The ups and downs of life in the Siheyuan

Lujiapo Village is located in the southwest of Wangping Town, Mentougou District, Beijing. It is an ancient village that was established in the Ming Dynasty on the North Avenue of Xishan Road, the ancient road to the west of Beijing. It has a long and profound history and culture.

It is located on a sunny hillside at the southern foot of Beidaling, next to Wangping Ditch. The soil is mountainous leached cinnamon soil, and the vegetation on the hillside is dominated by shrubs such as vitex and apricot.

The villagers planted poplar, locust, elm and other trees as well as walnut, pear and other fruit trees on the hillside, in front of and behind the village houses.

Lujiapo Village is built halfway up the mountain. It is mainly composed of houses made of earth and stone, with a small number of cave dwellings.

The whole village has less than 200 households and less than people.

Farmland is sparse, and his main income is digging coal at the Wangpingcun coal mine.

Wangping Village Coal has been the main coal producing area in Kyoto since the Liao Dynasty. The Carboniferous coal produced is mixed with ingredients and directly pressed into briquettes and briquettes.

Therefore, the living conditions here are relatively difficult, and food is their main problem.

Li Yuanshi came over on a bicycle, with a tattered iron sign hanging in the middle of the handlebar.

It's a warm day today, and a dozen old men are leaning against the south wall, chatting and basking in the sun.

Some old men who were not very particular had already opened their cotton-padded clothes and looked for lice in the sunlight.

"Uncle, do we have any junk for sale in our village?"

"How much do you think I'm worth?" an old man asked with a smile, his teeth bared.

Other old men nearby followed him and laughed.

Li Yuan smiled and said, "Having an old man in the family is like having a treasure. I don't dare to accept a treasure like yours."

Seeing Li Yuanjing's teasing, an old man smiled and pointed to the village, "Go in and see if there is any junk in that house."

He said thank you and rode into the village.

After walking around for a long time, I didn't receive anything. I mainly chatted with the villagers and learned about the situation here.

I went to the village committee at noon and showed the proof of the purchase station, and was looked down upon.

During the three-year difficult period, rural people should know the importance of urban household registration.

The village committee is said to be two relatively large houses made of earth and stone, with a large solid wood table and four long stools placed in the middle.

The village chief is Lu Pingan, a middle-aged man in his 50s.

His face was covered with wrinkles, his voice was loud, and his eyes were sharp.

"Young man, why do you come so far to collect rags?"

"If you can't meet the target, you can only try your luck everywhere."

"Yes, all the good young men and young men in the village are working in the kiln, and they are all working hard for the construction of the country."

Perhaps because they share the same problem, the relationship between the two has become much closer.

"Our village has been digging coal for generations, and the harvest in the fields is simply not enough to eat. I wonder if I have any skills."

"To a certain extent, but I don't have the ability to support a village."

Li Yuan's straightforward words startled the village chief, so his tone became urgent.

"A little is fine, but now there is a recession and everyone is tightening their belts to live a life. If you have food, I will promise you anything."

Now, in order to survive, every village is showing off its unique skills and raising funds from all directions.

Ask around when you get the chance, and look forward to just in case.

No, a casual question actually yielded results.

"There aren't many things, just 100 kilograms of corn crumbs," Li Yuan didn't dare to say more.

The village chief was a little disappointed when he heard that it was only 100 kilograms, but thinking about it, if he saves 100 kilograms, the whole village can survive for a few more days.

"Do you want money or things?"

"If you don't dare to ask for money, why not just speculate? If there are any old objects or mountain goods, that will do."

Li Yuan thought about establishing a good relationship with the village chief first and slowly building up trust so that when the time came, he could actually ask for help.

He firmly remembers that only interests are the strongest relationships.

"Old thing? Wait a minute." The village chief went out for a while, then walked in with a cyan three-legged washing machine.

"Look at this. The old man in the village said that this thing was found in a mountain temple and was used by the accountant to hold ink when writing couplets."

Li Yuan took it carefully and looked at it carefully.

"Uncle Lu, if I read it right, this is a three-legged brush washer from Ru kiln. It can be sold for dozens of dollars in a trust store in the city."

Lu Ping'an looked at Li Yuan in surprise, wondering if this boy was stupid.

However, he also gave a positive evaluation of Li Yuan's character and considered him a trustworthy person.

"Okay, I'll go to the city to have a look." Lu Pingan said without any embarrassment.

"What about the food?" He has not forgotten the most important food.

"I'll come back tomorrow and bring them all with me."

Li Yuan didn't say anything about how to exchange it. His purpose was to build a good relationship.

The next day, Li Yuan arrived at Lujiapo Village as scheduled. In the bamboo baskets on both sides of the bicycle, there were two flour bags, each containing 50 kilograms of corn crumbs.

Going straight into the village committee, Village Chief Lu had been waiting for a long time.

Li Yuan parked the car and entered the village committee carrying a dough bag.

The Ru kiln's brush washer was padded with newspaper and placed in the center of the table.

"I rushed to the city with my accountant yesterday afternoon. The trust store valued it at 25 yuan, and I brought it back."

Seeing the bloodshot eyes in his eyes, Li Yuan knew that they had rushed back overnight.

"Okay, I want the stuff. The cornmeal is yours, and I'll pay you another 15 yuan." Li Yuan simply went with the market price and didn't charge them for food stamps.

"That won't work. Food is expensive now, and we can't take advantage of you." He said and sent back 10 yuan.

Li Yuan did not refuse, otherwise Village Chief Lu might have all kinds of thoughts in his mind.

The one who can get food now is the boss. The reason why Lu Ping'an brought Bisha back was because he wanted to take over Li Yuan so as to pave the way for the future.

He firmly believed that an owner who could easily obtain 100 kilograms of grain could obtain more grain.

He was very smart and didn't ask where the food came from, he just accepted it.

When Li Yuan saw his style, he was convinced that he was a smart man and could have a close friendship with him.

"Uncle Lu, when it comes to relying on the mountains and eating the mountains, don't you think about hunting some wild animals?"

"Hey, we have dug up three feet of the ground in the recent hills. Those big guys are smart enough to hide in the mountains and not come out."

"Then why don't you organize people to hunt deep into the mountains?"

“It’s not that I don’t want to, it’s that I can’t.

The deep mountains are densely covered with trees and thorns, making it difficult to find a way. If you go deep inside, you won't be able to come back for a day, so you have to live in the mountains.

If you can't catch prey, it will cost a lot to go back and forth.

If you get lost, the consequences are unpredictable.

Nowadays, hunters are out of business, and all the old hunters are dead. Without them, we dabblers would not dare to go deep."

Li Yuan talked for a long time about the situation in the mountains, and Li Yuan had a little understanding of the mountains.

"Xiao Li, you have inquired so much. I know you want to go into the mountains. Please listen to my uncle's advice and don't be reckless.

Last summer, two kids from the city went inside, and they brought an old hunter with them.

After entering, no one came out.

Their family organized a search for more than ten days and found some broken clothes.

The supplies are very expensive and cannot be afforded by ordinary people."

Village Chief Lu wants to be a good friend of Li Yuan and answer all questions, but he doesn't want him to be young and energetic, and he doesn't know what the world is like.

"Don't worry, I'm just curious and won't go into the mountains easily," Li Yuan replied with a smile.

"That's good".

After saying goodbye and leaving, Li Yuan rode out of the small mountain village, his eyes already looking towards the mountains.

He had to show his strength and make Lujiapo Village rely on him even more.