In the evening, the residents of the courtyard gradually returned, and the courtyard, which had been quiet all afternoon, became noisy.
Inside the house, listening to this atmosphere of daily life, Bu Ling felt a sense of satisfaction. How long had it been since she had heard such sounds?
"Knock-knock--"
“Buling girl, it’s me, Aunt Tian.”
Bu Ling jumped out of bed, walked to the door, unplugged the door, and opened it: "Aunt Tian."
Aunt Tian had just gotten off work: "Come on, girl, let me show you around."
"Auntie, wait for me a moment." Bu Ling went back into the house, grabbed a handbag, and slung it over her shoulder. "Auntie Tian, let's go."
Seeing her like this, Aunt Tian nodded in satisfaction, thinking to herself, "This girl is really quick-witted."
The first place they went to was the east wing where they bought the coal stove that day.
"The three rooms in the east wing are occupied by the family of the manager of our compound. His surname is Wu; he's the head chef at the machinery factory's canteen. You can just call his wife Aunt Wu."
Grandma Wu has a son and a daughter. Her son got married and had another son, making a total of six people in the family.
"Brother Wu, Sister Wu, this is the little girl who just moved into our courtyard. I brought her here to say hello," Aunt Tian said loudly.
Bu Ling obediently called out, "Uncle Wu, Aunt Wu," and then slipped six candies to her.
They both accepted it with smiles.
"Girl, if you need anything in the future, just come to me. If I'm not around, you can come to your Aunt Wu," Grandpa Wu said with a smile.
Bu Ling: "Thank you, Grandpa Wu and Grandma Wu."
After saying a few more words, Aunt Tian led Bu Ling towards the south room.
"There's one and a half rooms in the south wing. Our machinery factory's union officer lives there. His surname is Yu. You can call him Yu Da or Comrade. And his wife, you can call her Sister Mo," Aunt Tian said.
"Xiao Yu, Xiao Mo, are you there?"
"Aunt Tian, I'm here, what's up?" A slightly plump figure came out.
"Xiao Mo, this is the new girl who moved into our courtyard. I'll show her around and introduce her to everyone," Aunt Tian said, pointing to Bu Ling.
Bu Ling also stepped forward and said, "Sister Mo, my name is Bu Ling. Please have some candy." As she spoke, she stuffed six candies into her hand.
Sister Mo didn't hesitate and took the candy: "You're the little girl they've been talking about these past few days, huh? How come you're so thin?"
Bling: "Uh... it should be me."
"Okay, I'll accept your sugar. If you ever need anything, just come to me. I'll definitely help if I can," said Sister Mo readily.
Bling nodded
The next house is a three-room east wing.
A withered old man stood outside the east wing. Aunt Tian greeted him, "Brother Qian."
"Sister Tian, is this the new girl who moved into our courtyard?" He had just heard Aunt Tian's words.
"Yes, this girl just moved in today, her name is Buling," Aunt Tian said.
Then, he said to Buling, "This is a level five blacksmith from the machine factory. His surname is Qian, so you can just call him Uncle Qian."
Grandpa Qian has three sons, two daughters-in-law, four grandsons, and one granddaughter. It's a large family with eleven members in total.
Bu Ling took out six candies from his bag: "Uncle Qian, please have some candy."
Grandpa Qian didn't refuse; this was the usual practice in the courtyard: "Alright, alright, girl, Tian is a good person. You two should get along well. If you have any difficulties, tell me."
Bu Ling: "Thank you, Uncle Qian."
After exchanging a few more words, Aunt Tian led Bu Ling to the last house in the front yard, which was Aunt Tian's neighbor's house: "Brother Wang, Granny Lan, are you home?"
Granny Lan's family has two sons, both of whom are married. The elderly couple has two grandsons and one granddaughter, making a total of nine people living in a cramped two and a half rooms.
"Hey there, Sister Tian." A short, thin old man came out of the house with a smile.
"Brother Wang, this is Buling, the little girl who just moved into our courtyard. I'm showing her around," Aunt Tian said routinely.
Just as Bu Ling took out six candies to hand them over, Aunt Tian snatched them away, saying, "Brother Wang, have some candy!"
A hint of regret flashed in the old man's eyes, but he accepted it with a smile.
Aunt Tian watched him take the candy, said nothing, and turned to leave with Bu Ling.
Inside the house, Granny Lan watched the two figures disappear into the distance, her teeth clenched in hatred.
On the way to the backyard, Aunt Tian said earnestly, "Girl, be careful when dealing with that family in the future."
Buling: "I understand, Aunt Tian, I'll be careful." Based on Granny Lan's previous behavior, she would be careful.
Next was the backyard. Stepping into the backyard, Buling looked around and found that the layout was similar to the front yard, with three main rooms, one side room on each side, and three east wing rooms. However, the difference was that the backyard had two west wing rooms, one less than the front yard.
The two first went to the two west wing rooms.
Aunt Tian introduced her: "The person living in the west wing is the security captain of the machinery factory, surnamed Tie. He's a retired soldier. Don't let his fierce appearance fool you, he's a very kind person. You can just call him Uncle Tie."
Lao Tie's family consists of a couple and their 22-year-old unmarried son.
"Brother Tie, Sister Zhao, are you home?" Aunt Tian called out.
"Yes, Sister Tian, come in quickly!" A middle-aged woman, who looked to be in her forties, came out of the house in response.
"Sister Zhao, I won't go in. I'll show the new girl who moved into our courtyard around. Her name is Buling."
"Buling, quickly call her, this is Aunt Zhao," said Aunt Tian.
Buling: "Aunt Zhao, have some candy!"
Aunt Zhao took the candy, looked the little girl up and down. She had clear and honest eyes. "Girl, Sister Tian is a good person. If you have any questions, listen to her advice. You can't go wrong."
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