Siheyuan: I am different He Yuzhu

He Yuzhu took Yangshi Lei to take a closer look at the main house where he lived. After that, He Yuzhu said to Yangshi Lei, "Master Lei, do you think it is possible to build a toilet in my house, just like the toilet I asked you to build in the house in Qudeng Hutong a few years ago?"

"Your house has a large space, so there is room to build a toilet. But after the toilet is built, where will the sewage be drained? This is the main house, and you can't dig a hole at the bottom of the house to drain the sewage to the street. The pipes that need to be laid underground are too long. It's not enough to just lay the pipes underground. You also need to consider a certain slope. If the slope is too low for such a long distance, it will be difficult to drain the sewage. If the slope is too large, the end of the pipe will be lower than the sewer on the street, and the sewage in the sewer on the street outside may flow back into the pipe." Yangshi Lei expressed his doubts after listening to He Yuzhu's words.

He Yuzhu led Yangshi Lei out of the room and pointed to the vacant lot to the west of his house. "Master Lei, what do you think about digging a septic tank there? It's the planting pond I asked you to build a few years ago."

Yangshi Lei looked at the place He Yuzhu pointed at, thought about it and said, "I don't think so. It's too close to the entrance and exit of the backyard. People who pass by there will smell the stench from the septic tank. After a while, they will probably have a problem with you."

After listening to Yangshi Lei's words, He Yuzhu had no choice but to give up the idea of ​​building a toilet at home. "Thank you for your advice, Master Lei. Master Lei, do you think my house needs some renovation?"

"Xiao He, we are old acquaintances, so it's a bit polite for you to say that. From the outside, there should be nothing wrong with your house. Does it leak when you live in it?" Yangshi Lei said with a smile.

"I didn't find any leaks in the house this summer." He Yuzhu thought for a moment and said affirmatively.

"If there is no leak, it means there is no problem with the roof, so there is no need to inspect it. I see that your doors and windows are fine too. You can do some simple repairs in a few years when you plan to get married." Yangshi Lei answered seriously after listening.

"Then can I add a window outside the window?" He Yuzhu asked another question.

"For the window, you have to find the carpenter Old Song. I can't do carpentry work. But after looking at the condition of your window sill, I think adding a window will be no problem. There is enough space." Yangshi Lei answered patiently.

"I understand, Master Lei. Let's go and dig the hole. I'll help you dig. You've been busy talking to me all this time since you came out with me, and I've delayed you from doing a lot of work." He Yuzhu said embarrassedly.

"It's okay. You invited us here and you are the boss. How can we let you do the work yourself? The three of us can easily finish it today and tomorrow." Yangshi Lei refused.

"Master Lei, please don't argue with me about this. Look at my size. Do you think you can work slower with me? Or are you afraid that I will get tired?" He Yuzhu patted his chest and said with a proud look on his face.

"That's not what I meant. You paid us to do the work, so there's no reason for you to do it as well." Yangshi Lei continued to insist.

Seeing that he couldn't convince Yangshilei, He Yuzhu stopped talking to him and went straight to the small courtyard, took the other tools they had brought and started working. Yangshilei didn't say anything when he saw this. With He Yuzhu's help, Yangshilei and his two companions dug out the cellar pit in just half an afternoon.

After finishing the work, Yangshi Lei expressed his gratitude to He Yuzhu, "Xiao He, thanks to your help today, otherwise the three of us wouldn't have been able to dig the pit for the cellar so quickly. Let's stop here for today. Tomorrow morning I'll bring some people with bricks and the cellar will be ready for you tomorrow afternoon."

"Master Lei, this is my own work, it can't be considered as helping. Why don't you take a break and drink some tea?" He Yuzhu advised enthusiastically.

"No, we've rested enough. We'll say goodbye first. Your sister will be finishing school soon, and you'll have to pick her up later, right? We won't take the tools we brought back with us. Let's leave them here for now. We may need them tomorrow." Yangshi Lei said with a smile.

"Okay, just put the tools aside. Come on, I'll take you out. I'll also pick up my sister from school on the way." He Yuzhu said while pushing his bicycle.

After He Yuzhu sent Yangshi Lei and the other two out of the courtyard, he said, "Master Lei, I'll go first." After saying that, He Yuzhu got on his bicycle and rode quickly towards the elementary school where He Yushui was studying.

Jia Zhang was frightened by He Yuzhu's request for money and ran back home. After returning home, Jia Zhang was very angry that He Yuzhu had deceived her. The more she thought about it, the angrier she became. She started to scold He Yuzhu at home, but she was afraid that He Yuzhu would hear her, so she lowered her voice and scolded: "You silly Zhu, you actually bullied me, your father deserved to run away with the widow. You two ungrateful bastards will never be able to marry when you grow up. You are destined to be extinct..."

Jia Zhang didn't stop attacking He Yuzhu until she felt thirsty. She poured herself a bowl of boiled water and drank it all in one breath. Qin Huairu, who lived in the same room, had long been accustomed to her mother-in-law Jia Zhang's bullying behavior, and she sat there without saying a word. After Jia Zhang finished drinking the water and sat down, she began to think about how to store cabbage for the winter. If there was a sucker willing to dig a cellar with her family, it would be best if she didn't have to pay for it.

Thinking of this, Jia Zhang suddenly had an idea. That's right, she could find Yi Zhonghai, who is her son's master and the most powerful man in the courtyard. She could ask him to organize everyone in the courtyard to dig a cellar together. In winter, every household has to buy a lot of cabbage. In the past few years, the situation was unstable and everyone kept the cabbage at home. Now that the situation is good, she could ask him to hold a meeting to call on everyone to contribute money to dig a cellar. With Yi Zhonghai's character, he might even pay for his share of the money. Thinking of this, Jia Zhang smiled and was proud of her wit.

