Siheyuan, integrating everything, cultivating the city

Li Damei was silent for a while after hearing him say this, then she gently put her hand on Li Xiangqian's shoulder and whispered, "I know you are worried, but you can't keep everything in your heart. You see, it has not been easy for us in the past few years, but I always believe that one day we will get through it. You are too eager for quick success, which will make you more and more tired. You should learn to relax. Many things cannot be solved by you alone."

Li Xiangqian smiled bitterly, feeling a pang of bitterness in his heart. What Li Damei said was indeed right. He knew that he had lost his way in his anxiety. He always felt that time was running out, and he was always thinking about how to find a solution in the shortest possible time. He even began to become anxious and impatient. However, Li Damei was always so gentle, and always comforted him with a peaceful attitude. But whenever he really returned to the predicament in reality, those peace and comfort seemed so powerless.

"I know, but you also know that these things really can't be delayed any longer." Li Xiangqian said in a low voice, his eyes unconsciously falling on the dishes on the table, and there seemed to be an inexplicable sense of loss in his heart.

Li Damei didn't say anything else, just smiled gently and turned around to continue busying herself with dinner. Li Xiangqian sat there silently, looking down at the dishes on the table, with an unspeakable sense of emptiness rising in his heart. Life at home was so ordinary and quiet, but this ordinary life became increasingly unbearable for him due to economic pressure.

She didn't say anything, just looked at her son silently, as if she had seen this scene many times and was used to it. Li Xiangqian put down what he was doing, raised his eyes and looked at his mother, but he couldn't hide a trace of fatigue in his eyes. His mother looked down at the soup in the bowl, then sighed softly.

"Wasting food again?" asked the mother.

Li Xiangqian did not answer, he just turned around and looked at the rice grains that had already fallen on the ground. As the sky gradually darkened, the golden sunlight shone through the branches of the locust tree and sprinkled on the piles of grain bags in front of him, like a gift from the earth, but also like a disaster without warning.

"It's always like this at this time of year," the mother continued, with a hint of helplessness and unspoken worry in her voice. "Food should not be wasted, not even a single grain."

Li Xiangqian knew his mother's persistence. She was the kind of person who would never waste any resources, especially food. She often said, "Food is the root of life and the foundation of life. It cannot be thrown away easily."

However, Li Xiangqian had a different voice deep in his heart. The place was no longer as barren and tense as it once was. The food reserves were enough to sustain the livelihood of everyone in the courtyard, and there was even a little surplus. The few grains of rice that he accidentally spilled on the ground seemed to be nothing at all. Even in this era of abundance and leisure, wasting a few grains of rice was not enough to shake anything. However, his mother's eyes always made him fall into deep thought without realizing it.

Li Xiangqian sighed softly in his heart, and a wave of inexplicable complex emotions surged in his heart. He looked at the wall of the quadrangle and gradually felt the familiar oppressive atmosphere, which was like an invisible yoke wrapped around his heart. It's not that he didn't understand his mother's persistence, but this kind of cherishing of resources sometimes made him feel constrained and suffocated.

"Mom, it's okay." He whispered, stood up, walked to the side of the yard, picked up the rice grains scattered on the ground, and put them into a small basket.

His mother stood there, her eyes fixed on his back, a subtle expression flashing across her eyes. She said nothing, but handed him the bowl of soup. Li Xiangqian took the bowl of soup, felt the warm breath, silently lowered his head and took a sip, then put the bowl back in his mother's hands.

"If you think these are not important, then don't waste them anymore." The mother finally spoke, her tone still so calm, but every word seemed to carry an invisible power that made Li Xiangqian's heart tremble.

He nodded, turned around silently, and returned to the place where the grain was piled. He continued to pick up the rice grains that were accidentally scattered on the ground with his hands. Although these rice grains looked insignificant, they seemed to have infinite importance in his mother's eyes.

The evening breeze blew gently through the yard, the air was filled with the fragrance of rice and wheat, and mottled shadows were cast on the walls of the quadrangle, as if time had stopped here, as if all these stories had quietly flowed for hundreds of years. Li Xiangqian stood there, looking at his mother's back, and suddenly realized that perhaps what he resisted was this obsession with the details of life. Those details that his mother repeatedly mentioned were like an invisible net that trapped him within the walls of the quadrangle, making him unable to break free.

However, he couldn't help but ask himself, are it these details that make life so fulfilling, or are they a kind of shackles that make him lose himself in the peaceful years?

"Mom, I understand." Li Xiangqian whispered, his voice a little hoarse. He put down the rice in his hand, stood up, turned around and walked into the house, where he heard his mother's warm call.

Li Xiangqian walked into the room, his heart still not calm. His mother's eyes were still hovering in his heart, like an invisible hand, gently grasping every bit of his emotions, making him feel suffocated. He pulled a chair over and sat down, tapping his fingers on the table, making a low sound. The air was filled with the aroma of the soup that his mother had just prepared for him, but Li Xiangqian's mind could not focus on this warm breath at all.

He couldn't suppress his dissatisfaction in his heart. Everything in front of him seemed so powerless and absurd. He just dropped a few grains of rice occasionally. This kind of thing should not be the focus of his mother's persistence. However, these things seemed to have a weight in her heart that could not be ignored. Her meticulous attitude made Li Xiangqian feel a little suffocated. She always asked herself in this way, asking everyone to cherish those trivial things that were originally not worth mentioning, as if those subtle details were all of life. Is she too persistent?

Unconsciously, Li Xiangqian's thoughts began to drift to He Yuzhu. This person, his friend, always made Li Xiangqian feel angry.

He Yuzhu was an old friend of Li Xiangqian, a friend who grew up together. The two had spent countless days and nights together, talking about everything. However, recently, Li Xiangqian gradually became annoyed with this friend. He Yuzhu's behavior became more and more disgusting to him, especially during this period, his attitude towards food made Li Xiangqian unbearable.