Siheyuan: Relieve stress and relieve worries

Chapter 344 It’s summer vacation
On July 1st, the children woke up late in the morning. Yan Jiekuang and Ji Lian deliberately did not wake them up because from that day on, all primary and secondary school students in the city had their summer vacation.

In the morning, Yan Jiekuang made century egg and lean meat porridge, steamed buns, and boiled eggs. He put the pickles in several small plates and sat there smoking.

Shi Lei had gotten up a long time ago and was doing horse stance in the front yard. Ever since he came back from hunting, Shi Lei had been pestering his father to practice martial arts. Yan Jiekuang did not object, but told him that practicing martial arts required long-term persistence. Shi Lei nodded to indicate that he could do it.

Yan Jiekuang taught Shi Lei some basic skills so that he could lay a good foundation first. Shi Lei was very self-disciplined. Since he started practicing martial arts, he got up early every day, getting up at four in the morning and practicing until six.

Yan Jiekuang checked the time, then looked at Shi Lei, who was sweating profusely, and said, "Hurry up and wash up. You eat first. Let the children sleep a little longer."

Yan Jiekuang put pickles and boiled eggs on the table in the dining room, and took a plate of steamed buns and a bowl of porridge for himself and Shi Lei respectively. After washing, Shi Lei came in and said, "Thank you, Dad. Where's my mom?"

Yan Jiekuang said, "There is some seafood arriving in the store today. Your mother wants to go take a look, so she left first."

Yan Jiekuang called out to Tian Guixiang who was cleaning up in the kitchen, "Sister Tian, ​​do you want to eat first?"

"You guys eat first, I'll clean up and eat with the other kids." Tian Guixiang also shouted.

Yan Jiekuang and Shi Lei started eating. Yan Jiekuang looked at Shi Lei and asked, "It's vacation time, what are your plans?"

Shi Lei ate his buns and said, "I plan to use this holiday to read your history books."

Yan Jiekuang nodded and said, "If you want to read it, read it carefully and understand it thoroughly. Don't just skim through it."

Shi Lei agreed, and Yan Jiekuang continued, "The key to the basement is in the second drawer of my study. If you want to go down and take a look, go ahead."

Shi Lei was very surprised and said, "Thank you, Dad."

After the two men finished their meal, Yan Jiekuang went to the backyard to check on the two little ones.

Xiaohai and Xixi were sleeping soundly. Yan Jiekuang did not disturb them. He sat in the hall drinking tea and reading the newspaper.

Time soon came to seven o'clock. Da Pang and Xiao Pang had already gotten up to wash up. The noise of the two people walking back and forth on the second floor also woke up Shi Li. Shi Li looked at the time on the alarm clock, got up, walked to the bathroom and glared at Da Pang, which made Da Pang feel puzzled.

At this time, Yan Jiekuang heard some noise in the east room, so he went to Xixi's room first. Xixi said, "Dad, good morning. I'll get dressed by myself."

Yan Jiekuang smiled and kissed Xixi, then went to Xiaohai's room. Xiaohai was already getting dressed. Xiaohai said, "Dad, I woke up because I was hungry. I want to eat."

Yan Jiekuang said, "Then hurry up and wash up. I'll go get you some porridge."

Xiao Hai said: "No pig's trotters? Impossible, I even dreamed about it."

Yan Jiekuang laughed and said, "Who wants to eat pig's trotters early in the morning? If you want to eat them, eat them in the evening. I will make you stewed pig's trotters with soybeans in the evening."

Xiao Hai then went out of the house to wash up. Da Pang went back to tidy up the room and went to find Xiao Pang, asking, "Do you know how I offended Fourth Sister?"

Xiao Pang looked at Da Pang strangely, thought for a moment, and said, "I guess she is not happy because you beat her in one of the subjects this time."

Big Fatty nodded in agreement, and just as he turned to the door, he turned around and said, "No, I only have a higher score in physical education than her, and besides, you are taller than her too."

Xiao Pang spread his hands and said, "Then I don't know."

The children went to the restaurant to eat. Da Pang couldn't hold back. After eating a few mouthfuls of porridge, he asked Shi Li, "My dear sister, have I offended you in any way?"

Shi Li said unhappily, "If you weren't running around on the second floor, I could sleep a little longer."

Big Fatty said innocently: "I was the one walking the whole time, Little Fatty was the one running."

Xiaopang spat out a mouthful of porridge. He didn't expect that his brother would sell him out in an instant.

This made Shi Li burst into laughter. Xiao Pang said, "You almost choked me to death. We're even now. I won't run away next time."

Tian Guixiang was also amused and laughed. At this time, Xiao Hai reminded them, "Brother and sister, why don't you eat quickly? You are already late."

The three children looked at each other, and Shi Li said to Xiao Hai, "We are on vacation now, so we will play with you every day, okay? Xiao Hai, Xixi?"

The two little ones were instantly happy and said, "Okay!"

