1959Siheyuan, a Turnaround

Grandpa Li stamped his feet anxiously, took a few steps forward, and pulled Grandma Li to the middle of the yard. He pointed his finger at the sky and said anxiously, "Look at the sky, it's as dark as the bottom of a pot. There hasn't been a drop of rain in the first half of the year. The crops in our hometown Lijia Village are all cracked due to drought. When my grandfather was alive, he often said that after a drought, there will be a flood. It's right! If the coal is soaked by the rain, what will we use to make fire and cook in the future? What will happen to the whole family?"

Grandma Li listened to the old man's words, looked at the sky, and began to worry.

That’s right. Nowadays, every family uses honeycomb coal, and they all rely on the pile under the eaves. If it gets damaged by rain, it will be a big trouble.

Thinking of this, she said helplessly: "Okay, okay, I'll listen to you. You have so many ideas."

As he said this, he rolled up his sleeves and followed Grandpa Li to slowly move the pile of honeycomb coal to the kitchen.

Although the coal blocks were not heavy, the two elderly people were old. After each trip, Grandpa Li's waist became more bent, and Grandma Li was gasping for breath. The white hair on her forehead was soaked with sweat and stuck to her cheeks.

While they were busy, a series of hurried knocks on the door, "Knock, knock, knock", broke the busyness of the courtyard.

Grandma Li quickly put down the coal lump covered with coal dust in her hand, and without even bothering to wipe her dirty hands, she ran to open the door in two steps.

As soon as I opened the door, I realized it was Wu Bo.

The boy was sweating profusely and panting as he ran. His back was soaked with sweat. He was carrying a roll of tarpaulin on his shoulders and his cheeks were red.

"Hey, Xiaobo, why are you here today?" Grandma Li was surprised and happy. A smile instantly broke out on her face. Her eyes narrowed into slits. She quickly stepped aside to let him into the yard. "Come in, come in and talk."

Wu Bo looked around and saw that there was no one in the alley, so he carried the tarpaulin and walked into the yard with confidence.

As he walked, he said, "Grandma Li, I heard that there will be a heavy rainstorm soon, so many people have stockpiled tarpaulin to cover their roofs. I thought that Brother Weiguo is not at home and my uncles and aunts still have to go to work, so I quickly bought a bundle and sent it over to help cover the roof. If it rains, don't let the house get soaked, otherwise it will be more troublesome to repair it."

Grandpa Li, who was carrying coal, straightened up when he heard this. A relieved smile appeared on his face, and the crow's feet at the corners of his eyes showed happiness: "Xiaobo is really smart. He thinks the same as me. But, Xiaobo, can you do it alone? How about we wait for your uncles to come back and do it together?"

The old man looked at Wu Bo's slightly thin body with worry in his eyes. He thought that although the child was enthusiastic, what would happen if he fell on the roof.

Wu Bo looked up nonchalantly and assured him, "Grandpa Li, don't worry! I'll go up to the roof first and then use the rope to pull the tarpaulin up. This is definitely not a problem for me to do alone. I've been climbing up and down these alleys since I was a child. I'm very agile. Don't worry about me."

Seeing that he was full of confidence, Grandpa Li was relieved: "Okay, then do as you say. Be careful. If you feel tired or anything happens, come down quickly."

Wu Bo got to work right away and quickly brought the ladder. The ladder was a bit old, so he carefully checked it to see if there was any loose parts.

He took the rope handed to him by Grandma Li and climbed onto the roof of the Li family with nimble hands and feet.

After climbing onto the roof, he tied one end of the rope and let it hang down along the eaves, shouting loudly: "Grandpa Li, Grandma Li, it's connected!"

Grandpa Li and Grandma Li caught it steadily from below, tied the tarpaulin tightly, and tied every knot tightly, for fear that it would not be secure.

Wu Bo shouted "Get up" from above, clenched the rope with both hands, and pulled the tarpaulin up in two or three strokes. The blue veins on his arms bulged slightly.

After a while, the tarpaulin was laid tightly on the roof. There were a few corners that were not laid flat, so Wu Bo carefully adjusted them. He squatted on the roof and carefully moved the tarpaulin until he was satisfied.

The Li family was busy building the roof here, while He Daqing next door was playing with his little grandson in his yard.

The little guy was running around, being very naughty. When He Daqing looked up, he saw busy figures on the roof of the Li family next door.

He wondered why the Li family suddenly thought of building a roof when the rain hadn't even started yet?

After thinking for a while, he picked up the child and decided to go over to see what was going on.

"Hey, Daqing, why are you here with a child?"

Grandpa Li had sharp eyes. When he saw He Daqing come in, he greeted him with a smile, his face still showing some fatigue.

He Daqing smiled and exchanged a few pleasantries, then went straight to the point: "I saw that your family is renovating the roof, what's going on?"

Grandpa Li told him the whole story. When He Daqing heard it, his heart skipped a beat and he thought of the rooms in his own house.

Although the house where Sha Zhu and his wife live is relatively sturdy, the side where he lives has been in disrepair for many years. Whenever it rains, the corners of the walls become a little damp. If it rains heavily, it will leak, which will be troublesome.

Thinking of this, he didn't have time to chat any more. He said goodbye to the Li family in a hurry, returned to the courtyard with the child in his arms, stuffed the child into his daughter-in-law's arms, and went out in a hurry to buy tarpaulin.

Along the way, he walked hurriedly, calculating in his mind how much to buy, and also thinking about how to get back quickly to cover the roof without wasting time.

When He Daqing hurried back with the tarpaulin, Wu Bo had already neatly covered the roof at the Li family's side and everyone had left.

He Daqing was walking towards his yard with the tarpaulin in his arms, when, as luck would have it, he ran into Yan Bugui who was returning from get off work.

When Yan Bugui saw the bundle of tarpaulin in He Daqing's arms, his eyes widened and he asked curiously, "Old He, why did you buy so much tarpaulin?"

He Daqing didn't even stop and replied casually: "Cover the roof. Look at the sky, the dark clouds are so thick. I'm afraid the roof will leak if it rains heavily. I'll have to go back and cover it." As he said that, he quickened his pace and walked away.

Yan Bugui stood there, looked up at the roof of his house, curled his lips, and muttered nonchalantly: "It's just a heavy rain, what can it do?"

He has never seen the roof leak since he moved into this house.

There has been little rain this year, so there will definitely be nothing to worry about.

Besides, it costs a lot of money to buy this thing, it would be better to save it.

When it comes to living, you have to be thrifty.

After all, you won’t be poor if you eat and drink, but you will be poor if you don’t plan well.

When it comes to scheming, no one in this hospital can compare to him.

The sky seemed to be quickly covered with a thick black curtain by an invisible giant hand, and muffled thunder rolled faintly in the distance, as if sounding the prelude to the coming storm.

He Daqing took a look at the dark weather and couldn't help but quicken his pace.

As soon as Xu Damao entered the backyard, he saw He Daqing holding tarpaulin and discussing with Sha Zhu about going up to the roof.

His eyes rolled around, and his signature sly smile instantly appeared on his face. He strode over and said, "Hey, Uncle He, what's going on? You're in such a hurry to buy these old tarpaulins. Do you really believe it's going to rain heavily?"

As he spoke, he looked up at the sky exaggeratedly, the smile on his lips becoming more and more obvious, and his tone was full of ridicule, as if he was watching a farce.

He Daqing was in a hurry at the moment and had no time to pay attention to him. He just wanted to get the roof issue done quickly so that he could feel at ease.