It was a rare good day, the wind stopped and the snow stopped, and the winter sun penetrated the layers of clouds and mist, bringing a touch of warmth. Ping'an couldn't stay any longer and followed his friends out.
Without the children's laughter and chatter, the yard suddenly felt much quieter. Zhang Guoqing, who was basking in the sun in the corner, watched Aunt Chen follow closely behind him. He stood up, watching his wife slouching in a chair beside him.
"Where are you going?"
"It's so boring. I'm going to clean up the west room."
"Do you want my help?"
Zhang Guoqing quickly stopped him: "Just stay here and relax. I'll just check on the kang, and Aunt Chen will tidy up the bedding later."
Zhou Jiao half-closed her eyes and waved.
There are three rooms in the west wing. Ping'an used one as a reading room, and Zhang Guoqing used another room to host friends and guests. The remaining room in the middle was filled with miscellaneous items.
Standing at the door and taking a look, Zhang Guoqing resolutely gave up. Last year, they hadn't even removed the kang, and he worried people would freeze to death in the middle of the night. If his two sisters-in-law caught a bad cold, he'd have to worry about infecting his wife and son.
Lifting the cotton curtains of the room on the left, I saw chess pieces and playing cards scattered everywhere, scattered by those idiot friends. This room had been frequented by people all year long.
Smelling cigarettes and alcohol, Zhang Guoqing lifted the curtain in disgust and opened the door and windows. No wonder Aunt Chen said this room needed a major renovation after the Lunar New Year.
The children's reading room is just across the room, how uncouth!
"Good brother, you are so thoughtful. Come quickly and give me a hand." Zhang Guoqing in the west wing couldn't close his mouth when he saw Yi Jiefang coming over.
Yi Jiefang wasn't buying it. He leaned against the doorway, his arms folded, his chin tilted towards the kang. "What are you doing?"
“Not enough room to sleep.”
Yi Jiefang was so frightened that his arms dropped down, and he pointed outside in disbelief: "Your family is so small and you can't even sleep? Are there any relatives coming over again?"
Zhang Guoqing rolled his eyes at him: "What? Any objections? My mother is here!"
Yi Jiefang quickly ran forward and said, "Why didn't you tell me earlier? They want to vacate the house. That's my dear aunt." As he spoke, he shook his head and said, "No, no! Uncle Zhou will definitely let aunt and uncle live in the main house."
"My mother brought my two sisters-in-law here. My mother slept with Ping An. It's not appropriate for my sister-in-law to sleep in the main room."
Yi Jiefang nodded in understanding.
"What's that look on your face? Help me pull it out."
Yi Jiefang reached out and straightened the kang mat. "Do you want me to ask my mother to find a way to move quickly? The Women's Federation has been taking advantage of us for so long, they should have moved out soon. With that courtyard house back, we won't have to squeeze into our house when someone from your hometown comes over. It's a good thing it's your own family, but if it was someone from the village, what would you do?"
"Is it necessary to just throw it into the guesthouse?"
"Is the yard really not in a hurry to get back?"
Zhang Guoqing shook his head. "It's useless to come. There are only a few people in the house. Who would go there? It's better if the Women's Federation occupies it. With your mother here, no one dares to mess around."
"Who said that? Last time, someone from their workplace said that the back entrance was empty and they wanted to use it as a dormitory. I heard that several couples got married last year and had no place to live."
Zhang Guoqing frowned: "Why haven't I heard you mention it before?"
"Are you worried? Who wants to bother you with these trivial matters during the New Year? My mom said that once we move to Xishan, their company will probably have to move too. You need to discuss this with my sister. It would be best if both of you have your household registration transferred there."
Zhang Guoqing nodded. The family had already discussed the issue of the courtyards. He didn't know what Old Man Hu had discussed with his father-in-law that night, but upon his return, he told him that the old man was trustworthy and that the alley courtyards could be transferred to Old Man Hu's name.
It seems that his father-in-law must have received the news in advance that the Women's Federation would move away, otherwise he would not have said that he would find time to move their household registration there.
"Also, if you move this place, where will you guys come over to get together in the future? I remember I still have some clothes here, and Dayong and the others have a few bottles of wine hidden in the house."
"Damn, you guys can do it!"
