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

Liu's father, of course, keenly noticed Yang Dalin's frown and asked, "What's wrong, Dalin? Don't you agree with what I said, or is your Uncle Liu wrong?"

Yang Dalin thought of the anti-Confucius movement that would follow. Although it hadn't been brought up yet, it didn't affect his clear stance. So Yang Dalin shook his head and said, "No, Uncle Liu, it's just that I look down on the practices of Confucius's descendants."

It should be noted that the Kong family, one of the four major families before liberation, also claimed to be descendants of a sage.

If all those who follow in the footsteps of sages are like this, then forget it.

That criticism was absolutely justified.

When Zhao's father heard Yang Dalin say this, he became interested: "Oh, what do you mean by that?"

Yang Dalin explained: "Confucius's Confucianism was useful in ancient times. Ancient emperors needed his ideas to help them maintain their rule. Let's not talk about whether his ideas were right or wrong."

But the actions of their descendants—surrendering to the Jin Dynasty, the Yuan Dynasty, the Qing Dynasty, and even to Germany—are truly shameful. I really dislike these descendants.

This was the first time that Liu's father and Zhao's father had ever heard of such a thing. Of the two, Liu's father was slightly more educated than Zhao's father.

Zhao's father was a basket weaver by trade, and Liu's father only attended a private school for a few years, so their Confucian ideas were not deeply ingrained.

Many people still respect Confucianism, and this is the first time they've heard this argument, and the first time they've learned that the descendants of Confucius are still a bunch of such people.

Seeing that the men had started talking about their favorite topics and that the group of grown men were finally less awkward, Zhao Ma kept quiet.

Having completed his task of setting up the connection, he told Yang Dalin, "I'm going to check on the kitchen," and left.

Liu's father leaned forward and asked, "Dalin, is everything you said true?"

Yang Dalin said, "Of course it's true. I heard it from an old scholar in my hometown. Although he studied the classics, he tried to take the revolutionary path after the Qing Dynasty ended. Unfortunately, he was injured in the leg during the warlord wars. He returned to his hometown to teach, and died of illness a few years after liberation."

When I was little, I loved listening to his stories; these were the stories he told me.

This person does exist in Yang Dalin's hometown. His main argument is that there is no way to verify the truth since he is dead, and he doesn't currently hold any ideas about criticizing Confucius.

Therefore, Yang Dalin's argument can be described as earth-shattering.

However, neither of them is very educated; they're just chatting for fun, so there's no need to worry about them taking it too seriously.

They thought Yang Dalin was too young to see the whole picture.

Father Zhao silently took a puff of his cigarette and said, "This is the first time I've heard of this. But it's true that the Kong family, one of the four great families in the past, was no good. They were supposedly descendants of a sage back then."

Liu's father leaned forward, then leaned back: "Indeed, some scholars have corrupted their minds."

It's better that we didn't study much; we're less cunning and can just focus on the good of the country.

"Dalin is a good kid; he's aware and has good judgment."

Yang Dalin said embarrassedly, "No, no, Uncle Liu, I'm just outspoken and I can't stand their way of doing things."

Yang Dalin brought this up intentionally, subtly expressing his stance. He meant that although he was not highly educated, he had his own understanding, despised those people's actions, and also recognized his own patriotic thoughts as a poor and lower-middle peasant.

Chat with these two generals, who were not highly educated and had survived the fire, and let them know that you are of the same social class as them.

This naturally brings them closer together.

If I pretend to be a cultured person, these two might not even like me.

Yang Dalin came from a peasant family in both his past and present lives, and he did not have the kind of arrogant attitude that comes with being educated.

This made them both very comfortable.

Otherwise, if you pretend to be very cultured and knowledgeable in front of the two generals, not only will they become suspicious of you, but they may also stop letting you play with their children.

This is why some of the early generals, who came from humble backgrounds, could appreciate this argument. But if we were to look at it in later generations, to those who had received a poor education, then forget about it.

People will find a lot of fallacies to convince you.

When Yang Dalin talked to Liu's father and Zhao's father about these kinds of stories, it still attracted the attention of the little ones.

Before Liu's father could say anything more, Zhao's mother's voice suddenly came from the kitchen: "Yuqin, Yumin, the food is ready. Come and bring the dishes."

Then Liu's father wisely shut up, and Zhao's father also said, "Okay, let's eat first!"

Let's talk after we finish eating.

It turns out there was also a housekeeper in the kitchen, who was essentially a nanny.

She was in charge of cooking.

Moreover, they ate at the same table as Zhao's father.

There's no longer the old custom where nannies had to eat alone in the kitchen.

We drank Fenjiu liquor that Yang Dalin brought for lunch.

Zhao Yumin and Liu Haiyang wanted to have a drink, but unfortunately, Zhao's mother gave them both a flick on the forehead.

These two boys have to go to school later. If they don't have class, I guess Zhao's dad will let them have a drink.

We didn't drink much at noon. Zhao's dad, Liu's dad, and Yang Dalin drank one bottle together.

The meal was quite lavish, with six dishes, but only three of them were meat dishes. Including Yang Dalin's plate of pig's head meat, there were only four.

In short, it's better than the average family's, but not as luxurious.

These are all home-style dishes.

Shortly after the meal, the others went to work or school.

As Aunt Zhao was leaving, she said, "Dalinzi, you're welcome to come visit again next time. Auntie's going to work now. Come back next weekend, and we'll have a good chat."

Yang Dalin happily agreed: "Okay, Auntie, I'll tell Yumin before I come next time and ask him to pass on a message to you."

Before leaving, Zhao Yuqin gave Yang Dalin another strange look.

Then he slung his backpack over his shoulder and left.

Before leaving, Zhao Yumin, Liu Haiyang, and Zhao Yuming also said goodbye.

Besides the nanny who was tidying up, only Zhao's father, Liu's father, and Yang Dalin were left at home.

Yang Dalin, carrying a water glass, entered the study with the two men.

After closing the door, Zhao's father asked, "Dalinzi, do you know why I kept you here?"

Yang Dalin scratched his head and said, "I've guessed a little bit."

"Really? Then take a guess?" said Mr. Liu.

"I suspect it might be related to the small aircraft that Yumin, Haiyang, and I talked about yesterday."

Father Zhao gave a thumbs up: "Smart, you're a quick-witted kid, much better than our Yumin."

Tell me, how did you suddenly come up with this idea?

Or did someone deliberately tell you this?

At the end, Zhao's father and Liu's father looked at Yang Dalin with serious expressions.

Yang Dalin sat up straight, afraid that if he answered incorrectly, the other party would suddenly pull out a gun.

Although he also has weapons in his space, which allows him to protect himself.

No one can find it, but I can't do that myself.

The two people must have thoroughly investigated me before I arrived; otherwise, they wouldn't have invited me to their home for dinner. I would have been arrested and interrogated by the secret department long ago.

Then it's not like they're inviting me over for drinks; it's like they're inviting me to sing "Tears Behind Bars."

Knowing that his two uncles were just trying to scare him, Yang Dalin wasn't flustered at all.