Courtyard House: My System - Artificial Human

Fang Qin was so angry with the two brothers that she slammed the teacup she had just picked up onto the table and turned to go into the bedroom.

Lin Weiguo ignored his younger brother's teasing expression, picked up the package, and followed him inside.

The package contained a new set of duvet cover and sheets, which the two quickly changed into before starting to pack for the move.

Most of the belongings belonged to Lin Weiguo; Fang Qin only had a few clothes, and she had never lived in this courtyard for long.

Moreover, all that's needed is to pack personal belongings; the rest of the furniture and daily necessities will be left to Lin Weidong.

Lin Weidong didn't get involved; he just waited for the two to finish packing before helping them with their luggage.

"Alright, that's all for now. Let's go to the clothing store and buy Weidong a couple of outfits. This afternoon, you should take Weidong to help with job hunting and residency registration."

Fang Qin made all the arrangements clearly, and the Lin brothers, Weiguo and Weidong, naturally complied, put on their coats, picked up their suitcases, and went out.

……

After visiting several clothing stores, Lin Weidong's mystique was dispelled.

It's not that there aren't any good things. It's only the beginning of the 50th century, the Lunar New Year of the 49th year hasn't passed yet, and it's not yet time for joint public-private ownership and unified sales. Naturally, there are quite a few good things circulating in the market.

However, in society, there is already a sense of impending storm, and there are very few people on the streets who are dressed in bright colors and behave in a striking manner.

Dark colors such as gray-brown, navy blue, military green, and ochre are the absolute mainstream.

Lin Weidong naturally follows the trend and doesn't dress in an unconventional way.

But even though he wasn't picky, Lin Weiguo and Fang Qin simply didn't accept his opinion.

Lin Weiguo simply wanted to buy good materials for his younger brother, while Fang Qin wanted to take the opportunity to shop around more. They were so busy with the year-end approaching that they had to make the most of their rare day off.

Lin Weidong simply let them be, since he didn't have to pay anything; at most, he'd just be a bag carrier.

【关于货币：为避免因面额过大影响阅读体验，本书统一採用55年货币面额，即：1、2、5分；1、2、5角；1、2、3、5、10元（大黑十）】

Regarding prices: The median value was taken after consulting relevant data.

[55 years ago, government officials were subject to a dual system of supply and salary. They were provided with necessities such as grain, cooking oil, cloth and fuel according to their job rank, plus a small amount of "allowance" for pocket money.]

In the end, with Fang Qin taking care of everything, Lin Weidong got two Zhongshan suits (36 yuan), a wool coat (25 yuan), a sweater and trousers (20 yuan), and two pairs of leather shoes (24 yuan).

The 105 yuan spent was equivalent to three months' allowance for Lin Weiguo and Fang Qin, but they usually didn't have anywhere to spend money, so Fang Qin didn't feel bad about spending money on her husband's younger brother.

As for Lin Weidong, he completely accepted his fate. Anyway, he didn't have a single penny on the surface, so he would repay him when a suitable opportunity arose in the future.

For example, the Ten-Ingredient Tonic Pill...

Lin Weidong thought that with this thing around, his older brother and sister-in-law would treat him like their father.

It's not that Lin Weidong looks down on people, but a normal man only lasts about ten minutes at a time.

At lunchtime, I happened to pass by Dong'an Market, where Donglaishun is located.

Fang Qin then suggested that Lin Weidong try the copper pot mutton hot pot from Beijing.

Lin Weidong hesitated for a moment, then looked at his elder brother and found that Lin Weiguo was also looking at him. He immediately understood and found it quite amusing.

"No problem, sister-in-law, I haven't tried it before." Under his brother's approving gaze, Lin Weidong readily agreed and followed him into the store.

Donglaishun and Youyishun taste similar, but Donglaishun is about 20% more expensive. Compared to Donglaishun, Donglaishun has more frozen mutton meatballs and mutton offal.

At the dinner table, the novelty of yesterday was gone, and Lin Weidong focused on eating rice, not even looking up.

