Courtyard House: Purchasing Agents' Comeback from the Great Famine

When Wang Feng and Qin Jingru returned to courtyard number 95, they saw Yan Fugui still helping people write Spring Festival couplets in the front yard.

Yan Fugui wanted to talk to Wang Feng about writing Spring Festival couplets for him, but then he saw Qin Jingru holding a pair of couplets, which made his face instantly darken.

In previous years, Wang Feng would buy Spring Festival couplets from outside without having him write them, which was a huge disrespect to his great-uncle.

Yan Fugui didn't even greet Wang Feng and the other person, and went about tidying up his red papers on the table.

Seeing this, Wang Feng knew that Yan Fugui was unhappy with him. Without saying goodbye to Yan Fugui, he and Qin Jingru pushed their bicycles toward the Intermediate People's Court.

"Crackling and popping."

Along the way, Wang Feng saw many children setting off firecrackers, and every household was putting up Spring Festival couplets. The whole courtyard was filled with the joy of the Spring Festival.

Back inside, Qin Jingru brewed a pot of tea for Wang Feng and then went to put up the Spring Festival couplets.

After putting up the Spring Festival couplets, Qin Jingru did a thorough cleaning of the house, spending the whole morning in a busy state.

Qin Jingru cooked two dishes for lunch: stir-fried green peppers with eggs and hot and sour shredded potatoes.

At the dinner table, Qin Jingru placed an egg on Wang Feng's plate and asked, "Brother Wang Feng, what are we doing this afternoon?"

Wang Feng thought for a moment and said, "We won't go anywhere this afternoon. We'll just stay in the yard. There's a chicken, a duck, and a fish in the kitchen. You can ask Aunt Wu to help kill them later. Tonight is New Year's Eve dinner, so let's have a big meal. We'll cook less rice and make some dumplings tonight."

Qin Jingru nodded her head: "Okay, I'll go find Aunt Wu after I finish eating."

After lunch, Wang Feng sat inside drinking tea, while Qin Jingru went to find Aunt Wu.

Qin Jingru carried the chicken, duck, and fish to the front yard, which made everyone in the yard extremely envious, especially Qin Huairu, whose eyes were red with envy.

Their family only eats dumplings once a year during the Lunar New Year, so why is Jingru eating so well? There's chicken, duck, and fish, plus the meat they brought back yesterday, so they have chicken, duck, fish, and meat all together.

Madam Jia gave Qin Huairu a push, urging, "Qin Huairu, what are you standing there for? Hurry up and go!"

Qin Huairu took a deep breath, quickly ran to stop Qin Jingru, and said:

"Jingru, where are you taking the chicken, duck, and fish?"

Qin Jingru said irritably, "You're really meddling in things that don't concern you. Why do you care so much?"

Qin Huairu forced a smile: "Jingru, are you going to give these chickens, ducks, and fish to Aunt Wu to clean for you? Your sister is free this afternoon, so give me the stuff. I promise I'll clean them thoroughly for you. Don't worry, I just need the chicken heads, butts, and innards, just like Aunt Wu."

Qin Jingru rolled her eyes: "Qin Huairu, don't think I don't know what you're thinking. If I hand the stuff over to you, it'll end up in your Jia family's stomachs. Do you really think I'm stupid? Alright, alright, get out of my way. I'm waiting for Aunt Wu to kill it for me so I can make New Year's Eve dinner tonight."

Just as Qin Jingru was about to walk around Qin Huairu, Qin Huairu reached out and stopped her.

"Qin Huairu, what exactly do you want? Let me tell you, you're not going to take advantage of our family." Qin Jingru frowned and said coldly.

Upon hearing this, Qin Huairu's expression also turned sour.

The two women weren't arguing very loudly, but it still attracted the attention of several people from the Intermediate People's Court, who all walked towards them.

