Courtyard Houses: Starting with the principle of hard work paying off

Chapter 254 A Bond of Interests, A Plain and Open Scheme
"Uncle Yan, what a coincidence! I happen to be off tomorrow and don't have anything planned. Where are you planning to go fishing?"

Li Hongbing responded with a smile, but once again felt sorry for Yan Jiecheng.

Being Yan Bugui's son was an incredibly "unique" experience, as he was constantly being schemed against.

Food, clothing, and daily necessities are one thing, but even living at home requires paying monthly rent.

If you didn't know better, you might think Yan Jiecheng was an unwanted relative's child living in the Yan family's house, or even just a tenant sharing the place.

Most of the time, Yan Bugui would rather give up his son than give up his money.

From here to Daxing or Changping, the one-way distance is tens of kilometers, and the total distance is at least a hundred kilometers if you include the round trip.

Tomorrow's round trip, especially the return trip with a heavy load, will require Yan Jiecheng to pedal until sparks fly. He'll probably be half-ruined.

It's no wonder that in the original drama, Yan Bugui's sons and daughters were not very filial.

The saying "If parents are not kind, their children will be unfilial" is a fairly true and apt description of the situation.

As for the bicycle, Li Hongbing wasn't afraid of them messing with it.

Anyway, it was originally unused, and whoever broke it should fix it. The people in the yard cherish that bicycle even more than Li Hongbing, since it directly affects their interests.

"That would be great."

Upon hearing Li Hongbing say that he would be free tomorrow, Yan Bugui immediately became excited. Then, as if he had thought of something, he couldn't help but lower his voice and say, "Hongbing, there are too many people fishing in the moat and Shichahai now. Not only adults, but also a lot of children have come to join in the fun."

There are fewer people around the Hesha Reservoir area, and there are also quite a few wild ponds near the kiln pit. I'm planning to try my luck at these places tomorrow. What do you think?

The arrival of the difficult period meant that not only were grain rations reduced, but even vegetables, which were originally not affected by ration coupons, were classified as second-class commodities and began to be supplied in rations based on vouchers and coupons.

In this situation, because of the lack of staple food, the method of trying to solve hunger by eating more vegetables is not feasible.

In the current period of food and vegetable shortages, fishing has become the most important, reasonable and legal way to obtain extra meat, so even people who do not have this hobby have begun to join the ranks of anglers.

If you're lucky enough to catch one or two fish to take home, that's the happiest day of the month.

Regardless of whether fishy or not, preparing it properly usually requires a lot of oil and ingredients, even though it is still meat and is quite nutritious.

Even if all else fails, they can sell the pigeons at the pigeon market to get money, grain, or ration coupons, which will improve the family's life.

As a result, places like the moat and Shichahai, which already had a lot of anglers, became even more lively and crowded.

With a large population and limited resources, the fish in rivers and lakes cannot keep up with the rate of reproduction and growth, so fishing naturally becomes more difficult. That's why Yan Bugui goes to great lengths to find good fishing spots.

Li Hongbing wasn't interested in the places Yan Bugui mentioned and shook his head, saying, "Uncle Yan, Shahe Reservoir is a bit far. It would take at least an hour to cycle there."

As for the pond near the kiln pit, it seems there are mostly loaches and small fish, right?

Although there's nothing special going on tomorrow, Li Hongbing will take Chen Xueru to work as usual, and the moat is obviously the most convenient route.

With Li Hongbing's current fishing skills, he's not afraid of a lot of people, so he doesn't need to resort to tricks like Yan Bugui.

The strong never complain about the environment.

As for the kiln pits mentioned by Yan Bugui, they were actually located in the area of ​​Chaoyang Park in later generations. The formation of those wild ponds now is mainly due to the brick factory's soil extraction.

Previously, when Li Hongbing was resting, he even took Li Jianwu there to fish, so he naturally knew about the situation.

"That's it..."

Li Hongbing's words had made Yan Bugui understand his meaning, and he immediately asked with some disappointment, "Then Hongbing, where are you planning to go fishing tomorrow?"

In fact, Yan Bugui was aware of the situation of the wild ponds near the kiln pit. The reason he added this option was mainly to create a contrast and highlight the benefits of the Shahe Reservoir.

In that case, Li Hongbing would be more likely to choose Shahe Reservoir, so he could hitch a ride there.

It takes more than an hour to get there by bicycle, let alone on foot; it would ruin your legs.

