Siheyuan: There are three little cats at home

Chapter 554 New Year’s Eve

Today, every house in the compound hangs red lanterns. The dazzling red color adds to the joy of the New Year.

Two huge lanterns were also hung at the main entrance of the courtyard.

At the same time, the 'Advanced Courtyard' banner awarded to the compound by the neighborhood office last year was also hung on the main entrance.

It highlights the extraordinary past year of the compound.

In the Yanbu Gui family in the front yard, except for Yan Jiedi who did not come back, the two brothers Yan Jiefang and Yan Jiekuang, like Yuyu and Xiaoya, returned to the compound with their families.

The eldest son of Liu Haizhong's family is also back for the New Year.

The couple in the bangs were so happy that they couldn't close their mouths from ear to ear.

This is the only time of the year when Liu Haizhong can see his eldest son and his family. As the second uncle, Liu Haizhong can't help but feel excited.

In the middle courtyard, Shazhu used to spend the New Year with various families in the courtyard, but this year he didn’t have to.

Because his sister Yuyu's family came back to celebrate the New Year with him, they were busy in the kitchen, cooking New Year's Eve in a variety of ways, and showing off all their good cooking skills.

Xu Fengming held the red envelope in his right hand and hummed, "Okay."

The courtyard was really lively, everyone was beaming, especially Xu Hongzhi and his gang of children. They kept running around in the front, middle and back courtyards, or went to the alley to set off firecrackers together.

"Hongzhi, tomorrow you will perform again in front of our courtyard people."

"Thank you, second uncle, thank you, second aunt, thank you, sister-in-law, thank you, brother-in-law."

And the most important thing is that my sister’s family is also here this year.

In the early morning, the first day of the Lunar New Year, Xu Qing and Aiguo helped Jinghong, Xiaoya and Aiqian cook dumplings in the kitchen.

People from each family are sitting in their houses and eating New Year's Eve happily.

"Hongzhi, one more, and Third Uncle will give you another red envelope."

Xu Xiaoya, Xiujuan, and Ai Qian also showed joy on their faces, secretly feeling that their nephew Hongzhi was really good.

Xu Qing, his brothers and sisters, his wife, son, daughter, Ai Qian, Xiu Juan, and Jian Jun were sitting around the hot kang in their home, with a large table of sumptuous meals in front of them.

Tang Xiujuan was sitting in the front room nursing her child.

"Hey, you kid, I'm sorry."

He wasn't there last year.

Compared with the year when Xu Qing first started working, the quality of the New Year's Eve dinner has improved a lot.

It made the whole room burst into laughter.

Furthermore, Xu Qing opened a meat factory, and there was no shortage of pork and mutton.

Tang Xiujuan also took out the red envelope that she and Xu Fengming had prepared and gave it to her nephew Hongzhi.

Xu Xiaoya sat on the kang next to her sister-in-law Jinghong, hugged her little nephew Xu Hongbin for a while, and handed her nephew Xu Hongbin to her sister-in-law Xiujuan. Then she hugged her niece Qiaoxin to her side and peeled the orange.

Chicken, duck, fish, pork, mutton, etc. are all available.

Xu Hongzhi shook his head and said with a smile: "Third uncle, no, I learned one in school. How about I perform Yangko for you?"

Xu Fengming handed the red envelope to his eldest nephew and said with a smile.

Xu Qiang and Jinghong looked at their son and felt promising.

Xu Hongzhi was so happy that he took the red envelope, thanked him, and took the initiative to perform a talent learned in school, which made Xu Fengming burst into laughter as he walked into the room.

Xu Hongzhi got the red envelope and hurriedly put it into his pants pocket while nodding.

Stay up late, no one sleeps, you can hear talking and laughing all night long.

Xu Hongzhi stood still, pondered for a moment, then shook his head and imitated the yangko dancers he had seen on the street before, and started dancing in the house in a stylish way.

Xu Hongfu and Xu Qiaoxin, each holding the New Year's money they received, looked at their eldest brother Hongzhi with admiration and envy.

The days are getting better, and it’s New Year’s Eve again, and the five cats also get the benefit.

At this moment, the other houses in the compound were also filled with laughter and laughter.

The lights in every house in the compound were on all night.

