Siheyuan: Starting from a Truck Driver

Seeing his frightened look, the third aunt asked in surprise, "It's closed in the broad daylight, Brother Yan, has something happened?"

Yan Bugui raised his finger to his lips to signal for silence, and secretly glanced at the sleeping Yan Jiefang. Then he returned to the third aunt and said in a low voice: "I saw Yu Li, following closely behind Li Xiaodong. The intimacy between them... is indescribable."

The third aunt dropped the celery in her hand and glared at him:

"Such a good daughter-in-law was snatched away. It's all your fault. There's news from matchmaker Wang that she will no longer be involved in our Jiefang's marriage. It's up to you to decide what to do."

Yan Bugui was dejected.

He didn't expect that Li Xiaodong could successfully attract Yu Li.

Li Xiaodong was obviously drunk and staggering at the time, so how did he suddenly sober up?

What puzzled him even more was why Matchmaker Wang gave up his request.

Aren’t two little fish attractive enough?

The successive blows made it difficult for Yan Bugui to accept it for a while, and his beliefs seemed to begin to waver.

Did I, Yan Bugui, make a mistake? No, it's impossible. I'm the only intellectual in the compound, how could I make a mistake?

Seeing the sad face of the third aunt, Yan Bugui had to pat his chest and promise: "Without matchmaker Wang, our Jiefang family would have gotten married sooner. I will take the half pound of dried fish and go to the next alley to find matchmaker Liu."

"It's good to have a job. It can add more money to the family income every month." The third aunt nodded in agreement.

From inside the room, Yan Jiefang called out in grief: "Yu Li, my Yu Li!"

...

"Hello, Aunt Wang."

"Well, well, go for a walk with your Xiaodong."

...

"Hello, Uncle Liu."

"Yu Li, on your wedding day, my uncle Liu will definitely come to your house for the wedding banquet."

...

Yu Li was familiar with most of the neighbors in the compound and greeted them gracefully along the way.

The neighbors did not express sympathy for the Yan family, but were happy for Yu Li's happiness. Considering Yan Bugui's stingy personality, any girl who married him would be in a sea of ​​misery.

How nice it would be to marry Li Xiaodong. He is handsome and has a good job. How can Yan Jiefang compare to him?

...

Li Xiaodong pushed the bicycle to the gate, where there was a high threshold. He held the handlebars and Yu Li held the seat, and the two of them worked together to lift the bicycle out of the courtyard.

Outside the door, a flatbed truck loaded with coal was parked. Qin Huairu and Jia Zhang were squatting beside it, watching Sha Zhu struggling to carry a basket of coal briquettes to the yard with a red face. In the cold winter, Sha Zhu was sweating profusely, like a horse carrying a load.

Yu Li greeted him in confusion: "Brother Yu Shui, buy so many coal briquettes so that Yu Shui won't feel cold at night. Yesterday she said she often woke up from the cold at night and went to play with Haitang."

When Sha Zhu heard this, he stood in the cold wind carrying the coal basket, his face flushed instantly, and he stammered, "These...these coal briquettes belong to the Jia family. I'll go to the coal briquette factory to buy some later."

Yu Li realized that she had let the cat out of the bag and quickly added: "The weather is cold and the little girl is weak. She must not get cold."

Sha Zhu responded, "Yeah!"

— —He Yushui had told him about buying coal briquettes, but he forgot about it due to negligence.

Alas, I was so focused on helping the Jia family that I neglected everything else.

Qin Huairu rolled her eyes, seeing that Sha Zhu had a barrier in his heart, and explained slowly: "Sister Yu Li, you may not know that He Yuzhu is a good man in our courtyard. He knows our difficulties and offered to help."

"Hehehe, help as much as you can. Anyway, the basket is too heavy. I have to leave quickly." Sha Zhu suddenly smiled. His originally bent back straightened up a lot. He strode away.

"Slow down, Silly Zhu, don't knock our matchmaker down. The coal briquettes should be piled on top of Old Yi's house. There is a lot of moisture underneath." Jia Zhang was worried and shouted to Qin Huairu, "No, this guy is rough in his work. We have to keep an eye on him."

Qin Huairu wanted to talk to Li Xiaodong, but seeing that Yu Li was beside her, she could only give him a meaningful look and then followed Jia Zhang into the courtyard.

