Courtyard House: The Long-Lost Eldest Son Returns with Military Merit

If he asks, don't agree.

Jia Dongming didn't expect his mother to see things so clearly. He raised the wine in his hand, smiled, and said, "Mom, I know that if you eat someone else's food, you're obliged to do so, so I brought my own wine."

That way, if he actually brings it up, I can refuse.

Looking at the two bottles of Xifeng liquor, Jia Zhangshi said with heartache, "When you go to Fatty Liu's house, just bring two bottles of cheap Lotus White liquor. It's such a waste to have such good liquor."

Jia Dongming replied nonchalantly, "Mom, this is already the cheapest wine we have at home."

Besides, where am I supposed to find lotus root in such a short time?

After thinking for a moment, Jia Zhangshi said, "Then I'll go to the supply and marketing cooperative tomorrow and buy some cheap wine to keep at home, specifically for you to use when giving gifts."

Jia Dongming was a little surprised to hear that his mother, who was usually reluctant to spend money, was actually willing to pay for wine for him.

Thinking of the rewards the system gave him, he advised, "Mom, I don't often eat at other people's houses, so there's no need to prepare wine specially."

Besides, you can't buy it without a liquor ticket.

Only then did Jia Zhangshi remember about needing tickets to buy wine, but she didn't say anything more. Instead, she happily said to Jia Dongming, "Dongming, I just went to see Yan Laoxi. He said that Teacher Ran doesn't have a girlfriend yet."

How about I ask Old Yan to act as a matchmaker for you?

Although Ran Qiuyue was beautiful, her background did not suit Jia Dongming's taste.

Seeing his mother's expectant look, he replied, "Mom, I don't have those feelings for Teacher Ran, let's just let it go."

Upon hearing this, Madam Jia immediately asked, "Then what kind of girl do you like? Tell me, and I'll find someone to help you find one."

Hearing Jia Zhangshi's ramblings, Jia Dongming recalled Xiu'er's passing and casually replied, "Mom, I'll go see Second Uncle first. We can talk about this another day."

Upon hearing this, Madam Jia immediately retorted, "Dongming! You're already twenty-eight! I've even arranged for Matchmaker Wang to come and see you on the day off. How can we postpone it?"

As Jia Dongming walked towards the moon gate, he said dismissively, "Mom, let's talk about it when we meet on the weekend."

Seeing him walk straight out, Madam Jia stomped her foot in anger and muttered, "That silly boy, he doesn't care about his own marriage at all, he's really worrying me to death."

Jia Dongming carried the wine to the backyard and saw Liu Haizhong already waiting at the door. He greeted him with a smile, "Second Uncle, I'm sorry to have kept you waiting."

Liu Haizhong caught sight of the Xifeng liquor in his hand, his eyes lit up, and he greeted him warmly: "Section Chief Jia, you've come all this way, why did you bring liquor?"

Jia Dongming handed it over and said politely, "Second Uncle, it's customary for neighbors to reciprocate. Since you're treating me to a meal, I can't come empty-handed."

These two bottles of wine made Liu Haizhong feel proud, so he quickly took them and stepped aside to let them into the house, saying, "Section Chief Jia, please come in!"

When the second aunt saw Jia Dongming enter the house, she greeted him with a smile, "Section Chief Jia is here!"

Jia Dongming waved his hand: "Second Aunt, don't use my official title here. Just call me Dongming."

Hearing this pleased the second aunt, and she happily replied, "Alright, then I'll take the liberty of calling you Dongming!"

As she spoke, she pulled out a chair: "Dongming, please sit down."

After Jia Dongming and Liu Haizhong sat down, they noticed that Aunt Er and the Liu brothers, Guangtian and his brother, hadn't yet sat down at the table. They feigned surprise and asked, "Uncle Er, aren't Aunt Er and Guangtian eating together?"

Liu Haizhong said nonchalantly, "Section Chief Jia, let's eat our own food. The mother and her two children can just eat whatever they want in the kitchen."

Upon hearing this, Jia Dongming immediately reminded him, "Second Uncle, this won't do."

Today's society is a new one, and it emphasizes equality for all.

If word gets back to the neighborhood or factory leaders about your patriarchal behavior, it will be difficult for you to get promoted in the future.

Upon hearing that this might affect his chances of getting promoted, Liu Haizhong immediately became anxious: "Section Chief Jia! I really didn't know this would hinder my advancement."

"You're the leader, tell me quickly, what exactly happened?"

