Courtyard House: A Prosperous and Joyful Life

Upon hearing that Wang Jun could assemble radios, the saleswoman immediately became much more enthusiastic, gathering all the electronic components in just over ten minutes and packing them into a large cardboard box.

Several middle-aged men nearby stared at her actions with envy in their eyes—when they were buying things, this girl ignored them; but when it was Wang Jun's turn, she not only quickly took and packed his things, but also gave him VIP treatment.

The saleswoman pulled out her abacus, clicked away for a while, and calculated the total price: 216 yuan, no coupon needed. In those days, you needed coupons to buy TVs, radios, meat, and fish, but electronic components were readily available; you could buy them as long as you had money.

Wang Jun pulled out a wad of "big unity" bills from his pocket to pay, and the saleswoman's eyes lit up even more—these days, most people only earned a few dozen yuan a month, and he casually tossed over two hundred, definitely a "rich man." Good-looking, knowledgeable, and rich, he was practically perfect.

Standing to the side, Huaihua was deeply shocked: Qin Huairu and Jia Zhangshi spoiled Banggeng rotten, while she, as a girl, received pitifully little pocket money. Two hundred yuan was an astronomical figure for her, but Wang Jun casually pulled it out as if it were five cents for an ice pop.

"He's so rich... I must stick close to Wang Jun and make money with him," Huaihua secretly resolved.

Wang Jun took the invoice and found a note tucked inside—it had an address and a name: Tang Yanling. The name sounded familiar; he realized she was Bang Geng's girlfriend from the TV series.

The girl in front of me is even prettier than in the drama, and she has a great figure too.

"It's such a waste that such a pretty girl is Bang Geng's girlfriend," Wang Jun thought to himself—Bang Geng has had warped values ​​since childhood and doesn't deserve her.

He nodded to Tang Yanling: "Comrade Tang, thank you for your kind service. My name is Wang Jun. Let's be friends from now on, and keep in touch." He would still be doing radio assembly business for a while, and he would inevitably need to buy parts from her again. It would be convenient to be friends with her.

Making friends was popular in those days, and magazines often published dating information, with people exchanging letters to stay in touch. The 80s hit song "Young Friends, Let's Meet" was all the rage, and gatherings with tape recorders to make friends became a trend.

Seeing that he was willing to make friends, Tang Yanling happily said, "Great! Come to me if you need any electronic components in the future."

Wang Jun had just carried the large cardboard box to the first floor when several female sales clerks suddenly ran over and stuffed slips of paper into his hand!

This action stunned Wang Jun, and those around him were completely dumbfounded:

"Hey, the girls are slipping notes to the guys, what's going on?"

"I don't know either……"

"Haha, the girl has a crush on him and wants to be friends!"

"No way, so many girls are interested in him at the same time?"

"Old Zhou, you don't understand! This young man is handsome and talented, wearing a military officer's overcoat like a big star. He's rich and good-looking, how could any girl not like him?"

"Wow, this young man will have a breeze finding a girlfriend!"

"It's not an estimate, it's a certainty! If you want to get married, just go out on the street and pick up a girl, and she'll have to say yes!"

Wang Jun carried the cardboard box out of the department store and finally breathed a sigh of relief—this woman was too enthusiastic, he really couldn't handle her.

Behind her, Huaihua looked on in surprise: the saleswomen at the department store, who were usually all aloof, were now vying to slip notes into Wang Jun's hand, as if they had made a pact. This scene was an eye-opener for Huaihua.

"A man like Brother Jun is a real man—handsome, rich, and popular with countless people. He's perfect."

Unconsciously, Huaihua developed a sense of admiration for Wang Jun, and her eyes lit up when she looked at him.

Seeing that Wang Jun was carrying the cardboard boxes, Huaihua guessed that he was tired and quickly said, "Brother Jun, let me help you carry them."

