Men and women eating in the courtyard

"I know, I know what he wants to do."

Yang Fengshan suddenly turned his head and looked at Xu Sinian, who was frowning and thinking, "But the current conditions don't allow it. He is too young and too anxious."

"But……!"

Xu Sinian looked at the factory director and said, "The news coming out from above these days..."

"The lips are dead and the teeth are cold, but the superiority and inferiority are in the heart"

Yang Fengshan's expression has the calmness and perseverance of a superior, but also determination and persistence.

"This God is the people's God after all. This steel rolling mill is the steel rolling mill for all workers after all."

Xu Sinian stood there for a long time, looking at the back of the factory director Gu Han, and silently turned around and walked out of the factory director's office.

This is not a conflict between the factory director and the deputy director, nor is it a conflict between one person and another person. It is a contradiction where everyone has followed the trend of the times and reached a fork in the road and faced the contradiction of having to make a choice.

As the office director, Xu Sinian has never shown favoritism to anyone, nor has he violated ethics or work discipline, nor has he ever expressed his personal will for justice.

His job is to connect the past and the next, and he pays attention to seeking truth from facts and being clear about what is heard. If he is biased and makes trouble, then he will not last long in this position.

But in today's matter, Xu Sinian felt a little guilty. It was not that he was unwilling to say that the testimonies were just scraps of paper with ghost drawings, but that even if he said it, things would still proceed according to the established track.

Is it what Li Xuewu has in his hands that the factory director is afraid of and cares about?

Of course not, it’s just a few drivers. Even if some people are involved, so what?

Li Xuewu was not determined to defeat the enemy, and Li Huaide was not determined either.

No one wants the ship of the steel rolling mill to sink, but everyone wants to steer the ship.

Conflicts and compromises are intertwined, and we are all working together to keep the ship sailing, but in different directions.

Xu Sinian walked to the door of his office, hesitated for a moment, then raised his feet to go downstairs, but habitually glanced out of the corridor window.

The window outside the window is in the direction of the security building, and a jeep has just started driving towards the gate of the security building.

Xu Sinian stopped and looked at the leaving jeep with a frown, wondering what kind of move Li Xuewu was playing.

——

"Will!"

"Don't move! Don't play tricks!"

"Hey! Aren't you very smart~ Aren't you very good~ Let's go~"

Huang Qian held a few chess pieces in his hand, shook his shoulders triumphantly, and kept talking as if he had turned on the engine.

Li Xuewu, who was sitting opposite him, frowned and looked at the chessboard in front of him, thinking about his next move.

"You should go~"

"Are you talking about chess or fortune telling~"

"Are you still leaving? It's time for dinner~"

…

General Li Xuewu knocked the chess piece in his hand on the table and said, "Your mouth is worse than that of the second widow in our front yard, but you will be caught!"

"Hey~ I'm willing to admit defeat!"

Huang Qian stretched out his hand and took away the lighter that Li Xuewu put on the table. His eyes were squinting with laughter, and he looked so proud that he thought he had made a bet.

"Haha~ I've been in love with you for a long time!"

Li Xuewu also chuckled when he saw his proud look, picked up the tea on the table and took a sip.

"Hey~don't worry about it~"

Huang Qian smiled and put the lighter into his pocket, and then said with a smile: "Lighters are secondary, winning against you is the most important."

Then he waved his hands in a serious manner, took out the cigarette case and lighter from his pocket, held a cigarette in his mouth, and then flicked the lighter to light the cigarette in his mouth.

"Huh~ha!"

Huang Qian was just angry with Li Xuewu. He smoked like a wealthy landlord and squinted one eye.

Li Xuewu smiled nonchalantly, it was just a lighter, which he got from Li Huaide.

"Yeah~! I don't have any lighters anymore. It seems I really have to quit smoking in the future."

"Yo! Are you serious?"

Huang Qianze asked with a smile: "Don't you just quit today? Can you get a lighter tomorrow and pick it up again?"

"I really want to quit, smoking hurts my lungs."

Li Xuewu smiled and sat back on the sofa, stretched his waist, and explained: "Gu Ning doesn't like the smell of cigarettes either, and I don't have any craving for cigarettes myself."

"Fuck! I don't believe it!"

