Courtyard House: Starting with a 28-inch motorcycle

MCA started chattering away again.

He Yuzhu glanced at him sideways: This kid is capable of handling things in the future, but I wonder which storm will wear down his impetuousness and make him calm and composed.

After this incident, the ordinary workers only felt that Deputy Factory Director Li was decisive and efficient; while the heads of various departments all understood: this was just the first curtain being lifted, and the real show was just being set up.

This Deputy Factory Director Li is definitely not just here for show. He and Factory Director Yang will have to go toe-to-toe sooner or later.

However, most directors knew in their hearts that Director Yang had deep roots and powerful connections, and couldn't be shaken by a few incidents. The smart thing to do was to stay put, guard their own responsibilities, and observe from the sidelines.

Factory Director Yang had already seen through it—this newcomer was a tough nut to crack. How many more tricks did he have up his sleeve? Let's wait and see, and deal with each move as it comes.

At lunchtime, everyone would lean against the workbench and doze off for a few minutes, waiting for the song to start playing on the propaganda department's loudspeaker before taking their bowls and boxes and heading home.

Only those two were still sweating profusely, wiping the stove, scrubbing the drains, and scraping off the grease—this month, everyone could finally breathe a sigh of relief, as they didn't have to scramble to do the dirty and tiring work.

Even those who wanted to lend a hand withdrew their hands. If Director Zhang saw them, they'd probably have to sweep the floor too.

He Yuzhu pondered: Director Zhang's anger probably wasn't directed at those two people at all. What truly made him uneasy was Vice Factory Director Li's few words of reprimand at the meeting—clearly aimed at stripping the departments of their power.

He walked to the door of Director Zhang's office and knocked three times.

"Go in!" came a deep voice from inside.

As soon as the door opened, Director Zhang looked up and saw it was him, his brows relaxing slightly.

"Xiao He, what's up?"

"Director Zhang, you look so angry; you must be holding back your anger over Deputy Factory Director Li's matter, right?"

Director Zhang didn't respond, but simply nodded.

He Yuzhu took half a step forward and lowered his voice: "I have a way that can put your mind at ease."

"Oh? Tell me about it."

"Director, he's making you uncomfortable, why don't you make him... feel uncomfortable too?"

Director Zhang's eyelids twitched, he paused, and slowly said, "Xiao He, we're talking about unity, and that's something we both understand."

He Yuzhu lowered his voice, a slight smile playing on his lips: "I heard Section Chief Liu is leaving, and Deputy Section Chief You Zhengya has no backing—if the directors were willing to join forces and give him a push, and stabilize the Security Section's territory... tsk, from now on, who's in charge of things?"

The words weren't explicitly stated, but the meaning was clear: If you few hold onto the power of the security department and form a united front, who in the factory can easily interfere? Today, Deputy Factory Director Li's slap was loud and clear, but it also showed his restraint—from now on, when he sees you, he'll probably have to think twice before being polite.

If You Zhengya and Deputy Factory Director Li were to take over, and the vote was five to two or three at the meeting, how could he possibly turn the tide? As long as you don't undermine each other or engage in internal strife, who above would bother with such trivial matters? As long as production targets are met on time, who cares which way the wind blows in your security department?

Director Zhang's mind lit up, and he suddenly understood. Having been at the factory for over six months, he had already become familiar with all the department heads. If they really went their separate ways, and ran into trouble again, he'd likely have no one to rely on. Being able to establish a foothold in the security department early on was practically a golden opportunity delivered to his doorstep.

Director Zhang waved his hand, his tone half-serious and half-joking: "Xiao He, you can't spread these things around—they'll hurt our harmony and ruin our unity. Go back to the cafeteria now, it's lunchtime, the kitchen is waiting for you."

No sooner had He Yuzhu left than Director Zhang pulled out his enamel mug and started making phone calls to invite everyone over for the evening, saying, "Let's keep the camaraderie warm while it's still fresh."

This kind of thing will be commonplace decades from now. Although it hasn't taken off yet, the seeds of it have already been sown.

He Yuzhu's motives were never about lofty ideals or righteous indignation, but rather about real interests and benefits.

With Director Zhang in control, the people in the cafeteria are his strongest fist; he will never stand by and watch his own people be bullied and trampled on.

By the way, let's also give Deputy Factory Director Li some work to do—if he's always idle, he's likely to cause trouble.

If you can't even control your own troops, even if the Emperor himself is standing behind you, people will still have doubts: Do you really want to teach you how to give orders step by step?

If you can't even handle this small matter, who will dare to entrust you with the responsibility when big problems arise in the future?

……

He Yuzhu hummed a little tune as he left work, his steps light and quick, heading straight for the black market. The food was ready, just waiting to be sold; his heart was pounding like a little bird, both sweet and itchy.

He took out a dime and pushed open the door. In the corner, a familiar figure was fiddling with some pastries—it was Liu Lan. He didn't approach her to talk, but just glanced at her before turning around to look for things he might need, preparing to go find Pineapple to deliver the grain after he finished.

The moment he stepped inside, Liu Lan recognized him immediately—that gray-blue hood was too conspicuous. But the two of them were perfectly in sync, pretending to be complete strangers.

Further in, He Yuzhu caught a glimpse of an old man with white hair squatting against the wall, his face mostly covered by a thick blue headscarf. Several small bundles of slender, green seedlings lay on the ground, like tender branches just pulled from the soil.

He crouched down and looked closer, but the more he looked, the more confused he became: this thing, let alone its name, he couldn't even figure out which family or genus it belonged to.

"Sir, what are you selling?"

"Ginseng seedlings, Panax notoginseng seedlings, Polygonum multiflorum vines." The old man's voice was hoarse, but his eyes were bright.

