I, Yan Jiefang, will live to 2025 in this courtyard house.

This is the most difficult time for the country, and the food supply is simply insufficient.

Many people are struggling to get enough to eat, leading to an increase in the number of citizens scavenging for recyclables. Consequently, there are very few recyclable items available for sale on the streets.

The two brothers left the courtyard house and headed west along Yu'er Hutong.

I hadn't gone far when a sweet-looking girl walked towards me.

This young woman is tall and neatly dressed, a rare sight these days.

The two brothers recognized her at a glance; she was also their neighbor in the courtyard house, Xu Damao's younger sister, Xu Fengling.

A character who barely appears in the TV series, practically just a background character.

Unexpectedly, she turned out to be a beautiful young woman. She didn't resemble Xu Damao's long face much; she had inherited and improved upon almost all of the Xu family's excellent foreign trade genes.

It's like a golden phoenix flying out of a doghouse.

She and Yan Jiefang were born in the same year, 1945, and were both in the third year of junior high school at No. 22 Middle School, but in different classes.

I know from my memory that Xu Fengling's grades in junior high school were not very good.

She seemed to study quite hard, but unfortunately, she only grew taller and more physically fit, and hardly developed any intelligence. No matter how hard she tried, her grades just wouldn't improve.

It has remained at a moderate level for a long time, neither high nor low.

Yan Jiekuang slowed his pace slightly, as if he wanted to hide behind his second brother.

He seemed slightly inferior in front of the beautiful girl.

Yan Jiefang fully understood his third brother's admiration for young women, after all, that was also his youth.

Which boy hasn't fantasized about the pretty girls or beautiful female celebrities at school?

However, he has the mindset of an adult and is thick-skinned, so he doesn't care at all.

Most importantly, he is a transmigrator with a cheat-like ability, so he is full of confidence in front of anyone.

Yan Jiefang, dressed in tattered clothes and carrying a worn-out burlap sack, greeted her with a natural nod.

"Xu Fengling, just got back?"

"Um."

Xu Fengling responded in a clear voice, her feet never stopping.

Although she envied Yan Jiefang's academic achievements, under her parents' guidance, she naturally avoided the Suanpanjing family whenever possible and had no desire to have anything to do with them.

The greeting was merely out of politeness.

The two passed each other without causing any disturbance.

That evening, the two brothers searched all around Suoyi Hutong, Mao'er Hutong, and parts of Di'anmenwai Street, but unsurprisingly, they found very little.

Although Yan Bugui was not entirely satisfied with this, he did not say anything more.

He naturally knew the current situation.

The following days were peaceful.

Soon, it was early April.

After more than half a month of secret practice, Yan Jiefang's physical fitness improved to 9 points, which is considered very strong among his peers.

In those famine years, even adults might not be as strong as him.

As can be seen on the panel, he has also grown two centimeters taller, reaching exactly 174 centimeters, which is close to that of his elder brother Yan Jiecheng.

As the cost-effectiveness of scavenging for scraps became increasingly low, Yan Bugui began to arrange for his brothers, Yan Jiefang and Yan Jiekuang, to do other jobs.

Since they were running low on coal at home, the two of them now go to the Di'anmen Railway Station freight coal yard to collect coal slag every day after school.

Because there are so many poor families these days, they are practically everywhere.

Therefore, there are many poor children in the alley, so this job is not easy.

Fighting over coal ash is common, and pushing, arguing, and claiming territory are even more frequent occurrences.

Yan Bugui also noticed by chance that his second son's complexion seemed to be getting better and better recently, and his figure was also starting to grow taller. Although he didn't know the reason, it didn't stop him from making his calculations.

If he were still hunched over and emaciated like before, he wouldn't have arranged for his two brothers to rob coal ash.

If you get injured, you'll have to spend money on treatment, which is not worth it.

Fortunately, Yan Jiefang is now tall and strong, and looks intimidating, so almost no children dare to act recklessly in front of him.

Lately, I've been able to snag quite a bit of coal ash every day.

After school, Yan Jiefang and his brother, as usual, carried blackened sacks soaked in coal ash and left the courtyard under the watchful eyes of Yan Bugui.

They walked north along the main road of Nanluoguxiang, and after passing the entrance of Mao'er Hutong, they continued for a short distance before turning west into Jingyang Hutong.

Jingyang Hutong is relatively straight and easy to walk on, and many people prefer to take this route, including Yan Jiefang.

Crossing Shajing Hutong, turning onto the auxiliary road of Gulou East Street, and continuing straight to the north side of Gulou West Street, enter through the gap in the wall on the north side of the road, and you will soon arrive at the freight coal yard of Di'anmen Railway Station.

Because the third brother, Yan Jiekuang, was in poor health, it took the two brothers about 20 minutes to reach their destination.

The freight area on the north side of Di'anmen Railway Station is quite large. To prevent theft, a wall more than two meters high has been built for protection. Barbed wire mesh has been added to the outer perimeter of the wall, making it impossible for ordinary people to enter.

Fortunately, there is a gap in the southwest corner that allows passage, through which one can go in and collect coal ash.

This place is naturally guarded; everyone knows the rules.

As long as you don't steal, people will turn a blind eye and pretend they didn't see it.

The two brothers went straight to the spot they had seized a few days earlier, and the old men and children who had been scavenging coal ash there immediately made way for them.

No matter where you are, might makes right.

Without stopping, Yan Jiefang took out the iron rake he had brought with him and began to blast the thick layer of hot slag on the ground.

Every now and then, he would find unburnt, shiny black coal nuggets, which Yan Jiekuang, who was waiting nearby, would immediately pick up and put into a sack.

He is strong and works quickly, making him much more efficient than the average person.

About half an hour later, the sack the two had brought was about half full.

Yan Jiefang reached out and picked it up, weighing it in his hand; it weighed about twenty pounds.

He called out to his third brother, picked up the bag, and left.

Yan Jiekuang quickly followed behind.

As soon as they left, other people gathered around to share the relatively good spot.

By the time they returned to the front yard, it was just getting dark.

Yan Bugui opened the bag and inspected the coal nuggets the two had brought back. He was barely satisfied, but still began to lecture them:

"Jiefang, it's getting dark later and later now, can't you two dig up more coal?"

Yan Jiefang ignored him, went to the pool to wash his hands and face, went back to his room to change into clean clothes, and then left the courtyard.

He hasn't finished his training plan for today yet!

After washing his hands, Yan Jiekuang went back into the house, took out an old notebook, and wrote down what he had done that day with his second brother, including the coal ash and its approximate weight.

This is what my second brother told him to remember, saying it would be useful later.

He felt that his second brother's words made sense, so he naturally did as he was told.

He even kept a record of the wild vegetables he dug up every weekend, his daily meals, and how much he spent on stationery and books.