Courtyard House: Starting with a 28-inch motorcycle

Xu Damao's family knew perfectly well what was going on, but what family doesn't have a few people crashing their wedding? They just turned a blind eye.

The tables, chairs, and benches had already been borrowed and were neatly arranged in the yard.

Around noon, Xu Damao rode his bicycle to pick up his bride and brought her to the entrance of the courtyard house. Firecrackers crackled and popped, making the window paper vibrate.

He Yuzhu nodded to MCA: "Let's get started!"

All ten tables of dishes were served in one round, and the work was completed smoothly in two rounds.

He Yushui, carrying one child in each arm, toddled along, leading the two babies to squeeze into the table. He Yuzhu's eyelids twitched—he had just told her to watch the children on the kang (heated brick bed), and in the blink of an eye, she'd dragged them all over!

An older woman rushed forward and hugged Fangfang tightly in her arms.

He Yushui, however, argued confidently: "An old lady like me should let her child run around all over the place! The more he runs, the stronger his bones and muscles will become!"

The older woman was skeptical. She glanced at the other children running around and didn't say anything more, but just hugged Fangfang even tighter.

Just then, the steel mill's closing bell rang, and a crowd surged into the courtyard, taking their seats. An old man spotted Yi Jiye sitting alone on a small stool from afar, rushed over, scooped him up, and pulled him into his arms. Bystanders murmured, "Spoiled like this, what will become of him?"

The task of serving the dishes was handled by a few young men who simply slammed large bowls onto the table; this was not He Yuzhu's responsibility.

Jia Zhangshi, along with Banggeng and Xiaodang, found an empty seat and sat down.

The courtyard was filled with noise and bustling with voices.

The old man stood guard at the entrance of the courtyard, collecting monetary gifts. He had a notebook open beside him, meticulously noting down how much each family had given.

Today, He Yuzhu was doing his work voluntarily, but He Yushui foolishly stuffed a dollar into his pocket.

After the first round of guests finished eating, many took their lunchboxes home; only then were the second round of dishes served piping hot.

After the last dish was cleared away, He Yuzhu and Ma Hua wiped their mouths and sat down to eat.

Xu Damao appeared arm in arm with his bride, holding a wine glass as they went from table to table toasting.

As he approached this table, he beamed and said, "Thank you all for coming! From now on, if anyone needs anything, I, Xu Damao, will never refuse—cheers!" He tilted his head back and took a small sip.

Everyone raised their glasses and clinked them together.

After finishing his meal, Ma Hua carried half a box of leftovers, pocketed his 50 cents wages, and walked briskly home.

He Yuzhu also headed home; it was bitterly cold outside, and the kang (heated brick bed) was the most comfortable place.

Pushing open the door, a bright light appeared before my eyes: He Yushui was sitting cross-legged on the kang (a heated brick bed), Yi Jiye was riding on her back like a horse, Fangfang was playing with buttons on her lap, and an old lady was sitting next to her watching with a smile.

He Yuzhu was speechless—this girl was probably going against him! Wasn't the kang (heated brick bed) in her own room nice enough? Why did she have to come here and make a fuss? She probably thought Fangfang and the others were messing up her room and wanted to run wild in his clean spot!

The next morning, as soon as I opened the door, snow started falling again, softly. Today was payday.

He Yuzhu hummed a little tune as he walked into the factory through the thin snow.

He bumped into Qin Huairu halfway there, but he was too lazy to go around and just pretended not to see her—after all, the two families had just had a fight, and neither owed the other any face.

They walked in silence, heads bowed.

Upon entering the cafeteria, one is greeted by smiling faces everywhere, hands busy at work, and banter and jokes among themselves.

Everyone nodded at him, then went back to their work.

Director Zhang strolled in at that moment: "Xiao He, come here for a moment."

The two walked into the office side by side and sat down.

Director Zhang got straight to the point: "Xiao He, I've found out that this group of model workers doesn't have bicycle tickets, only sewing tickets."

He Yuzhu nodded: "Sure, it's good to have a sewing ticket."

Director Zhang continued, "Besides, you won't be able to go on stage to receive the award—the year-end award is for the model worker of the year, and that's a much more prestigious prize; there are only two such awards in the entire factory. This time, you can only receive it privately. I'll give you a slip of paper, and you can go directly to the logistics department to collect the ticket."

He Yuzhu hesitated for a moment, then said, "Director, I'd like to be transferred to the front-line workshop to sweep floors, and I need a permanent position. What documents do I need to prepare? And who should I talk to for the best results?"

He Yuzhu: "My household registration is in the city, so there's no rush—the procedures will definitely be completed by next spring."

Director Zhang: "Then I can make the decision and get it done for you. If you have a rural household registration and can't transfer your grain ration certificate, you'll be stuck."

He Yuzhu had just stepped into the back door of the cafeteria, and hadn't even had time to take off his apron,

Suddenly, a loudspeaker blared: "Payment will be issued at noon! All workers, please go to the finance department to collect your pay—"

……

As soon as the words were spoken, the entire factory seemed to spring into action. Those sweeping, moving goods, and chopping vegetables immediately became much more efficient in their work.

Just after getting his lunch, Ma Hua dashed off towards the finance department as if he were scrambling for the lottery; a crowd of people shoved and jostled behind him, all heading toward that small window.

Ma Hua came out clutching a 22.50 dollar bill, his face beaming, his mouth practically stretched to his ears.

He Yuzhu didn't push his way through; he just stood quietly at the back of the line, waited for his turn, took the thirty-four yuan and fifty cents, and turned to leave.

Qin Huairu was in front of him in line, but he didn't even lift his eyelids.

