Sumu wood in the quadrangle welcomes spring

Chapter 142 Past and Present

Dongxiao City is as crowded as ever.

The New Year is approaching, and in order to celebrate the New Year, every household is trying their best to use their extra or unused things to prepare some New Year goods.

Naturally, there are also people who take advantage of this and take out the good things that they are reluctant to enjoy in exchange for some real money to supplement their family income.

Although those tense years have passed for a long time, the sequelae cannot be completely eliminated so quickly.

There are always some families that get over it quickly and become more and more prosperous;

There will always be some people who have two broken ribs and cannot recover for three to five years.

Su Mu didn't take action.

Follow Chen Dakui and watch him operate.

It's like a master testing his apprentice's basic skills.

Even without Golden Finger, Su Mu still has this confidence.

There are obvious differences in thinking and philosophy between people who have experienced the information explosion and the business world and those who were born and raised in this era.

"Brother, can you tell me what's wrong with me?"

"It's pretty good. I'll get familiar with it in the past two days. You can do your work tomorrow while I go to the west for a walk."

"Hey, then I'll go back to the courtyard to find you when I'm done."

This is in front of the stall, Su Mu and Chen Dakui are chatting while eating.

The meaning of plain fire roasting and pork noodles to Sumu is far more than just a good bite.

What you put into your mouth still has the taste of the past.

After breakfast, Chen Dakui took Su Mu to the department store on a scooter.

The door hadn't opened yet, so the two of them were waiting in line outside.

He squatted in the corner of the sun-facing corner with his hands folded, white air rising from his mouth with every breath he took.

This scene is simply too common in the capital city of this era.

It has been exactly ten years since the Beijing Department Store was established, and customers are still crowded every day, especially at the three major items counters.

As we enter the end of the year, if we don't queue up in advance in the middle of the night, it would be a miracle if we can buy it.

You must know that the shoe and hat counter and the three major items counters have iron bars to prevent customers from crushing them.

Su Mu didn't buy many things, but it was because of the end of the year that small supply and marketing cooperatives or department stores were out of stock or incomplete.

Just come here directly.

Now it is also called Beijing City Department Store Wangfujing Department Store, which has led to the prosperity of the entire Wangfujing street.

The place where Su Mu and Chen Dakui were squatting was next door to the fruit stall set up by Bao Yu Zhai Food Store on Wangfujing Street.

Baoyu Zhai was merged into the Dongcheng District Food Factory a few years ago due to a public-private partnership. It has stalls in many places and sells fruits.

It's a little earlier than the opening time of the department store.

There are not many fruits in winter, and many of them are shipped from other places.

One day of selling means one day of freezing.

However, it is a seller's market these days. As long as there is goods, there is no need to worry about not being able to sell them.

Su Mu stared blankly at the red letter written on the wooden basket with the name Daoxiangchun Food Store.

Chen Dakui thought Sumu wanted to eat, so he stood up immediately and became the stall's first customer today.

I bought a bag of apples and stuffed them into the sacks I had prepared in advance.

Su Mu smiled and shook his head.

When the department store opened, the crowd began to surge towards the open mouth of the gold-swallowing beast.

Buy a set of cotton curtains, some fructose and toffee, and mainly wine-filled chocolate.

Going up to the second floor, you will see a whole wall of washbasins in the window directly opposite.

It was spectacular.

This is also one of his goals.

Chen Dakui helped line up.

Su Mu continued to move forward.

There is a very eye-catching display window on the left.

There are many domestically produced semiconductor radios, cameras, nylon shirts, scientific instruments and other products on display.

Inscribed on it are the eight characters "Self-reliance and hard work".

Almost every customer who passes by will stop and take a look.

Or appreciate it, or desire it.

Su Mu sighed in his heart.

He actually 'searched' for a lot of good stuff in Europe and the United States.

He even quietly visited the so-called airplane graveyard in the beautiful country.

He actually has a lot of high-tech gadgets stored in his space.

But because the golden finger was broken, everything before was in vain.

Including rewards, medals and all the money he had saved for his previous meritorious service.

People in the old Beijing say: Don’t go anywhere if you can’t buy something in a department store.

Although the species is complete, there are also many restrictions.

Just because Wangfujing Department Store is becoming increasingly prosperous, the number of customers is constantly increasing, resulting in queues for almost anything to buy.

Sumu queues up in a queue, Chen Dakui queues up in another queue, and continues to queue after buying...

Just like this, after buying all the things Sumu needed, it was already noon.

It's almost time for lunch, so the two men naturally don't buy groceries and go home to cook.

Go eat hot pot.

People in Beijing pay attention to eating in season.

In winter, you should eat beef and mutton.

Shabu-shabu mutton is a favorite method among Beijing people.

