Siheyuan: Starting from 1958

"Isn't it just a color TV? Wait until my son Bang Geng and Xu Damao come back from outside with big money, then we'll buy a big color TV..." Jia Zhang mixed in the crowd, watching Wang Dong move the color TV home. The neighbors around were all looking at the east wing of the front yard with envy. Jia Zhang immediately showed a sour grapes tone and mocked him.

"You're such a good family, but you still want to buy a color TV? You'd be lucky if you could buy a black and white one..." a neighbor laughed directly.

He has a child who is an apprentice in the kitchen of Dongjun Hotel. Although his salary is not as high as that of a chef, he earns at least 70 or 80 yuan a month, which is higher than the salary of a mid-level fitter in a steel rolling mill.

When my son returns from his studies and becomes a chef, my monthly income can at least double from now.

For the neighbor who has been a worker all his life, this is something he could never have dreamed of.

Whether for his son's future or to repay his gratitude, he will stand on Wang Dong's side without hesitation.

As the Jia family and Yi Zhonghai fell into decline in the Siheyuan, Jia Zhang was no longer as arrogant and domineering as she was at the beginning.

If the neighbor's rebuttal and ridicule was directed only at Jia Zhang, she would definitely have complained a few words and then stopped.

But now the neighbor was retorting and mocking his own grandson, the only grandson of the Jia family. Jia Zhang would not let him off easily no matter what.

He opened his mouth and started to curse: "Wang, what nonsense are you talking about?"

"My son Bang Geng will become very rich in the future. He will be able to afford not only a color TV but even a car."

"Unlike your son, who can only be an apprentice in a restaurant for his entire life..."

"wrong……"

"Even if I become a cook in a restaurant kitchen in the future, it's still a job of serving people."

"When Banggeng gets rich in the future, he can go to the restaurant where your son works to eat. Maybe my grandson will be in a good mood and give your son a few dollars."

The neighbor initially refuted Jia Zhang just to speak up for Wang Dong, but he didn't expect that Jia Zhang would mock his own son in turn. His temper instantly flared up and he cursed without any hesitation.

"Your grandson, who has been an apprentice in a steel mill for more than ten years, still wants to get rich..."

"Jia Zhang, are you kidding us all?"

"My son is an apprentice in a restaurant kitchen, but he can earn 70 to 80 yuan a month for the family. He already has a partner and will get married in the spring of next year. How much does your son Bang Geng earn for the family every month? Is he in a relationship?"

"When my son learns the skills and becomes a chef in a restaurant, his salary can be doubled, and he can bring home 150 to 160 yuan every month..."

"Where's your terrier?"

"Besides spending money, there is nothing else I can do..."

"A person like this wants to compete with my son..."

"Even if you don't feel ashamed, I feel ashamed..."

Jia Zhang was almost mad with anger. She said that she couldn't win against the other party, so she stretched out her hand to scratch him, but unfortunately the other party dodged her. Then she fell to the ground like a cannonball, howling in pain and causing the surrounding neighbors to laugh mockingly.

Wang Dong had no idea how Jia Zhang acted as a clown in the yard. As soon as he entered the house, he started installing the color TV and connecting the antenna with the help of the driver.

Ten minutes later, the screen that was full of white spots finally showed a color picture.

My sister-in-law was so happy that she almost jumped up from the ground. She quickly changed the channel, found the TV series she was watching, and then sat in front of the TV to start watching it.

"Just spoil her... just a random remark at the dinner table. If you really bought the TV, couldn't you wait until we move to the new house before buying it?" Chen Jun, the daughter-in-law, complained to Wang Dong when she saw that her sister was not paying attention to what was going on outside and was only staring at the TV screen. "When we move, we will have to move the TV around, won't it be troublesome?"

Wang Dong smiled and continued, "Chen Li is your sister, and also my sister. It's okay to spoil her a little. But when she gets married in the future, there will be no chance to spoil her anymore, right?"

"Besides, it would be more lively if we had a TV at home..."

"Otherwise, it would be too boring to just stare at each other during the New Year."

"And I bought a transport truck for the hotel. If we really decide to move to a new place, we can ask the hotel to send the truck over, and we can move all the stuff in one go."

After saying that, he couldn't help but touch his wife's belly and asked, "Did the baby kick you today..."

"The baby is due in two months. The doctor said this period is the most stressful. I'd better not go to work after the Chinese New Year. I'll go back after the baby is born..."

"Anyway, there's nothing going on at your company right now, so it's easier to ask for leave."

Chen Jun also heard rumors that his superiors were going to fully implement family planning.

She is a cadre, and once her superiors decide to implement family planning, she must set a good example.

So the baby in her belly is most likely the last child in her life, so she must take good care of it no matter what.

Nodding immediately: "I'll listen to you..."

"After the Chinese New Year, I will go to work to ask for leave..."

In the next few days, Wang Dong stayed at home almost every day to accompany his wife.

He either goes out shopping for New Year's goods, or stays at home to make delicious food for his wife, and he is very busy.

But the Jia family in the middle courtyard did not become happy as the New Year atmosphere in the courtyard became increasingly strong.

Before Banggeng left Sijiucheng with Xu Damao, although his monthly salary was not much, he would give 15 yuan to his family for living expenses.

Now that Banggeng is gone, the burden of the family's life suddenly falls entirely on Kuihua and Yi Zhonghai.

Kuihua's salary was limited, and she had to pay ten yuan back to Qin Huairu and Jia Zhangshi every month. She also had to save money for her dowry. After Qin Huairu's repeated persuasion, she was finally willing to increase the ten yuan of living expenses she gave to her family every month to twenty yuan. Together with the fifteen yuan that Yi Zhonghai gave to Qin Huairu, the total monthly living expenses of the Jia family was only fifteen yuan.

Based on the current prices in New Taipei City, this amount of money can ensure that a family of four will not go hungry.

Basically, you don’t have to think about meat.

The Chinese New Year is coming soon. No matter how hard life is on normal days, there will always be one or two meat dishes on the Chinese New Year table.

If you can’t afford other New Year’s goods, you still have to have some basic melon seeds and peanuts, otherwise it would be too embarrassing.

But in order to support Banggeng to follow Xu Damao in doing foreign trade business, Jia Zhangshi and Qin Huairu have emptied all their family assets and obviously have no extra money to buy New Year's goods.

There was no need to think about Kuihua. No one knew what had happened to her, but she became more and more defensive against Qin Huairu and Jia Zhangshi. Qin Huairu said all the nice things he could to only get ten yuan from her.

This amount of money is obviously not enough for the Jia family to buy New Year's goods.

As a last resort, Qin Huairu could only transfer her New Year hopes to Yi Zhonghai. (End of this chapter)