Huang Gan looked at Li Xuewu with a wary expression and said, "Aren't you pretending to be pitiful with me and want to take the lighter back?"

"Haha~ Whatever you want"

Li Xuewu chuckled lightly, then looked at the chessboard in front of him and the brand-new chess pieces, and asked: "You told me that this is the good thing to see?"

"How about it?"

Huang Qian's eyes were very bright, and he explained with a smile: "Inspired by you, I thought, this paper making can make money, this printing can also make money, what else can make money?"

"Hey! Now that I've thought about it, I really found it!"

Huang Qian nodded at the chess pieces on the table and said: "In the past five years, I have been engaged in the export of ivory carving. I don't know which unscrupulous guy made a semi-mechanical engraving machine, a blank machine and a soldering machine. The whole set is the same as what is in our warehouse." Piles of ashes."

"Just let you get it back?"

Li Xuewu looked at the chess pieces on the table with interest. The carvings were only so-so, the words were a bit blurry, the color was not that good, and the material was ordinary wood.

"Hey! Guess why I fell in love with this?"

Huang Qian squinted his eyes and said, "I told the logistics manager that there is no use in stacking all this scrap metal here. It's better to give it to me to save space."

"Hey! He didn't want to do it, why did he register?"

Huang Gan said with a bad smile: "I'm just saying, it's better to put it on display than to use it. Don't we have paper? Let's use paper instead~"

"That's it, I used ten boxes of office paper and a carton of cigarettes to get this thing back."

Li Xuewu looked at Huang Ganji Thief and chuckled, slapped the chess piece in his hand in front of him, and asked: "Can you sell this for money?"

"This is a semi-finished product, a test product"

Huang Gan picked up the chess piece and explained: "This is what I let them tinker with when I have nothing to do."

As he spoke, Huang Qian raised the chess piece in his hand and asked, "Do you know how much a chess set costs at the supply and marketing cooperative now?"

Li Xuewu looked at Huang Gan without saying anything, waiting for his answer.

Because Li Xuewu really didn't know the price of this stuff, he usually only went to the supply and marketing cooperative to buy cigarettes. He rarely went to other places, and he didn't lack anything.

Sometimes when he is too lazy, he would even let Bangge or an old guy take care of him. He has had enough experience with the kind of service provided by the supply and marketing cooperative.

"This kind of"

Huang Qian raised the ordinary wooden chess set in his hand and said: "Put it in a wooden box and sell it for thirteen. Is it black?"

"Then what?"

Li Xuewu raised his eyebrows and asked, "Are you going to make this too? And then sell it for twelve? Bring the price down?"

"I don't!"

Huang Gan glared and said: "Why! Of course I have to sell thirteen if they sell it."

"Then you are a crow standing on a pig."

Li Xuewu fanned the smoke that Huang Gan exhaled with his hand and said with a smile: "Don't say eight ounces of black for half a catty."

"My main purpose is to entertain people in their spare time and improve the relationship between neighbors."

Huang Qian looked at Li Xuewu and asked with a smile: "Do you think if we perfect the craftsmanship, can we sell it?"

"No problem at all"

Li Xuewu folded his legs and nodded seriously, confirming: "This thing must be easy to sell."

"Hey, I'll tell Li Wenbiao later."

Huang Gan said with a smile: "This kid has a lot of tricks, he will definitely be able to find a way to get it out."

"Why did you target him?"

Li Xuewu put his elbows on his knees and asked, "Do you think of him as a good boy?"

"I regard you as the God of Wealth!"

Huang Qian put away the chess pieces on the table and said with a smile: "The first share of the spoils has been received. We will eat meat that day, big fat meat stewed with potatoes, hey!~"

"You have to be careful"

Li Xuewu nodded at Huang Gan and said: "You are so unobtrusive. If people hear what you say, you must have a problem."

After speaking, he clicked on the chess pieces that Huang Gan was packing up and said, "The engraving machine can not only carve this, it can also carve mahjong."

Li Xuewu raised his eyebrows and said: "There is a man named Liu Haizhong in our courtyard who likes to play mahjong. He spent sixty pounds of food stamps to get one pair. That one is the most valuable."

