Siheyuan: Pretend to be a Pig and Eat the Tiger

Chapter 153: Discussing the decoration of the house, the eldest brother's family holds a wedding banquet

He Yuzhu went out after tidying up the ear room. It was getting late, so it was just right for him to have a bowl of noodles with soybean sauce, sip the noodle soup, and go find Uncle Li outside!
He Yuzhu went out when he thought of this and wandered to Uncle Li’s compound. There were quite a few people who knew him. This compound next door did not have a Yan Bugui-style "goalkeeper", which was a very good feeling!

"Uncle Li, Uncle Li!"

"Zhu Zi is here? Have you eaten yet? It's time for dinner, come sit at home, don't be disgusted, it's not as delicious as your cooking, but it's filling enough. There's no rush for the Kuai family's affairs!"

"No, Uncle Li, I've already eaten. You go eat first. I'll just sit here for a while!"

He Yuzhu is not going to go home. If you go, will they give you a bowl of rice? Will you eat it or not?

What do you do with others if you eat them? If you don't eat them, they will be cold!

Life is hard these days. I don’t work at night and eat less. I just go to sleep to relieve my hunger. That’s why he came here after dinner!
Even if people in later generations follow the rule of not visiting during mealtimes, people will just be polite to you. If you try to climb up the ladder, your status in their hearts will plummet!
Looking at the history of China, it is more of a history of "eating" than a history of struggle. People have been fighting for food for five thousand years!

In the early days of the feudal dynasty, the old order was broken and a new order was established. The surviving people were given land and naturally had enough food to eat, and thus entered a prosperous era.

As society stabilizes, people no longer have to worry about food, and start having children. With population growth and the insatiable greed of the new nobles, land annexation will occur!
Resources began to gather in the hands of a few people, and the common people could not get enough food, so they naturally rose up in rebellion, overthrew the old order, and established a new order!

All of this cannot avoid the issue of eating. Food is the primary need of people!

This has made the Chinese people form a habit, and even in the later era of extremely abundant material and entertainment, it is no exception!

That is the way neighbors greet each other in a funny and unsurprising way, asking "Have you eaten?"

This is because the sense of security that is ingrained in our bones is food, and there is no need to worry when there is food at home!

You haven't eaten? I have some, so I'll share it with you. This is how ordinary people get along with their neighbors!

Uncle Li saw that He Yuzhu was distracted and smiled slightly. This kid must be thinking about Kuai’s affairs!

He looked at his wife and realized that it would take some time for dinner, so he decided to take He Yuzhu over first!
"Zhu Zi, if that's the case, let's go over there now. We'll have to wait a while before dinner is ready, so we can finish your business first!"

"Okay, Uncle Li, let's go!"

Uncle Li took He Yuzhu to the backyard of the compound. There were some wood placed at the door and tools hanging under the eaves. He Yuzhu had never seen some of them before and had no idea what they were used for!

The tools are varied and they silently reveal the identity of the owner of the house!
"Kuai Liang, Kuai Liang!"

"Oh, Mr. Li, I'm sorry for being so inconsiderate. Please come home!"

“No, this is the pillar I told you about. My house needs to be renovated, so I brought it to you!

This guy has had a hard time, you can’t ask for an exorbitant price, just give him something close enough!”

"Okay, of course I can't let my little brother suffer any loss!"

Kuai Liang naturally knew about He Yuzhu's situation and admired him very much. If he encountered a situation like Zhuzi, he would probably be no match for this kid!

Renovating a house costs a lot of money, and most people don’t even dare to think about it!
"Well, of course you have to earn some money, and your family has to eat, right? Just don't ask for a random price!"

"Okay, I'll follow your instructions!"

He Yuzhu looked at the man in front of him. Uncle Li had just introduced the details about this man!
Kuai Liang, 43 years old, came from a family of skilled craftsmen. He did the work for his acquaintances and made some small furniture himself, which he sold to furniture stores to supplement his family income!

He looks like a man in his forties but already has the appearance of a man in his fifties and his complexion doesn’t look very good. It may be due to malnutrition!

He had a square face, thick eyebrows, bright eyes, and looked very strong. He felt that this man was a tough guy!

"Brother Kuai, I'm sorry to trouble you with the family matters!
If you are free now, let's go over and I will tell you my requirements in detail!
If you are not available, you can come later. My home is in the main house in the middle courtyard of No. 95. I will be waiting for you!"

"Zhu Zi, right? We just finished dinner and there's nothing to do at home, so let's go over now!
The house is a mess, so I won't invite you to sit in, haha!"

From what he says and what he does, you can tell that he is also a cheerful person!
I came here just now and heard the sound of wood sawing inside. I guess the house is also a simple processing site!

"Okay, you're welcome!"

