The courtyard: the atmosphere of human life

Darong learned from her friends that it doesn't take too long to study at night school. Although it is nominally a night school, it is actually just a pre-exam training class. At that time, one had to pass an exam to enter a state-owned factory, so this type of night school came into being.

"Mom, the street office posted a notice saying there will be a night school training class at the end of March. I have already signed up."

Darong washed her hands and talked to her mother who was picking wool.

"Okay, take the test in the next two days and get a high score, so that you can be selected first when the job is assigned."

"Well, don't pick it anymore. Go lie down for a while. You have to work the night shift tonight. I'll do it." Darong took a bench and sat down.

"It's okay, go to sleep after dinner in the afternoon." Darong's mother didn't get up, but continued to pick the hair in her hands.

Since she decided to build a house, Darong's mother went to work early in the morning to change from day shift to night shift in order to earn night shift subsidy, and she also increased the amount of wool she received. Although Darong's father did not agree to build a house in person, Darong's mother still refused to give up.

"Sister, tomorrow is the seventh day of the first lunar month. Can you take me to the market after get off work?" Xiaoying came up to Darong and asked with a smile.

People at that time didn’t have much entertainment, and going to the market was the most lively thing I had ever seen since I was a child.

"Let's go at the next market. We have to hurry up and hand over the package of materials we just received. If we fail to hand over the materials, they will deduct our money." Darong glanced at the bag of woolen materials in the corner and said softly to Xiaoying.

Xiaoying pursed her lips and said nothing. Although she felt a little disappointed, she had been sensible since she was a child. She knew that life at home was not easy and she would never act pretentiously.

"DaRong, are you home?" Qiaozhen's voice came from outside.

"Yeah, I'm at home." Darong looked up at the window and answered.

"Sanniang is also at home. You didn't go to work today?" Qiaozhen lifted the curtain and entered the house, only to see Darong's mother also picking wool at home. She quickly greeted and spoke to Darong's mother.

"Oh, you're at home. Come in and sit down. I'm on the night shift." Darong's mother said happily.

"Sister Qiaozhen, are you off work again today?" Xiaoying handed Qiaozhen a stool and asked her to sit down.

"Yes, our factory has changed to three shifts, and we can have a day off after the night shift." After sitting down, Qiaozhen grabbed a handful of wool from the wool bag and started to pick it.

"Well, don't get your hands dirty. Sit down and rest for a while." Darong's mother said politely to Qiaozhen.

"It's okay, Sanniang. I'll be sitting here anyway. I just want to talk to Darong." Qiaozhen didn't shy away and answered with a smile.

Although Qiaozhen has a good relationship with Darong, she doesn't visit Darong often since she started working. However, if there is any gossip about acquaintances, Qiaozhen will definitely go to the news.

Even the youngest Xiaoying has understood this point, so when Qiaozhen came in today, Xiaoying's face was full of smiles, and the gloomy mood she felt at not being able to go to the market was immediately buried by excitement.

But today, Qiaozhen didn't start chattering about gossip as usual as soon as she entered the door. Instead, she chatted about some boring family matters. Xiaoying, who had been waiting to listen to the story, gradually felt bored and got up and lay on the bed to read a book.

"Rong, you talk to Qiaozhen. I'm going to lie down and stretch my back."

Darong's mother had been sitting for a long time, and she felt as if a lead block was hanging around her waist. She couldn't bear it any longer, so she got up and went into the inner room to lie down and rest.

As soon as Darong's mother entered the room, Qiaozhen pulled a stool and moved closer to Darong.

"Mr. Cheng is dating Li Meili." Qiaozhen lowered her voice and whispered in Darong's ear.

"Ah?" Darong opened her mouth in shock. She even forgot to take off the wool in her hand and looked at Qiaozhen in disbelief.

"Really? It was Cheng Laoxiao's aunt who introduced him to him, and he actually agreed." Qiaozhen nodded to Darong very firmly and seriously.

Although Li Meili was a classmate of Darong, she was held back for a year and is now 1 years old. When she just graduated, she replaced her mother and went to work in the factory. She was the first among her classmates to be hired as a regular worker.

Darong never thought that Cheng Laoxiao would actually agree to be with Li Meili.

"What is he thinking?" Because Darong and Cheng Laoxiao had dated before, it would be inappropriate for her to say too much, but this question really came from the bottom of her heart.

"You can't figure it out, right? None of our classmates can figure it out. This old man Cheng is good-looking and tall, and he's a formal worker. There's no way he should fall for Li Meili." Qiaozhen pouted and shook her head as she spoke.

Qiaozhen was trying to avoid mentioning Darong's mother, so she spoke very softly. Xiaoying might not have been satisfied listening while lying on the bed, so she quickly pulled a stool and moved closer to Qiaozhen.

Darong glared at Xiaoying speechlessly, thinking that the child was young and did quite well.

"Guess why he is dating Li Meili?" Qiaozhen asked Darong mysteriously.

Darong's mind was still filled with Cheng Laoxiao's comment on Li Meili: "She looks three parts like a human but not a human, and seven parts like a ghost but looks like a living ghost."

"Why, Sister Qiaozhen?"

Before Darong could answer, Xiaoying couldn't help it and grabbed Qiaozhen's sleeve and asked.

Qiaozhen pursed her lips and looked at Xiaoying with a half-smile.

"He said he was going to marry a psychopath and take him home to heal his mother." After Qiaozhen said this, she covered her mouth and laughed evilly.

Indeed, among this group of classmates, there is not a single one who does not say that Li Meili is a psychopath.

Darong listened to Qiaozhen's words and snorted helplessly. How could such a big marriage turn into a family revenge?

If Cheng Laoxiao really treated his marriage as a joke because of his anger with his mother, then Darong should be grateful to Cheng Laoxiao's mother. How could someone with such a temper take on the burden of a family?

For a long time afterwards, Qiaozhen didn't come to Darong's house again. I heard that she was in love. Qiaozhen, who was in love, became the protagonist of other people's stories. In fact, life is like this. You tell other people's stories and also act out your own story.

"Darong, I'll pick you up tomorrow morning." As Darong walked out of the breakfast shop, Pei Bin called her from behind.

Pei Bin has been in the factory for a few days. He has not come to see Darong during these days. Today, as soon as his shift was arranged, he hurried to see Darong.

"Aren't you going to work tomorrow?"

"I have an early shift tomorrow, so I can just drop you off at work. It won't delay you." Pei Bin said with a smile.

"When does your night school start?"

Pei Bin knew that Darong was going to night school, and he hoped that she could pass the exam as soon as possible and be assigned a stable job. It wasn't that he cared about making money, but he just hoped that she wouldn't have to do odd jobs everywhere. The breakfast department had already decided to liquidate and close down after the inventory was completed by the end of April.

"It was originally scheduled for the end of March, but yesterday the street office notified us that the course will start on April 3th, and the exam will be in July. They said that several new factories will only start recruiting in the second half of the year, so the exam has been postponed."

"Okay, it's okay. If it's postponed, we can still prepare for a few more days."

"Well, how are you doing at the factory?"

Darong and Pei Bin were chatting and before they knew it they had arrived at the Nanjian dormitory area.

"Oh, Darong is dating someone now." Aunt Liu in the backyard looked Pei Bin up and down, looking at Darong with a smile in her eyes.