Jia Dongming didn't answer directly, but said, "Second Uncle, please let Second Aunt and Guangtian sit down at the table first."

Let's eat and chat.

Liu Haizhong, eager for officialdom, immediately called out to the inner room, "Wife! Don't eat in there! Bring Guangtian and the others out with their bowls and chopsticks, let's eat together!"

After the second aunt and the others sat down, Liu Haizhong picked up a bottle of Xifeng liquor and filled Jia Dongming's glass, then eagerly asked, "Section Chief Jia, I'm just a roughneck and don't understand these things. Could you explain them to me in detail?"

Seeing his anxious expression, Jia Dongming slowly said, "Second Uncle, when the organization promotes cadres, it emphasizes selecting the virtuous and capable."

“‘Virtuous’ refers to having a correct stance and good thoughts, not seeking special privileges, not being detached from the masses, and certainly not putting on airs.”

"'Capable' refers to being proficient in business, skilled in technology, good at management, efficient, cultured, willing to study, hardworking, and willing to use one's brain and drive when working."

Liu Haizhong listened, stunned, and muttered to himself, "I never imagined there were so many intricacies to being a cadre..."

As he spoke, he raised his glass: "Section Chief Jia, I'm so grateful for your guidance today, otherwise I would still be in the dark."

Seeing Liu Haizhong raise his glass, Jia Dongming also raised his glass and clinked it with his, then added, "Second Uncle, in addition to what I just mentioned, the organization will also send people to the streets and neighborhoods to find out what's going on."

"For example, whether the family is harmonious, whether they bully the elderly or children, and whether they get along well with their neighbors... these are all basic criteria for evaluating cadres."

Liu Haizhong, who was about to drink, paused, puzzled, and asked, "Section Chief Jia, does promoting cadres depend on whether their families are harmonious? What does that have to do with anything?"

Faced with Liu Haizhong's question, Jia Dongming first finished his drink and then explained, "Second Uncle, how can someone who can't even manage his own family be competent for the duties of a cadre? Therefore, whether a cadre's family is harmonious is also a part of the cadre evaluation."

Upon hearing this, Liu Haizhong suddenly understood and said to Jia Dongming with full confidence, "Section Chief Jia, when it comes to disciplining children, if I am second in this courtyard, no one dares to claim to be first."

Look at my two boys, if I tell them to go east, they wouldn't dare go west.

Looking at Liu Haizhong's confident demeanor, Jia Dongming couldn't help but recall the past of the courtyard house.

In those stories, the hot-tempered Liu Haizhong was deeply influenced by old-fashioned parenting ideas and firmly believed that "spare the rod and spoil the child."

He favored his eldest son, but often beat and scolded his second and third sons, which eventually led to his eldest son becoming a live-in son-in-law, while his second and third sons, having suffered mistreatment for a long time, were unwilling to support him in his old age.

"Snapped!"

"What do you two bastards think you're doing? Do you think you can touch this braised pork?"

As Jia Dongming was reflecting, he suddenly heard a sound of a table being slammed, followed by Liu Haizhong's angry shouts reprimanding his two sons.

Jia Dongming snapped out of his daze and saw Liu Guangtian and Liu Guangfu reaching for the braised pork with their chopsticks. He quickly stopped Liu Haizhong, who was about to unbuckle his belt, saying, "Second Uncle, if Guangtian and Guangfu want to eat meat, let them eat it. Why do you have to do it yourself? This won't be good for you to become a cadre in the future."

Upon hearing that it might affect his future, Liu Haizhong immediately stopped what he was doing and asked, puzzled, "Section Chief Jia, isn't it a father's right to discipline his son? How could this prevent me from becoming a cadre?"

Jia Dongming explained earnestly, "Second Uncle, nowadays we advocate equality for all."

You always beat your children; that's a feudal practice from the old society.

If the organization finds out, forget about promotion; I'm afraid I won't even be able to keep my current position.

Liu Haizhong was startled and asked incredulously, "Section Chief Jia, can disciplining my own child really have such a serious impact? It can't be that bad, can it?"

Seeing that he still had doubts, Jia Dongming calmly replied, "Second Uncle, I was just trying to give you a friendly reminder."

If you don't believe me, just pretend I never said that.

Fearing that Jia Dongming would be displeased, Liu Haizhong quickly explained, "Section Chief Jia, it's not that I don't trust you, it's just that I didn't expect that hitting a child could be related to promotion."

