Siheyuan: Reborn Silly Pillar, Taking Control of the Entire Courtyard

He Yuzhu stood in front of the sugar figurine stall, his fingers rummaging in his pocket for a long time, as if looking for something important.

Actually, he had no money in his pocket.

His true wealth lies in the "portable space" that he unexpectedly awakened after his rebirth.

He pretended to have finally managed to pull out a silver coin, placed it on the cutting board, and said in a low but firm voice, "Give me two."

The stall owner was a man in his forties, his face etched with the rough lines of years of exposure to the elements. Hearing the noise, his eyes lit up instantly, like a hungry wolf eyeing its prey.

He grabbed the silver coin, rubbed it vigorously with his fingertips, and then bit it. After confirming that it was genuine, his face broke into a wide smile.

"Okay! Just a moment, sir!"

He deftly set up the copper ladle, about to start the fire, when He Yuzhu suddenly spoke up.

"Can I become a phoenix?"

The stall owner's hand suddenly stopped, and he almost dropped the copper spoon. He looked up in surprise, sizing He Yuzhu up and down as if he were looking at a monster.

"Young man, you certainly have a good eye for things." He chuckled dryly, his tone tinged with difficulty. "The phoenix is ​​a specialty, it uses a lot of sugar and takes a lot of time. With your silver coin, you can only buy a dragon or a rabbit at most. How about... something else?"

He Yuzhu looked at the stall owner's snobbish face and sneered inwardly. He didn't say anything, but simply took out another silver coin from his pocket and slammed it on the counter.

"Then let's have a phoenix."

The stall owner's eyes widened as he stared at the two silver coins. His throat bobbed, and he immediately put on a fawning smile: "Alright! Please wait a moment, I'll show you something amazing today!"

He Yuzhu's decision to become a phoenix was actually a spur-of-the-moment thing.

He didn't experience being burned alive, but he did die once and was reborn.

To wish for good luck and good fortune.

The syrup churned in the copper spoon, making a "bubbling" sound, bubbling with tiny bubbles, and emitting an enticing caramel aroma.

The stall owner took a deep breath, his expression turning serious. With a flick of his wrist, he drew long, thin strands of scalding hot syrup, which flowed like dragons onto the cold stone slab.

With left and right strokes, the wings gradually take shape, lifelike; with another dot, the phoenix head rises, its eyes sharp; finally, with a flick of the wrist, the tail trails long, the feathers distinct, layer upon layer.

In the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, a crystal-clear phoenix sugar figurine appeared before He Yuzhu's eyes.

"Here you go!" The stall owner wiped the sweat from his forehead, looking proud.

He Yuzhu took the sugar figurine.

Under the sunlight, the sugar phoenix is ​​translucent, as if it truly has life and is ready to take flight at any moment.

He walked along, licking the wings of the sugar phoenix.

The sugar melted in my mouth, so sweet it was cloying, and even a little cloying.

Many children passing by stared intently at the candy phoenix in his hand, wishing they could pounce on it and take a bite.

"Mother! I want that too! I want a phoenix too!"

"Dad! Buy it for me now! I'm not leaving if you don't buy it!"

A cacophony of crying, shouting, and pleading erupted behind me, creating a lively and chaotic scene.

He Yuzhu smiled faintly, not turning around, and continued licking the candied chicken wings. The inexplicable panic and confusion brought about by his rebirth slowly dissipated in the sweet taste.

As I walked, a rich aroma of beans and sweet fragrance wafted into my nostrils.

He looked up and saw a stall selling donkey rolls.

The snow-white, soft, and chewy glutinous rice balls are filled with deep red and tempting red bean paste, and then rolled in a layer of golden-brown and fragrant soybean flour. Just looking at them makes your mouth water.

He Yuzhu stopped and took out two silver coins.

"Four."

"Alright!" The stall owner, a plump woman, quickly wrapped it in oil paper and handed it to him. "Fresh out of the pan, still hot!"

