Siheyuan: Being a fisherman in 1962

After leaving the Yan family, Fade Chen went straight to the market.

He already had a new plan in his mind - to use the money to buy a bicycle for Yu Li.

Yu Li, the girl who always stood gently behind him and gave him unlimited support, was the softest part of his heart.

He wanted to give her a surprise, to let her know that he had the power to change their lives.

As the sun set, Chen Fei pushed his brand new bicycle through the bustling crowd and returned to the courtyard.

When he showed the bicycle to Yu Li, her eyes sparkled with surprise and tears. At that moment, all the fatigue and hardship disappeared.

Yan Bugui stood at the threshold, his brows furrowed, his calloused hands unconsciously stroking the seams of his trousers, appearing extremely anxious.

As the head of the family, he shoulders the livelihood of his entire family, and a series of recent setbacks have made this middle-aged man feel more stressed.

"How about we go fishing again? Relax." Chen Fei's voice came from outside the yard, with a bit of lightness and anticipation.

He always found fun in ordinary days, but today, his proposal did not seem to get the expected response.

Yan Bugui sighed, shook his head, and a hint of bitterness flashed in his eyes.

"Xiao Fei, have you forgotten about the last time we went fishing? My newly bought fishing gear and the rod you lent me are all gone." There was a hint of helplessness and self-blame in his tone. It was obvious that the failed fishing trip had left him with a profound lesson.

"Brother Yan, the time you mentioned reminds me of another incident. Didn't that kid Yan want to frame me for stealing his underwear? We have to settle this matter carefully."

Yan Bugui's face turned pale in an instant. Chen Fei mentioned that unbearable memory lightly, which made him feel embarrassed and angry.

"That boy is such a jerk! But having said that, Xiaofei, our business is between us, don't involve him."

"Involve him? Brother Yan, have you forgotten what you said at that time? You said that if I was misunderstood, you would compensate me for some of my financial losses. I'm a kind person and I don't ask for much. Just follow the market price, fifty yuan, isn't that too much?" Chen Fei pressed on step by step, his words revealing an unquestionable firmness.

When Yan Bugui heard this, his face became even uglier.

I touched my empty wallet and felt a bitter feeling in my heart.

"Xiao Fei, you know I'm short of money these days, fifty dollars is really not a small amount."

"You can't say that. As men, we should stick to our words. Besides, if this gets out, it will be bad for your reputation." Chen Fei deliberately raised his voice a few degrees, staring straight at Yan Bugui, as if he had seen through his thoughts.

Yan Bugui's heart skipped a beat, he knew very well that what Chen Fei said was not groundless.

If this matter gets out of hand, not only will he lose face, but more importantly, this job of his is hard-earned. If he loses his job because of this, his entire family will really collapse.

Thinking of this, he had to make concessions.

"Okay, okay, I admit defeat. Fifty dollars is fifty dollars, but you have to promise that this matter ends here and don't mention it again." Yan Bugui gritted his teeth, took out a few crumpled bills from his pocket and handed them to Chen Fei.

Chen Fei took the money and a triumphant smile appeared on his face, but then he became gentle again.

"Don't worry, we are close friends, so I won't make things difficult for you. But if you need anything in the future, remember to look for me. I'll be there whenever you call."

Under the setting sun, one tall and one short, one old and one young, they reached a delicate balance at this moment.

Behind this seemingly simple transaction lies the complexity and helplessness of human nature, as well as the tenacity and wisdom to find a way out in adversity.

Yan Bugui's anxiety seemed to be alleviated a little as he handed over the fifty yuan.

In the front yard, a dispute about medical expenses is about to begin. The protagonist, Yan Bugui, a middle-aged man who is usually very thrifty and calculating, is standing in the middle of the yard, his eyes fixed sharply on Sha Zhu and Qin Huairu who are not far away.

"Shazhu, you must give me an explanation today!" Yan Bugui's voice was not loud, but it revealed an unquestionable firmness.

He covered his slightly swollen cheek, which was the mark left by the conflict with Sha Zhu, and also the reason why he asked for compensation today.

Sha Zhu, known as the "warm-hearted person in the courtyard", now has a look of helplessness and indignation on his face.

Beside him, Qin Huairu frowned, with a hint of worry in her eyes.

Qin Huairu, a gentle and tough woman, can always help her neighbors solve problems at critical moments, but at this moment she can hardly calm the storm.

"Old Yan, what kind of logic is this? It was clearly your Jie Cheng who started the fight first. I was only defending myself!" There was some indignation in Sha Zhu's voice. He has always been a straightforward person and didn't want to be wrongly accused for no reason.

Yan Bugui snorted coldly, and a sneer appeared on the corner of his mouth: "Self-defense? Can self-defense beat me like this? I don't care who started it first. Anyway, you participated, so you have to take responsibility!"

Qin Huairu saw this and quickly stepped forward to smooth things over: "We are all neighbors, why do we have to make such a fuss? I think we should just calculate based on half of the actual medical expenses. Shazhu, you pay twenty yuan as an explanation to Old Yan, how about that?"

Yan Bugui originally planned to ask for fifty yuan, but then he changed his mind and thought that twenty yuan would be good. After all, his injury was not serious, but he was too embarrassed to do so.

So he nodded reluctantly, agreeing to Qin Huairu's proposal.

Although Sha Zhu was unwilling, he didn't want to make a bigger fuss, so he took out a few crumpled banknotes from his pocket and handed them to Yan Bugui.

The moment he took the money, a trace of regret flashed through Yan Bugui's heart. He thought to himself that if he had stayed in the hospital a few more days, he might have been able to get more compensation.

He sat on the doorstep, fiddling with the remaining change in his hands, silently calculating today's expenses.

Twenty yuan was not a small amount of money for him. He had originally planned to use the money to help Qin Huairu's family buy some winter clothes, but now it seemed that his plan was going to fail again.

"This world is really..." Sha Zhu sighed, looked up at the starry sky, his eyes full of confusion and helplessness about the future.

Sha Zhu stood in front of his house, holding the twenty yuan tightly in his hand.

This money was the price he had to pay to Yan Bugui in order to quell the unprovoked disturbance.

Thinking of the scene of being besieged by the crowd that night, and the inexplicable charges against him, Sha Zhu could not help but clench his fists again and again, with unwillingness and resentment flashing in his eyes.

"All of this is due to that Chen Fei!" Sha Zhu swore secretly in his heart.

He knew that he could not directly compete with Chen Fei by himself, but the greedy and lustful Director Li in the hospital might become a chess piece in his hands.

Sha Zhu was thinking that as long as Chen Fei could be transferred out for some reason, his position in the hospital would be consolidated, or even improved.