Traveling back to 1952, starting a comeback from a relief station

The casserole was bubbling on the stove, and the rich aroma of meat filled the front yard.

Just then, Yan Bugui slowly walked over:

"Anping, what's the deal with this red plum tree in front of your door?"

Why is it so much more vibrant than my potted plant?

It looked alright yesterday, but today its flowers are much more abundant than mine, and the color is so much brighter!

While talking about Hongmei, Yan Bugui's gaze had already been fixed on the clay pot on the stove through the half-open door, and he couldn't look away.

Wang Anping pretended not to notice his little scheme, squatted by the door, and replied with a smile:

"What could be wrong?"

"Perhaps the feng shui of your place is bad."

"Why is it that the same flowers look so wilted and lifeless where you are, but bloom so beautifully here?"

Upon hearing this, Yan Bugui immediately coughed twice and put on a stern face:

"You wouldn't dare say that!"

"Comrade Anping, you must correct your thinking and raise your awareness. This dregs of feudal superstition must be resolutely eliminated!"

"Feng shui and all that stuff, it's all a scam!"

Wang Anping's expression froze for a moment.

I had forgotten about that.

Fortunately, I didn't mention anything about "kings and generals" or "auspicious purple clouds coming from the east," as that would probably be even more troublesome than superstition.

He glanced at Yan Bugui and said with a smile:

"If that's the case, then it can only mean that Teacher Yan's character is flawed."

"Look, the flowers were grown by your own hands, but they've changed completely in just one day since they came to me. It's obvious they think you're too stingy and won't even let you see their best parts."

Upon hearing this, Yan Bugui felt inexplicably guilty.

He had personally tended to these two pots of red plum blossoms, and they looked equally beautiful yesterday, so he moved one to Wang Anping last night.

This kid just left at the door without even going inside. Could there really be some secret behind this?

Yan Bugui secretly harbored doubts, even suspecting that the problem might lie in his own yard, but he refused to admit it aloud.

However, he came here for more than just this.

He peeked into Wang Anping's room, his tone growing increasingly eager:

"It smells so good, are you stewing meat?"

"You're living the good life! Not only do you eat meat every day, but it all looks so delicious. Looks like your cooking skills are really good!"

Wang Anping felt a sense of helplessness; this was also his biggest headache.

Living in such a large courtyard, with doors next to doors and windows facing each other, it was impossible to escape the eyes of the neighbors if anyone ate something good.

He didn't care.

But having so many eyes watching you every day can be quite unsettling.

He figured he'd have to find a secluded place to improve his meals; he couldn't keep attracting so much attention.

However, he couldn't move away from this courtyard. After all, he was well aware of the major trends of the next twenty years. It was fine to secretly enjoy some delicacies, but he couldn't become detached from the masses.

While thinking this in his heart, he had already prepared his words:

"Teacher Yan, you have no idea."

"You live a comfortable life in big cities, how could you understand the difficulties we rural people face?"

"My hometown is poor, and we often go hungry. On the way to Beijing, I fainted from hunger before I even arrived. It was only thanks to the kindness of a kind person that I was taken to a shelter. Otherwise, I wouldn't have had the trouble of Sister Sun to bring me here."

He sighed and added:

"There were doctors at the shelter providing free medical checkups. They said I was severely malnourished and needed to rest for a while, get more nutrition, and avoid heavy work. They told me to focus on getting better first."

With your physique, do you really need to take care of your health?

Yan Bugui stared at Wang Anping's tall and robust appearance, his eyes filled with disbelief.

Wang Anping looked at him with a half-smile:

"You'd better believe me!"

I still have the doctor's prescription with me.

As he spoke, he actually pulled a crumpled medical report out of his pocket.

Yan Bugui, who was literate, leaned over to take a look and found that the handwriting and the hospital's letterhead were genuine. He was momentarily speechless, and after a long pause, he managed to stammer out:

"Since the doctor said so, you should eat more good food."

"This meat is indeed nutritious; it's good quality meat!"

Wang Anping smiled.

He turned around, picked up a small bowl from the table, and handed it to Yan Bugui.

The bowl contained only a small amount of rendered lard from frying the meat.

Yan Bugui's eyes lit up instantly at the smell of the fragrance, and his face broke into a wide smile as he reached out to take it, while still feigning politeness:

"Ping An, you're so...so sorry!"

This is really good stuff!

To save money.

The Yan family's meals were always simple, often consisting of boiled vegetables.

Even when using oil occasionally, one must carefully measure it with a small, one-qian (approximately 3 grams) bull's-eye cup, pouring only half a cupful at a time, not daring to waste a single drop more.

Even a speck of oil is a rare sight these days, let alone something as precious as lard.

Even the stir-fried dishes smell like meat!

Yan Bugui carefully carried the bowl of lard and walked briskly towards his home, completely unaware that Wang Anping was following behind him as he stepped into the Yan family's house.

"Wang Anping, what are you doing here!"

Yan Jiecheng's face immediately fell when he saw the person who followed him in, and his tone was full of frustration.

The incident this morning left the original inhabitants of the courtyard with a bad impression of Wang Anping. Moreover, Yan Jiecheng had been teased by the other children in the courtyard all day, who said that his father had given the best red plum blossoms to Wang Anping.

For a young man who cares about his image, this was enough to make him hostile towards Wang Anping.

Wang Anping, however, didn't care at all and put his arm around the Yan brothers, Yan Jiecheng and Yan Jiefang.

He patted the two of them on the shoulder and said:

"What are you yelling about? No respect for your elders!"

"Call him Brother Wang."

As he spoke, he turned to Yan Bugui and said:

"Teacher Yan, these two boys are so rude, let me teach them a lesson for you."

Yan Bugui had just gotten another advantage from Wang Anping and was thinking about how to improve his relationship with Wang Anping in the future.

Upon hearing this, he followed up with a smile and nodded:

"You're right, this kid needs to be disciplined."

"Jiecheng, Anping is older than you, so you should call him 'brother' from now on. Jiefang is the same."

Wang Anping ignored the two brothers' unwilling expressions.

He grabbed one of them with each hand and pulled them out:

"Come on, let's lend a hand to your brother and do him a favor."

Yan Jiecheng wanted to argue back, but Yan Bugui became interested and curious about what Wang Anping was going to do, so he quickly scolded his two sons:

"Anping is calling you, hurry up and follow!"

"You two should also learn from your brother Wang and learn some skills."

The two brothers were completely bewildered, unable to understand why their father was siding with outsiders today. However, due to their father's authority and their inability to overcome Wang Anping's strength, they could only be dragged out of the door, dejected, and headed straight for the central courtyard.

Yang Ruihua hadn't said a word until the others had walked away, then curiously asked Yan Bugui:

"What are you doing? Making your son do chores for him."

Yan Bugui proudly presented the bowl of lard to his wife, his face beaming with delight:

"See that? Animal fat! That kid Wang Anping gave it to me. Add a little of this when you're stir-frying, it'll make you smell so good you'll swallow your tongue!"

You can't sleep in the same bed with two different kinds of people, and Yang Ruihua was immediately delighted.