Siheyuan: I am different He Yuzhu

Three days passed in a flash. He Yuzhu rode his bicycle to Carpenter Song's house after get off work at noon as agreed. He Yuzhu parked his bicycle in front of Carpenter Song's house, knocked on the door knocker, and stood at the door waiting for Carpenter Song to open the door.

After a while, Old Song pushed open the door from the inside and said, "Xiao He, you're here so early. I thought you wouldn't come until 4-5 o'clock."

"I work in the cafeteria. I can go home after lunch if I have nothing to do. The cafeteria doesn't provide meals at night. Is the table ready, Master Song?"

"The table was finished in one day. The remaining two days were mainly for the paint to dry. Can you come in with me and see how it's going?"

"Master Song's craftsmanship is so great that you don't need to see it to know that his work is very beautiful." He Yuzhu pushed the cart and followed Old Song into his home.

When He Yuzhu entered the yard, he saw the table and stools placed in the yard. The table top was made of pine wood and painted with a layer of varnish, so the texture of the pine wood could be seen. While He Yuzhu was looking at the table and stools, Old Song came in with something like a small chair. He Yuzhu saw at a glance that it was a child seat that he had made himself and installed on the crossbeam of a bicycle.

Old Song handed the child seat to He Yuzhu, who took it and looked at it. The child seat was made of pine wood, with four sides polished very smoothly. The joints used traditional mortise and tenon joints, and there was not a single nail in the entire seat. The seat surface was made of bamboo. There were also strips of cloth wrapped around the legs fixed to the bicycle crossbeam.

"Master Song's craftsmanship is really amazing. The work is so beautiful. Can you calculate how much it costs? I'll give you the money."

"Give me 40 yuan, including the labor and wood, and I'll give you the child seat you want. I'll use leftovers anyway, so it'll just take a little time."

"Then I won't be polite. Thank you, Master Song. You can make a few for your home when you have nothing to do. When more people buy bicycles, they will be indispensable for families with children."

"Bicycles are so expensive, how many people can afford them? The child seat you mentioned is a good thing. There are not many people riding bicycles on the street now."

"Don't worry. The common people don't have money right now. The New Dragon Country has only been established for less than two years. The Skinheads' gold yuan coupons have squeezed the common people dry. Wait two years and the common people will have money. There will definitely be a lot of people buying bicycles."

"Hearing you put it that way, it really makes sense. Thank you in advance. If you really make money from this in the future, I'll treat you to a drink."

He Yuzhu took out the money from his pocket, counted out 40 and handed it to Old Song. Old Song took the money and counted it.

"Yes, I'm loading the truck now and will deliver it to your home later. The eldest brother will come out and load the tables and benches in the yard onto the truck, and will follow the guests and deliver them home later."

"Then Master Song, thank you for making the trip."

When Old Song's eldest son heard what his father said, he came out of the workroom. In the past, Old Song would bring all the good furniture he found to He Yuzhu's home in Qudeng Hutong. He had seen him a few times. He was a quiet man and didn't like to talk. Master Song smiled at He Yuzhu as a greeting.

"I'm sorry to embarrass you. My eldest son has never liked to talk since he was young, especially to people he doesn't know well. No matter how much I teach him, it's useless."

"Master Xiao Song, I'm just not talkative, but my skills are impeccable. I've learned a lot from you. Craftsmen make a living with their skills, and I'm not a street performer who makes a living with my mouth."

"That's because you think highly of him." Old Song heard He Yuzhu praising his son. Although he spoke modestly, He Yuzhu could see at a glance that the corners of his mouth were almost unable to suppress their curling.

He Yuzhu and Old Song's son Song Dashan loaded the table and benches onto the cart, and then Song Dashan secured the table and benches with ropes.

"Then Master Song, I'll leave first. I won't delay your work. We can talk again when you are free another day."

"Okay, okay, boss, please walk slowly on the road and be careful not to bump into anyone."

He Yuzhu was pushing the cart in front, and Old Song's son Song Dashan was following behind. Before long, they arrived at Courtyard 95 where He Yuzhu lived. Because there were steps at the entrance, the cart could only be parked at the gate.

