Siheyuan: The romantic and suave Xu Damao

"You brought a lot of stuff here, a whole cart full of stuff."

"That's not right. You have to help me later. There are two big wooden boxes. I can't lift them by myself."

"No problem, bro smokes."

Xu Damao handed the driver a large front door.

"Thanks, bro."

"Just follow me. It's not far ahead, just a few miles away."

"it is good."

The middle-aged rickshaw driver was not talkative. He opened a lighter and lit a cigarette.

You know what, this fire starter is much better than matches for lighting a cigarette on the road. At least it won’t be blown out by the wind, and it looks much cooler to use it to light a cigarette than matches.

"Sister Qian, why don't you get off and take my car? Look, the car is full of stuff and it's awkward to sit in."

"No, just sit here. Look, there's a box here. I can sit down there."

"I feel sorry for that mule. It has to pull a full cart and you too."

Xu Damao walked side by side with the mule cart and chatted with Qian Longmei.

Arriving at the courtyard, Xu Damao took out the key, opened the door, pushed the cart in, and Qian Longmei followed closely behind.

"Ms. Qian, which room do you want to stay in? Any room except the south one."

"Anywhere is fine. Why can't we live in the south? Is there someone already there? Let me guess, a little beauty, right?"

"No, I bought some coal briquettes, but I didn't have time to build a shed, so I put them in the south house."

Xu Damao hurriedly explained.

"Oh, I'll live alone in the east side room. Is this the bed you just prepared?"

"Sister Qian is really as good as a god!"

"…The strips of cloth in this bundle of quilts haven't been unpacked yet. I'm not blind."

Because there were steps at the gate of the courtyard, the mule cart could not enter, so Xu Damao and Qian Longmei had to move the things on the cart inside one by one, and the driver also participated in the process.

"Brother, it's getting dark. You've helped us so much. Don't leave in a hurry. Let's go out and have a meal together."

The coachman helped to move things in one by one, and was very hardworking. In fact, this was not part of the coachman's job, and Xu Damao had to show his appreciation.

"No need. It's nothing to put in some effort. Just eat."

"No, let's go to Qianmen to eat something later. I'm hungry too."

After moving all the things to Sister Qian's room, Xu Damao locked the door, gave Sister Qian a bunch of keys, and then without saying anything, he pulled the handlebars and walked out, insisting on treating Sister Qian to a meal.

"Little brother, why don't you ride your bike?"

"We can take a mule cart. It's not far, only a few hundred meters at most."

As Xu Damao spoke, he took Qian Longmei's hand and sat on the mule cart.

"Brother, go to the front door, let's go eat."

……

"Preserved eggs with ginger sauce, stir-fried pork with chili peppers... and a few pancakes."

Xu Damao ordered a few dishes, and the three of them had a delicious meal before saying goodbye and leaving.

"Sister Qian, what are your plans for the future?"

"Let's take it one step at a time. I just saw two stores hiring, and I'm going to give it a try."

"Aren't you going to rest for a while?"

"I was used to being busy before, and I'm not used to taking a long break."

"Okay, I see Quanjude is hiring, you can go and apply for the position, Sister Qian."

"Okay, I'll try it tomorrow."

"Sister Qian is so pretty, she will definitely be successful in the application."

……

Xu Damao sent Sister Qian back to the courtyard and was about to leave when Sister Qian grabbed his arm.

"Stay with me for a while. I feel nothing when I leave, but after I really leave, I still feel empty."

Qian Longmei spoke in a somewhat lonely tone, with tears flickering in her beautiful eyes.

On this quiet night, Xu Damao did not return to his home in Nanluoguxiang, but chose to spend the night in this courtyard.

The night in the courtyard was quiet and peaceful, with only moonlight and starlight shining in the yard. Only the noise made by Xu Damao and Sister Qian broke the peaceful scene.

"Sister Qian, look, this is a small mirror I bought for you. You should dress up well so that you can be successful when you apply for a job."

"Well, go to work and don't be late."

"Well, I'm leaving now. Tell me if you need anything else."

"Little brother, you are such a good person. Whoever marries you will be blessed in several lifetimes."

Sister Qian looked at Xu Damao riding away on his bicycle and murmured to herself.

Xu Damao came to the publicity department of the steel rolling mill, ready to wait for the screening task, but unexpectedly he was called into the office by the section chief.

"Da Mao, you have been working as a projectionist for quite some time. I have seen your performance and you have completed your tasks very well."

"Since you were young, I gave you the task of screening in the nearby villages, and you did a great job."

"But now I am going to increase your workload. Sometimes I will ask you to go to a farther place to complete the tasks assigned by the leader. Can you do it?"

"Chief, I have no problem. I promise to complete the task."

"Since the place you are going to is quite far away, it will probably be afternoon or evening when you arrive. After completing the screening task, you can stay at the village chief's house for one night and come back the next day. Do you have any objection?"

"No objection! I will complete the task assigned by the leadership."

Xu Damao held his head high, but he was secretly complaining in his heart that the bicycle pedals would smoke from his own steps...

"Here, I'll give you a map. Take it well. You'll need it on the road. Go get your screening assignment for today. When you come back tomorrow, you'll have to go to a far place."

"Ok."

Xu Damao left the section chief's office, took over today's projection task, and left directly after installing the projection equipment.

After get off work, Xu Damao went back to the steel rolling mill to change cars and go home. As soon as he entered the courtyard, he found that his third uncle Yan Bugui was hanging around the door, as if he was waiting for him.

"Hey, Damao, you're back."

Seeing Xu Damao coming back, Yan Bugui trotted over and diligently helped Xu Damao carry the back seat of the bicycle so that the bicycle could enter the door smoothly.

"What's wrong, Uncle? What's the matter?"

"Let's go to the side and talk. There are too many people at the gate here."

Yan Bugui pulled Xu Damao towards the corner in a mysterious manner.

Xu Damao pushed the cart and followed with a helpless look on his face, not knowing what the old man was up to.

"Da Mao, someone came to inquire about you today and asked some questions about you."

"Who?"

"I don't know him. He looks like a middle-aged man. Judging from his appearance, he is from the city. I said a lot of good things about you."

"Oh, thank you for your kind words, Uncle."

Xu Damao already knew what was going on. It was ninety-nine percent likely that Lou Xiao'e's mother had sent someone to inquire about his character.