Siheyuan: Starting with one acre and three fen of land

He Yuzhu pushed his bicycle into the slum and heard an old lady's enthusiastic introduction.

"This is our compound. There are more than a dozen families living here."

He Yuzhu nodded politely and smiled as he listened, expressing his gratitude. "Come, follow me, I'll take you to Xiao Tang's house." He Yuzhu said politely, "Aunt, I'll stop the car first, please wait for a moment."

He took out a piece of candy from his pocket and handed it to the old lady, saying with a smile, "This is for you."

The old lady took the candy and a happy smile appeared on her face, thinking that this young man was really generous.

After He Yuzhu parked his bicycle, he locked it and followed the aunt to Tang Mingping's house.

The auntie called out enthusiastically, "Xiao Ming! Are you there? Someone is looking for you." Her voice was loud and clear, and could be heard throughout the yard.

There was an immediate response from inside the house: "Coming, coming!"

Then the door opened and a young figure appeared at the door.

The old lady turned around and said to He Yuzhu with a smile, "Young man, I'm leaving first. You two can have a good chat." After that, she left happily.

He Yuzhu looked at the departing figure and shook his head helplessly.

At this time, Tang Mingping came out of the house. When he saw He Yuzhu standing at the door, a smile immediately appeared on his face: "Master He, you are such an honored guest! Please come in!"

He Yuzhu smiled back and walked into the house.

Tang Mingping moved a stool over, wiped it with his sleeve, and placed it behind He Yuzhu: "Master He, please sit down first. My house is rather simple, I hope you don't mind."

As he spoke, he took the teapot and poured a glass of water for He Yuzhu.

"Brother Tang, we are acquaintances, so you don't have to be so polite. Just call me Xiao He or Zhuzi." He Yuzhu took the stool and sat down, saying politely.

Tang Mingping handed over the rough porcelain bowl, a trace of apology appeared on his face, and he said softly: "Hey! Zhuzi, thank you for your help last time."

He Yuzhu waved his hand quickly and looked at him with a smile: "Brother Tang, you are too polite. You are Brother Duan's comrade-in-arms. This little thing is a piece of cake for me."

He took the coarse porcelain bowl, casually glanced at the water in the bowl, felt a little thirsty, drank it all without hesitation, and put the empty bowl on the table.

Tang Mingping looked at He Yuzhui who was so generous and drank the water in the bowl, and he couldn't help feeling moved.

He was about to pick up the teapot to pour another cup for He Yuzhu, but He Yuzhu stopped him with his hand and said with a smile: "Brother Tang, stop busying yourself. Let's talk about business!"

Seeing He Yuzhu's firm attitude, Tang Mingping realized that he was not being polite, so he put down the teapot in his hand.

He Yuzhu looked around and said in a low voice, "Brother Tang, I came to you this time to ask for a favor. I hope you can help me."

When Tang Mingping heard this, he was secretly delighted, thinking that he had work to do again and could make some money again.

He subconsciously leaned forward, hesitated for a moment, and responded in a low voice: "Zhu Zi, what do you want me to do this time?"

"I need you to help me keep an eye on someone and find out who is behind him." He Yuzhu stated his intention directly.

When Tang Mingping heard this, he immediately showed joy on his face and quickly nodded and agreed: "Okay! Zhuzi, this is absolutely no problem! Tell me who it is!"

He Yuzhu looked at the smile on his face and understood that he was itching to show off his skills and that he could take this opportunity to make some extra money to supplement his family income.

He said, "You should know Xianger Hutong near my street, right?"

Tang Mingping frowned and thought for a while, then nodded.

Seeing this, He Yuzhu continued, "There is a poor man named Lai Wu in the alley. I don't know why he came to my alley recently and spread rumors. Please help me keep an eye on him and see if there is anything unusual."

Tang Mingping looked at him with some doubt: "Is there any other hidden secret here? Why don't we just arrest him and interrogate him?"

"When I asked someone to help me look up the information, he told me that when he was asking around, he found that the bastard seemed a little scared." He Yuzhu conveyed the information that Ma Ge told him to Tang Mingping.

After listening to this, Tang Mingping nodded to show that he understood: "Okay, Zhuzi, I know what to do. Don't worry, I will definitely pay more attention."

"Okay, Brother Tang. I have confidence in your skills. But you still have to be careful. If you find an uncontrollable situation, you can go to Brother Duan." He Yuzhu was worried about unexpected situations and warned him.

After he finished speaking, he took out some money from his inner pocket and handed it to him: "Brother Tang, we don't know how long it will take. This is the deposit, take it first."

Tang Mingping took the money, counted it happily, and looked at He Yuzhu in surprise: "Zhuzi, you gave too much."

"It's okay. The time has not been decided yet. You take it first. More is better than less!" He Yuzhu waved his hand and did not take the money he handed back.

Tang Mingping held the money in his hand, trembling slightly, and his heart was surging: "Zhu Zi, don't worry. This will definitely be done beautifully."

He Yuzhu nodded and stood up with a smile: "Brother Tang, now that we have finished talking, I will leave first. I still have to go to the front gate."

"Okay, go and do your thing first. I'll take you there." Tang Mingping took the money and quickly got up to see He Yuzhu off.

At the entrance of the alley, He Yuzhu leaned sideways, propped up one foot on the ground, and turned to look at Tang Mingping next to him: "Brother Tang, let's stop here, you should go back quickly, you have already sent me to the entrance of the alley."

Tang Mingping waved his hand quickly and said with a smile: "Don't worry, I'll chat with you for a while."

He looked at He Yuzhu with gratitude and said sincerely, "Zhuzi, the odd jobs you arranged for my mother last time have made her feel much better recently. I have always wanted to thank you, but I haven't found the right opportunity."

He Yuzhu grinned, revealing a mouthful of white teeth, and said nonchalantly, "Hey, Brother Tang, what's there to thank you for? The restaurant needs people anyway, so it doesn't matter who we hire."

Tang Mingping was deeply moved when he heard this. He knew that He Yuzhu was sincere to his friends and that this was a way of caring for his family.

He Yuzhu teased, "Brother Tang, if you can find a stable job and marry a wife now, Auntie will be very happy."

Tang Mingping's face flushed with embarrassment when He Yuzhu teased him. He gave a helpless bitter smile and scratched the back of his head, looking a little at a loss.

He Yuzhu took out his pocket watch, looked down at the time, and raised his head: "Okay, Brother Tang, I have to go back to cook. Next time when I'm free, I'll ask Brother Duan to come out for a meal and a couple of drinks."

After he said that, he got on the bicycle, stepped on the pedals hard, and the bike moved forward quickly.

He turned around, waved to Tang Mingping, and shouted, "Let's go! Brother Tang!" Then he disappeared at the end of the alley.