Chapter 6

Dinner was cooked by He Yuzhu, only two dishes: stir-fried cabbage with meat, and braised potato chicken chunks; we ate white flour mantou. Though there are only two dishes, they are both meat dishes, and they are the hearty, filling kind.

The Repair Team had twelve people in total, plus He Yuzhu and his sibling, Li Bin's family of four, and Li Qiang still under twenty, they filled two tables fully; the old tables were small, and usually eight people per table, but luckily Li Huan, Li Le, and He Yushui could squeeze in.

"Zhuzi, come have a drink with us," Li Qiang noticed that the current He Yuzhu is not like how he's described in film and TV dramas; the current He Yuzhu is still rather immature and also shy; Li Qiang feels He Yuzhu can still be saved, and it might also be because He Daqing just left, and he hasn't been brainwashed yet.

Li Bin once told Li Qiang that Yi Zhonghai taking Jia Dongxu as an apprentice was actually just so that Jia Dongxu would support him in his old age. In fact Li Qiang knows, after all he's someone who has watched the original drama; Jia Dongxu hasn't died yet, and Yi Zhonghai hasn't paid that much attention to He Yuzhu, so Li Qiang decided to lend He Yuzhu a hand. After all, He Daqing also gave Li Bin plenty of pointers on cooking back then; although they had no formal master-disciple title, they had the substance of it, and in that era master-disciple bonds were very deep. That's also why many people are reluctant to take on apprentices: taking someone on means not only teaching them the skills to make a living, but also instructing them in how to conduct themselves in the world. To put it bluntly, the effort involved is no less than that for raising one's own son. That's also why, after many masters pass away, their disciples wear mourning clothes and hemp. Since He Daqing helped my older brother, I can't stand by and watch He Yuzhu be schemed into having no heirs by them. Besides, I also dislike Yi Zhonghai's ways.

"Qiangzi ge, I'm young, I haven't drunk much alcohol, my tolerance is low," He Yuzhu said embarrassedly.

"It's nothing, drink as much as you can, this is at home, no one is assigning you drinks," Li Qiang said with a smile to He Yuzhu.

"Eh," He Yuzhu readily agreed, and at the same time his eye sockets turned a little red; perhaps Li Qiang's remark at home touched the softest spot deep inside this teenager's heart. Since He Daqing left, the people in the Siheyuan have mostly been avoiding his siblings, for fear that they'd get contaminated by them, and only Li Bin would occasionally give them some food. That's also why Li Bin asked He Yuzhu for help, and He Yuzhu agreed without hesitation. Actually He Yuzhu isn't stupid; he's a very grateful person, otherwise he wouldn't have been taken in by Yi Zhonghai and ended up helping him with his funeral and old-age support. He gave Yi Zhonghai a lavish funeral, but his own ending was extremely tragic.

This is also what Li Qiang finds most hard to accept: you, Yi Zhonghai, schemed against He Yuzhu for life just to support your own old age, yet you never thought about who would support He Yuzhu in his old age when he gets old. In the end, He Yuzhu ended up freezing to death under a bridge, and it was his nemesis Xu Damao who collected his corpse.

"Zhuzi, your cooking skills aren't bad, how many years have you studied cooking?" Li Qiang asked after taking a bite of dish.

"Since I was little I've been influenced by my father's ears and eyes, and later my father sent me to the Abundant Marsh Garden to study Sichuan cuisine under my master; I've been studying for two or three years," He Yuzhu said embarrassedly.

"You're not going to study anymore?"

"There's no way to study anymore, apprentices don't get paid. I need to earn money to support Yushui," He Yuzhu turned his head to look at the neighboring table, where He Yushui and Li Huan were eating with grease all over their mouths, the corners of their mouths revealing a bitter smile.

"Believe me, everything will get better," Li Qiang said, patting He Yuzhu on the shoulder.

"Mm, it's fine, I, a big man, can support my sister," He Yuzhu said very firmly. Li Qiang looked at He Yuzhu before him and seemed to see Li Bin's likeness. At this moment he made up his mind to definitely help He Yuzhu, because he and Li Bin are the same kind of people, those who are willing to suffer injustice for their younger siblings.

Li Bin's household was lively and noisy while eating, and Yan Butgui, at home, had eyes full of envy and jealousy.

"What's wrong with you, you've been absent-minded all night," Third Aunt asked Yan Butgui.

"You say, what background does Li Bin's younger brother have? Today he not only bought Li Bin a new bicycle, but in the evening he also invited so many people to eat, even inviting the Zhuzi siblings, yet he didn't come to invite me. After all, I'm also the Third Master of this Siheyuan," Yan Butgui said sourly.

"How would I know that," Third Aunt said, giving Yan Butgui a white look.

"Dongxu, have you heard? Li Bin's younger brother from the back courtyard has returned, today he bought two bicycles, giving one to Li Bin," Jia Zhangshi's heart was also filled with jealousy.

"I heard Third Master say that, and I also heard that someone was working in the West Cross Courtyard this afternoon—could it also be related to his family?" Jia Dongxu asked.

"That's not clear, it should be related to his family, otherwise why would his family invite the workers to dinner in the evening? Even Zhuzi and Yushui went, I saw it myself—this afternoon Li Qiang brought back a big piece of meat, and there were three chickens as well," Jia Zhangshi said, and the more she spoke the more the steamed bun in her mouth tasted bland.

"So you're saying the West Cross Courtyard has been allocated to his family?" Jia Dongxu asked.

"I don't know, isn't Yi Zhonghai a First Master of this Siheyuan? How could he not know about this?" Jia Zhangshi asked Jia Dongxu.

"I guess he doesn't know either," Jia Dongxu said.

"Tomorrow I'll go ask Old Yi," Jia Zhangshi said, her eyes darting around. Currently the three of them live in one room, with a simple partition made in the middle; wanting another room has always been a concern of Jia Zhangshi's, and the West Cross Courtyard actually has three rooms—if her family could get one, that would be great.

"You at home, have you heard what background Li Bin's younger brother has?" Yi Zhonghai was also asking First Aunt.

"No, I heard it sounds like a soldier who came back, what's up?" First Aunt asked, puzzled.

"When a soldier comes back, he thinks he's something special, doesn't understand any rules, and after coming back he doesn't even know to come pay me a visit. After all, I'm also an Elder of this Siheyuan." Yi Zhonghai is a very face-conscious person; Li Qiang came to the Siheyuan but actually didn't go to his house to pay respects, truly not taking this Elder seriously.

A similar scene also occurred in Liu Haizhong's home.

"What's the deal with Li Bin's younger brother?" Liu Haizhong said displeased.

"What has it done to you?" Second Aunt asked.

"This Li Qiang just arrived and doesn't understand things—does Li Bin not understand either? Truly lawless toward superiors, the younger brother has returned and yet doesn't even know to report to me, this Second Master. Everyone should learn from him; in the future, how will he manage this back courtyard?" Liu Haizhong said resentfully.

Originally, when selecting the Household Manager for the Siheyuan, each courtyard chose one person: Liu Haizhong was responsible for the back courtyard, Yi Zhonghai for the middle courtyard, and Yan Butgui for the front courtyard. The so-called First Master, Second Master, and Third Master were three people distinguished by age for clarity—Yi Zhonghai being the oldest, he had the highest prestige among the three, thus becoming the First Master. Yan Butgui only ever schemed for petty gains, which earned him the title of Third Master. As for Yi Zhonghai being the First Master, Liu Haizhong has always been dissatisfied in his heart; he believes he is no inferior to Yi Zhonghai, so why does he only get to be second?