Siheyuan: A warm home with wife and children

He'd say to everyone he met, "Jianguo's going on a blind date today, I wonder whose daughter it is?"

Every morning, every household has to empty their chamber pots.

There were no public toilets in the compound; you had to go to the outhouses on the street. This led to word spreading throughout the compound.

Yang Jianguo is currently at home making breakfast. He cracked two eggs to make steamed eggs and steamed two white flour buns.

Hey, luxury is the way to go!

Sitting in front of the earthen stove, Yang Jianguo opened the system and checked in.

[Ding! Signed in for three consecutive days this week and received five pounds of braised beef, a box of White Rabbit milk candy, and a roasted lamb leg.]

Seeing the generous rewards, Yang Jianguo patted his leg happily, "We're in for a treat today!"

First, take out the braised beef; the scalding hot steam just keeps rising out.

Yang Jianguo cut the duck eggs into pieces for breakfast, and put the rest back into the system warehouse.

The cooked food given as a system reward is absolutely delicious.

According to Yang Jianguo, this is about the same level of chefs at state banquets.

Furthermore, regarding the system warehouse, anything that actually belongs to Yang Jianguo can be stored in the warehouse.

Furthermore, whether it's hot or cold, it will never spoil as long as it's placed inside.

Like the braised beef from earlier, it has to be served hot next time, just like it was freshly braised.

Last time, Yang Jianguo tried putting an ice pop in there, and when he took it out three days later, it was rock hard...

He said the warehouse was like a place where time and space had been frozen.

As for whether it's possible to release live animals, Yang Jianguo hasn't had a chance to experiment yet.

When I came into this world, my father died and I had to prepare for his funeral. Then I had to run around trying to get my mother medical treatment.

Later, they couldn't even afford to eat and almost starved to death.

Fortunately, the belated system saved my life at the crucial moment.

Enter the factory to take over the shift and improve your skills!

Once things had settled down, Aunt Liu approached him again, "Jianguo, do you want a wife?"

Yang Jianguo inquired about the girl's situation; she was a full-time employee at the food factory, earning 39.6 yuan a month.

My family had been farm laborers for three generations; my father was an accountant at the supply and marketing cooperative, so my social class was definitely not bad.

His looks are impeccable, but his butt isn't big enough; I wonder if he minds.

Yang Jianguo immediately made the decision: "We absolutely have to accept it!"

Nowadays, people believe that having a big butt is good for childbirth, but nine out of ten people with big butts are actually quite robust.

On the contrary, those who are thinner and slimmer are disliked.

How can someone who's skinny and weak do any work? These days, when a family gets a wife, it just means they have an extra mouth to feed.

I can't lift a finger all day, I can't even pick a time, what a nightmare!

But Yang Jianguo's aesthetic sense comes from his previous life, and the so-called standards of this era are really not suitable for him.

He just wanted someone who was slim and had a decent appearance.

My wife!

Given my circumstances, I'm meant to be cherished and to enjoy life.

While other families treat their wives like servants, he insists on spoiling his wife rotten.

If you're unhappy, what are you going to do about it?!

As for beauty...

forget it!

Brother, what kind of beautiful women haven't I seen in this internet age?

If you were to choose based on your own preconceived standards, could you even find a 'beauty' in the 1960s when everyone was considered unsophisticated?

Take Qin Huairu from the courtyard, for example; every man who sees her has his eyes light up.

But in Yang Jianguo's eyes, she was just an ordinary, common woman.

pretty?

Lying is a crime punishable by death, you know?

Chapter Five: Everything is a Ticket

After breakfast, Yang Jianguo washed the dishes and chopsticks.

After returning home, I put everything away, tidied it up, and put all the items into the warehouse before closing the door and leaving the compound.

There was a woman named Jia Zhangshi in the courtyard who never wished for her grandson to do well; instead, she taught him to write about petty theft.

Since the system was activated, there's hope for the future.

Yang Jianguo never left anything in his house.

Don't say that being poor is glorious; it was an era when everyone was struggling to have enough to eat and wear.

Human nature, from ancient times to the present, cannot withstand testing!

When Yang Jianguo arrived at the front yard, he ran into his third uncle, Yan Bugui, who was just about to leave.

...What a coincidence!

"Jianguo, I heard you're going on a blind date today. Which family's girl is it?" Yan Bugui asked with a smile, his hands behind his back.

Yang Jianguo casually replied, "I don't know, the matchmaker introduced us, I've never met them before!"

"Hey, you've got some nerve," Yan Bugui said, his eyes darting around. "If this works out, you're planning to get married?"

"That's for sure, if you like it, then we'll settle down." Yang Jianguo already knew what he was planning.

These days, getting married isn't so complicated. You just find someone to act as a matchmaker, and if you think the conditions are right, you meet them.

If you fall in love, you can get married after dating for two days, or even a couple of months.

