open gift book and a calligraphy brush, and next to it was an enamel mug filled halfway with dark brown tea. Yan Bugui was sitting behind the table, wearing his reading glasses, holding the calligraphy brush in his hand, sitting upright and looking very proper.

The three men exchanged glances. The round-faced young man who was in the lead took out his money from his pocket, counted out five one-yuan bills, folded them neatly, and handed them to Yan Bugui with both hands: "Hello, this is my gift money."

Just as Yan Bugui was about to reach out to take it, Liu Erhe quickly stopped him, declining with a serious tone: "Junior brothers, there's no need for so much. The family has already decided that the gift money will be no more than one yuan. We can't accept any more."

The round-faced young man paused, the money in his hand hovering in mid-air, his expression somewhat troubled: "Senior brother, you've taught us so much, we've wanted to thank you for a long time. Today is your daughter's one-month celebration, it's only right that we give you some money, five yuan isn't much..."

The tall, thin guy next to him nodded in agreement, "Yeah, senior brother, just let us give the money. We've troubled you a lot lately, and today we finally have a chance to express our gratitude. You can't expect us to take the money back with us, can you?"

Liu Erhe waved his hand, his tone carrying a firmness rarely seen in him: "I appreciate your kindness, but one thing is one thing. Teaching you skills is what I should do. When Master took you in, I promised to guide you well; that's my duty."

He paused, glanced at the group, hesitated for a moment before speaking, lowering his voice slightly: "Besides, my older brother specifically instructed that no matter who comes or how much they bring, the gift money cannot exceed one yuan. If he finds out, I'll get scolded."

When Liu Erhe mentioned "elder brother," the three young men fell silent for a moment. The round-faced young man withdrew his hand, clutching the money without offering it any further. His gaze unconsciously drifted towards the east wing, as if he were checking if a tall figure in a woolen overcoat would suddenly emerge from behind that door.

Liu Erhe could easily see through the three men's schemes. Their presence today was partly due to Liang Cheng's influence and the kindness of his teaching them, but more importantly, they probably wanted to use this relationship to make some connections with Liu Yuheng.

But who is Liu Yuheng? He's a vice minister, a lieutenant general. How could he, an ordinary worker at a steel mill, dare to take on such a favor for his elder brother? What if these junior colleagues really come to him with something in the future? Should he help them or not? If he helps, he doesn't have the ability; if he doesn't help, people will say he's heartless. In the end, he'll be caught in the middle, not daring to face either side.

Therefore, this rule must be upheld today.

Liang Cheng had been silent the whole time, but seeing the tense atmosphere, he put down his teacup and came over.

He glanced at Liu Erhe first, then at his three apprentices, his tone carrying the decisiveness and authority characteristic of a master: "Alright, alright, listen to Erhe. If he says he'll take one yuan, then he'll take one yuan. Don't make things difficult for him. You have a long life ahead of you, and there will be plenty of opportunities to show your sincerity later. This one time won't make a difference."

Hearing what their master said, the three young men stopped insisting. The round-faced young man put the money back in his pocket and took out another one-yuan bill to hand over. Seeing this, the other two also took out one-yuan bills and handed them to Yan Bugui.

Yan Bugui took the money, picked up a brush, and neatly wrote the names of the three people in the gift book, and then marked "one yuan" for each of them.

Liu Erhe breathed a sigh of relief, a smile returning to his face. He turned to the front yard and gestured for them to sit at the tables: "Come on, sit over there. I'll get you some tea."

The three of them followed Liu Er and sat down at the large table in the center of the front yard.

Footsteps came from the courtyard gate again. Liu Erhe looked up and saw Yi Zhonghai, Liu Haizhong, and Xu Fugui walking in side by side.

Yi Zhonghai walked up to Liu Shuanzhu and said with a smile, "Old Liu, congratulations! You've had another granddaughter. That's a wonderful blessing."

Liu Haizhong stepped forward and bowed to Liu Shuanzhu, his voice booming with his characteristic loudness: "Old Liu, congratulations! You're so lucky to have a grandson and a granddaughter."

Xu Fugui also stepped forward and offered his congratulations.

Liu Shuanzhu smiled and led the three of them toward the main table: "Come, come, sit down, sit down. There's plenty of food and drink tonight."

Yi Zhonghai sat down at the main table, Liu Haizhong sat down next to him, and Xu Fugui sat down on the other side.

As they were talking, Jia Dongxu, Liu Guangqi, Xu Damao, and a few others arrived one after another. All three were young and didn't go to the main table, but went directly to sit down at Liu Erhe's table. Jia Dongxu spoke first, cupping his hands in a respectful greeting to Liu Erhe: "Erhe, congratulations! Isn't your daughter beautiful? Let me see her later."

Liu Erhe replied with a smile, "Look, I'll bring her out for you to see in a bit. She's chubby and eats even more than her brother did when he was little."