Siheyuan: Struggle Begins in the 1950s

When Wang Jianjun rushed to the next supply and marketing cooperative, the door was already closed.

In desperation, Wang Jianjun could only give priority to his stomach problem.

In order to save time, he didn't eat anything the whole day except for four steamed buns he bought at the train station to fill his stomach when he got off the train.

After wandering around a few streets, I finally found a small braised pork shop that was still open.

In 57, the public-private partnership reform had been in place for more than a year, and all capital enterprises were now public.

After the renovation, the government will assign a public manager to be responsible for the operation.

The entire transformation process is certainly not smooth sailing, but overall the benefits outweigh the disadvantages.

Wang Jianjun learned about this history from a TV series in his previous life called "The Old Woman of Zhengyang Gate".

The smell of the braised pork in the shop can already be smelled before entering the store.

There are seven or eight square tables in the store, each of which can seat four people, and almost every table is full.

Wang Jianjun looked around the store and found it was fairly clean.

The person sitting at the counter looking at the account book should be the public manager.

After all, he was the only one in the store who looked down on others.

This is the normal attitude of the public manager.

I went into the store and ordered two servings of braised pork, one to eat now and the other to take home for a midnight snack.

Considering his appetite, he ordered a few more servings of steamed buns and asked the boss to add more garlic and coriander.

There is no need to wait for stewing, all the ingredients are stewed in the pot for several hours.

After the customers place their orders, the chef takes out the braised offal and roasted meat from the pot, chops them up, adds a spoonful of braising liquid and sprinkles with garlic and coriander.

After putting a portion of braised pork into the lunch box he had just bought, Wang Jianjun took another bowl and found a table with few people to sit down.

Pretend to take out a bottle of ice-cold Arctic Ocean soda from your backpack.

This posture made the people around stare in amazement.

It's already very hot in the city in May. Without air conditioning, we can only fan ourselves.

Most of the people who came to eat were sweating profusely due to the heat.

Everyone swallowed subconsciously when they saw Wang Jianjun take out the iced Arctic Ocean soda.

Everyone has the same thought in their mind: what a fucking way to enjoy life.

Wang Jianjun didn't care what people around him thought and opened the soda bottle with chopsticks.

There was a "puff" sound, which is the unique sound of opening a glass bottle of soda.

He just tilted his head back and drank one third of it in one breath.

This is a bad habit he developed in his previous life.

Although it’s not healthy, it’s really refreshing.

Drinking the iced soda can immediately take away the heat accumulated throughout the day.

With the iced drink as a starter, Wang Jianjun's appetite instantly whetted as he picked up the chopsticks to try the braised pork dish.

Drink soup first when eating.

Tried the stewed soup from this restaurant.

The taste is mellow but a little salty.

Northern food is generally saltier for him since he came from the south in his previous life, but it does taste delicious.

Most stews use offal, which has a strong fishy smell, so soybean paste and various spices are added to the stew.

After several hours of cooking, there is almost no fishy smell, only the mellow aroma of meat.

Among them, fire-baked bread and fried tofu are the most popular.

The tofu becomes crispy after being fried, and can absorb more soup when braising, and its taste and texture are amazing.

The fire-baked bread is made of unleavened dough. After being cooked until it is well-seasoned, its hard and chewy texture changes to become translucent and non-sticky.

Although both are vegetarian, their texture and taste are no worse than meat.

The only flaw was the lack of the pork belly.

That is the essence of a bowl of stewed pork.

When Wang Jianjun asked about it, the master who cut the mound apologized to him embarrassedly.

These days, ordinary people only have a few taels of meat coupons per month, and their restaurants are also short of meat.

All these waste materials were obtained by the boss through his connections.

Although it was a bit of a pity that I couldn't eat the big meat, fortunately the fish caught in the water can still be considered meat.

This meal was the best meal Wang Jianjun had had since he traveled through time.

One serving of braised pork only makes me three-quarters full.

I wanted to have another bowl of braised pork, but thinking of the limited meat coupons I had saved, I had to hold back.

After drinking the remaining one third of the soda in the bottle in one gulp, Wang Jianjun felt that he had never felt so satisfied.

Ignoring the resentful looks of the surrounding customers, he simply took the glass bottle and left the restaurant.

Glass bottles can be taken to the supply and marketing cooperative to exchange for money.

A bottle of Arctic Ocean soda costs 1.5 cents, and the bottle is worth three cents.

After dinner, Wang Jianjun took a leisurely walk back to the courtyard to help digest the food.

A rough estimate shows that the current time is around eight o'clock.

I must get a watch when I get the chance in the future. It’s inconvenient to tell time without a watch.

Another problem is transportation.

In my previous life, I had to ride an electric scooter to travel a distance of several dozen meters.

Even bicycles have become a luxury now.

It’s not that I can’t afford it, but that I don’t have a ticket.

Oh, take your time.

There will be large pieces of meat, and there will be bicycles as well.

While Wang Jianjun was eating, the Jia family on the other side.

At this moment, Jia Dongxu and Yi Zhonghai were sitting at the dining table with worried looks on their faces.

Qin Huairu sat by the bed holding Banggeng and wiping away tears from time to time.

As for Jia Zhang, after coming back and eating, she lay on the bed and pretended to be dead.

Finally, Jia Dongxu couldn't hold it in any longer and slammed the table, stood up and angrily said to Yi Zhonghai:

"Master! Do we really have to pay compensation to that guy Wang Jianjun? I really can't accept this!"

Yi Zhonghai did not respond, he took the enamel cup on the table, took a sip of Gao Sui and said slowly:

"What else? You just saw that Wang Jianjun has become a different person after he came back from the army. He is completely unresponsive. If you don't give him the money tonight, he will go to the police station and the factory tomorrow. What will happen to your job?"

