Siheyuan: Relieve stress and relieve worries

Chapter 4 Stable Life
April 1951, West Wing of the Front Yard
Yang Ruiping looked at Yan Bugui, kneading dough in his hands, and muttered, "He's just a manager, he doesn't need to eat or drink, why are you so excited?"

"You don't understand. This person is also called a manager. From now on, everyone will call me the third uncle. They have to be respectful to each other in daily life. It's a back and forth, haha." Yan Bugui said with his hands dancing.

"So from now on I will also call you Uncle Three? Not Old Yan anymore?" Yang Ruiping continued to tease him.

Suddenly Yan Jiefang said, "Mom, then I won't call you dad anymore. I'll call you Third Uncle instead?"

"Go, get out of the way. Home is home and the yard is the yard. If you dare to call me uncle, I'll beat you up." Yan Bugui said to Yan Jiefang viciously, and Yan Jiefang was so scared that he ran out with his short legs.

Yang Ruiping laughed so hard that he fell backwards, and Yan Jiekuang in his arms chuckled. "Old Yan, we just moved here a while ago, and then our third child was born. You just went to school to get familiar with the environment. Now that you have settled down, shouldn't you clean up the house?"

Yan Bugui looked around the house, not quite satisfied, and thought about his little belongings. Yan Jiekuang, who was in Yang Ruiping's arms, shook his little hands and uttered the word "kang". Yang Ruiping was stunned, and Yan Bugui also heard it, and walked over and said, "The little guy is talking?"

"No, I just said the word kang. I don't know where I heard it." Yang Ruiping was confused and looked at Yan Jiekuang. Yan Jiekuang pointed to the wooden bed in his house with his little finger and said "kang" again.

"Okay, I understand now. The little guy wants a kang. How does he know about a heated kang?" Yan Bugui was still very confused.

Yang Ruiping suddenly realized that what Old Li had built in the front room was a kang. The little guy had been carried by Yan Jiecheng to Old Li's room. Yan Bugui looked at Yan Jiekuang and thought that this little guy was really smart. How come he knew about the kang before he could even call people? Well, let's build a kang and the side room as well. There's no need to worry about winter, but there's a little waste of firewood.

Yang Ruiping was also very happy. With this kang, winter would be comfortable and there would be hot water for washing clothes. He lowered his head and kissed Yan Jiekuang, "My third son still loves me dearly."

"Mom" Yang Ruiping was stunned for a moment, then stood up and said, "Old Yan, Old Yan, San'er can call mom now. He is only two months old. My San'er is so smart. Call him mom again."

"mom!"

Yan Bugui was a little jealous of his wife, so he quickly went over and induced Yan Jiekuang to call him "Dad".

No matter how Yan Bugui called her "Mom", Yan Jiekuang just called her "Mom". Finally, Yan Jiekuang got tired of being asked and blurted out "Uncle".

Yan Bugui was stunned on the spot, thinking that the title of Third Uncle was not good enough, while Yang Ruiping was so happy that he couldn't straighten his back. Yan Bugui was very angry, glared at Yan Jiekuang, turned around and went out to find someone to make the kang.

Yan Jiekuang reminded his family to make a kang, really for his mother. Yan Jiekuang had experienced the northern winter in his previous life.

If Yan Bugui had been like that, he would have just repaired the house and painted the walls. But Yan Jiekuang didn't think so. As a northerner, a kang should be a must. To make it easier for his family to have a good winter, he took the risk of saying the word kang.

In a blink of an eye, it was June. Yan Bugui also spent a lot of money this time. He divided the west wing into two rooms. The inner room became the couple's bedroom, and of course it was also Yan Jiekuang's bedroom. The bedroom was equipped with a kang, which was connected to the two stoves in the outer room.

This design was given by Lao Li, and it was completely based on the kang in the Northeast. The kang in the side room is also connected to the kang in the west wing, and the smoke duct is set at the angle between the side wall of the side room and the wall of the courtyard. That was originally the location of the cellar in the front yard.

The ear room was built by Lao Li. He brought two desks, a bookshelf and a large wardrobe for Yan Jiecheng from the street warehouse.