Ho's
“Brother Kuai, repaint the house. The walls are white, and the wood is still painted in the previous color. The windows have been replaced, and I am going to install glass;
This is the living room, this is the kitchen, divided into two floors, with several bedrooms on the top for sleeping...;
Brother Kuai, this is what I want, do you think it's okay?"

"Well, the overall structure is solid, and it can be divided into two layers. As for the pillars, do you want to provide both the labor and the materials, or only the labor and the materials?"

"I'll take care of all the work and materials. Clean up this side first, then the side room!

Brother Kuai, if it can be airtight, that would be the best, with sound and smell insulation. How much do you think it would cost?"

"If you want to block out both sound and smell, don't paint the walls. Just use thin wooden boards to make wooden walls. My mortise and tenon joints are OK. With some special treatment, they can be sealed to the maximum extent. It's definitely much better than what we have now, but it's definitely impossible to completely block out sound!"

"As for the renovation, you can do whatever you want. If you can add a small secret compartment, that would be the best. Of course, please keep it a secret, Brother Kuai. If you have no problem, we'll work out the price!"

He Yuzhu didn’t know whether his budget was enough. If it was, he would naturally install it. If not, he would find another way. This time the decoration was done and he wouldn’t have to touch it for many years!

"Well, if you calculate it this way, two million and seven hundred thousand is about enough. You have to prepare the window glass yourself. I don't have any connections, but there are stores that sell it, but the price is quite expensive!"

"Okay, leave the glass to me, I'll find a way!"

"That works!"

"Brother Kuai, here are the money and the keys, please keep them!

I will prepare a feast for my senior brother tomorrow, just open the door and come in to prepare it!"

"Okay, Zhuzi, don't worry. You asked me to repair the Forbidden City. I may not have the experience, but I will definitely fix up the Siheyuan for you and I guarantee you will be satisfied!"

"Haha, we are all neighbors, so I'm naturally relieved. Please, Brother Kuai!"

"You're welcome, Zhuzi!" After the two men reached an agreement, Kuai Liang went back to calculate the wood. It was just a rough estimate after the measurement, but he still had to calculate it in detail, and it couldn't be too off!

There is a lot of preparation work to do, especially the wooden boards, which are quite a lot, and you have to buy them specifically to joint them with mortise and tenon joints to make them firm!

The next day

He Yuzhu told Liu Haizhong to avoid being stopped by others when Kuai Liang came over, which would be embarrassing!

"Uncle, I asked Master Kuai next door to renovate my house. Please tell the neighbors to avoid misunderstandings!"

"Okay, what are you doing?"

"Hey, isn't my eldest senior brother getting married? I'm going over to prepare for the banquet. Master arranged it. You know what happened, Second Uncle!"

"Well, Master arranged this personally because he thinks highly of you and is also testing you. You have to do it well and not fool around. Do you understand?"

"Second Master is right!"

He Yuzhu smiled but cursed in his heart, if you weren't afraid of being isolated and helpless, who the hell are you holding up your Liu Da's head? You pretend to be so serious!
In this era, most people are still in arranged marriages, and only a few intellectuals in the city have free love!
Of course, the above requires freedom of marriage and freedom of love, but how many people have gone through love and ended up in the 'grave' of marriage?
The matchmaker introduces the other party, the parents inquire about the other party's situation, they meet each other or they may not have met at all, and the wedding is directly announced to relatives and friends, and the couple is sent to the bridal chamber and that's it!

As for the marriage certificate? That depends on the needs. Maybe the children are grown up and there is no marriage certificate yet!

At this time, divorce will basically not occur, otherwise both parties will be embarrassed!
There are many people who get a marriage certificate when they are old. The reason for getting it is naturally because they need to do something, and the service agency requires them to show their marriage certificate, so they have no choice but to get it!

This seemingly simple marriage is far more sincere than the complicated marriage relationships in later generations!
In later generations, it seemed that the marriage certificate restricted the behavior of the two people, but the result was just the opposite!

A marriage certificate is a must, just in case. The high dowry and numerous requirements often make most elderly people spend their life savings on marriage, especially in rural areas!

Getting a marriage certificate is a constraint. If you don’t get a marriage certificate, what will you do if you spend a lot of money to marry someone and he or she runs away after a short time?
Before He Yuzhu was reborn, the first requirement of rural women in his hometown for marriage was to buy a house in the city, and then they would talk to you. Otherwise, it would be impossible. The ratio of men to women was seriously unbalanced, which put women in an absolute advantageous position!

Not only does it cost a lot to buy a house, but you also have to pay a high bride price. Of course, there are places that don’t require a bride price, but most of them still require it!

