Siheyuan: Buyers get rich from hunting

When Liu Haizhong heard Liu Guangfu's mumbling, he immediately frowned and glared at him. His eyes were full of unquestionable seriousness. He stared at Liu Guangfu and said, "You can learn if you don't understand. No one can know everything from the beginning. You are still young, your brains are flexible, and you learn things much faster than us old guys. Besides, welding is a real technical job. As long as you are willing to work hard and study hard, and master the welding techniques one by one, you will be able to do the work smoothly in the future without any ambiguity."

At this point, Liu Haizhong paused for a moment, a look of disdain appeared on his face, and he continued, "It's not like cooking. You two have been working on it for so long, but you haven't made any progress. Every time, the dishes are either fried black or taste weird. You only make things that make people lose their appetite when they see them, and are even harder to swallow when they taste them. It's a waste of effort."

After hearing this, the two brothers were stunned at first, then looked at each other, with a bit of hesitation in their eyes. Liu Guangqi scratched his head subconsciously, his fingers rubbing back and forth in his hair. After a moment of silence, he slowly said: "Dad, but we still want to learn cooking skills. After all, we have been learning for such a long time. Although we have encountered many bumps along the way, we have also figured it out little by little. It's hard to give up so easily. Look at the brothers of the Yan family. They are living a very glorious life now with their cooking skills. Wherever they go, people praise them, and they can make a lot of money with this skill. We also think that if we can learn cooking skills well, our life will be better, so we really don't want to give up halfway."

After hearing what Liu Guangqi said, Liu Haizhong snorted, his voice full of disapproval, and said with a pout, "Glorious? Humph, that's because they are lucky. They happened to meet a good master who is willing to teach them with all his heart, and they are also willing to endure hardships and work hard to practice, so they have gradually achieved today's results. What about you? Look at yourselves, your journey to learning cooking is so bumpy. It's been such a long time, and there is still no progress. I don't know when it will end."

As he spoke, Liu Haizhong straightened up a little, and continued with a serious face: "Welding is different from cooking. It is a real skill. As long as you learn it and master it, it will be a lifelong job. It is stable and you don't have to worry about not having work. Now this city is under construction everywhere, whether it is building a building or repairing a factory, the demand for welders is huge. Many young people have seen this opportunity and are rushing to learn welding. You are so good, you don't want to learn such a good skill in front of you, but insist on studying cooking. I don't know what you are thinking."

Liu Guangfu listened to his father's words, pursed his lips, thought for a while, and then said carefully: "Dad, is the job of welding tiring? We have never been exposed to this before, and we are not sure about it. I am afraid that we will not be able to do it. If we learn it but can't do it well, it will be a waste of effort."

Liu Haizhong smiled after hearing this, but there was a bit of helplessness in his smile. He waved his hand and said, "Tired? What kind of work is not tiring? There is no such thing as making money easily in this world. As long as you can make money, there is nothing to be afraid of being a little tired. When you first start learning, after all, you are a novice, so you may feel that it is a bit hard and your hands are not so smooth when operating those welding tools. But when you gradually become proficient, it will be like playing and much more convenient. Moreover, welders earn as much money as those cooks. Sometimes, if you encounter a large project that requires a large number of welders, the income will be very considerable. Besides, if you follow me to learn, I will teach you step by step. If there is anything you don’t understand, I can point it out to you immediately. Isn’t this much better than you groping for the cooking skills by yourself? Think about it carefully."

After listening to their father's well-reasoned words, the two brothers fell into deep thought. Their original determination to learn cooking was like a small stone thrown into a calm lake, which began to ripple and gradually wavered.

Liu Guangqi frowned slightly, his eyes were full of confusion, and he was thinking to himself. What his father said seemed to make sense. Looking back on his journey of learning cooking, it was really full of ups and downs, and it was not smooth at all. Every time he was ready to show his skills with joy, the result was always a mess. Either the dishes were fried to a state of burnt, or the seasoning was a mess, and the taste was simply "unforgettable". He kept tossing around like this, and he didn't know when he would be able to learn and really make delicious dishes that people would praise.

