Siheyuan, integrating everything, cultivating the city

Li Xiangqian's heart was slightly moved. Old Liu in the East Courtyard was indeed smiling recently, and he was much more diligent in going out than before, as if he was no longer worried about food. This made him wonder, could it be that Old Liu's family had some connections? At this time, most people in the courtyard were worried about food, and Old Liu's family was living such a comfortable life, which was indeed not right.

"Old lady, what you said does make sense. But the grain is distributed from above. What can we ordinary people do?" Li Xiangqian spread his hands pretending to be helpless, but he had already begun to think about the strangeness in his heart.

Old Mrs. Zhang sighed and shook her head. "Xiang Qian, I know you are smart and know how to tolerate, but we can't always suffer losses like this. You have to think of a way and not let others take advantage of you all the time."

Although her words were complaints, Li Xiangqian could hear the hint in them. Mrs. Zhang was an old resident of the courtyard. Although she had a sharp personality, she was shrewd and always had insight. There was obviously a deep meaning behind her words.

After seeing off Old Lady Zhang, Li Xiangqian thought for a moment and decided to go check out the situation in the East Courtyard. So, as it was getting dark and everyone in the courtyard went back to their rooms to cook, Li Xiangqian quietly slipped into the East Courtyard. He did not go directly into Old Liu's house, but stood outside the door for a moment, secretly observing through the half-open window.

Sure enough, the food on Old Liu's table was much richer than that of ordinary people. Although it was not delicacies from land and sea, some dishes were clearly made of refined rice and noodles, which was very different from the coarse grains of ordinary people.

Old Liu was eating with his family at the table, with a satisfied smile on his face. He ate and chatted. He said proudly, "I took the right path this time. You don't have to worry. As long as I'm here, the food problem won't be a problem."

"Are we taking the right path?" Li Xiangqian's heart skipped a beat. Could it be that Old Liu really had done something to the food?

After returning to his own courtyard, Li Xiangqian did not act in a hurry, but carefully weighed the pros and cons. The food struggle in the courtyard had been going on for a long time, and the Liu family in the east courtyard was just one example. Li Xiangqian knew that the real game was not just between these families, but on a larger level. If he rashly exposed Lao Liu, he might get into trouble.

A few days later, Li Xiangqian deliberately found an opportunity to "run into" Lao Liu on the street. He smiled and went up to greet him: "Hey, Lao Liu, your family has been doing well recently. We brothers are so envious!"

When Old Liu heard this, the corners of his mouth curled up slightly, with a bit of pride, "No, no, it's all thanks to the country!"

"That's right!" Li Xiangqian said with pretended envy, "But food has been getting increasingly scarce lately. I was wondering if you have any connections so we can benefit from it?"

Old Liu's face instantly became alert, and his smile froze for a moment, but then he returned to normal, "Connections? Hey, don't think about it, kid. I don't have any connections. I still rely on the government's allocation."

Li Xiangqian sneered in his heart, but he didn't show it on the surface. He continued to smile and said, "Hey, Lao Liu, don't hide it from me. We are neighbors. If you have any good things, don't forget your brothers."

Old Liu laughed and walked away, but Li Xiangqian had already seen the clues. Old Liu's reaction was too deliberate, and the more he tried to cover it up, the more it showed that he was indeed up to something.

This made Li Xiangqian more resolute in his judgment. He returned home and secretly planned how to uncover the secrets behind Lao Liu. Moreover, he knew that it would be difficult to shake the network of relationships behind Lao Liu's family by himself. This struggle was destined to be a tough battle.

A few days later, Li Xiangqian found a few neighbors in the yard who had a good relationship with him and began to reveal the situation of Lao Liu's family intentionally or unintentionally. "Have you noticed that the rice on Lao Liu's table has become finer recently?" he said casually.

"That's right," Uncle Wang nodded in agreement, "I also heard that they have meat to eat. Their life is much better than ours."

"I heard that Lao Liu has someone at the grain station." another neighbor added in a low voice.

Li Xiangqian's heart moved. It seemed that the news had begun to spread in the courtyard. He was not in a hurry to push it forward, but let this dissatisfaction gradually ferment in the courtyard. He knew that such things would soon cause a bigger fire as long as there was a little spark.

As expected, a few days later, people in the yard began to point fingers at the Liu family, and the gossip behind their backs gradually became more and more frequent. The Liu family obviously also felt the pressure and began to be more low-key, but this did not stop the spread of public opinion.

Finally, the conflict broke out by chance.

That day, the wife of Lao Liu came back from the grain station with a basket of rice and flour, and was seen by several neighbors. "Wow, this rice looks good. We haven't seen such white rice in a few days." A neighbor said with a sneer.

Old Liu's wife's face changed, and she was about to explain, but she was speechless because of the questions that followed. People began to gather around them, asking where their food came from and why they could get such good things.

Li Xiangqian walked slowly into the crowd with a faint smile on his face, as if he had everything under control. This was not the first time he had appeared in such a dispute, and he knew how to handle the situation at such a moment. At this moment, Old Liu's wife was obviously in trouble, her lips were tightly closed, her face flushed, and she didn't know how to respond to the questions coming from all directions.

"What's going on? What are you all doing together?" Li Xiangqian asked with a smile as he quietly glanced at Old Liu's daughter-in-law and the surrounding neighbors.

"Hey, Brother Xiang Qian, you're just in time!" Uncle Wang spoke first, pointing at Old Liu's wife, his face full of dissatisfaction, "Look, we just got our quota of coarse grains a few days ago, but how come Mrs. Liu's rice is finer than ours? Tell me, is this right?"

Li Xiangqian sneered in his heart. Sure enough, the situation had reached a critical point. He did not respond immediately, but pretended to be slightly surprised, walked forward, and carefully looked at the rice basket in Liu's hand. The white rice grains shone slightly in the sunset, which was completely different from the coarse grains that most families received.

Mrs. Liu clenched the basket tightly, obviously unwilling to let anyone get any closer. She tried to explain, but her tone was full of guilt: "Oh, this... this is the rice that my husband, Mr. Liu, bought from relatives with some connections. Don't get me wrong, we didn't get extra!"