Siheyuan: Relieve stress and relieve worries

Chapter 452 A Memory

On New Year's Day, Yan Jiekuang got up early to cook. The temperature today was not very low and the sky was clear, which was perfect weather for a trip.

The children all had their own plans today. Even Xiaohai and Xixi had made appointments with their classmates, while Shi Lei, Dapang, Xiaopang, and Shi Li went out at three in the morning. They also made appointments with their friends and went to the square to watch the flag-raising ceremony.

In the morning, Yan Jiekuang didn't cook much, just a small pot of millet porridge, a few steamed buns, a plate of boiled eggs and a few dishes of pickles. Some of these were bought from outside, while others were made by Yan Jiekuang himself, such as the sweet and sour cucumbers. Yan Bugui scolded him a lot for picking these cucumbers, because they were picked from the glass house in Yan Bugui's backyard.

Ji Lian was still in a hurry as usual. Yan Jiekuang was always puzzled. These projects had already been suspended, so why was she still so busy? But since he had promised her that he would let go of the company's affairs, Yan Jiekuang kept silent and did not ask any questions. Xiaohai and Xixi also ate quickly. Yan Jiekuang looked at the time. No wonder they were so anxious, it was almost eight o'clock.

After dinner, they packed up and went out. Yan Jiekuang cleaned the kitchen, and when he was done, he carried a small jar of sweet and sour cucumbers and went out to his parents' home.

Although the houses on both sides of the alley were old and dilapidated, the bluestone road was still bright and there were occasional shouts. Yan Jiekuang deliberately walked through the alley and did not go to Nanluoguxiang, which was full of stalls and very messy.

Yan Jiekuang arrived at the west wing and found that the teahouse was not open today. The door was closed and there was a piece of paper on it that read "Something happened at home, so we will be closed for one day."

Yan Jiekuang knocked on the door. Not long after, the door opened. Yan Jiekuang looked and saw that it was his father. This was rare. He rarely came to open the door. Yan Bugui saw the strange look in his third son's eyes and knew what he was thinking. He said, "I'm cleaning the warehouse. You came at the right time. Come and give me a hand."

Yan Jiekuang lifted the small jar in his hand and said, "I brought you some pickled cucumbers so you don't have to accuse me of raiding your vegetable garden. I'll put them in the kitchen first. By the way, where's my mother?"

"You followed Jia Zhang to watch the flag-raising ceremony early in the morning." Yan Bugui said.

Yan Jiekuang went to the kitchen and put the pickles in the cupboard, then came out and asked, "Where are you cleaning?"

Yan Bugui said that the three rooms in the west wing were used as storehouses. The family members were too lazy to clean them up usually. Only the first room on the north side was used to store food and daily necessities, so it was relatively clean and tidy. Yan Jiekuang had not been in the remaining two rooms for several years, and only his father went there when he had nothing to do.

Yan Bugui said, "Clean up both rooms. I will use one, and throw away the unused parts of the other room. If they are not useful, send them to the basement."

Yan Jiekuang thought of the basement mainly because it was inconvenient to enter and exit, and Yan Bugui rarely used it.

Yan Jiekuang followed Yan Bugui to throw all the sundries piled inside into the yard, and they would pick them out later. After working for an hour, the two rooms were finally emptied. The yard was filled with various objects. Yan Jiekuang took a broom and went into the house to clean. Yan Bugui brought a bucket of water and linen and also wiped the shelves and windows.

After half an hour of cleaning, the windows and tables were finally clean and the room became bright.

The father and son sat in the front yard smoking and taking a rest. Yan Bugui even made some tea to reward the third child. Yan Jiekuang looked at the debris in the yard and didn't know where to start cleaning up, which ones were useful and which ones were useless. Forget it, he decided to just listen to his father's instructions later.

Many of the sundries were used by the family. Even the briefcase that Yan Bugui used when he was teaching was still preserved, with the words "Excellent Teacher" written on it. Yan Jiekuang said, "Dad, you have to keep this. It has commemorative significance."

Yan Bugui held the bag, stroked it, and said with a nostalgic expression on his face, "Keep it. Oh, by the way, what about these books?"

Yan Jiekuang flipped through the books, and found that most of them were the notebooks and exercise books of his four brothers and sisters, as well as study books. Yan Jiekuang said, "Today's textbooks are different and the content they teach is different. These things have no reference value for today's children's learning. I think we should sell them."

Yan Bugui nodded and said, "Okay, let's sell that broken bicycle. It's useless." Yan Bugui said, pointing to the 28-inch bicycle that he hadn't ridden for many years.

Yan Jiekuang said with emotion: "I bought this one for you, and you took it away. Dad, tell me, how much of my things have you taken away?"

"You are my son, and it is natural for you to respect your parents. Why are you still looking for an account?" Yan Bugui said, looking at him sideways.

