Siheyuan: The Cellar

"Oh, old lady. Why are you still buying food by yourself? You are so old. What will you do if you get hurt?

From now on, for things like this, just tell me and I’ll ask my husband to buy it for you!

Otherwise, I can ask my wife to prepare it and bring it to you in the backyard, so you don’t have to light a fire by yourself, right?”

As soon as the deaf old lady stepped into the courtyard, Yan Bugui's voice rang out.

Although he was speaking to the deaf old lady, his eyes were always on her hands.

The deaf old lady naturally knew what the stingy old man was planning.

In addition, he had a toothache and was in a bad mood, so he didn't even bother to pay attention to Yan Bugui and walked straight to the middle courtyard with his crutches.

Of course, she wasn't walking very fast now.

Although Yan Bugui has been showing signs of being a hard-headed person for more than a decade, he still has some dignity overall.

Seeing that the deaf old lady ignored him, he naturally stopped pestering her.

"Old lady, please be careful! I won't take you back to the backyard!"

After greeting them, he picked up the kettle and went back to taking care of the flowers and plants.

Unlike Yan Bugui who was not affected at all.

In the Central Courtyard, the atmosphere on Yi Zhonghai's side was rather subtle.

Yi Zhonghai felt that he might have made the most wrong decision in his life so far: offering to help the deaf old lady with her retirement.

Look, now someone is relying on you?

Although she was missing a tooth, it didn't seem to affect her eating habits.

At this moment, he was sitting in Yi Zhonghai's house, eating the eggs in the bowl with big mouthfuls.

Yi Zhonghai and an older woman named Gao Huilan sat quietly by the side, neither eating nor talking.

Yi Zhonghai and his wife are now in their early thirties, less than forty, and have not completely given up the idea of ​​having a child of their own.

Most nights I am still diligently sowing seeds.

But who is Yi Zhonghai? How could he pin his hopes for the rest of his life on his wife's illusory belly? Of course, he had to be prepared for both situations.

Apart from starting to look for someone to take care of him in his old age, he rarely goes out to create opportunities.

It can be said to be a three-pronged approach.

Jia Dongxu and Sha Zhu are his backup candidates for retirement support.

The main reason why even Jia Dongxu could only be a backup candidate was because there lived in the backyard a child with excellent academic performance and no father: Chen Guoliang.

In Yi Zhonghai's view, such talents are the perfect candidates for his retirement care.

Otherwise, he would not have planned two consecutive meetings of the entire institute to cause trouble for Chen Guoliang's family.

He, Yi Zhonghai, a seventh-level fitter, could he be someone who was short of half a house and a few pots and pans?

There is naturally no shortage of answers.

Since there is no shortage of it, why should we take the lead in doing this thankless task?

Naturally, he wanted to force Liu Li and Chen Guoliang into a desperate situation, and then rescue them when they were most desperate.

But in time, maybe you can not only get a parent who is excellent in study and can achieve great things, but you can also get a new daughter-in-law with fair skin, good looks and good work!

Isn’t that much more fragrant than the one we have at home now?

For this purpose, he even went to discuss it with the deaf old lady.

As for why I consulted with the deaf old lady, there are two main reasons.

One reason was that he had inexplicably become the liaison officer of the hospital not long ago, and it was the deaf old lady who was behind it. In his opinion, the deaf old lady had some power.

Secondly, the deaf old lady was the first to become a neighbor of the Chen family's widow and orphan, and she also lived closest to them.

If we talk about how the people in the yard know about the mother and her son, then if the deaf old lady is second, then no one dares to say they are first.

At first, the deaf old lady naturally refused to give in.

The reason she gave was that she had feelings for the mother and son of the Chen family, and she had also taken care of Chen Guoliang when he was young.

Finally, Yi Zhonghai offered the deaf old lady a condition that she could not refuse, which made her start to tell him what she knew about Liu Li.

As for Chen Guoliang? He's just a little brat, who cares about him?

And this condition? Naturally, he, Yi Zhonghai, would help Jin Chengzhen take care of her in her old age and see her to the end of her life.

However, Yi Zhonghai now regrets his promise and falls into deep self-doubt.

Originally, the deaf old lady and Yi Zhonghai's family were just ordinary neighbors. Without common interests, the two families rarely interacted with each other on weekdays.

However, things became different after Yi Zhonghai agreed to help the deaf old lady with her retirement.

From then on, the deaf old lady would run to Yi Zhonghai's house from time to time.

It was fine at the beginning, just in the morning and afternoon, I would chat with Auntie Gao Huilan about family matters.

However, every time when it was time for dinner, he would go back by himself.

Yi Zhonghai got off work for three days, and he could see the other person at his home on two days.

Moreover, every time she went back, she would say, "It's almost time for dinner, and I, an old lady, have to go back to cook. Let's go!"

After many times, Yi Zhonghai couldn't help but politely said, "Why don't you stay here and eat, old lady? More people means more pairs of chopsticks!"

Who knew that it was this polite remark of his that caused the trouble.

Hearing this, the deaf old lady raised her buttocks and sat back down.

Then just sit there and wait for the meal to start, just like at a banquet.

At first, Yi Zhonghai really didn't care about this little thing.

Again, who is he?

Yi. Level 7 fitter. Zhonghai, how could he not even be able to afford to treat an old lady to a meal.

This person is almost buried in his eyelashes. How much can she eat?

Who knows, the deaf old lady seemed to have tasted the sweetness since this incident.

This happened every now and then. When it was time for dinner, she would just sit there on the stool without moving.

All that was missing was the bowl being placed upside down, and then he would knock it with two chopsticks and shout that the meal was about to begin.

Yi Zhonghai was still thinking, this old lady, her eyes were almost buried in her eyelashes. How much can she eat?

It's not like she comes every day, so let her be! It can also serve as an example for the young guys in the hospital.

It's also good for my reputation. No matter how you look at it, it's not a loss.

After that, the deaf old lady's eating became even worse, from eating once every few days to once a day, and then to twice a day.

But later on, he even stopped pretending. He stopped chatting with Gao Huilan and just arrived at the right time for dinner. Then he sat down and started eating. After eating, he left.

Not sloppy at all.

But at this time, Yi Zhonghai was planning to seize Liu Li's house in the name of the collective.

You can't have a falling out with this old lady at this time.

Otherwise, my reputation will be ruined.

If his reputation were ruined, how could he force Liu Li to give up her house and belongings in the name of justice?

However, not being angry doesn't mean that you don't feel aggrieved.

Today, I finally saw the deaf old lady go out when it was almost time for dinner.

Yi Zhonghai thought that the other party would definitely not come to his house for dinner again.

I was so excited that I almost set off firecrackers to celebrate. I asked Aunt Gao Huilan to fry a meat dish and a plate of eggs.

As a result, the meat and eggs were just served.

The deaf old lady arrived on time.