Old Li was very concerned about Yan Jiecheng, and Yan Jiecheng listened to Old Li and did whatever he asked. The Yan couple were also very happy. It was good to have someone to take care of their son, and they could rest assured. Yan Jiefang was also very happy. Anyway, he was not dragged down by anything, so he resolutely followed his elder brother.

In fact, Yang Ruiping is already very interested in the third child. He has always felt that she is caring and special since she was born. He always tries to make sure that the third child does not work too hard.

June 1951, West Wing of the Front Yard (I am the dividing line)

The family moved into the new house and started a fire. Yan Bugui invited his eldest uncle and second uncle, as well as Old Li. Old Li did not come, saying that he had to work the night shift on the street. Yan Jiecheng followed him.

Yang Ruiping did not sit at the table. The old rules still applied, and he took the third child back to the bedroom.

Yan Bugui said he was treating them to a meal, and there were only two dishes, cabbage stewed with potatoes and a pot of mixed fish soup. Later, the second uncle brought a plate of scrambled eggs, and the first uncle brought lotus root and peanuts. The three of them started chatting at the table. While drinking, they said compliments to each other, which was what the third uncle was best at. As they talked, they talked about the changes in the hospital.

"I haven't seen He Daqing recently. Do the second and third uncles know what he is busy with?" Yi Zhonghai started the topic.

Yan Bugui really didn't know. He had been busy with the house recently and followed Lao Li to the Military Control Commission to take advantage of him.

Yes, Yan Bugui brought a lot of things home, including a complete set of kang cabinets, made of red rosewood, an eight-immortal table, and square chairs. Old Li was so angry that he rolled his eyes and scolded him more than once, and Yan Jiecheng was also very embarrassed when he saw him.

In the end, Yan Bugui listened to his wife and handed over 200,000 yuan to the Military Control Commission. Only then did Old Li become normal.

The second uncle lit a cigarette and said, "You can still see him in the cafeteria, and Sha Zhu is always beside him, but I haven't seen him in the courtyard in the past half month. Could he be an enemy spy?"

The old man glanced at Liu Haizhong and said, "No way, this old neighbor, you don't know what he was like before, how could he be an enemy spy?"

"That's right. We all came here together. We all know each other. So what do you think He Daqing is busy with when he's not home every day?"

Yan Bugui had no say in the affairs of the steel mill, so he just drank alone and did not express any opinion.

The uncle suddenly lowered his head and leaned forward, and the two older brothers also came over, "I heard that he was in love with a woman, and I think her last name is Bai."

The second uncle suddenly shouted loudly, "Is that the White Widow who came to Baoding to study?"

"Hmm?" The first uncle looked at the second uncle deeply. "How do you know he is a widow?"

The second uncle's face suddenly turned red, "No, I heard it when people in the workshop were chatting."

Yan Bugui was curious and asked, "Is it true? One lost her husband and the other lost his wife. They are a perfect match. I wonder if Sha Zhu and his sister know about this."

"I heard it all. Forget it. I just mentioned it to you two and have a drink." Yi Zhonghai said.

The second uncle swore confidently, "No fly will bite an egg without cracks, and there will be no waves without wind!"

The three of them toasted each other until the two bottles of Lotus White were empty. The dinner was over and the two old men staggered towards the backyard.

Yan Bugui didn't want to clean up, so he closed the door and went into the inner room. In fact, Yang Ruiping also heard what was said in the outer room, but she was coaxing Yan Jiekuang and didn't care.

Yan Bugui came in, smelling of alcohol. "Dad, stinky!"

Yan Bugui was embarrassed and stood there, "Go wash your face and go to sleep in the ear room."

In Yang Ruiping's heart, Yan Jiekuang is the first. Husband, what is that?
Yan Bugui heard this and went to the ear room to find Yan Jiefang. Before leaving, he reminded him, "Don't tell anyone about what you heard today. We are from outside and we are not familiar with them."

Yang Ruiping rolled his eyes. "I'm not even leaving the house, who can I tell?"

Yan Jiekuang didn’t think much about it after hearing this. As long as his family was developing in a good direction, he continued to sleep.

　Thinking about how to help Yan Jiekuang get into the role quickly, haste makes waste, and Jiekuang said, "I'm still just a baby."

　　
　
(End of this chapter)