After the two left, Yu Li laughed and said, "Sha Zhu is clearly being used as a laborer by the Jia family, but he never gets tired of it. It's really hard to praise him."

"Based on the Jia family's character, I'm afraid even the money for the coal briquettes was paid by Sha Zhu." Li Xiaodong speculated.

"Really?" Yu Li expressed doubt.

Li Xiaodong explained: "Of course not, Sha Zhu loves to be praised. In order to win praise, he is even willing to sacrifice himself and his family. This character is well known in the courtyard, and he himself is aware of it, but he just enjoys this feeling."

Yu Li seemed to be thinking, "No wonder He Yushui always says her brother is stupid. I was wondering how an eighth-level chef could be like this. Now I understand, he is indeed quite stupid."

Li Xiaodong agreed: "Helping others is our fine tradition, but the premise is that you have the ability and cannot let others suffer."

They chatted as they walked to the department store. Li Xiaodong first bought a new set of clothes for Yu Li, including an embroidered cotton jacket, black work pants and a scarf made in Shanghai. Then, he bought two packs of Zhonghua cigarettes and two bottles of Moutai at the tobacco and alcohol counter on the second floor. Although Moutai is not as delicious as the old Fenjiu at this time, courtesy is important when visiting for the first time.

Afterwards, they went to the market and bought five or six pounds of fat meat, a chicken and a duck. Yu Li followed him, feeling as if she were in a dream, and marveled at his generosity. Even Cuihua, who married into a government agency next door, did not bring such a rich gift when her new son-in-law first visited her. She felt a little uneasy and muttered in a low voice: "It's too much. Ordinary people would at most bring two pounds of pork and two bottles of loose wine."

Her complex emotions, mixed with joy, nervousness, and heartache, made her look very cute. Li Xiaodong gently stroked her soft hair: "Will your man be an ordinary person?"

Yu Li lowered her head shyly, intertwined her fingers, and her heart was full of sweetness. Which woman doesn't want her man to be capable?

Li Xiaodong hung all the gifts on the back of the bicycle and was about to ride away when he noticed Yu Li's hesitant expression. "Did you miss something?"

Yu Li said a little embarrassedly: "These are enough, but...can we buy some pig intestines?" Fearing that Li Xiaodong would object, she quickly added: "Don't worry, I have money myself."

Pig intestines? Does everyone in the Yu family like to eat this? Li Xiaodong smiled and said, "Your money is my money. It's just pig intestines. Just buy it!"

Hearing this, Yu Li smiled as bright as a crescent moon. The two of them picked two more pig intestines, which did not require meat coupons and cost only 50 cents per pound. On the way to Yu's house, Yu Li took the initiative to explain the origin of the pig intestines. It turned out that she had an uncle from a distant place, Yu Dabo, who particularly loved pig intestines and would eat a whole bunch every morning.

Li Xiaodong was very surprised after hearing this. It was really unique to eat pig intestines in the early morning.

In addition, although the price of pig intestines is not expensive, a string costs more than two yuan. Which family can afford to spend like this every day?

Yu Li had long regarded herself as Li Xiaodong's woman and did not hide it at all, telling him all the family secrets.

It turns out that the Yu family was a Manchu noble family before liberation.

However, because his ancestors angered a high-ranking official by speaking their mind, the family's noble status was stripped away and their original land was confiscated.

In comparison, Uncle Yu's family far away were the real bannermen. They were once well-known wealthy people in the capital and had accumulated a lot of wealth.

Moreover, Uncle Yu himself is talented, eloquent, and proficient in various skills, especially painting fans, and can earn a lot of income every day.

Therefore, a few hangs of pig intestines is not a big expense at all.

Surprisingly, Yu Li was actually born a princess.

"So what was your original name?"

“My original name is Yu Li.

In fact, our branch has already declined because we offended high-ranking officials and our banner status was revoked.

My ancestors had changed their household registration before liberation.

Uncle Yu’s family can be considered true aristocrats.

By the way, Uncle Yu also has another name, which is ‘Kuang’.”

"Kuang?" Li Xiaodong savored the name, his eyes lit up, and he gave a thumbs up: "What a good name."

