Siheyuan: Walking the Path of Qin Huairu

He took out a gold bar and put it in his pocket. I heard that the brother across the sea had a hard life. Since they have recognized each other, he is the elder brother after all. He treats Zhuzi and his sister well, so he should give him a gift. (Brothers across the sea are half brothers.)

He opened the last box, which contained some women's jewelry. He picked out a white jade necklace and planned to give it to Shopkeeper Xu. Knowing how to repay kindness is a traditional virtue of the Chinese people.

In the tavern, Cai Quanwu was moving wine jars when the door curtain was lifted and a man came in. Upon closer inspection, he looked very similar to himself, like twins. It was confirmed, this must be his half-brother.

He put down the wine jar and went to meet him. The man was He Daqing. Needless to say, these two people have quite a few personalities. When the brothers met, they didn't cry or hold hands. Maybe because they were not born of the same mother, they didn't have a deep relationship.

Both of them were quite calm. Cai Quanwu poured two liang of wine for He Daqing, and brought a plate of fried peanuts and a plate of small belly. The two of them drank and chatted about their experiences.

Xu Huizhen came over from the backyard and saw this scene. What else did she not understand? She brought another plate of garlic sausage over. "You are He Yuzhu's father, right? If you two stand together, no one would believe you are not brothers." Cai Quanwu hurriedly introduced the two people.

He Daqing stood up, looked at Xu Huizhen, who had bright white teeth, and said, "I didn't expect Shopkeeper Xu to be so young and beautiful. I really appreciate Shopkeeper Xu's advice."

Xu Huizhen waved her hand and said, "When you give someone a rose, the fragrance lingers on your hand. It's just a small favor."

He Daqing: "I wonder who told you this?" Could Xu Hui really say that I was a ghost from the future? Could she say that she knew the plot? The answer was no. So she said perfunctorily: "I really can't tell you this. I promised to keep it a secret."

He Daqing nodded and continued, "I came here today to invite you to my house for dinner tonight. First, to express my gratitude, and second, to let you taste my cooking skills. I'm just a cook, and this is the only skill I can show off."

At this point, he was worried that it would be inappropriate for Xu Huizhen, a young woman, to be mixed with men, so he added, "There are also Zhuzi's master and his wife."

Xu Huizhen was also a greedy person in her previous life. Knowing that He Daqing's cooking skills were extraordinary, she readily agreed: "Then I'm in for a treat. Please wait a moment, I happen to have some ingredients here, so you don't have to run around and may not be able to buy them." After saying that, she turned around and went back to the backyard, and in a short while she brought out a basket of ingredients.

If you ask why Xu Huizhen was so eager to send the ingredients, she was naturally optimistic about the cooking skills of the father and son. If they had a good relationship, she might add a new menu to the tavern in the future. Besides, more friends mean more opportunities. It's also good to expand your network.

He Daqing looked at the ingredients in the basket. There was a piece of pork belly with fat and lean meat, about 3 pounds. Spanish mackerel, razorfish, large yellow croaker, and large prawns. The most rare were the vegetables, green cucumbers, eggplants, and tomatoes.

"These things are so rare, you know I really can't buy them." He Daqing said, and hurriedly took money out of his pocket. He already owed someone a favor, so how could he just take it for free?

Seeing this, Xu Huizhen declined and said, "Master He, if you give me money, I won't sell it to you. Cai Quanwu has helped me a lot during this period. Since you two are brothers, I don't treat you as an outsider. These ingredients are my gifts to congratulate you two brothers on recognizing each other! Besides, I have to go to dinner tonight."

He Daqing took the money back and took out a white jade necklace from his inner pocket. He said, "Since Manager Xu said so, I won't give you the money. But you have to keep this necklace."

Then he thrust the necklace at Xu Huizhen. Xu Huizhen quickly waved her hand and said, "I can't accept this. It's too expensive."

He Daqing: "I am a man, and I have no intention of taking it back. If you don't take it back, you are looking down on me, He Daqing."

Cai Quanwu also said, "Manager Xu, please accept it."

Xu Huizhen had no choice but to take the necklace and took a closer look. The white beads were crystal clear and should be made of Hetian jade. It might not be worth much now, but it would be very valuable in the future.

Xu Huizhen said: "Then I will accept it, thank you."

He Daqing took out another gold bar, handed it to Cai Quanwu and said, "I have to go back to Baoding in a few days. Zhuzi and Yushui are still young, and those shameless old men in the yard always want to take advantage of them. Please take care of them in the future. Take this gold bar, and find a suitable wife for yourself. Since you call me brother, this is my little token of my appreciation."

Cai Quanwu said, "I have money. I have been well fed over the years, my family is not hungry, and I have saved some money."

He Daqing left no room for doubt: "Just take it if I tell you to. If you don't, you don't consider me your brother." Cai Quanwu and Xu Huizhen looked at each other, not knowing what to do. The gift was a bit heavy.

He Daqing stuffed the gold bar into Cai Quanwu's pocket without saying anything. After sitting for a while, he said he had something else to do and left.

Cai Quanwu sent him to the door, and when he came back, he said to Xu Huizhen: "My brother is quite clear-headed, not as out of tune as Zhuzi said."

Xu Huizhen said thoughtfully, "Well, it's not as unreliable as others say. Every family has its own problems. Maybe he has his own difficulties."

He Daqing went to see his former senior brother again and bought some unusual ingredients. After lunch, he made soup at home, stewing and boiling. The fragrance filled the courtyard.

Yi Zhonghai didn't go to work today. He was beaten into a pig's head by He Daqing. In the past, he was a respected uncle in the courtyard, and a respected sixth-level fitter in the steel mill. He couldn't go out with this face, because Yi Zhonghai cared about his reputation the most.

At this moment, lying on the bed, smelling the fragrance outside, he first regretted his greed. In fact, he didn't want to swallow the money at first, after all, it was the life-saving money for the two children. He just wanted to control them, and then show kindness to the two siblings, wanting He Yuzhu to be grateful to him, and then he would guide Zhuzi to obey his uncle.

Later, as he accumulated more and more money, he became greedy, and He Daqing never came back, so he thought he had a perfect plan and took the money for himself.

He also hated He Daqing, who was ruthless. He lost money, got beaten, and lost his prestige. Although this matter was not made public, there were many shrewd people in the hospital, and they could guess it almost right.

He Yuzhu came back at around 4pm. He Daqing asked him to cook, and he gave some instructions. He wanted to pass his cooking skills to his son, and then pass them down from generation to generation.

In the evening, He Yuzhu's Sichuan cuisine chef Wu Hai arrived early with his wife. In recent years, under the instigation of Yi Zhonghai, He Yuzhu has not had much contact with his master, but once a teacher, always a father, the friendship between master and apprentice still exists. The relationship between master and apprentice in this era is very particular. If you dare to forget your teacher's kindness, the spit of people in the industry can drown you.

Xu Huizhen rode on Cai Quanwu's tricycle and came to the legendary Nanluoguxiang.