Siheyuan: Happy Life of Jia Zhang Family

"What should we give as a gift?" Yang Ruihua asked his wife.

"What can we give as a gift? Things are so expensive. Don't we have to spend money to buy things? If you don't believe me, I can catch some fish and give them to the leader?" Yan Bugui asked Yang Ruihua.

"Old Yan, I'm really having an interesting conversation. We give gifts to do things, not to cause trouble. Can you catch ten kilograms of fish? You can only catch ten or so fish a day, which is less than a kilogram in total." Yang Ruihua almost vomited blood out of anger.

"I don't have Zhang Dabao's ability, what should I do?" Yan Bugui felt a little embarrassed by what his wife said.

"Why don't we go buy something? Isn't the principal's daughter-in-law in confinement after childbirth? Give her two old hens as a gift. You can get the job done right away. She will be promoted to deputy director, with an extra five yuan a month salary. The key is that you can also accept gifts. It's not a loss at all," Yang Ruihua suggested.

"It's too expensive. What if you can't get it? The principal won't return the chicken," said Yan Bugui.

"Old Yan, when you go fishing, do you have to put earthworms on the hook? Can you catch fish without putting some bait? You put bait every day, but don't catch any fish most of the time, right? What if it works out? Even if it doesn't, you're a teacher in a school, will the principal not take care of you after receiving a gift? Isn't your name Yan Abacus? Do you know how to do the math?" Yang Ruihua was somewhat dissatisfied with Yan Bugui's attitude.

"I'll listen to you and be generous for once," Yan Bugui said and laughed at himself twice.

"That's right. We used to be deducted because we had many children and life was hard. Now that Jie Cheng is in prison, he can earn money and our family is much better off than before. We should learn from Zhang Cuihua. Zhang Cuihua's family is much better off now. She often invites friends to dinner," said Yang Ruihua.

"We are a little better, but we can't learn from Zhang Cuihua. Why would an old woman invite guests? Can you still become a deputy section chief or section chief if you continue to invite guests? Besides, what's the point of inviting these people? They are all her colleagues, subordinates, and friends. It's not like inviting leaders. Only inviting leaders will be useful," said Yan Bugui.

Yang Ruihua did not respond to Yan Bugui's question, but asked him, "Do you know where to sell hens?"

"Where else can we go? Of course the black market. I'll go check it out tonight. Food is tight right now. Food may not be available, and even if it is available, it won't be cheap," Yan Bugui said to his wife. In fact, he was quite familiar with the black market. He had to go there three or four times a month, not for anything else but to exchange for sweet potatoes. The Yan family did not eat fine grains, so whenever he was issued with fine grain coupons, Yan Bugui would exchange them for sweet potatoes.

Jia Geng was in a bad mood that day because many students from other classes did not know the truth and thought that Jia Geng and his classmates really ate shit. In particular, several senior students said that Jia Geng, Niu Xiaozheng and others ate shit in the toilet, and seven or eight male students came to the second class of the first grade to ask about it. This made Jia Geng feel embarrassed and he hated Yan Bugui even more.

If a person hates someone, he will definitely pay special attention to the person he hates. Jia Geng is now paying special attention to Yan Bugui.

Today is Saturday, and it's the first half of the day. After breakfast, Jia Geng came to the front yard to meet Niu Xiaozheng, and then called Yan Jiekuang, Yan Jiedi, and Liu Guangfu, and everyone went to school together. When Jia Geng arrived at the front yard, he took a look at the Yan family. There was an extra basket at his door with a lid on it, and the sound of chickens could be heard from time to time.

The Yan family raised chickens. Jia Geng thought, Yan Bugui, you dare to raise chickens after provoking me? You don't take me seriously. If I can raise chickens, I will be a grandson. Bang Geng swore secretly in his heart.

On the way to school, Niu Xiaozheng suddenly asked Yan Jiedi, "Aunt Si Ni, why does Third Grandpa raise chickens in front of the door? It's too noisy, don't you find it smelly?"

"Who knows what my father is thinking? He said he would only keep the chicken for a day or two, and he wanted to give it to someone," said Yan Jiedi. She was also woken up by the sound of a rooster early this morning, and only after asking her father did she know that there were chickens at home. She originally thought that her father bought the chickens for eating, but she didn't expect that he bought them for giving as gifts, which disappointed Yan Jiedi.

"Third uncle is so stingy, how could he buy chickens to give away?" Niu Xiaozheng almost dropped his jaw in shock.

"He told me so. If you don't believe me, ask my third brother." It seemed that Yan Jiedi didn't quite believe what her father said.

"That's what I said," Yan Jiekuang testified for his sister.

"It's really unbelievable that the third uncle would actually give gifts?" Liu Guangfu on the side also spoke.

"Now the second uncle doesn't beat children anymore, did he do this before?" Yan Zhengkuang also refuted.

"You're right. Now Brother Dongxu is the team leader, and Aunt Jia has become a cadre. Aunt Jia no longer swears in the streets and often invites friends to dinner. The people in our courtyard have changed so much that I can hardly believe it." Yan Jiedi said.

"Why are you talking about my father? But he is a serious team leader, in charge of three people. My grandmother is in charge of more people, now four. My grandmother is at the section chief level, but I don't know why she has to applaud to be a cadre? If she doesn't applaud, she can't be a cadre?" Bang Geng said.

"Leaders often hold meetings, and the audience have to applaud when the leader speaks. Don't we also have to applaud when the principal speaks? Even the students applaud, let alone the cadres," Liu Guangfu gave his own explanation.

"That's for sure. The higher the official's rank, the louder the applause must be. High-ranking officials sit in the front, and the senior leaders above can immediately see whether they applaud or not," Yan Jiekuang agreed with Liu Guangfu's statement.

The few people walked and talked. Banggeng was very quiet today. His mind was full of Yan Bugui's chicken. Banggeng knew that Yan Bugui was a stingy person and valued everything in his family. If his chicken was lost, he would be very distressed.

How can I make his chicken disappear? Bang Geng's mind is full of questions now.

On Saturday morning, Zhang Dabiao drove off early in the morning. He was going to Yan Jingkai's hometown in Yishui, Shandong. Zhang Dabiao is a trustworthy person. He will do his best to complete what he promised to others.

The distance from Beijing to Yishui is about 600 kilometers. In 2023, if you drive faster in the morning on a business trip, you can have lunch at a restaurant in Yishui County at noon. But now it is not possible. There is no expressway, and the national and provincial roads are not easy to drive. It is considered good if a pickup truck can drive 60 kilometers on the road. Zhang Dabiao plans to arrive in two days, stay there for one day, and then rush back in two days.

Driving a long distance now, there are many emergencies. Along the way, Zhang Dabiao met many people who wanted to hitchhike. You can charge money for giving these people a ride, which is also the extra income for drivers now. But Zhang Dabiao is not short of money, and he is in a hurry, so he did not give these people a ride.

Driving a pickup truck all the way south, Zhang Dabao arrived at his planned destination, Dezhou, Shandong, at the evening of the first day, because he was going to sell roast chicken there that day.