Aunt Liu was furious. This time, Silly Zhu and Liu Guangtian refused even more bluntly.
They were practically about to drive her out of the courtyard.
She had not even taken out the photos before the two of them ran off.
When she went to the rear courtyard, Xu Damao was not home either.
She could only sigh and leave.
As she passed through the front courtyard, Lin Zhen warmly called out, "Aunt Liu, come sit inside."
Aunt Liu shook her head with a smile. "I'm too embarrassed to stay in your courtyard any longer. I got shut down by two bachelors again."
"Ah, it's not worth getting upset over. Maybe they already have someone in mind."
Aunt Liu recalled the girl sitting at the doorway earlier and immediately understood.
She asked with a smile, "Qin Huairu's younger sister?"
"Mm, her paternal cousin, though she said she was her maternal cousin."
"Oh, I see. Well, it would be fine if they ended up together. I won't meddle anymore lately, so I don't interfere with their free love."
"Aunt Liu, come inside and talk. There's tea in the house." Lou Xiao'e came out of the kitchen with a smile.
Lin Zhen and Lou Xiao'e were both very grateful to Aunt Liu.
If not for Aunt Liu bringing them together, they probably would not have become a family.
Especially back then, when Lou Xiao'e's mother heard there was a film projectionist named Xu Damao in the courtyard who also came from a poor background.
She had been determined to marry Lou Xiao'e to Xu Damao.
But Aunt Liu had shaken her head straight away. "Xu Damao's job is good, but as a person, he's far inferior to Little Lin. If you truly want your daughter to be happy, listen to me and marry her to Little Lin! If Xiao'e ever suffers any grievance in her marriage, come find me!"
Aunt Liu's guarantee helped create a happy family.
After Lou Xiao'e's parents went abroad, Aunt Liu often spoke up for Lou Xiao'e.
When the neighborhood office praised Lou Xiao'e as a positive example of repentance, more than half the credit went to Aunt Liu.
This Mistress truly had a warm heart. It was just a pity she lived in another courtyard.
Lin Zhen was someone who repaid kindness. He returned virtue with virtue and resentment with straightforwardness.
He met the beasts in the courtyard head-on.
But toward his benefactors, he was never stingy.
The couple was always warm whenever they saw Aunt Liu.
Aunt Liu also knew the couple had proper values and had always liked them.
She had originally planned to go inside and sit for a while, but today she truly felt too embarrassed.
She had come to arrange a match, only to be rejected before she could even take out the photos. How could she possibly stay in the courtyard for a meal?
"No, no, I need to return to the neighborhood office. I heard Little Lin was promoted to engineer at the steel mill. Congratulations! Your family of six should celebrate properly. I won't disturb you."
Seeing that Aunt Liu truly meant to leave, Lin Zhen went inside and brought out two jin of fatty pork.
"Aunt Liu, I was going to render this two jin of pork fat into lard. Since you aren't staying for dinner, take this with you."
"Oh my! No, no! I can't take it. Silly child, you need to budget your life carefully. Even if your salary is high, you can't be so generous, giving this and that away. Even a mountain of gold would be gone if you kept giving things away like this!"
"Hahaha, don't worry, Aunt Liu. I traded my extra meat coupons from last month for this. Take it. I still have two jin worth of meat coupons."
Seeing that Lin Zhen truly insisted on giving it to her, Aunt Liu was not one to put on airs.
If they kept pushing it back and forth, stingy, calculating Yan Bugui would get jealous again, so she had no choice but to accept it.
But Third Master Yan Bugui had already watched the entire scene from inside his house.
The door was shut on the surface, but he was bent over, peeking through the crack.
"Hey! Seriously! I couldn't even get a meal after bringing wine, yet he gives away two jin of fatty pork just like that? They've been married five or six years and he's still thanking the matchmaker. That's outrageous!"
"Old Yan, why did you shut the door in broad daylight? I can barely see the eye of my needle."
Third Mistress, who was sitting inside sewing clothes, muttered unhappily.
"Wife, come look. Little Lin just gave two jin of fatty pork directly to Aunt Liu from the neighborhood office!"