He Yuzhu took it and eagerly took a bite.

The glutinous rice is soft and sticky, the red bean paste is sweet but not cloying, and the soybean flour has a wonderful aroma, making for an incredibly rich and delicious taste.

He ate one in a few bites, wrapped the remaining three in oil paper, pretended to stuff them into his pocket, but actually, on a whim, he quietly tossed them into his spatial storage.

Put it in your pocket?

That would surely turn them into a pile of mud.

Then he saw a vendor selling candied hawthorns.

The bright red hawthorns, each one round and plump, are coated with a layer of glistening sugar. When stuck on a bundle of straw, they look like a string of festive red lanterns from a distance.

"Two skewers, please."

"Okay!"

He also bought some mung bean cakes, square and light green, with delicate patterns printed on them; and rice cakes, cut into diamond-shaped pieces and sprinkled with golden osmanthus sugar.

He bought snacks along the way, and his space was soon filled with all kinds of snacks.

After eating and drinking his fill, He Yuzhu continued his stroll.

Before I knew it, I had come to a stall selling used books.

A dirty oilcloth was spread on the ground, and various books were piled up haphazardly on it. There were yellowed thread-bound old books and Western-style notebooks, all looking messy and disorganized.

He Yuzhu squatted down and began searching with great interest.

He wasn't interested in those old books; he mainly wanted to find some comic books.

He loved looking at these things in his past life, but he was too poor to afford a complete set. Now that he has money and space, he naturally wants to collect a few sets.

The stall owner was a thin old man wearing thick reading glasses. He was engrossed in reading a tattered copy of "Romance of the Three Kingdoms," occasionally nodding and muttering a few words.

After searching for a long time, He Yuzhu finally found a complete set of "Journey to the West" under a pile of tattered books, and it looked to be in pretty good condition.

He was overjoyed and was about to ask the price when the old man suddenly looked up, glanced at him, and his eyes were full of impatience.

"Kid, do you have the money to buy it?" The old man pushed up his reading glasses, his tone dismissive. "This is a good book, very expensive."

He Yuzhu was stunned for a moment, then felt a little annoyed.

That old man, he's so prejudiced!

His clothes were a bit tattered, but surely he could afford a comic book?

"How expensive?" he asked calmly, suppressing his anger.

The old man sneered, took off his glasses, and looked him up and down as if he were a poor kid who didn't know his place.

"You can't afford it." The old man held up one finger and shook it. "This set of 'Journey to the West' originally cost eighteen silver dollars. Although mine is old, it's well-preserved and would cost at least fifteen silver dollars. Can you afford it?"

He Yuzhu gasped.

Good guy.

That's really something.

A set of comic books costs fifteen silver dollars?

This price is enough for an average family to eat for half a year!

However, he did actually have fifteen silver dollars.

Among the loot he "casually" acquired last night, there were several hundred silver dollars.

But he didn't pay up immediately.

A little kid in a tattered cotton-padded coat suddenly pulls out fifteen silver dollars to buy a comic book. Isn't that too conspicuous?

If you were targeted by someone with malicious intent, it could lead to robbery or even murder, which would be a great loss.

He wasn't afraid of trouble, but he didn't want to cause trouble for a few comic books.

"Do you deliver to my door?" He Yuzhu asked after thinking for a moment.

The old man paused for a moment, then burst into laughter as if he'd heard a joke: "Delivery to your door? Where do you live? You think I have to make a special trip for you? Dream on!"

He Yuzhu frowned slightly: "How about we find a less crowded place to trade?"

The old man stared at his patched cotton-padded jacket, his disdain growing even stronger. He snorted coldly, "Hey kid, if you don't have money, don't pretend to be rich. Fifteen silver dollars, can you even come up with that? Are you trying to scam me out of books? Buy them if you want, otherwise get lost and don't hold me up!"

That's an outrageous statement!

He Yuzhu's temper flared up immediately.