"Master Xiao Song, please untie the rope first. I will push the bicycle into the yard first, and then I will come out and help you move the table and benches in."

When He Yuzhu parked his bicycle at the door of his house and came out, Song Dashan had already unloaded all the tables and stools on the ground. When Song Dashan saw He Yuzhu coming out, he moved the table to the yard. He Yuzhu asked him to put the table next to his bicycle in the middle yard. He Yuzhu stayed at the gate of the courtyard to watch the cart and stools. When Song Dashan came out, he saw He Yuzhu stacking 4 stools together.

"Master Song, thank you for your hard work. I won't keep you here. I can carry the remaining stools back in one go. Please go slowly on your way back."

He Yuzhu picked up four stools with one hand and walked into the yard. Song Dashan saw that He Yuzhu could easily lift four stools with one hand, so he didn't have to make another trip himself. "Then I'll go back." After saying that, Song Dashan pulled the cart and left.

He Yuzhu carried eight stools to the central courtyard and placed them on the ground at the entrance of his courtyard. He took out the key from his pocket and unlocked the door. He moved the table into the kitchen, placed it against the wall, left two stools in the kitchen, and put the others in another ear room.

On April 1951, 4, with the publication of "Who is the Loveliest Person", a wave of donations to support the just war against ugliness and aid to the Bang was set off across the country. He Yuzhu counted all the RMB in his Fudi Dongtian, and found a total of 11 million yuan. He Yuzhu decided to donate all 2.586 million yuan to the Volunteer Army in an anonymous manner, and keep the remaining small change for his daily expenses. He Yuzhu was afraid that the knife music in Fudi Dongtian would attract the attention of the regulatory authorities if donated, so he could only keep it in Fudi Dongtian.

He Yuzhu first held a pencil in his mouth and wrote a letter. In the letter, he wrote that he was moved by the spirit of the most lovely people after reading "Who is the Most Lovely Person" and donated all his savings of 2.5 million yuan to the country, hoping that the most lovely people could defeat American imperialism as soon as possible. After writing the letter, he put the letter into an envelope and glued it shut. Yuzhu put all the money into the suitcase that Xu Tieying had bought from his home. In order to prevent fingerprints from being left on the letter, He Yuzhu also specially prepared a pair of gloves in advance.

After everything was ready, He Yuzhu came to the vicinity of Nanluoguxiang Subdistrict Office. He Yuzhu first found a place where no one was and took the suitcase out of Fudi Dongtian. He Yuzhu stood on the street and thought about what he would say to Director Wang when he saw him later, then he carried the suitcase and walked into the Subdistrict Office.

After registering with the doorman, He Yuzhu came to Director Wang's office. The door of Director Wang's office was open. He Yuzhu saw Director Wang sitting on a chair writing something, so he knocked on the door. Director Wang heard the knock, raised his head and looked at the door, and saw He Yuzhu standing at the door.

"He Yuzhu, what do you want to talk to me about? Come inside and talk." Although Director Wang had only met He Yuzhu once when he went to Courtyard 95 to appoint the third uncle, he remembered him deeply. After all, He Yuzhu was too recognizable. There were probably not many people as tall as He Yuzhu in the whole city. The key point was that he was not only tall, but also very handsome. It was simply unfair.

"Director Wang, I just met a man on my way to the subdistrict office. The man gave me a suitcase and a letter and asked me to pass it to you. I came to you because the subdistrict office has a job to help support the cutest people on the peninsula, and I can use my time after get off work to participate."

After that, He Yuzhu handed the letter to Director Wang and put the suitcase on Director Wang's desk. Director Wang took the letter, opened the envelope and took out the letter. When he saw the handwriting on the letter was like dog crawling, he laughed. After Director Wang read the letter patiently, he was immediately shocked by the content of the letter. Director Wang even suspected that he had read it wrongly. He rubbed his eyes and read it again to make sure he had not read it wrongly.

After reading the letter, Director Wang was about to open the suitcase to see if the money inside was the same as what was written in the letter. Just as Director Wang was about to touch the suitcase, he immediately retracted his hand as if he remembered something. Then Director Wang looked at He Yuzhu with a serious face: "He Yuzhu, do you still remember what the man who gave you this suitcase looked like? Did you open the suitcase and take a look after the man gave it to you?"

