My Courtyard Shelter

Chapter 47: Playing Mahjong

No sooner had the power come back on in the Siheyuan than guests arrived—none other than Wang Xiujuan and her family. “Mrs. Wang, what brings you over?” Mrs. Xu went out to greet them. She was genuinely delighted by Wang Xiujuan’s visit; after all, Wang Xiujuan had helped her third son secure a job, and she owed her a huge favor. While helping her eldest grandson untie the scarf wrapped around his face, Wang Xiujuan explained: “Well, there’s a power outage, and it’s way too hot at home—we can’t stand it. I figured your place must have power, so I thought I’d just come over to cool off a bit.” “Ha, Old Wang, you’ve come at just the right time. I was just worrying about having nothing to do this afternoon. Why don’t we play mahjong? You, me, plus Zheng Yan and Nana—that makes four of us,” Mrs. Xu suggested with a smile. Wang Xiujuan’s eyes lit up, and she quickly nodded. “That’s a great idea! But what about the kids? You have triplets at home—we can’t leave them unattended.” “Don’t worry,” Mrs. Xu waved her hand. “My third son happens to be home. I’ll have him watch the kids today. And if that doesn’t work out, there’s always Ke Ke and Le Le—they can help out too. Rest assured, nothing will go wrong.” “Okay, so when should we get started?” “What are we waiting for? Let’s start right now! You guys wait here—I’ll go get the mahjong set.” Aunt Xu handed Xiao Bao to her daughter-in-law and hurried upstairs. She’d bought the mahjong set during the Lunar New Year; her daughter and son-in-law had been there at the time, and the whole family had played several rounds together. “Aunt Wang, Sister Zheng, let’s go inside—it’s hot out here,” Yang Lina reminded them. “Sure!” Wang Xiujuan nodded and asked as she walked, “When did your son, Xu Dong, get back?” “The Company let them off work a little after ten this morning, but there was traffic, so he didn’t get home until a little after one.” After saying this, Yang Lina set Xiao Bao down on the floor and then poured water to make tea for her guests. Zheng Yan also set her youngest daughter down on the floor to play with Xiao Bao, then remarked with a sigh: “Your husband Xu really has it easy at work. As for my husband Zhang, forget about time off—he has to work the night shift, so I guess he won’t be home for several more days.” Yang Lina smiled wryly: “How can you even compare? If my husband Xu had half the drive of District Chief Zhang, he wouldn’t be stuck working as a security guard right now.” Zheng Yan’s husband, Zhang Kai, had officially taken office as deputy district chief at the beginning of the month, taking a crucial step forward in his political career. Mrs. Xu even made a special trip over to present Wang Xiujuan with a generous gift. “You two, stop complaining. Listen to me—every family has its own set of problems. Don’t always envy others; just focus on living your own lives well,” Wang Xiujuan couldn’t help but chime in. In her view, her own son and Xiao Xu—one was ambitious, the other devoted to his family—couldn’t really be judged as better or worse than the other, but as husbands, both were undoubtedly qualified. “What’s going on? Why are you all looking so glum?” Mrs. Xu happened to walk in just then. Seeing the somewhat tense atmosphere, she couldn’t help but feel puzzled. Wang Xiujuan waved her hand. “It’s nothing. I was just offering them a little advice. It’s not easy being both a wife and a mother.” “What’s so hard about it? Didn’t we all go through the same thing? All right, Nana, go clear the table, and Zheng Yan, go get a few chairs from the bedroom.” “Got it.” “Okay.” Five minutes later, the tablecloth was laid out, the fruit platter was filled with snacks, and the card game officially began. Xu Dong, the “well-bred young lady,” finally made an appearance. After exchanging a few pleasantries with Aunt Wang, she led Xiao Bao and the two young guests upstairs. “Don’t let Da Bao and the others eat too many snacks—they won’t digest well tonight,” Yang Lina reminded her. “Got it. I know what I’m doing.” Xu Dong was no stranger to looking after children; he had his own little tricks. “Ke Ke, Le Le, you two play nicely with your little brother—don’t bully him, understand?” Xu Dong led Aunt Wang’s precious grandson into the twins’ room; the three were about the same age, so they’d get along just fine. “Got it, Dad. Hurry up and unlock the tablet,” Le Le said, barely able to wait. Xu Dong put on a serious face and reminded them again, “Only one hour per person. The three of you take turns. Whoever goes over the time limit won’t get to play next time.” “Got it, Dad!” “Got it, Uncle!” Little Zhang Yong had been to the Siheyuan a few times before, and he really liked it there. Not only did his uncle’s house have an endless supply of snacks, but he could also watch TV and play video games to his heart’s content. Xu Dong ruffled each of the three little ones’ heads in turn, then unlocked the tablet. Soon, the room was filled with the energetic sounds of the game. Xu Dong asked them to turn the volume down a bit before leaving the room, closing the door behind him as he went. As for the four little ones, Xu Dong carried them all to the large bed in the master bedroom, then attached temporary bed rails to the sides so they could sleep there. It was just nap time, so the little ones fell asleep after a little coaxing. Xu Dong sat beside them, reading online novels on his phone. Fortunately, he was reading completed novels that he’d cached beforehand, so he wasn’t affected by the lack of internet. Turning his gaze back downstairs, it was now Wang Xiujuan’s turn to play a card. “East Wind… Old Zhang, where’s your Old Xu? I don’t see him anywhere.” “Pong, three of a kind… He went to the store. He said he was worried about the place and afraid the employees would slack off,” Xu’s mom replied. “How’s business at the shop?” Wang Xiujuan asked curiously. Mrs. Xu smiled and said modestly, “It’s okay—enough to cover the cost of groceries, I suppose!” “Nine Wan… It’s got to be more than that. Last time I passed by your shop, there were seven or eight employees inside. How could you possibly be making just enough for groceries?” Wang Xiujuan countered. “Eight… What good are so many employees? I have to pay tens of thousands in wages every month. I used to make more running the convenience store!” Zheng Yan chimed in, “Auntie Zhang, are you still planning to open your convenience store?” “We’re not opening it anymore. Even if we wanted to, we couldn’t find a supplier now. There’s a shortage of everything on the market these days. Just look at how many small supermarkets have closed down on our street,” Mrs. Xu sighed. Wang Xiujuan agreed: “You’re absolutely right! By the way, when will your greenhouse be finished? I’ve already got my strawberry seeds ready—a new variety that tastes great!” “Well… let’s see how things look at the end of the month. My husband went to check, and there’s a huge shortage of glass right now, so we’ll have to wait a little longer,” Mrs. Xu replied. When the topic turned to vegetable gardens, Yang Lina immediately perked up. “Auntie Wang, the lettuce in my yard is almost ready. Why don’t you take some home later to try?” “Sure! I was just worried about where to buy vegetables tonight. Well then, I won’t stand on ceremony…” Before Wang Xiujuan could finish her sentence, Mrs. Xu suddenly exclaimed excitedly, “Ha! The Five Bamboo tile finally came… I won by self-draw!” “Old Zhang, you’re so lucky—you managed to draw the Five Bamboo when you were waiting for just one tile. I had two more tiles to go than you did. That’s really frustrating,” Wang Xiujuan retorted. “Haha… Today must be my lucky day!” Mrs. Xu said smugly.