Living in a Siheyuan

Soon, it was time to get off work.

Li Pingan rode the motorcycle downstairs and Yu Li sat comfortably in the truck bed.

Riding a motorcycle, I received envious looks from everyone along the way.

I rode my bike to the gate of the courtyard, and then I had to find a wooden board to put under it before I could ride in.

Li Ping'an thought that he should find someone to clean up the steps at the door, so that it would be more convenient in the future.

After dinner in the evening, he took two packs of cigarettes and went to the home of his third uncle Yan Bugui first.

Yan Bugui was very happy to see Li Ping'an coming. He asked, "Ping'an, have you eaten yet? Why did you think of your uncle today?"

Li Pingan handed a pack of cigarettes to the third uncle and said, "Third uncle, I'm here to talk to you today for good. I want to use cement to repair the steps at the door. This will make it more convenient for cars to enter and exit our yard in the future, right? Do you think I'm doing a good deed for our yard?"

"You little monkey, that's for your own convenience. I saw you riding the motorcycle back again."

"It's convenient for me, and it's convenient for others too. Can't you just pull the cart you use to pull things directly into the yard?" Li Ping'an said disdainfully.

The third uncle also knew that this was a good thing for everyone, so he said, "Okay, if you want to repair it, I have no objection. But I won't pay for it. I guess everyone is not willing to pay for it either."

"I never thought of asking everyone to pay for it. As long as everyone agrees, it's fine. I'll ask someone to fix it."

After the two of them agreed, Li Pingan went to the second uncle's house and told him again. He also gave the second uncle a pack of cigarettes.

Liu Haizhong now knew that Li Pingan was a factory worker. Many people praised him at the dinner.

So he didn't object, but suggested holding a meeting to inform everyone.

There was no way to stop the second uncle's desire for power. He immediately sent Liu Guangtian and Liu Guangfu to notify everyone to hold a meeting.

Soon, people came to the middle courtyard in groups of three or four.

Liu Haizhong and Yan Bugui sat at the table in the middle.

The second uncle Liu Haizhong stood up first and said, "Today's meeting is to tell you something. Li Ping'an from our front yard said that he wants to repair the steps on both sides of the gate, so that it will be more convenient for vehicles in the yard to enter in the future. But this time he paid for the repairs privately, and didn't ask everyone to pay. I think this is a good thing, so I agreed. Let's see if everyone has any opinions?"

After Liu Haizhong finished speaking, the people below began to talk among themselves.

Xu Damao stood up and shouted, "I have no objection. I have wanted to fix the broken steps for a long time. It is too troublesome to carry the car in every time I come back."

Then he said to Li Pingan: "Ping An, when you need help, just tell me and I will help you."

"Okay, then thank you, Brother Damao!" Li Pingan also replied.

In the end, no one objected, and they didn't have to pay for it, and it was convenient for everyone after it was repaired.

I thought it was over, but Liu Haizhong stood up and said, "Last time we held a meeting to elect a great uncle, we didn't make the right choice for some reason. Later I went to the street office to report the matter. The street office meant that we should choose the one ourselves. As long as everyone agrees, we just need to report to the street office. Let's see if we can elect the great uncle today."

"Otherwise, it would be inconvenient to manage the Jia family incident last time and this incident. What do you think?"

After listening to Liu Haizhong's words, everyone felt that it was time to elect a senior. Otherwise, it would not be a good idea to leave the position vacant.

Seeing that no one objected, Liu Haizhong was very excited. However, he still looked at He Yuzhu and found that He Yuzhu did not intend to object either.

So he continued, "I think that my third uncle Yan Bugui and I have done a lot for the hospital. Even if we have to choose one person, he can only rank behind us. Let's wait until he makes contributions in the future. Don't you think this makes sense?"

In fact, whether it is the first uncle or the second uncle, it is just a title. The street office is only set up to prevent spies and to facilitate the handling of some minor problems between neighbors. It does not have much power at all.

But Liu Haizhong thought that the position of the eldest uncle was the boss, and he, the second in command, had always been suppressed by Yi Zhonghai. Now he wanted to turn the tables and take charge.

Soon everyone agreed with this statement.

In the end, Liu Haizhong became the first uncle, Yan Bugui became the second uncle. As for the third uncle, everyone was thinking about who would be the better choice.

At this time, Xu Damao stood up. He walked to the middle and said to everyone, "Since it is difficult for everyone to choose, I will recommend myself as the third uncle. If I become the third uncle, I will definitely contribute to the hospital in the future. I will also help everyone if they have any problems."

