Siheyuan: After I moved in, the compound became a mess

It was almost the end of the month, and the meat coupons in his hand would expire if not used. Yi Zhonghai had no plans to exchange them for money on the black market, so he went to the Dongdan vegetable market after get off work and brought back two taels of meat.

Even though I went there after get off work, the meat was quite good. Although the fat wasn't five fingers thick, it was still two and a half fingers thick.

On the way back, I stopped by the supply and marketing cooperative and bought some loose liquor for 50 cents, which filled a bottle. I put it in my arms and hurried home.

Recently, Yi Zhonghai has been deliberately distancing himself from Jia Dongxu. If they catch up on the way to and from get off work, they will go together. Before, Yi Zhonghai would wait for this apprentice after work, but recently he likes to go home alone and think about things on the way.

He has been hesitant in his heart, and his relationship with the Jia family has changed from being hot to being lukewarm now.

Sha Zhu's situation is more serious. Last time he got beaten, Sha Zhu watched him make trouble a lot.

Of course, when Sha Zhu was beaten, he was just a bystander. He originally planned to agree with Sha Zhu's words to improve the stiff relationship and suppress Xu Damao so that he could not be the mediator of the hospital smoothly.

The result is obvious: he shot himself in the thigh.

The lesson is profound. I can only blame myself for not thinking clearly and only caring about repairing my relationship with Sha Zhu and discrediting Xu Damao at the same time.

Yi Zhonghai sighed deeply. He had been almost lying on his face lately.

Before, when some residents in the compound saw him, they would enthusiastically call him "Uncle this" or "Uncle that" from afar, but he was selective in responding to them. If he was in a good mood, he would reply with a few words, and if he was not in a good mood, he would just nod. He did not worry that others would hold a grudge against him.

Today the situation is exactly the opposite, or even worse.

He took the initiative to greet people with a smile and had a kind expression on his face to everyone, even those he had never looked at straight in the eye. If they were in a good mood, they would pay attention to him, but if they were in a bad mood, they would roll their eyes at him. What's worse, they would walk away in disgust as if they were a stray dog.

Looking back to the past, how majestic he was when Sha Zhu and Jia Dongxu were guarding him!

I knew I would be in a bad situation if I lost my title of uncle, but I never expected to be ostracized like this.

He is still relatively better off. He works during the day and goes home at night. At most, he can stay at home all day on the weekend. But it is different for the aunt. She is a housewife and is now forced to take jobs making matchboxes on the street.

When Yi Zhonghai was still in office, all the women in the courtyard would gather around a certain old lady and talk to her. But now, even if a certain old lady wants to fit in, few people would pay attention to her or reply to her words.

This is the case when the aunt is popular in the courtyard. If she were like Jia Zhang, with her personality, she would probably be bullied every day and cry.

Along the way, Yi Zhonghai sighed countless times.

It’s difficult. When I get home I have to face my spouse’s nagging.

"Hey, Old Yan, I'm back from get off work. The weather is getting cold really fast. I think it's going to snow soon. You'd better stop moving the flowers outside. If you don't have time to move them inside, they will freeze to death."

Yi Zhonghai entered the main gate and passed through the hanging flower gate. When he looked up, he saw Yan Bugui tending to the pots of flowers in the house. "Come, I'll give you a hand."

As he spoke, Yi Zhonghai placed the meat on the windowsill of Old Yan's house, rolled up his sleeves and was about to help, but was stopped by Yan Bugui who rushed over.

"Forget it, Lao Yi. How can I dare ask you for help with these two pots of flowers? You must be very tired after a day's work. It's just a matter of me making two extra trips. You should just go home and eat."

After Yan Bugui stopped Yi Zhonghai, he adjusted his glasses. The cracks on the lenses disappeared, and the white tape on the temples also disappeared.

"Okay, then Old Yan, you are busy, I will go back first."

Yi Zhonghai smiled awkwardly, and reached out to roll down his sleeves. "I bought a piece of meat today and I'm going to send it back to his aunt. I'm afraid she has already prepared the meal."

