Year 1983: I was a carpenter in Northeast China

Xu Bei had just put down his rice bowl when Da Hei pulled his sled over to his house.

In addition to paying for the stools I picked up yesterday, I want to pick up another twenty-four.

Although the old lady and Xu Dahong didn't see the payment, they figured they could make more than two yuan by taking so many stools.

The two were so anxious they were practically dying inside, and they kept showering each other with sweet words as if they were free.

Xu Bei could easily see through the old lady's thoughts.

Unfortunately, it's no use talking a good game.

He wanted to make those two extremely envious, yet unable to do it.

That night, Xu Bei slept in the west room with his mother and sister.

The old lady and Xu Dahong slept in the east room.

Only the mother and daughter knew exactly how many times the woman had diarrhea throughout the night.

As a result, when Xu Dashan returned from his night shift in the morning, he wanted to open the door to the east room to get closer to his mother and sister, but he almost vomited from the fumes.

After leaving the east and outer room doors open for quite some time, the air finally returned to its freshness.

On the kang (a heated brick bed) in the west room, Xu Bei and Xu Juan lay at opposite ends of the kang, one at the foot and the other at the head.

Zhao Fengying, who was sleeping in the middle, got up early to start a fire, but she didn't fold her blankets.

Even if the brother and sister were heavy sleepers, such a commotion would wake them up.

The cold air from outside seeped in through the crack in the door, and both of them instinctively wrapped themselves tighter in their blankets.

Xu Juan rolled over a little from the edge of the kang (heated brick bed), lowered her voice and laughed, "Brother, thank goodness we listened to you and slept in this room, otherwise Mom and I would have been suffocated by the stench."

Xu Bei was also overjoyed, yawning and whispering, "That's right, as long as your brother is here, he won't let you and Mom suffer."

I think we should just continue sleeping like this tonight. Dad starts the day shift tomorrow, and he'll be sleeping at home tonight. He'll definitely have a lot to talk about with his mom and sister.

Xu Juan nodded vigorously with a smile, "I think it's a good idea. I just don't know if Mom will agree."

Xu Bei smiled confidently, "As long as your brother takes charge, there's no way he'll disagree."

Instantly, it drew the admiring gaze of her younger sister.

Today's breakfast was lighter compared to yesterday's lard-mixed rice.

There was millet porridge, boiled eggs, and stir-fried cabbage slices.

Xu Dashan knew that his mother and sister had stomach problems and couldn't eat oily food, and that his wife meant well, so he silently drank his porridge and ate his vegetables without expressing any dissatisfaction.

Xu Dahong, looking pale and with dark circles under his eyes, picked at the cabbage slices on his plate with his chopsticks and said disdainfully, "This is so bland and watery."

Zhao Fengying remembered her son's advice before going to bed last night, so she pretended not to hear or see it and continued eating the same dish from another plate in front of them.

The old lady, with her triangular eyes wide open, said, "Da Hong, don't you know your own situation? Once we're better, whatever you want to eat, your second sister-in-law will definitely make it for you."

"Mother, of course, Fengying will make it too. I was just worried that your diarrhea was quite severe and that eating oily food would make you feel even worse."

Seeing his younger sister's lack of table manners, Xu Dashan, as the older brother, couldn't stand it anymore. "And Dahong, how are others supposed to eat if you keep picking and choosing?"

Xu Dahong looked at his second brother and saw that the "others" he was referring to were him and his mother. Zhao Fengying and her two children were eating from a separate plate. "Second brother, I've noticed that you've changed a bit. We're all family, yet you still complain about me?"

Xu Dashan hurriedly said, "It's not that I'm disgusted with you, it's just that you're not a child anymore, you should be hygienic, right? You eat like this at your in-laws' house too."

Xu Dahong said matter-of-factly, "This isn't my husband's family home, it's my brother and sister-in-law's home."

Xu Bei ignored the siblings' argument, finished eating, got off the table, and then tidied up to prepare for departure.

Before leaving, he received earnest instructions and requests from the old lady and Xu Dahong.

Xu Bei listened in one ear and out the other.

After renting the apartment yesterday, I didn't rush to tidy it up because of time constraints and the fact that I was renting it for someone else.

Today, he plans to go over and burn down the house first, and then clean and tidy it up.

When Xu Bei arrived at Song Guodong's cousin's house, he noticed that the view was different after dark compared to during the day.

From the outside, the house appears even lower and the yard even more dilapidated.

The stacks of firewood piled up in front of and behind the house were also leaning and crooked, and there were large gaps in some places where the wooden sticks were placed.

Overall, the repairs are acceptable; minor repairs are all that's needed.

However, the house had been uninhabited for some time.

Even with only one fire each day, the fire wasn't burning properly, and some parts of the wall even developed frost.

Xu Bei lit the stove and the two side pits with pine needles, and then filled the large iron pot that had been boiling water with some water that hadn't frozen.

Then, after the firewood in the stove was crackling and flames were licking the bottom of the pot, and the water in the large iron pot was starting to steam, and the temperature in the room had risen a bit, they began to clean up.

He first tore off the straw mat that was laid on the kang (heated brick bed) in the east room.

A musty smell, mixed with the rotten aroma of hay, exploded in the stagnant air.

In particular, the straw mat had long lost its original resilience, crumbling into dust at the slightest touch of the edges, revealing the pitted and uneven surface of the earthen kang bed underneath.

Xu Bei frowned, not bothering to cover his mouth and nose, and directly rolled the pile of rotten grass into a ball and dragged it into the yard.

Having gained experience, he was less bothered by the straw mat in the west room afterward.

Then, Xu Bei found a broken broom in the corner and began sweeping up the dust on the ground that had been sprinkled with water.

After a thorough cleaning, throwing away what needed to be thrown away and repairing what needed to be repaired, it finally looked somewhat presentable.

It was almost noon.

After quickly tidying himself up, Xu Bei didn't rush to go shopping but went home first.

Not only the old lady and Xu Dahong, but Xu Dashan is also waiting for Xu Bei's return.

As soon as she saw him, she couldn't wait to ask him questions.

"What did your boss say?"

"Does that mean you agree?"

Xu Bei feigned helplessness, "Our boss disagrees! He said..."

Before Xu Bei could finish speaking, Xu Dashan interrupted him, "Why don't you agree?"

The old woman looked at him scrutinizingly. "It's a good thing that he has more people helping him sell stools and earn more money!"

Xu Dahong excitedly chimed in, "Exactly! Did you even tell your boss? You're not trying to fool me, are you?"

Xu Bei sneered inwardly, but on the surface he made an appropriate response, "Of course I said so, Auntie. You can't doubt me and take your anger out on me just because you can't do it!"

But they disagreed, what could I do? They said the city had arrested seven or eight people for speculation and profiteering.

Our boss was scared too. Who sells things to make money, not to cause trouble!

Xu Dahong, half-believing and half-doubting, resorted to her usual tantrum, "Why can you sell, but I can't? Just because I'm not from this forest area?"

"I don't care, I'm determined to do this job. At worst, I'll secretly sell them and pass them off as yours, then give me the commission when I get back, isn't that the same thing?"

The old lady immediately responded enthusiastically, "Yes, that's a great idea!"

Xu Bei had anticipated this, and deliberately sighed, saying, "No matter what we do, it's useless! Even these stools won't sell for many more days!"

Upon hearing that the sale wouldn't last more than a few days, Zhao Fengying, who was listening nearby wearing an apron, also became a little anxious.

"Son, why?"