Courtyard House: New Life, New Silly Zhu

"Before the new director arrives," He Yuzhu said to Yang Lifang with a smile, waving the two movie tickets in his hand.

"It's a movie that was just released recently, and I heard it's pretty good."

The movie tickets Xu Fugui brought weren't for a war film, but for a newly released comedy, a film about sycophancy and flattery in officialdom.

Yang Lifang was curious about this new thing called a movie theater. After all, in the countryside, movies were usually shown outdoors. Sometimes, people would walk for an hour to watch a movie.

As the screening time approached, He Yuzhu led Yang Lifang into the screening room.

Just then, the lights in the movie theater went out, causing Yang Lifang to lose her footing and nearly fall.

He Yuzhu had been watching closely, and seeing this, he quickly helped Yang Lifang up to prevent her from falling. "Let me hold your hand and walk with you."

With her arm around He Yuzhu's, Yang Lifang nodded shyly, not refusing his kindness.

As soon as the two of them sat down, a dark shadow flashed across the screen. When He Yuzhu turned around to look at the projection room, the movie screen appeared.

Yang Lifang was immediately captivated by the sound movie, her gaze fixed entirely on the screen.

As the movie unfolded, bursts of laughter frequently erupted in the theater. The comical sight of the actor playing Section Chief Niu nearly slipping and falling several times due to excessive floor waxing amused everyone.

I was also indignant that this Section Chief Niu ignored the urgent needs of the employees in order to curry favor, and only realized his mistake after being criticized by Director Zhang.

However, at this moment, He Yuzhu took out some peanuts from his bag and handed them to Yang Lifang, who was standing next to him.

At first, Yang Lifang refused, but after many people around her started eating snacks, she also took some peanuts.

However, as the movie unfolded, I became completely engrossed in the plot and forgot to peel the peanut shells from my hands.

He Yuzhu peeled the peanuts and handed them to Yang Lifang. When he noticed that she subconsciously took them, He Yuzhu seemed to have discovered something fun. After peeling the peanuts, he directly put them in front of Yang Lifang's mouth.

To my surprise, she opened her mouth and ate the peanut that was offered to her.

When Yang Lifang finally realized what was happening, even though the movie theater wasn't very bright, He Yuzhu could still see that her face was completely red.

Yang Lifang's face remained flushed until the movie ended, and she kept her head down, not daring to look at He Yuzhu.

He Yuzhu didn't dare tease Yang Lifang anymore. The two of them returned to the courtyard where Yang Lifang lived, one after the other, bathed in the glow of the sunset.

After saying goodbye, He Yuzhu rode away on his bicycle. Yang Lifang watched He Yuzhu's departing figure, her heart filled with a feeling that was hard to describe.

When He Yuzhu returned to the courtyard, he saw a lot of people standing at the gate, surrounding Yan Bugui's house.

"You have to use this soft cloth to wipe this bike. You can't use too much force. For places with mud spots, you have to wet the cloth with water to soften it before wiping it off," Yan Bugui said to the neighbors who had gathered around, somewhat proudly, as he wiped the stains off the bicycle with a clean soft cloth.

However, this appearance did attract the attention of many people, and some asked Yan Bugui.

"Uncle, you were the first person in our compound to buy a bicycle. If something happens in the compound, could you borrow it for a ride?"

Yan Bugui paused while wiping his bicycle, then smiled and said, "No problem. Everyone in our compound is friendly and cooperative. Borrowing a bicycle is no problem at all."

Immediately, many people praised Yan Bugui.

Unfortunately, Yan Bugui suddenly changed the subject.

"That's one thing, though. I just bought this bicycle, and I haven't even ridden it much." He paused for a moment, looking at his neighbors who were staring at him.

Yan Bugui said casually, "Borrowing bicycles is no problem, but everyone should give me a penny or two for maintenance. I'll then get the bike serviced."

This has made some people unhappy.

"Uncle, you're the boss of our courtyard, and you expect me to pay you for a bicycle?"

Yan Bugui continued doing his own thing at a leisurely pace.

"Why would I charge you for borrowing my bicycle? I already said it's for maintenance. After you ride it, I'll have to clean it again, and that wear and tear will cost me a penny, won't it?"

"Uncle, when we borrow your bike and bring it back, we'll clean it for you, so you won't need to pay for maintenance, right?"

Yan Bugui stopped wiping his bicycle and looked at the person who had spoken through his glasses.

"I'm not comfortable letting you clean this bike. What if you use too much force and accidentally scratch the paint off my bicycle? Wouldn't that be a bigger loss?" Yan Bugui refused without hesitation.

Immediately, everyone started discussing it. Some people said that Yan Bugui's bicycle was second-hand and that the paint had been scratched for who knows how long. Yan Bugui retorted that his bicycle was original and had its original paint when he bought it, and that the paint was still intact.

He Yuzhu pushed his bicycle forward a few steps with some curiosity and saw Yan Bugui standing in the middle through the gaps in the crowd.

Just then, I saw He Yushui standing there, looking at me curiously.

He patted He Yushui on the shoulder: "Yushui, what's wrong?"

He Yushui turned around and saw He Yuzhu standing behind the crowd, so she quickly squeezed out of the crowd.

"Brother, did you go to the movies with Sister Yang?"

"After you finished looking, did this old man buy a bicycle?" He Yuzhu asked.

He Yushui nodded, her eyes shining, and said excitedly, "After school this afternoon, Uncle San went to the trust store and bought a bicycle. He looks so cool!"

"Really? No wonder I didn't run into Uncle San when I went out today. Turns out he went to buy a bicycle this afternoon."

Although the movie doesn't explicitly state when Yan Bugui bought the bicycle, it's likely around that time.

During this period, bicycle prices remained relatively stable, and used bicycles didn't become significantly more expensive. However, before long, bicycle prices would stabilize due to bicycle ticket restrictions, but these restrictions would also cause used bicycles to become more expensive.

He Yuzhu didn't go to watch the commotion anymore, and pushed his bicycle back to Xu Damao's doorstep.

Upon hearing the sound of the bicycle, Xu Damao immediately opened the door.

"Shazhu, did you see the bicycle that the old man up ahead bought?" Xu Damao asked somewhat cautiously.

He Yuzhu nodded, somewhat puzzled.

"Hey, you silly Zhu, from now on, when you ride your bicycle, just borrow Uncle San's, okay?"

Only then did He Yuzhu understand what Xu Damao meant.

He Yuzhu patted Xu Damao on the shoulder with a smile: "Silly Mao, we're like brothers, we've been buddies since we were kids. Don't worry, I won't borrow Uncle San's car, I'm definitely borrowing yours."

Seeing He Yuzhu's appearance, Xu Damao really wanted to curse him as shameless.

The friend you've fought with since childhood should be the friend you've fought with since childhood, right?