Courtyard House: Starting with a 28-inch motorcycle

"Okay." He Yuzhu agreed readily. "I'll make some brown sugar steamed cake for the factory manager and the others later. You stand over there and keep a close eye on them."

This thing uses simple materials and the steps are straightforward.

After finishing, he casually asked Ma Hua to take a portion to Director Zhang, and specifically instructed, "Ask Director Zhang if these pastries can be included in the staple food rationing, like steamed buns and cornbread?"

He knew perfectly well that the proposal would not be approved—wasn't it just so that he could practice openly and legitimately?

The family next door to Liu Lan has been extremely anxious lately, coming over to her every few days to complain: their children are too naughty, and they are afraid they will cause some trouble.

Neighbor: "Sister Lan, your Yingzi is such a worry! You're busy at the factory every day, and when you get home you still have to take care of the whole family, but she's doing the same thing – she's kneading and steaming white flour, baking it again and again, the firewood in the stove is crackling, and flour is scattered all over the floor!"

Liu Lan was taken aback, blinked, and asked with just the right amount of bewilderment in her voice, "Hey? Auntie, what's wrong with Yingzi?"

The neighbor sighed and lowered her voice, "Ugh! She always picks the time to start working when you're at work. I've seen it several times—she lifts the lid of the vat and scoops out flour, spreading it all over the cutting board, then she mixes eggs into a paste, rolling and kneading it, going through all that trouble just to make a few cakes! Tell me, isn't this fine grain precious? Jianjun and Lili are drooling with envy, but they haven't even gotten a single grain!"

"Even young kids need rules! Sister-in-law Lan, these days ahead...sigh, they're going to be tough!"

Liu Lan's eyes reddened, and her voice choked: "That's right... This flour is the food her master saved by gritting his teeth. He only had a small bag every month to feed the four of us!" Before she could finish speaking, tears streamed down her face, and her shoulders trembled.

The eldest daughter was quite sensible. Upon hearing that the family was struggling to make ends meet, she immediately dropped her schoolbag and refused to go to school, insisting on giving the opportunity to her younger siblings. However, after Liu Lan secretly told her about making cakes, she only instructed her, "Keep this to yourself. Don't answer anyone who asks."

Then she went to the teacher and pleaded with her: Wan Liying would skip one class in the morning and stay home to cook rice and porridge; after school, she would go straight to the teacher's house for tutoring, and the monthly fee of one yuan would be a given. At first, the teacher refused to accept the money and kept waving her hand, but after hearing that the child was copying notes by moonlight in the middle of the night, she silently accepted the crumpled bill.

Back home, the mother and daughter acted in perfect unison—Liu Lan grabbed a bamboo stick and chased Wan Liying, who was bundled up tightly, all over the yard. Her cotton-padded coat sleeves flapped wildly, and Yingzi cried as she dodged, losing a shoe in the process. The neighbors, used to this, could only shake their heads and sigh, "Sigh, this girl is probably going to be spoiled rotten..."

An elderly woman leaning on a cane leaned against the doorframe and slowly replied, "Who would dare marry her in the future? People who waste food are always getting their minds wandering."

Another person chimed in, "That's right! Liu Lan has a hard life, and she's so stubborn. She'd rather endure it than remarry. Yesterday she even came to my house to borrow money, how could I dare to agree? Five kids are waiting for their school fees, we can barely keep a living!"

The story got more and more distorted, and eventually it became "the Liu family is about to collapse." The whole alley was talking about it: the neighbor borrowed three cents from the east and five cents from the west, but the IOUs were stacked up thicker than the account book. Who wouldn't be worried?

In reality, Liu Lan wasn't really borrowing money. She was just knocking on doors to ask, "Are you short of cash?" Before she could finish speaking, she would turn around and leave to move on to the next door.

……

On the way home from school in the evening, I saw many men in blue work clothes walking in groups, their flashlight beams sweeping back and forth along the walls; when they reached the fork in the road, the patrolmen turned away; two hundred steps further ahead, several groups of people were already moving around the courtyard – Uncle Liu Haizhong walked at the front with his head held high, wearing a well-washed Zhongshan suit, the buttons fastened down to his Adam's apple, and his belt cinching his waistline neatly.

He Yuzhu stood in the shadows with his hands tucked in, thinking to himself: It's so cold you could breathe out white mist, yet he's so radiant, his face doesn't even look pale.

When the second uncle saw him from afar, he immediately called out, "Silly Zhu! get out of class dismissed? From now on, with our 'joint security team' guarding the area, you can just sleep soundly! Anyone who dares to glare around here will have to get past me, Old Liu, first!"

He Yuzhu greeted him with a smile: "Second Uncle, your outfit is quite impressive! I thought Director Zhang was here incognito!"

He had long lost the original owner's prickly spirit—he didn't cause trouble, didn't argue, and if you gave him face and flattered him, who would take you seriously?

A petty person has their own way of dealing with petty people; it's not his turn to wield a hoe.

Uncle Er felt completely satisfied. Imitating his superior manner, he patted He Yuzhu on the shoulder and nodded solemnly: "Silly Zhu, get some rest. We still have to patrol the night!"

He Yuzhu rolled his eyes inwardly: Night patrol? You're acting like you're going to receive foreign guests.

He replied crisply, "Then I won't delay your official business!" After saying that, he turned and left, his back view clean and decisive.

As soon as I stepped into the courtyard, I saw Jia Zhangshi squatting by the pool washing clothes. Her fingers were red from the cold, but she had a smile on her face and was humming a tuneless little tune.

