Siheyuan: Xu Damao's New Life

This day is the twenty-ninth day of the twelfth lunar month.

Xu Damao rode his bike back to the courtyard from the steel mill in the snow. His resignation procedures had been approved, and today he wanted to treat the neighbors in the courtyard to a meal, say goodbye, and resign from his position as the manager. He also had to ask someone to look after the house.

"Second Uncle, I'm back. I'll bring Jie Cheng and Jiefang home later!" Xu Damao shouted loudly towards the window of Yan Bugui's house.

Yan Bugui lifted the thick door curtain and showed his head. "Da Mao, I've been waiting for you since you gave me the letter this morning. I'll take them there in a bit."

"Well, I'll go first. I still have to prepare things in advance." After saying that, Xu Damao pushed the cart home.

Because it snowed today and the roads were slippery, Xu Damao was worried and did not let Yu Shui go to work. At this time, Yu Shui and Ding Qiunan were playing in the house with a group of children.

Due to the arrival of the special period, not only Ding Qiunan's parents were affected, but she herself was also implicated. So the couple discussed it and directly sold Ding Qiunan's job, and she also stayed at home to take care of the children full-time.

"Godfather!"

"Uncle!"

A group of children saw him coming back and called for help.

"Have you been obedient at home?"

"We are very obedient."

"Since you've been obedient, there will be delicious food soon, but I have to go to the kitchen to cook for you first." Xu Damao said as he took off his thick woolen coat.

"Let's warm up for a while before we do it. My brother and the eldest brother will be back soon, and we'll do it together then." Yu Shui said with concern.

"There are too many things. Let me do some preparation first. I'll take a break after they arrive." Xu Damao warmed his hands by the stove and went into the kitchen to start working.

Not long after, Nan Yi and Sha Zhu also came over, and without saying a word, they went into the kitchen and started working. Not long after, the aroma of food began to waft out.

Xu Damao came out of the kitchen and was telling a few children stories when the door curtain was lifted. Liu Haizhong walked in with a big belly and two bottles of wine, followed by Liu Guangtian and Liu Guangfu.

"Come and sit down, uncle. Let me see what kind of fine wine you have. Bottles of this shape are rare."

"Hey, you have a bad eye. This is what was left over from the banquet when my eldest son was admitted to a technical secondary school. I have never been willing to drink it. It has indeed been a while."

When Liu Haizhong mentioned his eldest son Liu Guangqi, he had a look of pride on his face, but it soon faded. His eldest son passed away not long after getting married and has not returned for many years.

As they were talking, Yan Bugui came in with his two sons, holding two big fish in their hands.

"Look at you, these are what I caught while ice fishing a few days ago. I haven't been willing to eat them yet." Yan Bugui knew that Xu Damao was leaving, so he was generous for once and brought the two biggest fish.

"Hey, it's a good time to add a dish, boiled meat and pickled fish." After Xu Damao said this, he sent the fish to the kitchen.

Wu Yushui saw that almost everyone had arrived, so he started to put tables. If there were not enough, he would go to Nan Yi's house and the old man's house to move them. In the end, he used two tables and a kang table, after all, there were nearly 20 people.

Delicious dishes were served on the table one by one, and the impatient children had almost finished eating around the stove.

The door curtain was opened again, and Liang Ladi came in with a bowl of steamed buns, followed by He Daqing with a bowl of rice. The stove and furnace here were occupied, so there was no place to cook.

Seeing that the food was almost ready, Xu Damao asked everyone to take a seat. The two chefs also came over after finishing their work. Now only two soups were left to be prepared.

The woman and the children were in the inner room. A table and a kang table were enough for them to use. The only problem was that the main room was a little narrow, after all, there were ten grown men.

"Dear elders and brothers, I have completed the formalities at the factory today. I won't have to go to work starting tomorrow. Let's have a drink to celebrate our freedom." Xu Damao said, raising his glass.

Everyone raised their glasses and drank it all.

"Da Mao, what do you plan to do after you stop working?" Yan Bugui asked.

"Go far away to make a living." Xu Damao didn't tell them too much. Sometimes it's not good for an ordinary person to know too much.

"The reason I called everyone here today is mainly because I have some things to explain, and it can also be considered as a farewell. But before I explain, we have to have a drink." Xu Damao continued to persuade people to drink.

Liu Guangtian was the first to finish the wine in his glass and asked, "Brother Damao, just tell me what you want me to do. I promise to do it properly for you."

"After I leave, my house will be empty. I have to find someone to help look after the house, otherwise it will be uninhabitable when I come back. Also, my bicycles will be useless. Including mine, Xiao'e's, and Yu Shui's, there are three bicycles in total." Xu Damao said.

Yan Bugui's eyes lit up when he heard this, but soon dimmed. His biological father was in the city, and his father-in-law and elder brother-in-law were sitting at the table. How could he be in trouble?

If they had said they were short of housing, his family and Liu Haizhong's family would have had a tight housing situation. His two sons were married and each occupied a house, and the third and fourth sons were squeezed into the same house with the old couple.

In the Liu family, the old couple and the young couple each occupied a room, so Liu Guangtian could only put a single bed in a small room in the living room. If he wanted to get married, he really had no place to live.

He Daqing's house was more spacious. Sha Zhu had two main rooms, and there was an east wing room where Yu Shui lived before, plus Liang Ladi had two rooms. But the estrangement did not separate the relatives, and this matter must not fall on others.

"How about this, after I leave, the house will be given to Jiefang and his wife to live in. I don't want rent, just help me take care of the house. The price of the bicycle is fifty yuan, one for each family."

"Da Mao, the house...the house is really going to be handed over to Jiefang and his wife?" Yan Bugui said in disbelief.

"Well, it's his fault that he lives with you even though he's married. How are you going to have grandchildren if this continues?" Xu Damao teased.

"Thank you, thank you Damao. You are the first person other than my parents who is so kind to me. I will remember this favor. If there is any problem with the house when you come back, I will beat Jiefang to death."

"Dad, what are you saying! If it weren't for brother Damao, I would have died. How could I be so sorry to my brother Damao?" Yan Jiefang was not happy about it. In his heart, brother Damao was closer to him than his own father.

Liu Guangtian also nodded in agreement. When they were on a mission, they had a conflict with people from other countries. If it weren't for the things Xu Damao gave them, they would have died there.

He didn't blame Xu Damao for being partial at all. He believed that Brother Damao would definitely make arrangements for him. If not, it would be his own problem.

Although Liu Haizhong didn't get the right to use the house, he was very happy to be able to buy a bicycle for 50 yuan. "Da Mao, you're really at a loss. Your bicycles are still quite new."

"Alas, money is something outside of one's body. You can't bring it with you when you are born, and you can't take it with you when you die. It's useless to have too much. I don't want the money anymore. Just donate it directly to the provident fund of our hospital.

Also, I can no longer be the manager. If necessary, the hospital can choose another one. I'll trouble you to go to the street office."

"Okay, leave it to me. I have nothing else to do except fishing anyway," said Yan Bugui.