As soon as I entered the backyard, I smelled the aroma of meat. Several children from the yard were squatting in the middle of the yard, staring at Xu Damao's house with their mouths watering.
It's not even out of the pot yet, but you can smell it all over the backyard. Once it's done, anyone with a keen nose will be able to smell it from the middle yard.
This is why Li Chu doesn't want to cook at home. He loves meat, but in this day and age, other families are struggling to get enough to eat, and you're eating meat every day at home? That's a sin. Anyone who dares to do that will be in for a lot of trouble.
Upon entering the house, Xu Damao was busy working by the stove.
When Xu Damao saw Li Chu come in alone, he asked, "Brother Chu, why are you alone? Where's Brother Jia?"
"He went to the alley entrance to buy soy sauce, he'll be back in a bit."
"Please sit down, Brother Chu. I'll be done in a minute. Why did you bring wine? I invited you all over for drinks, how could I not have prepared some?"
"It's not a very good wine. I don't usually drink at home, but I just happened to bring it over and we drank it together."
Li Chu sat down at the table and placed the wine on it.
Before long, Xu Damao brought over the dishes: a pot of braised rabbit with potatoes, a plate of stir-fried cabbage, a plate of peanuts, and a few steamed buns made from two kinds of flour.
Just then, Jia Dongxu walked in: "I've come at the perfect time." When Jia Dongxu saw the pot of meat, his eyes seemed to light up considerably.
His family's circumstances were also difficult. Although Jia Dongxu's salary was 28.5 yuan, his mother and wife were both registered as rural residents.
The two children's household registrations are also with his wife, Qin Huairu, in the countryside. They don't receive any grain rations, and the family of five lives on his meager 28.5 yuan. All things considered, his family doesn't even meet the poverty line.
Back then, families with an average monthly income of less than 5 yuan per person were considered impoverished.
His family is quite wealthy, but they don't have enough grain. They have money but no ration coupons to buy it. They can buy it at the pigeon market, but it's much more expensive than at the grain station.
Every month, our family is always struggling to make ends meet, and by the end of the month, we're running out of food.
Xu Damao invited him to sit down, and after bringing out all the dishes, he took three cups from the cabinet.
Li Chu opened the Fenjiu liquor he had brought, filled all the glasses, and said, "Thank you for your hospitality, Brother Da Mao. Come on, let's have a drink together."
The three of them raised their glasses, clinked them together, and downed them in one gulp. They put down their glasses, grabbed their chopsticks, and headed straight for the meat.
Rabbit meat is a bit dry, but at this time of year, any meat is good.
As the three ate, drank, and chatted, Xu Damao suddenly remembered something: "By the way, Brother Chu, what do you think about me decorating my house like yours? I'm a guy with a girlfriend now, and after we get married and have kids, this house will be a bit small."
"Well done, kid, you're really quick."
"Brother Chu, then introduce me to the person who cleaned your house later."
"No problem, come on, let's have a toast, congratulations on having a girlfriend." Li Chu said, raising his glass.
Setting down his cup, Jia Dongxu looked at Li Chu and said, "Xiao Chu, you're not young anymore, why aren't you looking for a partner?"
"That's right, Brother Chu, your conditions are much better than mine."
"What's the rush? You're all more anxious than me. It's not like I can't find someone else." Li Chu changed the subject, saying, "Da Mao, shouldn't you be getting a permanent position?"
"Yeah, I've already submitted the application for permanent employment. I should be officially employed next month, and then I'll be able to get a salary of 31.5 yuan." Xu Damao said smugly, "Hehe, that'll be higher than Sha Zhu's salary then."
Li Chu wanted to laugh when he heard what Xu Damao said. In fact, although Xu Damao was a bit cunning, he was also a very simple person. He just wanted to compete with He Yuzhu and be better than him.
Hearing this, Jia Dongxu said helplessly, "Why do you always compare yourself to him? You two have been fighting since you were little, haven't you had enough yet?"
Xu Damao gritted his teeth with hatred at the thought of He Yuzhu hitting him, and said resentfully, "I'm going to be better than him and let him show off in front of me again."
He laughed again after saying that: "This time, the two of us were introduced to each other one after the other. I already have a good idea of who he is, but he's become a laughing stock. Oh, just thinking about that makes me happy!" He then drank a glass of wine, his mouth wide with joy.
Jia Dongxu and Li Chu both laughed when they heard Xu Damao's words. It wasn't that they were laughing at He Yuzhu, but rather that what he had done this time was just too hilarious.
The three of them drank and chatted like this, and before they knew it, they had finished both bottles of wine. Xu Damao was so drunk that he was practically slurping under the table.
Li Chu and Jia Dongxu carried Xu Damao to the bed together, and without tidying him up, they left.
As soon as they stepped outside, Jia Dongxu asked, "Xiao Chu, do you have any leftover food?"
Li Chu knew immediately that Jia Dongxu wanted to borrow grain; it was almost the end of the month, and his family was probably running out of food. Li Chu thought for a moment and said, "I don't have much either. How could I possibly lend you 10 jin of cornmeal?"
"That's enough, that's enough. Payday is in a few days, just get through these next couple of days. Thank you so much, Xiao Chu."
"You're welcome, Brother Jia. We can always help out with these little difficulties that our neighbors face."
As they were talking, they arrived at the central courtyard. Jia Dongxu said as he walked towards his home, "Xiao Chu, you go back first. I'll go inside and get a flour sack."
Li Chu didn't wait for him and walked towards the front yard.
He had just gotten home and run a bath when he heard a woman's voice calling him from outside the door: "Is Dr. Li home?"
Li Chu went over and lifted the curtain, and saw Qin Huairu holding Xiao Dang in her arms: "Sister-in-law, why are you here? Where is Brother Jia?"
"How much do you guys drink? Your brother Jia will collapse when he gets home and won't be able to get up again, so I had to come over."
Li Chu chuckled and said, "Sister-in-law, give me the bag and I'll pack it for you. You come in first with the baby in your arms."
"It's okay, I'll wait outside. You go and put it on." There's only one man in Li Chu's family, so it wouldn't be appropriate for her to go in even with the child in her arms.
Seeing that she was embarrassed to come in, Li Chu didn't say much. He took the bag and went inside to fill it with cornmeal for her. There was cornmeal in the flour bin in the storeroom; he filled it with 10 jin (5 catties) and came out.
He handed it to Qin Huairu, saying, "Sister-in-law, is this easy for you to take? Or should I return it to you?"
Qin Huairu took the sack of flour and said, "It's alright, I can carry it." She looked down at Xiao Dang in her arms and said, "Xiao Dang, quickly thank your uncle."
"Thank you, Uncle."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com