When Wang Ze saw the porters being stopped, he quickly stepped forward and said, "I'm the resident who moved into the backyard yesterday. I'm preparing to fix some things, and these are all building materials."
Yan Bugui was the courtyard guard arranged by the police station. Although he didn't get paid, they would send some supplies to these guards during festivals.
Although it wasn't much, Yan Bugui was very satisfied. This was the government's trust in him, so he took this job very seriously. Even when he went to school, he would have his wife watch the gate to prevent strangers from entering.
In those years, the country had just been founded, and social security and various spy activities made the police station pay great attention to the management of its jurisdiction. It was also for this reason that they found gatekeepers for each courtyard to prevent strangers and petty thieves.
"Oh, have you applied to the Street Office for approval to build a house?" Yan Bugui asked Wang Ze.
"Of course, I have, otherwise I wouldn't be able to buy these building materials," Wang Ze said with a smile.
After speaking, he let the workers continue to move. This time, he spent just over a million yuan on materials alone.
Industrial materials were really expensive now. Wang Ze estimated that even if he followed the Street Office's advice and hired someone to repair it, it would only cost a little over a million yuan.
Labor was cheap, Wang Ze sighed.
He led the workers to the backyard garden and pointed out the delivery location to them.
"Wang Ze, if you fix this place up, it would be really nice, but building a house is too expensive and not worth it," Yan Bugui, who was following behind, walked in, looked around, and said.
"Yes, I don't have money to build a house now, so I can only leave it for now," Wang Ze said.
The two stood by the Moon Gate, watching the workers move in and out.
Cement, bricks, wood, nails, and other items.
"Wang Ze, will you use all these materials to build one toilet? I want to build a partition in my house, why don't you give me some of your materials?" Yan Bugui looked at the materials being moved in and pulled Wang Ze, smiling ingratiatingly.
"Teacher Yan, all my materials are useful and were bought according to the plan. If you need to use them, you can also go to the Street Office to get a certificate and buy them, it's very simple," Wang Ze said without even looking at Yan Bugui, still watching the workers move.
"It's just that I don't need much, I mean, just share a little of what you have here with me," Yan Bugui didn't give up and continued to say.
Wang Ze could no longer smile. He didn't expect to be bothered by Long Laotai or Jia Zhangshi, but the first one to bother him was Yan Bugui.
"Teacher Yan, didn't I tell you that I bought them according to the plan? No, I can't give them to you. If you want to buy them, go buy them yourself," Wang Ze looked at Yan Bugui and no longer spoke subtly, directly refusing him.
Yan Bugui's expression changed upon hearing this. His pursed lips and serious face indeed had some of the authority of a teacher.
"You brat, I was just asking. We're neighbors, and you won't even help with such a small favor." Yan Bugui seemed a bit angry and left the backyard directly after saying that.
"Hey, you're even getting angry," Wang Ze muttered softly, looking at Yan Bugui's back.
He felt a bit exasperated. This was the first time he had seen such a person, but thinking about the many extreme characters yet to come, he couldn't help but feel like smiling.
Although Wang Ze wanted to get along well with his neighbors, he felt it was enough to just watch the fun. However, seeing Yan Bugui, he suddenly felt that his idea might be a bit naive. These people are not the type where everything will be fine if you just ignore them and don't get involved.
Thinking of Sha Zhu in the novel, Wang Ze felt that martial arts also seemed to be a skill that must be practiced.
And the sooner he practiced, the better. He no longer held any hope for this Forbidden City Courtyard.
It would be even better if he could find someone to exchange houses with, but with his two rooms and a 400-square-meter courtyard, it would be truly difficult to exchange them.
After all the materials were moved in and the porters were paid, Wang Ze locked the Moon Gate again.
He had to buy some vegetables. He felt he couldn't stand eating steamed buns and cabbage for lunch anymore.
He asked for directions all the way to find the location of the vegetable market. At this time, it was not yet rationed by tickets, so as long as you had money, you could buy things, which was very friendly to Wang Ze.
If it weren't for the fact that grain couldn't be stored for eight years, he would have suggested to the clan elders to start buying and storing grain now.
Later, even with money, you wouldn't be able to buy grain.
Tickets were the key.
Didn't you see a big case where someone impersonated a central government red-headed document and defrauded 200,000 yuan? This was 200,000 yuan in the early days of the founding of the People's Republic of China. As a result, this person didn't spend a single cent until he was arrested and even tried to burn the money to destroy the evidence.
There were still quite a few products in the vegetable market, at least much better than his potatoes and cabbage.
He bought a pound of meat, some green vegetables, chili peppers, and eggs.
The price of vegetables this year was really cheap. A pound of rice only cost 1100, which would be 0.11 yuan per pound if calculated according to the second set of currency.
Meat only cost 0.55 yuan per pound. Wang Ze felt like it was almost free at this price.
However, thinking about people's incomes at that time, Wang Ze adjusted his mindset.
He couldn't look at this world with a post-modern perspective anymore.
Back in the courtyard, as soon as he entered the gate, he heard Yan Bugui come up and say, "You bought so many things! Why don't you let your Aunt Yang cook them for you, and we can have a drink?"
Wang Ze quickly stepped aside to avoid him and said, "No need to trouble you, I can cook myself, and I don't drink alcohol, so I won't drink. I'll go in first."
After saying that, Wang Ze ignored Yan Bugui, who still wanted to speak, and quickly jogged into the backyard.
He didn't greet anyone along the way. He was afraid of encountering Jia Zhangshi trying to snatch things. He hadn't found his footing yet, and his martial arts hadn't improved. He couldn't be too strong during this time, lest he be suppressed by Sha Zhu's force. Even if he could bring the young people from his clan to seek revenge afterward, Wang Ze felt it wasn't worth it.
Next, he must improve his martial arts. As for being a chef, Wang Ze felt that compared to the bullying he might encounter later, martial arts were more reliable.
"This impolite thing, cooking meat and not even knowing to send some to the neighbors to taste," Jia Zhangshi muttered uncontrollably, smelling the stir-fried meat at the doorway.
"Mom, don't say that. He just arrived, it's normal for him to eat something good," Qin Huairu said when she heard Jia Zhangshi's words.
"Meat, meat... eat meat, meat," Bang Geng, who was just two years old, immediately stopped playing with mud when he heard 'meat' and got up to call out to Jia Zhangshi.
"Didn't you see Bang Geng wants to eat meat? Why aren't you cooking?" Jia Zhangshi shouted at Qin Huairu, who was washing clothes.
"Mom, where would we get meat?" Qin Huairu wiped the water from her hands and said helplessly.
"Good boy, wait until Daddy comes back to buy you meat, be good," Qin Huairu walked in front of Bang Geng, picked him up, and whispered.
Jia Zhangshi stopped sewing shoe soles and stared at Qin Huairu, saying, "Go ask that boy to borrow some meat."
"Mom, he just arrived in the courtyard, how can I borrow from him?" Qin Huairu said with great difficulty.
She had no way to deal with this mother-in-law. Even though she had given birth to a boy, her mother-in-law still treated her like a servant, which made her feel very wronged.