After all, the cost of beef and mutton is too high. Mixing it with other ingredients can reduce consumption costs, relieve stress, and try to make it possible for everyone to have a meal.

If you have plenty of money, you can eat more meat and less or no vegetables.

If you don't have enough money, you can eat some meat and eat more other vegetables.

Everything can be rinsed.

The old-fashioned brass charcoal pot was brought up, and four plates of green vegetables were placed.

Chen Dakui ordered 4 plates of meat.

"Brother, let's eat first. If we don't have enough, we can continue."

"it is good."

The current price of four plates of meat is equivalent to Chen Dakui's three hours of busy work at Xiaoshi just now, and he even added a little more.

But neither of them cared.

"hey-hey."

Chen Dakui suddenly laughed twice.

"What are you laughing at?"

"I was shocked when I thought that the first time you planned to teach me, we were also here to cook mutton. I was reluctant to eat it at that time..."

Thinking of the past, Su Mu couldn't help but recall the scene at that time.

It's as vivid as yesterday.

"Brother, let's go alone. Without you, I wouldn't be where I am today."

"This is serious. We are all brothers. Don't say those things that are out of sight. In the past two days, we have been working together and paying for each other. What did I say?"

Su Mu raised his glass and had sex with Chen Dakui.

"Dakui, it's time for you to start a family."

"Brother, there's actually someone we can talk to. We've agreed before, but we haven't decided on a time yet. It just so happens that I'll feel relieved when you come back, brother. I'll let the matchmaker go back and make peace. When the first month comes, I will move out and make room for you..."

"By the way, if you really want to get married, don't you have to find a house? Just live there. I don't lack a place."

Chen Dakui scratched his head in embarrassment.

The reason why Chen Dakui lives here, in the eyes of the sub-district office, is because of Sumu.

He also knew the situation.

So he has been occupying this place, helping Su Mu look after the house and the courtyard.

Chen Dakui had already found someone he liked in the first half of the year, and the other person had similar thoughts to him.

My home is in Dongjixiang Hutong.

Chen Dakui goes to Xijixiang Hutong every week to deliver meat to Aunt Li, and he has been doing so for the past two years.

If there is no meat in exchange due to some special circumstances, I will buy it out of my own pocket and give it to my aunt.

West Jixiang Hutong is a dead end, and the only way to enter is from the East Jixiang Hutong entrance.

The two met by chance many times and became familiar with each other as soon as they went back and forth.

Before the first month of last year, the girl's grandmother passed away.

Chen Dakui was busy riding the cart... In Su Mu's opinion, this was showing courtesy.

Then this girl has no relatives.

My father went to the Northwest a few years ago and has not been heard from since. My mother was exhausted from serving the elderly and taking care of their siblings, and ultimately failed to survive the famine.

Now my grandma is gone too.

She was the only one with her younger brother who was still in elementary school...

Is this considered an intrusion?
Su Mu thought so, but didn't say it.

Although he doesn't care, who knows if others care these days?
"What's this girl's name? You've said so much, but you still don't know what your future siblings will be called?"

"Yingzi, surnamed Quan."

Even if you say his name, Chen Dakui will look happy.

"Very good, I'll wait to drink your wedding wine when it's done."

After eating and drinking, the two of them went back. Chen Dakui rushed to pay for the meal.

Su Mu didn't care much about this kind of thing and there was no need to worry about it.

Even if he doesn't have much money now.

But it’s enough to live on.

What's more, after going to Xiaoshi for a walk today, I feel more confident.

how to say?

Prices have basically remained unchanged in the past few years, and the needs of users and sellers have also remained basically the same.

It was in 59 that the shortage of supplies allowed Sumu to make a little more money, and then it gradually returned to its original appearance.

The situation from when Su Mu taught Chen Dakui had hardly changed.

Not surprisingly, even if Su Mu didn't have a golden finger and the savings and materials he had worked so hard to accumulate, he could still live a pleasant life in this era.

Chen Dakui sent Su Mu home and wanted to help Su Mu clean it up, but Su Mu sent him away.

The old father at home is still ill, and he always cares about himself.

Su Mu is not an ignorant person.

I felt it in my heart and recognized Dakui as a person, so there was no need to drag him along with me in everything.

The technology of the hematoxylin stove was not very good, and it was completely extinguished in one morning.

However, the efficiency of the hematoxylin stove is still quite high, and I can feel the heat wave and the whistling of the wind coming from the corner of the chimney.

Satisfied, Su Mu put the newly purchased large kettle filled with water on the stove.

I fixed three nails on the outside of the balcony door and hung up the cotton curtain.

The old-fashioned cotton curtain is one piece.

There are three-finger-wide boards on the top and in the middle. The top is for easy fixing, and the middle is for flattening and blocking the wind.