Although he really wanted to collect this set of "Journey to the West", the old man's attitude was really disgusting.

I wouldn't sell to someone like that even if I had the money!

He stood up abruptly, dusted off his hands, gave the old man a cold look, and turned to leave.

"Tch, a penniless wretch." The old man's disdainful muttering came from behind.

He Yuzhu paused, his fists clenched, but he ultimately held back.

Forget it, I won't stoop to the level of an old geezer.

I'll find another place to buy it when I have the chance later.

After being spoiled by the old man, He Yuzhu lost the desire to continue shopping.

He started walking back.

On the way, his consciousness sank into the space, rummaged around for a while, and found a dark blue coarse cloth bundle.

He took out two baby bottles and a can of formula from his storage space—these were also the "spoils of war" from last night, originally prepared for the child by a wealthy family.

He then found five clean urine rings and a pound of brown sugar, and wrapped them together in a bundle.

This was prepared for Qin Huairu, that widow.

Although he doesn't have a good impression of Qin Huairu now, they are neighbors in the same courtyard, and this is something he had planned long ago.

Sending him a gift is a way of making things official, so that the widow won't always feel like he owes her something.

Back at the courtyard house, the main gate was wide open, and the front yard was quiet and deserted.

He Yuzhu ran straight to the snowman he had built earlier.

The weather has been cold these past few days, and the snow has frozen solid, like stones.

He struggled for a long time before he managed to carve a suitable hole in the snowman's belly, stuffed the bundle containing the baby bottle and formula inside, and then packed the snow down so that no trace of it could be seen.

After doing all this, he took out another bundle from his spatial storage—it contained the snacks he had just bought.

This is intended to be taken back for my mother and the deaf old lady.

As for where the silver came from, he had already figured it out.

He found a brocade money bag among last night's spoils, embroidered with a large "福" (fortune) character, clearly belonging to someone with some wealth.

He took out all the silver dollars and coins, leaving only some worthless daily allowances and military notes.

If my mother asks later, I'll say I found a money bag.

Anyway, in this day and age, finding things isn't a rare thing.

The courthouse was quiet; it was cold, and everyone stayed indoors.

He Yuzhu thought for a moment, then took out a lively crucian carp from his spatial storage.

The fish was as long as his palm, and it thrashed about in his hand, splashing water all over him.

He carried the fish, walked to his front door, and pushed it open to go inside.

"Mother, I'm back."

"Zhu Zi is back?" Chen Lanxiang's gentle voice came from the inner room, tinged with concern. "Is it cold outside? Come in and warm up."

Then came the deaf old lady's hearty laughter: "Your eldest grandson is back? Let Grandma see him!"

"Brother Zhu! You're finally back!"

A figure suddenly rushed out from the inner room; it was Xu Damao.

His eyes were first fixed on the bundle in He Yuzhu's hand, and then they fell on the lively fish. His eyes instantly lit up like light bulbs.

"Brother Zhu, you bought fish?" Xu Damao swallowed hard, looking very hungry.

"You have such sharp eyes." He Yuzhu handed him the bundle in her hand. "Take this first, don't drop it. I'll go put the fish away."

"Okay! Okay!" Xu Damao happily took the bundle, brought it to his nose to smell it, and his eyes lit up even more. "Wow, it smells so good! Brother Zhu, did you buy some delicious food?"

He Yuzhu ignored him and carried the fish into the kitchen.

Inside the room, Chen Lanxiang saw her son enter and quickly put down her needlework, looking him up and down: "Zhuzi, did you deliver the money? Did anything happen on the way?"

"It's delivered, don't worry, Mom," He Yuzhu replied, putting the fish into the basin. "The journey was smooth, and we didn't encounter any checks."

"That's good, that's good." Chen Lanxiang breathed a sigh of relief, then noticed the bundle in Xu Damao's hand and frowned. "What are you carrying, child? Where did you get the money to buy things? The money I gave you was just enough for the consultation fee."

