Courtyard House: Drunk and tipsy, the whole courtyard exposed at the start.

The Xu family had a craftsman build a wall and chisel a door in the west wing of their backyard, dividing it into two units. Xu Damao had two units, and Xu Xiaoling had one.

Firstly, Xu Xiaoling was reluctant to leave. She only had a few friends, all of whom lived in the same area, and transferring schools would be a hassle.

Secondly, even if his brother gets married right away, he won't need such a big house. After Xu Xiaoling starts working or gets married, they can just open a door in the partition wall. It's simple and convenient.

Xu Fugui went to work at the movie theater, while Chen Ma (Xu Damao and Xu Xiaoling's mother) still worked as a nanny at the Lou family's house, which was closer to the Lou mansion.

After Xu Fugui left, Xu Damao became even more unrestrained, constantly teasing Shazhu and causing chaos in the yard.

The Xu family has spent a lot of money to gather enough medicine for him. Let's see how it goes. Yan Jiecheng is mainly suffering from malnutrition, but it's not too bad. He's been working with Zhang Dabiao lately, and his meals are a little better than before.

It was noticeable that Yan Jiecheng had gained a little weight.

Two days later, the neighborhood office brought good news—the "Export-oriented Small Commodities Manufacturing Plant" officially started recruiting!

The key technical personnel and experienced masters were directly transferred from various factories, including the leadership.

As for the other ordinary workers, the Jiaodaokou Subdistrict Office had a slightly larger number of slots than other subdistrict offices because of the inventor Zhang Dabiao, and a total of 45 slots were allocated.

However, the area under the jurisdiction of Jiaodaokou Subdistrict Office is very large. For example, there are several hutongs in Nanluoguxiang, and each hutong has many courtyards...

Therefore, when the quotas are distributed, you might not even get a single quota for a single alley.

Because of his contribution to the previous operation to arrest "economic criminals," Yan Jiecheng was given priority for recruitment and recommendation by the street office, so he naturally got a job as an assembly worker in the workshop.

When you first start, you're an apprentice, earning 22 yuan a month. After six months, you become a full-fledged employee, and then a level 1 worker earns 31 yuan.

However, the new factory doesn't provide housing; they're building employee dormitories, the kind with 4-6 people per room. If you want housing, your company can issue a letter of introduction to apply for rental housing at the local street office. This isn't housing allocation, it's just temporary rental, but whether you can actually rent one is another matter entirely.

Yan Jiecheng has finally overcome his hardships and made it through.

Yan Bugui's face lit up with joy, and he was still smugly saying, "Jiecheng, see, I told you so! This workstation will be available soon, and we didn't spend a single penny. That's like saving five or six hundred yuan!"

"Jiecheng, now that you have a formal job, shouldn't the amount of money you give home each month be increased? I think this is how it works..."

Yan Bugui was still scheming when Yan Jiecheng stretched out his hand and stopped him.

"Dad, my job wasn't paid for by the family; I got it through my own abilities. It's unreasonable for you to ask me to contribute more money to the family when you haven't spent any money on me."

"How can you talk like that, child? Doesn't it cost the family money to raise you?" Yan Bugui was getting anxious. "If you have a job and don't contribute more to the family, then I'm losing money!"

"Yes, money was spent at home, but don't you have my account books?"

"Our family used to have a rule: if I lived and ate at home, I would pay 5 yuan a month."

"I still owe my family 122.5 yuan, which I have to pay back."

"After I start working, I will give 5 yuan to my family every month. That will be your and Mom's retirement money."

"Besides that, I don't owe you anything."

Yan Jiecheng had thought it through clearly: once he had the opportunity to move out, he would quickly break away from this family.

Otherwise, he would be schemed against by Yan Bugui for the rest of his life.

Yan Bugui was dumbfounded—"Jie Cheng, you're my son, the eldest son in our family!"

"Are you really that petty with your family?"

"Asking you to give more money to the family isn't for my own benefit. There's the Liberation Army, the mining company, and the children. Whether it's education or future employment, everything costs money."

"You're the eldest, you have to contribute, you have to act like an elder! You have to help your younger siblings, you have to help the family!"

Yan Jiecheng picked at his earwax with his little finger and then blew it out.

"Dad, isn't this what you taught me?"

"You won't get poor from eating or dressing; it's not how you plan that makes you poor."

"I'm just strictly following our family traditions and rules, is there a problem with that?"

After saying that, he ignored Yan Bugui, took his certificates and documents, and went to the factory to report for duty.

As he left, he said to Yang Ruihua, "Mom, I won't be back for lunch. Save me a meal, and put it on my tab."

Yang Ruihua, of course, refused: "That won't do. I've already started kneading the dough for each person, so even if you don't eat it, the cost still has to be included!"

Yan Jiecheng was speechless and could only helplessly say, "Alright then, my share will be given to Jiedi Jiekuang."

"Let's go!"

Besides reporting for duty today, he also has to tell Yu Li the good news, though he doesn't know if she's been selected.

If the young couple are both selected as workers, they can get married right away, find a place to rent, and then their family will be a dual-income household!

perfect!

Yan Bugui was stunned for a long time, then looked back at the three little ones—Jie Jie, Jie Kuang, and Jie Di. Without saying a word, Jie Jie and Jie Kuang went out to help Zhang Dabiao farm.

Only five-year-old Jie Di was there and couldn't run away, so Yan Bugui bent down and asked "kindly," "Jie Di, you'll take care of your parents in their old age, right?"

Yan Jiedi was taken aback for a moment, then asked softly, "If I'm taking care of you in your old age, can I have an extra cornbread bun with every meal?"

Yan Bugui and Yang Ruihua were both stunned.

Finally, Yan Bugui lay on the bed, pondering dejectedly—[Could it be that Zhang Dabiao's claim that none of his children would support him in his old age was really just something that fortune teller Zhang predicted?]

But I have four children, I can't possibly end up in such a miserable state, can I?

What exactly did I do wrong?

------------

In the afternoon, Li Huaide also made a special trip. First, to pick up the pre-ordered cream cake; second, to deliver three stamped job introduction letters to Zhang Dabiao. These were the quotas that Li Huaide had been allocated. Zhang Dabiao could sell them or give them away as gifts, it didn't matter, he had already spoken to the personnel department of the new factory.

Thirdly, I need to tell Zhang Dabiao that his father-in-law has stepped down, but he's traded the position of deputy director of the "Export-Oriented Small Commodities Manufacturing Plant" to another faction. The former deputy director of the steel rolling mill, who was about to retire, will become the director and retire honorably after a few years. Li Huaide will become the acting deputy director of the steel rolling mill, and it's estimated that after a few years and some achievements, he'll be able to be promoted legitimately.

Exactly! Being the deputy director of a steel rolling mill is much better than being the deputy director of some damn manufacturing plant.

Li Huaide left after finishing his business. As a new official, he had a lot to do. His main relationship with Zhang Dabiao was about the cream cake. He needed the cream cake to maintain his relationship with the bear expert.

The new factory was a pleasant surprise, but as for other things, it's hard to say how good his relationship with Zhang Dabiao was.

However, this man's vision and approach to things were much broader than Director Yang's, so Zhang Dabiao was willing to try to get closer to him, knowing he might need his help during the storm.

The news of Li Huaide's promotion spread throughout the factory, and then Liu Guangtian, Xu Damao, and Tian Baocheng, the director of the comprehensive utilization plant, came over—

They also want to improve!

Please carry me!