[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-the-siheyuan-food-love-and-family-in-1960s-beiji":3,"chapter-the-siheyuan-food-love-and-family-in-1960s-beiji-the-siheyuan-food-love-and-family-in-1960s-beiji-chapter-101":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","The Siheyuan: Food, Love, and Family in 1960s Beijing",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2314151,4526,"Chapter 101: An Encounter","the-siheyuan-food-love-and-family-in-1960s-beiji-chapter-101",101,"\u003Cp>After finalizing the construction plan with Li Xuewu and recording all his requirements.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Master Dou pulled out a notebook and began quoting prices: removing the already-prepared timber, bricks, and tiles, including the western courtyard, excluding furniture, the final material and labor cost came to 942 yuan, with construction fees at 150 yuan; they would send ten workers to complete everything within forty days.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This speed wasn’t slow, considering the era and the fact it was winter.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Xuewu nodded and said, “Fine, start with the western courtyard first—I’m not in a hurry. Can you begin tomorrow?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seeing Li Xuewu so straightforward, he simply placed five hundred yuan on the table, and Master Dou moved to collect it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Xuewu pressed his hand down on the money first and asked, “After forty days, I can use that room and the western courtyard’s grounds and warehouse, right?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Master Dou nodded vigorously. “No problem, absolutely. I’ll halt all other jobs and prioritize yours. I’ll come first thing tomorrow to dig the foundation.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That’s the kind of smooth talk craftsmen give—what work could there be in the dead of winter? This was his biggest job by far. But he had to say the right things, to make the employer feel he was doing him a favor.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Xuewu released his hand from the money and said, “Good. I’ve got the stove at home, plenty of firewood, plenty of coal, and I’ll provide one meal at noon. Tell my grandfather directly about setting up the frame, building the shed, warming the ground, and digging the trenches—but watch out for fire.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Master Dou nodded in confirmation. “Alright, tomorrow I’ll bring the crew to build the warming shed and light the fire to heat the ground. Only the top layer’s frozen—it’ll be easy.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Xuewu saw Master Dou out the gate, then returned inside to change clothes, preparing for his date.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Happiness is best won by your own effort; love lasts only when both sides strive toward each other.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With my looks, even if I married a princess, I wouldn’t be an imperial son-in-law—I lack the temperament and patience of one. Wouldn’t I just end up like Guo Ai, drunk and beating the princess?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He washed his face, shaved his beard, put on clean clothes, donned the same military overcoat as Dehua, teased the child playing on the kang with the old lady, then mounted his bicycle and headed for the roast duck shop.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>How nice it would be to have a car right now—it’s freezing cold at night.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He pedaled slowly to the shop’s entrance, glanced at his watch: exactly 6:15 p.m.—not early, not late.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He parked the bike, took the parking ticket, went inside, ordered one duck, paid, then stepped back out to wait.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Arrival of Heaven\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>About three or five minutes later, Lin Tingting arrived on her bicycle. Seeing Li Xuewu waiting for her at the door, she was delighted, parked her bike, and they went inside together.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was peak hour; they sat down, drank some hot water, had Lin Tingting order two more dishes, then began chatting.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Xuewu noticed Lin Tingting had applied makeup—he didn’t know how or with what, but her skin looked softer, her lips redder than during the day.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It truly proved the saying: men like a woman’s pretty face; women like a man’s sweet words.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So women learned to wear makeup; men learned to lie.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Xuewu was lying now, boasting about being a diligent, upwardly mobile youth, and his way of proving it was giving Lin Tingting a history lesson on roast duck.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Roast duck is a traditional dish, originating in the Southern and Northern Dynasties; the *Record of Delicacies* already mentions roasted duck, which was then a court delicacy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Made from premium meat ducks, roasted over fruitwood charcoal, it has a rich red hue, tender yet fatty meat that isn’t greasy, with a crispy exterior and juicy interior.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Beijing roast duck has two major schools, and Beijing’s most famous duck shops represent each school.