I am Jia Dongjin in the Siheyuan (Courtyard House)

Chapter 6 Bicycles

"Uncle Li, Aunt Li, although I can no longer call you Mom and Dad, I understand that the kindness of raising you is greater than the kindness of giving birth. If there's anything you need at home in the future, just let me know. I haven't earned any money yet, so I only bought some bones. I'll make some bone broth to warm my stomach."

Harsh words can wound like a cold wind in June, while a kind word can warm like a cold winter. Jia Dongjin's adoptive parents made a great sacrifice to raise him.

Jia Zhangshi's actions were definitely wrong. If she doesn't give an explanation, outsiders will surely gossip about her.

"That's good, that's great!"

When Jia Dongjin rushed back and said these words, both elderly people's eyes reddened. Li Zaijing felt that he had raised this son in vain, and he began to speak, his beard twitching.

Uncle Li and Aunt Li were a saleswoman and a textile worker, respectively. Both were in poor health and retired on time when they reached retirement age, passing their jobs to their son and daughter. Their family was relatively well-off, which is why they agreed to let Jia Zhangshi take advantage of the situation, allowing Jia Zhangshi to get a son for free.

After catching up, Jia Dongjin, using Song Tao's name, made up a reason and agreed with the two elders to give his younger brother an old bicycle for his wedding. Only then did he hurriedly take his leave.

"Dongjin, wait a minute, your dad and your uncle want you to take this with you."

Before leaving, Aunt Li stuffed a large bag into Jia Dongjin's hand and insisted on giving him twenty yuan. The old woman forced Jia Dongjin to accept it before watching her former eldest son leave.

The setting sun casts its rays on the Republic of China-style signboard of "Xidan Vegetable Market," trolleybuses jingle as they pass through the empty intersection, bicycle bells ring crisply, a bicycle repairman is still busy at the alley entrance, and the distant chimes of the Telegraph Building echo softly. The whole street gradually quiets down in the twilight.

At this moment, Xidan is devoid of neon lights, but it exudes the warmth of everyday life. As dusk falls, people are heading home from get off work, strolling in twos and threes along the streets and alleys with their blue bricks and gray tiles. Children are playing hopscotch at the entrance of the alleys, and the aroma of popsicles and roasted sweet potatoes wafts from the street stalls. The outlines of the buildings along Chang'an Avenue are clearly visible in the sunset. If he weren't starving, Jia Dongjin could even sense the poetic silhouette of the slow-paced life in the old city.

It took Jia Dongjin an hour to walk, but less than fifteen minutes to cycle back to the courtyard house.

It was the time for people to get off work and go home, and as soon as they entered the courtyard gate, they caused a sensation.

"Uncle, this bicycle was put together by a friend. You can see the receipt if you don't believe me." For the first time, Jia Dongjin felt the deep malice of the courtyard house. As a modern person, he never thought that questioning and interrogation could be so disgusting.

"Hold on, you must hold on!" Jia Dongjin mentally prepared himself three times before he managed to refrain from hitting the cunning Yan Fugui.

As the gatekeeper of the courtyard house and also the third uncle in charge, Yan Fugui certainly had the right to inquire and understand. What Jia Dongjin found unacceptable was the undisguised greed in Yan Fugui's eyes.

Jia Dongjin knew he had nothing to do with enemy agents and had the right to refuse Yan Fugui's questioning. He had a good family background and was not afraid of the police station's investigation. Yan Fugui would not report to the police station and would not offend him to death.

Considering that he was new to the courtyard house, Jia Dongjin decided to be tolerant and maintain his harmless persona.

"Dongjin, don't be angry. I was just asking. It's not like I'll lose a piece of meat. Oh, what's in your bag? It looks like meat bones?" Yan Fugui asked and looked. Seeing that the bicycle was dilapidated and the parts included both Yongjiu and Fenghuang brands, he knew it was indeed made from scrap. Jia Dongjin also took out the receipts from the repair shop and the scrap yard. He gave up the questioning and started asking about the meat bones instead.

"The pork bones didn't require coupons; they were bought at the Xidan market. A pound of bones cost one mao (0.1 yuan). The cornmeal in the bag was a gift from my adoptive father. Third Uncle, is there anything else you want to ask?" Barely suppressing his anger, Jia Dongjin said coldly.

"Dongjin, it's my duty. I was just asking out of curiosity, it's the rule of our courtyard, you can't be angry. I'm doing this for the good of the courtyard, to prevent everyone from being cheated. There are steps at the central gate, it's hard for you to go up by yourself, I'll help you carry the bicycle." Yan Fugui's face was already weathered, but he suppressed his greed for meat and bones and helped carry the bicycle and package up the gate.

