Scholars in the courtyard

As soon as Silhu made an important decision in his life, he saw Qin Huairu walking in from the door.

His face was haggard, his eyes were downcast, and under the light, the figure behind him was elongated and slender against the door.

When Sha Zhu saw it, his heart softened. How could he be willing to let Qin Huairu look like this?

"Zhuzi, sister, please help me."

Qin Huairu's voice was hoarse, like a cuckoo crying blood, which sounded very desolate to Silly Zhu's ears.

"Sister Qin, tell me!"

This sound from Sister Qin made Qin Huairu feel reassured.

Silly column, still the same silly column.

Even if she changes, she can be tamed back.

"Now that Dongxu is gone, whether it's a helper or a guest, we have to make two tables..."

As soon as Shazhu heard this, he understood why Qin Huairu was here.

At this time, everyone participating in the white ceremony will not come empty-handed, and the host family also has to say hello.

"Sister Qin, what do I think this is? Don't worry, leave Brother Dongxu's funeral to me, and I will definitely handle it beautifully for you."

"Zilla, 伱..."

Qin Huairu saw that Silhu was talking normally, but was not as eager as before, so she suddenly sobbed violently, and tears flowed from her red eyes.

"Thank you, sister. Your brother Dongxu has left, leaving the whole family behind. I..., how can I live without your help?"

Woohoo…

Qin Huairu started to cry, and Shazhu hurriedly stepped forward to support her, "Sister Qin, I'm out of town, I'm out of town."

Qin Huairu held Shazhu's arm and leaned against Shazhu.

The soft body, the careless touch at this moment, made Silly Zhu's heart tremble.

"Sister Qin, me."

Qin Huairu allowed Silly Zhu to do what he did. It was worth the effort.

"Zhuzi, sister, I'll be relying on you from now on."

"Sister Qin, don't worry! I'm still here in this courtyard. If you have anything to say, no one will dare to bully you."

Um?

The palm was even more careless, it was an uncontrollable existence.

Not long after, Qin Huairu fiddled with her hair, left Shazhu's house, and walked towards Yi Zhonghai's house.

Then we visited the second uncle’s house, the third uncle’s house, and even the houses of several people who helped today, and thanked each one.

Whether it was sincere or just a pretense, everyone in the yard felt that Qin Huairu was a man who could carry things clearly and get things done.

At night, the trumpet players finish their work at that hour and continue tomorrow.

Silly Zhu came to Jia's house with two lunch boxes.

He wanted the previous advantage, but he was not satisfied. What he wanted was more.

"Aunt Jia, Sister Qin, let's have something to eat. You can't live without something after a busy day."

As Silly Zhu said, Qin Huairu felt a warmth rise in her heart, but her face was cold and she shook her head, "Thank you, Zhu Zhu. I can't eat it!"

"Sister Qin, you have to eat. You have to eat something for the sake of the child in your belly."

As Si Zhu said, Jia Zhang's stomach had already growled. She was staring at the lunch box and almost grabbed it.

The same goes for Banggan and Xiaodang next to them. They just ate a cold nest and were already hungry.

"Huairu, eat something, we have to keep vigil tonight."

Mrs. Jia Zhang opened her mouth to persuade, and so did Silly Zhu on the side.

Seeing this, Qin Huairu nodded in agreement.

Soon, the four of them were eating in front of Jia Dongxu's soul.

Yi Zhonghai leaned in front of the door and watched Sha Zhu deliver food to Jia's family. Auntie laughed from behind and said, "Old Yi, it seems Sha Zhu still has a conscience."

Yi Zhonghai nodded, "We will also help you in the future."

The next day, when Yang Xiaotao went out, the sound of suona sounded at the door.

Look around. People in the courtyard are going to work and busy.

Except for Yi Zhonghai who took leave to help in the hospital, Liu Haizhong and Yan Fugui both went to work.

Fortunately, tomorrow is Saturday, which happens to be Jia Dongxu's third birthday, so he has time to attend the funeral.

After Yang Xiaotao arrived at the steel rolling mill, he went straight to the first workshop.

Sun Guo came to the workshop early and checked it again, just like when he left yesterday.

