Courtyard House: New Life, New Silly Zhu

Chapter 120

Although He Yuzhu really wanted to say that he could definitely do it, or even add a sarcastic remark, he simply couldn't paddle anymore.

"I'm conserving my energy, do you understand? Never mind, I won't explain it to you anyway. You can paddle yourselves, I'm going to rest for a while." He Yuzhu finished speaking and rested there.

Seeing her brother's lazy demeanor, He Yushui pulled her sister-in-law along and rowed towards the center of the lake.

Watching their departing figures, He Yuzhu smiled and continued to rest.

At this moment, he was not worried that anyone would harass them, or that the group that would harass them was still young. He Yuzhu might not let them act alone once they came out in groups wearing military overcoats.

Here, there is no distinction between high and low, noble and lowly, only between strong and weak. When a strong person performs a trick, the people around them will applaud and cheer, and so will the people in tattered clothes.

Adults always like to skate around the lake, while children like to gather together on ice sleds and be pushed along by adults.

From He Yuzhu's perspective, there was even a long wooden dragon swimming on the lake.

After skating for a while, Yang Lifang skated over to He Yuzhu's side and sat down to rest next to him.

"Why aren't you going skiing?" He Yuzhu asked softly.

Yang Lifang shook her head and laughed, "At first, it was exciting and I was full of energy, but after a while I got tired. Now..."

If you don't want to skate, just sit here and lie down for a while.

After saying that, she looked in He Yushui's direction and smiled, "Yushui is still the most energetic girl."

He Yuzhu looked over and saw that He Yushui had stopped skating there and instead skated towards the boys and girls who were about the same age as her.

They were seen gliding slowly in circles, one after another.

Soon, a young man leading the group started circling the crowd, and gradually, many people joined in the gliding procession.

He Yushui followed behind a girl, putting her arm around her shoulder and gliding along with her.

The long queue sometimes moved in an S-shape, sometimes in circles, and sometimes ran around the square.

Bathed in sunlight, the lively and cheerful demeanor of these young men and women was truly captivating.

The cold wind couldn't blow away the smiles on their faces. At this moment, they had no worries or concerns and were enjoying themselves to the fullest.

Attracted by the scene, many people who were resting also began to skate on the ice.

"Xiaofang, let's go skating too." He Yuzhu stood up and reached out his hand to Yang Lifang.

After resting for a while, Yang Lifang regained her strength. She grasped He Yuzhu's hand and used it to stand up.

Two people holding hands and gliding on the ice has a unique charm.

In the afternoon, around one or two o'clock, the crowd began to disperse.

This winter, as the sun begins to set, the weather starts to look strange.

"Let's go," He Yuzhu said, pulling Yang Lifang towards He Yushui.

He Yushui was no longer slippery at this point and was standing on the side, waiting for them.

"Brother, shall we go home?" He Yushui asked.

"Okay, let's go home for dinner, it's so late," Yang Lifang said with a smile.

The three of them arrived at the place to rent ice skates, but at that time, many people were queuing up to change their skates, and the scene was noisy.

The three of them weren't in a hurry. They waited a while until there were fewer people before they went forward to pay and exchange their shoes.

Back at the courtyard house, He Yuzhu and He Yushui were cooking in the kitchen.

Yang Lifang went to pack her clothes, planning to take a hot shower at the steel rolling mill after dinner.

After playing for so long, I was covered in sweat. Even in the dead of winter, when the weather is dry, the sweat still felt sticky.

He Yuzhu was going to take a shower in the afternoon, so he didn't cook anything complicated and just made simple and straightforward noodles with soybean paste.

Old BJ's Zha Jiang Mian (noodles with soybean paste) is actually quite particular in some ways, but it's not all that special either. Anyway, He Yuzhu makes it with a sweet and salty flavor, which suits their taste.

After finishing their noodles with soybean paste, the three of them went to take a bath together, instead of going to a public bathhouse, where the grease and grime had already accumulated to a thick layer by this time.