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Renowned for its deep red color, tender texture, rich flavor, and non-greasy meat, it is hailed as “the finest delicacy under heaven.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In fact, Beijing people only began eating duck with such refinement during the Ming Dynasty—Emperor Taizu Zhu Yuanzhang, whose ancestral home was Nanjing, loved duck; his successor, Emperor Chengzu Zhu Di, loved it too, so the tradition continued.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lin Tingting nodded repeatedly as Li Xuewu enthusiastically recounted the history.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Xuewu felt Lin Tingting suited him well; both had steady jobs, and if they cleaned up the back-facing rooms, they could marry by year’s end and live the kind of life everyone envied.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They ate duck and chatted merrily, watching the snow outside, the room warm as spring, the food delicious, the beauty before them lively—like returning to the future—yet the occasional passersby in military green or cadre uniforms reminded Li Xuewu to keep his conversation measured.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>To Li Xuewu’s eyes from the future, Lin Tingting was undeniably a stunning beauty, though in this era she seemed a bit frail.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Oval face, 1.67 meters tall, she looked tall and elegant.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Due to her work, her speech was direct and sharp—he liked it, and he believed her family would too.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The fact that Lin Tingting agreed to have dinner with him meant she was open to dating.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As they chatted, the door creaked open and two Jeeps pulled up.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A group of men and women jumped out—some in military green, some in cadre uniforms, others in military overcoats—chattering and laughing, lively and noisy, drawing the gaze of everyone in the dining hall.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Xuewu had ridden in this type of Jeep that afternoon—the Soviet GAZ, not as handsome as the Willys Jeep.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Xuewu and Lin Tingting paused their chatter to watch the group.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Among them, a young man was loudly ordering dishes and claiming tables.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Among the group, a female soldier in a navy-blue, double-breasted military overcoat stood out—her figure was excellent, her face beautiful, her bearing refined.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Xuewu’s radar eyes scanned the crowd, then froze on one figure.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lin Tingting noticed Li Xuewu’s gaze and looked over curiously. “Someone you know?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Xuewu shook his head, smoothly shifting her attention.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Not really. See this scar on my face? That’s where she stitched me up—used a cotton swab to disinfect and just sewed it closed. I don’t even know if she used anesthesia. My comrade said I passed out twice from the pain.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hearing Li Xuewu’s joking account, Lin Tingting felt both frightened and heartbroken. Though they’d only met twice, his manner was comforting, and she wanted to give things a try.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Though his face was scarred, he was tall, had a good job, good conditions, and knew how to talk. Even his biggest flaw—the scar—was earned for the country.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As Li Xuewu recounted his past, the female soldier had sensed his gaze and, sharply aware, turned to look.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seeing a scarred face, she blinked slightly, then relaxed, her eyes softening.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She greeted her companions, then rose and walked toward them.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Xuewu stopped speaking as the female soldier approached, his eyes half-lidded, watching her.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lin Tingting noticed Li Xuewu’s expression had changed and looked over too.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seeing the medic Li Xuewu had mentioned walking over, Lin Tingting thought: “Didn’t he say he didn’t know her? Why is she coming over?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The soldier stopped beside Li Xuewu’s table, glanced at Lin Tingting, then at Li Xuewu, who remained seated, staring at her.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Your girlfriend? Was that why you turned me down this afternoon? She’s really beautiful.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Xuewu exhaled calmly. “None of your business. I made myself clear this afternoon.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The soldier walking over was Gu Ning.\u003C\u002Fp>",1280,"2026-06-20T13:46:54.288Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","5b76deba45188105566ec6cbdd6f741f42f3bdb0d043f7ae38f6d745c387b71b","the-siheyuan-food-love-and-family-in-1960s-beiji-chapter-102","the-siheyuan-food-love-and-family-in-1960s-beiji-chapter-100",1000,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fthe-siheyuan-food-love-and-family-in-1960s-beiji-cover.jpg"]