"A promotion? Second Uncle, you're getting a promotion?"

Just as Jia Dongming finished speaking, Xu Damao walked in carrying a plate of braised pig's head, smiling as he inquired about it from Liu Haizhong.

Liu Haizhong had hoped to use this meal to curry favor with Jia Dongming in order to secure a position at the steel rolling mill, but unexpectedly, Xu Damao showed up uninvited.

He was displeased, but outwardly he feigned enthusiasm: "Da Mao, you're here, why did you bring food?"

Xu Damao noticed Liu Hai's displeasure but pretended not to know: "Second Uncle, you're being too polite."

Last time I treated Section Chief Jia to dinner, didn't you bring some food too? Today I'm here to freeload, so naturally I can't come empty-handed.

He changed the subject and asked Jia Dongming, "Section Chief Jia, I think I just heard the word 'promotion.' Does that mean Second Uncle is getting promoted?"

Jia Dongming smiled and said, "Da Mao, we were just saying that if Uncle Er keeps hitting the children, it might affect his future career if the factory or the neighborhood finds out."

My second uncle thought this was a family matter and believed I was exaggerating.

Although Xu Damao was unsure whether hitting a child would truly affect his career, he was quick-witted and immediately realized that Jia Dongming was speaking up for Liu Guangtian and his brother. So he went along with it, saying, "Second Uncle, you shouldn't take Section Chief Jia's words lightly."

"When I went to the glass factory to show a movie, I heard that a workshop director was supposed to be promoted to deputy factory director, but because he often beat his wife and children after drinking, the higher-ups found out about this when they came to the street to investigate. As a result, he not only didn't get promoted, but he also lost his position as workshop director."

Previously, Liu Haizhong had been skeptical, but now that Xu Damao said the same thing, he finally believed it, and even thought of his previous experience of failing to become a workshop team leader.

Thinking that he had lost to someone with a lower job grade, Liu Haizhong muttered in frustration, "No wonder I didn't get elected as the team leader last time. It turns out it was because I was beating my child at home."

If I had known this would happen, I shouldn't have acted in the first place.

Liu Haizhong's association surprised Jia Dongming, but he didn't say anything. He simply raised his glass to Xu Damao and said with a smile, "Damao, come on, let's have a drink!"

Liu Guangtian and Liu Guangfu, who were standing nearby, heard what Jia Dongming said to Liu Haizhong and were filled with gratitude towards Jia Dongming. They even secretly resolved that from now on, they would listen to Jia Dongming in everything in this courtyard.

After waiting for Jia Dongming and Xu Damao to finish their drinks, Liu Haicheng quickly picked up the bottle, filled Jia Dongming's glass, and said with a smile, "Section Chief Jia! You really enlightened me this time, helping me figure out why I haven't been able to get promoted. This is a toast to you."

Seeing that Liu Haizhong was only concerned with pouring wine for himself and ignored the empty glass on Xu Damao's side, Jia Dongming understood even more clearly Liu Haizhong's obsequious nature and contemptuous attitude towards his subordinates.

To dispel Liu Haizhong's hopes of securing an official position through his own efforts, Jia Dongming picked up his wine glass and said to Liu Haizhong with a smile, "Second Uncle! Besides family matters, there's another crucial condition that you absolutely need if you want to climb the ranks: a solid educational foundation."

"If your educational background is too weak, even if the leaders of the steel rolling mill want to promote you, they can't force you to move up against organizational regulations."

I advise you to enroll in night school and learn something. Only in this way can your desire to improve yourself possibly come true.

Just as Liu Haizhong was about to raise his glass to clink glasses with Jia Dongming, he was stunned by Jia Dongming's suggestion. Looking completely bewildered, he asked Jia Dongming, "Section Chief Jia! What does my education level have to do with whether I get promoted or not?"

Hearing Liu Haizhong's words, Jia Dongming felt helpless and retorted, "Second Uncle! If the leaders asked you to write a safety report for the steel rolling mill right now, could you do it?"

Upon hearing Jia Dongming's question, Liu Haizhong replied without hesitation, "Section Chief Jia! If I were a leader, I could have my subordinates write reports for me. I would just need to read what they've written. Why would I have to write them myself?"

Hearing Liu Haizhong's answer, Xu Damao, who was standing next to him, almost burst out laughing. He looked at Liu Haizhong with disdain and said to him, "Second Uncle! You are still an ordinary worker. Even if you really want to be a leader, you have to start from the group leader."