He Yuzhu chuckled, took the bundle from Xu Damao's hand, and opened it.

Immediately, the aroma of various snacks filled the air.

Donkey roll, mung bean cake, candied hawthorn, New Year cake...

"This..." Chen Lanxiang's eyes widened. "What are you doing...?"

"I happened to see someone selling fish, so I bought one. I was thinking of making you some fish soup to nourish your body." He Yuzhu picked up a donkey roll and handed it to her. "I also saw these snacks and bought some for you and Grandma to try."

Xu Damao stood to the side, staring intently at the food, his eyes glued to it. He kept swallowing, muttering, "It smells so good..."

Chen Lanxiang looked at the things on the table, then at her son, feeling both touched and worried: "Zhuzi, tell your mother honestly, where did you go? These things can only be found at the market. Did you go to the market? It's so chaotic outside, how could you dare to run around like that!"

"Mom, I'm fine, aren't I?" He Yuzhu winked at her and said in a relaxed tone, "I've grown up, I can protect myself now. Besides, I was just passing by, I didn't go there on purpose."

Before Chen Lanxiang could say anything more, the deaf old lady spoke up: "Alright, Lanxiang, it's good that the child is back. Zhuzi is just being filial, so don't scold him."

As the old lady spoke, she picked up a piece of mung bean cake from the table and said with a smile, "My eldest grandson is so filial. He knows that Grandma's teeth aren't good, so he bought me mung bean cake. This 'donkey roll' is sticky and Grandma can't eat it."

He Yuzhu felt a warmth in his heart. It seemed that although the old lady was deaf, she was as clear-headed as a mirror.

He picked up another donkey roll and shoved it into Xu Damao's hand: "Here, you glutton, eat it."

"Thank you, Brother Zhu!" Xu Damao was overjoyed. He took the donkey roll, carefully took a small bite, and a satisfied smile appeared on his face. "It's delicious!"

"Eat slowly, don't choke," He Yuzhu said with a smile. "Consider this as rent for your slingshot, one more day."

"Then I'm getting a good deal!" Xu Damao chuckled and ate even more heartily.

After chatting for a while, He Yuzhu glanced at the sky, stood up, and said, "Mom, Grandma, I'm going to cook. I'll make you crucian carp soup and stir-fry two other dishes today."

"Brother Zhu, I'll help you!" Xu Damao said indistinctly, his mouth full of food.

"Don't make things worse," He Yuzhu said with a smile, patting his shoulder. "Just stay here and chat with Grandma and my mom."

"Hehe, okay."

He Yuzhu turned and went into the kitchen.

He first killed the fish, scaled and removed the gills, cleaned it thoroughly, and then poured some oil into the pot.

After heating the oil, he put the fish in and fried it until golden brown on both sides. Then he added scallions and ginger to sauté until fragrant, and poured in boiling water.

"Glug glug".

The fish soup quickly turned milky white, and a rich aroma filled the entire kitchen, even wafting into the inner room.

Xu Damao smelled the delicious aroma from inside the room and couldn't help but sniff, muttering, "It smells so good... Brother Zhu's cooking is always so delicious..."

In the inner room, the deaf old lady leaned against the headboard, smelling the aroma of fish soup wafting in, and said to Chen Lanxiang with a smile, "Lanxiang, look, Zhuzi is becoming more and more sensible, and his cooking skills are excellent too. You can just wait to enjoy your retirement from now on."

A relieved smile appeared on Chen Lanxiang's face, but she scolded him playfully, "He's such a worry. It's so chaotic outside, and he still runs around like that."

"Boys should take risks," the deaf old lady waved her hand. "What great things can an honest, simple boy achieve? I think Zhuzi has a bright and intelligent look in his eyes; he'll definitely amount to something in the future."

"Thank you for your kind words." Chen Lanxiang smiled and shook her head, but the corners of her mouth couldn't help but turn up.

She knew that her son had truly grown up.