Look at the welder. Although I have never been in contact with welding before and I am completely clueless about welding tools and welding techniques, my father does this. With my father by my side to teach me step by step, it is definitely like having a ready-made good master. Maybe it will be easy to learn. Moreover, my father just said that there are construction projects everywhere now, and the employment prospects of welders are bright. As long as you learn it, you will definitely make a lot of money in the future. This is indeed a very attractive advantage.

Liu Guangfu also had a thoughtful look on his face, as if there were two little people in his heart constantly pulling at him. He was thinking to himself, if he continued to study cooking, it was not easy to learn cooking. What if he studied for another year or two and still had no idea how to cook, and the dishes he made were still inedible? That would be too bad. It would be a waste of so much precious time and energy. It was a pity to think about it.

But as for welding, I really have no interest in it. When I think about the fact that if I learn welding, I will have to face those cold welding tools every day and deal with them all day long, with sparks flying. Just imagining that scene, I feel quite resistant in my heart. I don't know if I can do it. What if I can't persist in learning? Wouldn't it be a waste of time?

The family sat quietly at the dinner table, no one spoke, the silence seemed to have substance, weighing heavily on everyone's heart, and it lasted for a long time. Finally, it was Liu Guangqi who took the lead in breaking the somewhat oppressive silence. He gently cleared his throat, raised his head, looked at his father, and said carefully: "Dad, let's think about it again. After all, this matter is too important to us. It concerns our future livelihood and development. We have to think it over carefully and can't make a decision so hastily."

Liu Haizhong listened to his son's words, nodded slightly, and the expression on his face eased a little. He said earnestly: "Okay, you guys think about it carefully, but don't put it off too long. You all know the situation outside now. Welders are needed everywhere. This is a rare opportunity. If you can learn this skill earlier, you can go out and earn money earlier, and our life will be better sooner. You must hurry up and think about it."

In the following days, Liu Guangqi and Liu Guangfu felt like they were in a mess, and they were always entangled in this matter, and they couldn't figure it out. When they walked on the road, whenever they passed by the busy restaurants on the street, through the bright glass windows, they saw the chefs in the restaurants wearing neat chef uniforms, busy at the stove in an orderly manner, their skilled stir-frying movements, and the tempting aroma rising from the pot. They couldn't help but think in their hearts that if they continued to insist on learning cooking skills, after continuous hard work and practice, would they be able to be as comfortable in the kitchen as them, make delicious dishes with good color, fragrance and taste, and win the praise and recognition of diners? What a proud and satisfying thing that would be.

However, whenever they finished hanging out outside and returned home, they would see their dad fiddling with welding tools in the yard or in the house, a pile of complicated and cold-looking instruments, and hear their dad occasionally muttering a few words about the key points to pay attention to when welding. In their minds, they would immediately think of the various benefits of learning welding that their dad had mentioned before, such as good job prospects, high income, and that they could learn quickly with their dad teaching them personally. As they thought about it, they became more and more conflicted, as if they were standing at a fork in the road, choosing to go left or right. Every choice seemed to have unknown risks and opportunities, making it really difficult for them to make a decision.

Once upon a time, the sun was shining warmly in the courtyard of the quadrangle, and the mottled light and shadows swayed on the ground, as if adding a different kind of quiet atmosphere to this ordinary courtyard. Liu Guangqi and Liu Guangfu were pacing in the courtyard with heavy thoughts in their hearts, their brows were tightly furrowed, and their faces were full of worries. Anyone who saw them could tell that they were weighed down with heavy things in their hearts.

Just at this time, Yan family brothers Yan Jiecheng and Yan Jiefang also came to the yard. Yan Jiecheng looked up and saw Liu Guangqi and Liu Guangfu looking sad. He couldn't help feeling a little puzzled, so he took a few quick steps and came to them. With a concerned look on his face, he asked, "Guangqi, Guangfu, what's wrong with you? Why do you look so unhappy? Have you encountered any difficulties in learning cooking again?" As he spoke, Yan Jiecheng tilted his head slightly, looking back and forth between their faces, with genuine concern in his eyes.