After Xu Damao finished speaking, he turned to Liu Haizhong and Yan Bugui and said, "My two lords, can I choose myself?"

Liu Haizhong thought about it and nodded in agreement.

Yan Bugui often took advantage of Xu Damao, so he did not object.

However, He Yuzhu, who had a feud with Xu Damao, stood up again.

He said, "Xu Damao, you are such a selfish person, how can you be called the third uncle? Who in our courtyard have you helped? I think it's better for you to choose me, because at least I have helped some people."

After hearing this, Xu Damao shouted angrily: "Shazhu, who did you help? Who else did you help besides helping your sister Qin? Why don't you ask about your current reputation? Everyone knows that Shazhu in our hospital has unclear relations with some people."

Xu Damao's words made He Yuzhu angry and embarrassed. Qin Huairu also stood up and said angrily: "Xu Damao, I haven't offended you, right? If you keep talking nonsense like this, I will report you to the street office."

Xu Damao also said it smoothly. When he heard that Qin Huairu was going to sue him, he quickly said, "Sister-in-law of the Jia family, I was wrong. I was mad at Sha Zhu. It has nothing to do with you. I will apologize to you later."

He Yuzhu was so angry that he wanted to rush up and hit Xu Damao, but was stopped by the people around him.

Seeing the chaos and the time was getting late, Li Pingan said, "How about this, who of you two is willing to help the poor families in our courtyard and be the third uncle? How about this?"

Liu Haizhong heard this and reacted immediately.

He said, "Well, Ping An is right this time. The family in the backyard that is in the most difficulty is Aunt Jiang's. She is the only one making paper boxes to support her two children in school. Whoever of you is willing to help her family will be the third uncle."

Xu Damao immediately said, "I am willing. I will give Aunt Jiang's family ten kilograms of corn flour every month. I will also give the two children three yuan for living expenses. If there are any other difficulties, I will also help."

When everyone heard that Xu Damao was going to give so much, they all agreed. You know, food is hard to buy even if you have money now. Ten kilograms of corn flour costs two or three yuan, plus three yuan per month. That's five or six yuan a month, enough for an adult's living expenses.

He Yuzhu listened, thought about it and gave up. He was still willing to help Sister Qin, because Sister Qin's family was so pitiful.

Thus, Xu Damao became the third uncle of the courtyard house. He also began to show off.

Later, whenever he saw He Yuzhu, he would ask him to call him "Uncle". Otherwise, he would be disrespectful to his leader. The two of them had many fights because of this. He Yuzhu also regretted not continuing to compete with Xu Damao.

On Sunday, Li Ping'an rode his bike to the department store and bought a new radio.

He took the original radio and went to Yu Li's house again.

When they arrived at Yu Li's home, Yu's mother was also worried when she saw Yu Li's big belly.

"I wonder why you are so stubborn, girl. You are only seven months old and you are already this big. Why are you still going to work? You should just rest at home."

"Mom, it's okay. I'm bored staying at home. Ping An drives me to and from get off work every day on his motorcycle, and I don't have much to do at work. I can still chat with people at the factory and do some exercise."

Seeing that she could not persuade him, Yu's mother kept giving her instructions. Finally, Yu Li agreed to take a vacation after the Chinese New Year. This made Yu's mother feel relieved.

When Li Ping'an took out the radio, Yu Haitang and Yu Xiaohu were overjoyed. From now on, they can listen to it every day at home after school.

Upon hearing that the factory had rewarded Li Ping'an with another radio ticket, Yu Linhai gladly accepted it seeing how much the two children liked it.

At noon, Yu's mother cooked a lot of delicious dishes to entertain Li Ping'an. She kept serving food to Li Ping'an and Yu Li. Yu Haitang and Yu Xiaohu were so angry that they said their mother didn't love them anymore.

After the lively meal, Li Ping'an talked about repairing the steps at the door.

Yu Linhai did not hesitate to get tools and materials from home and took Li Ping'an's car to the courtyard.

When we got to the courtyard, we found some bricks left over from last time and mixed them with cement. It didn't take long to repair the steps at the entrance. We just needed to let them air dry for two days before we could drive through.

After finishing these tasks, Li Pingan would pick up and drop off Yu Li to and from get off work every day, and occasionally deliver some supplies to the factory.

Things are difficult now, so he and Yu Li just eat secretly at home with the door closed.

He has a lot of stuff in his space, and he has reduced the number of times he goes to the black market recently. He just doesn't want to attract attention.