Huang Gan frowned and thought for a while, then asked: "Isn't mahjong made of ceramic? Does it have anything to do with the engraving machine?"

"Who told you that mahjong has to be made of ceramics?"

Li Xuewu knocked on the chessboard at hand and said, "Can't it be made of hardwood?"

There is not only mahjong in Liu Haizhong's house in the courtyard house, but also in the reverse house, but it is bamboo bone mahjong, which is relatively old.

Nowadays, no one prohibits playing mahjong, and no one prohibits playing poker. At this time, the only entertainment is these two. Young people like to play Go, which is made of glass, and adults like to play poker and mahjong.

As long as big gambling is not involved, few people will be punished or caught for this.

Even in the future, there is no ban on playing poker, and the portraits of those people are printed on the playing cards.

Li Xuewu didn't just come here today to see Huang Qian's baby, but also what he told Wang Xiaoqin and the others last weekend.

"Later, you can talk to Lao Biaozi and come up with some new tricks in mahjong, poker and chess. You will produce and he will sell. It will be a happy cooperation."

"Hey, you really said it!"

Huang Qian threw the last chess piece into the carton, pointed at Li Xuewu and said, "Huaqing has said that they will send a few more printing machines to form a relatively complete printing workshop. They said that the printing environment here is good. The quality is good and the level of confidentiality is also high.”

"Hey! What's this?"

Huang Qian looked at Li Xuewu and complained: "It's such a blessing to do printing in the prison. Don't worry, I will become a typical example here in the future."

He muttered, extinguished his cigarette in the ashtray, and said: "Among the machines that will be shipped are the latest ones that can print poker cards. I don't know what I'm thinking about."

Li Xuewu knew what Hua Qing was thinking, and he was so decisive that he began to transfer the hardware, and maybe other things as well.

When he thought of this, Li Xuewu's eyes couldn't help but light up, and there was something on his face that even Huang Qian could feel his cunning smile.

"What the hell are you laughing at?"

Huang Qian stared, and put the cigarette case and lighter on the table into his pocket. At the same time, he asked: "I haven't asked you yet, aren't you going to work today? Why do you have time to come to my place?"

Li Xuewu looked at Huang Qian who changed the subject forcefully, curled his lips and said: "Protect it well, maybe I can get it back anytime."

After speaking, he rolled his eyes and said angrily: "I've got some money for you, do you want it?"

"Yes, why not?"

Huang Gan stood up very simply, kicked the chess box at his feet under the coffee table, went to the tea cabinet to pick up a thermos bottle, and walked back. As he walked, he said: "You are my God of Wealth. If you say you will give me money, then I’m just here to give you money.”

Li Xuewu shook his chin and looked at the guy who was pouring hot water for him. He could only say: "It doesn't take many people to print and make paper. The rest of the people are idle. I will find some technicians for you." Workers, come and teach them to do manual work.”

He picked up the teacup and took a sip of tea, then continued: "First there is a cobbler and a tailor, and then there are those who tie palace lanterns, those who make enamel filigree, those who make buckles, those who do emerald green, those who tie silk flowers, those who make kites... "

"Wait! Wait! Beep~~!"

Huang Gan glared at Li Xuewu and said, "What are you doing? Where do you think I am? A circus or Liulichang? What are these?"

"wrong!"

Huang Qian seemed to understand something and looked at Li Xuewu and asked: "The membership benefits that you and Wang Xiaoqin talked about came from me?!"

"if not?"

Li Xuewu raised his eyebrows and said: "I only have a cobbler I know and a tailor I know. You can't do much even if you make them exhausted!"

"Moreover!"

Li Xuewu clicked on the window and said: "You have so many people locked up here, and they have nothing to eat every day? You can't think about their lives after they go out?!"

"I have to thank you on their behalf for co-writing?"

Huang Gan looked at Li Xuewu with a shocked expression on his face and said, "Are these things made to give us money?"

"You are obsessed with money!"

Li Xuewu raised his chin and said: "Money, money, money, you know money, and you don't even think about it. Is it free for me to hire a master to teach? I give them materials to learn, thinking that they will have a skill after they go out." , doesn’t it cost money?”

"Yes, I gained something."