After saying that, Yi Zhonghai picked up the meat, gestured, smiled, and turned away.

Another sigh sounded in Yi Zhonghai's heart. This Yan Bugui didn't even say a few polite words to him when he saw that he was carrying the meat. Their relationship must have really become distant!

Seeing Yi Zhonghai's figure disappear behind the moon gate connecting the front yard and the middle yard, Yan Bugui took off his glasses, laughed twice at the lenses, and instantly a layer of mist covered the lenses.

"Isn't it just a piece of meat? Why are you showing off? I even added a pot of flowers. Who am I showing off to?"

Yan Bugui took out a handkerchief and rubbed the lens, his small eyes fixed on the Moon Gate. "You, Old Yi, have come to this day. No one wants to talk to you. Do you think I am willing to do that?"

After wiping the lenses, Yan Bugui held the glasses in front of his eyes and looked at them over and over again. Then he put them on his little head with satisfaction and bent down to continue moving the flowers.

Yi Zhonghai wanted to help, but was rejected by Yan Bugui. He walked home with mixed feelings.

I glanced at the Jia family's house, but couldn't see clearly what was going on inside because of the large cotton curtain.

Yi Zhonghai entered the house, handed the meat to the aunt, and asked her to prepare the meal. He then made some tea, took the teacup and sat at the table, staring into the yard through the gap in the door curtain in a daze.

The old lady doesn't take many jobs making matchboxes, she just does it to kill time. If she wants to take more, the people on the street won't give her any. These days, there are many people who want to do odd jobs to supplement their family income.

After a while, Sha Zhu was seen coming back from get off work carrying an aluminum lunch box. Every time there was one or two things in the net bag, but this time there were three. Judging from the degree of the net bag's sinking, there was still a lot in the lunch box.

Sha Zhu hummed a song and leaned his body. When he passed by the door of Jia's house, he also took a look. Then he whistled and walked back home leisurely.

Yi Zhonghai couldn't help but sigh again. If it were in the past, Sha Zhu would definitely come to his house with a lunch box, and then take the deaf old lady over, and the few of them would happily chat and eat together.

He didn't want to eat this delicious dish, but he was just lamenting that time was gone and could never be returned.

Although his relationship with Sha Zhu cannot be said to be incompatible, it has become strained to a certain extent and cannot be eased by just a few soft words.

He once wanted to use the deaf old lady to ease the current situation between the two families, but he gave up in the end. Judging from the situation in recent days, it is not yet time to repair the relationship with Sha Zhu.

Yi Zhonghai has been hesitating about who to choose for his elderly care. If he had known this earlier, he should have adopted one. It is too late to regret now. After all, he and Auntie are both old.

After taking a big sip of tea, Yi Zhonghai narrowed his eyes, put the teacup heavily on the table, and then sighed again.

He decided to maintain his relationship with the Jia family first, and then find an opportunity to repair his relationship with Sha Zhu. He could not have any conflicts with anyone in the courtyard during this period, otherwise it would be difficult to end.

Ever since Wang Dabao moved into the compound, Yi Zhonghai has never had a good life.

No, it should be said that Wang Dabao suffered a lot before he even moved in. He was extorted twenty dollars at the funeral.

Afterwards, he and Liu Haizhong went over to pick a fight and each received a slap in the face. The other party's words were sharp, and they could only swallow their bitterness.

In the days that followed, Wang Dabao stirred up trouble in the compound. He first made friends with Yan Bugui, and then with Xu Damao, Liu Haizhong, and Sha Zhu, forcing himself to give up his identity as a mediator.

What's even more outrageous is that Liu Haizhong, Yan Bugui and Wang Dabao colluded with each other and nominated Xu Damao to be the mediator of the compound!

Now there is no place for Yi Zhonghai in this compound. If he wants to get promoted again, he can only wait for Liu, Yan and Xu to make mistakes and then pull him down.

But before that, he must be prepared!