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

Wang Xiuhe's eyes lit up upon hearing this, but after thinking for a moment, she added, "Big Dog... he's been stubborn since he was little. Once he's made up his mind, nothing can change it. Please bear with him."

Kong Jie and Ding Wei were both stunned for a moment, then Kong Jie couldn't help but laugh first: "Big Dog? That's an interesting name! Old Liu, how come you've never mentioned it before?"

Liu Yuheng, sitting beside him, looked unusually embarrassed and waved his hand, saying, "That was something from when I was a kid, why bring it up?"

Li Yunlong laughed so hard he almost fell over: "Well, well! Big Dog! This name sounds much better than my old Li's 'Li Lengzi'! From now on, we'll call you Big Dog!"

Everyone in the room laughed, and the atmosphere immediately relaxed. Liu Shuanzhu and Wang Xiuhe also relaxed, and their expressions became less tense.

After chatting for a while, Wang Xiuhe suddenly beckoned to Liu Erhe: "Erhe, go buy some vegetables and meat. We have guests today, so we need to cook a good meal." She then turned to Liu Yuheng and said, "You silly boy, you didn't even tell us you were coming. We didn't prepare anything at home."

Liu Yuheng waved his hand, stopping Liu Erhe who was about to get up: "Mother, don't bother. My place is bigger, there's enough room. Everyone come to my place to eat later. Everyone, bring Yixuan too. This place is too small, it can't fit so many people."

Wang Xiuhe glanced at the people inside the house, then at the figures peering out into the courtyard. After hesitating for a moment, she finally nodded: "Alright, I'll come to your place. But do you have enough food?"

Liu Yuheng said, "That's enough. I can allocate some from the logistics department."

The group sat in the east wing for a while, drank two rounds of tea, and chatted about everyday matters.

Around four o'clock in the afternoon, Liu Yuheng stood up and said, "Alright, let's go back and prepare dinner."

Everyone got up, packed their things, and left the east wing in turn. The people in the courtyard had not yet dispersed.

Several people were gathered at the entrance of Yan Bugui's house, whispering among themselves. When they saw the people from the east wing come out, their eyes all turned to them, filled with undisguised curiosity and scrutiny.

Liu Yuheng didn't pay much attention to the others. He made arrangements, letting Liu Shuanzhu, Wang Xiuhe, Liang Fangfang, and Yao Qingwan get into his car. He then bent down, picked up Liu Yixuan, and walked towards Li Yunlong's car. The little guy was a bit confused when he was picked up. He blinked, looked at the car his grandmother was in, then at his uncle holding him, and called out in a childish voice, "Uncle?"

Liu Yuheng nudged him: "Come on, let's ride in Uncle's car."

He glanced back at Liu Erhe and Liu Tingting, his tone tinged with helplessness: "There's no room in the car, you two figure out a way to get over. Erhe, go borrow a bicycle, or find a cart, either will do."

Upon hearing this, Liu Tingting immediately pouted, "Brother! I want to ride in the car too!"

Liu Yuheng had already bent down and climbed into the car. He leaned out of the window and said, "Let your second brother take you." Then the window rolled up, the car started, and slowly drove out of the alley.

Liu Tingting stood at the gate of the courtyard, watching the taillights of the two cars disappear around the corner, and stomped her foot angrily.

Liu Erhe stood next to her and patted her on the shoulder: "Let's go, I'll ask if anyone has a bicycle to borrow."

Once the taillights of the two cars had completely disappeared around the corner of the alley, the people in the courtyard started moving again as if they had been thawed out.

Yi Zhonghai walked up to Liu Erhe first. He hadn't dared to get too close because of the crowd and noise earlier, but now that they were gone, he was the first to ask, "Erhe, who were those people just now? They all looked quite extraordinary."

"They are all my older brother's comrades-in-arms. They came to see my parents after the military parade."

Before Yi Zhonghai could reply, Yan Bugui had already moved closer, his voice carrying a confident certainty: "Looking at those guys, they all have stars on their shoulders! They must be generals, right?"

Liu Erhe did not deny it, and vaguely replied, "Is that so?" Then he turned his gaze to Xu Fugui, who was standing to the side, and said in a somewhat polite tone, "Uncle Xu, my sister-in-law and the others have left by car, and my sister and I are going too. There's no room on the car. Could I borrow your bicycle for a bit? I'll ride it back to return it to you in a little while."

Xu Fugui immediately grinned, waving his hands repeatedly and saying, "No problem, no problem," then turned to Xu Damao beside him and shouted, "Damao! Hurry up and push the car out!"

Xu Damao responded and quickly ran back into the house. A moment later, he came out pushing the old-fashioned bicycle. Liu Erhe took it, climbed on, tried out the pedals, and then patted the back seat to let Liu Tingting get on.

Seeing that Erhe's posture was still a bit clumsy, He Yuzhu, who was standing next to him, asked with a hint of good-natured teasing, "Erhe, can you ride? Don't make Tingting fall halfway."

Liu Erhe rolled his eyes, his tone tinged with resentment: "My father-in-law's family has bicycles, and I've ridden them several times." With that, he pedaled hard, the bike wobbled a couple of times before stabilizing, and he rode out of the courtyard gate with Liu Tingting on it.

Liu Tingting sat in the back seat, her hands gripping the edge of the seat tightly, calling out, "Second Brother, slow down!" Her voice gradually faded into the distance and soon disappeared at the entrance of the alley.

After the two left, the courtyard became as lively as if a pot had been boiled over.

Yan Bugui shook his head, clicking his tongue: "The Liu family has really made it big. Look at that scene, one car after another. Those comrades are obviously not ordinary people."

Liu Haizhong nodded in agreement, "Old Liu and his wife are truly blessed to have raised such an accomplished son."

At the edge of the crowd, Qin Huairu stood there holding her child, her gaze still following Yao Qingwan's nimble back as she got into the car.

She glanced down at her faded cotton-padded jacket and then thought of Yao Qingwan's dark blue woolen coat and her composed and elegant demeanor when she stood next to Liu Yuheng. An indescribable feeling welled up inside her, making her chest feel heavy.

She sighed softly, thinking to herself why she hadn't been so lucky. If she had married someone like Liu Yuheng back then, she wouldn't be spending her days fussing over the stove and washing feet.

On the other side, the car came to a steady stop at the entrance of the North City compound. Liu Yuheng got out of the car, and Li Yunlong and the other two also got out of the car behind. Liu Shuanzhu and Wang Xiuhe followed Yao Qingwan out of the car, and the group stood at the entrance of the small building.

After entering the house, Liu Yuheng invited everyone to sit down. Li Yunlong and the other two sat on the sofa, while Liu Shuanzhu and Wang Xiuhe sat on a single sofa next to them. Liang Fangfang, holding her child, sat on a small stool on the other side. Yao Qingwan went to the kitchen, brewed a pot of fresh tea, and brought it out. She also placed a plate of snacks and a plate of sliced ​​fruit on the coffee table.

After Liu Yuheng sat down, he said to Yao Qingwan, "When Erhe comes later, take him to the supply and marketing cooperative in the courtyard to buy some vegetables and meat."

No sooner had he finished speaking than Liu Shuanzhu interjected, "No need to wait for Erhe, your mother and I will go. It's rare to have guests today, so I'll show off my skills and let everyone taste my cooking."