This is the first time I have seen my son take the initiative to perform his talents at home.

At dusk, the lanterns outside each house are lit up, and the red lights decorate the whole compound with a full New Year atmosphere.

In the early morning, people from every house in the compound came out to set off firecrackers, and the crackling sound of firecrackers resounded throughout the compound.

Patriotism, Fengming, and the founding of the army were all very happy to see, and they all gave their nephew Hongzhi a thumbs up and praised him.

The little guy grinned happily and kept saying thank you.

Not only can they eat some scrambled eggs, but they can also eat some meat.

The four cats in the Dongdan Grain Station, like last year, ate their own New Year's Eve dinner together with the civet cat Xiao Hui in Xu Qing's house.

Xu Hongzhi, his cousin Hongfu, and his sister Qiaoxin, under the care of Xu Fengming, ran back to the house jumping up and down after setting off the firecrackers.

Xu Hongzhi became shy and said, "Third uncle, I'm not embarrassed. I'm so embarrassed if I let Grandpa and the others see me."

As a result, as soon as he returned to the house, he received New Year's money from Aiguo and Jianjun.

The warm dumplings were all filled with coins. During breakfast, Xu Qing told his son, nephew and daughter that among the three of them, whoever ate the coins would get it.

Xu Hongzhi was so motivated that after finishing a bowl of dumplings, he used his chopsticks to pick out a few from Xu Qing and Jinghong's bowls, choosing a big one because he thought there were coins hidden in it.

This made Xu Hongfu and Xu Qiaoxin, who had just learned how to use chopsticks, very anxious. They ate the dumplings hard in their small mouths and opened their watery little eyes at the same time.

Xu Qing, his younger brothers and sisters, Jing Hong, Ai Qian and others couldn't help but feel happy again.

After Xu Qing had breakfast, he heard three stewards standing in the courtyard shouting:

"Listen, everyone. Everyone in the courtyard will go out to visit the temple fair together later. Anyone who wants to go can meet in the front yard at 9:30."

Xu Qing, his third brother Feng Ming, and his brother-in-law Jianjun were smoking cigarettes with their second brother Aiguo. After Jinghong, Xiaoya, Xiujuan, and Aiqian washed the dishes, the whole family went to the front yard and followed the courtyard. Everyone went out to play together.

On the first day of the New Year, everyone in the compound pays New Year greetings to each other and gives each other New Year's money to the children of other families.

Then they walked out of the courtyard together in a lively manner.

Yan Jiecheng's family of three took the initiative to chat with Jinghong and Xiujuan.

Xiaodang and Huaihua took Xu Hongzhi and a group of children along the street to buy various snacks and toys, such as candied haws, candied chestnuts, sugar figures, windmills, and Tianjin hemp flowers.

Banggan was walking beside Aiguo, Fengming, and Shazhu. He was not a child. Although he was the same generation as Hongzhi in the compound, he was much older.

The first aunt, the second aunt, the third aunt, and the three of them, together with Jia and Zhang, were at the end. They were looking at the various things sold at the street stalls, constantly commenting on what they saw, and not forgetting to stop and stand for a while, holding them in their hands. Examine it carefully in your hand.

There were so many people on the street that they were almost crowded together. They were coming and going, rubbing shoulders. For about ten minutes, Xu Qing and his party did not go more than 100 meters.

When everyone arrived at the temple fair, there were even more people. After the temple fair was reopened, the state encouraged small businesses. The vendors setting up stalls were next to each other. People were crowding around them, and there was constant noise.

Although spring has begun and the weather will get warmer in the future, the temperature in the morning is still very low and cold when the spring is cold.

It's just that there are so many people today that you can't see the end of the street at a glance. Xu Qinghe and everyone in the courtyard are sweating even before they finish the temple fair.

Tang Xiujuan held her son in the quilt and was protected from the crowd by Jinghong, Xiaoya and Ai Qian.

Qin Huairu was also there, helping to evacuate the crowd, and asked her daughters Xiaodang and Huaihua to take care of the children of Xu Hongfu and Xu Qiaoxin so that they wouldn't get separated.

Xiaodang responded and said, "Mom, don't worry. Huaihua and I will take Hongzhi, Niuniu and the others away to play. I'll find you later."

