An extraordinary life journey through old Beijing courtyard houses

Chapter 226 They're all shrewd people (Part 1)

After the guests left, Qin Huairu came out to tidy up.

Seeing the melon seeds and lychee peels scattered all over the ground, along with half a can of tea left uneaten, broke my heart.

Jiang Baobin smiled contemptuously: "Don't bother with them, they're all scoundrels."

"We either don't entertain them, or if we do, we have to be generous, otherwise it'll be beneath us."

"But after this experience, they won't come back so easily in the future."

Qin Huairu asked, puzzled, "Why?"

Jiang Baobin pulled her to sit down and started cleaning up himself: "I've been so generous. If you dare to come and freeload again..."

"What will they do to me if something happens to their family in the future? Aren't they afraid I'll scold them?"

"Don't worry, they're all shrewd people; they'll see what's going on in their minds!"

"That's right, Binzi sees things very clearly." The speaker was the deaf old lady standing at the door.

Jiang Baobin hurried over: "Oh! Grandma, what brings you here?"

"I was worried you were already resting, so I was thinking of going to see you tomorrow morning."

The deaf old lady laughed and said, "I heard someone in your house in the backyard, so I came over after it got quiet."

"Alright, please have a seat. I'll make you some tea. I won't drink their flower tea; it's too vulgar."

"I have some freshly stir-fried Anxi Tieguanyin tea here, it's really good."

"I wouldn't even take anything out unless a city-level official came to visit."

The deaf old lady beamed with joy: "Hey! I'm in for a treat today!"

However, she saw Jiang Baobin grab a handful of water and throw it into the teapot, and then he was about to pour in boiling water.

The deaf old lady quickly stopped him: "Hey! Silly boy, that's not how you brew tea."

He then started fiddling with it himself.

Qin Huairu sat to one side, watching intently, silently memorizing the information.

Jiang Baobin didn't take it to heart and laughed, saying, "I'm just a fool. You're much more knowledgeable than I am."

After everything is ready, we'll drink tea first and then eat lychees.

The deaf old lady reminisced about her good old days and finally got to eat lychees again.

Jiang Baobin laughed and said, "I just made it in time. I bought about ten catties before getting on the bus. It will be hard to eat this again later."

The deaf old woman sighed, "Who can argue with that? This stuff spoils easily; back in the day, only yellow scallops could be eaten—"

After a few casual words, Jiang Baobin inquired about the situation in the courtyard.

The deaf old woman sighed: "How can an old woman like me stop them? Times have changed."

"Binzi, I'll return the money to you later. They didn't charge you for the room, so I can't accept yours either."

Jiang Baobin quickly said, "Don't be like that, don't you know me?"

"Let them do whatever they want, it's none of my business. I only strive to do things in a way that I can be true to myself."

"If it weren't for this property, would you be living on air and rain?"

He then gave a cold laugh: "Let them be happy for a few days, the final plan will definitely be released."

"In a situation like yours, the government has to intervene, doesn't it—"

After chatting for a while, the deaf old lady was about to leave.

She's a reasonable person; she came over to explain the house situation to Jiang Baobin so he wouldn't have any lingering resentment.

It wasn't that she only charged Jiang Baobin for his room and not others; it was simply that she couldn't stop her.

When Jiang Baobin was seeing someone off, he happened to catch Jia Zhangshi coming out of the latrine after using the restroom.

The old woman pouted (she was very sorry that she was a woman, otherwise she could have mooched off the food and drinks).

She was also jealous of what the deaf old lady was carrying. And if only she had been the one who saw Jiang Baobin lying on the ground back then! Too bad she wasn't so lucky!

So he muttered to himself, "So they've all learned how to flatter now? They're just after someone's talent, aren't they?"

She then revealed a smug smile: "Luckily, I have a brilliant trick up my sleeve that made me outshine you all."

Thinking of this, he twisted his fat buttocks and jogged home.

Without saying a word, he slapped the already sleeping Jia Dongxu on the thigh as he entered the room.

"Smack!"

This startled Jia Dongxu.

Shaking his body, he complained, "Hey, Mom! What are you doing? You scared me half to death!"

"Get up! Didn't you hear Jiang Baobin is back?"