Just when Huang Qian wanted to refute, Li Xuewu asked again: "But did I take these things myself? Isn't it to raise money for the club? To raise funds?"

After saying that, he didn't care about Huang Gan's expression and waved his hand: "Don't take money too seriously. You have already earned enough. We not only want to improve the living environment and treatment of the guards, but also improve the lives of the detainees." Treatment and management measures”.

"What is the best and most excellent management?"

"It's education! Let them learn how to eat when they go out, behave well, and stop making mistakes again."

Li Xuewu pointed at Huang Gan and said: "If someone comes to inspect and only watches the detainees working without seeing their learning and transformation, do you think you are doing the right thing?"

"no……!"

Huang Gan pointed at Li Xuewu and said, "You asked me to do this papermaking and printing!"

"yes!"

Li Xuewu admitted it frankly, but added: "At that time, I didn't expect that you would do so well, and I didn't expect that it would attract the attention of the superiors. I am not here to give you a solution. Well!"

"What the hell..."

Huang Qian was really speechless. He didn't believe that Li Xuewu didn't know what would happen if he did this before. He was really blinded by money. He was really a mouse serving as a bridesmaid for a cat. He wanted money at his own risk.

Why did you just believe what this bastard said? Not only did he get something out of hard-earned money, but he also had to help him with other things.

Not to mention whether he paid for the help or not, I still had a lot of reasons to tell myself to thank him!

"To encourage people to do good, you are a person with a chance."

Li Xuewu curled his lips and said: "When I first saw you, you were a kind person. You see, you are just that now. You lead all the people in production and improve the living standards of all people. Now you respond to the call of the document and engage in study. Build a small factory."

Having said this, Li Xuewu stood up and patted the angry Huang Gan on the shoulder and said: "Comrade Huang Gan, I am very optimistic about you!"

"Fuck you! I think you're quite kind!"

Huang Qian was so angry that he cursed, glared at Li Xuewu and said, "I want to take a good look at you too!"

"What a coincidence!"

Li Xuewu spread his hands and said, "Your wooden chess box looks ugly. Lao Biaozi and the others are building a can factory. Later, they will build a packaging box factory at the steel rolling mill. Then I will help you make metal boxes." .

"real?"

When Huang Gan saw Li Xuewu asking for help, the anger on his face instantly dissipated a lot, and he said: "Mahjong actually also needs packaging boxes."

"sure, no problem"

"If poker had a metal box..."

"Metal ones are also suitable for ashes, do you want them?"

…

——

"Hey, it's Director Li! Come to pick up Gu Ning?"

Li Xuewu was standing by the security room at the entrance of the hospital, lighting a cigarette, when he heard someone greeting him.

He quickly put out the match in his hand, took out the cigarette from his mouth, and raised his head.

Li Xuewu looked at the female doctor standing in front of him and smiled: "You are Sister Lan, right? You opened the door to Gu Ning last time."

"Wow, your memory is really amazing."

This person named Sister Lan was the doctor sitting at the desk next to the door. She opened the door for Li Xuewu the first time he came to see Gu Ning and the subsequent times.

Zhang Xiulan recognized Li Xuewu because of the scars on Li Xuewu's face. When Li Xuewu came to see Gu Ning, she was most impressed. Later, people in the department even speculated about what this young man did.

She was on duty on the day of Gu Ning's wedding, so she didn't go there, but she imitated her colleagues who went there. Oh my god, it was scary.

Although the wedding was held in a courtyard, the pomp and circumstance of the wedding was indeed respectable. Those colleagues described it with envy and emotion.

The young man who was initially thought to be a driver turned out to be a deputy director and a fighting hero who returned from the south.

That's not all. According to what colleagues learned from the wedding, this young man is only twenty years old, but his identity is already the deputy director of the security department of the Red Star Steel Rolling Mill, and the deputy director in charge of public security here in Dongcheng. .

Colleagues have been talking and admiring each other since they came back, telling how beautiful Gu Ning was dressed that day and how awesome the guests were.

The key is that most of the guests on the wedding day are from the groom's side. It is said that there are dozens of deputy director-level guests.

Zhang Xiulan came back from outside today, and Li Laoyuan felt that the big man at the door looked familiar.

After looking at the scars on his face, he recognized that Li Xuewu was here, and then he said hello.

