Last winter when it snowed, my little one was still in a state of eating and sleeping all day long, unaware of anything. We rarely took him outside when there was no sun.
This year was different. Early that morning, he was held in his grandfather's arms, watching the snowflakes falling from the sky, and kept exclaiming in amazement, finding it very rare.
Li Chu wanted to put him down so he could walk in the snow, but the little guy shrank back and refused to go down no matter what. After a while, seeing several dogs running around in the yard, he finally agreed to go down.
Standing in the swirling snow, he took a few shaky steps, laughing heartily as if encouraging himself, clapping his little hands incessantly. He would stop every few steps to look around, then take a few more, occasionally glancing up at the sky. His laughter filled the entire yard, with several dogs following closely behind, as if afraid their little master would fall.
When she looked up again, it seemed like snowflakes had gotten into her eyes. She raised her little hand to rub her eyes, but still felt uncomfortable, so she turned and walked towards Li Chu.
He rubbed his eyes as he walked, calling out "Grandpa" in a tearful voice.
Now that's settled, she refused to get down after being picked up, clinging tightly to Li Chu's neck with both hands, and nothing anyone could persuade her to do.
When his father came over, he turned to let him hold him again, but Wenxuan still wouldn't put down. When Wenxuan tried to put him down, he started crying with his mouth wide open.
After finishing breakfast, he cautiously walked around the yard again, but he never looked up at the sky again.
After playing in the yard for a while, Yueyue was worried that he would get cold, so she carried him back to the living room, took off her thick cotton-padded coat and trousers, and threw him onto the blanket so he could play there.
After taking off the heavy clothes, the child felt relaxed and sat there playing with building blocks. Every time he threw one, a dog would fetch it back, and he had a great time.
Today is Sunday, and normally we would go out shopping, but with two pregnant women at home and it being snowy, it's not convenient to go out. So the whole family simply stayed indoors watching videos, which was quite lively.
Li Chu had absolutely no interest in the films and television dramas from the 1970s and 80s, so he simply strolled out by himself.
The year has passed in the blink of an eye. The Spring Festival of 1987 was in January, which is only about a month away now.
There were many people coming and going in the alley, and quite a few people were taking advantage of their day off to pull a cart to buy some more coal for their families.
Many of the surrounding districts have gas pipelines now, and I wonder when they will be connected here. When that happens, we won't have to carry gas cylinders to the gas station ourselves anymore.
Thinking of this, he thought of the coal-fired boiler at home. When exactly was the burning of lump coal banned in Beijing? He kept pondering this as he walked.
There are advantages and disadvantages to living here. The disadvantage is that you won't be allowed to do anything in the future, such as keeping dogs or using stoves. The roads outside can also be blocked off at any time.
They don't even allow solar panels on the roof, oh, and air conditioning units too.
House repairs must be approved and can only be done according to the plan. If you think you can tear down the house and rebuild it, you're dreaming.
Even if the urban construction department approves your rebuilding, you must follow the blueprints they provide. The cost is beyond the reach of ordinary people. It is said that even the construction team is designated, and there are even rules about where to buy the roof tiles.
However, it's not surprising that this is the case. The ownership of the courtyard houses in this area is basically in the hands of the government, and the people living in them are just tenants.
So when housing prices in Beijing skyrocket in the future, those who continue to live in tenement courtyards will truly be left with nothing but tears.
They were the ones who most wanted to be relocated, but unfortunately, after this area was designated as a protected area, there was no way they could be relocated.
A large family, three or even four generations, lives in a room of just over ten square meters. When they tell others they live in the heart of the city, they say they live right under the emperor's nose, but their lives are miserable.
Some people started trying to add a second floor to their houses, but the space was as small as the upper berth of a hard sleeper on a train. But what could anyone do? Anyone with a bit of skill and who made money had already left this alley. Apart from those who lived in detached houses, the rest were the poorest people.
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The skyrocketing housing prices left them with ideas but no way to realize them.
Once you walk out of the alley and onto the main road, the busiest place is in front of the Beijing Hotel, followed by the department store.
There's never a shortage of currency brokers at the entrance of this hotel, and people loitering around, approaching any foreigner they see with a mysterious air, trying to sell their family heirlooms.
Even though they don't speak the same language, they were still able to negotiate the price. I don't know how they communicated.
Li Chu had seen it before. The foreigner spoke French, while the seller spoke with a strong Beijing accent. The two of them were chatting back and forth, leaving Li Chu dumbfounded. The strangest thing was that they actually made a deal in the end and were both very satisfied with their purchase.
Because he was listening from the side, it was obvious that the two people were not on the same wavelength, and he didn't know why they inexplicably reached an agreement during the transaction.
After the young man completed the transaction, he proudly waved the US dollars he had just received at him. Before leaving, he warned him that if he wanted to do business here, he had to go to the temple gate and pay the management fee first, or he would be in big trouble.
It seemed that Li Chu was mistaken for someone who also wanted to sell things here, which left him both amused and exasperated.
I stood at the intersection and looked around. Just as I was about to walk east, a person who was wrapped up tightly came over. I called out to him from a distance.
"Dr. Li, are you turning around?"
"Ah, I'm off work today, so I came out for a stroll. And you are?" Li Chu said, following his words, and then asked with a hint of doubt.
This person was wrapped up so tightly that only their eyes were visible, and they were wearing glasses. Judging from their voice, they were quite old, and I really couldn't recognize them.
"Hello Dr. Li, I used to work at the Jianguomen Post Office. You treated me when you were still working at Peking Union Medical College Hospital. My surname is Wang and my name is Wang Chong'an."
I don't really recognize the names of the patients I treated at Peking Union Medical College Hospital. So many years have passed, even if he has a good memory, he couldn't possibly remember them.
"Master Wang, is there something you need?"
Upon hearing Li Chu's question, the man hesitated for a moment before cautiously asking, "Dr. Li, I wonder if you have a hobby of collecting stamps? My family urgently needs money and I'd like to sell the stamp albums I've collected over the years."
? ? ?
This completely baffled Li Chu. What was going on? Why was he being stopped just to sell stamps?
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