When you marry a daughter-in-law into your family, she may not necessarily be your daughter-in-law. She may very well be your ancestor!
"Can't lift, can't carry, bad temper, little ability" is the norm, and you're afraid that if you're not careful, others will stop living with you, or run away with someone else. In the end, the family is heavily in debt and miserable!

The emergence of the term "marriage market" made He Yuzhu sigh inexplicably. It turns out that marriage is a kind of transaction, and getting married is just buying things to take home. What a bullshit love!
There is also a type of people who think that they only want to date but not get married. They think that they have everything they need, so if they can’t get along, they can just break up. What’s the big deal?
It’s still good these days. When you get married, you just give out candies and peanuts. If the conditions are not good, you can invite relatives, friends and neighbors to a big pot meal. If the conditions are better, you can set up a few more tables and have fun!
A bride price is definitely required. In rural areas, it might be one or two bags of grain or tens of thousands of yuan, which is only a few yuan in second-generation RMB. This is already a high bride price!

The key point is that the woman at this time is really a good hand. She can do both housework and cook, and be filial to her parents-in-law!
Compared with those women in later generations who can’t cook, can’t sew, and have terrible tempers, this era is simply a paradise for men!

He Yuzhu was comparing the marriage situations of this era with those of later generations in his mind. He had just arrived at his eldest senior brother's house. The wedding day was tomorrow, so he rushed over today to prepare the ingredients!
"Zhu Zi, you're here so early? The ingredients are ready. There are three tables in total. I prepared some extra. You can prepare for four tables!"

"Big Brother, three tables are three tables, why prepare one more? It's a waste!"

"Hush, Zhuzi, we don't know how many people will come from your sister-in-law's family, so be prepared to avoid a rush!"

"Okay, Big Brother, you go ahead and do your thing. You don't have to worry about me!"

"Okay, I really don't have time to accompany you, I have a lot of things to do!"

He Yuzhu walked into the yard and smiled slightly. The stove had already been built by his senior brother, which saved him a lot of effort!

Just as I set up the big pot, two sisters-in-law came over, probably to help in the kitchen!

"You are Sun Hao's junior fellow apprentice, right? We are the kitchen helpers. If you need anything, just ask us and we will help you!"

"Okay, thank you!"

It was indeed a lot easier with two people helping. Rural women are really strong now. With the help of two people, three big pots were set up outside the kitchen!

A bite of stir-fried vegetables, a bite of stewed meat, a bite of steamed buns, etc., is just right. If you make the dishes for the wedding banquet delicious, it will be the icing on the cake and give face to the host.
It doesn’t matter if it doesn’t taste good. We are all from the same village and are brothers in the same apprenticeship. Our main focus is to serve large portions and make you full!
But He Yuzhu is prepared to do it seriously. This is a good opportunity to make a name for himself. Once his fame spreads, he can get a lot of money by preparing meals for others!

It’s okay to spend the money you earn normally. Even if others investigate, there will be traces to follow!
After the house is renovated, the next step is to install the seventy-two legs, which is also a big and expensive project!

You have to be prepared before getting married. As for marriage, if you have the ability, prepare more. If you don’t have the ability, thirty-six legs will do!

Before the bill arrived, he was also planning to make up the three turns and one ring!

Within a reasonable range, prepare more things so that you can live more comfortably in the future, right?

The space has the function of preserving freshness. Except for the Chinese New Year, he has never used the things in the space!

This is prepared for the future. He has not forgotten that there are still three years of difficult times!
Now there are only him and his sister at home, so as long as they have money, they can still buy food, and they don’t need tickets!

He became a cook, and his salary increased a lot, which was enough to support his food needs, so he didn't move!
Not to mention that he didn't move, he even added a little bit in from time to time, and the details were silent!

Buying in large quantities might also attract other people's attention, which he doesn't want to see!

At this moment, the investigation of "bald bad elements" is very strict, and any suspicious situation may attract the attention of relevant departments!
If he bought a large amount of food without a reasonable explanation, he might get into trouble. He never relaxed his awe of this era!
Once he has collected three turns and one ring, and seventy-two legs, the matter of a wife will be put on the agenda!

"Young Master, are you married?"

A sister-in-law who was helping in the kitchen saw He Yuzhu working with his head down and started to find a topic to talk about!

She is the kind of talkative woman who can't adapt to working hard without chatting!

"No, sister-in-law, I'm only eighteen years old, there's no rush!"

"Eighteen years old? You're already a great chef at eighteen? You're really talented!"

"Sister-in-law, you are too kind. I am not even a disciple yet!"

"It's already amazing that he can cook on his own before he even becomes an apprentice. But eighteen years old is not young. In our village, eighteen-year-old men are already called dads by children!"

It’s the end of the month, brothers, please give me monthly tickets, please give me monthly tickets! ! ! !
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(End of this chapter)