Bathhouses in this period were not as elaborate as those in later times. A pot of water would be kept until it was no longer usable before being changed, or the business would not close until after closing time. It was really better to go to a steel mill.

When they arrived at the steel rolling mill, they saw that He Yuzhu was leading his family in. The security guards did not stop them, or rather, they did not stop the family members of the workers they knew.

One advantage of steel rolling mills is that the furnaces inside are never turned off.

The place was used as a public bathhouse, and it was always filled with hot water, scalding hot, 24 hours a day.

He Yuzhu went to the men's bathhouse by himself, while Yang Lifang led He Yushui into the women's bathhouse.

There were no back scrubbers in the bathhouse, so He Yuzhu just stood there getting wet and scrubbing his own body.

After He Yuzhu finished scrubbing his whole body, he rinsed it with water two or three times. After that, he could scrub his body with his hands without getting any dead skin.

After taking a shower, He Yuzhu waited outside for quite a while before seeing them come out.

When the two came out, they saw He Yuzhu waiting outside and laughed: "Brother Zhu, were you getting impatient?"

"No, it's normal for women's hair to take a while to dry after a shower." He Yuzhu didn't mind. Long braids were still in fashion at this time, unlike in a few years when short hair would be in fashion.

The three left the steel rolling mill and headed towards the courtyard house, chatting and laughing all the way, creating a lively atmosphere.

0

He Yuzhu first told them to go back, then said, "Third Uncle, do you know what Second Uncle wants with me?"

Yan Bugui said with a smile, "Your second uncle has something good to do today. After you left, your second uncle specially went outside to buy firecrackers to set off."

Hearing that firecrackers were being set off at this time of year, He Yuzhu knew that something good must have happened at home. However, no matter how much He Yuzhu thought about it, he couldn't figure out what good thing Liu Haizhong could have at this time that was worth celebrating like this.

"Uncle, since that's the case, I'll head back now." After saying that, He Yuzhu went home.

The door opened, Liu Haizhong stood in the doorway, and Yang Lifang entered the room, her clothes soaked with rain.

"Second Uncle, I just heard Third Uncle say that you wanted to see me?" He Yuzhu asked in confusion.

Liu Haizhong took out a cigarette and handed one to He Yuzhu.

He Yuzhu took it and saw that it was a Xiangshan brand cigarette.

"Second Uncle, these cigarettes aren't cheap." After what happened before, He Yuzhu specifically asked someone who smoked about them.

In Beijing, there's an unwritten rule about smoking: "High-ranking cadres smoke Peony cigarettes, mid-level cadres smoke Fragrant Hills cigarettes, the working class smokes Beihai cigarettes, and poor students smoke Harvest cigarettes."

There is also a saying that is common throughout the country: "Provincial-level Zhonghua cigarettes, municipal-level Mudan cigarettes, and ordinary cadres smoke Yingchun cigarettes."

How could He Yuzhu not be surprised when this Fragrant Mountain cigarette was brought out?

"Zhu Zi, I'm so happy, haha, here's a cigarette for you." Liu Haizhong happily slapped the remaining cigarettes into He Yuzhu's hand.

He Yuzhu didn't seem to mind, putting the cigarette in his pocket and saying with a smile, "Second Uncle, tell me, what good news has happened at your house?"

Liu Haizhong laughed heartily and said smugly, "Zhuzi, guess what good news my family has. If you guess right, I'll treat you to a drink."

o

Seeing Liu Haizhong's appearance, He Yuzhu wondered to himself, "Could it be that Liu Haizhong has been promoted?"

That shouldn't be the case. In the TV series, Liu Haizhong only became a squad leader when the wind picked up.

Could it be someone else? Aside from his own promotion, his eldest son is the most important person in his family.

Thinking of this, He Yuzhu remembered that Liu Guangqi seemed to have already finished his exams.

He Yuzhu tentatively asked Liu Haizhong, "Second Uncle, did Guangqi pass the exam?"

"Hahaha," Liu Haizhong laughed, "You really guessed right, Zhuzi, my Guangqi got into a vocational school."