Fang Qin smiled like an aunt and busied herself cooking the meat. Lin Weiguo felt guilty and ate very little; most of the mutton ended up in Lin Weidong's stomach.

After the meal, we went to the Fang family's house.

Seeing Lin Weidong's endearing demeanor, Fang's mother was even more enthusiastic than Fang Qin, patting Lin Weidong's hand and repeatedly saying that he had suffered.

Lin Weidong smiled shyly.

The original owner had already endured all the suffering, so what suffering could he possibly endure?

After drinking a cup of hot tea and resting for half an hour, Fang Qin urged the two brothers to hurry up and get down to business.

"Weidong, change into your new clothes and see if they fit. There's an empty room around the corner!"

Fang Qin had barely finished speaking when her mother rejected her suggestion.

"No need, just wear this. It's a bit old but not sloppy, it's perfect!"

Fang Qin paused for a moment before realizing what she had done and understood that she had almost done something wrong with good intentions. She quickly corrected herself, feeling embarrassed.

"Yes, yes! Let's go with that!"

Just as Lin Weiguo was about to get up, he noticed his wife's embarrassment, gave Lin Weidong a wink, and suddenly patted his pockets anxiously.

"Oops! Where did I put the certificate I got this morning? It's gone!"

"Lost it? I remember you put it in a file folder!" Fang Qin's face also showed a hint of anxiety as she quickly recalled.

"Really?" Lin Weiguo asked, then quickly took out a file folder from his bag and sat down at the coffee table to examine it.

Lin Weidong glanced at his older brother, silently picked up the clothes and walked towards the guest room. "Brother, you can take your time looking around. I'll just try on the new clothes my sister-in-law bought for me."

"Go ahead, go ahead, I need to go through it carefully, don't miss any procedures." Lin Weiguo waved his hand without looking up, extremely satisfied.

Sure enough, the brothers were of one mind. Around noon, he felt that his younger brother was quite perceptive, truly worthy of being a child of the Lin family.

Fang's mother saw all of this, and her smile grew even more kind. Her gaze shifted to her daughter, who was checking the documents with her son-in-law by the coffee table, and a hint of helplessness appeared between her brows. "This silly girl."

When Lin Weidong came out after changing his clothes, Fang's mother was even more satisfied and reached out to help straighten the wrinkles in his clothes.

"Good boy, you look much more energetic in this outfit, but it looks a bit cold. Auntie will find you a vest to wear underneath another day, and that will keep you warm."

Lin Weidong nodded repeatedly, thanked her politely, and then twirled around to show off under Fang Qin's watchful gaze.

"Hey! My taste isn't bad!" Fang Qin said approvingly, looking quite proud, as if her eyes were the ultimate judge.

Seeing that his goal had been achieved, Lin Weiguo stopped pretending and quickly packed up the materials, urging Lin Weidong to hurry up.

"Alright, stop showing off and let's go."

Lin Weidong changed back into his original clothes and followed his elder brother out the door, watched by Fang Qin and her daughter.

He accepted the cigarette offered by his older brother on the way, and the two walked side by side.

The smoke billowed towards the people behind them, yet they shared a silent understanding despite not exchanging words.

Lin Weiguo led Lin Weidong to a bus stop, saying they were waiting for the bus.

Lin Weidong was quite surprised. Public buses already existed in this era? No wonder it's Beijing!

Seeing his curiosity, Lin Weiguo briefly explained that the bus service was newly added by the city before the Lunar New Year, with 11 planned routes and nearly 100 buses. It's convenient to take the bus when it's too cold to ride a bike in winter, although most people are reluctant to do so.

Lin Weidong nodded knowingly and followed him on a bus that rattled and clattered incessantly.

With all the necessary documents, the two went to the government's personnel department to submit them for review.

After registering his information at the entrance, Lin Weiguo was greeted by many passing cadres as soon as he entered, either by nodding and smiling or simply saying "Section Chief Lin".

Most people hurried past, their heels striking the paving stones with a rapid drumbeat. No one stopped for a long chat, and the courtyard was filled with a strong atmosphere of simplicity and pragmatism.