Courtyard House: Starting with a 28-inch motorcycle

Just as she dried her hands, He Yuzhu's voice rang out behind her: "Sister Bai, you have dark circles under your eyes. Shall I massage your temples for you?"

Bai Danyu's ears suddenly burned, and she lowered her eyes, calling out softly, "Zhu Zi..."

How could she not understand? Last time, the moment his fingertips slipped inside her collar, her body went limp like spring water. If Xiao Baiying hadn't suddenly barged in, she probably would have lost her rhythm in breathing.

"No... Yingying is still next door..."

"Don't worry, the baby's eyelids will droop after eating, and he'll be fast asleep as soon as he turns over." He Yuzhu took a half step closer, his voice low and steady. "Just massage his shoulders and loosen his muscles, that's all."

"Can……"

"Keep massaging her for now, I'll go check on her later to see if she's asleep, okay?"

—Okay? If she's really asleep, what are you going to do then?

She was too embarrassed to look up, only glancing at him sideways. This younger brother was now too lazy to even hide his feelings; his words and actions practically laid his heart bare under the lamplight.

But then I thought about it again, and realized that my statement "if she's not here" had given me away.

"Let's go, Sister Bai..."

Before he finished speaking, his palm was already on her shoulder. In that instant, her back trembled slightly, but her heart felt as if it were being entangled by warm vines—she didn't even know when the strength to push him away had completely dissipated.

"Hmm... Pillar..."

She lowered her head, her hair falling beside her cheeks, and followed behind him, her steps as light as if she were walking on clouds, as she slowly moved into the house.

Everything fell into place naturally. She lay on the edge of the bed, her hair brushing against the pillow, her fingertips unconsciously gripping the corner of the blanket, waiting for those hands to fall.

In the next room, Xiao Baiying was flipping through a comic book, her eyelids growing heavier and heavier. As the pages slipped off her pillow, He Yuzhu quietly entered and tucked her in. When he turned back, his hand was already tracing down her spine, his strength steady, his fingertips warm, no longer the fleeting touch from before.

Several hours later, after he said goodbye and left, he was out of the house.

Before leaving, he gave Bai Danyu a small bottle of beeswax ointment and a small jar of medicinal wine, and whispered a few words of advice on how to nourish the spirit before gently closing the door.

On the way back, he made a special detour into a bathhouse, scrubbing himself until his whole body was red, soaking in the sauna, and even picking his fingernails clean.

Only after confirming that he could not find even a trace of anything unusual about himself did he stroll home.

It was lunchtime when he opened the door, and the lunchbox was still warm. Yu Li was there too, but this time she was dressed neatly and sat properly, unlike her outburst last time; but the fact that she was sitting in her own home still surprised He Yuzhu slightly—Xu Damao had just been personally sent to the countryside by him.

Lou Xiao'e saw through the question in his eyes at a glance and greeted him with a smile: "Yuzhu, Yu Li is helping me tailor clothes for the children. We chatted so much that we forgot the time. She'll have dinner here."

As she spoke, she whispered a private remark into his ear.

He Yuzhu didn't say much, only nodded to Yu Li: "You decide. I'll heat up the leftovers and stir-fry a couple of vegetarian dishes."

"Okay! Oh, right, there's one more thing—could you take a look at Yu Li's health?"

"Check her health? What's wrong with her?"

Lou Xiao'e leaned closer, her breath brushing against his ear: "We've been married for over a year, and there's still no sign of pregnancy... She's worried she can't conceive. Could you take her pulse? If it's possible to improve, we should get pregnant soon..."

He Yuzhu understood immediately, but not having children wasn't necessarily Yu Li's fault... But then he thought again that something was wrong—in her previous life, Yu Li never got pregnant until she was in her forties or fifties, and in the end, like Yi Zhonghai and that old lady, she lived her whole life empty-handed.

It seems that Yu Li might actually have some hidden illness.

He sat down at the table and said directly, "Give me your wrist, I'll take your pulse."

"Huh? Oh, okay, sure."

Yu Li was stunned for a moment, then quickly extended her left hand. Her wrist was slightly cool, and her skin was smooth. He Yuzhu gently pressed three fingers against it, carefully examining the pulse, which was deep, slow, and slightly hesitant.

After a dozen seconds, he released his grip and said calmly, "It's a minor ailment, just spleen and kidney deficiency with internal dampness. Get me a couple of doses of a warming and dampness-resolving prescription, drink it for seven or eight days, and your body will warm up. As for having children, you'll be perfectly fine."

This is now confirmed—it's Xu Damao's side that's causing the problem. Yu Li can get pregnant, but Xu Damao's reproductive ability has probably been terminated long ago. He Yuzhu doesn't care about him; it's not like he's the one who ruined her. Besides, Xu Damao is still causing trouble at every turn. If he really wants to behave himself, it wouldn't hurt to adjust his behavior a bit.

Now? Let him be a "single heir" for a few years first.

However, a thought flashed through He Yuzhu's mind: What about Yan Jiecheng? In his previous life, he and Yu Li had been childless for many years. Could it be that he was also incapable of having children?

Upon hearing "can give birth," Yu Li felt a weight lift from her chest. She didn't truly trust herself, and was even more afraid that He Yuzhu would simply say, "You can forget about it for the rest of your life." Even a sliver of faith was better than nothing.

"Well... Director He, thank you for your help."

"It's a small matter, not worth mentioning. If you're still worried, go to a few more hospitals to get checked out, both Chinese and Western medicine, just to put your mind at ease."

As he spoke, he picked up a pen and wrote a prescription. Before the ink was dry, he handed it over and added, "The senior doctors at Heniantang and Deshoutang are reliable, and the gynecology department at the First People's Hospital is also trustworthy."