Qin Huairu, who was in the room, saw her mother-in-law Jia Zhang sitting on the chair without moving for a long time, but suddenly she laughed foolishly. She was immediately startled and thought to herself: "My mother-in-law won't be crazy. This won't do. I don't want to serve a crazy woman at such a young age. Besides, when I have children in the future, I want Jia Zhang to help take care of them." She quickly asked with concern: "Mom, what's wrong with you?"

Jia Zhang, who was immersed in her own fantasy world, woke up when she heard Qin Huairu's voice. Seeing Qin Huairu looking at her with concern, she asked curiously, "Huairu, why are you looking at me like that? Is there something on my face?"

"It's like this, Mom. You were sitting in the chair motionless just now, but suddenly you started laughing. I thought you were not feeling well." Qin Huairu saw that Jia Zhang still recognized who she was, so she felt relieved and quickly explained.

"Oh, Mom, it's okay. I just thought of some happy things just now. You can go and do your work." Jia Zhang said to Qin Huairu with a kind face.

Qin Huairu heard what Jia Zhang said, so she went back to her work. Jia Zhang sat on the chair and continued to think about how to talk to Yi Zhonghai to maximize the interests of her family.

When Jia Xudong got home from get off work and had dinner, Jia Zhang couldn't wait to tell Jia Xudong her thoughts. Jia Zhang finally reminded Jia Xudong: "Xudong, when we go to your master's house, don't say anything else. Just say that you want to work for your master. Leave everything else to me." The mother and son confirmed each other's words at home, and Jia Zhang took Jia Xudong to knock on the door of Yi Zhonghai's house.

Yi Zhonghai pushed open the door and saw Jia Zhang and his apprentice Jia Xudong. "Sister Jia, do you and Xudong want to talk to me about something?" Yi Zhonghai asked curiously after letting Jia Zhang and Jia Xudong enter the room.

Jia Zhang said with a smile: "Uncle, you have eaten, right? This is what happened. This afternoon I saw He Yuzhu looking around in the yard stealthily, so I stopped him and asked him what he wanted to do. He said, "He wanted to find a place in the yard to dig a cellar." I said, "It's good to dig a cellar, but the yard belongs to everyone. If you want to dig a cellar, you have to tell everyone. You can only dig it if everyone agrees. Otherwise, the cellar you dig has to be used by everyone. Uncle, do you think I am right?"

After listening to Jia Zhang's words, Yi Zhonghai pondered for a moment and slowly said, "Well, you are right. The yard belongs to everyone's public area, not to one family. You can't do whatever you want. You have to ask for everyone's opinion."

"You are the eldest uncle in the courtyard. If you agree, it will sound more profound when you say it than when I say it." Jia Zhang praised Yi Zhonghai a little, and then said, "Uncle, guess what He Yuzhu said after I finished speaking?"

Yi Zhonghai felt very pleased after hearing Jia Zhang's flattery. When he heard what Jia Zhang said next, he couldn't help but ask, "What did He Yuzhu say?"

"He Yuzhu said: 'The cellar was dug by him, He Yuzhu, and only he can use it. Others who want to use it can contribute money to build it together.' I said: 'This is everyone's place. You built your own cellar, why can't you let others use it.' Unexpectedly, He Yuzhu got so angry that he dug the cellar inside his family's small yard." Jia Zhang said, fanning the flames.

"He Yuzhu is too much. Sister-in-law Jia, you are right. This young man is easily impulsive. I will talk to him about him when I have the chance." Yi Zhonghai said with empathy.

After applying eye drops to He Yuzhu in front of Yi Zhonghai, Jia Zhang paused and said, "Uncle, since He Yuzhu doesn't want everyone to share the cellar with him, I thought you could organize some people in our yard to contribute money and labor, and we can all dig a cellar together. We will need it this winter." After so much preparation, Jia Zhang finally stated her purpose.

After hearing what Jia Zhang said, Yi Zhonghai's eyes immediately lit up, and he began to think silently in his mind. "I was just worrying about how to improve my status as the steward in the Siheyuan, and Jia Zhang immediately gave me a good idea. I will discuss it privately with Liu Zhonghai from the front courtyard and Yan Bugui from the front courtyard. After we have discussed it, we will hold a meeting of the whole courtyard. In this way, everyone will see that I am so considerate of the residents of the Siheyuan, and my status will be improved accordingly."

Seeing Yi Zhonghai remained silent, Jia Zhang winked at Jia Xudong. Jia Xudong immediately understood and said, "Master, I will be the first to support you during the meeting. If you need to work hard, I will do it for you."

Yi Zhonghai was very pleased after hearing what Jia Xudong said. He felt that he had not made a mistake and said in a gentle tone: "Xudong, you and your mother should go back first. I have to discuss the matter your mother mentioned with the second and third uncles. Only after the three of us have discussed it well can we hold a meeting of the whole hospital."

When Jia Zhang heard that there was a way, she was worried that something unexpected might happen, so she immediately said to Jia Xudong: "Xudong, what are you still standing there for? Why don't you go and call the second uncle in the backyard and the third uncle in the front yard to your master's house? Do you want your master to make a personal trip for such a small matter?" When Jia Xudong heard what his mother meant, he didn't know what it meant, so he opened the door and ran out.

After Jia Xudong left, Jia Zhang smiled and said to Yi Zhonghai, "Uncle, Xudong is young and naive. If he does anything wrong, I'll trouble you to teach him. I'll go back first." After saying that, Jia Zhang turned around and walked out of Yi Zhonghai's house and walked towards her own home. On the way, Jia Zhang thought to herself, "Yi Zhonghai, even though he is so smart, I still arranged everything for him. I am the most powerful person in the courtyard."