After saying that, he led Xu Qiaoxin and a group of children to other places.

Silly Zhu sent his sister Yu Yu's family home early in the morning. He didn't sleep all night last night. Now he was yawning again and again and smoking constantly to refresh himself.

It was not until about four o'clock in the afternoon that everyone returned to the compound. But Xiaoya and Jianjun returned to their side.

When they separated, Xu Qing and his two brothers bought apples, peanuts, and longans and handed them to their sister.

Xu Xiaoya couldn't help but blush, and said shyly: "Eldest brother, second brother, third brother, what are you doing?"

Xu Fengming grinned and said:

"Apples are for you to eat. You love them most. It's not like my eldest brother and my second brother don't know.

As for peanuts and longans, you can guess them slowly when you go home and Jianjun goes home. "

In fact, how could Xu Xiaoya and Liu Jianjun not know the meaning of peanuts and longan, and their faces immediately turned red.

On the second day of the first lunar month, Xu Qinghe was patriotic, and Feng Ming and everyone in the courtyard had a lively day in the courtyard.

On the early morning of the third day of the Lunar New Year, Xu Qing took his daughter-in-law Jinghong and his son and daughter out of the compound to pay New Year greetings to his father-in-law.

Aiguo and Fengming also visited their father-in-law with their families.

The eighth day of the Lunar New Year is over, and the flavor of the new year is still there.

As the fifteenth day of the first lunar month passed, everyone in the courtyard became busy.

Those who should go to work should go to work, and those who should go to school are not in a hurry, but the New Year is coming to an end.

Xu Qing's grain depot in Dongdan is back in business.

Meat processing plants and grain station warehouses in the suburbs are also operating as usual.

The weather was really not cold anymore. As soon as noon arrived, the leather jacket Xu Qing wore became so hot that he had to take it off.

Er Mazi caught a cold during the Chinese New Year. There was a spring rain two days ago and he caught a cold again. His military coat was still tightly wrapped around his body. Xu Qing joked:

"Brother Mazi, you are planning to undergo confinement."

Er Mazi rubbed his nose and said, "Hey, Qingzi, don't tease me about my brother. I'm just fine not having a cold, but I'm catching a cold again, so I'm not taking care of myself."

Xu Qing was sitting at his desk. While collecting the receipts sent by the two buyers from the third and fifth factories today, he stood up and said:

"Stop sitting in the office. Come on, let's go to the Sanhuzi pigsty and have a look."

Er Mazi stood up, took out a handkerchief to wipe his nose, and followed Xu Qing out of the office.

In the factory yard, the sun is shining brightly and the spring scenery is brilliant.

Er Mazi stretched his body and said hello to Hui Dehai in the slaughterhouse, then he and Xu Qing left the factory and walked along the thawed dirt road towards San Huzi's pig pen.

After Sanhuzi celebrated the New Year, he and his wife worked hard to raise pigs.

Over at the grain station, Sanhuzi's wife didn't go to work.

However, Xu Qingdongdan's grain station is now crowded. Meijuan is still there, as are Hui Lihua, Luo Hongjuan, Wu Xiuying, and Li Shuzhen.

Together with Jinghong and Xiaoya, they can endure enough to cope with the daily business.

When Xu Qing and Er Mazi walked to Sanhuzi's pig pen, Sanhuzi and his wife were feeding the pigs with a wooden bucket.

Er Mazi walked into the pig pen and shouted:

"San Huzi, you and Sister Wang are busy."

"Hey, I'm not busy, I'll finish feeding soon," Sanhuzi straightened up, put the big iron spoon for feeding the pigs in the barrel, grabbed a handful of wheat straw from the side with his hands stained with pig food, and rubbed it:

"Qingzi, Ermazi, why are you two here?"

"It's nothing, come here to see how your pigs are doing?" Xu Qing said.

San Huzi strode forward, took out the economical cigarettes from his blue cloth shirt with his clean left hand, handed them to Xu Qing and Er Mazi, and then held one in the corner of his mouth and said:

"It's not bad, but it's quite tiring. These pigs sleep when they're full and eat when they wake up, leaving pig manure everywhere. Two of them had a fight the day before yesterday, and one's tail was almost bitten off."