After entering the Intermediate People's Court, Yan Fugui did not leave. He followed them all the way to the Jia family's gate. Several men in the courtyard were washing their hands and eating. When they saw the two pushing bicycles, they curiously gathered around.

"Brother Dongjin, hey, this is a bicycle, where did it come from?" Sha Zhu was young and walked fast, and he rushed to Jia Dongjin in a few steps. He was still proud and didn't touch it, but carefully examined the first bicycle in the courtyard.

The other neighbors in the courtyard were quite unruly, touching and moving things around. Luckily, Jia Dongjin was from a previous life and didn't treat the bicycles that would be commonplace fifty years later as treasures. The one he had was a dilapidated model. If it were anyone else, they would probably be heartbroken.

After giving a brief explanation, Jia Dongjin casually parked his car on the veranda, grabbed the package, and went inside.

Yan Fugui was about to follow him inside when Jia Dongjin couldn't hold back any longer. He reached out to stop him and forced a smile, saying, "Third Uncle, could you please allow me to wash my hands first? We can talk about it outside later."

All three members of the Jia family were inside. Qin Huairu was preparing dinner, while Jia Zhangshi was resting on the kang (heated brick bed) in the inner room with Banggeng. All three heard the commotion outside, but they never expected it to be related to their own family, since bicycles were a valuable item they dared not even dream of owning.

Upon learning that Jia Dongjin had brought home a bicycle, Jia Zhangshi was immediately shocked. She jumped off the kang (a heated brick bed) and, without even putting on her shoes, shouted, "You stingy old man Yan, you actually dared to set your sights on me! Get out of here!"

Jia Dongjin talked for a long time, but Yan Fugui remained unmoved. When Jia Zhangshi roared, Yan Fugui trembled.

With a swift movement of his thin frame, Yan Fugui, like a nimble cat, vanished from the Jia family residence. Immediately afterward, his voice came from outside the door, "Sister-in-law, don't misunderstand, I want to discuss something with Dongjin. I'll wait for him here in the veranda."

Jia Zhangshi usually makes trouble even when she's being unreasonable, and it's obvious that she's in the wrong in this matter, so Yan Fugui doesn't dare to confront her directly.

After scaring away the enemy, Jia Zhangshi quickly put on her shoes and rushed out of the Jia family home, even intending to pursue them.

His mother had already stormed out the door. Jia Dongjin shook his head and could only hurriedly hand the meat bones to Qin Huairu. He then grabbed a towel and went to the tap to wash his face, while also answering the neighbors' questions to avoid unnecessary trouble.

Fortunately, Yan Fugui knew he had caused trouble for the Jia family, so he was enthusiastically answering questions for the people in the courtyard, saving Jia Dongjin a lot of trouble.

Seeing that Yan Fugui was sensible, Jia Zhangshi did not turn hostile on the spot. Instead, she stared at the bicycle with shining eyes, and occasionally the fat on her face would twitch.

"Let's all disperse now. Today, our courtyard has its first bicycle, which is great news. Everyone should go home and have dinner. Uncle Er and Uncle San both suggested that we hold a courtyard-wide meeting after dinner to discuss this joyous occasion." In the end, it was Uncle Yi Zhonghai who spoke up, finally calming the situation down. Everyone dispersed and went home to have dinner.

"No wonder you're beasts. I got a bicycle, what does it have to do with you guys? Is this worth holding a big meeting about? What the hell are you talking about?" Jia Dongjin cursed inwardly. After washing up, he returned home with a bitter smile.

"Dongjin, this really is your car. Don't lie to your mother." Jia Zhangshi was overjoyed. She didn't even look at dinner. She affectionately pulled her youngest son along and kept asking him all sorts of questions.

Qin Huairu also looked at her brother-in-law with surprise, wondering what this street urchin was up to. Only Xiao Banggeng smelled the meat and circled around the stove. Like a little puppy, he kept sniffing the aroma of the meat in the steam.

"A friend helped me, and I borrowed seventy yuan to buy it. I wouldn't dare do anything illegal." Jia Dongjin quickly "confessed" about the bicycle, naturally concealing the important part.

"What? You borrowed seventy yuan!" Upon hearing that she owed a huge debt, Jia Zhangshi immediately turned hostile. She sternly scolded Jia Dongjin for being wasteful, but after hearing that the bicycle was worth eighty yuan, she suddenly turned into a smile.

The speed of the change left Jia Dongjin in awe.

Yan Fugui's greed disgusted Jia Dongjin.

Jia Zhangshi's greed filled Jia Dongjin with endless bitterness and sorrow.