Courtyard House: New Life, New Silly Zhu

On a sweltering summer day, He Yuzhu and his sister were already drenched in sweat when they arrived at the cinema in Xinjiekou.

"Brother, there are so many people here."

Movie theaters are places that cost money, and He Yushui had never actually been inside one before. Now that she was here and saw everyone waiting, she was filled with anticipation.

"It's Sunday today, so a lot of people are taking this opportunity to come see a movie, which is normal. Once it's time for work, the theater will be almost empty. Alright, let's go check when 'Nurse's Diary' will be showing?"

He Yuzhu looked up at the notice board, found the ticket window, and squeezed forward. With his strong physique, most people couldn't outrun him.

It wasn't that He Yuzhu didn't queue; it was just that the Railway Guerrilla ticket booth was incredibly popular, attracting many young people, especially young men, who lined up to buy tickets. At other windows, everyone was very orderly.

"Comrade, could you please give me two tickets for the Railway Guerrilla? Hey? Uncle Xu?" He Yuzhu, who was taking out his money, happened to see Xu Fugui, Xu Damao's father, collecting tickets.

Xu Fugui looked up and saw He Yuzhu, the son of the He family, who lived in the central courtyard.

"Hey, Zhu Zi, you're here to see a movie today too?"

"Yes, Uncle Xu. It's Sunday today, so I brought Yushui to see a movie. I heard Nurse's Diary is very popular, so I brought her to see it."

"Zhu Zi is good; he's got the makings of an older brother, unlike my Xu Damao, who's probably arguing with his sister right now."

Xu Damao, who was tied up in a small room, couldn't help but sneeze.

"How can this little room be so cold in the middle of summer?" Looking at the dark room, Xu Damao felt like crying. "Ladies, at least let me go back and get my ID to prove my identity, don't ignore me."

At the movie theater, He Yuzhu looked at the price list. The front row seats were 10 cents each, the middle and back rows were 15 cents each, and there was also a balcony seat, which was 20 cents each.

However, this seat offers the best viewing experience. He Yuzhu quickly took out four cents and handed it to Xu Fugui, "Uncle Xu, please get me two balcony seats."

Xu Fugui deftly tore two tickets from a stack of receipts. They had numbers and seat numbers on them, and were almost indistinguishable from modern ones.

After thanking Xu Damao's father, He Yuzhu found He Yushui.

He Yuzhu handed the ticket to He Yushui, who took it with curiosity and looked at it over and over again several times.

In the center of the waiting hall was a large clock, which showed the time and the movie ticket indicated that there was still half an hour until the next movie. He Yuzhu led He Yushui to the movie theater entrance.

"Hello comrade, two bottles of orange soda and a string of candied hawthorns, please."

He Yushui watched this novel scene, experiencing something completely new and exciting that she had never felt before.

Soon, the two returned to the movie theater, and He Yushui spotted the price list on it.

"Brother, look up there." He Yushui tugged at He Yuzhu's sleeve.

"What's wrong?" He Yuzhu looked in the direction He Yushui was pointing. "It's just a price list, isn't it?"

"No, brother, look, the ticket you bought me costs two cents, but it says the early morning children's ticket is only five cents, right?" He Yushui shook her head, indicating that he hadn't noticed the price difference.

He Yuzhu then realized that He Yushui wanted to say something to him. He Yuzhu pointed to the price list above and said.

"Rain, don't be fooled by the fact that the movie ticket is only 5 cents. You have to come very early for the early showings to get this low price. Tickets like the ones we're buying now aren't cheap at all. Rain, when your brother doesn't have time on Sundays, you can come here and watch a movie for 5 cents."

He Yushui quickly shook her head, "No way, 5 cents is enough for my allowance for a week, enough to buy several candies."

Seeing He Yushui like this, He Yuzhu couldn't help but smile and pat her head. This girl hasn't experienced this kind of life yet. Once she goes inside and sees it for herself, she'll understand why so many people are so keen to go to the movies.

Unfortunately, I heard that his steel rolling mill used to have two free movies a month, but now he can only watch one movie every two months.

Soon it was time, and He Yuzhu led He Yushui into the theater. As they passed through a corridor, He Yuzhu saw a square blackboard on the wall, covered with messages from moviegoers. However, the messages were not pleasant, with most criticizing the capitalist sentimentality.

He Yuzhu ignored the criticism and went inside with He Yushui.

The movie started soon, and He Yushui watched the big screen with great excitement.

By this time, cinemas were already showing sound movies. Unlike Xu Damao, who dragged his projector around and had to narrate the events himself, and there was no sound, the Capital Cinema already had sound, and soon color movies would be shown in cinemas.

Even with just simple black and white visuals, He Yuzhu gradually became engrossed in the show, as it was simply too captivating.

Before long, the most famous song of the Railway Guerrilla played in the movie theater.

I pick up my beloved earthen pipa.

The moment the sound rang out, everyone in the entire movie theater started singing along, and even He Yushui quietly hummed along next to He Yuzhu.

The sun is about to set in the west.

Weishan Lake was quiet.

I pick up my beloved earthen pipa.

Sing that moving ballad.

As the song played, He Yuzhu led He Yushui out of the movie theater; the sky was already turning red.

"Come on, Yushui, let's go to the supply and marketing cooperative." He Yuzhu led He Yushui to the supply and marketing cooperative at the street corner.

This supply and marketing cooperative is not far from the intersection of Nanluoguxiang Street where He Yuzhu lives.

He Yuzhu took out his cloth coupons and money. "Comrade, I want to buy floral fabric."

"Brother, keep that fabric." He Yushui knew that the fabric was definitely for her when she heard He Yuzhu want to buy floral fabric, so she quickly stopped him.

However, He Yuzhu felt that with his abilities, life would get better and better, so he didn't care about this piece of cloth. He shook his head and waited firmly for the sales staff to come over.

Soon, a very good-looking salesperson, dressed in what looked like a white lab coat, walked over.

She's really beautiful. He Yuzhu felt like she was in his heart the moment he saw her, a feeling that was hard to describe.

Beneath her willow-leaf eyebrows were a pair of large, dark eyes. She tilted her head and looked at He Yuzhu with a puzzled expression. Her eyes were so clear that they seemed to reflect his image.

"Comrade, comrade?"