"No need." Wang Jun shook his head—the cardboard box contained fragile electronic components, and he would feel more at ease if he took them himself.

Suddenly remembering that they only had a large grass carp at home, Wang Jun said simply, "I'm going to buy groceries. You come with me and help me carry the groceries later."

"Okay!" Huaihua readily agreed.

A "splurge" at the pigeon market: 27 yuan worth of vegetables, equivalent to "half a month's salary".

Wang Jun brought locust flowers to the pigeon market.

The market was bustling with activity, offering a wide variety of vegetables.

He looked around and ordered: two pork knuckles, 3 jin of pork shoulder, 3 jin of mutton, one chicken, two cabbages, and two jin of tofu, totaling 27 yuan—equivalent to more than half a month's income for a worker.

Huaihua was dumbfounded: her mother, Qin Huairu, rarely bought meat when she bought vegetables, and even when she did, she would only buy a pound or half a pound; she might not even have this much meat during the New Year. But Wang Jun was different; he bought pork, mutton, and chicken all at once, buying more than ten pounds of meat without hesitation.

"It's so good to be rich..." Huaihua thought to herself, her desire to make money growing stronger—she wanted to earn more money so she could "buy whatever she wanted" like Wang Jun.

Wang Jun then asked, "I'd like to buy some more things, can you carry them?"

"Yes!" Huaihua immediately perked up—her mind was full of thoughts about making money.

"Okay, then I'll buy a few more pounds of eggs and a few more pounds of soybean oil." Wang Jun smiled and handed over fifty cents, "This is for your trouble. I'll give it to you when I get back."

When Huaihua heard "there's money to be made," her eyes lit up! Wang Jun had long seen that she was short of money and extremely interested in making money, so he gave her a little money and told her she would do anything—today he would use 50 cents to make her run errands.

He also bought 3 jin of eggs and 3 jin of peanut oil.

The two women carrying a bunch of vegetables into the courtyard immediately attracted attention. The neighbors stared at the vegetables in Huaihua's hands, completely dumbfounded.

"My goodness, there's so much food!"

"Wang Jun must have bought it! Where would he get the money for locust flowers?"

"Is Wang Jun trying to make ends meet? Buying so much—mutton, pork, pork hock, chicken, tofu, cabbage—it's more lavish than Chinese New Year! Oh, and this morning Uncle San even gave him a seven- or eight-pound grass carp!"

"Wow, these are all hearty dishes! I haven't eaten meat for two weeks, and my mouth is watering just looking at it..."

Huaihua takes the money and leaves: A neighbor's joking comment about "running errands".

Wang Jun greeted everyone, carried the cardboard box into the house, and Huaihua followed closely behind, putting all the vegetables into the kitchen.

Wang Jun handed over 50 cents, which Huaihua accepted and left happily.

The neighbors started talking again:

"Hey, Huaihua took the money and ran, just like Wang Jun's lackey!"

"Haha, I think she's just a gofer, always carrying things for Wang Jun!"

"Bang Geng has always looked down on Wang Jun. If he knew his sister had become Wang Jun's errand boy, he'd probably be furious!"

When Wang Jun carried the large grass carp weighing seven or eight pounds into the courtyard, several children had already gathered around the public pond, standing on tiptoe to peek into his hand.

"Time to kill the fish! Brother Wang Jun is killing a big fish!"

"What a huge fish! It's wider than my washbasin!"

The winter sun shone lazily, making the fish scales gleam silvery-white. Wang Jun put the fish into a large basin, picked up a kitchen knife and began to scale it—with a few swishes, the fish scales flew into the ditch like snowflakes, and the children exclaimed in amazement.

"Why are all the scales gone?" Jia Zhangshi, who was sewing shoe soles in the middle courtyard, twitched her ears, dropped her needle and thread, and ran outside. Her eyes immediately fell on the fish, shining like a hungry wolf—a seven or eight-pound grass carp! Could you catch one this big in winter? Even with money and ration coupons, it's hard to buy! A stew of this would be enough to eat for three days straight!