Don't call me snobbish or philistine, everyone is like this, don't call anyone else.

Li Xuewu heard what Mu Hongyan said about the interpersonal relationships in Gu Ning's department, and what she said about these people's speculations about him, but he would not make any special reaction.

Gu Ning's personality will not change because of anyone, nor will she break away from real life and just go home to be a full-time wife. After all, she has to work and live in the workplace.

The working environment will not change just because he stands up for Gu Ning, or does something to retaliate or show off. It is more likely to be counterproductive.

These colleagues will only think that he is not easy to get along with, and Gu Ning is not easy to get along with, so they will isolate Gu Ning even more and gossip behind his back.

What Li Xuewu has to do, and what he must do, is to protect Gu Ning and solve the interpersonal problems at work for Gu Ning.

So when he saw Sister Lan and took the initiative to say hello, Li Xuewu was also very enthusiastic.

"Hey, I bother you every time I go there."

Li Xuewu smiled and said: "I haven't thanked you for your blessing yet. Gu Ning and I are discussing to see if there is a suitable day to treat everyone to a meal. This is not a good reception, so I am embarrassed."

"Stop being polite~"

Zhang Xiulan saw that Li Xuewu was so good at talking, but she was surprised that Dr. Gu could find such a partner.

I thought that his cold temperament would be replaced by an ice cube, but he turned out to be a very cheerful young man.

Especially this enthusiasm, as well as the respect and politeness in his words, made her feel even more comfortable.

"In our unit and in our kind of work, we don't have time to take breaks and get off work on time. Let's wait until we have another chance."

She only thought Li Xuewu was speaking politely, so she said it politely.

But Li Xuewu didn't take this seriously and said with a smile: "This can't be done. I've prepared everything. I'm just waiting for Gu Ning to get everyone's duty list."

"Okay, then I'll be waiting~"

Seeing that it was almost time for shift handover, Zhang Xiulan pointed to the hospital and said, "I'll take over right away while your doctor Gu gets off work."

"You are busy"

When Li Xuewu saw this person entering the courtyard, he waved hello.

When someone walked in, he put the cigarette in his mouth again, but just when he wanted to touch the lighter in his pocket, he thought that he had lost the bet on the lighter.

The matches just now were all borrowed from others. It would be a bit shameful to borrow them again.

He took the cigarette out of his mouth again, thinking that Gu Ning would come out soon, sighed, and put the cigarette back into the cigarette case.

"What kind of luck are you having here?"

Mu Hongyan pushed the car out of the door and saw Li Xuewu standing at the door. With his big body and white and black clothes, it was impossible not to see him.

"sister in law"

Li Xuewu greeted with a grin, raised the cigarette in his hand, and said, "I was just thinking about how to quit smoking."

"What's going on?"

Mu Hongyan looked at Li Xuewu, then looked at the courtyard, and asked with a smile: "Xiao Ning won't let you smoke?"

"No, I am restraining myself."

Li Xuewu put the cigarette into his pocket and asked with a smile: "Did you get off work early today?"

“Be normal”

Mu Hongyan straightened the hair around his ears and asked, "Why did you come to pick her up today? To show your affection?"

"Haha, why are you showing affection? We made an appointment yesterday to go see flowers together."

Li Xuewu chuckled and said, "We planted some flowers in our yard, but they were wiped out by my casual words. Isn't this an apology?"

"Oh~ your words are quite powerful."

Mu Hongyan glanced at Li Xuewu with a smile. Seeing his appearance, he knew that the couple was sweet, so he felt relieved.

"With such a good attitude, it seems like you have apologized a lot, right? You have quite a lot of experience!"

"Hey, everything is going well with your family!"

Li Xuewu didn't want to pick up on Mu Hongyan's words. The more he explained this thing, the more confusing it became, and the more he described it, the darker it became. So he just ended the topic and made a twist.

"By the way, sister-in-law, how are you doing with that matter?"

"We are working on it, it will take a few days"

Mu Hongyan knew that Li Xuewu deliberately changed the topic, but she didn't want to pursue this matter. After all, it was Li Xuewu's past.

