Siheyuan: Starting from 1958

Seeing that his wife's tightly furrowed brows had finally relaxed and that she had given him a definite promise, Wang Dong immediately responded.

"Wife..."

"Let's get back to the main topic..."

"We were just talking about asking Aunt Zhang from the backyard, Zhang Linbao's mother, to help us take care of the kids. We'll pay her thirty yuan a month. What do you think?"

Chen Jun hesitated for a few seconds before speaking: "Isn't thirty yuan too little..."

"Sweeping the streets in Beijing, I already earn more than 20 yuan a month."

"Helping us take care of the kids not only means looking after them, but also cooking for us. We're busy from morning till night, and our working hours are definitely longer than sweeping the streets in Beijing..."

"Add a few more dollars, thirty-six dollars..."

"As long as Aunt Zhang in the backyard has no objections, we'll pay her thirty-six yuan a month, no more, no less, and it won't make anyone jealous."

Seeing that his wife didn't object to him asking Aunt Zhang from the backyard to come and help take care of the child, he immediately replied, "Since you have no objections, honey..."

"Tomorrow morning I'll go back to Beijing with the factory truck and have Dad and Mom go see Aunt Zhang in the backyard."

"As long as Aunt Zhang nods, you can come to work anytime..."

"With Aunt Zhang helping us take care of the children at home, I can go out more often after we arrive in the county town to see if there are any good projects I can invest in."

…………

The east wing of the front yard of the Hongxing Courtyard.

When Wang Dong suddenly returned, his parents-in-law were startled, but they were very happy, especially after seeing that Wang Dong had brought their second child back with him. From the moment they saw them, their mouths were always full of joy.

After some pleasantries, Wang Dong didn't waste any words and went straight to the point: "Dad... Mom..."

"I came back in such a hurry because I need your help with something..."

"It won't be long before Sister Jun is transferred to the county town. Her work pressure will definitely increase, and she will become busier and busier."

“After we get to the county town, I will have to start working, so I won’t have that much time to take care of my second child.”

“If you all stay in the courtyard to take care of the eldest son, you definitely won’t have anyone to help me…”

"I just want to find someone I know to help me and Junzi take care of the kids."

"Our second child is already a year and a half old. As long as you help us take care of him until he's three, we can send him to a hotel-style daycare..."

“Junzi and I thought about it for a long time and felt that the person who would help us take care of the child must be someone we knew well. Then we thought of Aunt Zhang in the backyard.”

“I remember Dad once said that Aunt Zhang was a very good person. Even after she married Yi Zhonghai, she never did anything to scheme against the courtyard house.”

“After divorcing Yi Zhonghai, she became an even better person. Not only did she raise Zhang Linbao to be a college student, but she also often helped the neighbors in Linji in the courtyard, asking them to help take care of the children. Junzi and I can rest assured, and you can rest assured too.”

“It just so happens that Aunt Zhang no longer works at the steel rolling mill, and Zhang Linbao still has a year before graduating from university. He spends most of his time at school and rarely goes home.”

"Instead of staying at home alone, picking up recyclables and doing odd jobs to earn money, you might as well help me and Junzi take care of the kids."

“If she’s willing, we can pay her 36 yuan a month.”

"It can help him supplement his family income without making the other residents of the courtyard envious."

"Mom and Dad, you often chat with Aunt Zhang and you know each other quite well. Could you ask Junzi for me?"

"As long as Aunt Zhang agrees, you can come to find me and Sister Jun tomorrow on the big truck from the processing plant."

The father-in-law didn't respond immediately, but instead frowned and fell into deep thought. Upon hearing that his son-in-law and daughter wanted to find someone to help take care of their child, his first thought was to ask relatives and friends.

In his eyes, relatives and friends are definitely more reliable than neighbors in the same courtyard.

Despite racking their brains, they couldn't find a suitable person among their relatives and friends, so they could only continue searching among their familiar neighbors.

In the end, it was discovered that apart from Aunt Zhang in the backyard, whom Wang Dong had his eye on, there really wasn't anyone else suitable for the huge courtyard house.

He decisively shifted his gaze to his mother-in-law: "Honey... could you go to the backyard..."

"See if Sister Zhang is free. If she is, come over for lunch at our house..."

"Anyway, she's home alone, which saves us from cooking. It's just an extra pair of chopsticks for us."

Soon, Aunt Zhang appeared at Wang Dong's house with a completely bewildered expression.

Although she had a good relationship with her parents-in-law, and they would often sit together to chat, do laundry, and clean shoes when they had nothing to do, they were considered to be among the better neighbors in the courtyard, but not to the point where she would be invited to their home for dinner.

Seeing that Wang Dong was also at home, with four dishes already laid out on the table, almost all of them meat, and Wang Dong still busy in the kitchen, Aunt Zhang felt increasingly guilty, wondering why the family had suddenly called her over.

"Uncle... is there anything I can help you with? There's already enough food on the table, so tell Dongzi not to bother in the kitchen."

Father-in-law Chen Jianjun replied with a smile, "Sister Zhang..."

"Is there only one side dish left?"

"Don't worry, it's nothing serious."

"If we're really going to talk about it, we'd like to ask you for a favor?"

After the last dish was served, Aunt Zhang was a little at a loss, wondering why Wang Dong and his parents-in-law had invited her to dinner. But she still forced herself to finish the meal and asked anxiously after putting down her chopsticks.

"Uncle... what's going on... I can't sit still if you don't tell me."

Without further hesitation, Chen Jianguo, the father-in-law, answered directly: "Sister Zhang..."

"It's like this..."

"Dongzi and Junzi have been taking care of their second child at their workplace, but their work is getting busier and busier, so they have less and less time to spend with their child."

"But the second child is too young, so we definitely can't leave him at home alone."

“My wife and I have to stay in Beijing to take care of our eldest child, so we don’t have time to help Dongzi and his family take care of our second child. We were hoping you could help them take care of our second child. If you and your husband don’t have time, could you also cook for them?”

"rest assured……"

"You won't be doing this for nothing..."

"Dongzi said he'll pay you thirty-six yuan a month..."

"And during the work period, everything—food, drinks, and supplies—is covered by Dongzi and his team, ensuring you don't have to spend a single penny..."

"If there are no problems, I can go to Junzi's workplace tomorrow in the processing plant's truck..."

Aunt Zhang's first reaction was surprise.

When she left the steel rolling mill, Aunt Zhang had saved a lot of money.

At the time, that money would have been enough for his retirement.

Having already prepared a house for Zhang Linbao's marriage, he didn't think about continuing to work. (End of Chapter)