After Yang Xiaotao arrived, he began to assemble the steam engine.

Sun Guo didn't dare to disturb him and just watched quietly.

After a while, Xu Yuanshan and Yang Youning came after receiving the news, and many people from the workshop gathered around them.

Yang Xiaotao called on a few workers he knew to help. With a board in his hand, he skillfully put the parts together one by one.

“We need welding here!”

Yang Xiaotao raised his head and said, Sun Guo immediately arranged for people. After a while, a seventh-level welder came over with a guy and started working at Yang Xiaotao's designated position.

The welding rod buzzed and sparks continued to fly.

People around him instinctively squinted their eyes to protect their eyeballs.

After a while, the welder finished. After Yang Xiaotao checked it, he continued the installation.

There are many parts of the steam engine, and a lot of them need to be welded. With the cooperation of several people, each accessory is installed in place.

After the big parts were installed, Yang Xiaotao installed the belts and leather strips he bought in place.

It was not until noon that the first steam engine was assembled.

Yang Xiaotao wiped the sweat from his forehead and took off his fault scanning glasses. There was no abnormality in the newly assembled steam engine in his field of vision, which made him relieved.

Then he nodded to the people waiting nearby.

Yang Youning couldn't wait any longer. When he saw Yang Xiaotao getting up, he immediately came over to take a look, and then confirmed, "Try?"

Yang Xiaotao nodded, "You can give it a try. If there are any problems, we can solve them as soon as possible."

After receiving the approval, Sun Guo immediately found briquettes and started lighting them in the stove.

As everyone watched around the steam engine, Yang Xiaotao stepped forward and personally inspected and cleaned it.

After a while, the flames of the stove were steaming, and the sound of boiling water could be heard.

Sun Guo was a little nervous and kept staring at the flywheel, as if the wheel would start moving in the next second.

But the more I looked, the more anxious I became, "Why aren't you turning?"

Yang Youning and Xu Yuanshan frowned at the same time. Could it be that they failed?

Yang Xiaotao pushed his eyes, then stepped forward in the eyes of everyone, put his hand on the wheel, pushed hard, the wheel rotated, and then he saw the connecting rod connecting the flywheel crankshaft move.

And this move cannot be stopped.

"It needs to be given a force."

Yang Xiaotao said with a smile, and the people around him suddenly realized. Sun Guo even raised his forehead and chuckled, "I was scared to death. I thought it didn't work."

Xu Yuanshan looked at the rapidly selected flywheel and shouted to Sun Guo, "Find someone to test it. This wheel doesn't spin slowly."

Sun Guo ran away immediately, and Yang Youning was also touching his chin, "Indeed, it feels quite strong."

Everyone gathered around the steam engine and kept giving instructions.

Yang Xiaotao was also watching, thinking that it would be quick to use it to dig wells.

Siheyuan

There were bursts of mourning and music at the door, and the two musicians stood alone for a while. Every time someone came, they would enter the state and tell the people in the courtyard that someone was coming.

Mrs. Jia Zhang was still sitting at the door, looking outside the courtyard from time to time.

At this moment, it is almost noon, and logically the people who should come should have come long ago, but now, the people in the courtyard are all old people from the surrounding alleys.

These people are here to repay a favor. They go through the motions. The gift money is not much, just a few cents plus a few or a dozen pieces of yellow paper. Then they come to register, say a few words to the family members, and that's it. .

No matter how much the gift is, the host has to take care of the meal.

For this reason, Shazhu asked someone to ask for leave from the factory. Regardless of whether the director agreed or not, he stayed in the courtyard anyway.

Meals are being prepared at the moment.

Of course, the food was shipped by Yi Zhonghai, the ingredients were bought by Aunt Xian, and Silly Zhu prepared his own seasonings and other items.

After finishing my busy work this morning, I prepared two tables of dishes and placed them in the central courtyard, ready for a banquet at any time.

People from nearby are communicating in the yard. Today is the second day, and this scene will happen again tomorrow.

Because it was a simple matter, so based on the principle of doing things plainly, and the money given by Yi Zhonghai was not much, Shazhu cooked only vegetarian dishes, no meat dishes, and no tobacco or alcohol was used.

