Siheyuan: Starting from Building a Village

"How about a couple of drinks?" Liu Guozheng looked at Yi Zhonghai, who seemed a little sad, and knew in his heart that it was time to drink.

"Is it really possible?"

Yi Zhonghai asked with a tone of disbelief. Obviously, he knew in his heart that Liu Guozheng was dismissive of the people in Courtyard 95 most of the time. Only a few people were lucky enough to receive his help, and they lived a colorful life, which made others envious.

"off the shelf."

Liu Guozheng's answer was concise and clear. As for wine, there was always stock in the office's storage room, and the side dishes were even simpler, with ham sausage, canned beef, and spiced peanuts, all ready-made.

"To be honest, I never thought that there would be a day when I would drink with you, Liu Guozheng." Yi Zhonghai sighed. It was an open secret that Liu Guozheng had good wine, but few people could taste it. The good wine mentioned here was naturally not the kind that Xu Qing was dealing in on the black market.

"Alas, things in this world are unpredictable. Who can tell clearly what's going on in this world?" Liu Guozheng also sighed.

Yi Zhonghai agreed: "Well said, just for this saying 'things in the world are unpredictable', let's have a drink!"

After three rounds of wine and five dishes, the conversation naturally started.

"Master Yi, there is something I don't know whether I should ask you?" Liu Guozheng asked tentatively.

"You ask." Yi Zhonghai put down his wine glass and looked directly at Liu Guozheng.

Liu Guozheng asked curiously: "Why did you suddenly think of donating money? The deceased is gone, but life must go on. There is still a long time to go. Wouldn't it be better to save it for a rainy day?"

"I said I have figured it out, do you believe it?" Yi Zhonghai did not answer directly, but asked back.

"Haha." Liu Guozheng laughed dryly. He really didn't know how to respond. In his heart, he always felt that Yi Zhonghai must have some plan behind this.

Yi Zhonghai didn't seem to care about Liu Guozheng's reaction. He took a sip of wine, picked up some food, and continued, "Liu Guozheng, I donate this money under certain conditions."

"You say." Liu Guozheng said as he filled his glass with wine.

"I hope that after I am gone, those who have received my help can burn a piece of paper for me during the holidays." Yi Zhonghai's tone was a little heavy.

"If that's the case, you might as well leave the money to someone you think is reliable, such as Sha Zhu. Or you can just tell Sha Zhu that as long as he takes care of you in your old age, you can leave your savings, house, and work station to him," Liu Guozheng suggested.

"It's too late. If it was in the past, it might have been possible, but now Shazhu has changed. Maybe he is heartbroken." There was a hint of sadness in Yi Zhonghai's voice.

Liu Guozheng couldn't help but interjected: "Master Yi, speaking of this, you should have explained it clearly to Sha Zhu back then."

Yi Zhonghai smiled bitterly and said self-deprecatingly: "Ah, explain it clearly? Haha, I was not who I am now back then."

Liu Guozheng was obviously stunned when he heard Yi Zhonghai say this. Actually, Yi Zhonghai’s first choice for retirement care was not Sha Zhu at all, or rather, it was never Sha Zhu. In Yi Zhonghai’s plan, Sha Zhu had always been a blood bag.

Liu Guozheng fell into deep thought, he couldn't make up his mind whether he should agree to Yi Zhonghai's request. Yi Zhonghai waited quietly, hoping that Liu Guozheng could give a clear answer.

After a long while, Liu Guozheng slowly uttered two words: three years.

"What three years?" Yi Zhonghai asked with a puzzled look on his face. It was obvious that he didn't react.

"Regarding the use of your 5,000 yuan, I will add a condition. That is, after you pass away, the people who receive your help will go to your grave and burn a piece of paper on festivals, especially on days like July 15th and October 1st, for three consecutive years." Liu Guozheng explained.

"Master Yi, don't think these three years are too short. To be honest, even if they are your own children, after three years, all they will remember about you is that much." Liu Guozheng added, with a hint of helplessness and reality in his tone.

"Okay, I believe it." Yi Zhonghai smiled happily. Since Liu Guozheng said so, it means he has made a promise.

"Do you really believe it?" Liu Guozheng seemed a little surprised.

"Of course, otherwise I wouldn't have come to you on purpose." Yi Zhonghai answered affirmatively.

"Haha, Master Yi, aren't you afraid that you will make a mistake again this time?" Liu Guozheng asked half-jokingly.

"I dare not say anything about others, but as long as you, Liu Guozheng, agree, I will believe you." Yi Zhonghai said firmly, "I know that you are a person who always sticks to the matter and not the person. I can see this very clearly."

"Hahaha, Master Yi, come and take one."

Liu Guozheng raised his wine glass with a hearty smile. Being trusted by others is always a happy thing.

Liu Guozheng did not mention the issue of Yi Zhonghai being unable to continue working when he is old and frail. After all, Yi Zhonghai is not yet of retirement age and can still work for many more years. Moreover, he has his own house and workstation, which are real fixed assets.

When the day really comes that Yi Zhonghai can no longer work, he may have saved a lot of money, enough to support his old age.

Yi Zhonghai left while slightly drunk, so Liu Guozheng asked Xu Fang to take him home.

Before leaving, Yi Zhonghai once again asked Liu Guozheng a question: "Will anyone remember me in the future?"

Liu Guozheng's answer was very affirmative: "Yes."

He knew that someone in the future would make a film called "Love in the Siheyuan Courtyard", and every character in the play was remembered by people, whether good or bad. Especially in the field of online literature, the Siheyuan universe was derived, which became a category in the online literature world.

Whether anyone would remember this question reminded Liu Guozheng of the saying "A passing wild goose leaves its voice behind; a passing person leaves his name behind."

There are only two ways to leave a name for yourself in your lifetime: one is to be infamous for eternity, and the other is to be famous for eternity. However, for ordinary people, neither of these two is as good as leaving a legacy for their descendants to remember and cherish.

However, for someone like Yi Zhonghai who has no descendants, perhaps he feels that doing good deeds in his old age should always be remembered by future generations, or at least some of the people who have been helped should remember it.