I Have a Lake as I Walk Through the Courtyard

After seeing her husband off, Aunt Yi became almost invisible in the courtyard. Apart from bringing meals to the old lady, she rarely left the house and stopped interacting with the other people in the courtyard. In a few days, the steel mill would be coming to take back the house, and Aunt Yi quietly packed her things.

Hearing the knock, the middle-aged woman looked up. "Who is it?"

"It's me! Auntie, it's Zhu Zi!"

Hearing the sound, the old woman paused in her tidying, hesitated for a moment, and then opened the door. When she saw Sha Zhu standing at the door, her expression was complicated.

"Zhu Zi, what brings you here?"

Don't let Sha Zhu's usual smooth talk fool you; he stammers when it comes to serious matters. "Auntie, I..."

Hearing this address, the middle-aged woman smiled. "What are you doing standing at the door, young man? Come in and sit down!"

"It's about an older woman and an older man..."

"Sigh, it's only been a few years. It's not your fault. Besides, your father pleaded for leniency. Let's just let this matter rest between our two families!"

"Hey! I feel the same way! These days have been so awkward, I feel so stifled!" Although Yi Zhonghai did so much, 10 years of friendship can't just disappear like that. After He Daqing left, besides material help, there was some other kind of help that was hard to explain!

Sha Zhu watched as an older woman packed her things. "Aunt Yi, what are you doing?"

"I advised your uncle to buy the house back then, but he refused. Now that he's in jail, they're naturally coming to take it back. So, I've discussed it with the old lady, and we're planning to move to the backyard so we can have someone to look after us!"

"That's good, that's good..."

The older woman hesitated when she saw Sha Zhu. "You've come to see me, young man, is there something you need? If so, just say it, don't be so formal..."

"Auntie, I remember an old man had a bicycle ticket. My workplace is quite far away now..."

"I thought it was something serious. Wait here, I'll go get it for you right away!"

Soon after, Sha Zhu received the bicycle ticket from the old lady, overjoyed. The old lady smiled at Sha Zhu's silly smile.

"I'll give you this ticket at the black market price, ma'am!"

"No need! This old lady isn't short of money. Consider it a gift from me. Focus on learning your cooking skills; we're looking forward to tasting your dishes!"

"How can that be? This ticket costs over 100! That's no small amount of money!" Sha Zhu said, taking the money he had prepared from his pocket.

An older woman quickly stopped him. "I'd already prepared this ticket for you, but your uncle was too stubborn. Now it's all right, focus on learning to cook, buy a bicycle, and find a good wife. Don't get entangled with that widow anymore! Understand?"

Sha Zhu felt a warmth in his chest. "I understand, Auntie. You're the kindest person to me in this yard! Let me help you move your things; I don't have time during the day!"

"Good...good boy..."

Lin Feng's head has been foggy almost every day in the space these past few days. Over time, he feels that his mental energy has become much more refined, and this feeling is especially strong in the space.

After processing for a period of time, Lin Feng had a general idea of ​​what to do. According to his method, it would take about twelve or thirteen pounds of lotus root to produce one pound of dried starch. He didn't want to be picky about the poor-quality lotus roots, so he didn't have to be too strict with the selection!

Lin Feng spent almost all his time buying steel lotus root starch during this period, working on it for nearly a month. He also stored nearly 2000 jin of dried starch in his space! As another month began, Lin Feng had to stop what he was doing and start visiting his factory.

Lin Feng had expected the textile factory to be another tough nut to crack, but to his surprise, he was immediately berated as soon as he arrived at the materials department. "Why didn't you come last month? Did you expect me to go myself?"

Lin Feng was completely bewildered by the scolding. He quickly took out a cigarette, which softened the expression on Director Sun's face. "I'm new here and still a bit unfamiliar with the procedures. Please forgive me. What are the rules?"

"Hey comrade! Didn't Li Mingwei tell you? You purchasing agents are all cunning. You just need to come and clean up our waste regularly! It's all part of the planned materials."

Upon hearing the plan, Lin Feng instantly understood, smoothly placing a pack of cigarettes on the corner of his desk. "How can your company possibly cooperate? We will definitely follow the procedures exactly!"

Director Sun immediately smiled. "That's more like it! Come over on the 15th of each month to sort out the accounts and complete the formalities. After that, our factory will send a truck to pick you up. Just let us know about the driver!"

"Understood, understood! That's Director Sun's volume from last month!"

"Alright, since you're new, I'll show you through the process!"

With Director Sun leading the way, Lin Feng's work went much more smoothly. In an hour, Lin Feng used cigarettes to clear the way and quickly finished all the accounts. All the procedures were already stipulated by the state, and they had no right to change them!

Director Sun then led Lin Feng to the transportation department, found a middle-aged man in his forties, and whispered a few words in his ear. Lin Feng, with great shrewdness, threw another pack of cigarettes on the desk, and seven or eight yuan disappeared in an instant, but the effect was immediate.

The driver immediately led Lin Feng, all smiles, to arrange for the truck to be loaded, reminiscing about their past collaborations. Lin Feng wondered if he should treat Li Mingwei to a meal; that kid seemed to have a lot going on.

When the textile factory's truck returned to the purchasing station, Chen Liansheng called Lin Feng into his office. "Last month, didn't you only visit the copper factory?"

"yes!"

"Why don't you go to other factories?"

Lin Feng was speechless when Chen Liansheng questioned him. "Uncle Chen, I was too clever for my own good last month."

Hearing the kid's confession, Chen Liansheng gave a wry smile. "The food factory and the machine repair shop have both called me. You'd better go take a look. Don't blame Li Mingwei for not telling you; do you really need to figure these things out yourself?"

"Understood, I'll go right away!"

"These factories are very familiar with our purchasing station, so I won't ask you for much. Just contact the items in the plan and bring them back! And also!"

"What else?" Lin Feng blinked his big, bright eyes at Chen Liansheng.

"And you, kid, have fish, especially eels! Why can't you ever remember your own people? I have to ask you for them myself!"

Lin Feng's face fell. "I'll have someone bring over 200 jin tomorrow! And at least 50 jin of eels."

"That's more like it... I've never seen a purchasing agent like you before! I thought you were an honest guy, but I never expected you to be so cunning!" Chen Liansheng said, then looked at Lin Feng with concern.

"Are your supply channels safe?"

"As long as the receiving unit doesn't say anything, there's no problem."

Chen Liansheng paused for a moment. "I'll talk to those factories. Don't be so reckless in the future, understand? Don't ruin your future!"

"Okay, Uncle Chen! By the way, would you like some lotus root starch?"

Chen Liansheng paused in his tea-drinking motion. "What? How much do you have?"