In 1959, what's wrong with me pedaling a tricycle?

When Wang Xingguo came back from taking a shower and changed his clothes, he was about to do the laundry so that his sister wouldn't have to stay up all night to help him. But Wang Xingning took the basin of clothes away and put it aside, then pulled his hand and led him to the living room.

Wang Xingguo asked, looking bewildered, "Third Sister, what's wrong? Just tell me what's going on, what's all this fuss about?"

Wang Xingning did not answer, but instead pulled him to the living room and then pressed him down to sit on a stool.

In the past, their father used to make round stools with four legs, not the long benches that were paired with the Eight Immortals table.

Wang Xingguo looked at his eldest brother, third sister, and fourth brother sitting opposite him, all staring at him with hostile eyes, as if they were conducting a joint trial, which made him feel very uneasy.

He couldn't help but cough twice and asked, "No, stop staring at me like that, let's talk this out..."

Wang Xingbang slammed his left hand on the table, making a loud sound.

Wang Xingmin stood up, trying to keep a straight face, and said, "Second Brother, you've committed a crime. Now, are you going to confess and receive leniency, or resist and face severe punishment?"

Wang Xingguo wasn't going to tolerate his younger brother, so he stood up and gave him a flick on the forehead.

"Ouch, ouch~ Second brother, what are you doing? It hurts so much..."

Wang Xingbang quickly pulled Wang Xingguo away, looking helpless, and said, "No, why are you bullying the fourth brother?"

Wang Xingguo curled his lip and replied, "He has no respect for elders and talks to me like I'm interrogating a criminal. I have to teach him a lesson and let him know that his second brother will always be his second brother."

Wang Xingning wasn't intimidated. As the only girl in the family, she was pampered by both her older brothers and younger brother.

She huffed, "Hmph, Second Brother, don't change the subject. Fourth Brother is right, confess and you'll be treated leniently, resist and you'll be punished severely. Hurry up and tell me, who exactly is that pretty lady?"

Wang Xingguo was dumbfounded. He couldn't help but feel guilty. Could it be that they had seen him and Li Xiuping on the street?

Now that things had come to this, there was no way to hide it anymore. He chuckled twice and then said to the group, "Well... it's a long story..."

Wang Xingbang slammed his hand on the table again and said, "Stop talking nonsense and get to the point!"

Wang Xingguo looked helpless. He organized his thoughts and, seeing his older brother about to slam his fist on the table again, quickly said, "Stop slamming it! Honestly, I feel sorry for your hand. I'll tell you, really..."

Wang Xingguo knew this day would come sooner or later. He sat down, handed a cigarette to his elder brother, lit it with a match, and then slowly said, "Her name is Li Xiuping. She was my classmate in elementary and junior high school. She lives in courtyard number 36 in Mao'er Hutong. Her father is a level-five welder at the No. 3 Steel Rolling Mill, and you're learning welding from him. We are indeed dating, and I've won over her family. It's just that I need to get a job before I can propose to them. That's all. I just have a girlfriend, what's the big deal?"

Wang Xingning exclaimed happily, "You're something else, Second Brother! You've really got me a sister-in-law so quickly!"

Wang Xingbang laughed and said, "Why didn't you tell me sooner? Did you think your older brother would break them up?"

Wang Xingguo sighed deeply and said, "Sigh, this is hard to say. I wasn't very confident at first, but I managed to win over her family later. However, her father also made a condition: I have to get a job first. Only with a job can I apply for housing from my work unit after I marry Xiuping, so he can feel at ease entrusting his daughter to me. But now I've finally managed to get the channels open, not only to collect goods but also to sell them in many places to make money. Once I start working, I won't have enough time to do this goods trading business, and this way of making money will be cut off."

Wang Xingning asked, "Big brother, how much money do you have left? I've saved up twenty-three yuan; let's see if that's enough to get my second brother a job and marry my second sister-in-law!"

These words were truly heartwarming. This younger sister is so considerate. Wang Xingguo rubbed her head, which earned him a disgruntled glare from Wang Xingning.

She was thirteen years old and didn't like being treated like a child by her older brother.

Wang Xingbang took out a small notebook and began to calculate the accounts for his three younger siblings.

When their father passed away, because it was a work-related death, his employer provided a pension, which was equivalent to a year's salary, amounting to 400 yuan.

The expenses for my father's funeral were covered by his work unit. In addition, we had 380 yuan in savings, so we had 780 yuan left in savings after my father passed away.

However, with his mother's death six months later, coupled with years of financial difficulties, his savings once dropped to three hundred yuan. In the past year, after graduating from junior high school, Wang Xingguo started earning money to support his family and also did side jobs with a master craftsman. His savings have slowly recovered to five hundred yuan.

Wang Xingguo said earnestly, "Don't touch the family savings. Keep them for you to find a wife, and for your younger siblings to go to school. I can handle my own job. After I'm done with this busy period, I'll try to find some connections to get me a job."

These days he almost always does what he says, so when he spoke so seriously, his family didn't doubt him.

After discussing it, Wang Xingbang finally made the decision: "We can't rush this. Anyway, if you don't have enough money, the family will make up the difference. By the way, find an opportunity to bring your girlfriend home to meet us. You can't not even know who she is and not recognize her if you bump into her outside, can you?"

"Alright, I think we should take her home for dinner sometime. Let's leave it at that. It's still stuffy inside, it'll be cooler sitting in the yard."

Everyone sat in the living room to talk, and it was indeed a bit stuffy, so some did laundry and others chatted with the neighbors.

Listening to the neighbors gossip, I did glean a few useful pieces of information.

First of all, Liu Chang'an's second brother from the next courtyard is getting married. The date is set for September 20th, which is the Sunday after the Mid-Autumn Festival.

These days, since most workplaces close on Sundays, many people choose this day to get married.

This information is quite useful. I reckon Brother Liu will ask me for help getting fish, and maybe even chickens and ducks.

The Liu family was well-off. Liu Chang'an's eldest brother was a street office worker, his second brother was a teacher, and Liu Chang'an himself was a local police officer. The family had three jobs.

By the way, his father was a porter at a transportation cooperative affiliated with the street office; in reality, he was just a handcartman who pulled goods and delivered them.

These days, individual businesses are not allowed, so these people need to join cooperatives and accept their management and supervision.

This ordinary man raised three children in the ten years since the founding of the People's Republic of China, making him a model family in the neighborhood.