"Wang Jun, let me help you kill it!" Jia Zhangshi rubbed her hands together and came over, her face full of wrinkles from smiling. "I'm the best at killing fish; I'll be done in no time!"

Wang Jun glanced at her—this old hag, how many petty thieves have she seen in TV dramas? He subtly pulled the fish closer to his chest: "No need, I can do it myself."

"You child, how can you be so insensible?" Madam Jia raised her voice. "Everyone has a share! This fish is so big, and you won't even give me a piece? Be careful you don't choke on it!"

Wang Jun ignored her, scraped off the fish scales with swift, clean cuts, and deliberately made a loud noise when he opened the belly—the internal organs were poured into the ditch with a "whoosh," leaving not even the fish intestines behind.

"Oh dear, these fish intestines are so good! They could be washed and stir-fried into a dish!" an adult lamented.

"What do you need that thing for?" Wang Jun shook the blood off his hands. "It's the innards of a big grass carp. It has a strong fishy smell, and I don't want the hassle."

Jia Zhangshi's face turned green—she had wanted to sneak a couple of pieces of fish meat while helping out, but now she hadn't even gotten the fish intestines and had been ignored in front of everyone!

"You little brat!" she yelled, hands on her hips. "You're asking for it! Don't come crying to me, Jia Zhangshi, if you get a fishbone stuck in your throat later!"

"How could you be so vicious, Jia Zhangshi?" Aunt Xu was the first to object. "Wang Jun didn't do anything to you, yet you curse him to get thorns stuck in his throat. How shameless!"

"Exactly!" Aunt Liu chimed in, carrying her shopping basket. "Last time Banggeng stole Wang Jun's things, why didn't you curse him? Now that you see Wang Jun has fish, you're just jealous and cursing him!"

"How much money has Wang Jun made for our hospital? You old hag, you're ungrateful and gossipy!" He Yuzhu's loud voice came from the kitchen. "If you keep talking nonsense, I'll expose your embarrassing fish-stealing secret!"

Surrounded by more than a dozen neighbors, Jia Zhangshi had to back away, her face turning a deep purplish-red—she never expected that her neighbors, who were usually afraid of causing trouble, would all stand up against her for Wang Jun's sake!

"I...I didn't..." Her lips trembled, her legs shook, and she slunk away towards the central courtyard, looking like a defeated rooster.

The children clapped and laughed, "Grandma Jia lost! Wang Jun didn't get his fish!"

Wang Jun watched her retreating figure, a smirk playing on his lips—he knew this old hag would pull this stunt, thankfully he didn't give her the chance. He carried the fish home, the neighbors' chatter echoing behind him: "Wang Jun's got real skills, managing to keep Jia Zhangshi in check!" "With Wang Jun around, our neighborhood's life will only get better and better!"

Wang Jun was somewhat surprised by what he saw—he hadn't expected his neighbors to be willing to speak up for him and stand up against Jia Zhangshi.

Before he could even speak, Madam Jia Zhang was already red-faced from the scolding and slunk away.

He had originally planned to give her a "little bad luck charm" to vent his anger, but now it seems that the public's criticism is more effective than the charm.

Wang Jun nodded to everyone: "Thank you, everyone."

"You're welcome!"

"If you help us make money, we'll definitely speak up for you!"

"Jun, remember to call us if anything good happens. You're the god of wealth for our courtyard. If anyone insults you, we'll insult them too!"

Wang Jun was both amused and exasperated—these neighbors really treated him like a god of wealth. However, if they behaved well, it wouldn't be a bad idea to help them earn a little money.

Back in the kitchen, he put down the basin and grabbed handfuls of scallions and ginger to marinate the fish. He washed the pot and poured in a large spoonful of peanut oil—these days, most households only use a few drops of oil when cooking, but Wang Jun boldly poured it in. He also used a generous amount of scallions and ginger, and the aroma exploded out, domineeringly filling the entire yard.