Er Mazi was delighted when he heard this, "Three tigers, which piglet's tail was bitten, point it out to me."

San Huzi took out a match, lit the smoke for Xu Qing and said, "Go and see for yourself."

Before Er Mazi could wait for San Huzi to light his cigarette, he ran to the pigs and leaned over to take a look.

Xu Qingze and San Huzi stood by the shed of the pig pen, smoking cigarettes and chatting.

"Sanhuzi, no pigs are sick?"

"No, they are all still alive and kicking."

Xu Qing nodded and looked at the piglets that were frightened by Er Mazi and felt that these pigs would be of great use in the next half year.

"This is for you. If you are literate, read more." Xu Qing said, taking out two pig-raising manuals from his clothes and handing them to San Huzi.

When San Huzi saw it was a pig-raising manual, he immediately felt like he had found a treasure. His face showed excitement. He reached out to take it, hurriedly lowered his head and looked through it, and said with a smile:

"Qingzi, thank you. I was planning to take the time to go to the city to find someone where to buy these books. Now, it's timely. You gave me these two books."

Xu Qing smiled and said, "You take good care of them, and I will take them all in the second half of the year."

Sanhuzi held the book tightly in his hands, nodded vigorously and said, "Qingzi, look, as long as I can make money, I will support you more tomorrow."

Xu Qing smiled and raised his hand to pat San Huzi on the shoulder and said, "Okay."

In March, when the grass grows and the orioles fly, the spring moons come one after another, and the weather warms up completely.

The pace of reform in Sijiucheng is intensifying like wildfire in the spring breeze.

The business of Xuqing Meat Factory has not changed much. Harvesting pigs is still difficult, especially in the first half of the year.

Er Mazi went to the countryside often, but the pigs he took back were not many every time.

It can barely maintain the normal operation of the meat processing plant.

The business at the grain station is as good as ever.

Not on weekends, you can buy several thousand kilograms every day.

No way, Li Laosi from Dongdan Vegetable Market won a motorcycle last year, which made many people jealous.

As a result, residents in Dongdan are only willing to go to the grain station opened by Xu Qing to buy grain.

This makes the business of Xuqing Grain Station difficult to even think about.

Xu Qing uses his ability to divide each batch of white noodles and stick noodles into one batch.

The money earned, after deducting costs and taxes, as well as workers’ wages and other miscellaneous things.

Before I knew it, I had accumulated thousands of dollars.

The meat factory is breaking even and has never made much profit.

Xu Qing spent all his family savings last year to set up a meat factory, so this is considered as saving money again.

When Xu Qing returned home in the evening, before having dinner, he called his second and third brothers to his side, took out his money, handed it to his two brothers and said:

"Patriot, Feng Ming, you two lent this to your eldest brother last year to collect grain and pigs. You take it."

Xu Aiguo hurriedly waved his hand and said:

"Brother, I don't remember that I lent you money."

Xu Fengming echoed: "My second brother is right, I don't remember such a thing either."

Xu Qing smiled and looked at his two younger brothers who refused to take the money, raised his arms around Aiguo and Fengming's shoulders and said:

"You are married. The money you lend to your eldest brother cannot be decided by the two of you. If you don't want it, you have to consider it for your wife and children."

Xu Aiguo waved his hand, unwilling to take it, and opened his mouth and said:

"Brother, you and my sister-in-law paid for my marriage to Aiqian, as did Feng Ming and Xiujuan."

Xu Fengming continued, "That's right, brother, my second brother is absolutely right. We can't take the money you paid for today."

Xu Qing couldn't laugh or cry, "Have you forgotten the pension left by our parents after their death?"

Xu Aiguo and Xu Fengming looked at each other and said, "I haven't forgotten, but brother, it was not easy for you alone to support Xiaoya and us and to study and finish college.

In addition, you and my sister-in-law have been delaying your marriage for so long. We all know why. The little money we have is nothing.

Nowadays, we are all working and married. When I was young, I couldn’t help you, big brother, but now that I can, you have to give us a chance. "

Xu Hongzhi was lying on the edge of the kang, listening to the conversation between his father and his second and third uncles. He bit his pencil and turned his head slightly to peek, thoughtfully. Thoughtfully.

(End of this chapter)