Siheyuan: Bringing Warehouses to 1959

There are widows in every village!

Which village doesn’t have a few widows?

There are also widows in Zengzhuang, but the widows in Zengzhuang today are different from the widows in other villages. They are completely different.

What do ordinary widows care about?

Some people say it’s about reputation and fame, but that’s actually bullshit!

Compared to having enough food to eat and raising children, reputation means shit in the eyes of most widows.

Of course, there are exceptions, which are not within the scope of discussion of the Zengzhuang incident.

Not long after, the accountant invited the two widows as Zeng Laosan requested, along with the two widows' mothers-in-law and a father-in-law.

Both widows were in their early twenties. One had two children, and the other had three.

The common feature of these two families is that both have lost their only child, and the elderly can only rely on the widow and daughter-in-law for their future retirement.

"Everyone is here, please take a seat!" Zeng Lao San called out, "The Yuanzi family, the Louzi family, everyone, take a seat!"

He was calling out the names of the two heads of the family, one of which had both his father and son no longer around.

Five people from two families sat in the main room, filling the room completely.

"Old Party Secretary, if you have something to say, just tell me!" said the old man named Yuanzi, rubbing his hands.

"Something's wrong, something big!" The old secretary took out a pack of cigarettes, passed them around, and then filled a pot with cigarettes for himself, lit them, and said with two puffs, "Our village has reached a critical moment of life and death. You have seen these days that the village has been ravaged. We can no longer supply vegetables to the city. If this continues, our village will go back to the way it was before, and everyone will have to live a miserable life."

"It's all those bastards' fault."

"Old Party Secretary, what do you want our two families to do? Just tell me!"

The two household heads expressed their willingness to never refuse any help they could provide, and this was exactly what Zeng Lao San wanted.

However, Zeng Laosan felt that his plan was too vicious and would bring bad reputation to the two widows, so he didn't want to force it right away.

Then Zeng Lao San looked directly at the two widows who looked quite good and said, "Yanzi, Xiazi, tell me, have you ever been wronged after being married to our village for so many years?"

"Old Party Secretary, we are all embarrassed by what you said..." The widow named Xia Zi was more aggressive and answered first, "I am not wronged at all. I have such a good life. People in our village envy me. They say that only when our ancestors' graves are full of smoke can we marry into the village. After Maoer left, I raised three children by myself. The villagers took good care of our family, doing the lightest work, and giving us delicious food and drinks. If you feel wronged, you are too conscienceless."

"I don't feel wronged..." Yan Zi's family didn't have a father-in-law. She glanced at her mother-in-law and said, "I told my mother-in-law that if the village hadn't been so kind to us, I would have remarried long ago."

This person doesn't look very aggressive, but she has a very tough personality and her mother-in-law can't control her at all.

The words of these two widows represent Zengzhuang's current attitude towards widows - in one word, good.

Since Zengzhuang's life has improved, girls from all over the village have been trying their best to marry into the family. But widows are different from ordinary girls. Without their husbands, their family life will become a little harder, so they will definitely have the idea of ​​remarrying and looking for a man to rely on.

But it is different in Zengzhuang. Widows receive extra care and don’t have to worry about their lives. There is no difference during the day whether there is a man or not, except at night.

Even how big a difference it makes at night, or whether there is any difference at all, only the widow herself knows.

"I wish you had said that!" Zeng Lao San puffed on his cigarette and reminded through the smoke, "The reason why our village can live like this today is all because of Wangcai. If it weren't for Wangcai bringing back the seeds and making connections for us, our village wouldn't have the job of delivering vegetables to Sijiu City, and we wouldn't have the good life we ​​have now, right?"

"Yes, don't worry, old secretary. We won't forget Wangcai."

"Just say what you want to say, don't beat around the bush."

"..."

"Then I will just say this, tell this, and don't tell anyone else!" Zeng Laosan's face showed a troubled look through the smoke, "This is what I think, we must make those people guilty, so that they won't dare to do anything reckless if something happens. We can drive them out and save our friends before we can get out. When Wangcai comes back, we will have an explanation...

"But my plan is a bit sinister, and it's not good for Xia Zi and Yan Zi's reputation."

Bad reputation?

What else is a widow known for?

This is what everyone except the widow's two families think!

Bad reputation?

What’s the use of fame? Can fame be used to make a living?

This is what the two widows thought.

As for the widow's parents-in-law and her two relatives, they were older and knew Zeng Laosan well enough. Just based on what Zeng Laosan said, they knew that Zeng Laosan was going to do something big.

"Old Party Secretary, how about..." Yuanzi rubbed his hands, hesitant to speak.

"Don't say anything yet!" Zeng Lao San raised his hand, completely stopping Yuanzi from speaking. "You parents-in-law, listen to me first. Regardless of whether this matter succeeds or not, you are the benefactors of our village. From now on, the affairs of your two families will be the affairs of our village.

"If Wangcai comes back one day, he will thank both of you..."

Zeng Laosan's first words did not impress his parents-in-law, but Zeng Wangcai's later words of thanks made them very excited.

Who is Zeng Wangcai?

Although he has not been back for many years, the legends about him have never ceased to spread, and they were all told by Lai Fu.

Something like my eldest brother became the owner of the island, what my eldest brother eats every day, etc.

Considering the huge amount Zeng Wangcai had spent on his return before, who would dare to ignore the condition of "Zeng Wangcai's thanks"?

"I'll do it!" Yan Zi nodded straightforwardly, "I haven't met Wangcai yet, but I heard that he founded the Sijiucheng Garment Factory. I don't want anything else but for him to send me to work in the city after he comes back, so that our children can also have a city hukou." At this point, she looked back at her mother-in-law and said, "Don't worry, mom. If this works out, I won't remarry, and the eldest and second sons will also take care of you in your old age!"

Swallow's mother-in-law moved her mouth, but when she heard that he was willing to take care of her in her old age, she finally said nothing.

There is no need to investigate whether it was Zeng Laosan’s prestige that worked, or Zeng Wangcai’s legend that worked, or both. Anyway, both families agreed to let Zeng Laosan come up with ideas.

Zeng Lao San then put away his pipe and said, "I see their deputy commander is keeping an eye on Xiao Qiang and Lai Fu. This is their usual method. Xiao Qiang and Lai Fu are very good friends and will definitely not say anything. The next step they will take is to look for other people in the village..."

It has to be said that Zeng Laosan, the old fox, is very clear about the methods of people like Liu Guangqi.

Finally, he lowered his voice and said to the two widows, "Outsiders like you, who have lost their husbands at home, are the ones they focus on. When they come looking for you, just... Don't worry, Goudan and the others are lying in ambush outside, you won't suffer any loss..."

A vicious plan took shape in Zeng Laosan's mouth.