He Yuzhu stared at it for a long time, then finally shook his head – he was a complete novice, relying entirely on guesswork.

"How much?"

The old man was a hunter from the mountains. He had dug up these young birds on a whim, not expecting to make any money from them, just trying his luck. He had been sitting there for several hours, and while the game had long been sold out, not a single person had even asked about the price of the young birds.

"Eight cents in total, take it."

He Yuzhu thought to himself: It's probably just some cheap weeds to fool people, right? But... I've already bought it, it's worth it to keep it as a bonsai.

He handed over eight cents, quickly rolled up several bundles of seedlings, and tucked them into his coat, where they felt warm and cozy.

After searching all the way to Pineapple's place, I got two more cigarette coupons and casually mentioned, "The grain is all here."

The same two men followed as usual. This time, He Yuzhu took a detour and changed the location of the grain storage. The two men used the same old routine: they first circled around, their eyes scanning every patch of grass and crack in the bricks like hawks, before slowly approaching, carefully inspecting the goods, and then stuffing a stack of banknotes into his hand.

He Yuzhu walked briskly, humming a little tune, and returned to the cafeteria with a smile on his face.

Director Zhang was already waiting at the door.

"Xiao He, I'll have to trouble you tonight to cook at my house. I've already made arrangements with the night school."

"Sure!" He Yuzhu readily agreed. "I'll get to work now."

"You go ahead with your work. If there's anything at the cafeteria, come to my office anytime."

After finishing get off work, he grabbed his cooking utensils and rushed to Director Zhang's house. This time, he had specifically requested it.

As soon as the knocking sounded, Director Zhang's wife, Peng Mei, opened the door.

"Little He's here? Come in and sit down! Old Zhang was talking about you this morning, saying he'd have to trouble you tonight."

"Don't mention it, sister-in-law. I'll go into the kitchen right away—are all the dishes ready?"

"Everything is ready. I'll take you there."

As He Yuzhu stepped into the living room, his eyelids twitched: Goodness, this looks like they're about to get serious.

The room wasn't big, but it was packed with people—Logistics Director Zhai Junhui, Production Director Qin Aidang (also Deputy Factory Director), Office Director Ye Qiu, Security Section Deputy Chief You Zhengya, Canteen Director Zhang Huaqiang, Women's Federation Deputy Director Wu Qun, Political Department Director Yu Huaqun (also Deputy Factory Director), Party Branch Deputy Secretary Qiao Weimin (also Deputy Factory Director)...

Deputy Factory Director Li, Factory Director Yang, and several leaders from the Third Branch Factory did not show up, but almost all the other influential figures were present.

The room was filled with smoke, and the people were either leaning or sitting, chatting and laughing with a sense of propriety, their casual remarks laced with witty remarks.

He Yuzhu didn't look around much, turned around and went into the kitchen, rolled up his sleeves and got to work.

Director Zhang's kitchen was even narrower than Lou's, but it had all the necessary pots, pans, oil, salt, soy sauce, and vinegar, and everything was kept neat and tidy.

Peng Mei had already picked and washed the vegetables, and chatted with him as she tidied up.

"Xiao He, I heard from Lao Zhang that you're not married yet? That won't do! We have a few reliable young women in our Women's Federation, good character and hardworking. Come to the neighborhood office tomorrow when you have some free time, I'll set you up—hurry up!"

"Sister-in-law, I've already made the arrangements. We'll get married at the end of the year! I'd really appreciate it if you and Director Zhang could join us then, to celebrate!" He replied with a smile, and with a few swift strokes of the knife, the radish shreds were so fine they could be threaded through a needle.

"That's more like it! Old Zhang and I were even thinking that at your age, your kids should be running around all over the place by now."

The two chatted back and forth, like old friends, their conversation full of warmth and everyday life.

As soon as the dish was cooked, Peng Mei carried the plate outside.

Director Zhang winked at her: "Tell Xiao He to cook himself a side dish to take home—we're not keeping him for dinner today."

Peng Mei understood immediately: With so many people invited by her husband, it couldn't be as simple as just having a meal. With more people at the table, it would be harder to speak openly.

She turned back into the kitchen, picked up a bottle of bulk liquor and shoved it into He Yuzhu's hand, then handed him a small dish of freshly stir-fried shredded pork with sauce: "Little He, I'm really sorry for not being a good host today. Cook something yourself to take home with your liquor, don't mind it."

He Yuzhu took it, smiling and nodding, "Thank you, Sister-in-law! Please also thank Director Zhang for me."

Jumping into a fire pit yourself? That's not just stupid, that's utterly mindless. Today's scene, on the surface, looks like a fight between some factory leaders, but the underlying connections are incredibly complex, far beyond what a nobody like us can handle. Deputy Factory Director Li has powerful backers, and Director Zhang isn't one to be trifled with either.

Director Zhang picked up his wine glass, smiled, and glanced around: "Everyone knows how good Xiao He's cooking is, so I won't go into details—come on, let's eat! Xiao He, have another drink, then leave, don't delay things."

He Yuzhu stood up, raised his glass in a toast, and said, "Wishing all the leaders a good appetite, a good mood, and all the best!"

After drinking a glass of wine, Peng Mei escorted him all the way to the factory gate, but did not turn around to go home.

Director Zhang gently placed his wine glass on the table, his voice low but firm: "Li Zhengqing has put on quite a show today. Everyone knows exactly what he's after. They can fight it out, but the factory needs to stay stable, and morale must be high. I propose—we won't steal the limelight or offer each other weapons, but if anyone tries to use this as an excuse to cross the line and break our rules, we'll stop them!"