"That man just asked me to help deliver the suitcase and the letter to you, Director Wang of the Street Office. I thought that I also happened to come to the Street Office to see you for something, so I helped him bring the letter and the suitcase to you. I didn't open the suitcase to see what was inside. What's wrong, Director Wang? Is there something wrong with the letter and the suitcase? Don't scare me, I'm just helping to deliver something. The man was wearing a black long coat, a top hat on his head, a pair of sunglasses on his face, and a beard on his lips." He Yuzhu said anxiously after hearing what Director Wang said, with a frightened expression on his face.

After listening to He Yuzhu's description, Director Wang immediately comforted He Yuzhu: "Don't be afraid, it's not a bad thing. Xiao Zhou, come here." Director Wang shouted loudly to the outside of the door.

As soon as Director Wang finished speaking, a man in his early 20s walked in and asked, "Director Wang, what do you want to talk to me about?"

"Please notify Deputy Director Zhang, Deputy Director Song, and Accountant Liu and ask them to come to my office. I need to talk to them about something."

Director Wang looked at He Yuzhu standing there at a loss with a nervous look on his face, "Xiao He, don't be nervous, it's nothing serious, you will understand when Xiao Zhou calls them over. As for whether the Street Office has any work to support the cutest people, I will reply to you now. The Street Office happens to have a job to make fried noodles for the cutest people on the front line of the Peninsula. You can participate anytime you want, but I have to remind you that making fried noodles is very hard, you have to be mentally prepared."

"I am not afraid of hard work. I applied to participate in the job of making fried noodles for the cutest people organized by the street office. Director Wang, you may not know, but I am a cook. I work in the canteen of the steel rolling mill in Dongzhimen." He Yuzhu was excited when he heard about the job of making fried noodles. He could finally do something for the cutest people.

"Okay, on behalf of the street office, I would like to thank you for your willingness to participate in the work of making fried noodles for the cutest people." As soon as Director Wang finished speaking, Xiao Zhou walked in with two men and one woman.

"Lao Zhang, Lao Song, Accountant Liu, I asked Xiao Zhou to call you three here because there is something very important. Comrade He Yuzhu just came to my office with a suitcase and a letter. I was shocked after reading the contents of the letter. I haven't opened the suitcase yet. Please take a look at the contents of the letter first. I called you three here so that you can confirm with me whether the contents of the suitcase are the same as what is written in the letter."

Director Wang handed the letter to Lao Zhang, who was closest to him. After the three of them passed the letter to each other and read it, they all looked at Director Wang with serious faces.

"You have all read the letter. If the contents of the suitcase are the same as what is written in the letter, this will be the most serious incident our subdistrict office has encountered since its establishment. Comrade He Yuzhu, let me tell you the contents of the letter. The letter you sent over said that someone wanted to donate 2.5 million RMB to the country to support the fight against ugliness and support for the people. The money in the suitcase is what he wants to donate."

"Someone wants to donate 2.5 million RMB. Director Wang, did I hear it correctly?" He Yuzhu said in surprise after hearing it.

"You heard it right, 2.5 million. The letter says he wants to donate 2.5 million RMB. As for whether there is that much in the suitcase, we need to open it to confirm."

Director Wang opened the suitcase. The moment she opened it, her heart was at ease because she saw that the suitcase was full of RMB. Director Wang took out all the money in the suitcase and placed it on the table. There were a total of 50 bundles of RMB with a face value of 5 yuan each.

"Accountant Liu, please count and confirm whether it is 2.5 million."

Accountant Liu picked up the money on the table and counted them in bundles. "Director Wang, I have counted them and confirmed that each bundle contains 100 bills. 50 bundles are exactly 2.5 million yuan."

"Xiao Zhou, take He Yuzhu to the place where fried noodles are made. He has applied to participate in the job of making fried noodles for the cutest people. Xiao He, you follow Xiao Zhou. I have to take the money to the district later. I think someone will come to you later. You may need to sign some documents to prove this matter."

