Siheyuan: The Qing Dynasty is back

If we were to ask what Yan Bugui envied the most about He Daqing's family, the bicycle would definitely be the first.

You should know that in the entire courtyard, apart from Xu Damao's bicycle provided by the factory, He Daqing's family is the only one that has three bicycles.

Every time Yan Bugui saw He Daqing, Sha Zhu and He Yushui riding their bicycles out, he would show an envious look.

Now, hearing that He Daqing was rewarded with another free bicycle, he immediately said happily: "Daqing, I know your family is not short of bicycles, so what are your plans for this bicycle?"

He Daqing really didn't notice Yan Bugui's look at this time. He replied nonchalantly: "What can I plan? I'll pick it up when I have time in the next few days and put it at home. Can I still not want it?"

Yan Bugui said hurriedly: "That's not what I meant. I meant Daqing. Have you ever thought about selling this bicycle to someone else?"

He Daqing shook his head and said, "Old Yan, your idea is wrong! Everyone knows that private transactions are illegal. We can't do those speculative activities."

Yan Bugui didn't know how to respond to this.

He thought for a moment and said in a low voice: "Daqing, I'll tell you the truth. I've wanted to buy a bicycle for a long time, but I never had a ticket. Can you sell me this bicycle? We can discuss it privately and go through the gifting procedures when the time comes. You know this."

He Daqing couldn't believe it when he heard that this miserly old man actually wanted to buy a bicycle.

You know, in the whole courtyard, everyone knows the reputation of Yan Laoxue, the stingy man who would rather spend every penny carefully. How could he be willing to buy a bicycle?

Seeing that He Daqing didn't believe him, Yan Bugui said again: "Daqing, I'm telling the truth. Don't worry, as long as the price is right, I won't give you a penny less."

He Daqing asked tentatively, "How much do you think is a good price? I've already told you that this time we're going to get a brand new Phoenix 28-inch bicycle, which is better quality than most bicycles. Can you afford it?"

Yan Bugui calculated that a new 28-inch bicycle would cost about 180 yuan, plus a bicycle ticket. Phoenix bicycles would be a little more expensive, between 190 and 200 yuan.

If the ticket is included, it would be almost three hundred yuan. Now a bicycle ticket on the black market is between eighty and one hundred and twenty yuan. This is a bit cheaper during the recent famine years.

In the past few years, the price of a bicycle ticket was almost the same as the price of the bicycle, and even so, it was hard to get a ticket.

Thinking that the new one would cost more than three hundred, Yan Bugui's originally joyful expression disappeared instantly.

He said with a smile: "Daqing, what are you talking about? I can still scrape together the money for a bicycle. But you also know my family's situation. If it's too expensive, it will empty our family's pockets, and then won't our family be left with nothing?"

"Besides, you didn't spend any money on the bicycle, and you don't need it yourself. How about 80 yuan?"

"How much? Eighty dollars!"

He Daqing had already thought Yan Bugui was very stingy, and thought that he would definitely ask for a price of more than 200 yuan. Unexpectedly, Yan Bugui once again refreshed his understanding of stinginess and shamelessness.

To be honest, even if it's only 200 yuan, He Daqing has no plan to sell it. The thing won't break, and if he doesn't ride it himself, he can wait for his sons and grandchildren to grow up and ride it.

He was just testing Yan Bugui just now, but he didn't expect that the price Yan Bugui said would surprise him.

Yan Bugui adjusted his broken glasses and said seriously, "Daqing, eighty yuan is a lot of money. Think about it, you didn't spend a penny on this car, you got it for free, how great is it to get eighty yuan. This is just me, I don't think others would give so much."

He Daqing was so angry that he really wanted to open up this old guy's head to see what he was thinking.

Who gave him the courage to speak like that?

Seeing that Yan Bugui was still acting as if he had the upper hand over him, He Daqing snorted angrily and pushed his bicycle home without looking back.

Seeing this, Yan Bugui hurriedly shouted: "Daqing, can you tell me whether this is possible or not? I am telling you this sincerely!"

But what he waited for were just two words from He Daqing without even turning his head.

"dream!"

Watching He Daqing disappear in the front yard, Yan Bugui slapped his thigh and said regretfully: "Oh, if I had added another twenty yuan, maybe I could have gotten a brand new Phoenix bicycle!"

After saying that, he returned home dejectedly.

The third aunt and Yan Jiecheng were both at home at this time. Seeing Yan Bugui's listless appearance, they asked curiously, "Dad, what's wrong with you? Who were you talking to at the door just now?"

Yan Bugui shook his head and said, "Who else could it be? He Daqing. You can imagine how lucky He Daqing is. His family bought three bicycles, and this time he was rewarded with a new Phoenix brand bicycle by the city."

"The most hateful thing is that this guy actually said it was useless and wanted to leave it at home to collect dust. Isn't that infuriating?"

Upon hearing this, Yan Jiecheng asked in surprise, "Dad, did the city really reward He Daqing with another bicycle? Isn't that too generous? A Phoenix bicycle would cost at least over 300 yuan including the ticket."

Yan Bugui shook his head and said, "The most annoying thing is that I wanted to ask him to buy this bicycle, but he would rather leave it at home to collect dust than sell it to me. It's so hateful!"

The three aunts looked at him and said, "Where did we get more than 300 yuan to buy a bicycle? We should use that money to buy more food. Look at how hungry they are now, they can't even walk."

Yan Bugui tilted his head and said, "What do you mean by 300 yuan? He Daqing didn't spend a penny on a bicycle for free. Why should I give him 300 yuan?"

"I offered him 80 bucks, and he didn't know what was good for him. Who else could he sell it to besides me? I don't believe he would be willing to leave such a valuable thing at home to gather dust!"

Yan Jiecheng glanced at his father.

Eighty dollars? You have a lot of money!

Not to mention that He Daqing disagreed, even if it was him, he would not agree.

Seeing that Yan Bugui still looked confident, Yan Jiecheng suddenly thought of the time when Yi Zhonghai's wife came to sell the house.

Just because his father was confident that no one else could sell it, he pushed the price down as much as possible, and in the end, Sha Zhu got the advantage.

Looking at it now, it is exactly the same as it was then.

So Yan Jiecheng said carefully: "Dad, you'd better not be too confident, otherwise it will be like the last time you bought a house and end up with nothing."

Yan Bugui heard his son's depressing words, glared at him and said, "What do you know? This time is different from the last time. He Daqing has been living in the courtyard. As long as no one wants to buy it, his bicycle will stay at home. We will talk to him again after some time. By then, he will know that no one wants his bicycle except me, and maybe it won't cost 80 yuan!"