Hearing He Daqing's words, Sha Zhu, who had been full of resentment, stopped being angry. Being a man himself, Sha Zhu understood his father somewhat. He himself had once been infatuated with a woman like Qin Huairu.
If I hadn't gotten married, who knows what I might have done. Since things have turned out this way, there's no way to blame my father.
"Dad, since you know everything yourself, I won't say anything more. Just be careful in everything you do. After all, you've been through this kind of thing before."
"If the other person is truly sincere about living with you, then live a good life with them. If it really doesn't work out, try to come back in two years."
Hearing his son's words, He Daqing's worried face finally relaxed. With Sha Zhu's words, He Daqing had no more worries.
Carrying his luggage, he left the courtyard with Ma Xiaorong. Since both of them were remarrying, they didn't hold a big banquet, but simply distributed some wedding candy to the surrounding neighbors.
Not only were wedding candies distributed to Ma Xiaorong's family, but some were also given out at the courtyard house. After distributing the wedding candies, He Daqing basically stopped appearing at the courtyard house and instead went to live with Ma Xiaorong in another nearby courtyard.
He Daqing's workplace wasn't far from the courtyard house, and Ma Xiaorong also lived near the hotel. Although He Daqing had left, he would always come back to see his grandson every few days.
The couple, Sha Zhu and his wife, had no objection to this, after all, He Daqing had left a full thousand yuan when he left. Even without leaving money, it was perfectly reasonable for the grandfather to want to see his grandchildren.
Even though Ma Xiaorong knew that He Daqing had given the money to her son, there was nothing she could do. In order to get He Daqing to help raise her child, Ma Xiaorong could only pretend that she knew nothing.
They were always extremely polite to Sha Zhu and his wife, and very warm towards Sha Zhu's child. Ma Xiaorong wasn't narrow-minded either. Sha Zhu was now at least a deputy director of the canteen, and his living conditions were so good. As long as he was mentally challenged, he couldn't possibly treat Sha Zhu's child badly.
Ma Xiaorong was still hoping that Sha Zhu would take care of her child in the future. At the very least, her child would be his nominal younger brother. He Daqing was getting old and would definitely not be able to protect her son in the future, but He Daqing's son could.
Especially since her family still needed He Daqing, Ma Xiaorong wouldn't do anything foolish. This kept the relationship between Ma Xiaorong and Sha Zhu quite good.
Ma Xiaorong and her child would occasionally have a meal in the courtyard house. The more she learned, the more Ma Xiaorong wanted to connect with the people in the courtyard house, because she also wanted to live a good life.
Unfortunately, Wei Hua didn't like Ma Xiaorong and the others, and it was already snowing, so it wasn't a good time to set up traps.
This gradually made life in the courtyard houses worse. Fortunately, most families still had some cured meat left, so although things weren't as good as before, they were still better than in other places.
With He Daqing and Ma Xiaorong getting married, the Lunar New Year was drawing ever closer. The colder the weather, the harder life became in the courtyard house.
When the outside is covered in ice and snow, not only is it impossible to go out hunting, but it's also impossible to go out to work, because the weather outside is simply unbearable.
Almost all outdoor activities have been suspended. Indoor work is also scarce. This is making life increasingly difficult for these beasts living in the courtyard houses.
Those with some savings are alright, but those without can only try to find other ways to make ends meet. With the Lunar New Year getting closer and closer, these beasts in the courtyard are coming up with all sorts of ingenious schemes.
Yan Bugui then took his three sons, dug several holes in the lake, and cast down a large net that he had prepared.
Although the net wasn't very long, it was still several tens of meters. One cast yielded Yan Bugui over ten kilograms of fish. Fortunately, the second cast didn't yield much.
Because the fish in the center of the lake had already been caught in their nets, even the most disturbed fish weren't so easy to catch. A few days later, they would have to find another place to fish, but there were only a few small lakes nearby.
Sneaking out to fish every day wasn't a long-term solution. If they did it too often, it would attract the attention of the neighborhood committee and other departments. After a few successful catches, the Yan family obediently stayed home for the winter.
The Yan family has its methods, and the Xu family has theirs. Although they had just left the movie theater, Xu Fugui was very familiar with it. Taking advantage of the weekend when everyone was off work, Xu Fugui took his wife to sell snacks near the movie theater.
They would hide pre-prepared snacks nearby and then sell them, in small packets, to couples watching movies.
Others might be reluctant to spend money, but the young people who come to see the movie are in love and their minds are easily swayed. They are absolutely willing to spend money to pursue their other half, even if the price is a bit high.
This brought a turning point to the Xu family's life, but Xu Fugui knew that this situation couldn't last. Taking advantage of the Lunar New Year holiday, Xu Fugui and his wife began frantically making money.
Because of her large pregnancy, Sun Jing couldn't offer much help. She could only manage logistics and take care of Xu Damao at home.
The Liu family's situation was not too bad. After all, Liu Haizhong and Gu Chunyan were both normal people. Even though Liu Haizhong's health was a bit poor, it was enough to support the family. However, they kept most of the money they earned for themselves, which made Liu's life not very good.
Time flew by and it was New Year's Eve. Early in the morning, heavy snow began to fall outside, preventing the people in the courtyard from going out.
Fortunately, no one needed to go out during the Lunar New Year, and everyone got busy as soon as they woke up in the morning. Every family needed to prepare the New Year's Eve dinner.
Even though life is tough, everyone is making preparations. The Liu family is probably the worst off this year; they only have some cornmeal and a bowl of pickled vegetables. At least other families would sit down together to eat, but Gu Chunyan cooked her meal, took her own portion, and sat down to the side.
The Yan family's situation was only slightly better than the Liu family's. It wasn't that the Yan family's New Year's Eve dinner was bad, but rather that the Yan family had better connections. This year's New Year's Eve dinner for the Yan family was actually quite good. Not only was there a fish head soup, but there were also several meat dishes, all made with fish.
Fish is also easier to store in winter; it can be marinated and dried, and stored for up to six months without any problem. The Yan family rarely prepared three dishes and a soup during the Lunar New Year.
The staple food was a bit lacking, but the side dishes were definitely substantial. However, the Yan family's situation was similar to the Liu family's; during the New Year, the four members of the Yan family, father and sons, didn't interact much. Everyone picked up their bowls and ate, then packed their own things and went back to their rooms to live their own lives.
The reason we ate New Year's Eve dinner together was mainly because we all caught the fish together. We also collaborated on weaving the fishing nets because we were bored at home since we couldn't go out to earn money.
The Xu family's situation wasn't particularly good either; this year was definitely the most difficult year in their history. They were eating cornmeal and pickled vegetables, and no one had a smile on their face. Everyone looked worried and gloomy.
Of all the families in the courtyard, only the He and Wei families fared slightly better, with little difference from previous years. The He family, however, had five more people this year for the Lunar New Year than usual. Since they didn't interact much normally, no conflicts arose during the holiday.
After finishing their New Year's Eve dinner, He Daqing and Ma Xiaorong left the courtyard house with their four children. After they left, Sha Zhu and Yu Li cleaned up the mess.
Only Wei Hua and Yang Tao remained the same as before. After enjoying a sumptuous New Year's Eve dinner, they played with the children on the bed.
Yu Li wasn't the only one pregnant; Yang Tao was also expecting her third child. Everyone sat on the bed, waiting for the New Year to arrive.
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