He Yuzhu followed Xiao Zhou to the backyard of the street office. As soon as he walked into the yard, he saw someone using a shovel to stir-fry in a large iron pot. When He Yuzhu approached, he saw that the pot was actually fried with white flour. He Yuzhu was shocked to find that the fried noodles eaten by the cutest people were actually fried flour, not the kind of flour that he ate in later generations, which was made by frying wheat, barley, soybeans, peanuts, etc. (The reference to the fact that the fried noodles eaten by the volunteers were fried flour was the TV series Gongdelin, in which there was a shot of Kuomintang officers making fried noodles for the volunteers.)

"Comrade Xiao He, this is where the fried noodles are made, you just work here. If you have any questions, just find the person in charge, Lao Hu. That person is Lao Hu. Lao Hu, this person is here to make the fried noodles, you take him with you. Xiao He, I have other things to do, so I'll leave first."

He Yuzhu came to Lao Hu and watched how Lao Hu made fried noodles.

"Young man, you look very tall. Have you ever cooked at home before? Fried noodles are very simple to make. Just pour the noodles into the pot and stir fry them continuously until the flour is cooked. There is no need to knock when frying. Just stir fry continuously to prevent the flour from getting mushy."

"Uncle Hu, I'm a cook. Why don't you take a break first and let me try." Upon hearing this, Old Hu handed the spatula in his hand to He Yuzhu and stood aside to instruct He Yuzhu on how to stir-fry.

After He Yuzhu followed Lao Hu to fry a pot of fried noodles, he learned how to make fried noodles. Then He Yuzhu set up another big iron pot next to him and started making fried noodles by himself. When He Yushui was about to finish school, He Yuzhu finished frying the last pot of fried noodles.

"Uncle Hu, I have to go first. My sister will be finishing school soon. I have to pick her up from school."

After He Yuzhu came out of the street office, he went directly to the primary school where He Yushui was studying. After picking up Yushui, He Yuzhu rode his bike to a grain store to buy some wheat and soybeans. After seeing the fried noodles made for the cutest person, He Yuzhu decided to make the five-grain fried noodles of the future and let the cutest person taste the five-grain fried noodles of the future. At least the fried noodles of the future taste better and are more nutritious.

After He Yuzhu finished his meal, he started making five-grain fried noodles. First, pick out the bad soybeans, then pour the wheat to be fried into a basin, pour clean water into the basin, and remove the impurities in the wheat. After removing the impurities from the wheat, He Yuzhu took out the wheat and put it in the wok to fry. Because of the tight time, He Yuzhu did not have time to wait for the wheat to dry, so he could only fry it directly. After the wheat was fried, pour the beans into the pot and continue frying. After the beans were fried, fry the peanuts. After the peanuts were fried, He Yuzhu took out the small stone mill at home, mixed the wheat, soybeans, and peanuts together, and ground them into powder using the stone mill.

After grinding all the ingredients into fried noodles, He Yuzhu put a little into his mouth and tasted it. It tasted good and very fragrant. He Yuzhu made half a bowl of fried noodles, added a little honey, poured in boiling water and stirred it. He Yuzhu took a bite and put it in his mouth. Hmm, it tasted like what he remembered.

He Yushui watched He Yuzhu busying himself from beginning to end. When he saw He Yuzhu put the finished food into his mouth and started eating, he immediately looked at He Yuzhu anxiously: "Brother, what delicious food did you make? Let me have a taste too."

"This is the fried noodles that Big Brother made. Do you want to try it and see if it's delicious?"

He Yuzhu picked up a piece of fried noodles with chopsticks and put it to He Yushui's mouth. He Yushui opened his mouth and ate it.

"It's delicious, not only fragrant but also sweet. Big brother, you are amazing."

The brother and sister ate half a bowl of fried noodles, one mouthful at a time. After finishing, He Yuzhu poured the remaining fried noodles into the noodle bag, and planned to let Director Wang taste it when he went to the street office tomorrow afternoon to see if he could promote it with the help of Director Wang, so that the most lovely people could eat more nutritious five-grain fried noodles.