Twenty minutes later, Liu Haizhong returned to the backyard, looking dejected.
The main reason was that the crowd in the courtyard was too enthusiastic and blocked the way.
Of course, if this enthusiasm were directed at oneself, that would be a different story, but all these people were praising Yi Zhonghai.
Bah! What virtue or ability does a person of such depraved character possess? Does he think I, his second uncle, have no dignity at all?
Back home, Liu Haizhong grew angrier and angrier, just as his second aunt brought in dinner.
He looked and exclaimed, "Hey! Where are my favorite fried eggs? Perfect, I can use this as an excuse to make a fuss."
"Honey, why aren't there any fried eggs? Is it because I didn't pass the Level 8 vocational exam?"
When Auntie Er saw Liu Haizhong's expression, she knew he was in a bad mood and quickly offered an explanation.
"Honey, don't misunderstand. I don't know what's going on lately, but those country folks who usually help me with the eggs haven't come. I can't do anything about it!"
Hearing this explanation, Liu Haizhong couldn't really lash out. After all, supplies were scarce, so who could he blame?
So the family started eating, but the atmosphere in the house was a bit oppressive.
In particular, the brothers Liu Guangtian and Liu Guangfu dared not make a sound even while drinking porridge, for fear that their father would use it as an excuse to make trouble.
Meanwhile, Liu Haili, who was munching on a cornbread bun, found it tasteless and paid no attention to any of this, because he was lost in thought.
But no matter how much he thought about it, he couldn't figure it out. Finally, he put down the cornbread and looked at his wife who was eating.
"Honey, what do you think Yi Zhonghai really means? He passed the Level 8 worker exam, so why is he inviting me to dinner?"
"This...this..." Aunt Er stammered, finally coming up with a lame excuse, "Do you think it's because you're the old man in charge of the courtyard, and he wants to curry favor with you?"
Liu Haizhong was clearly not satisfied with this answer.
If Yi Zhonghai wanted to curry favor with the person in charge, he should curry favor with Lin Wencui, who was the top person in charge appointed by the street office.
At this moment, the strategist Guangfu, who was sitting next to him, had a chance to use his skills, so he quickly offered his advice.
"Dad, that's easy, he must need your help with something!"
These words were like a wake-up call. Liu Haizhong slapped the table excitedly, "Yes, yes! That must be it."
The sudden action terrified the two brothers, who reacted quickly, standing up and trying to run away, not even caring that the stool they were sitting on had fallen to the ground.
"Sit still, what kind of behavior is this?" Auntie Er scolded, then looked at Liu Haizhong and asked.
"Honey, what should we do if Yi Zhonghai really needs your help?"
"Hmph! So what? Now you're thinking of me, your second uncle? I still remember the time he helped that old deaf man extort money from me!"
Feeling that he had guessed the truth, Liu Haizhong's mood improved again, and he grabbed the cornbread and started eating it again.
And you know what? When this person is in a good mood, everything tastes delicious. Liu Haizhong even managed to make a steamed bun look like a fried egg.
Once the alarm was lifted, the two sons finally picked up their stools and sat down to eat.
At this moment, in the Yi family compound of the Intermediate People's Court, Mr. and Mrs. Yi Zhonghai were also discussing matters.
"Xiulian, buy more groceries tomorrow. Some of my coworkers are coming over tonight to celebrate. I'm planning to invite Lao Liu and Lao Yan from the compound too, so we can all have some fun."
“Zhonghai, my colleagues are here to celebrate, which is a good thing, but my family doesn’t have many meat coupons left. You know, ever since we started taking care of the old lady again, we haven’t had any left over,” Aunt Yi said with some difficulty.
"Hehe!" Yi Zhonghai said with a smile, "That's simple, look what this is."
After speaking, Yi Zhonghai took out a few tickets from his bag and handed them to Aunt Yi.
When Aunt Yi took the tickets, she found that besides two grain tickets, there were also two meat tickets.
"Zhonghai, what is this ticket for...?" Aunt Yi asked in confusion.
"Don't worry, I passed the Level 8 worker exam today! These are all rewards from the factory."
"Really?" Aunt Yi asked excitedly.
Yi Zhonghai nodded, then said smugly.
"Not only that, the factory also rewarded me with an apprenticeship."
"What?" Aunt Yi's eyes widened. "You mean the factory also gave us a job as a bonus?"
"It's absolutely true, Xiulian. What do you suggest we do with this spot?"
"Of course we'll keep them. When our Xiaofang and Xiaobao grow up, and you retire, we'll have two spots, one for each of them." Aunt Yi looked at her two children, filled with happiness.
"Sigh!" Yi Zhonghai sighed. "What a pity! We can't keep them at all, because the job openings have a three-month time limit. You have to get the certificate and start working within that time, or it will expire."
Upon hearing Yi Zhonghai's words, Aunt Yi was stunned. "There are such regulations? What should we do?"
"Don't worry, a living person can't die from holding their pee. At worst, we can just sell it! I'll handle this," Yi Zhonghai said confidently.
The job openings are so sought after that as soon as he lets out a little word, believe it or not, people will rush to buy them without him even leaving the house.
Meanwhile, the Yan family in the front yard were also having dinner.
Yan Bugui was in a good mood tonight and was currently at the dinner table, bragging to his family.
"You know what? I found a great spot today. I picked up a lot of iron slag from the waste dumped at their factory. Guess how much I sold it for?"
Upon hearing Yan Bugui's words, the family members instantly perked up.
“Dad, I guess there’s one piece.” The youngest, Yan Jiedi, was the first to answer.
"Fine, then! What do you know? If you want to get rich by collecting scraps, then I'd have to carry big bags. I bet I'd only get 50 cents at most," Yan Jiecheng said defiantly.
“I guess 6 mao,” the second brother, Yan Jiefang, continued.
Seeing that everyone was guessing, the third brother, Yan Jiekuang, also said, "I'll add 1 mao, I guess 7 mao."
Seeing everyone actively participating, Yan Bugui then looked at his daughter-in-law, Zhou Tiemei.
Seeing that everyone was so happy, Zhou Tiemei couldn't spoil the fun, so she joined in as well.
"Judging from the tone of my dad's voice, he must have made a lot of money. I'd guess 1.5 yuan."
"Look!" Yan Bugui said with an air of smugness, "This is the difference. To tell you the truth, I made 1.69 yuan today. You didn't expect that, did you? Even if I don't become a teacher, I can still make something of myself."
Aunt Yan smiled and nodded, indicating that Yan Bugui was right.
"Dad, you're not lying to us, are you? If it's really this profitable, I won't be carrying bags tomorrow; I'll just follow you around." Yan Jiecheng said with a fawning expression.
“No, no, this is just a small steel mill. I don’t know how long it’s been accumulating these surpluses. I’ve already collected them all today. Even if there are more tomorrow, there won’t be many.” Yan Bugui shook his head, denying his son’s words.
"Go away, what a disappointment. I thought you were so capable, Dad." Yan Jiecheng, seeing that he hadn't gained any advantage, started to ridicule again.
"Hmph!" Yan Bugui said with a look of disdain. "You look down on your father, don't you? Let me tell you something else. Yi Zhonghai passed the Level 8 worker exam today and is treating everyone to dinner tomorrow night. I have also been invited by him."
After hearing Yan Bugui's words, Yan Jiecheng was speechless.
He couldn't understand why.
His father is no longer a teacher or a powerful figure; apart from being cunning, he is utterly useless.
For someone like that, it was a real waste for Yi Zhonghai to invite him to dinner.
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