1959Siheyuan, a Turnaround

Li Weiguo's face was full of confusion, his brows slightly furrowed, and he thought to himself: What is Shazhu trying to do so early in the morning?

"Uncle Zhuzi, if you have anything to say, just tell me openly." Li Weiguo said in a deep voice, his eyes fixed on Sha Zhu.

He stood there, his arms folded across his chest, waiting for Shazhu's response.

Sha Zhu was not in a hurry and sat down on the stool slowly.

His face showed a row of big white teeth, and there was a hint of flattery in his smile.

"Haha, Weiguo, uncle does have something to discuss with you." Sha Zhu said, with a glimmer of anticipation in his eyes.

Li Weiguo did not respond immediately, but just looked at him quietly, waiting for him to continue.

Sha Zhu cleared his throat and continued, "My mother-in-law is here to take care of me after my baby is born, and we are running low on food. Can you find a way to get some food for me?"

There was a hint of urgency in Sha Zhu's tone. He knew the current situation at home and didn't want his wife and children to suffer because of him.

Li Weiguo still didn't say anything, but looked at Sha Zhu meaningfully.

There was a hint of doubt in his eyes, and he thought: How does Sha Zhu know that he can get food?

Sha Zhu looked at Li Weiguo's reaction and felt a little anxious. He quickly said, "Weiguo, I won't let you work in vain. How about I give you some more money?"

As Sha Zhu said this, he took out ten yuan from his pocket and handed it to Li Weiguo.

Hearing this, Li Weiguo couldn't help laughing.

There was a hint of helplessness in his smile, but also a bit of understanding for Sha Zhu.

"Uncle Zhuzi, what are you talking about? Do you think I care about that little bit of money?"

Li Weiguo said, with a hint of blame in his tone.

Sha Zhu smiled awkwardly and scratched his head. "Hey, uncle is really anxious. So what do you think, can this be accomplished?"

Sha Zhu looked at Li Weiguo eagerly, his eyes full of anticipation.

Li Weiguo felt soft-hearted when he saw Sha Zhu's anxious look.

"Okay, come and get it tomorrow morning," Li Weiguo said confidently, and then he also reminded him, "However, Uncle Zhuzi, this matter must not be known to anyone else."

When Sha Zhu heard this, he immediately breathed a sigh of relief.

A bright smile appeared on his face, as if a huge stone in his heart had fallen to the ground.

"Weiguo, uncle knew you had a way. Don't worry, this matter is known to heaven, earth, you and me." Sha Zhu said happily after getting the confirmation.

Li Weiguo did not ask what specific food they wanted to bring back, and Sha Zhu did not say either.

They understood each other tacitly and knew that some things did not need to be explained too clearly.

These days it’s good enough to have something to eat, there’s no room for being picky.

Then, Sha Zhu stood up and patted Li Weiguo on the shoulder.

"Then uncle will wait for your good news."

After Sha Zhu finished speaking, he turned around and left Li Weiguo's house.

Li Weiguo looked at Sha Zhu's receding back and couldn't help but sigh heavily.

These days, no matter who you are, you have to worry about how to fill your stomach.

It is said that a cook will not starve to death in years of famine, but the cook’s family also needs food and drink, right?

So, no matter what is said, it is not absolute.

Yan family.

The third aunt stood by the stove, busy making breakfast, thinking about the almost empty food at home with a worried look on her face.

Her eyes were filled with anxiety and helplessness, and the movements of her hands unconsciously slowed down.

"Life is getting harder and harder. The school is closed and the family has no income. Now the family can only survive on the little food they saved before. But there are too many people to feed at home and now the food is running out. What should we do?"

The third aunt murmured to herself, with a hint of helplessness in her voice. She frowned slightly, and the wrinkles on her face seemed to deepen.

The main source of income for the Yan family is Yan Bugui's salary. Now that schools are on vacation, Yan Bugui stays at home as expected.

However, Yan Jiecheng, a young man, could only do temporary work and his income was not stable.

Sometimes I can find some work to earn a few cents, and sometimes I just come back empty-handed.

Now the family earns little and eats a lot, with six people living off their savings. How can she not worry?

When the third aunt thought of this, she sighed softly and turned to look at Yan Bugui who was sitting next to her.

"Old Yan, we are running out of food again. How are we going to survive?"

Yan Bugui was silently sorting his fishing rod with his head down. When he heard what the third aunt said, he frowned and looked at her.

"How do we live? We live frugally. Whose family is not like this now? No one can get enough to eat. Look around the courtyards, how many families can get enough to eat every day?"

There was a hint of helplessness and fatigue in Yan Bugui's tone.

His face was full of sorrow and his eyes revealed worry about the future.

The third aunt nodded helplessly, "That's true. However, I looked at Weiguo across from us. He seems to have grown a lot taller and stronger. And Li Dahu and Li Xinchuang in the back room. They are not as listless as us."

There was a hint of doubt in the third aunt's eyes. As she spoke, she gestured with her hands to indicate Li Weiguo's height.

Yan Bugui thought about it carefully and nodded, "That's true. Li Weiguo has indeed grown a lot taller than last year. Now he is at least 1.75 meters tall, which is taller than Yan Jiecheng. It's just... these people don't eat in the yard, so we can't see them even if they are full. It's a pity."

There was a hint of envy and helplessness in Yan Bugui's tone.

After hearing what Yan Bugui said, the third aunt's face became even more sad.

She stopped what she was doing and clasped her hands together tightly. "I really envy the Li family's life. Aunt Li grows vegetables in the yard. At least we don't have to live on pickles like we do. Now our corn flour is almost gone. How are we going to survive as a family of six?"

There was a hint of crying in the third aunt's voice and her eyes were full of despair.

Yan Bugui felt uncomfortable when he looked at the third aunt.

He stood up, walked to the grain bag, opened the bag and looked inside. There was only a little corn flour left.

He shook his head helplessly. "Let's take it one step at a time. If all else fails, we can go ask the streets if there is any relief available."

There was a hint of hope and uncertainty in Yan Bugui's tone.

After hearing what Yan Bugui said, the third aunt nodded slightly, but the sadness on her face did not diminish.

She knew that their family might not necessarily be able to get relief on the street, after all, there were so many families who were worse off than theirs.

In the middle courtyard, the Yi family.

An old lady also looked at the little remaining food with a sad face.

"Old Yi, look, there's not much food left at home. It would be fine if the two of us could be patient, but the old lady can't bear it either."

The lady's tone was full of worry and she sighed as she spoke.

She remembered that the old lady had been managed by Yi Zhonghai over the years, and the family's food had to be carefully calculated.

Yi Zhonghai was sitting on a stool nearby, and when he heard what the old lady said, his face became solemn.

He frowned slightly and fell into deep thought.

"Didn't I just buy 20 kilograms of mixed grain noodles? How come it's gone again?"

He looked at the lady in confusion, but the helplessness on his face was obvious.