Siheyuan: Xu Damao's New Life

The sun was blazing in the clear sky. Xu Damao was sitting in his office and was missing the air conditioners of later times. He did have one in his office, but he couldn't just hide in it and enjoy it during work. Xu Damao looked at the old-fashioned fan next to him and found some comfort.

The work of the Propaganda Department and the workshop has been put on track. He has handed over many things to his deputies. Now only some major matters require his decision, so he hid in the office to organize the manuscripts of Yu Shui's newly written novel. Now all three parts of The Legend of the Condor Heroes have been completed, and he is just waiting to find a way to publish them after they are sorted out.

When Xu Damao was tidying up, there was suddenly a knock on the door. Xu Damao had to put the manuscript into the space first.

"Come in."

Fan Sizhe strode in from the door and said, "Brother Xu, I have something to tell you." Now Fan Sizhe has taken over Xu Damao's job in the Inspection Department and has become the deputy chief of the Propaganda Department. However, like Liu Haizhong, he is doing work in lieu of work.

"Please sit down. Why are you being so polite when you come to my place? Just pour yourself some water or tea." Xu Damao also stood up and adjusted the direction of the electric fan, then sat on the sofa.

Fan Sizhe was really not polite. He picked up the teacup, put some tea leaves in it and made a cup of tea for himself. "Brother, I heard some time ago that you were framed by a young widow in your courtyard, and this widow just took over her husband's job some time ago. Is this true?"

Xu Damao instantly understood the purpose of his visit. He came to inquire about the situation and help him vent his anger. However, he also wanted to find him. If he didn't need his younger brother now, he would be able to use him at any other time.

"Oh, that's right. This is what happened in the world..." Xu Damao gave a brief account of what happened.

"This woman is so abominable. I must teach her a lesson. From now on, we will focus on strolling around the first workshop." Fan Sizhe said angrily.

"Hey, aren't you alerting the enemy by doing this? Let her walk around as she should, and punish her as she should, there's no need to target her specifically. Believe me, this woman is not one who will sit still. When the time comes, I'll be ruthless to her, and I'll have to use solid evidence so that she won't have any room to quibble." Xu Damao said.

Fan Sizhe nodded, "Okay, don't worry, I know what to do, I'll tell my brothers later. It just so happens that I have a childhood friend who works as a fitter in a workshop, and I can ask him to help keep an eye on it."

"Okay, go back if you have nothing else to do. I just got some tickets recently. Take them back and distribute them to my brothers." Xu Damao walked to the desk, opened a drawer, took out a stack of bills and handed them over.

"Hey, thank you brother. I'll go back first."

"Go and do your thing." Xu Damao watched Fan Sizhe walk out the door and turned around to gently close the door. He had been here before, as well, often asking his superiors for some receipts, but now it was his turn to issue receipts to others.

After a day of fishing, Xu Damao rode his bike back to the courtyard. Since he rode his bike, he came back earlier than the others. But he didn't meet Yan Bugui at the door today, so he must have gone out fishing and hadn't come back yet.

Xu Damao pushed the cart and greeted the neighbors along the way, and then returned to his home. This time he came back a short time ago, and the house was relatively clean. Usually, Nan Yi and Ding Qiunan helped to open and close the windows, so the house didn't seem stuffy.

"Sister-in-law, are you home? Let's have dinner at your house tonight. I have something to discuss with you." Xu Damao shouted at Nan Yi's house from the door. Anyway, the two houses were close and the windows were open, so if anyone came, they would definitely hear it.

"Yes, just come over later. He doesn't have any guests today." Ding Qiunan's period was too long, so she asked for leave from the factory.

"Okay, I'll be there in a minute." Xu Damao then squatted at the door and smoked a cigarette to enjoy the cool air.

"Brother Damao, you're back." As soon as Liu Guangfu entered the backyard, he saw Xu Damao and ran over happily.

"Why are you in such a hurry, kid? How have you been learning from your master recently?" Xu Damao asked.

"I have learned a lot from my master. He even took me out these few nights. By the way, this is the account book for these days. I bring it with me every time I come back. My master said that if he sees you, he will let you take a look and sign to confirm it." Liu Guangfu has been following Lou San for a while, and his mind has become smarter. He even knows to lower his voice when talking in private.

Xu Damao knew that Lou Saner must be taking him out to the black market in Yanda Hutong at night, so it would be good for this kid to see more of the world.

Xu Damao took the account book and took a quick look at it. The business on the black market was booming, mainly because the price of grain was lower than that of other black markets, which attracted a large number of people. With more people, other businesses also improved a lot, and more people came to their black market to do business.

Xu Damao paid special attention to the antiques and gold. He had collected more than 300 antiques, more than 50 small yellow croakers, and more than a dozen large yellow croakers in the past few days. This was much faster than asking Niu Ye and his friends to buy them piecemeal. It was really a clever idea for him to start a black market!

"Guangfu, please wait a moment. My sister is getting engaged on Sunday. I will go back to the room and write a list of supplies for you. You can deliver the ingredients to the address I wrote on Sunday morning." Xu Damao said.

"Brother, just rest assured and leave it to me!" Liu Guangfu promised, patting his chest.

Xu Damao went back to the room and came to the table to write down the things he needed and the address. He also wrote some words in the account book, instructing Lou San to deliver the collected materials to Zhao Hu when he got them. He also asked him to train Liu Guangfu well.

Soon Xu Damao went out, handed the account book and the note to Liu Guangfu and told him: "Just give the account book to your master. Just send it once a week in the future. If I'm not around, just hide it. This list is for the supplies needed on Sunday. Your master should have them all. Just send it over on Sunday."

Liu Guangfu nodded, took the account book and the list and put them in his arms.

Xu Damao took out five big black tens from his pocket and handed them to Liu Guangfu, "This is your salary for this month, save it well so that you can marry your sister Jingru."

Liu Guangfu smiled and took it without hesitation and put it in his pocket. He usually ate at home or at his master's house, so he didn't have to spend money on meals. In addition, his master would occasionally give him pocket money and rewards for missions, so he had saved a lot of money during this period.

"Brother Damao, I'm going home to eat first."

"Well, go ahead. Your father should be back soon."

Xu Damao didn't have to cook, so he strolled to the central courtyard with a cigarette in his mouth. He heard Sha Zhu's loud shouting and had to go and see what was going on.

As soon as Xu Damao entered the central courtyard, he saw Sha Zhu and Liang Ladi talking in the hallway. Sha Zhu was holding two lunch boxes and was stuffing them into Liang Ladi's hands, while Liang Ladi was refusing.

"Sister Liang, just take it. My sister has gone to college now, and I can feed the whole family if I am well fed. You have four children too. They are in the growing period and cannot lack nutrition." It has to be said that Sha Zhu does have a kind side. He always judges people by their deeds rather than their intentions. Even if he covets other people's bodies, it is rare for him to help others in times of famine.

"Zhu Zi, you can't bring back a lunch box every day, so you should improve your life and bring less lunch boxes in the future. My family has received a lot of care from you, and I have no way to repay you. One should not be greedy." Liang Ladi declined, while a row of little kids were lying in the corner watching all this.