After hearing this, Liu Guangqi sighed heavily, and the sigh seemed to be filled with endless helplessness and entanglement. Then, he slowly told the Yan brothers about his father's desire for them to learn welding and not to continue learning cooking. He told them in great detail, from how his father persuaded them, saying how good the employment prospects of welding were, how much money they could make, and how he could teach them step by step, to how he and Liu Guangfu were reluctant to give up cooking, and how they were hesitant and worried about the job of welding. He poured out all of it at once, frowning from time to time as he spoke, looking very distressed.

After listening to Liu Guangqi's story, Yan Jiecheng lowered his head slightly, propped his chin with his hand, thought carefully, and then slowly said: "Oh, this is indeed a difficult decision." As he spoke, he shook his head gently, with a look of embarrassment on his face, "But no matter what you learn, the most important thing is to be interested in it. Only when you are interested in something, you will be motivated to learn it, and you will be willing to invest time and energy, and you will not easily back down when you encounter difficulties." At this point, Yan Jiecheng seemed to be lost in memories, with a hint of emotion in his eyes. "When we two learned cooking, it was because we really loved this skill. We felt that cooking was a very interesting thing from the bottom of our hearts. So no matter how many difficulties we encountered, such as always cutting our hands when cutting vegetables at the beginning, or not being able to control the heat well when cooking and burnt the vegetables countless times, there were all kinds of problems one after another, but because we loved it, we never thought of giving up, and we were always thinking of ways to overcome these difficulties. That's how we gradually achieved today's results." Yan Jiecheng spoke vividly, as if those difficult days of learning cooking were right in front of him.

Yan Jiefang was listening to his brother's words and nodded continuously. When Yan Jiecheng finished speaking, he quickly agreed, "Yes, you have to think carefully about which one you like more. Interest is very important. If you still can't let go of cooking and you can't give up the passion in your heart, then just keep insisting. Maybe one day you will suddenly get it as if your Ren and Du meridians are opened, and your cooking skills will definitely improve by leaps and bounds. But if you think that the job of welding is promising and there is a lot of room for future development, then it's not a bad idea to learn it. After all, having a skill can guarantee your future." As Yan Jiefang spoke, he reached out and patted Liu Guangqi and Liu Guangfu on the shoulders. His action was full of encouragement.

After listening to what the Yan brothers said, the two brothers thought about it carefully and felt that it made sense. It was as if a few rays of sunshine suddenly penetrated into their hearts, which were originally shrouded in haze, and their hearts seemed to be a little brighter. Liu Guangfu raised his head slightly, and the sadness on his face faded a little. He looked at the Yan brothers and said, "Well, you are right. We really need to think about what we like more. We can't just listen to Dad. Although Dad is also good for us and wants us to learn a promising craft, we have to do it ourselves after all. We can't just think about who can make more money. No matter how much money we make, if we don't have the enthusiasm to do it, we won't be able to stick to it. It depends on whether we have the enthusiasm to do it."

Since then, Liu Guangqi and Liu Guangfu seemed to have made up their minds. They began to calm down, find a quiet corner, sit on the stone bench under the old locust tree in the yard, or stay in front of the desk in their house, and think seriously about their true thoughts. Sometimes they close their eyes, and the scenes of their busy but expectant learning cooking keep emerging in their minds, thinking about how they will stand on the stove and cook skillfully in the future if they continue to learn; but sometimes, they imagine learning welding from their father, fiddling with the welding tools, and completing welding tasks in the sparks, and repeatedly weighing the pros and cons of these two choices in their hearts.

How much they want to find the path that suits them best from these two choices, just like people groping in the dark eagerly looking for the light that can illuminate the way ahead. They are looking forward to starting their own learning journey, thinking that as long as they choose the right direction, they can rely on their own efforts to work hard for the future and let their families live a good life. However, the process of making this choice is still full of entanglement and struggle. After all, every road seems to be hidden in the fog, with unknown challenges and possibilities. They don’t know what kind of problems they will encounter after choosing which road, and whether they can go on smoothly. So their brows will still frown from time to time, and the entanglement in their hearts will always linger in their hearts, and it is difficult to completely dissipate.