There is a drop below the cotton curtain to prevent it from blowing in strong winds.

This time Su Mu happened to come across a new style and bought a new one.

Two smaller cotton curtains overlap by nearly five centimeters in the middle, with a wide wooden board on top to fix the curtains.

In the middle are two three-finger wooden boards, which can be opened from the side to enter, or the door can be pushed directly from the middle.

more convenient.

The pendant below is also very large, and there are also several ropes hanging down.

It is convenient to fix half of it, leaving only half for people to enter and exit. Compared with the previous whole piece of cotton curtain, it can keep people warmer when entering and exiting.

Opening it a little or opening it all will result in less heat escaping.

I hung up the cotton curtains and put away the newly purchased items.

When the hot water boiled, Su Mu took the kettle outside again.

Water tap.

If the faucets are not well protected, they will freeze easily.

The front yard is basically watered and boiled on a rotating basis.

It was just that Su Mu had just come back, and his legs and feet were injured, so the third uncle Yan Bugui did not rush to arrange for him.

Su Mu also understands.

When you buy a new kettle, you usually need to brush it before boiling water for drinking.

Sumu didn't clean the pot, just boiled it and used it to scald the faucet.

After boiling it, I took another pot and put it back on the stove to store some heat.

He took the newly purchased bucket and began to collect water into the house one bucket at a time.

There is a water tank in the small room on the first floor of the house, and there is also a water tank in the kitchen.

The water tanks I bought back then, except for a water tank and a pickle tank, were all piled up in the Sumu house after my brother and sister-in-law used them.

It may also be that the water tank is too heavy for others to move, so it has been sitting idle.

Su Mu planned to keep the stove burning this winter, so he didn't want to go outside to get cold water all the time.

Filled the two water tanks, and also filled the water tank in the kitchen with water.

Su Mu then sat back down by the stove and rested peacefully for a while.

In the middle courtyard, a girl with big braids quietly poked her head out and stared at the front yard through the hallway.

After realizing that there was no sign of Su Mu for a long time, he turned around and returned to the house.

I put my bag on my back, pushed a black lady's 26 bicycle, and quietly ran through the front yard like a thief.

He Yuyu only learned about Su Mu's return last night.

I'm glad I didn't run into him unprepared.

I went out early this morning and came back to pick up my things in the afternoon. When I turned around to go out, I heard the sound of Chen Dakui and Su Mu talking, so I hurriedly ran back and hid in the house without daring to come out.

It was better to wait until Su Mu entered the house and there was no movement at all before taking the time to run away.

It's not a problem to always be like this.

He Yuyu didn't feel entangled in his heart.

She now has a new partner, and has already met her parents. It has almost become normal to go to their house to help cook when she has time.

The little cook mastered her skills because of Sumu, but ended up becoming someone else's little cook...

The other party's family is in pretty good condition.

Now I have a job and a bicycle. Good things are coming. I also wear a Shanghai brand watch.

It is absolutely impossible to say that He Yuyu was not moved when he heard the word 'sumu'.

After all, I gave him many precious firsts.

I didn’t regret it at the time, and now that I’ve made the decision, I certainly won’t regret it either.

Especially the image of him in his mind that was heroic and upright back then, compared with his current posture of limping and struggling to walk.

The feeling of image disintegration is strong.

In contrast, the new target has a complete family and will have elderly people to help him in the future...

Such conditions really made He Yuyu unable to let go.

The most important thing is that she has surpassed her new partner.

Taking advantage of menstrual leave to get through...

The bumpy road ahead has been overcome, and there is no way back.

I have given up my heart and my thoughts.

Now she is afraid of meeting Su Mu and arousing the 'trauma' in her heart.

More importantly, she didn't want to face Su Mu again. She knew she would be embarrassed.

Very, very embarrassing.

During the Chinese New Year two years ago, the two of them were honest with each other and knew each other well.

……

Su Mu looked away, picked up the steamed buns and limped back to the back room from the kitchen.

Place the steamed bun slices on the stove mouth.

After boiling mutton, Su Mu was not hungry, so after working for a while, Su Mu wanted to bake slices of steamed buns to fill his stomach.

But unexpectedly, through the kitchen window, he saw He Yuyu's figure 'escaping' while pushing his bicycle.

A little anxious, but also a little embarrassed.

The mood is very complicated.

I can't tell if it's sadness or melancholy.

A little oil was applied on the steamed bun slices, and Su Mu turned the steamed bun slices over.

"Tomorrow I will go shopping alone in Beixiao City, which is the T-shaped alley of Prince Chun's Mansion..."

Force yourself to plan something else to divert your attention.

After all, I had given my sincerity back then.

It's just a combination of circumstances and fate, that's all.

(End of this chapter)