Siheyuan, integrating everything, cultivating the city

His stomach started to growl, reminding him that he had eaten too little for dinner. Li Xiangqian propped himself up, touched his stomach, and frowned. He didn't want to make porridge anymore, it was too bland and couldn't fill his stomach at all. An idea popped up in his mind involuntarily - get some fast food.

This idea made him hesitate. Fast food was convenient, but it was a luxury for him now. He had already planned to save his little savings, in case he had no work to do one day, he would have to rely on this money to support himself. But at this moment, his stomach was protesting like crazy, as if saying, "If I don't eat something, I'm going on strike."

"Forget it, a meal doesn't cost much." He muttered to himself and made an excuse for himself.

After getting dressed, he opened the door and found that the night wind was colder than he thought. He subconsciously shrank his neck. He looked up at the sky. The moon was hiding behind the clouds. The yard was dark. Only the dim light of the street lamps in the distance sprinkled on the ground, so he could barely see the road clearly.

Outside the courtyard, the street stalls were still lit. Stalls selling fried noodles, pancakes, and skewers were lined up, and the air was filled with all kinds of aromas, which whetted people's appetites. Li Xiangqian stood on the side of the road, hesitating which one to choose. He touched his pocket and secretly calculated how much money he could spend.

"Let me have a bowl of fried noodles. It's a big portion and filling." He thought to himself and walked towards a stall selling fried noodles.

The stall owner was a man in his fifties, waving a spatula and frying noodles in full swing. The noodles in the pot were rolling in the oil, accompanied by the aroma of vegetables and meat slices, which made people salivate. Li Xiangqian stood in front of the stall, smelling the aroma, and his stomach growled even louder.

"Boss, give me a bowl of fried noodles with less meat." After he said this, he felt a little embarrassed, afraid that the stall owner would see his embarrassment.

"Okay! Put less meat and give you more vegetables." The stall owner responded readily and moved his hands faster.

Li Xiangqian stood by, watching the busy figure of the stall owner, and suddenly a wave of emotion surged in his heart. Such a small vendor must have a hard life, right? He worked hard every day in the wind and rain, and earned his money through hard work. He suddenly felt that he was lucky. Although his life was tight, at least he had a place to live and a job that could support himself temporarily.

After a while, the hot fried noodles were served. The stall owner put it in a paper bowl and handed it to him with a smile, saying: "Eat it while it's hot, it won't taste good if it gets cold."

Li Xiangqian took the fried noodles and his hands shrank because of the heat, but he felt warm in his heart. He sat on a small bench by the roadside, picked up the chopsticks, and took a bite impatiently. The noodles were smooth and fragrant, with the aroma of oil and vegetables. Although there were not many pieces of meat, the taste was very rich.

As he ate, he gradually relaxed. Perhaps it was because filling his stomach made him happy, or perhaps it was because the smell of fireworks around the stall made him feel a long-lost sense of security. He looked around and found that there were many people like him, sitting next to the stall eating supper, some in groups of three or five, and some alone. Everyone's face had his own story.

"No matter how hard the day is, I have to get on with it." He said to himself silently, "No matter how difficult the road ahead is, I can't give up."

After finishing the fried noodles, Li Xiangqian took out a few crumpled bills and handed them to the stall owner, saying "thank you" with a smile. The stall owner smiled and waved his hand: "You're welcome, take care."

He stood up with his empty bowl, ready to go home. But after taking a few steps, he suddenly heard a familiar voice behind him: "Xiang Qian? It's so late, why are you here?"

He turned around and saw that it was Liu Daqiang. Liu Daqiang was standing not far away, holding a skewer of barbecue in his hand, with a hint of surprise on his face.

Li Xiangqian felt nervous, but he suppressed his unhappiness and smiled as if nothing had happened: "I came out to eat something, how about you?"

Liu Daqiang grinned: "Me too. Well, it's good to sleep after eating."

The two exchanged a few simple pleasantries, but Liu Daqiang suddenly changed the subject: "By the way, why are you so concerned about what happened today? Are you so close to Yi Zhonghai?"

Li Xiangqian's heart sank, and he looked at Liu Daqiang warily. He knew that Liu Daqiang's question was not a casual one, but a test. Li Xiangqian smiled and said calmly: "We are all neighbors. If anyone encounters a problem, we should help if we can. Besides, the matter is unclear, and I have to figure it out."

Liu Daqiang narrowed his eyes, with a meaningful smile on his face: "Yes, things that are unclear need to be clarified. However, sometimes, clarifying things may not be a good thing."

Li Xiangqian felt uncomfortable after hearing this, but he did not respond. He just said calmly, "It depends on how you figure it out."

Seeing that he didn't want to say more, Liu Daqiang didn't ask any more questions. He just smiled and patted his shoulder: "Okay, you do your thing, I'll go back first."

Watching Liu Daqiang leave, Li Xiangqian's mood became more complicated. He felt that this man seemed to know something, and might even be involved in the letter. Unfortunately, he had no evidence yet.

The morning sun shone through the window into the house. Li Xiangqian rubbed his sleepy eyes and sat up from the bed. Although he had a bowl of fried noodles last night, he knew that it was only a temporary solution. The rice jar at home was empty, and continuing to rely on borrowing food was not a long-term solution. In addition, there were so many things going on recently that it was like an alarm clock was installed in my head, and I couldn't even sleep well.

He packed up and was about to go out when he suddenly remembered that He Yuzhu had mentioned a few days ago that live shrimps were sold in the market recently. Although shrimps were not cheap, they were nutritious, so it would be good to buy some to improve the food. Besides, he had a vague idea in his mind that maybe he could take the opportunity to buy shrimps to chat with He Yuzhu and find out some news about other people in the yard.

Walking to the center of the yard, He Yuzhu was squatting at the door of his house, holding a cigarette, as if thinking about something. Seeing Li Xiangqian coming over, he raised his head and grinned: "Hey, Xiangqian, it's so early, didn't you sleep well last night?"

Li Xiangqian smiled and nodded: "Well, there have been a lot of things going on recently, my mind is very confused, and I can't sleep well."

He Yuzhu exhaled a puff of smoke, stood up and patted his trouser legs: "You kid, you don't usually like to worry, why do you become a worrywart now?"

Li Xiangqian sat down next to him and said casually, "It's not that I worry about it. It's just that life is getting harder and harder. By the way, Brother Zhu, where can I buy the live shrimp you mentioned last time? I want to get some back to change the taste."

He Yuzhu was stunned for a moment, then smiled and said, "Oh, you are quite particular! Live shrimps are good, but a little expensive. If you really want to buy some, I can take you there. I have an acquaintance in the market who can give us a discount."