The Grandmother in the Siheyuan

Chapter 432 Things change and people change
He hasn't been to the courtyard house for a while. Although it's not far, just a few minutes away, he hasn't actually stepped over there.

Since he was already there, Liu Hua simply pushed open the car door and stepped inside. He felt a little uneasy that Yan Fugui wasn't standing guard at the door.

In the past, several children would chase and play in this courtyard, and a row of old ladies would sit under the sunlit wall, doing needlework and basking in the sun. Now, none of them can be seen anymore.

The courtyard was deserted. Perhaps Liu Hua had come at the wrong time. It was a little past three in the afternoon, and people were either at work or at school.

As Liu Hua stood at the doorway surveying the courtyard, he saw only a few households, with people inside peering out of the windows.

Just then, a man walked in. He walked past Liu Hua, turned around and looked at him, then called out with a smile, "Uncle Liu, what brings you here? It's been a while since you've come back to visit."

"Building a nation."

The man who came was none other than Sha Zhu's beloved son. He smiled and said, "I was wondering why his back looked so familiar. Uncle, why don't I come to my house for a seat and have a drink of water?"

"No, I just drove by without realizing it, so I stopped to take a look, but everything has changed."

He Jianguo nodded: "Of course! I'm already in my twenties, almost thirty."

"Don't you work at the Ministry of Industry?" Liu Hua asked, puzzled. "It shouldn't be time to get off work yet."

"Hey, I've got a terrible job," He Jianguo said with a laugh. "My boss has been having me do a statistical survey of industrial products in the market these past few days, so I haven't had a regular workday for a week. I just finished the survey and came back."

"Didn't your dad and the others move out? Why are you still living here?"

“It’s so nice for a young person to live alone, so free and easy,” He Jianguo said with a smile. “When I lived with my parents, they would always nag me about not being married yet, which was so annoying, so I decided to move out.”

“Exactly the same.” Liu Hua smiled. “Your aunt is also urging Guodong to get married. She just flew to Hainan today to urge him to get married in person. Your brother Guodong is in trouble tonight.”

“He should be content,” He Jianguo said enviously. “He’s in Hainan, and his aunt is in Beijing. No matter how much she nags, she can’t nag him that many times. But I’m constantly being told to go home right away. It’s difficult to do so three or four times a week.”

"It's because you young people aren't in a hurry to get married."

He Jianguo said with a smile, "Actually, I'm dating someone, but I'm still in college. I'll graduate next year, and then I'll get married."

By that calculation, this guy is at least five years older than his girlfriend.

"Everything in the courtyard has changed," Liu Hua said with emotion. "If I go back into this courtyard, I probably won't recognize many people."

He Jianguo said with a smile, "Most of the houses in this courtyard have been bought by my aunt. My dad said that after I get married, we will also sell our house to my aunt. Now, the people living here are all tenants, so it's normal that you don't recognize them."

"Then what about your original people?"

“They’ve all left or scattered.” He Jianguo shook his head: “Grandpa Yi has never come back since he moved to his son’s place. Grandpa Liu passed away a couple of years ago. His second and third sons sent him to the funeral home and then sold the house to my aunt.”

"Yan Fugui is expensive?"

“Yan Jiecheng bought a house outside, and Grandpa Yan moved in too.” He Jianguo scoffed. “I heard he’s not doing very well. After all, the whole neighborhood knows that his family is scheming to the core.” Liu Hua pointed to the room next to He’s house: “Where’s Banggeng?”

“He was always causing trouble outside. Later, I don’t know what he got into, but his family urgently needed money, so he sold the house to his aunt.” He Jianguo said disdainfully, “His grandmother died that day. It’s just that his aunt didn’t hold it against them. Otherwise, if the person had died in the house, they could have negotiated a lower price.”

"Don't worry about it. It's just a pittance. It won't make us poor or rich."

“That’s why I said Auntie is generous.” He Jianguo said with a smile, “I heard that Banggeng is still selling wontons at a stall in Xinfadi. The competition in the catering industry is so fierce now, he’s just making ends meet.”

"Now that the house has been sold, where will he live?"

"I just rent a place to live. I rented a house in a suburban area, and I'll make do with it. I remember the last time I went to Xinfadi to help my dad buy goods, I think I saw Aunt Qin. She's gotten so old."

"With such a troublesome son, it's no wonder she's getting old. She'll probably drag her daughter down with her too."

He Jianguo nodded: "Xiaodang went to work in the south a long time ago. I don't know what happened to her after that, but she never came back when her family was living in the courtyard house."

After saying that, He Jianguo pushed Liu Hua inside: "Uncle, it's no fun just standing at the door chatting. Come in and have a cup of tea. I happen to have something I want to ask you."

Liu Hua was always very generous to this kid. After entering the house with them, he first looked around at the room. It was very clean, much more so than his father had been back then.

He Jianguo busied himself making tea and handed the cup to Liu Hua: "Uncle, I watched that interview you did on CCTV. What you said made so much sense. Now I want to ask you about the future trends of our industrial development."

“Such a big project should be researched by your superiors,” Liu Hua said with a smile. “It would be a bit unrealistic for you to be the one to do it.”

“I also want to improve,” He Jianguo said with a smile. “I also want to be the leader of ...

"Alright, since you're so ambitious, I'll have a chat with you."

He Jianguo quickly moved a small stool to sit next to Liu Hua, and took out a pen and notebook.

"There's no need to be so formal. It's not like this is a work meeting you're holding, so there's no need to take notes."

He Jianguo shook his head: "I must remember. Every word an expert like you says is a gem. I must write it down carefully and study it seriously in the future. Whether I can improve depends on whether you, Uncle Liu, are willing to teach me personally."

"You're still clinging to me now." Liu Hua said with a smile, "Alright, then I'll tell you some real tips today. As long as you can figure them out, I guarantee you'll improve every year."

He Jianguo was like his own child. Since he was eager to improve, Liu Hua was naturally willing to teach him.

He also went through the topics in detail, including heavy industry, light industry, semiconductors, and petroleum. This was entirely based on Liu Hua's memory of our country's development path.

To put it bluntly, if He Jianguo can grasp even a small part of this, his future will be bright.

Liu Hua could tell that this kid was definitely not just a freeloader. During the explanation, he would ask questions from time to time, and many of his questions were to the point. He didn't expect that in addition to his cooking skills, this kid was also very capable at work.

(End of this chapter)