Looking at her now, He Yuzhu couldn't help but wonder: this woman seemed to have changed completely—when Qi Laosan's family borrowed money, she was able to apologize to He Yushui in person, smiling naturally without even a tremor in her eyes; on the day Banggeng had the accident, the hatred she glared at him with was deeply hidden, yet she also suppressed it; what was even more amazing was when He Yushui made a huge scene, there wasn't a trace of anger on her face, but rather a faint sense of apology, as if she wasn't the one being scolded, but rather she was the one who had taken the blame for the whole family.

The rumors had already spread throughout the courtyard: her family had raised an ungrateful wretch. How many clean people could possibly be in that family?

He Yuzhu grew increasingly terrified as she thought about it—this wasn't growth, it was a complete transformation, a shedding of all shells, even the outer shell had been burned to ashes.

He Yushui had changed too. She was still calling her "sister," but then she turned around and spat, "A bunch of worthless wrecked pots!"

He Yuzhu sighed inwardly: He had really met a master. If it weren't for Jia Zhangshi dragging her down from time to time, probably no one in the courtyard could outdo her—not even himself.

Does her method have any bottom line? If it does, she might end up squatting against a wall eating mud if she's not careful.

Therefore, avoiding her is the safest course of action. The farther away you are from her, the more secure you'll feel.

From the day she started faking her lameness, He Yuzhu was certain that someone was behind it all, and that it was a cunning old fox.

At night, the front door is bolted, and during the day, the sounds of wind and rain are treated as if they were just a gust of wind passing by.

Today is payday, and the factory is filled with joy, but there are also some people in the corner who look dejected.

Yu Wenyan—that recent college graduate—had only been there a few days before being completely dominated by two widows. One was strikingly beautiful, the other alluring; both were irresistible.

He was just a greenhorn, how could he withstand such a show of force? Once he crawled through that grove of trees, he would have his weakness firmly in their hands.

Although it's said to "kill two birds with one stone," with a monthly salary of 51.5 yuan, only 20 yuan is left after taking it in, leaving the pockets emptier than the face.

But he's quite handsome: the two most beautiful women in the factory are now both his.

Qin Huairu had only been in the factory for a few days when she became inseparable from Widow Wang, as if they were long-lost sisters.

Widow Wang was a year older than her, and she was very knowledgeable about human relationships and social customs, and her words and actions were always impeccable.

The two often huddled together in a corner of the workshop, whispering about the hardships of daily life, how unreliable men are, and how their children would ask for food...

Once the conversation starts, things go awry.

Widow Wang lowered her voice: "Sister, it's really not hard to live a comfortable life."

Qin Huairu gave a wry smile: "Sister Wang, how can I be comfortable raising three children on my own and taking care of my mother-in-law?"

Widow Wang tapped her temple with her fingertip: "There are some tricks to it. As long as a woman loosens her grip, she can earn more steadily than a man."

Qin Huairu was taken aback: "But what if word gets out...where will we put our faces?"

Widow Wang smiled confidently: "The tubal ligation has been done, everything's fine. If someone sees you doing it, just say you were forced—who would believe you dare to resist?"

Qin Huairu hesitated: "But after the surgery, I'll need to rest for several days..."

Widow Wang patted the back of her hand: "No rush. Let's win over that new college student first. As for the surgery, I'll think of a foolproof plan for you."

After that, the two of them would always find excuses to go to the technician's place, to offer him water, ask him about blueprints, borrow a wrench... Before long, they became familiar with each other and their hearts were close.

When the three of them returned from the grove, Widow Wang immediately taught her: Pretend to be injured! Leg pain, backache, dizziness—she could choose any excuse. The reasons were readily available: surgery would be legitimate, and recuperation would be justified.

Unexpectedly, an old man suddenly appeared and started organizing donations from the entire hospital. She had no choice but to bite the bullet and play along to the end.

Before leaving, Widow Wang gave him these words of advice: "In the future, you must think more about others—help this one, assist that one, and be sweet-talking and soft-hearted. If anything goes wrong, everyone will believe you first, saying that you were coerced, forced, or had no choice in the matter."

They continued walking together on the road. And the two widows stood forever atop the waves, unmoved.

Qin Huairu pocketed 42.5 yuan today:

Seventeen yuan and fifty cents for wages, ten yuan for "medical expenses," and fifteen yuan for "gift money."

She ran her fingertips along the edge of the banknote, feeling more at ease than if she had eaten honey—the way of life that Sister Wang taught her really worked.

An old man received eighty-four yuan and a handful of food coupons, his eyebrows lifting in delight. Now his two kids' snacks were taken care of.

He hummed a little tune as he pedaled his old bicycle toward the courtyard house.

When he ran into an acquaintance on the street who asked to borrow money, he waved his hand and said only, "I really don't have any left. I handed over all the money I just received to the grain tax."

Carrying pickles, sugar, and noodles, he didn't offer anyone a bite—in the past, he would have been calling out, "Come on, have a piece of candy!"

Pushing open the courtyard gate, Jiye and Fangfang rushed over like two little sparrows, calling out "Daddy" in their sweet, childish voices, which softened his heart.

Others want to benefit from this? Fine, call me "Dad" first.

An older woman quickly came forward: "Put it down! It's heavy, put it down first before you pick up the child!"

An old man lifted Fangfang high in the air and said as he walked, "Take some of these to the old lady. If you have nothing to do, bring the two kids over to visit more often—the old lady lives alone and gets bored."

An older woman replied, "I'll take them over after dinner. Rain is also coming, so the old lady won't be lonely."

An old man nodded: "Let's save this money for Jiye's wedding and for Fangfang's dowry. If anyone comes to borrow money again, just tell them the truth: our whole family is asking for money, but we really can't afford it."