Life in siheyuan era

“The grip on the pen should be firm but not forceful, the stroke light but not weak, the start of the stroke slightly paused but not delayed, and the movement of the pen smooth but not arbitrary. There must be a certain structure within the flowing strokes.”

Zhou Zining's calligraphy techniques required cultivating a certain strength, mastering this strength to achieve proficiency.

This was the reason Zhou Zhiyuan was eager to return home.

It was this very reason that he bid farewell to Mo Youji and left the military hospital. Zhou Zhiyuan called Shen Lanbo and told him, "Hao Zhiwen is quite snobbish and has a pretty nurse hanging around."

After the call, he went to the Xingyi Neighborhood Office to scout the surrounding environment and observed Yongning Elementary School.

After returning home, he began practicing calligraphy, and after writing for more than an hour, he slowly grasped the essence of that strength. He put down his pen, gently rotated his left wrist, and looked out the window. It was almost four o'clock, but Bang梗, Xiaodang, and Huaihua were still nowhere to be seen.

But they were not Zhou Zhiyuan's concern. He turned back, picked up the ink bottle, unscrewed the pen barrel, and injected new ink into the fountain pen, then leaned over the desk to continue practicing calligraphy.

This desk was made when he graduated from senior primary school. Zhou Dehou and Lin Shurong made long-term plans for this desk.

At thirteen years old, he could sit at this desk with fifteen-year-old Zhou Zining to do homework.

At twenty-one years old, he could also share this desk with twenty-three-year-old Zhou Zining.

This desk adopted a face-to-face structure, with a desk cabinet separating the two people's feet, making it impossible for Zhou Zining to kick Zhou Zhiyuan while writing.

Of course, Zhou Zhiyuan couldn't kick Zhou Zining either, but there was no need to consider this issue. A younger brother kicking an older brother was absolutely not allowed in the Zhou family environment. If Zhou Zhiyuan dared to do so, even Zhou Dehou, who doted on him, would beat him.

Zhou Zhiyuan had never experimented with this, as the principle did not allow for experimentation. He understood this from a young age.

At this desk, the positions of the two were fixed. The writing brush and inkstone were placed on Zhou Zining's side, and the clock in the middle was replaced by a desk lamp. They both bought watches, and the clock was placed on the coffee table in their parents' room.

Zhou Zhiyuan practiced calligraphy for a while longer and gradually mastered the essence of that strength. All that remained was to achieve proficiency through practice.

He put down his fountain pen and carefully looked at a few lines of words on the newspaper, "My hair bristles in rage, leaning on the railing, the rain has just subsided..." He wrote this poem straight and upright, lacking that heroic spirit.

But he was quite satisfied. Being able to write straight and upright was already a step in the right direction. To achieve mastery, one needed perseverance.

He put away a few newspapers, got up, walked to the wall, and stretched lazily, trying to lift all the muscles in his body upwards for three minutes in one breath.

Then he completed five minutes of dragon twists in one breath, and walked out of the house feeling refreshed. He saw Xiaodang standing in front of his house, looking at him with a conflicted expression in her eyes.

She seemed to want to say something to him, but also had some concerns, feeling conflicted.

Seeing her like this, Zhou Zhiyuan smiled at her slightly and walked into the kitchen.

Xiaodang reminded him of his daughter in his dream, but reality was not the same, so there was no need to take the initiative to ask.

He was a person who clearly distinguished between priorities, and he was preparing to cook dinner and wait for his parents to return.

He took out firewood and coal from the separated storage room and put the firewood into the iron stove, using the paper he had written on to start the fire. After the firewood was burning, he added coal and placed the steamer on the iron stove.

He was cooking millet porridge in the steamer, and after it had cooked for a while, he would put on the steaming rack and steam corn cakes using the heat.

After solving the staple food problem, he came to the stove. His kitchen had a stove and an iron stove. The iron stove was used for cooking rice, and the stove was used for stir-frying dishes.

The leftover cured meat with celery from last night could be stir-fried separately, and the remaining half of the fish and tofu with cabbage needed to be reworked.

Turning his eyes, he saw a radish and two potatoes on the cutting board, and he had an idea. Fish-flavored radish strips and cabbage tofu with potatoes would definitely be good.

More than twenty years had passed, and they had finally eaten a meal cooked by their son. The joy was indescribable.

Lin Shurong decided to start dinner immediately, but a noisy shout came from outside, followed by the loud roar of the First Elder.

Lin Shurong sighed and said, "Let's put the food in two pots to keep warm separately. There will be a meeting soon."

She had experience. When fierce conflicts occurred between neighbors, the three Elders in the courtyard would jointly try the case and announce the results publicly.

This was the standard management model of community self-governance, where some conflicts between neighbors were first resolved internally.

According to the requirements of community self-governance, Zhou Zhiyuan, who had just returned home, also had to attend the courtyard meeting.

As soon as Lin Shurong finished speaking, the First Elder's voice came, "Everyone, don't eat dinner for now, come to the front yard for a meeting."

After the meeting notice was issued, Lin Shurong instructed Zhou Zining, "Go and help, and say that Zhiyuan is cooking and can't spare his hands."

