Siheyuan: Yan Jiekuang's carefree life

The old man at the gate glanced at Yan Jiecheng and said, "Wait!" Then he picked up the phone on the table and called Yu Li's workshop. Because it was almost time for lunch, Yu Li had almost finished her work. After receiving the notice, Yu Li quickly arrived at the factory gate.

"Thank you, uncle!" Yu Li greeted the gatekeeper first, then looked at Yan Jiecheng and asked with a smile: "Jiecheng, why are you here?!"

Yan Jiecheng said, "I'm going to Quancheng to study soon, right?! Our wedding room is ready, and now we just need the furniture. I'm here to discuss buying furniture with you." Then he asked, "This is not the place to talk. How about we go to the state-owned restaurant over there and talk while we eat?!"

Yu Li readily agreed: "Okay! You go over and order the food first, I'll go in and tell my colleagues."

"Okay! I'll wait for you there!" After saying that, Yan Jiecheng watched Yu Li enter the factory and slowly walked towards the state-owned restaurant not far away.

To be honest, Yan Jiecheng is really better than his teacher in terms of being stingy. Even to his girlfriend Yu Li, he is stingy. But in order to trick his wife home, Yan Jiecheng sometimes has to spend some money. The reason why Yan Jiecheng chose to eat at the state-owned restaurant near Yu Li's unit is that it is close to Yu Li's unit; secondly, the food here is cheap and tastes good. Walking into the state-owned restaurant, Yan Jiecheng habitually glanced at the blackboard hanging on the wall. Today the state-owned restaurant serves meat dishes. However, it is not the satisfying braised pork, but pork with preserved vegetables. It is called pork with preserved vegetables, but in fact there are only three or four slices of meat, which is about three or two taels, and most of it is pickled mustard greens.

Yan Jiecheng was determined to buy a dish of braised pork with pickled mustard greens, braised eggplant, hot and sour potato shreds, cabbage and tofu soup, and five steamed buns. (The steamed buns in state-owned restaurants are generally 2 taels each, and five per pound.) Yan Jiecheng had just put the food on the table when Yu Li came in from outside, sat down opposite Yan Jiecheng, took a look at the food on the table, and asked, "Why did you think of buying meat today?!"

Yan Jiecheng said, "You've lost weight recently. So I bought you some meat to make up for it." Then he picked up a steamed bun and handed it to Yu Li, saying, "Eat! Let's talk while we eat."

Yu Li took the steamed bun and impatiently picked up a piece of pork belly with chopsticks. She put it in her mouth, chewed it twice, swallowed it, and asked, "You said you wanted to buy furniture?!"

"Hmm!" Yan Jiecheng swallowed the steamed bun in his mouth and said, "I'll sleep in the attic. Just put a few boxes there. We have to add some furniture downstairs, right?! We can't leave it bare forever."

Yu Li asked: "What did your parents say?!"

Yan Jiecheng replied: "What else can they say? They don't care about this matter."

Yu Li understood the other meaning behind Yan Jiecheng's words and thought to herself, "Isn't the Yan family too stingy?! They are not willing to pay for their son's wedding?!" Although she was dissatisfied, Yu Li still endured it and said, "Jiecheng, our house is not big. There is no point in buying too much furniture. Why don't we add a set of tables and chairs and two wardrobes? As for the rest, we can add it later."

Yan Jiecheng said, "It won't be long before we get married. I'm afraid it's too late to find someone to do it."

"Are you stupid?! It's better to go to a commission store than to hire someone to do it. The products there are good and the prices are cheap." After saying that, Yu Li took a sip of soup to moisten her throat and then asked, "How much money do you have now?!"

Yan Jiecheng's heart tightened and he asked, "Why are you asking this?!"

Yu Li said, "You can do as much as you can with the money you have. We have already agreed that I will manage the money after we get married."

Yan Jiecheng had no choice but to take out an envelope from his inner pocket and said, "This is all my belongings. You must keep it safe!"

Yu Li took the envelope with a smile, opened it and took a look, then put it in the inner pocket of her clothes and said, "I didn't expect you to save a lot in the past few years?!"

Yan Jiecheng said, "I'm not at home anyway. You can take care of the furniture yourself."

"Okay! I know what I'm doing!" Yu Li agreed, picked up a piece of meat and put it into Yan Jiecheng's bowl, saying, "You're as skinny as a chicken, eat more."

At the same time, Yan Jiekuang passed by the entrance of the state-owned restaurant on his bicycle and saw Yan Jiecheng and Yu Li eating inside. Yan Jiekuang stopped his bicycle and said, "Mom, my brother and future sister-in-law are eating inside!"

The third aunt looked in the direction Yan Jiekuang pointed and said with a smile, "The young couple is bonding, so we won't join in the fun."

Yan Jiekuang understood what his mother meant, and he smiled and deliberately shouted loudly, "Sit tight!"

Yan Jiecheng, who was eating, heard Yan Jiekuang's voice and thought he was hallucinating. He looked out the window and saw his mother waving at him. Yan Jiecheng was stunned and muttered, "Why are they here?!"

"Who is it?!" Yu Li asked, turned her head to look out the window, and then said, "No one?! Are you seeing things?!"

Yan Jiecheng replied, "You're right! It's my mother and my third brother." Then Yan Jiecheng remembered that Yan Bugui told him that Yan Jiekuang and the others went to Zuojiazhuang, and said, "My mother took my brother and sister to my grandmother's house today. Logically, they shouldn't pass by here on the way home?!"

"Why are you thinking so much? Eat quickly!" Yu Li urged, and quickly picked up a steamed bun, broke it open, and put a piece of meat inside.

After about ten minutes, all the food on the table went into Yu Li and Yan Jiecheng's stomachs. After finishing the meal, Yan Jiecheng accompanied Yu Li to the gate of the textile factory. After watching Yu Li enter the factory, Yan Jiecheng left reluctantly.

At the same time, Yan Jiekuang brought his mother and sister to the entrance of Bianyifang. After parking his bicycle, Yan Jiekuang said, "Mom, it's boring to watch others eat. Let's go! Let's have roast duck for lunch today."

"You! Just like to spend money recklessly!" The third aunt said this, but still held Yan Jiedi's hand and followed Yan Jiekuang into the gate of Bianyifang.

"Hey! You three are having a good life, aren't you?" A little after 2 p.m., Yan Jiekuang, riding a bicycle with his mother and sister, just arrived at the entrance of the alley and met Yan Bugui and Yan Jiefang who were returning from fishing. Yan Bugui saw the Bianyifang paper bag hanging on the handlebars and joked with a smile.

The third aunt got off her bicycle and said, "On the way back, we saw Jie Cheng and Yu Li eating at a state-owned restaurant. We can't just watch them eat, can we?! Don't worry, we didn't eat alone. I brought it for you. You can heat it up and eat it when you get home."

Yan Bugui said, "After you left, Jie Cheng came back. He said he was going to Quancheng to study for a while. I guess he went to talk to Yu Li about buying furniture. Anyway, we shouldn't get involved in their affairs. If we don't manage them well, we will have to pay for it."

Yan Jiekuang took a look at the fish in the bucket and said, "You guys had a good harvest today?!"

Yan Jiefang said with a bitter face: "Don't mention it! If I hadn't held our father back, he might have become the Dragon King's son-in-law today."

"What nonsense are you talking about?!" Yan Bugui glared at Yan Jiefang, then smiled and said to his wife, "Don't listen to what this kid says. That's not the case."