An extraordinary life journey through old Beijing courtyard houses

Tom snapped his fingers: "That's right, Chiang, life is only a few decades long."

"My only goal is to avoid becoming the kind of person I hate the most."

Jiang Baobin praised, "That's a great sentence! I will remember it and take it as my motto."

Tom laughed heartily: "Jiang, you're a very smart guy, which is evident from your rapid improvement in English."

"And you're very good at talking. I guarantee you'll be successful in the future."

"Thank you for the compliment," Jiang Baobin joked. "It would be even better if you were a great prophet."

Tom laughed again: "Let's stop here for today. I don't want to make things too difficult on the first day."

"Okay, Tom, then we'll head back."

When they broke up, Tom gave Jiang Baobin $4, $2 of which was his daily wage.

In addition, he was reimbursed for the transportation expenses he paid in advance, as well as the cost of lunch.

In the end, Jiang Baobin can earn an extra half yuan.

However, lacking experience in making purchases today, Jiang Baobin decided to keep only his own salary from now on and no longer deduct any other money Tom gave him.

You have to understand, he's a very knowledgeable guy, and you can't fool him with your little tricks.

In his past life, when Jiang Baobin was doing his graduation internship, he worked with a senior student.

A middle-aged man with a receding hairline, half-drunk, once earnestly advised him:

Never think you're smart and treat everyone else like fools.

Because one day you'll find that nobody pays attention to you anymore.

By then, you'll be a complete failure.

Jiang Baobin remembered this sentence deeply, so even when he later started doing live streaming, he was still recognized as an "honest person".

It's not that he didn't want to be cunning; that would have been a much faster way to make money.

There are too many examples of people who were too clever for their own good, and being honest might actually help them live longer.

Xitao Hutong.

On the way, Jiang Baobin specially bought a pack of "Hengda" cigarettes, a brand that was just launched last year.

On the way, he took out half a cigarette and put it in his pocket.

As expected, it was the same man enjoying the cool air outside the door.

Jiang Baobin offered the man a cigarette, which he glanced at before putting it in his mouth: "Buying matchlocks too?"

As Jiang Baobin lit his cigarette with a match, he flattered him, saying, "You guessed right away."

The man scoffed, "How many?"

Jiang Baobin held up two fingers and gestured: "Two."

The man scoffed, "You can afford 'Tianfuhao' cigarettes and cigarettes, but you can't even afford a few more match strings?"

Jiang Baobin really wanted to kick him—don't you have any idea why I'm praising you? And you dare to talk back to me like that?

But thinking of the young lady, I held back—what if he really is Liu Yifei's father? Would I still want to get close to her?

He then explained, "The braised pork knuckle was a gift for someone else, and the cigarettes were a tip from the boss."

"But you have a really keen nose! You could smell it even though it was wrapped up?"

"How about I trade you my cigarettes for a match cord? I still have half a pack left."

"This cigarette is weak," the man said as he went inside.

When he came out, he had not only taken the fire rope, but also a teacup.

After pouring the tea, he pushed it towards Jiang Baobin.

Is this the reward for cigarettes?

Jiang Baobin didn't stand on ceremony and drank it all in one gulp.

The man smirked and poured him another cup.

He asked casually, "Hey buddy, where do you live?"

Nanluoguxiang.

"Wow! That's quite close."

Jiang Baobin casually remarked, "The matchlocks here are better than those from other places."

The man remained noncommittal, stubbed out his cigarette, and tossed it onto the table.

These days, lower-class people don't just throw away cigarette butts.

They would save up the tobacco until they had enough to make one cigarette, then roll it up in paper and smoke it.

If even excrement is now considered precious and requires force to obtain the "right to collect excrement," then what else can be wasted?

Jiang Baobin finished the tea in his bowl, said goodbye, and left.

The man watched his retreating figure and gave him a playful smile.

Tianfuhao's braised pork knuckle is a specialty of Beijing, and of course, it's not cheap.

Jiang Baobin even made us choose the larger ones, and after weighing them, they almost cost a silver dollar, enough to buy more than ten catties of flour.

This time, however, Jiang Baobin learned his lesson and did not expose the packaging of Tianfuhao. Instead, he wrapped it again with cardboard.

This is what it means to learn from one's mistakes.

Last time, for a bag of pastries, Mr. and Mrs. Jiang were willing to kick him out of the house.

If they knew they were getting extra braised pork knuckle today, they'd probably beat the dog to a pulp!

After the announcement, it was the deaf old lady who personally came out to greet him; otherwise, Jiang Baobin wouldn't have been able to get in at all.

That old lady with the pipe in her mouth was eyeing him covetously.

What did I do to you? Is it really that big of a deal?

If we had to find a weakness in the deaf old lady, it would probably be her gluttony.

This woman especially loves to eat meat, but unfortunately she is an old woman living alone with no children, so she rarely has the opportunity to enjoy a good meal.

Now, upon suddenly seeing a whole large pork knuckle, the old man laughed until his eyes disappeared.

This old man is definitely a sensible person; he understands the principle of "taking money to do things" perfectly.

So he immediately led Jiang Baobin to the courtyard.

(From this picture, you can see a narrow passageway-like structure in the backyard. In those days, land was not as valuable as it is in later generations, so even if a large area was left empty, the owner wouldn't mind.)

Afterwards, the old lady said in great detail, "I've already inquired about it for you. The cheapest room is the one with the back seat, 150 coins per room."

"The main house is the most expensive. It has three rooms in total. After being divided, it is rented to two families, two silver dollars each."

"The east and west wing rooms are also divided into two separate units, each costing one and a half yuan."

"Then there's the side room on the west side. Although it faces south, it's a bit small, so it was rented for one silver dollar."

Jiang Baobin originally wanted to be the main wife, but now that he had the opportunity to give Tom a job, he didn't mind spending an extra dollar every month.

However, after seeing the west wing, he immediately took a liking to it.

This house was originally used as an inner study, and it had bookshelves and a desk.

It was also used as a heated room in winter because it had a half-built kang (a traditional heated platform bed), as well as floor heating and a heated wall.

Just by looking at these facilities, you can tell they must be very warm.

In his previous life, Jiang Baobin was a northerner who liked to sleep on a kang (a heated brick bed).

The courtyard in front of the side room is also very nice; it's convenient to take a bath outside in the summer, or to dry clothes and blankets.

The deaf old lady smiled and said after hearing that he had chosen a side room:

"You can choose anywhere, take your pick. The yard was just finished being tidied up today, and you've already come."

Jiang Baobin hurriedly said, "Thank you for your care. I have such a good opportunity because of you. Thank you."

The deaf old woman waved her hand: "Let's not talk about such superstitious things."

Then, with earnest and heartfelt advice, they said, "My three children, no matter how wrong your parents are, they are still the ones who gave you life and raised you."