Speaking of himself, Mu Hongyan glanced at the hospital behind him with some reluctance and said, "I can't help it. If your eldest brother really couldn't be transferred back, I wouldn't want to be transferred out."

"It's okay. Your doctor is much better, and the transfer is more flexible."

Li Xuewu comforted him: "It's just that Xiao Ning will no longer have anyone to take care of her in the department. Just now I saw her colleagues and wanted to treat them to a meal. We have a lot of connections."

"That's right. Although these people all have some shortcomings, they are not bad."

Mu Hongyan nodded and said, "You know Xiao Ning's temperament, and she won't be able to unite with others. You should do more work and make her feel more comfortable in the office."

"Don't worry, I'm here with you."

Seeing that Gu Ning had walked out of the building, Li Xuewu smiled at Mu Hongyan and said, "You can go to my house to sit for a while before leaving, or you can go directly to the Traditional Chinese Medicine Hospital to find my dad. He will also be transferred recently." .

"knew"

Mu Hongyan knew what Li Xuewu meant and agreed with a smile, but did not say thank you. The family would be a little surprised if they wanted to say thank you.

When Gu Ning walked up to him, Mu Hongyan joked: "I just said that I always look out the window when I get off work. I have a date tonight!"

"No~!"

Gu Ning came over and pulled her sister-in-law, and explained angrily: "I even said I wouldn't ask him to come, but he did."

"Hey! Hey! Hey!"

Mu Hongyan signaled to Li Xuewu who was opposite him and said, "Xuewu said just now that he is not here to show affection. Don't let him break his promise!"

After saying this, he did not give Gu Ning any time to explain. He smiled and said to the two of them, "Hurry up. I won't waste your time. I'm leaving."

“Ride slowly and pay attention to safety”

Li Xuewu saw Mu Hongyan pushing the car two steps before getting into the car, and quickly gave him a warning.

Mu Hongyan only waved his hand as he entered the main road to indicate that he understood.

Li Xuewu turned around to look at Gu Ning, only to find that she had already boarded the car on the side of the road. Some people she knew from the crowd after get off work were looking over.

Li Xuewu knew that Gu Ning had a small face, so he said hello to a few people he met, jumped into the jeep, and drove in a direction he was familiar with.

When he was a child, he had the desire to travel to the end of the world with his sword, but the alley when he was a child was very deep and the world was very small, so his parents did not allow him to go out of the alley.

The early horse-tying stone at the entrance of the alley was a boundary. If you passed it, if your father found out, you would definitely be beaten.

Later, he was beaten too much for other things, and he felt that the horse-tying stone could no longer restrain him, so he and his friends crossed the line.

Anyway, I don't care about this one more thing. Li Xuewu only got to know Lao Biaozi and the others after leaving the alley.

He used to play with alley children like Yan Jiecheng and the others. It was he who beat these children so that they no longer dared to play with him. It was also when he crossed the horse-tethering stone.

Li Xuewu remembered that the capital city was so big when he was a child, and he never reached the city wall even after playing there for several years.

The place I played the most was the big garden near the Drama School. It used to be the back garden of a wealthy family, but later it became a wild garden. People went there to catch bugs in the summer.

Some bugs are caught well and can be sold for money, and there are those who ride bicycles to collect them, but they don't give much.

Of course, Li Xuewu didn't meet a little girl in the deserted yard over there who would ask, "Are you here to poop?" If he did, he would definitely beat her to tears!

There is everything in the deserted yard, all kinds of bugs, biting ones, non-biting ones, edible ones, and inedible ones. Now I can’t even recognize them all.

But there are not many that can really be sold for money, there are only three kinds, and they are all "brothers".

Cricket, grasshopper, oil gourd.

Remember, these three brothers are not all brothers, one of them is an uncle.

The divisions of animals and plants in nature from high to low are: kingdom, phylum, class, order, family, genus, and species.

Crickets and gourds are both members of the Orthoptera family, so they can be considered brothers.

Cricket is the common name for crickets, referring to crickets used for fighting and playing.

The oil gourd is the largest among the crickets, and is generally used only to listen to its chirping, not to fight.

The katydid belongs to the genus Orthoptera, and because it is not in the same family as the two above, we can only say this as uncles and brothers.