The four large flower plates in the pot are filled with hot vegetables, which look good in color, and the four small butterflies are filled with pickles, which are placed in the cupboard, waiting to be served.

Of course, in this hot dish, only the tofu can be eaten, and the rest should look good on the plate.

Everyone who attends a funeral knows this and generally does not move.

You can eat pickles, but not much.

So Shazhu is done with his work today, so it will be easier to cook the dishes tomorrow.

Of course, he would not tell Qin Huairu this, but would let Qin Huairu see that he had done a lot and worked hard.

This way he can continue to earn some benefits.

"Huairu, have you told your family?"

Jia Zhang watched for a while. Not only did the Jia family's family not come, but Qin Huairu's natal family also didn't show up.

Jia Dongxu is the junior, so it would be okay if Father Qin and Mother Qin don't come, but there must be a few people of the same generation.

Qin Huairu looked at the empty yard and felt uneasy.

"I asked someone to bring back the news yesterday! Maybe it's on the way!"

"oh oh!"

Mrs. Jia Zhang responded, mentally calculating how much money she could receive as a gift this time.

"Mom, where's the one on your end?"

Qin Huairu suddenly asked, Jia Zhang's face froze, and he lowered his head and said nothing.

She had no contact with her family in the past few years, and she was afraid that the village would take her back, so she took the initiative to cut off contact with her. She didn't even say hello this time, so no one would come.

"Mom doesn't have any relatives at home, and we don't have any contact with each other, so it's better not to get involved."

Jia Zhang smiled forcefully, but Qin Huairu ignored her.

As the saying goes, good things come uninvited, and white things come uninvited.

If they really had a good relationship, they would send some paper money after hearing the news.

The two of them didn't talk, but Qin Huairu was waiting for someone from Jia's hometown. After all, Jia Dongxu's burial place had to be decided.

Otherwise, when the festival comes, there won’t even be a place to visit the graves, which will be miserable.

In the front yard, Yan Fugui came back quickly on his bicycle. As soon as he arrived at the door, he saw Yi Zhonghai talking to Silly Zhu.

"Hey, Sir, Shazhu, are you busy here?"

Yan Fugui got in the car and straightened his clothes.

Silly Zhu ignored him. The events of the past few days were not over yet. If he wasn't busy with the Jia family, he wouldn't even bother to take a look.

Yan Fugui didn't care, Silzhu had such a temper, the more he took him seriously, the more annoyed he became.

"Lao Yan, aren't you at work? Why are you back so early?"

Yi Zhonghai had a lot on his mind and spoke without any emotion.

"I don't have any classes in the afternoon. I'm busy with work in the courtyard, so I'll come back to help."

"Help? It's not even dinner time yet. Come back and have some food."

Silly Zhu showed no mercy and directly exposed Yan Fugui's little thoughts.

Yan Fugui was not angry, "What? There must be a lot of people here."

"You don't know how to read, and your ears don't work well before you retire?"

Silly Zhu continued to choke, and the smile on Yan Fugui's face disappeared. Silly Zhu said again and again that the clay figurine was still very angry.

Just when he was about to speak, he saw two people coming from behind.

Two young men, wearing patchwork clothes, with messy hair and yellow complexions.

When I drove to the door, I asked the three of them.

"Is this Jia Dongxu's home?"

One person spoke, and the other person put down the bag on his shoulder.

"Yes, it belongs to Jia Dongxu."

Yi Zhonghai spoke quickly, and the two looked at each other, "Finally found it."

"You are?"

"We are Jia Dongxu's cousin. We came here after receiving the news."

The older one spoke.

"Ah, my family is here, come in quickly."

Yi Zhonghai quickly asked Sha Zhu to lead him in.

Then he stood at the door and continued waiting, but looking left and right, the alley was still empty.

"Lao Yi, tell me, it's not just the two of us."

Yan Fugui whispered, and Yi Zhonghai didn't know the situation.

Over the years, he didn't know much about Jia Dongxu's family, and for the sake of his retirement plan, he didn't want Jia Dongxu to be too involved, so that he didn't know the situation there.

"Wait and see! Maybe they are all working in the fields."

"Coming soon!"