Siheyuan, my new life

At that moment, the door to the west wing across the hall opened, and a burly middle-aged man walked out. He happened to look over, and in the dim light of the room, one could vaguely make out the man's features. He had a long, rectangular face, and his eyes revealed a hint of inquiry. When he noticed that Guo Yongping was looking at him, the middle-aged man grinned and said, "Hello, my name is Li Yong, and I am a level five maintenance worker at the machinery factory."

Guo Yongping smiled and said, "Hello, Mr. Li, I am Guo Yongping, and I work in the purchasing department of Hongxing Steel Rolling Mill."

Li Yong's eyes lit up. He closed the door behind him and said with a smile, "Oh, so Master Guo is a purchasing agent at the steel rolling mill. Purchasing agents have a good job. Unlike us workshop workers, you don't have to deal with machines all day long. Your working hours are also more flexible."

Guo Yongping took out a pack of Daqianmen cigarettes from his pocket, took one out and handed it to the other person, saying with a smile, "I just joined the company, and I'm still learning from the veterans."

Li Yong took the cigarette, lit it with a match, and used the light to see the cigarette in his hand. He lit it for Guo Yongping first, then took a satisfying puff: "Daqianmen is a cigarette for cadres. We can only smoke economy cigarettes in the workshop."

The two walked side by side toward the passageway leading to the central courtyard. As they walked, Guo Yongping asked in a low voice, "Master Li, do you know what the whole hospital meeting is for tonight?"

Li Yong also said in a low voice, "It probably has something to do with you. After all, according to the custom of this courtyard, every time a new resident moves in, the three stewards will organize a meeting for all the residents to introduce them. In addition, there will be a general meeting of the whole courtyard when there is a notice from the higher authorities."

As they spoke, the two had already passed through the passageway and arrived at the central courtyard. At this time, there were thirty or forty residents standing in twos and threes in the courtyard. Almost everyone had wrapped themselves up like dumplings. Some people were smoking, while others were huddled together talking in hushed tones.

As usual, a worn-out eight-immortal table was placed under the old locust tree in the middle courtyard. A light bulb hung on a bare branch, and under the dim light, three middle-aged men with different appearances sat around the table.

Guo Yongping's eyes widened as he looked at the three stewards. He couldn't help but wonder, of the three, he could only recognize Xu Fugui in the middle. How come the people on the left and right were completely different from the characters in the original drama? Moreover, he had carefully observed everyone present under the light, and he could only vaguely make out the two men in front of the main house in the middle courtyard. The burly middle-aged man sitting in the chair with a zombie-like face and a pair of obviously large puffy eyes should obviously be He Daqing, the widow lover in the original drama, and now the canteen director of the training base of the security department of Hongxing Steel Rolling Mill. The strong young man standing next to him should be Sha Zhu and He Yuzhu in the original drama.

What puzzled Guo Yongping was that he did not see the three old men, Yi Zhonghai (the Moral Celestial Venerable), Liu Haizhong (the Indifferent to Fame and Fortune), and Yan Bugui (the Abacus Master), among the crowd. He also did not find Jia Dongxu, who only had one black and white photo in the original drama, as well as Qin Huairu (the Vampire White Lotus) and Jia Zhangshi (the Necromancer).

At this moment, a thin, long-faced middle-aged man sitting in the middle of the octagonal table tapped the table with his enamel mug. The people who were talking in hushed tones stopped talking and looked up at Xu Fugui.

Xu Fugui didn't waste any time and said loudly, "There are two things to discuss at the general meeting tonight. First, we have a new neighbor in our courtyard at number 95. As you all know, a new resident has moved into the east wing of the front yard. Now, please let our new neighbor come up and introduce himself. From now on, we will all be living in the same courtyard. It would be a real joke if we didn't know each other."

The people present chuckled softly after hearing this.

Xu Fugui continued loudly, "Has the new resident of the east wing of the front yard arrived yet? Please come to the front and introduce yourself to everyone."

Hearing Xu Fugui's words, Guo Yongping didn't hesitate at all. With a smile, he stepped through the crowd towards the octagonal table. He stopped when he was about a meter away from the table, first nodding to the three stewards sitting behind it who were watching him. Then he turned to the crowd and said loudly, "Hello, neighbors of courtyard number 95. I am Guo Yongping, and I work in the purchasing department of Hongxing Steel Rolling Mill. From now on, we will be neighbors living in this courtyard. Please take care of me." After speaking, he bowed slightly and walked through the crowd, passing through the people who were scrutinizing him, back to where he had been standing, and looked back at the scene.

Guo Yongping's concise self-introduction had clearly taken everyone present by surprise, and some people in the crowd were already whispering among themselves.

Sitting on the right side of the octagonal table, Hao Aiguo's face was somewhat gloomy. In his imagination, Guo Yongping would have greeted each of the three stewards one by one, and only after the stewards' permission would he leave. But this kid had only nodded at him as a greeting, clearly showing that he didn't respect the three stewards at all. He couldn't help but snort heavily, about to reprimand him, but Xu Fugui had already spoken up, saying loudly, "Welcome Comrade Guo Yongping to our courtyard house at number 95. From now on, we are all neighbors living in the same courtyard. As the saying goes, a close neighbor is worse than a distant relative. If Xiao Guo has any difficulties in the future, just tell us three stewards. We will do our best to help. Now, please let the third steward convey the notice from the street office to everyone."

Hao Aiguo felt as if he had swallowed a dead rat, his heart filled with unbearable pain. After being arrested together at the black market a few days ago, he could clearly sense that Xu Fugui and Yue Xiangqian had become much more distant from him, obviously holding a grudge against him. When he went to see the two of them this evening, neither of them invited him in, merely standing at the door and saying a few words before closing the door and going home, which infuriated him greatly. However, what was done was done, and he could only sulk in silence. He couldn't really fall out with them and break off relations. Now that Xu Fugui had made his announcement, he could only cough dryly and say, "This hospital-wide meeting was supposed to be held the day before yesterday, but neither of our eldest or second eldest uncles came back, so it was postponed until today."