Sha Zhu's Rebirth in the Courtyard: Starting with Hitting Someone in the Head

Chapter 72 Arrangements Before the Business Trip

He Yuzhu went to the supply and marketing cooperative to report to Director Zhou and placed the reply from Qingdao Aquatic Products Supply and Marketing Company on the table.

They said they'd already made contact and signed an agreement for the storage, preparation, and railcar reporting of goods. They'd submit monthly and ten-day plans ten days in advance, and railcars would be guaranteed to be approved.

Director Zhou put on his reading glasses, looked at the reply, and asked how much was being measured.

He Yuzhu reported the items one by one. Eight tons of fresh mackerel, five tons of fresh ribbonfish, four tons of yellow croaker and various miscellaneous fish, three and a half tons of sea shrimp, prawns and swimming crabs, and four and a half tons of dried shrimp, dried kelp, dried fish and salted fish.

He returned in three days, personally escorting the truck and using ice to keep the food fresh.

Director Zhou took off his reading glasses, picked up a pen, and signed the reply. "Zhu Zi, thanks to this trip, the supply and marketing cooperative has exceeded its seafood target for this quarter. Be careful on the road."

He Yuzhu folded the reply letter and put it in his pocket, then borrowed the office phone to call Li Huaide.

"Brother Li, this is He Yuzhu. I'm going to Qingdao on a business trip tomorrow. Please prepare some special-supply cigarettes and alcohol for my return."

Li Huaide's voice rang out a bit louder on the other end of the phone. "Brother, don't worry, I'll take care of the stuff." The phone hung up.

He Yuzhu put the receiver back down, his lips twitching slightly. This person didn't need to say much; one sentence was enough.

Li Huaide hung up the phone and leaned back, tapping his fingers on the desk. Where was he supposed to get special-supply cigarettes and alcohol? At his level, he only got two packs of Daqianmen cigarettes a month, and he couldn't even get a glimpse of the special-supply Zhonghua cigarettes. Moutai, on the other hand, was easy to obtain.

The half-box of white-covered Zhonghua cigarettes that He Yuzhu gave him last time caught his eye when he went out to do errands, making things much easier for him.

Too many people like the special-supply cigarettes, and there's only one way to get enough to satisfy He Yuzhu.

He picked up the receiver and shook it, connecting to his father-in-law's office. There was a long silence on the other end of the line, before two words were uttered: "Wait."

In the evening, He Yuzhu rode his motorcycle to the school gate to pick up Yushui. Yushui ran out with her schoolbag on her back, her two braids bouncing on her shoulders, jumped onto the back seat, and hugged his waist. "Brother, why did you come to pick me up today?"

He Yuzhu started his motorcycle. "Let's go to your sister-in-law's house. I'm going on a business trip to Qingdao."

Yu Shui picked up the change of clothes from the side basket, sat down, and chuckled. They had been using the term "sister-in-law" in private for three months, not daring to call her that in front of Lou Bancheng, but calling her that in the courtyard was perfectly natural.

It wasn't dark yet when the motorcycle turned into the iron gate of Lou Mansion; the gate was half open.

Lou Xiao'e ran out of the house, her hair tied in a ponytail. She grabbed Yu Shui's arm and whispered something in her ear. Yu Shui winked at her.

The two girls ran into the living room hand in hand, their chattering voices drifting up the stairs.

He Yuzhu carried the groceries towards the kitchen. Lou Bancheng came out of the study, a cigar between his fingers. "Zhuzi, are you going on a business trip for a few days?"

"I'll be back in three days. The railcars have been approved in Qingdao, and I'll personally escort them."

"Be careful on the road."

"Uncle Lou, don't worry."

He tied on an apron, took out a piece of fresh mutton, and placed it on the cutting board. He rubbed the cleaver twice on the whetstone, the blade gleaming coldly. The slices of meat flew thin under the knife, arranged one by one on the plate, the pink lean meat of even thickness.

Slice scallions and ginger into thin strips, crush garlic cloves, and fry them in oil until fragrant. Add the scallion-fried lamb to the pan, and with a sizzle, the aroma of scallions and meat wafts out from under the kitchen door.

Tan Yali stood at the kitchen door for a while and said that her stir-fries were still the most fragrant, and Xiao'e complained that the sliced ​​meat she cooked was cut too thick.

