Era: A college student came to the courtyard house

"Hey, what's up, Pillar Bro?"

As Qin Huairu walked away, Fang Yuan immediately asked He Yuzhu.

"I came to see you yesterday, wanting to have a drink with you, but unfortunately you weren't home." He Yuzhu said, pulling a bottle of liquor from his pocket and shaking it smugly. Then, carrying a bag of peanuts, he walked into the room, cheerfully saying, "Now I even have some snacks to go with the drinks."

Fang Yuan was home alone and had nothing to do, so he immediately agreed, "Then you serve the wine today, and I'll serve the dishes."

Done.

Fang Yuan brought out all the food he had at home, including the braised pork slices he had packed for lunch.

"Goodness, then we don't need to steam rice today. I'll make some noodles after we finish drinking."

"Alright, you're the head chef, I'll do as you say."

Eating noodles was just what Fang Yuan wanted, so he washed his hands first and then started helping He Yuzhu with the food.

They seem very busy, but in reality, they haven't done anything at all.

Finally, He Yuzhu couldn't stand it anymore and pointed to a stool not far away: "Alright, alright, college student, you can sit down and rest for a while. Just wait to eat."

Fang Yuan watched as he started frying eggs, then took out a cigarette, sat down on the stool, and leisurely began to smoke.

There were only two dishes that required cooking, and He Yuzhu finished them off without much effort.

Looking at the table, there was a spicy and sour cabbage, a stir-fried egg with garlic sprouts, and a peanut.

Fang Yuan filled their wine cups with wine, and then each of them raised their cups.

"Let's have one!"

He Yuzhu smacked his lips after finishing his drink, then glanced around Fang Yuan's room and said, "Hey bro, you've got this job now, it's time to find a wife."

"Let's talk about it after we have a stable job." Fang Yuan directly picked up a few peanuts and stuffed them into his mouth, then changed the subject, saying, "Hey, Brother Zhu, Sister Qin's son stealing isn't a good habit. Since you know that, why don't you say anything?"

Without a second thought, He Yuzhu replied with a "heh," "Her family isn't having an easy time either. We're all neighbors, so we should help each other out if we can."

"You're probably up to something, aren't you?"

They were all grown men, and Fang Yuan didn't hold back in his speech; he said whatever came to mind.

In his view, if He Yuzhu continues to foolishly cling to Widow Qin, he will eventually be finished.

However, it's hard to persuade a damned ghost with kind words.

He just said a few words, as long as that kid Banggeng doesn't steal things from his house in the future.

Seeing He Yuzhu's awkward smile, Fang Yuan didn't press the matter further. He tasted the spicy and sour cabbage with his chopsticks and said, "This level of skill... I've really learned something new today. No complaints, it's very flavorful."

People praise each other.

Faced with Fang Yuan's praise, He Yuzhu said smugly, "That's nothing. I'll get some good materials tomorrow and show you a few of my signature dishes."

"Then I'll be waiting," Fang Yuan said, raising his glass with a smile.

As they drank and chatted, whenever He Yuzhu tried to talk about work, Fang Yuan would deliberately steer the conversation away from it. Eventually, the two bachelors' conversation revolved around women and drinking.

After several rounds of drinks, Fang Yuan was still relatively unaffected, but He Yuzhu was slightly tipsy and began to speak incoherently.

"Little Fang, you're so great! As your older brother, I'm so envious."

"What's so great about me?"

"He's young, a college student, and handsome. He'll definitely find a beautiful wife in the future."

Fang Yuan smiled speechlessly, knowing that he was obsessed with finding a beautiful wife, otherwise he wouldn't be single until now.

"Brother Zhu, you're not bad either, finding a wife shouldn't be difficult."

He Yuzhu shook his head after hearing this, and the image of Widow Qin appeared in his mind.

"Forget about that, do you know why I insisted on having a drink with you today?"

"Why?" Fang Yuan asked in return.

"Just because you call me 'Brother Zhu' over and over again, I consider you my brother from the bottom of my heart."

Fang Yuan didn't expect that such a simple address would make He Yuzhu take it to heart so much, but thinking about it, it makes sense. Even Qin Huairu's 8-year-old son, Bang Geng'er, calls him Sha Zhu in the whole tenement.

It's true that the more people lack something, the more they care about it.

Fang Yuan didn't respond, but instead raised his glass to He Yuzhu, letting the wine speak for itself.

Finally, having eaten and drunk his fill, He Yuzhu happily left Fang Yuan's house carrying an empty bottle.

After cleaning up the battlefield, Fang Yuan went out to take care of some personal matters.

Just as he reached the entrance of the courtyard, he suddenly felt someone running up behind him. Fang Yuan immediately stopped and turned around.

"oops."

With a sharp shout, Fang Yuan staggered slightly backward, and the other person also leaned back.

He looked closely and saw that it was Qin Huairu again. Without thinking, he quickly exclaimed "Hey!" and pulled her up so that she didn't fall.

However, in the rush, the two bumped into each other, and Qin Huairu's two big steamed buns were instantly squeezed into a pancake shape.

Even through the thin short-sleeved shirt, Fang Yuan could truly feel the astonishing scale.

To break the awkward silence, he spoke first, "Sister Qin, are you alright?"

"It's nothing, it's nothing." Qin Huairu blushed, ignoring the slight pain in her chest, and replied, "Xiao Fang, don't go yet, I have something to tell you."

Fang Yuan took a few steps back, increasing the distance between the two.

Qin Huairu explained, "Xiao Fang, I really didn't know that Bang Geng'er took that plate of peanuts from Sha Zhu. I already told him about his bad habit when we got back."

They're all ancient foxes, yet they're still playing at playing ghost stories.

Is this a prelude to playing the emotional card?

"Whether it is or not, that's something Brother Zhu should care about." Feeling that he had spoken a bit too directly, Fang Yuan continued, "Sister Qin, I know that you've had a tough time all these years. Since Brother Jia left, you've been both a father and a mother to the family, supporting it all by yourself."

That's why they say women are made of water.

Qin Huairu, who rarely felt understood, immediately burst into tears. Her peach blossom eyes, now moist, made Fang Yuan, who was drunk, feel agitated.

They truly have such captivating eyes; even when looking at a dog, they exude such affection.

"Xiao Fang, thank you for your understanding." Qin Huairu looked at Fang Yuan earnestly, and even took a few steps forward as she spoke.

Smelling the faint scent of face cream in the air, Fang Yuan took a deep breath to calm himself down and continued, "But Sister Qin, I have to say, you have to start educating your child early. If you really want Banggeng to be successful in the future, you can't spoil him. Stealing is no longer a matter of whether he's used to it or not."

"If you indulge him once or twice, what if he gets caught stealing outside? That would be a serious matter. You don't want him to end up in a juvenile detention center at such a young age, do you?"