After going back and forth, there wasn't much time left for fishing.

To everyone's surprise, Li Hongbing didn't choose any of them, completely thwarting Yan Bugui's plan.

"It's a moat!"

Seeing Yan Bugui's disappointed expression, Li Hongbing smiled to himself and said, "Tomorrow, when I take my wife to work, I'll go fishing at the moat and bring back a few fish for lunch, so we can have them."

Li Hongbing doesn't mind fishing with Yan Bugui, but it's unnecessary to make things inconvenient for himself just to please the other party.

"A moat?"

Although he had already guessed this outcome, Yan Bugui was still somewhat depressed when he heard Li Hongbing say it.

I originally thought that Li Hongbing might find the Shahe Reservoir area, which he had never been to before, quite novel.

Now that Li Hongbing isn't going, Yan Bugui, who wants to go, naturally can't get a ride, but he obviously can't ask Li Hongbing to borrow his car again.

Everyone in the courtyard knew that Li Hongbing's family had three bicycles. However, Chen Xueru's 26-inch women's bicycle was never lent out, and Li Hongbing usually didn't lend out his own bicycle either, leaving only the other one.

Putting aside the fact that he had already borrowed the bicycle for Yan Jiecheng to exchange for sweet potatoes tomorrow, the excuse of borrowing the bicycle for fishing was also unacceptable to Li Hongbing.

However, Yan Bugui didn't really want to go to the moat, mainly because there were too many people there. His fishing skills weren't as good as Li Hongbing's to begin with, so it would be even harder for him to catch any fish.

Originally, Yan Bugui had only planned to hitch a ride, but now that Li Hongbing wasn't going, he naturally wouldn't do anything that wouldn't benefit him, and he didn't mention going fishing together the next day again.

After all, Li Hongbing is going to take Chen Xueru to work tomorrow and then go fishing in the moat nearby. If Yan Bugui wants to accompany Li Hongbing, he will have to make a special trip over there.

Instead of doing that, it's better to find a fishing spot closer by, which will save you some effort.

"By the way, Uncle Yan, exchanging sweet potatoes tomorrow is hard work. I just happened to bring back some leftover soup from the restaurant. If you don't mind, you can take it back. At least it has some oil."

Just as Yan Bugui was feeling disappointed and preparing to leave, Li Hongbing's sudden words filled him with immense joy.

"No problem at all, Hongbing, thank you so much."

Yan Bugui was all smiles, not daring to utter a single word of refusal or politeness, for fear that Li Hongbing would change his mind.

The soup broth that Li Hongbing brought back from Fengzeyuan Restaurant is really good stuff!
It's not just because it's oily, but also because it tastes so good that you can't help but bite your tongue.

He also got to eat at Fengzeyuan.

With this broth, Yan Bugui can eat several bowls of rice by himself.

Although it's possible to have it without it, the meaning is different. Seeing Yan Bugui's excited expression, Li Hongbing didn't look down on him. He took the top lunchbox from the basket hanging on the bicycle and handed it to Yan Bugui.

"Thank you! Thank you so much!"

Yan Bugui was very excited when he received the lunchbox from Li Hongbing. He thanked him twice and then said with gratitude, "Hongbing, I will take this lunchbox back to you later."

"No rush! Uncle Yan, I'll head back now."

Li Hongbing said something and then pushed his bicycle home.

Giving Yan Bugui the leftover soup and broth he brought back was not because Li Hongbing had a sudden burst of compassion.

In fact, Li Hongbing didn't care about these things at all; he only brought them back to cover his tracks.

Even if I bring it back, it's just for my cat at home.

Some people might think that in this difficult time when people can't even get enough to eat, it's absurd to keep a cat.

However, while owning a cat might seem absurd to others, it was a completely stress-free experience for Li Hongbing.

It wasn't because of the supplies Li Hongbing had stockpiled in advance, but rather because of Li Hongbing's job and profession. Bringing back leftover bones from Fengzeyuan Restaurant every day to feed the cats was just something he did casually.

The main reason was that Chen's mother saw Li Hongbing throwing away the leftover food and soup he brought back from the restaurant, which she felt was a great waste. Even though the family was not short of oil or good food, as someone who had come from a generation that had lived through difficult times, Chen's mother could not stand such waste. Later, Li Hongbing thought of getting a cat.

This way, we can avoid waste and have more cats to help catch mice.

Of course.