The grasshopper is larger in size and is also used to listen to its chirping. It is also called a donkey in the Northeast.

When Li Xuewu was a child, he basically got his popsicles from that garden, but later he stopped doing that because he was so worried about the loss.

I spent a lot of time catching grasshoppers, and for five days and in the middle of the night I caught crickets. It took me a long time to just sell a popsicle for money.

When he went to his grandpa's house for the first time and learned the art of making grasshopper cages from his eldest grandma, Li Xuewu knew the value of packaging as a bonus.

The next year, Li Xuewu made his own grasshopper cages, caught the grasshoppers himself, put them in the cages and sold them.

Of course, there is also a trick on his part. Crickets cannot be sold in cages, but must be placed in porcelain jars, and the dark environment must be moisturized.

So after following the hawker, Li Xuewu ran for a long time, and then he learned that there was a flower, bird, fish and insect market far away from home, selling second-hand goods and these gadgets.

Even though the capital was in ruins back then, its heritage was still there. There were still many people wearing robes and mandarin jackets on the streets at that time.

There are also those who are old and young, and those who used to eat hard-core crops still like these.

Of course, I don’t like it as much as I did back then, and I don’t play as crazy as I did back then. I just treat it as a pastime.

This pastime only costs a small amount of money. The grasshoppers and gourds make a nice sound, and young people and children all like it.

At that time, people liked to put the grasshopper cage in their sleeves and play with it while walking, sleeping or meeting friends for tea.

There are special playing pieces for crickets, including ceramic ones and gourd ones. When fighting crickets, they will be released from the small bottle. The crickets will be fought in a special "colosseum" and surrounded by a lot of heads. Look at this thing.

Not to mention, Li Xuewu sold too many of the invincible armored Jiang Jun, Black Tai Sui, Red Robed Monkey King, etc.

Later, the yard was rummaged through and no one could find anything good, so Li Xuewu took his friends out of the city to look for it.

At that time, it was said that "Fudi'er Cricket" in Sujiatuo and "Qingmatou" in Fushouling were better, but these two places were too far away, and Li Xuewu and the others' range of activities was just across the moat at most.

There are many graveyards outside the moat. Going to the graveyards at night to catch crickets is a must.

The crickets in the grave circle are particularly black and fierce. They look good and the price is high.

Although the "origin" is a bit shady, Li Xuewu learned packaging from his grandma and also learned what deception is from the vendors.

Because when the crickets they collected from the vendors came to the market, they said they were from Sujiatuo. Li Xuewu did the same thing. If he caught them and saw the quality, he would go wherever he could. If he sold them for five points more, he would get five points. .

It was at that time that Lao Biaozi and others began to believe in Li Xuewu, knowing that they could eat popsicles with their elder brother.

It was also at that time that Li Xuewu learned that unity is strength and sharing is gain.

Sneaking out of home in the middle of the night and running so far to catch crickets, he felt a little timid by himself.

But if you go with five or six children, you won’t be afraid. Those who have flashlights should bring flashlights, and those who don’t should bring lanterns.

I caught a lot of crickets, and I became more courageous. I don't know how many pedestrians passed by the grave circle were frightened.

When Li Xuewu was driving and telling Gu Ning these things about his childhood, he unknowingly arrived at the flea market.

"You were so naughty when you were little~"

Gu Ning couldn't help but sigh when she saw Li Xuewu pull over the car.

Li Xuewu took out the car keys and said with a smile: "What's the point? I'll tell you the story about how we fell asleep in the graveyard from exhaustion in the evening."

Gu Ning knew that Li Xuewu was trying to scare her, but would she still be afraid of this?

"Is there a good morgue story?"

"Forehead……"

Li Xuewu also forgot that his wife was also a ruthless person who didn't say much.

"You are a cruel person~"

"Pfft~"

The two of them looked at each other and smiled, got out of the car, and followed the flow of people towards the flea market.

Nothing has changed here, except that people are better dressed and in better spirits.

The old stuff sold on both sides of the road is still the rags that are reluctant to be thrown away by the entrusted stores, or the entrusted stores will not accept them.

So some people here also call it the shabby city.

Water jars, Kang mats, stoves, jars, jars, old rice bowls, all kinds of daily necessities are there, except what you can’t think of, and there’s nothing you can’t buy here.