The bride price is five or ten yuan, depending on the situation.

If conditions aren't good, boiling two eggs or giving some cornmeal will do.

She'll eventually get married, and with one less mouth to feed, the burden on her family will be lighter. If her husband's family is doing well, and they have a conscience, lending a helping hand is better than anything else.

Whether or not a banquet is held depends on discussions between the two families, taking into account the bride's requirements and the groom's conditions.

Yang Jianguo's conditions are not bad; his monthly salary is 75.8 yuan.

Even in Beijing, that's a high salary!

For his wedding, wouldn't it need to be a two-table banquet?

"Hey, congratulations in advance, Uncle San."

Yan Bugui cupped his hands in greeting, "This banquet will definitely be handled by Sha Zhu, right? How many tables are you planning to set up? Is there enough food?"

Yang Jianguo felt neither hostility nor goodwill towards Yan Bugui.

This person is shrewd and calculating, but he is also forced by life's circumstances.

With his salary of just over thirty yuan, he supports a family of six.

Except for the youngest, Yan Jiedi, they were all grown men...

He managed to feed these six people without anyone starving to death, entirely thanks to his shrewdness; there's nothing else to say about it.

However, Yang Jianguo decided against holding a banquet in the courtyard.

"The higher-ups have issued a document urging us to be diligent and thrifty, avoid extravagance and waste, and not to hold lavish events."

Yang Jianguo pointed upwards with a serious expression, "But don't worry, Third Uncle, there will definitely be wedding candy."

"It's getting late, I have to go to the factory. See you later."

"Hey, we have a lot of family members, so please put more wedding candy in our house."

Watching Yang Jianguo walk away without looking back, Yan Bugui chuckled and went back into the house with his hands behind his back.

"Old woman, it's done. When Jianguo gets married, our family will definitely have wedding candy."

"Really, there are a lot of people in our family, so please don't just give us one or two."

"That won't do. I'm his third uncle, so he should at least... have two or three pills each, right?"

After calculating how much he could get from Yang Jianguo's wedding candy and showing it off to his family, the Third Uncle hurriedly went to work.

He was so busy showing off that he forgot about the time. If he doesn't hurry up and is late, he'll get fined.

Deducting 50 cents for wedding candy is a huge loss for them!

On the way to the steel rolling mill, more and more people around me were going to work.

From the sky, the workers look like tiny streams converging into a mighty river, marching towards the steel rolling mill.

Yang Jianguo didn't see anyone he knew, so he held his head high and walked forward alone.

Hongxing Steel Rolling Mill has more than 10,000 employees and dozens of workshops.

Aside from the factory's top leaders, it's already quite an achievement if you can recognize everyone in your own workshop.

Who has nothing better to do than go to someone else's workshop to identify people?

Yang Jianguo knows even fewer people. Since taking over his father's job, he spends all his time either working or trying to improve his skills.

In three months, he managed to pass the CET-4 exam.

This skill spread throughout the factory, and everyone praised Old Yang for having such a good son.

Unfortunately, he passed away before he could enjoy his happiness.

Upon entering the factory, Yang Jianguo did not go to the special workshop, but instead went to Director Zhang's office first.

"Director Zhang." Yang Jianguo knocked on the door and came in, explaining the situation.

Upon hearing that he wanted to go on a blind date, Director Zhang approved it without hesitation.

Holding someone back like this is just asking for trouble.

Furthermore, Yang Jianguo became a fourth-level riveter at a young age, and was promoted three levels in three months.

No one dares to underestimate their abilities; who knows, one day their positions might be reversed.

When it comes to capable people, the standards and measures become much more lenient.

"Thank you, Director Zhang. If things go well, I'll definitely give you plenty of wedding candy and cigarettes."

"Engineer Yang, I'll be waiting, haha..."

After asking Director Zhang for leave, Yang Jianguo left the factory and went straight to the supply and marketing cooperative.

I have to dress myself up a bit before my blind date today...

Upon arriving at the supply and marketing cooperative, Yang Jianguo went straight to the garment section. "Comrade, do you have a medium-sized white Dacron shirt?"

"Do you have cloth ration coupons? 4 feet 3 inches."

A shirt requires 7 feet 5 inches of fabric, and even with a discount, Dacron fabric still requires 4 feet 3 inches.

No tickets?

Even if you have the money, I won't sell it to you. Go play somewhere cool.

“We have tickets.” Yang Jianguo.

Upon hearing that he had a ticket, the sales clerk coldly said, "Wait here," and went to get the item from the counter.

Chapter Six: Supply and Marketing Cooperatives, and the advent of bicycles

These days, the sales clerks at supply and marketing cooperatives are incredibly powerful; everyone has to curry favor with them.

If you have a relative who works at the supply and marketing cooperative, you can get a lot of benefits by maintaining a good relationship with them.