Third Mistress curled her lips. "Sigh, they earn more, so they can afford it. He makes 126.5 yuan a month. If you could earn that much, I'd give things away too. I'd have Aunt Liu arrange a match for Jie Fang as well."
"Be content. It'll be good enough if we bring Yu Li into the family by the end of the year. Take it one at a time."
As Aunt Liu was leaving, she said, "Xiao'e, the neighborhood office's statistician, Little Li, has applied to transfer back to his hometown in the Northeast. The office will be short a statistician next year. I want to suggest that you take the job. You're educated and should be capable of it. Are you willing?"
Lou Xiao'e said, "I am, but my background is not good, and Lin Dong and Lin Liang are only three years old. I'm afraid there'll be no one to look after them if I go to work."
Aunt Liu smiled. "Those aren't problems. Our neighborhood office isn't like a factory where you must clock in and out on time. You only need to record the daily data properly. The work hours are flexible, and when I'm free, I can help watch the children too. The pay may not be as high as Little Lin's, but it will benefit your family."
Lin Zhen immediately said, "That works, that works. But there's no need for a salary. Consider it voluntary work. Aunt Liu, please arrange it."
"Alright. I'll go talk to my nephew and have him arrange an exam."
Her nephew on her mother's side was the director of the neighborhood office. He was shrewd and capable, and he respected his aunt greatly.
Eighty percent of Aunt Liu's suggestions would be accepted.
Yan Bugui, who had been peeking from behind the door, could not help giving a thumbs-up.
"Brilliant, truly brilliant. Two jin of pork in exchange for a good job!"
Third Mistress asked in confusion, "Why doesn't Little Lin want a salary?"
Yan Bugui said, "What do you know? He's worried Lou Xiao'e won't be able to get an official position because of her background. This is called pretending to be noble in order to get her into the system. Once she gets in, he'll ask for the salary."
"Oh, Lin Zhen really is quite shrewd."
Third Master Yan Bugui could only use his own way of thinking to guess at others.
But his thinking would always be on a different level from Lin Zhen's.
He would never know what Lin Zhen's next move was.
After Aunt Liu left, Lin Zhen and his wife returned to the kitchen as well.
Lou Xiao'e said happily, "Zhen, if I get into the neighborhood office, I won't need to worry so much about what you mentioned in the future."
Lin Zhen smiled. "We don't need that little bit of salary. For the next few years, just treat it as training and a way to enrich your life. When something happens, immediately issue a self-criticism statement and voluntarily resign. A few years of labor without taking wages will add another layer of protection for you. Once I win over Deputy Director Li at the steel mill, we'll be able to rest easy."
"Mm! I'll listen to everything you say!"
That evening, Lin Guo, Lin Jia, and Bang Geng had a wrestling match.
So the family's celebration feast was moved to noon.
There was chicken stewed with wild mushrooms, braised pork, fried peanuts, and scrambled eggs.
Lin Zhen did the cooking, while Lou Xiao'e helped.
Four dishes for six people.
Happiness was that simple.
In the blink of an eye, the fragrance filled the entire three-section courtyard.
Third Master Yan Bugui smacked his lips. "Wife, let's fry some eggs for lunch too. With this smell lingering everywhere, eating cornmeal buns will scratch my throat."
Inside the Jia family's home in the middle courtyard.
Qin Jingru smelled the meat.
"City people really are different. Back in the countryside, we wouldn't even bear to eat meat during the New Year. Auntie, what meat are we having for lunch?"
Jia Zhangshi, who had just fallen asleep on the kang, was awakened by the tempting scent of meat.
She cursed under her breath, "That damned Lin Zhen is eating meat again. Why doesn't he stuff himself to death!"
"Auntie, what are we having for lunch?"
Jia Zhangshi muttered irritably, "I'm going to the hospital to keep watch tonight, so I'm not eating during the day. Take Bang Geng and Xiao Dang to Silly Zhu's home to eat!"
"Huh? But Silly Zhu went out."
"There are pickles, steamed buns, and cornmeal at home. Make it yourself."
Jia Zhangshi angrily covered her head and continued sleeping, but her stomach betrayed her with a loud rumble.
Before you continue