At this time, Yan Jiekuang walked in, saw the children eating, sat down beside them, and asked, "You are all on vacation, do you have any plans, hobbies or anything?"

Shi Li said: "I will finish my homework first, and then I want to go to the Children's Palace to learn dance. Our teacher has recommended me."

Yan Jiekuang nodded and said, "Okay, as long as we have a plan."

While eating his buns, Dapang said, "I can't even finish my own work. Dad, your studio has been requisitioned."

Yan Jiekuang had no objection and said, "That place belongs to you."

Xiao Pang hesitated, and finally said, "My classmates and I have an appointment to go fishing in Shichahai. We won't run around."

Yan Jiekuang said: "I have no objection. It's good that you have your own plans. I'm just worried that you will spend the summer vacation in a daze."

At this time, Xixi said, "I want to practice dancing with my sister, too."

Yan Jiekuang said, "Okay, I'll take you there, okay?"

Xixi smiled, and Xiaohai said, "I want to learn martial arts from Brother Lei. Dad, I want to be Huang Lao Xie."

Yan Jiekuang touched his head and said, "Isn't Wang Chongyang the most powerful one?"

Xiao Hai said seriously: "He died too early, I don't want to be like him." Everyone laughed when they heard it.

Yan Jiekuang said, "Okay, let's eat first. Today is the first day of vacation, so we have to go visit grandpa and grandma."

Yan Jiekuang walked out, and when he was about to leave the room, he turned back and said, "Give each of you a boiled egg. You are not allowed to refuse it. It will increase your nutrition."

The children said in unison: "Got it."

After breakfast, Yan Jiekuang took the children back to the courtyard. When they arrived at the west wing, Yang Ruiping was sweeping the yard. Yan Jiekuang quickly took the broom and started working. Yang Ruiping smiled and took the children to the back garden. The children still liked playing in the back garden very much.

After sweeping the front yard, Yan Jiekuang then swept the backyard. While he was sweeping, Yang Ruiping came over and said, "Go buy two Habits later. There are some sodas in the freezer. It's a bit hot today. Let's cool the children down."

Yan Jiekuang nodded and asked, "Where are Yongchang and the others?" Yang Ruiping said, "Isn't today the first day of the holiday? Your eldest brother took the kids to the zoo. The eldest and the second oldest brother discussed it yesterday."

"They are really good. Why didn't they ask my child?" Yan Jiekuang said unhappily.

Yang Ruiping explained, "It was a spur-of-the-moment decision. Besides, it was already very late when we discussed it, so we didn't go to your place."

Yan Jiekuang didn't say anything at this point, and said, "Are you having cold noodles for lunch? If so, I'll go buy some sauce."

Yang Ruiping said, "No, there's enough at home. Let's eat cold noodles. I'll go get the pickles."

Yan Jiekuang said, "Where did my dad go again?"

Yang Ruiping said, "He's playing chess with Liu Haizhong and Xu Wude next door."

Yan Jiekuang smiled mysteriously and said, "Is this a leak?"

Yang Ruiping smiled, hit Yan Jiekuang, and turned to go to the basement.

Yan Jiekuang went to the kitchen to mix the dough and prepare some side dishes to go with it. At this time, Shi Lei came running over. Yan Jiekuang said, "Go to the glass room at the back and get some cucumbers, tomatoes, etc. See what side dishes you like. I'll make you some cold noodles for lunch."

Shi Lei said "Okay," then turned and ran towards the backyard.

After a while, Shi Lei came back with Xixi in a small bamboo basket. Xixi shouted, "Dad, can I have peaches with my noodles?"

Yan Jiekuang was amused by Xixi. Shi Lei said beside him, "I told her that peaches are to be eaten alone, but she didn't believe it and said that they can be eaten with noodles. She had to ask you."

Yan Jiekuang said, "My dear, this peach can only be eaten alone. Go and ask your brother Lei to wash it for you. You can eat the peach first. The noodles will have to wait for a while."

Xixi then left with Shi Lei and went to the backyard to wash peaches.

At noon, Yan Bugui came back singing a little song. Yan Jiekuang told him that they would have cold noodles for lunch. Yan Bugui said, "On this day, cold noodles are the best. Oh, give me a head of garlic. I'll go make some first."

Yan Jiekuang handed his father a few heads of garlic and then went about busying himself.

After a while, Yang Ruiping came over. He and Yan Bugui moved the table under the grape vines and brought a few chairs. Yang Ruiping went to the kitchen to serve the dishes. The mother and son made several trips and soon, various dishes were on the table. There was a small bowl of Erba sauce, followed by chili oil, sesame oil and Shanxi aged vinegar. Finally, Yan Jiekuang brought over a large bowl of cold noodles boiled in well water.

Yang Ruiping prepared noodles and seasonings for the children, Yan Jiekuang took care of the two younger ones, and the family started to eat.

