Siheyuan, integrating everything, cultivating the city

After working in the melon field all day, Li Xiangqian got along better with the owner of the melon field and even chatted with him about family matters. Seeing that he was honest and hardworking, the owner gave him more melons from time to time and said, "You are a good person. Work hard. The melon field is busy these days. If you can help me pick them all, I will give you a few big ones to take back later."

Li Xiangqian was full of gratitude. Although the work was tiring, the rewards from this kind of down-to-earth labor were much better than taking risks to go to the market. Thinking of this, he felt a little comforted. When it was getting dark, he carried a few watermelons and returned home exhausted. When he opened the gate, Li Xiuying was washing clothes in the yard. When she saw Li Xiangqian coming in, she hurried to greet him.

"You picked a lot today, Xiang Qian, you are really capable!" Li Xiuying looked at the heavy watermelons on Li Xiang Qian's shoulders, her eyes full of heartache and relief.

"It's always a good thing to have work to do, Xiuying. We are not afraid of hard work now. As long as I can exchange it for food, I can do all these jobs." Li Xiangqian put the watermelon on the table and breathed a sigh of relief.

After dinner, Li Xiangqian sat in the yard, touching the watermelons he brought back today, and thought to himself: "These watermelons can be stored for a few days. I will see if I can sell them to make some money to supplement the family income."

It was late at night. Li Xiuying and the children went to bed early. Li Xiangqian lay on the bed, and his tired body finally got some relaxation. But he was still a little uneasy, and always felt that this little income could not support a long-term life. He felt that the pressure of life was like an invisible stone, pressing him a little breathless. Thinking about it, Li Xiangqian gradually fell asleep.

However, what Li Xiangqian had never expected was that the courtyard at night was not as peaceful as he had thought. The next morning, just after dawn, Li Xiangqian woke up early and planned to check the watermelons stored in the yard last night. But when he walked into the yard, he suddenly found that several watermelons placed in the corner had been bitten into a mess, and the ground was full of broken rinds and bite marks.

He was stunned, and his heart sank. "What happened? How come the watermelon was gnawed?" Li Xiangqian walked closer to take a closer look, and found that the teeth marks on the watermelon skin were obviously caused by mice. His heart sank, and he looked around anxiously, and saw that the remaining watermelons had also been gnawed a few times, and could no longer be sold.

Li Xiangqian was so angry that he clenched his fists, and his heart was boiling with anger. "Why did these damn rats set their eyes on my watermelon!" He cursed in his heart. Almost instinctively, he picked up a wooden stick and beat the rats around the yard, trying to drive out the rats that caused him to lose his food. However, the yard was empty, and there was no trace of rats.

Li Xiuying heard the noise and hurried out of the house. Seeing Li Xiangqian's angry face, she asked quickly, "What's wrong, Xiangqian?"

Li Xiangqian was panting, pointing at the watermelons that had been gnawed into a mess, and said angrily: "Rats! Rats have eaten our watermelons! These watermelons are inedible, and no one wants them even if we sell them!"

Li Xiuying was stunned when she saw it. She touched the watermelons with shaking hands, her face full of regret: "What should I do? I was hoping to exchange these watermelons for some money, but now they are all destroyed by rats..." Her voice was choked with sobs.

Li Xiangqian looked up at the sky, his heart full of annoyance and anger. He had been relieved for the future of his family, but he didn't expect that the fruits of his hard work would be destroyed by rats so soon. He suddenly felt a deep sense of powerlessness. "Am I really so unlucky? I work so hard, why can't God let me live a peaceful life for a few days?" He was extremely depressed and felt like he was trapped in an endless cycle. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't get rid of the predicament in front of him.

"Move forward. We can't just rush." ​​Li Xiuying took a deep breath and forced herself to calm down. "These rats are causing a lot of trouble now. We have to find a way to deal with them. Otherwise, no matter how many watermelons we have, they won't be enough to destroy them."

Li Xiangqian nodded, but he still couldn't calm down. He stood in the yard, took a deep breath, and tried to calm himself down. "Yeah, now is not the time to get angry. I have to find a way to solve the problem." He said this to himself, trying to suppress the anger and powerlessness in his heart.

At this time, Jia Dongxu from next door heard the noise, poked his head out and asked, "What's wrong, Xiang Qian? I heard that the watermelon you brought back yesterday, how come something happened again now?"

Li Xiangqian smiled bitterly and shook his head: "Don't mention it. Rats came to the yard last night and ate all my watermelons. Now I can neither eat these watermelons nor sell them."

Jia Dongxu frowned, obviously feeling sorry for Li Xiangqian: "These rats are so annoying! What you need most now is these things that can be exchanged for money, but they just come to destroy them!" He smacked his lips, then lowered his voice and said: "But Xiangqian, don't be anxious. I still have some rat poison, do you want to try it? We can't let these beasts continue to harm your things."

When Li Xiangqian heard what Jia Dongxu said, he was moved and immediately thought that this was a good idea. He was reluctant to use poison easily, fearing that it might hurt other animals, but in this situation, he had no other choice. "Okay, Dongxu, please bring me some medicine. We can't afford to deal with these rats anymore. I can't stand it if we don't get rid of them."

Jia Dongxu nodded: "Okay, I'll go get the medicine now, you wait."

After a while, Jia Dongxu brought a few packets of rat poison and handed them to Li Xiangqian: "Sprinkle these in several corners of the yard, especially in the corners and cracks where rats like to hide. Remember to watch the children after spreading them, don't let them touch them."

Li Xiangqian took the medicine bag and thanked him repeatedly: "Thank you, Dongxu. If it weren't for you, I really don't know what to do."

"It's only natural for people in our courtyard to help each other. Xiang Qian, don't get too angry." Jia Dongxu consoled him, "After we kill the rats, we'll see if there's any other way to help you make more money. Life won't always be this hard."

Li Xiangqian nodded, feeling a little relieved. After Jia Dongxu left, he immediately spread rat poison in every corner of the yard as instructed, and carefully collected the remaining watermelons and put them in the house to prevent them from being eaten again.

Li Xiangqian was in a heavy mood throughout the day. He knew that these small setbacks seemed insignificant, but they dealt a heavy blow to his fragile hopes. "God is really blind.