Siheyuan: Yan Jiekuang's carefree life

Yan Jiefang asked: "Jie Kuang, how much do you plan to sell it for?!"

Yan Jiekuang replied, "At the current market price, a job like mine is worth around 1,200 yuan. I should have no problem selling it for 1,000 yuan." He then asked, "Second brother, does anyone want to buy your job?!"

Yan Jiefang replied: "I don't have it here. How about I ask around for you?!"

Yan Bugui said, "You don't have to ask for Jie Kuang's help. There is someone in He Yuzhu's unit who needs a job. I will talk to He Yuzhu about the price tomorrow morning."

The third aunt asked, "Jie Kuang, your grades are out. When will the admission letter be delivered?!"

Yan Jiekuang hesitated for a few seconds and said, "I'm not sure about that. I estimate it will take about ten days or half a month!"

The third aunt calculated the days silently in her mind and thought to herself, "It should be before the New Year."

After dinner, Yan Bugui took the opportunity when Yan Jiekuang went to see off Yan Jiedi and his wife and Yan Jiefang's family to stroll to the central courtyard and knocked on He Yuzhu's door.

He Yuzhu heard a knock on the door and asked, "Who is it?!"

Yan Bugui replied: "Zhu Zi, it's me! Your uncle!"

He Yuzhu opened the door and asked, "Uncle, what can I do for you?!"

Yan Bugui said: "Didn't you ask me this afternoon how much I was going to sell the Jie Kuang work for?!"

"Yes!" He Yuzhu replied, and asked, "Have you asked for me?!"

Yan Bugui replied: "My family's Jie Kuang said he would sell it for 1,000 yuan."

He Yuzhu thought about it and said, "This price is not expensive. I will tell Lao Niu when I go to the company tomorrow."

"Okay!" Yan Bugui echoed, saying, "If you have any news, just tell me directly."

"Uncle, take care!" He Yuzhu watched Yan Bugui walk out of the middle courtyard gate and closed the door. Liu Lan asked, "Who wants to buy a job?!"

He Yuzhu replied: "Who else?! The old cow from the cafeteria."

"Are you talking about Niu Baisui?!" Liu Lan looked at He Yuzhu in surprise, and then asked, "Don't his kids all have jobs?!"

He Yuzhu said: "He also has a son who just came back from working in the countryside. He has been at home for more than half a year and has not found a job. Lao Niu plans to buy a job for this son. However, jobs are always in short supply. Even if there is one, it won't be his turn."

Liu Lan said: "Why doesn't Lao Niu give up his workstation?!"

He Yuzhu said with a grin, "The fourth son of his family has been eyeing Lao Niu's job for a long time. He is now an apprentice to Lao Niu, and will take over when Lao Niu retires. The job Lao Niu bought was for the third son of his family. The third son graduated from high school and got a job at the radio factory. It was a good thing. But Lao Niu's wife liked the fifth son. She secretly signed up the third son to go to the countryside. She even tried to force the third son to give the job to the fifth son. Lao Niu is lucky. His wife choked herself to death while eating rice dumplings at home during the Dragon Boat Festival last year."

Liu Lan said, "I heard about this. After all this time, she is Lao Niu's wife?!"

He Yuzhu continued, "After Lao Niu's wife died, his father-in-law took his sons to Lao Niu's house to make trouble. As a result, Lao Niu hired someone to beat them up. Now Lao Niu's family has no contact with his father-in-law's family.

The next morning, He Yuzhu arrived at the factory. As usual, he arranged the tasks for the day first, and then strolled to the cafeteria. Lao Niu, who was sitting on a chair drinking tea, saw He Yuzhu and asked with a smile: "Zhuzi, how come you have time to come here today?!"

He Yuzhu replied: "Lao Niu, I heard that you are planning to buy a job for your third child?!"

Lao Niu replied, "That's right. The child has been back for more than half a year and still hasn't found a job. Am I so anxious?! It's all my fault, that damn old woman. If it weren't for him, the third child wouldn't have to go to the countryside." Then he asked, "Zhu Zi, why are you asking this?!"

He Yuzhu said, "The son of the third uncle in the front yard of where I live passed the college entrance examination this year. He plans to sell his job. He is a regular worker in the logistics purchasing department of a heavy machine tool factory. He plans to sell his workstation for 1,000 yuan. I wonder if you are interested? If so, I will tell him when I go back today."

"Yes! So much!" Lao Niu replied excitedly, and asked, "When can I go through the formalities?!"

He Yuzhu said: "It depends on you."

Lao Niu thought for a moment and said, "After get off work today, can I go back with you and meet your neighbor to pay the deposit? We'll go and handle the formalities tomorrow. What do you think?!"

He Yuzhu thought for a few minutes and said, "Okay! Come find me after get off work. I'll go back first."

After He Yuzhu left, Lao Niu's fourth son ran to Lao Niu and said, "Dad, why don't you let the third son be your apprentice and take over your job in the future. Can you give me that job?!"

Lao Niu glared at the fourth child and said, "What?! You think the third child is easy to bully, so you only want to bully him, right?! I tell you, everything else is easy to talk about, except this one!"

When the fourth son of the Niu family heard what Old Niu said, he could only try his best to pout. Even if he was unhappy, he had to swallow it back into his stomach.

In a blink of an eye, it was four o'clock in the afternoon. Because Yan Jiekuang had exceeded the purchasing target for this month, he did not go out today and stayed in the office all day. Finally, it was time to get off work. Yan Jiekuang clocked in, pushed his bicycle out of the shed, and was about to go back when he was stopped by Zhang Jinshan.

Yan Jiekuang stopped and asked, "Team Leader, what's the matter?!"

Zhang Jinshan said: "The day after tomorrow, Jie Kuang, our factory has an important reception. We are still short of some ingredients."

Without waiting for Zhang Jinshan to finish his words, Yan Jiekuang asked, "Team Leader, what do you want to purchase?!"

Zhang Jinshan pulled out a list from his pocket and said, "These are the things. See how many you can get?!"

Yan Jiekuang took the list, looked at it, and asked, "Is there anyone in our factory who can cook Cantonese food?!"

Zhang Jinshan laughed and said, "I didn't expect you to know this?!"

Yan Jiekuang replied, "There is a chef living in my courtyard, and I've heard a little about him. You can find another way to get the meat, but I can handle the seafood. But what you want is too urgent, and the quantity is not large. I can only go there myself. The earliest I can be back is tomorrow afternoon."

When Zhang Jinshan heard that Yan Jiekuang could purchase seafood, he breathed a sigh of relief and said, "Okay! Just come back before work tomorrow." Then he reminded him, "Don't forget to bring your train ticket to claim reimbursement."

"Okay! I'll remember it!" After saying that, Yan Jiekuang got on his bicycle and left.

After leaving the factory, Yan Jiekuang did not go home immediately, but rode his bicycle straight to the train station. At the train station, Yan Jiekuang found a man who sold waste tickets. He bought two used round-trip tickets from Sijiucheng to Tianjin from him. As for the dates on the tickets, he asked them to change them to tonight and tomorrow noon.

"Jie Kuang, you're finally back!" A little after six in the evening, Yan Jie Kuang came back on his bicycle. He Yuzhu, who was waiting at the door, greeted Yan Jie Kuang with a smile.

Yan Jiekuang got off his bicycle and asked, "Brother Zhuzi, do you have something to talk to me about?!"