He Yuzhu smiled and said he would cook more often in the future. Tan Yali nodded and took out plates from the cupboard and arranged them by the stove.

The garlic-flavored spinach was added to the pan, and the green leaves softened after a few stirs in the hot oil. With a flick of his wrist, He Yuzhu neatly arranged the spinach onto a plate.

The fish in the steamer was ready, and the tomato and egg soup was served last. He Yuzhu sprinkled some chopped green onions on top.

"Have a meal."

Lou Xiao'e and Yu Shui ran downstairs, and the two maids circled around the table, serving rice to everyone.

Lou Bancheng picked up a slice of mutton, chewed it a couple of times, and kept eating. Tan Yali ladled a bowl of soup and placed it in front of He Yuzhu.

Lou Xiao'e looked up at He Yuzhu. "Brother He, does Qingdao have a sea?"

He Yuzhu hummed in agreement. "Qingdao is surrounded by the sea on three sides."

Lou Xiao'e's chopsticks stopped at the rim of the bowl. "Then bring me a seashell when you come back."

Raindrops picked up a piece of fish. "I want one too."

He Yuzhu smiled. "Okay, I'll bring more."

After dinner, He Yuzhu pulled Yushui aside. "You'll be staying at your sister-in-law's for the next few days. Focus on your homework." Yushui said she understood, then leaned close to his ear and whispered, "Brother, can you spend a day in Qingdao?"

He Yuzhu patted her on the head. "I'm going to earn money."

Rainwater covered his head and splashed his tongue.

Early the next morning, He Yuzhu left the courtyard carrying a travel bag. The old locust tree at the entrance of the alley had just sprouted tender leaves, and the weather was perfect.

He wasn't walking fast. When he was almost at the train station, an old woman was squatting by the wall by the roadside. Her gray hair was a mess, and her face was so wrinkled that you could hold a grain of rice in it. She was wearing a tattered cotton-padded jacket, with dark cotton wadding showing through the cuffs. In front of her was a broken bowl with a few crumpled bills in it.

A jujube wood cane lies across his feet; isn't this the old deaf man?

After not seeing him for several months, He Yuzhu almost didn't recognize him.

Wang Xia got divorced, Deputy District Chief Zhou was executed, Wu Guilan stopped serving him, and he didn't even have money to buy cornbread for several months.

She was an old woman with bound feet, so she couldn't get in line to make paper boxes, and she couldn't compete with the children to collect coal scraps, so she had no choice but to beg on the streets.

She kept her head down, muttering to herself. A woman carrying a vegetable basket passed by and put a small bill into the broken bowl. The old deaf man bowed and scraped, saying ingratiating words.

He Yuzhu stood there watching for a while. She shouldn't starve to death yet. That's good. Let her live, live until 1961, and slowly endure it.

The train started moving, and the April fields flashed past the window. The wheat seedlings had already sprouted, spreading a green carpet across the ground. In the distance, a small river shimmered in the sunlight, and several children squatted on the riverbank catching fish, their trouser legs rolled up to their knees.

He Yuzhu leaned back in his hard seat and closed his eyes. He had a day to go and buy seafood left behind by fishermen. April was the peak season for fishing in Qingdao, and there was a large quantity of all kinds of seafood.

Wild game from your own space, especially wheat flour, will be very popular in Qingdao. Seize the opportunity, stock up as much as you can. Especially Qingdao prawns, they're the best in the country. The big ones are as long as your forearm, and they'll become increasingly rare and smaller in the coming decades.

The shrimp are kept in the storage space, so they'll always be fresh whenever you take them out. The Qingdao shrimp are graded by size, with the premium ones kept for later as gifts or for personal consumption.

Li Huaide prepared more mackerel for him, as April is the season for mackerel to migrate. He planned to go to Tianjin in late April to collect another batch, and stockpile at least several dozen tons.

He imagined Li Huaide's expression after receiving the seafood, the scene of thousands of workers at the steel mill eating mackerel, and the special-supply Zhonghua cigarettes he had finally gotten his hands on.

The more I thought about it, the less I could sleep, so I simply opened my eyes, lit a Zhonghua cigarette, and looked out the window.