"Everyone else has already gone to visit him, and you're just staying home, aren't you stupid?"

"You're the head of the household now, so you should be thinking about taking the lead in these kinds of things."

"Otherwise, if something good were to happen, who would be so kind as to deliver it right to your nose?"

Jia Dongxu had no choice but to sit up.

It must be said that the young man is quite handsome, though he is still far from being as good-looking as the male lead, Jiang Baobin.

Jia Dongxu thought for a moment and asked in return, "Mom, Brother Jiang just got back, he'll definitely want to get to know his wife a bit."

"Am I being inconsiderate by going over so late?"

Madam Jia frowned and said, "Stop with the nonsense, just go when I tell you to!"

Jia Dongxu sighed, "Alright then."

Madam Jia handed him the comb: "Quickly comb it, it's prickly and irritating!"

He then walked to the window and peered outside.

Jiang Baobin was seen going in and out, busy with something.

As Jia Dongxu combed his hair, he said confidently, "Mom, we don't really need to be so eager."

"Once I marry Xiao Yan'er, everything will be resolved."

Madam Jia flatly refused: "That won't do! What? You're just waiting for it to be ready-made?"

"You're a grown man, someone who's going to establish yourself in a family, you should set an example!"

"What use are you if you rely on your wife for everything?"

Jia Dongxu smiled ingratiatingly: "I just go to work to earn money."

Madam Jia glared at him: "You're just wasting your energy, you're useless!"

"No, I'll have to have a serious talk with you later."

"You're just like a greasy, white-haired bristle—short and worn! Finish combing and hurry up!"

"Oh," Jia Dongxu replied listlessly and went out.

Jia Zhangshi watched as Jia Dongxu called out at Jiang Baobin's door before going inside.

Only then did he nod in satisfaction.

When Yan Bugui returned home, he woke up his drowsy wife: "Honey, I have something good for you."

"What?"

"You've definitely never eaten this before." He said, stuffing something into her hand.

Yan Bugui used a pillow to hold Yan Jiefang, who was just over two years old.

Then I placed a palm-leaf fan across the top to cover his little head before turning on the light.

Yan Bugui's wife looked at it over and over: "What is this? It looks all messy and gritty."

"Hehe, you've shown your ignorance, haven't you? This is just a lychee!"

"Ah!" Yan Bugui's wife exclaimed in surprise, turning around to look at her second son, who was sleeping soundly and unaffected.

Then he lowered his voice and asked, "Is this the one Yang Guifei ate?"

"That's right, I saw it at the Dong'an Market before, it was too expensive! I couldn't bear to buy it."

"This time I got to try something new, and I must say, the taste is definitely different."

"Then I'll benefit from it too!" the woman said with a beaming smile.

"How do you eat this? Do you peel it?"

"Yes, just peel it and eat it directly. There's a pit, so don't get it stuck in your teeth."

Yan Bugui's wife tasted it carefully and said, "I must say, it's really sweet! And the flavor is unique too."

Yan Bugui proudly pulled out four more from his pocket: "Give four to everyone who goes."

"Eat one on the spot, take the rest home, and there will still be one left on the plate afterward."

"I was quick and brought it back. I'll let the eldest and second eldest try it tomorrow."

"Okay, okay, you're the best!"

"And this too!" Yan Bugui said, pulling out several handfuls of melon seeds as if presenting a treasure.

Yan Bugui's wife laughed even more heartily: "This Jiang Laosan is really generous! Serving you so much good food?"

"And where did these lychees come from? Did he bring them back from the south?"

"That's right, they said they just finished the meeting, and after buying the goods, they went straight to the train."

"Otherwise, this thing won't last."

Seeing his wife's sweet talk after finishing her meal, Yan Bugui couldn't help but sigh.

"Nobody can see backs to themselves; who could have imagined that the third son of the Jiang family would turn out this way?"

"If only I had gotten along better with him in the past, I could have gotten help from him now."

"Look at the old lady, how much she's benefited from him these past two years."

"Oh, stop nagging. We're not gods; who can predict the future?"

"Besides, we're doing pretty well. Look at the Chiang family, they're probably too sick to sleep right now."

"Pfft!" Yan Bugui burst out laughing. "Right, right, contentment brings happiness—"

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