Yan Jiekuang chuckled and said, "Okay, it's my duty as a son to honor you. So, Dad, I've entrusted my house to Xu Damao's agency. The rent from the previous rental is all with Ji Lian's company. I'll ask them to transfer the money to you, and you'll also receive the money from Xu Damao in the future. It's my honor to you, okay?"

Yan Bugui looked at Yan Jiekuang suspiciously and said, "That's great, what do you mean by this, what are you going to do when you go back, how are you going to explain this, that, that..." Yan Bugui couldn't say anything, Yan Jiekuang rolled his eyes and said, "Dad, you think too much, I really don't need this money, I think it's better to put it in your hands than to let it lie in the bank, and you can pay for it directly from this money in the future if there is any big or small event at home."

Yan Bugui then let out a long sigh and said with a smile: "This is great, this will be the Yan family fund."

The father and son continued to pack up, and then Yan Jiekuang moved some useful things to the basement. When he got to the basement, he saw one of the rooms was full of firewood, rice, oil, salt, sauce, vinegar and tea. He thought to himself, this old couple must be tired of the hard life, so they hoard these things for no reason.

In the corner of another room, there were several pieces of furniture. Yan Jiekuang knew at a glance that they were all made of huanghuali wood. It seemed that these were things that his father really couldn't bear to part with. There was a pair of armchairs, a square table, a long table, and a set of two vertical cabinets. Yan Jiekuang remembered that his father also had a set of screens, so how could it be gone?

After cleaning up, he returned to the front yard and saw his father bargaining with a scrap collector on a tricycle. This man always stayed at the entrance of the alley when he had nothing to do and was familiar with every household. The two of them were chatting back and forth, and Yan Jiekuang did not join in the conversation. He just sat at the table drinking tea and watching.

After a while, the two men reached an agreement, but the scrap collector said, "Uncle Yan, people say that you have planned it out to the extreme. I didn't believe it before, but this time I really see that you are amazing." After saying that, he loaded the scraps onto his cart.

Yan Bugui took advantage of the situation, but he was not idle either. He helped with the moving. When everything was ready, he hummed a little tune and went back to the yard with the money. He sat down next to Yan Jiekuang, picked up the teacup and started drinking.

"Dad, where is your Huanghuali screen?" Yan Jiekuang asked.

Yan Bugui was stunned, put down the teacup, and said with a bit of heartache: "Give it away."

Yan Jiekuang was very surprised. He knew his father's character. Who could let him give away such a valuable thing? So Yan Jiekuang looked at his father curiously.

Yan Bugui looked at Yan Jiekuang and said, "What are you looking at? This happened many years ago. Let's not talk about it."

Yan Jiekuang still had no intention of letting him go, and just stared at him. Yan Bugui took a sip of tea, sighed again, and said, "Do you still remember that your elder brother was arrested because of you?"

Yan Jiekuang felt a little sad when he thought of that dark moment in college. He said, "I still remember it. How could I forget it? It's a scar in my heart. Since then, my only memory of going to college is getting a diploma. Everything else has nothing to do with me."

Yan Bugui lit a cigarette and said, "That time, the boss's company wanted to fire him, and the notice was sent to his home. I thought, this is impossible. At that time, if the boss was fired, he would definitely become a street urchin, and no company would want him. I begged the factory director desperately, but the factory director didn't listen to me at all. He just kept circling around the screen in front of me. Sigh."

Yan Jiekuang understood that his father gave the screen to the factory director in order to keep his boss's job. Yan Jiekuang sighed and said, "I was young and impetuous at that time, and I handled the matter a little too radically. If I had been able to calm down, it wouldn't have ended up in a situation where both sides suffered losses."

Yan Bugui waved his hand and said, "You handled the situation well at that time. If you didn't do that, you might have been doomed. That's why your mother and I didn't stop you."

Yan Jiekuang recalled the past events, each one of which was still vivid in his mind. Yan Jiekuang looked at his father and said, "Okay, we have to move forward. I'm going to cook. What do you want to eat?"

Yan Bugui said, "Let's make a bowl of noodles, two side dishes, and let's have a drink."

Yan Jiekuang stood up and went to the kitchen. After a while, he brought two plates of dishes and two bowls of noodles to the dining room.

Yan Bugui washed his hands, went to the backyard to get the wine and wine glasses, then went into the restaurant, and the father and son started drinking.

Before they had taken a few bites, Yang Ruiping and Jia Zhang walked into the courtyard, chatting and laughing. Yan Bugui poked his head out of the dining room and asked, "Have you eaten?"

Yang Ruiping said, "We just came back. Tell me if you've eaten or not." Upon hearing this, Yan Jiekuang stood up and went to the kitchen. After a while, what was supposed to be a small drink for the two of them turned into a drinking party for four people. Yan Jiekuang cooked four more dishes, otherwise Jia Zhang would definitely say something strange.

(End of this chapter)