Siheyuan, integrating everything, cultivating the city

Li Xiangqian stood on the wasteland, holding the cloth bag tightly in both hands. The thick hemp rope at the mouth of the bag pricked his palms a little painfully. He didn't care, but his eyes fell on the small piece of turned land under his feet. His mind seemed to explode for a moment, and various images emerged one after another - each scene was like a sharp blade, cutting into his heart, making him unable to calm down.

He recalled the days when he first moved into the courtyard. Although life was hard, every household still had enough food, and the courtyard was always filled with the aroma of food. The neighbors were not rich, but they were never stingy in sharing. He loved watching the children chasing and playing in the courtyard. When they occasionally fell, they would just grin, get up and continue running. But later, the turning point of life was like an unpredictable whirlpool, gradually dragging everything into the abyss.

Famine came silently, like an invisible hand, quietly snatching away their hope. The children were the first to die. Their rosy faces turned pale, and their laughter turned into the weak cries of mosquitoes. Then the elderly, the strong old men who used to be able to carry water, now had to hold on to the wall to catch their breath after walking a few steps. Neighbors who once shared a bowl of porridge and a piece of bread with each other now even quarreled over a few wild vegetables.

Whenever Li Xiangqian saw this, he felt like a huge rock was pressing down on his heart, making him feel suffocated. He often couldn't sleep in the middle of the night, and his mind was filled with the children's eyes - big and bright, but hiding holes that were hard to ignore. He tried to avoid such gazes, but no matter where he was, those eyes would always follow him, as if silently asking, "Can we still survive?"

Tonight, the words of the old man stuck in his mind like a nail. "One person can't make it." He was right, but is it really appropriate to let everyone participate? Li Xiangqian's mind flashed with the tired figures in the hospital. If they were really mobilized, would someone get into trouble because of their physical weakness? Or, if the news of the excavation leaked out and was targeted by other people with ulterior motives, he might not even be able to keep this small piece of land.

But then he thought of another scene: He Yuzhu's clumsy movements when he followed him last night, but there was a firm light in his eyes. This firmness made Li Xiangqian realize that this was not just his responsibility. Perhaps, in this difficult time, everyone was willing to do their best to survive, but no one stood up to take the lead.

"Xiang Qian, what are you daydreaming about?" He Yuzhu asked softly, patting his shoulder. "I've already said that I'm not trying to stop you. I want us to think of a better way. You're standing there in a daze. Have you figured it out or are you worried?"

Li Xiangqian came back to his senses, glanced at He Yuzhu, and then glanced at the old man standing beside him. He knew that the trust of these two people was his confidence. He gritted his teeth and whispered: "Uncle, Yuzhu, I understand. This matter cannot be concealed, and it should not be concealed. Let's hold a meeting tomorrow and call everyone in the hospital. Those who are willing to help, we will work together, and those who are unwilling can't be forced. As long as we work together, there will always be a way."

The uncle nodded slightly, with a glimmer of approval in his eyes: "That's what a man should be like. Go forward, you take the lead in this matter, and I won't stop you, but remember, everyone trusts you, and you have to live up to this trust."

"I remember." Li Xiangqian nodded solemnly, his voice low but firm.

It was late at night when he returned to the courtyard. When Li Xiangqian put down the bag, his arms felt sore. He wiped the sweat from his forehead and sat on the kang for a moment. The moonlight from outside the window poured in through the paper-covered window, making the shadows in the room mottled and blurred. He stared at the swaying shadows, but his mind couldn't clear.

He recalled a story his mother had told him when he was a child, saying that a group of ants could lift something a hundred times heavier than themselves because they knew how to work together. He was still young at the time and didn't understand the reason, he just thought the ants were interesting. Now thinking back, there was a deep meaning in the story, and perhaps it was the answer to the current situation.

"One person's power is limited, but if we work together, we can get through this." He repeated it silently in his mind, as if to cheer himself up and also as if to set the direction for the future.

The next morning, the courtyard was covered with a thin layer of mist, and the air was still a little damp and cold. Li Xiangqian stood in the middle of the courtyard and knocked on the doors of every household. Uncles and aunts came out of their houses one by one, wearing thick and tattered cotton jackets, with confusion and questions written all over their faces.

"Xiang Qian, what's the matter that you are calling us so early?" Second Aunt, wearing a headscarf, asked while standing on the steps and rubbing her hands.

"Everyone come here first, I have something to say." Li Xiangqian's voice was not loud, but it was filled with an irrepressible urgency.

When everyone gathered, he took a deep breath and looked up at the familiar faces. He saw that the second uncle's eyes were tired, the third uncle's beard was messy, and the children - Xiao Shitou, Dongmei, and Tiedan, all curled up in their mother's arms, looking at him with big eyes.

"I know everyone is having a hard time right now, with not enough to eat and not enough sleep every day. But we can't go on like this, we have to find a solution." He paused, his eyes becoming more determined, "These few days, Yuzhu and I found some tubers in the wasteland. They are edible and can help us keep from getting hungry."

As soon as the words fell, the whole yard exploded.

"Tuber? What tuber?"

"Why didn't you tell me earlier that there was something edible?"

"Is it poisonous? We can't gamble with our lives!"

Li Xiangqian frowned slightly at the noise. He raised his hand and said, "Everyone, listen to me. I have tried it and it is not poisonous. I also asked Yu Zhu to dig with me all night yesterday and it was fine. The problem now is that there is not much of this stuff. We have to dig it day by day."

"But how do we dig? Isn't it dangerous to go at night?" The second aunt said hesitantly.

Li Xiangqian said in a deep voice: "There are risks, but I believe that as long as we divide the work and cooperate, with some people keeping watch and some people digging, we will be able to bring the things back safely." He spoke briefly, but every word was powerful, as if he was lighting a lamp of hope for the courtyard.

The courtyard gradually quieted down, and everyone was thinking. Their eyes gradually changed from hesitation to a complex expectation. Finally, the second uncle spoke up: "Xiang Qian, we will do whatever you say. Life is like this, and we have nothing to lose anyway."

Others also nodded, some clapped their hands, and some whispered in agreement. The whole yard seemed to be full of life.

Li Xiangqian stood at the edge of the wasteland, his shadow elongated by the moonlight behind him. He lowered his head to look at the hoe in his hand, then glanced back at He Yuzhu who was still squatting and working in the field, and his brows could not help but frown.