At this stage, people are starving, and even rats are probably having trouble surviving.

Regardless, at least it's an explanation.

Closer to home.

In fact, Li Hongbing not only gave Yan Bugui the leftover soup from Fengzeyuan, but also other people in the front yard. Whenever they helped their family with something, they would often receive "repayment" from Li Hongbing.

This wasn't just about reciprocity; it was also Li Hongbing's way of showing them that what he brought back from Fengzeyuan was really just some leftover soup, to prevent some people from spreading rumors and causing trouble behind the scenes.

Besides.

As a neighbor, Li Hongbing was able to do what he could for them over the past few years.

and.

If only your family eats and drinks well in the entire compound, everyone else in the compound will look pale and thin with dry, yellow hair, while your family will have rosy and glowing complexions, making you stand out too much.

Whether you eat well or poorly, you might not be able to tell in ten days or half a month.

But once the time span is several months, or even more than half a year, people's energy and spirit will be completely different.

Some leftover food and soup may not change the fact that they are short of food, but having more oil and fat in their bellies can help their family eat and drink well and provide cover, which can be said to be quite cost-effective and necessary.

More importantly.

By doing this, Li Hongbing essentially tied his interests to theirs.

Although Li Hongbing couldn't possibly give all the leftover food and soup he brought back from Fengzeyuan to the people in the courtyard, and had to keep most of it for himself (to feed the cats), as long as Li Hongbing continued to bring back leftovers or soup from Fengzeyuan, they would always be able to reciprocate Li Hongbing's kindness and benefit from his generosity whenever they had the opportunity to help.

If someone really tries to sabotage Li Hongbing, the ones who should be worried are not Li Hongbing himself, but the indirect beneficiaries in the institute.

Once Li Hongbing is no longer able to bring back leftovers from Fengzeyuan, these hidden perks will also disappear.

This really stirred up a hornet's nest and directly incurred public wrath!
Without Li Hongbing lifting a finger, someone else found out who was causing trouble in the shadows and taught them a lesson.

Like Sha Zhu, who often brought lunch boxes back from the steel rolling mill, he was reported several times recently. If the leaders of the steel rolling mill hadn't turned a blind eye, he probably would have been arrested long ago.

After these few incidents, Sha Zhu, who was originally fearless, has actually become a bit timid and quite cautious.

Even when bringing back leftovers, it's done secretly, no longer as ostentatiously as before.

There's no need to worry about Li Hongbing bringing his lunchbox and leftovers, because they really are leftovers. He's not stealing; it's completely legal and compliant. The restaurant manager, Chen Limin, personally gave him permission, so he's acting in accordance with all the rules.

The two properties are different.

Simultaneously.

Li Hongbing would occasionally give gifts to the impoverished households in the courtyard, using these things he himself didn't value to cover up his own comfortable life and also to improve his reputation.

……

the other side.

As soon as Yan Bugui returned home with the box of leftover soup given to him by Li Hongbing and closed the door, Yan Jiecheng, Yan Jiefang, and their group immediately rushed up to him.

"Dad, did Brother Hongbing give us lunchboxes just now?"

"Yan Jiefang, isn't that obvious?"

"Didn't you see what Dad is holding?"

"Besides, didn't you see everything inside the house just now?"

"Hehe, I saw it! I'm just checking to make sure."

"Yay, there will be good food to eat tomorrow."

"Mom, let's steam some mixed flour buns tomorrow morning, instead of making cornbread. Dipping the buns in this broth is so delicious!"

"..."

As everyone was talking at once, and some were even eyeing the soup, Yan Jiecheng became a little anxious and couldn't help but speak up: "Hey, hey, what are you doing? This soup was given to me by Hongbing. What's it to you?"

"Brother, what makes you say that this soup was specially given to you by Brother Hongbing?"

Upon hearing that his elder brother wanted to keep all the soup in the lunchbox for himself, Yan Jiefang, the second son of the Yan family, was displeased and directly questioned, "Which ear did you hear that with? I didn't hear anything!"

Upon discovering that his younger brother dared to contradict him, Yan Jiecheng said in an annoyed tone, "Hey! Yan Jiefang, are you deaf?"
Tomorrow I'm going to exchange sweet potatoes for our family and Hongbing. It's hard work. If it weren't for this, would Hongbing have given our family this box of soup?

This was clearly prepared specifically for me, the one who does the work..."

(End of this chapter)