"Jingru, I'm still your cousin. Are you really going to be so heartless? It doesn't matter who kills your chickens, ducks, and fish, you're just going to let outsiders benefit from them, and you're not even willing to take care of your sister?"

Qin Jingru scoffed, "Qin Huairu, stop calling me 'Tiantang's cousin.' So what if you are my cousin? Do I owe you anything? I can't even be bothered to talk to an ingrate like you."

A few days ago, when she returned to Qin Family Village, she saw that her aunt was still thinking about Qin Huairu. Now, she gets angry whenever she sees Qin Huairu. She's a complete ingrate! Even if you really don't have money, you could at least bring back a little something to visit your parents. Besides, Brother Wang Feng said that Qin Huairu has a lot of money hidden away.

"Qin Huairu, are you really just trying to help me kill the chickens and ducks, or are you planning to keep them all for yourself?"

"Jingru, I didn't. I really only need the chicken head, the chicken butt, and the internal organs," Qin Huairu quickly explained.

The two older women in the courtyard listened for a while and finally understood why the two women were arguing.

Upon seeing the chicken, duck, and fish in Qin Jingru's hands, both women couldn't help but swallow hard.

"Qin Huairu, Jingru doesn't want you to help kill the chickens and ducks, so stop pestering her. Jingru, Aunt Zhang will help you kill them. Let me tell you, Aunt Zhang is very efficient at killing chickens and ducks. I guarantee you won't even see a single feather."

"Jingru, let Aunt Li kill it for you. Aunt Li is an expert at killing chickens and ducks. I'll not only kill it for you, but I'll also cut it into pieces for you."

When Qin Huairu saw that two other middle-aged women were trying to take it from her, her expression changed instantly. She stared intently at Qin Jingru, waiting for her answer.

Qin Jingru looked at Qin Huairu, then at Aunt Zhang and Aunt Li, and slowly shook her head.

"Aunt Zhang, Aunt Li, thank you both. I've already talked to Aunt Wu, and she'll help us kill the pheasants and rabbits."

"Qin Huairu, I advise you to stop thinking about taking advantage all the time. Now that you're working in the factory, focus on your work and get promoted. That's more important than anything else."

After saying that, Qin Jingru ignored the ugly expressions of the two aunties and Qin Huairu's aggrieved look, walked around them, and went to the front yard.

Aunt Li sighed helplessly when she realized that such good fortune was not for her: "I don't know what kind of luck Wu's wife has had. Wang Feng and Jingru are taking such good care of their family, with so many chicken heads, chicken butts and internal organs. Their family doesn't need to buy any meat today."

Aunt Zhang sighed and said, "Not only that, I also saw Jingru give Aunt Wu a pound of meat and five pounds of flour yesterday. It's all my fault for being blind before. I didn't help Wang Feng when he was in trouble, otherwise this kind of good thing would have been ours."

When Qin Huairu heard that Jingru had given Aunt Wu a pound of meat and five pounds of flour yesterday, she was so angry that her face turned ashen. Without even saying goodbye to the two aunties, she turned and left.

She painstakingly obtained half a pound of meat and two pounds of flour from Wang Mazi, but Jingru casually gave a neighbor in the courtyard a pound of meat and five pounds of flour. What kind of nonsense is this?

She just couldn't understand it. She didn't seem to have offended Wang Feng much, so why did he dislike her so much?

Jingru became so ruthless and unrecognizable to her own family because Wang Feng taught her to do it; otherwise, Jingru couldn't have changed so much.

Could it be that when she went to Wang Feng's house to ask for meat, Wang Feng asked her to exchange steamed buns for meat, and she refused, which made Wang Feng angry? Could it be that Wang Feng really has feelings for her?

Thinking about this made her feel much better. If Wang Feng really had feelings for her, it wouldn't be impossible.

Upon returning to the Jia family home, Madam Jia Zhang saw that Qin Huairu's hands were empty and coldly questioned, "Where are the chickens, ducks, and fish?"