These two pharmacies have been rooted in Beijing for decades, and even the old man selling candied hawthorns at the alley entrance can recite their names; the First People's Hospital is always bustling with activity, and you have to wait in long lines to register.

Yu Li's eyes lit up—visiting more clinics is the same as getting more tests done, right? If it really confirms that there's nothing wrong with her body, she can stand up straighter in the future.

"Thank you, Director He!"

She had just finished thanking him when she abruptly changed the subject, her voice lowering slightly: "Then... since I can have children, how come there's still no sign of pregnancy after more than a year?"

"Pregnancy is a matter for both of you. Your path is clear, but the bottleneck is most likely on Xu Damao's side."

He stopped there. Their relationship was still superficial; to speak too frankly would seem like undermining the couple. How many times had he actually met Yu Li? It was none of his business to interfere.

After saying that, he turned and went into the kitchen. Before He Yushui even entered the room, the table was already full of steaming dishes: braised carp in soy sauce, glistening and fragrant; stir-fried pea shoots, bright green and crisp; and a bowl of piping hot seaweed and egg drop soup, with wisps of steam rising from it.

He Yushui liked Yu Li quite a bit. She didn't have many friends in high school, and Yu Haitang was one of the few who was willing to accompany her to the stalls outside the factory gate, so she was naturally close to this older sister.

This was also the first time Yu Li had tasted a meal cooked by He Yuzhu himself. Last time, she had eaten a lunchbox brought back by Xu Damao, and the taste of several dishes was still lingering; but this meal in front of her was cooked to perfection, with a richer flavor, just the right amount of saltiness, and even the scallions were fried until they were crispy and fragrant.

She sighed inwardly: No wonder Lou Xiao'e always had a smile on her face. Marrying into the Xu family had indeed made her life much more comfortable than before; but compared to the lively atmosphere at the He family's dinner table, it still lacked a certain vibrancy.

After the meal, Yu Li offered to clear the dishes, but Lou Xiao'e stopped her, saying, "You sit down, I'll do it."

Before she could finish speaking, He Yushui sprang up the moment her brother's gaze swept over her, snatched the bowls and plates from Lou Xiao'e's hands, and rushed to the sink, turning on the tap with a "whoosh" and getting busy.

After Lou Xiao'e entered the house, she reverted to being the pampered little princess she used to be—she didn't have to cook, sweep, or even pick up her socks. But things were different now: Lou Xiao'e's belly was growing bigger every day, and even if He Yushui pretended not to see it, her brother's eyes wouldn't be so blind—it was the rule that she had to do the chores.

Life flows like a stream, silent and unnoticed, yet never empty.

For people at that time, the days, though ordinary, were truly filled with joy.

He Yuzhu's footprints covered almost every home and the steel mill: the He family's courtyard, Chen Xueru's tavern, Bai Danyu's apartment, and the factory's logistics office. Fortunately, as the logistics director, he didn't rely on errands for a living; he was only in charge of scheduling—unless the factory director personally called on him, he rarely touched the little skill he had at the stove.

At other times, he likes to slow down: look at his daughter's little braids sticking up as she does her homework, and hug Chen Xueru as they lean back in a wicker chair to listen to her mutter, "Xu Huizhen's little tavern is so deserted, yet she refuses to admit defeat. It's infuriating."

If he had free time, he would often sneak over to Bai Danyu's place. He loved watching her cover her mouth to stifle a laugh, her ears turning bright red, frantically rummaging through her hands to find a thin little umbrella, insisting that he put it on before she would continue; but when she opened the umbrella with a flushed face, she found that it was too small and couldn't be opened, her embarrassed and anxious appearance was more touching than spring water.

In the end, it was only when He Yuzhu took out the genuine product he brought back from Hong Kong from his personal space that the two of them were truly at ease.

Lou Xiao'e's belly grew bigger every day, but her face always wore a radiant smile. With no worries about food and clothing and plenty of energy at work, everything she did at the neighborhood office felt like fulfilling an old dream: allowing those struggling to make ends meet in Nanluoguxiang to catch their breath, earn some money, and have something to look forward to.

Donating her salary was just a small thing for her; what she really cared about was connecting impoverished households with odd jobs—repairing eaves, sewing cloth bags, pasting cardboard boxes…the jobs weren’t big, but they allowed people to earn a living with their own hands.

But as her belly grew larger, the matter was abruptly put on hold. It wasn't just anyone; it was Director Wang and He Yuzhu who stopped it. The former feared something might go wrong—if anything happened to Lou Xiao'e and her child, the neighborhood committee couldn't bear the responsibility; the latter simply said, "I feel sorry for my wife even if she lifts a finger, how can you make her climb stairs and run errands?"

During Lou Xiao'e's time working at the subdistrict office, Director Wang has come to realize the true meaning of her position: having a powerful backer is no joke.

Putting aside everything else, He Yuzhu's two hunting trips in the mountains alone brought back a mountain of game—roe deer, rabbits, and pheasants weighing over a thousand kilograms in total. All of it was distributed to families of martyrs and impoverished households, and half a venison was left to be cured and stored in the warehouse.

Without Lou Xiao'e's face, would the subdistrict office have gotten involved in such illicit affairs?

It's likely that he just carried the prey back to the factory and then immediately sent it to the steel rolling mill's canteen—after all, He Yuzhu still holds the title of the steel rolling mill's logistics director.

This incident caused such a stir that even the district was alerted. Thousands of pounds of meat! But by the time the district officials arrived on their bicycles, Director Wang had already reduced the meat to bone fragments.