Jia Dongxu naturally knew this was the truth, but he couldn't accept it.

250 yuan is not a small amount of money, almost equivalent to one year's salary, so he was naturally reluctant to part with it.

Jia Dongxu couldn't think of any solution and could only sit back in his seat angrily.

Seeing Jia Dongxu like this, Yi Zhonghai spoke slowly:

"Dongxu, what we need to do now is to pay back the money first. If this matter is not resolved, it will always be a handle in the future.

Don't worry, Wang Jianjun will also live in the yard in the future. After all, I am the manager of the yard, and I will have plenty of ways to control him in the future.

Listen to the master's advice, it is never too late for a gentleman to take revenge. "

After hearing what Yi Zhonghai said, Jia Dongxu felt better, and then he said a little embarrassedly:

"Um...Master, Wang Jianjun asked us to send the money over tonight, but...but I don't have enough money."

Upon hearing this, Yi Zhonghai couldn't sit still anymore. He looked at Jia Dongxu in surprise and asked:

"Dongxu, you've been taking over your father's job for quite a few years, right? And weren't you promoted to a second-level worker the year before last, with a monthly salary of 38 yuan? You must have saved some money over the years, right?"

Jia Dongxu scratched his head awkwardly and subconsciously looked in the direction of his mother.

Jia Dongxu's salary is indeed considered high in the hospital. For example, Sha Zhu often brags to others about his monthly salary of 37 yuan.

But in real comparison, Jia Dongxu is the one with the highest salary among his peers in the hospital.

For example, Liu Guangqi from the second uncle's family is now an apprentice in the factory.

And Yan Jiecheng from the third uncle's family doesn't even have a formal job. He usually just does odd jobs outside to earn some pocket money.

Unfortunately, no matter how high the salary is, it can’t keep up with the lazy and gluttonous Jia Zhang.

A large part of Jia Dongxu's salary went into Jia Zhang's pocket.

As for taking money out of Jia Zhang's pocket, there's no need to even think about it.

Yi Zhonghai roughly guessed what was going on, sighed helplessly and asked:

"Dongxu, how much money do you have on you now? If it's not enough, Master will lend you some first."

Jia Dongxu said somewhat embarrassedly:

"Master, I only have one hundred dollars..."

Hearing this, Yi Zhonghai's hand holding the enamel cup couldn't help but tremble.

"Dongxu, I have fifty dollars in cash on me, so I'll lend it to you first. You can ask your mother to collect the rest."

When she heard that she had to pay, Jia Zhang, who was pretending to be dead, immediately jumped up and yelled:

"You are such a jerk, Yi Zhonghai! You actually let my son get his hands on my retirement money. You have to pay for it. I don't have any money anyway!"

Yi Zhonghai was so angry at what Jia Zhang said.

He stared at Jia Zhang and said:

"Mrs. Jia, Dongxu is your son. Can you bear to let Dongxu be punished by the factory and lose his job?"

Jia Dongxu on the side also said anxiously: "Yes, Mom, it's already this time and you are still holding on to the money. If I lose my job, who will support you in your old age?"

After hearing what her eldest son said, Jia Zhang also hesitated.

She was counting on Jia Dongxu to become a leader in the factory in the future. If he lost his job, then all hope would be lost.

But when she thought about paying a hundred dollars, she was unwilling to do it.

Then he turned his head away from Jia Dongxu's pleading expression and said:

"Your father gave his life to buy my coffin. I…I kept it for Banggeng to marry. I won't give it to you anyway. Your master earns so much money every month, so what's wrong with him lending you more money?"

Upon hearing this, Yi Zhonghai also became anxious. He has always been a man who only cares about his heart and not money when raising elderly people. If he was not afraid that Jia Dongxu would become alienated from him, he would not even be willing to pay you the fifty yuan.

Moreover, this matter was caused by Jia Zhang's own greed for Wang Jianjun's house. Why should Yi Zhonghai pay for it?

But for the sake of face, Yi Zhonghai still patiently explained:

"Sister Jia, Guilan usually deposits my salary in the bank for me, and I don't have that much money on hand right now. Wang Jianjun wants us to give him the money tonight. If we wait until tomorrow, he will report it to the police, and it will be too late for you to give him more money!"

Jia Zhang's face fell after hearing this, but at this critical moment she really came up with a bad idea.

"Then...how about I lend you the money, and you lend the money to Dongxu. Then you ask Guilan to go to the bank tomorrow to withdraw the money and return it to me."

Yi Zhonghai was numb.

Jia Dongxu was also numb.

Qin Huairu, who was sitting on the bed holding the stick, was dumbfounded.

What kind of shameless person is this, to say such a thing.

For a moment, the atmosphere in the room fell into an eerie silence.

Yi Zhonghai was stunned for a few seconds before looking at Jia Zhang.

Jia Zhang looked as if it was a matter of course and even a little proud.

Finally, Yi Zhonghai sighed and said:

"Dongxu, this is all I can do. When you have enough money, come to my house to find me. I'm going back first."

After saying that, he ignored Jia Zhangshi, and didn't even look at Jia Dongxu, and just got up and walked out.

Jia Dongxu panicked, but he didn't have the face to chase his master at this moment.

He really didn't expect that his mother could say such shameless words.

A young man in his twenties is at the age when he needs to save face.

Jia Zhang was rubbing his face hard on the ground.

Not long after Yi Zhonghai left the house, the Jia family erupted with heart-wrenching cries and curses from Jia Zhang.

The whole process lasted for more than ten minutes, and the insults could be summarized into three parts.

One is that Jia Zhang misses her deceased husband.

Second, it condemned the widow Jia Dongxu's unfilial behavior.

The third is the grief over losing a large sum of pension money.