Siheyuan: Tathagata's Palm suppresses the entire courtyard!

In the following days, Xu Mingjie came to Zhao Erye's house early every day to learn from him how to handle various matters in the yard. From electrical appliance maintenance to water pipe repair, to how to coordinate the relationship between neighbors, Zhao Erye unreservedly passed on his many years of experience to Mingjie.

Mingjie listened carefully and pondered in his heart. He knew very well that the reason why he was popular in the courtyard was not only because he was young and strong, but more importantly, he could always find solutions that satisfied everyone. However, this was not enough. He knew that he needed to do better, especially when dealing with complex interpersonal relationships.

Once, a family in the yard was arguing with another family because a brick fell from the courtyard wall. Both families insisted that it was the other's responsibility, shirking the responsibility and refusing to give in. Mr. Zhao was out at the time, so the matter fell on Mingjie's head.

He stood between the two families, listening to them bickering, but his mind was racing with thoughts. Mingjie knew that the worst thing about this kind of thing was favoring one side. If he didn't handle it well, it would not only cause resentment among the two families, but it might also cause the entire courtyard to doubt his fairness.

He took a deep breath, raised his hand to signal everyone to be quiet, and then said calmly: "Everyone, let's not rush to argue. There is always a way to solve the problem. How about this, let's take a look at what happened to the brick falling, and then decide how to deal with it. What do you think?"

Although the two families were still somewhat reluctant, they calmed down temporarily after hearing what Mingjie said. Mingjie walked to the fallen brick, examined it carefully, then looked up at the courtyard wall and made a preliminary judgment in his mind.

"This brick looks like it fell off by itself because it's been there for too long." He tapped the wall gently with his hand. "This wall is old and should have been repaired a long time ago. I think no one can be blamed for this. Why don't we work together to repair this wall? Then everyone will feel at ease, right?"

After hearing Mingjie's words, the two families looked at each other. Although they were still a little unwilling, they could not find a better reason to refute. In the end, they agreed to Mingjie's suggestion and decided to repair the wall together.

Mingjie was relieved after solving this problem, but he also understood his heavy responsibility. He knew that this was just one of the countless trivial problems in the yard. If he wanted to truly win everyone's trust, he needed to do more and better.

After returning home, Mingjie looked at his mother's toiling back, and a strong sense of self-blame and resentment rose in his heart. He knew that his mother had suffered too much for this family. And he, a grown man, had not been able to let her live a good life.

"I can't go on like this." Mingjie made up his mind, "I must improve our lives, not only for myself, but also for my mother."

So Mingjie started to think of ways to make money. He knew that he would not be able to make much money just by working in the yard. After some inquiries, he learned that there were some small vendors in the nearby market who were doing fruit business and making a lot of money. So he decided to give it a try.

One afternoon, Mingjie went to the market and found a vendor who was selling fruit. He asked him if he could give him some advice. Seeing that he was a young man, the vendor was willing to share his experience: "Selling fruit is not difficult, but it is not easy either. The key is to have a good eye and know how to choose. And you need to be good at talking and be able to greet customers."

Mingjie nodded repeatedly. He bought several kilograms of seasonal fruits and returned to the yard to start practicing. He pulled a few young people and children, set up a stall, pretended to be a vendor, and greeted them enthusiastically: "Come on, fresh fruits! Sweet watermelons, sweet and sour apples! You won't be cheated if you buy them!"

Although it was just a simulation, Mingjie practiced very seriously. He knew that if he wanted to make money, he had to start from scratch and not be careless.

A few days later, Mingjie finally mustered up the courage to bring the fruits he prepared to the market to officially open his business. He was a little nervous at first, but thinking about his mother and the situation at home, he suddenly gained a little more courage.

"Is the watermelon sweet?" an old lady passing by stopped and asked.

Mingjie quickly greeted her with a smile: "Sweet! Auntie, if you don't believe me, I'll cut it open and let you taste it!"

The aunt took a piece of watermelon, took a bite, and her eyes lit up: "Wow, it's really sweet! Give me one."

Mingjie happily wrapped the watermelon and handed it to the aunt, thanking her nonstop. He was very happy, thinking that he had finally taken the first step.

However, the following days were not as smooth as he had imagined. The fruit business was sometimes good and sometimes bad. When it was hot, the fruits started to wilt before they were sold out, and it was common to lose money. Although Mingjie was anxious, he did not give up easily. He knew that nothing could be achieved overnight, and he had to have patience and perseverance.

Once, Mingjie was about to close his stall when it suddenly started to rain heavily. The vendors in the market panicked and packed up their things to avoid the rain. Mingjie was busy putting the unsold fruits into bags, but found that the bags he brought were not enough, and he was in a panic for a while.

At this moment, he saw Mr. Zhao, who was not far away, also buying things in the market. When Mr. Zhao saw Mingjie, he immediately came over and said with a frown, "Little Mingjie, why are you still here? Put your things away quickly, don't let them get damaged by the rain."

Mingjie replied as he packed up: "Master Zhao, my bag is not big enough. I have to find a place to shelter from the rain."

Master Zhao looked at him, then at the endless pile of fruits on the ground, and sighed: "Kid, you are still not thorough enough. Come, let me help you."

After that, he handed his shopping bag to Mingjie and helped him pack the fruits. The two ran to the eaves next door and temporarily avoided the heavy rain.

"Master Zhao, thank you so much for today." Mingjie panted and expressed his gratitude to Master Zhao.

Mr. Zhao shook his head and looked at him meaningfully: "Xiao Mingjie, I know you want to improve your life, that's right. But you have to remember that you have to have a long-term plan for everything you do. Look at the situation you are in today. If the rain ruins the fruit, wouldn't you have worked in vain?"

Mingjie nodded, deeply touched by what Mr. Zhao said. He knew that Mr. Zhao was right, and that he should not only focus on the immediate interests, but also consider the long-term things.