He couldn't wait to meet this comrade named Aisin-Gioro Kuang.

...

In the cold wind.

Li Xiaodong gripped the cold handlebars tightly, pedaled hard with his legs, and sped along like a Hot Wheels rider.

The roads in the capital are not smooth and there are potholes everywhere.

The bicycle sped past, causing Yu Li, who was sitting on the back seat, to suffer from the bumps.

The continuous vibrations almost numbed her lower abdomen.

"Brother Xiaodong, slow down, I can't hold on any longer."

In order to prevent falling, Yu Li no longer cared about being reserved and put her arms around Li Xiaodong's waist.

Feeling the soft and elastic touch from behind, Li Xiaodong was a little dazed for a moment.

A bicycle with too much stuff on it is difficult to control.

At this moment, he rushed towards a big pit out of control.

Li Xiaodong hurriedly braked hard.

The moving bicycle suddenly stopped, and then he felt Yu Li's hug become tighter.

"Ouch! What happened?"

"There are potholes on the road, be careful not to fall!"

Yu Li noticed the strange looks from passers-by and wanted to let go.

In the small courtyard, there stands a wintersweet tree. Its skinny branches extend over the wall and into the air, dotted with a few gorgeous pink wintersweet flowers.

A magpie was singing happily on a branch.

Yu Li pinched her cheek lightly, adjusted her expression, straightened her clothes, and walked forward to knock on the door.

The Yu family had been looking forward to the arrival of their new son-in-law. When they heard the knock on the door, Yu's mother immediately opened it.

"came back?"

She was speaking to Yu Li, but her eyes were focused on Li Xiaodong.

He has a handsome face, an upright figure, and his brows reveal an unconcealable heroic spirit.

This guy is really good.

My daughter is really lucky this time.

"Mom, this is Xiaodong."

"Hello, Auntie..."

"Don't call me auntie, just call me mom."

"...mom."

The mother-in-law's favorable impression of her prospective son-in-law soared, and Yu's mother smiled so much that her eyes curved into crescents.

Seeing the gifts in the car, she muttered: "Child, you can just come here, why do you have to bring so many things."

"These are just some of the younger generation's thoughts."

Li Xiaodong said this and was about to carry the gift into the house.

Yu's mother turned around and shouted to the courtyard: "My dear, our son-in-law is here, go and help get the things."

"I'm coming."

A thin old man in a gray Zhongshan suit ran out hurriedly.

He had a kind smile on his face, and at first glance he looked like a hardworking househusband.

"Hello, Dad."

"well..."

As soon as he entered the yard, Li Xiaodong saw a middle-aged man sitting under a wintersweet tree, reading a book intently.

Surprisingly, he was wearing a retro jacket with a horse embroidered on it.

Nowadays, it is rare to find people who pay so much attention to their clothes.

What is even more striking is that this middle-aged man has a head full of silver hair, which is naturally curly and makes him look particularly energetic.

Immersed in the ocean of knowledge, he found resonance in books and occasionally sighed.

“It does make sense that water-washed coal needs to be washed three times to remove impurities.”

Yu's mother called out to the white-haired curler twice in a row: "Brother, the new son-in-law is here."

It was not until he heard the voice that the white-haired man raised his eyes from the pages of the book and looked at Li Xiaodong blankly. However, when his gaze fell on the hanging pig intestines, his eyes suddenly became sharp.

He put down the book and walked over quickly.

"Hey, I was so engrossed in my reading just now, I'm sorry."

"Reading? Uncle, are you going to take the college entrance examination?"

Yu Haitang suddenly appeared, came close to Li Xiaodong, sniffed him, made a face, then turned to the white-haired man and asked.

"That's about right. I'm a great scientist now, studying clean coal and washed coal to see which is more suitable for rocket fuel."

The man with white hair waved his hands calmly, with extraordinary aura, as if he had seen through the secrets of all things in the world.

Great scientist... Although he knew that White Hair Curls was versatile, Li Xiaodong was still surprised by his transformation.

From an artist who paints fans to a great scientist, the gap is indeed huge.

Uncle Yu was obviously quite interested in the pig intestines. He kept rubbing his hands together and making slurping sounds.

Mother Yu smiled and said, "Don't worry, I'll wash it and bring it to you."