Yi Jiefang knocked around and looked around the house, and he actually had to find a few pairs of smelly cotton socks, two bottles of wine, and a bag of leftover snacks.
Zhang Guoqing was furious. It would be strange if Aunt Chen didn't fight them like crazy! No wonder she always said she couldn't clean it up properly.
Yi Jiefang spread his hands and said, "Looking for another place?"
What else could Zhang Guoqing do? His land had been taken over by those shameless guys, and he figured there might be some treasure hidden somewhere.
He stared at Yi Jiefang suspiciously, "You guys didn't hide those little pornographic books in there, did you? We'd be so embarrassed if Ping'an and the others found them!"
Yi Jiefang hesitated for a moment and shook his head: "Probably not. Apart from Dayong and Datou, no one else is so lustful, right?"
Zhang Guoqing had no confidence in these young men who always wanted to see the girls in the art troupe. He decided to wait until there was no one around and do a thorough search himself.
Besides, people's hearts are unpredictable. Apart from a few trustworthy buddies, many young people came in groups during the first month of the year. Who knows if they put anything they shouldn't have.
"Leave it there for now, and ask them to come over and help clean it up later. It's useless even if you clean it up now, as they've arranged to come celebrate later."
Zhang Guoqing immediately sat down on the kang when he heard this: "What are you celebrating this time? I remember you guys drank several times just to celebrate my wife's pregnancy."
No wonder he asked. Starting from the 28th day of the twelfth lunar month, they could find all sorts of excuses to celebrate, like Zhou Jiao was pregnant with their nephew, Zhang Guoqing was a father again, and Happy New Year.
Yi Jiefang laughed heartily: "This time it's a real celebration! Two of them have joined the army, shouldn't we celebrate for them? Don't worry, at most we'll have one more celebration after the New Year."
This is a lie to tell his family that their family is safe, but the children don’t believe it!
It's all because of these guys that the atmosphere is so bad that the babies in the reading room next door, whose hair hasn't even grown out yet, are also trying to learn how to celebrate.
If the upper beam is crooked, the lower beams will be crooked too!
In the evening, Zhang Guoqing handed in his homework in the study. After his father-in-law read it and asked some questions, he couldn't help but ask what they had talked about that day?
Zhou Xiaozheng glanced at him and said, "He used to be a field doctor in our army and has his credentials. This time, in order to make it easier for him to teach Jiaojiao, he plans to agree to reinstate his original position at the Military General Hospital. For someone like him, going back to jail is enough for us to trust him based on this alone."
"The old man is really trying hard!"
Zhou Xiaozheng shook his head. "For him, having a successor to carry on his legacy is incredibly important. Besides the initial favor, he was drawn to Jiaojiao's talent. He told me personally that he had originally given up on taking her in, but then, after more than a year of research, he concluded that Jiaojiao was well-suited to studying medicine."
"Dad, you wouldn't just happily agree without saying anything just because he praised you a few times, right?"
Zhou Xiaozheng snorted disapprovingly, unwilling to reply. This matter concerned his own daughter, and even if there was no benefit, he couldn't be careless, even if he boasted to the sky.
But he didn't want to waste time talking to this foolish boy. If Old Man Hu hadn't repeatedly suggested that he learn more medical skills to provide a safety net for his daughter, he wouldn't agree to the other party's request. No one knew what would happen in the future, but the integration of medicine and poison could always prevent people from doing bad things to him.
Zhang Guoqing smiled as he watched his father-in-law, who was bent over assigning homework. His personality was becoming more and more like his wife's!
"Dad, then I'll go over and handle the transfer in the next two days?"
Zhou Xiaozheng looked up and thought for a moment, then shook his head. "Let your great aunt handle it. It's easy for people to target you if you show up. Dad's going to the grassroots level in a couple of days, so just take care of the family."
"Outside?"
"Be prudent and protect yourself." Zhou Xiaozheng looked at him worriedly after saying this, "Don't be soft-hearted. If you have any problems, communicate with Jiaojiao more."
"Okay, Dad, be careful out there. If there's any sign of trouble, it doesn't matter where our family goes. I can earn ten work points even if I just farm."
Zhou Xiaozheng felt warm in his heart when he heard this and nodded with a smile.
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