There are also some craftsmen here who secretly come over to set up stalls after get off work. They just sell a few things without shouting, just like those selling second-hand goods. In fact, they are doing crafts.

For example, those who repair pens, those who twist faces, those who make pots and bowls, those who sharpen knives and scissors, those who shave heads, mend pots, those who play cotton and repair shoes, and those who use small chisels to engrave.

Gu Ning seemed to be Grandma Liu who had entered the Grand View Garden. Everything was new and strange. She had never been to a place like this before.

It is narrow and cramped, the roads are not so clean and smooth, and the people here are the most ordinary people in the Fourth Nine Cities and the most difficult in life.

Although the clothes of Li Xuewu and Gu Ning are not the most conspicuous here, they are still very prominent. Some people will look at them with blank or doubtful eyes.

Li Xuewu and Gu Ning were both big-hearted and content, and did not pay attention to these looks.

After walking along the second-hand stalls and buying nothing, Gu Ning felt much happier.

Maybe it's because a woman's natural talent for shopping has awakened in her body, or maybe it's because the time spent with Li Xuewu is wonderful. Anyway, Li Xuewu thinks Gu Ning is very happy.

After passing through the long alley, the two finally saw the area of ​​flowers, birds, fish and insects.

It's more lively here, and there are a lot less people. After all, at this time, there are not so many people who can play games, and even fewer are gardening flowers and walking birds.

However, the clothes of Li Xuewu and Li Xuewu didn't show much here. Many people here were dressed much more neatly.

"This is the canna, this is the cockscomb, the nail plant, the passion flower..."

Gu Ning lit pots of flowers and plants and introduced them to Li Xuewu. Li Xuewu also nodded and looked at the price.

The flowers and plants here are all common, and this is what Zhou Yamei and Gu Ning grow in their yard.

However, it is better to plant these flowers in front of and behind the house, but there must be a place. It seems that it is suitable for people like Li Xuewu who live in a villa, but not for those who live in a courtyard, and they must raise potted flowers.

Therefore, although what Li Xuewu sees now are ordinary flowers, there is a market for them. On the contrary, they are more popular because they are cheap.

"Hey, there are also tulips and dianthus here."

Li Xuewu also had a thief's eye, and he cut the flowers at the door of a shop with just one glance.

It is not easy to see these flowers here. Both of these are foreign flowers.

There have been flower shops in Forty-Nine City for a long time. In 1947, there were 27 flower shops. Later, in 5 or 6 years, they were all owned by the public.

The two former Shijie and Wanshun flower factories in Chongwenmen merged into one, called the No. 1 flower and tree store in Beijing, and now it is called Chongwenmen Flower Shop, specializing in this kind of foreign flowers.

Gu Ning also liked this thing, but he stood by the flower pot and looked at it for a while before pulling Li Xuewu inside.

“I’ll buy it when I get back”

"Okay~"

Gu Ning's answering voice was a little sweet, and Li Xuewu couldn't help but laugh.

Sometimes I don’t say it, but when you say it, I will agree.

Li Xuewu is also an old hand at flowers. He can't recognize all the flowers on both sides of the alley, but he still understands some flowers that are more delicate than flowers.

The gardenias and jasmines we saw next were relatively high-end. The gardenia flowers were white and fragrant and loved by everyone. When the jasmine flowers were in full bloom, their fragrance would spread far and wide.

"Buy some pots of jasmine"

Li Xuewu smelled it carefully and suggested to Gu Ning: "Put two pots upstairs and two pots downstairs."

"Okay, gardenias smell good too"

Gu Ning pursed her lips and nodded, but after agreeing, she mentioned that she also wanted gardenias.

Li Xuewu smiled and said, "I'll buy it too."

After the two of them finished speaking, they walked forward, ready to look at all the flowers in this alley.

The shopkeeper who saw the customers clearly heard that the two were about to buy something, but when he came out, he found that the people were gone, so he had to go back muttering.

Flowers, birds, fish and insects are a big category, so once you pass the area selling flowers, you will be selling birds.

The boundary between the two areas is not obvious, because when you walk over, many flower pots have bird cages hanging on them.

"Is this a thrush?"