He Yuzhu thought to himself: This old lady is probably frozen and confused. The water is so cold that it can give you goosebumps!

He Yushui leaned closer, looked up at him, and asked, "Brother, are you struggling with your studies?"

"So-so, just some beginner stuff."

Her eyes lit up immediately, and she pulled him aside to tell him about what was happening at Qin Huairu's house—it turned out that these past few days, Jia Zhangshi had been serving her daughter-in-law diligently, doing laundry and cooking without ever complaining about the dirt or fatigue; today, Qin Huairu had taken out three yuan for her to buy painkillers.

He Yuzhu waved his hand dismissively after hearing this: "You should focus on your studies first. Want to help others? Get into university first. Once you've accumulated enough skills, helping others will be a real lifesaver; reaching out now will only cause trouble."

He added in his mind: How you help is your business, just don't involve me.

Pay money to play the good guy? No way.

Providing you with food, clothing, education, and further education is my duty as your older brother; as for the rest, everyone has their own way of doing things.

He Yushui patted his chest and said, "Don't worry, bro! I'm studying hard under the lamp every day!"

"Go to sleep!"

Back inside, I saw freshly picked corn cobs on the windowsill, golden yellow. After drying them overnight, I could make fragrant corn pancakes tomorrow morning.

Early in the morning, He Yuzhu carried his medicine bag and rushed to the factory.

In the canteen kitchen, he tied his apron tight, the knives and cutting board were neatly arranged, and the oil in the wok was boiling hot, thus beginning the day's cooking atmosphere.

It was almost lunchtime when Director Zhang strolled in and beckoned to Ma Hua: "Come with me."

The two entered the office one after the other.

Director Zhang opened a drawer and pulled out a form: "The name has been submitted to the personnel department. Please fill this out. Do you recognize the characters?"

Ma Hua nodded vigorously.

"Take a half-length photo at noon and submit it along with the form."

As he spoke, he casually pushed the pen on the table toward Ma Hua.

A dozen minutes later, Ma Hua rushed into the kitchen, clutching the forms, her face beaming: "Master! I've been promoted! Director Zhang said my salary will be adjusted, and I'll go to the personnel department to get my new certificate in a bit!"

He Yuzhu wiped his hands and grinned, "How about we make a trip together and bring the gifts back? You're a scaredy-cat, I'll go with you to keep you brave!"

Ma Hua's face immediately fell, and she looked at him with a pained expression: "Master... how old are you? You think you can get back what you've given away?"

He Yuzhu's eyelids twitched—this kid didn't say that last night.

He was clearly clutching the bottle, yelling, "Fourteen yuan! That's enough for my family to eat for half a month! The liquor! You have to return two bottles! The rest... never mind!"

He Yuzhu rolled his eyes, glanced at Ma Hua sideways, and didn't bother to pay any attention to him.

He turned around and, beaming, approached Liu Lan, chattering on about the good news he had just heard.

This impulsive nature of his is just asking for trouble by putting him on the black market—I just slammed my fist on the table yesterday and told him: "If you don't get the official notification, keep your mouth shut!"

And what happened? Less than half a day later, the whole cafeteria was abuzz with news that he had "gotten a secure job."

On the other hand, no one knows how much Liu Lan has quietly earned these days; she doesn't utter a word about it, and continues to wear her faded work clothes, head down, into the factory, working diligently.

Ma Hua rushed over to He Yuzhu like a whirlwind, waving a neatly folded work uniform in her hand: "Master, I almost forgot! I washed all the clothes and dried them by the stove, look—"

He Yuzhu's eyelids drooped: "You're the one who's my master, you hollow-headed vegetable!"

MCA scratched his head: "But I really didn't teach you anything!"

Before he finished speaking, everyone around burst into laughter, and the sound of spoons clattering against bowls became even louder.

He Yuzhu quickly made his escape and headed straight for the food window—if he chatted with this kid any longer, he might choke to death.

As soon as the lunch break bell rang,

Ma Hua hummed a little tune as he walked home, rummaging through drawers and cabinets looking for his ID card.

Old Ma, with a cigarette dangling from his lips, looked up and said, "What are you doing, Hua Zi? Like your butt's on fire?"

"Dad, where did you put my ID card? I need it urgently!"

"It's under my pillow, tucked inside the lining of my household registration book. What do you need it for?"

"Go to the personnel department to complete the formalities for becoming a permanent employee, and pick up your work permit and food ration book!"

"What?! I've been promoted to a permanent position already?!"

Ma Laosan was stunned, and almost dropped his cigarette—his second brother's son had been wielding a shovel at the cement factory for almost two years, and he was still just a temporary worker! How could He Yuzhu be so fast?

MCA members rushed excitedly into the personnel department, where a long queue had already formed.

He stood on tiptoe and took a look. Good heavens, there were several people going through the formal procedures for becoming employees. Then he glanced at the person next to him who was transferring his grain ration book and looked closely at the pay column—fifty-one yuan and fifty cents!

Ma Hua was stunned on the spot, his mouth slightly open, his tongue seemingly stuck in his throat, unable to close for a long time.

Even after the other person finished and left, he was still standing there dumbfounded, his eyes fixed on that form.

"Comrade! Comrade!" The staff called out twice before pulling him back to his senses.

"Hello, this is where you handle grain transfer and work permits. Did you bring your workshop supervisor's notification slip?"

Ma Hua suddenly snapped out of his daze and hurriedly pulled out his ID card from his pocket: "Here I am! I'm Ma Hua from the third branch of the steel rolling mill, this is my ID!"