In the middle court, Jia Zhangshi happened to smell the aroma, sniffed, and immediately launched into a vicious curse: "That damned Wang Jun! He won't give me fish but makes it smell so good, you'll get what's coming to you!"

She didn't dare to curse openly outside, but behind closed doors, she was unrestrained, spewing out all sorts of profanities. Huaihua, listening from outside, frowned, wanting to speak up for Wang Jun, but dared not—if she spoke up now, she would surely be scolded mercilessly.

While stewing the fish, Wang Jun suddenly remembered that he still had a special token and a free fishing opportunity. A thought flashed through his mind: why not try fishing for Jia Zhangshi and see what he could catch?

"Use designator! Target—Jia Zhangshi! Fishing!"

As soon as he finished speaking, a tattered bag fell to the ground with a "thud" at his feet.

Wang Jun was stunned: "This is really bad luck. I actually caught a tattered bag." He picked up the bag and was about to throw it into the stove to burn it when a stack of money fell out of it and scattered all over the ground.

He instantly realized—this tattered bag was where Jia Zhangshi hid her secret stash of money, and he hadn't expected to catch it so easily. He picked it up and counted it: two hundred and ten yuan!

Wang Jun's eyes widened in disbelief—this old hag was actually quite wealthy! Two hundred and ten yuan was equivalent to four months' wages for an ordinary worker; it must have been her savings accumulated over ten years.

"I didn't expect Jia Zhangshi to be so rich." He smiled and carefully put the money away. "But from today onwards, she's penniless—that's the price of being so talkative."

Awesome! At this moment, he was in an extremely good mood.

On the other side, Jia Zhangshi, smelling the aroma of stewed fish, drooled. After cursing a few times, she planned to go out and buy a fish to satisfy her craving. She ran to the bedside, lifted the covers, and felt around—her secret stash of money was gone!

I touched it again, but it was still empty.

She burrowed under the covers and frantically searched for the tattered bag containing the money, but she couldn't find it. Panic ensued, her mind going completely blank.

After sitting for a while, she finally realized: her money had been stolen! More than two hundred yuan, her savings of more than ten years, which was still there last night, had vanished this morning!

Madam Jia nearly fainted; her piercing screams instantly echoed throughout the courtyard: "Ahhh! My money! Who stole my money, you heartless bastard! I don't want to live anymore! Heaven, give me back my money—"

The neighbors all came out to see what was going on when they heard the noise:

"Haha, Jia Zhangshi got robbed?"

"Serves you right! You've got what you deserve for your sharp tongue!"

"Screaming so pitifully, how much did they lose?"

"There must be quite a lot!"

forecourt,

Wang Jun heard Jia Zhangshi's howling.

Burn the torn bag.

I went out to take a look.

Good guy,

Everyone in the entire courtyard rushed over.

It was incredibly lively.

but,

Everyone was just there to watch the show.

No one dared to approach.

Jia Zhangshi is completely unreasonable. If you go over to her after she lost her money, she might try to take advantage of you, and you'll be in big trouble. Besides, everyone has long been dissatisfied with Jia Zhangshi, and they secretly find it amusing to see her lose money.

Chickens and dogs were running rampant in the courtyard.

Three old men,

Yi Zhonghai, Liu Haizhong, and Yan Bugui all came.

At last,

The police arrived as well.

The police conducted a thorough investigation, questioned more than a dozen neighbors, and even brought in a large wolfhound to sniff around the house for a while. Then they told Jia Zhangshi, "Our preliminary investigation has yielded absolutely no clues. Besides your own scent, there is no other person's scent, nor any fingerprints or footprints in your house."

"According to neighbors, no strangers have entered the Intermediate People's Court recently."

"Therefore, we can be certain that no one entered your room."

"That's enough, we're leaving."