Zhou Zining took a rag and walked out. The task of setting up the venue was the responsibility of the young men in the courtyard. A large tarpaulin covered a corner on the side of the outhouse, wrapping a wooden table, a few stools, and several long wooden benches.

Zhou Zining and a few young men set up the venue, arranging the tables and chairs and wiping off the dust.

When Zhou Zhiyuan followed Zhou Dehou and his wife to the front yard, the venue was already set up properly. Old Lady Long was sitting upright on the stool on the left side of the wooden table.

The First Elder's Wife was sitting on the long bench in the middle, with Jia Zhangshi and Qin Huairu sitting next to her.

The Second Elder's Wife was sitting on the wooden stool on the left, with Liu Guangtian and Liu Guangfu standing behind her.

The Third Elder's Wife was sitting on the right, with Wang Danniang and Wang Jianli sitting next to her, and Wang Daji, Wang Dali, and Yan Jiekong standing behind her.

Eleven-year-old Yan Jiedi and nine-year-old Yan Jiefang were standing next to the Third Elder's Wife. They had actually come too.

Zhou Dehou and his wife had seats and were sitting side by side on the long bench next to the First Elder's Wife.

Zhou Zhiyuan, who came out with his parents, glanced at the venue and knew that everyone's position was related to the courtyard they lived in.

Then he looked strangely at Yan Jiecheng and Yu Li. They were special and stood on the side of the Second Elder's Wife.

Seeing this scene, Zhou Zhiyuan thought of a possibility, "They are not on good terms with the Third Elder."

But this had nothing to do with him. He walked over and stood behind Zhou Dehou and his wife, standing side by side with Zhou Zining.

The two brothers standing together had a strong presence. Old Lady Long glanced over here and a smile appeared on her face.

The First Elder's Wife turned to look over, sincerely hoping that she also had two such sons.

The Second Elder's Wife and the Third Elder's Wife looked at the Zhou brothers, then looked at their own children, and their faces became a little gloomy.

Wang Danniang also looked at the Zhou brothers, then turned to look at her own two sons, and turned back with a calm face. She was quite satisfied with her two sons. Daji and Dali stood behind them like two door gods.

Yu Li also looked at the two brothers, then turned to look at Yan Jiecheng, and gently nudged him with her shoulder.

Yan Jiecheng glanced at Yu Li, followed her gaze to look at them, and saw the brothers standing as straight as pine trees. He quickly pulled out his hands from his sleeves and straightened his back, but after a while, he unconsciously put his hands back in his sleeves and hunched his shoulders again.

Seeing his appearance, Yu Li sighed softly. When they were in love, Yan Jiecheng didn't look like this. He was a handsome scholar with a smooth complexion, which made her female colleagues very envious.

Qin Huairu turned to look at Zhou Zining, but was discovered by Jia Zhangshi who gently nudged her, and she quickly turned back.

At this moment, a burst of footsteps came, and Shazhu, Xu Damao, and Lou Xiao'e walked out one after another, followed by the three Elders.

This case involved the He family and the Xu family. The subject matter of the case was a chicken. The defendant was Shazhu, and the plaintiffs were Xu Damao and Lou Xiao'e.

The defendant, Shazhu, sat on the left side of the wooden table, and the plaintiffs, Xu Damao and Lou Xiao'e, sat on the right side of the wooden table, facing each other. As the three Elders took their seats at the wooden table, the joint trial officially began.

This case was quite simple. Xu Damao and his wife lost a chicken. While searching, they smelled the aroma of chicken and walked into Shazhu's house, immediately identifying the thief.

But Shazhu refused to admit it and even wanted to punch and kick Xu Damao. Lou Xiao'e called the Second Elder to apprehend Shazhu on the spot.

The joint trial began, and the Second Elder, sitting on the left side of the wooden table, represented the plaintiff and stated the course of events, "Xu Damao's family had a chicken stolen. At this time, someone's stove was stewing a chicken. Maybe this is a coincidence, maybe it's not a coincidence."

"I analyzed it with the First Elder and the Third Elder and decided to convene a courtyard meeting. Now, please invite the First Elder, who has the most seniority in the courtyard, to preside over this meeting."

After the Second Elder finished his statement, the First Elder, sitting in the center of the wooden table, said in a stern voice, "Enough said, everyone knows. He Yuzhu, tell the truth, did you steal Xu Damao's chicken?"

Shazhu argued aggrievedly, "No, I'm not a thief, why would I steal a chicken?"

Xu Damao stood up and asked, "Then I ask you, where did your chicken come from? Where did it come from?"

"Bought it," Shazhu said confidently.

The Second Elder immediately asked, "Where did you buy it?"

"Bought it at the vegetable market."

As soon as Shazhu finished speaking, the Third Elder, sitting on the right side of the wooden table, raised his voice and asked, "Did you buy it from DD Vegetable Market or CY Vegetable Market?"

"Bought it at CY Vegetable Market."

Shazhu answered readily, but the Third Elder found a loophole and said smugly, "That's not right. From here to CY Vegetable Market, even if you take the bus, the round trip will take at least forty minutes, not counting the time to buy and slaughter the chicken. When did you get off work?"

The Third Elder was indeed a language teacher, and he found a loophole and stabbed it right in.