Siheyuan: Happy Life of Jia Zhang Family

Back at Yard 95, Jia Dongxu hadn't come back yet. It seemed that after becoming the team leader, the working hours were longer than before. Jia Dongxu was not there, but there were many more children, because now the children were on summer vacation, they didn't take naps, and I didn't know why, they were always so energetic.

"Banggeng, go to the backyard and get two small buckets." Zhang Dabao heard the sound of Banggeng and his friends chasing and playing back and forth outside the yard.

"Seventh uncle, are you back from fishing? Let me take a look first." Banggeng ran out first, followed by six or seven children in the yard. The driver went up to the carriage to take a look, and Xiaodang was also carried up by Zhang Dabao to take a look before coming down.

"Brother Dabiao, you are so awesome to catch such big fish. The fish my father caught are not as big as the tails of these fish?" Yan Jiedi said to Zhang Dabiao with admiration.

"My seventh uncle is a master, but my third uncle is not a master" Bang Geng gave the explanation.

"Go back and get the bucket, we'll put it in the water tank, otherwise it will die soon," Zhang Dabao said to Bang Geng.

"Okay" Bang Geng went to the backyard, and the other children also came to help, and all the fish were put into two water tanks.

Zhang Dabao really likes children. He loves talking and playing games with them. When he saw them helping him with sweat on their foreheads, he went to the backyard and opened a big watermelon for them.

"Jie Kuang, I have a task for you this afternoon. It's time to turn over the sweet potato seedlings across the yard. You should turn them over this afternoon and pull out the weeds in the field. I'll treat you to fish tonight. How about that?" Zhang Dabao said to the eldest child, Yan Jie Kuang.

"Brother Dabiao, no problem. I guarantee there won't be a single blade of grass in the field," Yan Jiekuang replied after swallowing the watermelon in his mouth.

"It's settled. I'm going to go and have a rest. We'll eat fish together in the evening. Some of you are very small and can't eat spicy food, so let's stew it." Zhang Dabao said to them and went back to the house.

"I'm not afraid of spicy food. The last time I had boiled fish, I ate three bowls by myself," said Banggeng.

"You're lying. Who had a stomachache in the middle of the night? You also have diarrhea," Jingshu said.

"That was last time. I'm sure I'll be fine this time," Bang Geng refused to accept.

"Then tell your uncle that you can eat spicy food, and the rest of us can't eat spicy food," Jingshu said again.

"This is not good. We are a team and cannot get any special treatment..." Banggeng and others talked as they walked to the cross-yard and started turning the rice seedlings.

In fact, there is not so much work to do. Last time, Jia Dongxu did not turn the soil for long. If the sweet potatoes are planted in the yard, they can be watered. When the sweet potato vines come into contact with water, they can easily take root in the ground. There is no harm in turning them.

I don’t know how long the children did it, but Zhang Dabao heard them talking at the door again, and one or two exclamations.

"What's wrong?" Zhang Dabao came out. He was very busy every afternoon because he had to make ice. If he didn't make ice, he wouldn't be able to rest at night.

"Seventh uncle, look at this fish. It can swim on its back, with its belly facing the sky for a while, and then dive headfirst. Other fish can't do that," Bang Geng said excitedly.

"We'll eat this one," Zhang Dabao fished the grass carp out of the water tank. It could still move occasionally, so it should be close to death, so he decided to give it a try.

The fish was beaten to death with a wooden stick, and then the processing and pickling began. Zhang Dabao's daughter started making ice, and the children also came to help. Zhang Dabao saw that he still had a lot of saltpeter, so he asked them to go home and get basins, make ice and put it in the room to cool it down. The children became more enthusiastic to help.

With the children's help in making ice, Zhang Dabao put oil in the wok and started stewing the fish, put in pancakes, wide vermicelli, pork belly, bean sprouts, and tofu, and started stewing.

Jia Dongxu came back and came to the ice-making area to help.

"Dongxu, that's their business. You can cook another fish. This one is for them. We haven't cooked ours yet." Zhang Dabao called his nephew over.

The children ate very well and started running around the yard after finishing their meal, while the adults chatted while eating.

"Brother Zhuzi, ask your cousin tomorrow to see when is the best time to invite the leaders to dinner. If they don't have time, invite him and Liu Lan to dinner. Bring her a gift when you invite Liu Lan," Zhang Dabao instructed He Yuzhu.

"Da Biao, what should I give to Liu Lan? Clothes?" He Yuzhu asked.

"You can't do it directly. What are you thinking, Zhuzi? Send clothes? Does she need clothes? Send food? Liu Lan has two daughters. One is in her teens and the other is seven or eight years old. They are just at the age when they can eat. Liu Lan's family has always lived poorly, and the children don't eat well either. It's good enough to have bacon and salted fish at home," said Zhang Cuihua.

"Sister, you're right. Give us some more noodles or something. If it's not enough, take some from the kitchen," said Zhang Dabao.

He Yuzhu nodded, finished his meal, cleaned up, and looked at the time. It was past eight o'clock. The adults went home to cool off, while the children continued to run in the yard.

"Da Biao, you are so capable. You can make ice with stones. You are so talented," said Yang Ruihua.

"He caught at least 150 kilograms of fish today. He is so powerful. I am impressed. I caught more than ten fish from five to ten in the morning, but the total amount was less than one kilogram. No one would buy me when I sold them," said Yan Bugui.

"This is what life is like for them. Two children can still get a good meal. I don't know when we can get a good meal again," Yang Ruihua said to Yan Bugui.

"Don't think about it. It's good enough if the two children are full. Doesn't it also save food for the family? We can each have one more bowl of porridge. Let's just forget it and save it." Yan Bugui originally wanted to be more generous, but after thinking about it, he decided to forget it.

It was nine o'clock when Yan Xikuang and Yan Jiedi came back. "It's so cool at home. Brother Dabiao asked us to make ice cream tomorrow. We'll bring back two basins of it so we can have a good sleep," Yan Jiedi said happily to her parents.

"Jie Di, are you eating fish today?" Yang Ruihua asked his daughter.

"Yes, but we put fat, vermicelli and other things in the pot, and there were pancakes stuck to the edge of the pot. When the pancakes were dipped in the soup, it was so delicious. I ate three bowls of dishes and three pancakes. My third brother ate more, he ate five pancakes." Yan Jiedi felt annoyed that she ate less.

"Is it so delicious?" Yang Ruihua swallowed unconsciously.

"It's true. How about I call Niu Xiaozheng over and you ask him? He never lies," Yan Jiedi said to her mother.

"No, I'm just asking." How could Yang Ruihua not believe it? He just wanted to try it himself.

"Jie Kuang, Jie Di, you are better than your eldest brother and second brother. You can have a good relationship with Zhang Dabao and others. They don't know this truth. Go to the backyard often in the future. Dabao likes to feed the children," Yan Bugui said to the children.

"You can't always take advantage of others. I only eat when I have work to do. I don't want to beg for food," Yan Jiedi said to her father.

Yan Jiedi was so angry that Yan Bugui didn't know what to say. He thought that this kid just didn't know what was good for him. What's wrong with begging for food? It's a skill to be able to get it.