While eating, Yan Bugui said that he had revealed the news about Huang Weiren to Lao Xu, and it was estimated that there would be movement in the next courtyard in a day or two. Yan Jiekuang said: "Jia Dang also knows about this, but I don't know whether he has told Qin Huairu or not."

Yang Ruiping said: "It's such a pity for Qin Jingru. It would be a good choice for her to marry Xu Damao."

Yan Jiekuang said, "A good choice? Mom, you've made a mistake. There are many people who are with Xu Damao. Have you seen any pregnant women?"

Yang Ruiping thought about it carefully and suddenly said, "You mean? Xu Damao has health problems?"

Yan Bugui also suddenly realized and said, "It's true. If you hadn't told me, I wouldn't have thought about it that way. No woman who had been with Xu Damao had ever gotten pregnant, including Qin Jingru."

Yang Ruiping asked Yan Bugui, "You said that Mr. and Mrs. Xu are not in a hurry either."

"Not in a hurry? How can I not be in a hurry? Today I was talking about finding a partner for Xu Damao, saying that if he doesn't find one soon he will be too old." Yan Bugui said.

Yan Jiekuang said: "Let's see, maybe Qin Jingru can really be with Xu Damao."

After lunch, Yan Jiekuang said he wanted to go buy some watermelons. Shi Lei said, "I'll go too. I can help carry some things."

Yan Jiekuang took Shi Lei to the vegetable market. You know what, there was a wide variety of things in the market. Yan Jiekuang didn't rush to buy watermelons, but took Shi Lei for a stroll.

Shi Lei suddenly pointed to a stall. Yan Jiekuang took a look and saw that it was a stall selling second-hand goods. Yan Jiekuang knew that Shi Lei was very interested in these things, so he followed Shi Lei over. The stall was quite large and had everything, not only porcelain items such as pots, plates, bowls, jars, etc., but also picture books, stamps, old books, etc., as well as some old toys and home appliances.

Yan Jiekuang looked around and was very interested in some tiles, so he asked the stall owner how much they cost. The stall owner seemed to be someone who didn't know much about these things, so he said, "If you like them, just pay for them. These broken bricks and tiles are of no use."

Shi Lei also stretched his head to look at these tiles. Yan Jiekuang pointed at the comic books and asked how much they were. The stall owner replied 20 cents. Yan Jiekuang said to Shi Lei, "Go pick a few sets."

Shi Lei picked out a few sets, a total of 40 books. Yan Jiekuang knew that these were for the other people, so he said to the stall owner, "How about I give you ten yuan?"

The stall owner said with a smile: "Okay, why not, why don't you look at something else."

Yan Jiekuang shook his head and said, "No need, that's all."

Yan Jiekuang held the roof tiles and Shi Lei held the books tied together with a rope, and they ran to the watermelon stall, bought two watermelons, and then took Shi Lei back to the west wing.

Yan Jiekuang looked at Shi Lei, who was holding a watermelon and a comic book in his hand, and asked, "Is it heavy?"

Shi Lei said: "It won't sink. Let's go, Dad."

The two men returned to the west wing. Yan Jiekuang put the watermelon in a net bag and placed it directly in the well in the backyard to stabilize it. Shi Lei took the picture book and went to find Dapang, Xiaopang and the others.

But after a while, Shi Lei ran over and asked Yan Jiekuang, "Dad, what is the history of the tiles you bought?"

Yan Jiekuang handed the tile to Shi Lei and said, "Come, take a good look. There is a saying you have forgotten, Qin bricks and Han tiles. This is a Han tile. Look at how exquisite it is. These tiles should be from the same house. The pattern on them means longevity and happiness."

Shi Lei looked at it carefully, and Yan Jiekuang said, "Go ahead, find a quiet place to watch it slowly. I have to prepare dinner."

Shi Lei took the tile and left. Yan Jiekuang started to stew the soup first. He made the yam and duck soup specially for today. It takes a long time, so he started to make it as soon as he came back.

After that, he prepared a chicken and simmered it with spices and seasonings, soaked the sea cucumber, and prepared some beef tendons and pig trotters and soaked soybeans. Then he sat down on a stool next to the stove, smoking a cigarette and watching the soup stewing on the stove.

The children were all quietly reading the comic books in the backyard. The comic books immediately attracted the children and opened a new door for Xiao Pang. He was very interested in the comic books and took the initiative to say to Shi Lei: "Brother, I will keep these in the future. I will ask my dad to make a bookshelf when I get home."

Da Pang said, "No need, Dad. I'll make it for you when we get home. I guarantee it'll be strong and durable. It's a special bookshelf for comic books."

Xiaopang nodded happily, and Xiaohai said, "Third brother, then you can't lock the door. We can go and see whenever we want."

Xiaopang said, "When have you seen me lock the door? Don't worry."

Yang Ruiping was listening nearby without interrupting and thought the kids were quite interesting, so they reached a consensus.

(End of this chapter)