Courtyard Houses: The Great Masters of a Nation Hidden Within

Lou Xiao'e only turned around and pushed open the courtyard gate to enter the house after Gao Jianguo's bicycle turned around at the alley entrance.

Lou's father was leaning back on the sofa, his eyes half-closed, while a play was playing on the gramophone.

The door opened, and he saw his daughter come in. He moved his lips, but then swallowed his words.

Lou Xiao'e rolled her eyes and sat down on the sofa. "Dad, is there a typewriter in our storeroom? It's been gathering dust there for years."

Lou's father opened his eyes a crack: "Yes, I have some. Take it if you want."

It's just a broken typewriter; let my daughter do whatever she wants with it, it's nothing valuable anyway.

Lou Xiao'e bit her lip, then steeled herself and spoke again: "Then... I'd like to give away the TV in my room too, is that alright?"

Lou's father couldn't lie still any longer and sat up abruptly.

This is such a rapid waste of money.

He straightened up and blurted out all the questions he'd been holding back for days: "Tell me clearly first, who are you sending them to? If you're moving my things out, at least let me know whose house they're going to, right? Judging by this, it might be more than just a TV set that's going to be moved out later."

Lou Xiao'e blushed: "Dad, what are you thinking about?"

Lou's father thought to himself that since he had started asking, he had to get to the bottom of it. He couldn't have asked for nothing after all that time. "Do you think I'm just a decoration? Tell me, what's going on?"

Lou Xiao'e learned to cook from the family cook, and the cook immediately told Lou's father about it.

However, after thinking about the time she left home, Lou's father deduced that the person she met every week had a proper job and wasn't the kind who just loafed around on the street. Moreover, this person was probably quite busy, otherwise why wouldn't his daughter go to see him except on Sundays?

After considering this, Mr. Lou felt relatively at ease, which was the main reason why he hadn't interfered much.

Now that his daughter had started the conversation herself, why wouldn't he take this opportunity to ask her a few more questions?

Lou Xiao'e thought about it and felt there was nothing to hide, so she told Gao Jianguo's story from beginning to end.

At the beginning, Lou's father was doing quite well—he was a recent college graduate, good-looking, and worked as a technician in the steel rolling mill; he was quite capable.

But the more he listened, the more he couldn't hide the worry on his face.

After his daughter finished speaking, Mr. Lou asked the question that bothered him the most: "According to you, given his circumstances and our family's social standing, didn't he back down?"

Lou Xiao'e smiled, her tone very reassuring: "Dad, I know what you're afraid of. He knows our family's situation inside and out. He himself said it's nothing to worry about; he knows what he's got. Don't ask me what he's got, I don't know either, but he wouldn't lie to me."

After a moment of silence, Mr. Lou was still not completely at ease: "How about this, invite him over for a meal next week."

Lou Xiao'e felt embarrassed: "Isn't it too early?"

Lou's father poked her forehead with his finger: "What do you mean 'early'? You've already started moving big items out, so I'd rather take a look first to be on the safe side. Whether you two will get together or not can wait, the family needs to meet first. As for the TV, you decide for yourself, it's in your room anyway, not mine."

Mr. Lou didn't really care much about televisions.

Lou Xiao'e nodded happily: "Okay, I'll tell him when I deliver the things to him tomorrow. He's very busy, so telling him early will give him some free time."

Seeing his daughter's cheerful expression, Mr. Lou couldn't help but shake his head.

This cotton-padded coat is quite drafty; it probably won't keep you warm for more than a few days.

On Monday afternoon, Gao Jianguo finished his day's work and was walking home when he was stunned at his doorstep.

Lou Xiao'e was wrapped up tightly, with several workers standing beside her, and two boxes, one large and one small, on the ground.

I knew without even looking that a typewriter had been delivered.

Why is this typewriter so big?

The alleyway wasn't the place to talk, so Gao Jianguo quickly opened the door and let the person in.

Lou Xiao'e knew the layout of the place as well as her own home, and immediately told the craftsmen to move the boxes into the south room where the sunlight was completely blocked.

Gao Jianguo paid the workers their wages and saw them out.

He turned and closed the door, then hugged Lou Xiao'e tightly: "Why did you move here so quickly? It's so cold. It would have been better if I had waited until Sunday to pick it up."

Lou Xiao'e snuggled against him and said, "I was thinking that the sooner you get to use the machine, the sooner you can start working. The job you mentioned is quite important, so every day earlier is a good day."

After saying that, she added something even more audacious: "I've brought the TV over too."

Gao Jianguo finally understood everything—he not only understood why the typewriter was so big, but also why Lou Xiao'e was in such a hurry.

Before he could even open his mouth, Lou Xiao'e jumped up, tapped his lips with her fingertip, and made a "shh" gesture: "Don't say anything else, we've already moved it here."

Alright, everything's inside.

Gao Jianguo knew that it would be too unreasonable to push them away at this point.

Although he worked in a steel mill rolling mill, he wasn't immune to social niceties and wouldn't be stubborn at this moment. He simply changed the subject: "Then what are your parents looking at? This gift is too much, I'm really embarrassed."

Lou Xiao'e replied matter-of-factly, "My parents watch their TV, this is the one in my room, it doesn't matter."

Gao Jianguo's mind went blank for a moment. He realized that the saying "poverty limits one's horizons" that he often heard people say in his past life must mean this.

He grinned and said, "Fine, never mind."

Lou Xiao'e was amused by his reaction: "Come inside and see if it's suitable. I'll go make the food."

Seeing Lou Xiao'e walking confidently towards the stove, Gao Jianguo smiled.

He stopped being coy and simply called out to her that there were steamed buns in the cupboard, so she didn't need to steam any more staple food.

Lou Xiao'e gave a crisp reply, and Gao Jianguo went into the south room.

Upon opening the box, the typewriter was found to be in good condition.

Lou Xiao'e wiped the dust off the machine clean, making it shine brightly.

The mechanical keyboard operates very smoothly; the "click-clack" sound when you tap your fingers is even better than the mechanical keyboard I used in my previous life.

He didn't look at the television closely; since Lou Xiao'e had been watching it the whole time, it must be fine.

The remaining task is simply to figure out how to convert the computer's output signal into a television signal.

While the two of them were being all lovey-dovey, the Yan couple across the street were gossiping in their house.

Just as Gao Jianguo saw the movers off, Yan Bugui pulled his face away from the window and whispered to the third aunt, "Just watch, Gao Jianguo across the street is about to have his wedding. That girl comes here every few days, and now she's even brought her dowry over."

The third aunt rolled her eyes at him: "Nonsense! Have you ever seen a family take the dowry to the groom's house first, then take it back before the wedding, and then take it again on the wedding day? What a waste of time."

Yan Bugui thought about it for a moment, and it seemed to make sense, but he still objected: "Then what do you think that big box of stuff is?"

The three women shoved a handful of half-finished vegetables in front of him: "You're so bored, lend a hand and help pick these vegetables!"

After dinner, Gao Jianguo took Lou Xiao'e home. He returned home before eight o'clock.

He didn't linger. He went inside, picked up the typewriter, and headed out, planning his dinner at the Lou family's house on Sunday. Without stopping, he went straight to Yi Zhonghai's house in the Central Court.