The Life of a Son-in-Law in a Courtyard House

After hearing this, Ma San asked Yang Dalin, "Brother, did you learn these things by making friends with older people?"

Yang Dalin was taken aback, then nodded: "That's right, we two brothers are a bit alike. In fact, the first teachers in life are our parents."

My parents are gone, and so are yours.

Since no one is teaching us these principles anymore, I'll learn from my aunt, from Brother Zhu, and from Uncle Qi.

They have some experience, and they may be wrong in some ways, but they are still better than us, who are young and ignorant and have to bang our heads against the wall to learn the pain.

So when you go out to work in the future, learn more from experienced and older people.

Do you understand?

Ma San replied, "Got it, bro."

Yang Dalin felt that he had said enough and could not preach too much at once.

Children need to be taught slowly.

I not only learned from people who had traveled through time, but I also lived for more than 30 years in my previous life, and much of my experience came from suffering losses.

Then Yang Dalin told him, "Alright, hide the things well. I'll wait for you outside. Let's go eat first."

Yang Dalin waited for a while, and Ma San quickly came out, locked the door, and followed Yang Dalin outside.

Along the way, Ma San met many neighbors from No. 94 Courtyard and introduced them to each one.

Yang Dalin greeted many people.

After leaving the gate of courtyard number 94, Yang Dalin led him to courtyard number 95.

Yang Dalin started by introducing the people in their courtyard to Ma San, beginning with Grandpa Qi at the entrance.

When they entered the hanging flower gate, Yang Dalin specially introduced Yan Bugui, who was putting on airs again, to Ma San.

As soon as Yang Dalin mentioned that this was Teacher Yan, Ma San quietly told him, "Brother, I know this guy. He's incredibly stingy and loves to take advantage of people!"

Yang Dalin asked him in a surprised whisper, "What's wrong? Does everyone in your yard know?"

Ma San whispered, "Well, good news doesn't travel far, but bad news travels fast."

Our institute, and several other nearby institutes, probably already know about it.

Yan Bugui had just met Yang Dalin, who introduced him to Ma San, and thought he could mend his relationship with Yang Dalin.

As a result, after Ma San called out "Teacher Yan," he ignored him. Yan Bugui saw the two people standing at the opposite door, chirping and talking about something.

Yan Bugui always felt that the other party hadn't said anything good about him.

But I really can't hear it.

They could only pretend to continue cleaning at the entrance.

When Yang Dalin heard that Yan Bugui's reputation had spread, he couldn't help but laugh again.

He said, "Come on, let's go inside first."

Yang Dalin led Ma Sanyi into the house, where he noticed Qi Xiaoning cooking and a half-finished cup of tea on the table where Aunt Qi was sitting.

When Qi Yulan saw that Ma San had come again, she quickly invited him to sit down.

Yang Dalin asked, "Auntie, did someone come to our house just now?"

Aunt Qi first had Qi Xiaoning add a few steamed buns made from two kinds of flour to the pot. She knew that Yang Dalin was bringing Ma San over at this time, so they were definitely going to eat at home.

Then she answered him, "Yes, before you came back, the deaf old lady in the backyard sat here for a while."

She left when she saw that we had started cooking.

The implication is that they're praising you, saying you're a good child who understands the bigger picture and prioritizes the overall situation.

He is filial, sensible, and a capable and good child.

Then she said I was blessed, and that our family could enjoy good fortune now that you were here.

Then she left, and this tea was brewed for her.

After listening for a while, Yang Dalin understood that the deaf old lady must have come to extend goodwill.

So far, Yang Dalin has not realized any malice from the deaf old lady.

Or perhaps she's hiding it so well that she hasn't yet caught on.

However, I currently have no conflict of interest with her, so she wouldn't deliberately make enemies for me.

The deaf old lady was quite formidable; she probably had connections. Later, Yi Zhonghai had already won over Sha Zhu by 1965.

With these two great helpers in the yard, she became truly awesome.

Otherwise, if an old woman with no children takes advantage of her age, who would tolerate her?

Many elderly women in rural areas are powerful because they have many sons and grandsons, which is why they dare to act so arrogantly.

Have you ever seen a childless person who is so domineering?

Yang Dalin had lived in the countryside for many years in his previous life and had never seen it before.

Just like the old lady across the street from him, who shares the same surname and is within five degrees of kinship.

He had eight daughters and one son, and was constantly bullied from the beginning.

The next eight daughters got married one after another, three of whom married into the same village.

Four of them married into nearby villages, the youngest daughter married someone from another place, and the son has also grown up and gotten married.

He once got into a fight with someone over a piece of land, and his seven sons-in-law, seven daughters, and sons and daughters-in-law were all involved. He became famous overnight.

From then on, no one dared to bully her family anymore.

Before that, the old lady always greeted everyone with a smile.

If you don't have some confidence, nobody's a fool.

As people age, their physical abilities diminish. If the deaf old lady dares to bully Yang Dalin, all Yang Dalin needs to do is trip her up when she goes out, and that will be enough to make her suffer.

If she's not careful, a slight bump could send the old lady to her death.

Therefore, it was a wise move for the deaf old lady to come and show kindness.

No matter how many connections you have, you still live in this compound.

You'll run into each other all the time. Smart people, who would deliberately make themselves uncomfortable?

Moreover, Yang Dalin was a young man who already had a reputation in the compound.

They caught petty thugs, arrested human traffickers, and rescued so many children with powerful connections.

So Yang Dalin quickly figured it out.

Seeing that Yang Dalin was deep in thought, Qi Yulan said, "This old lady basically has no contact with our family. I don't know why she suddenly came to sit for a while today."

Yang Dalin's thoughts were interrupted by Qi Yulan, who told his aunt, "It's alright, Auntie, she's just trying to curry favor. We'll just be polite to her when we see her in the future. After all, she's over seventy years old, a very old woman."

In the early days of the People's Republic of China, the average life expectancy was over 30 years. Now, ten years later, the average life expectancy is only over 40 years. Seventy years old is considered a long life.

This is far from the average lifespan of nearly 80 years in later generations.

That old deaf man's lifespan is truly remarkable.

He could have lived for several more years; he only passed away during the windy season. I estimate he lived to be over eighty, which is truly remarkable.

Dinner was ready quickly, and tonight's dinner was pretty much the same as yesterday's.

However, it's still much better than what Ma San eats, and even better than what most people eat.

Ma San is a bit better today than yesterday.

He wasn't so reserved anymore, but after finishing the first steamed bun made from two kinds of dough, he was too embarrassed to take any more. It was Aunt Qi who gave him some before he continued eating.

Aunt Qi knew about Ma San's background and, having gained power, didn't care about this and even pitied him.

Later, while they were eating, Yang Dalin told Aunt Qi that he would have Ma San come over for dinner every night from now on.

If anyone asks, just say that Ma San paid for our meals.

Ma San tried to refuse, but Yang Dalin grabbed his hand.

"When I make money in the future, I'll just treat my brother and aunt well, that's all."

After saying that, he winked at Ma San.

Ma San knew that Yang Dalin was referring to the gold bars.

Seeing that Yang Dalin had made arrangements, Ma San could only agree to have a good meal in the evening to help him recover from his illness, since he would be working during the day.

Ma San thought to himself that he must be good to Brother Dalin and his aunt's family in the future.