When Li Tong brushed his teeth and rinsed his mouth in the courtyard, the three mothers on the side led several women in the courtyard to sit together while washing clothes and chattering about the farce that happened in the middle courtyard last night.

"That Xu Damao's marriage was disturbed, was it done by a stupid pillar?" I asked curiously if I didn't go yesterday.

"There is no shadow, then who, the old man of our family has said it, it must be the ghost of Xu Xiaozi in the backyard." The three mothers said confidently.

"Then, Xu Xiaozi is really bad enough, he didn't succeed in harming the Jia family before, and this time he caught Xu Damao again, what do you say he wants?"

"What else can I do, I guess he is looking at Lou Xiao'e again, how can you say that there is such a person in our hospital?"

"Otherwise, my Lou Xiao'e doesn't look good, and I can make them like this?"

"Say you're stupid, you're really stupid, what did the Lou family do before, what's wrong with the girl's bad looks, I can't stop marrying a gold mountain, and I won't have to worry about eating and drinking in this life."

For these aunts who can guess that it is the handiwork of the young man in the backyard based on speculation alone, Li Tong is a little unclear. However, Xu Damao made such a fuss yesterday, but it reminded Li Tong to hurry up and go to Lou's house to deliver an anonymous letter.

"My brother, why are you so slow every time you brush your teeth. Hurry up, we're leaving! Li Ailian stood on the steps outside the house and looked at Li Tong, who was still rinsing his mouth, and urged.

Li Tong wiped the foam from the corner of his mouth and rinsed the mouthwash cup and toothbrush, and responded, "It's okay right away." ”

Back in the house, the whole family was already dressed neatly, and even the eldest brother Li Guoqing, who had not been seen for a long time, also appeared. After leaving the hospital, the eldest brother pushed the borrowed flatbed cart over, the mother sat on the left, Li Tong and Li Ailian sat on the right, and the eldest brother was responsible for riding.

You don't think how good the dirt road in the alley can be, the road surface is potholes, and there is a lot of dust, it can be said that it is a body of soil on a sunny day and a body of mud on a rainy day.

As soon as the flatbed truck passed the hat alley, the second sister Li Ailian rubbed her butt and complained to the eldest brother that the car was too bumpy, and her butt was about to be split into two pieces, which made the whole family laugh.

The road is not far away, Li Tong and Li Ailian's fight will be at the place, and the eldest brother parked the car at the door of a match workshop in the fried bean alley. On the steps stood a woman in her early forties, with a *** hair that was more popular in previous years, and she looked very capable in a standard navy blue cadre uniform.

"Girl, long time no see. Xiaotong is not growing taller this year, this kid is really looking at the more he looks at it, my girl told me that Xiaotong was admitted to the top ten of the whole grade in the last exam, and he will definitely be admitted to college in the future. Girl, you're so blessed. ”

"Aunt Xu is good." Li Tong jumped out of the car and answered shyly.

"Sister Xu, don't you know how much trouble the third boy has caused me during this time, it's better to raise a boy than to raise a girl." Li Wang heard the other party praise his youngest son's good grades, and walked to the stone lion at the bottom of the steps, and said with a smile on the corner of his mouth.

"Yes, I'm more obedient than my brother." Li Ailian sat on the wooden cart and kicked her legs and nodded in agreement.

"Haha, little Ailian is still so cute." The woman surnamed Xu said with a smile.

This woman surnamed Xu is Xu Meiying, director of the Nanluo Lane Neighborhood Committee, and her mother is a native of Shanxi, and her husband Wei Kang is a business section chief of the Capital Light Industry Bureau, a real cadre with real power.

Three years ago, on the first day of her tenure as director of the neighborhood committee, Xu Meiying brought a big gift to the street, and the Light Industry Bureau approved a cooperative factory index for the neighborhood committee, a match workshop was built in the fried bean alley, a soap manufacturing factory was opened in Mao'er Hutong, and a coal processing plant was set up in Ju'er Hutong.

Today is the weekend, and the purpose of the Li family going to the match processing workshop is to come and receive the materials and flour for the pasted matchbox, which is to supplement the beauty of the family.

For every 1,000 matchboxes pasted, you can get 6 cents, and it definitely doesn't take more than three hours. And in addition to wages, the flour used to make the paste in the pasting box is also provided by the match workshop, if you can save some use when pasting the cartons, the white flour that can be intercepted in a month is enough to eat two meals of white flour steamed buns.

Therefore, pasting matchboxes is to supplement the beauty difference of the family.

Under normal circumstances, the match workshop will grant the flexibility of the paste matchbox as a worker's benefit to those workers with large families and living difficulties, and it is difficult for people outside the workshop to get it.

This is not the face of Director Xu, the Li family can only receive 20,000 matchboxes from the match workshop every month, and it has become a collective activity for the whole family to come over every month to receive supplies, unlike other families who will go to Shichahai, Ditan, Beihai or Wangfujing on Sundays to have a stroll and play.

Mother and Director Xu were talking at the door, Li Tong and the second sister followed the eldest brother under the leadership of the eldest brother into the match workshop, saying that the workshop was actually a civil courtyard reconstruction, workers plus management a total of 20 people, all of them are residents living in several nearby alleys, and some workers who know the eldest brother will take the initiative to say hello to them.

The production materials of the match workshop were piled up in the front yard next to the west side of the innermost part of the inverted house, and the eldest brother left Li Tong and the two of them in place before receiving the materials, and walked alone to the middle of the inverted room where the office was hung and knocked on the door.

"Is Brother Han here?"

"Who?" A man in the room asked, his voice loud.

"Li Guoqing, the boss of the Li family who lives in Qinlao Hutong, you have something to ask you for help with Brother Han, I don't know if it's inconvenient for you."

After a while, the man in the room replied, "Then come in." ”

The furnishings in the room are very simple, a desk, two benches, three benches, maybe the stove is lit to make the room very dry, Li Guoqing looked at Han Shichang, the manager of the match workshop who was sitting at the desk and crackling and settling accounts, and said respectfully.

"Brother Han, I'm sorry to disturb you, I came to you today to ask if there are any places for temporary workers in our match workshop?"

"What, it's you kid who wants to come over? I still have a vacancy in my hand, but we are a street workshop, and we don't have as much pay as you do in the grain store. Han Shichang looked back at Li Guoqing, who was slightly restrained, and explained.

Han Shichang is six years old today, Chinese New Year's Eve worked as a buddy in Wenguzhai in Xicheng Liulichang for several years when he was young. Before the advent of the new world, Wenguzhai closed down due to poor management caused by the war, and Han Shichang was idle. Later, after many years, when the streets opened workshops one after another and needed talents who could write and calculate, someone recommended him to work as an accountant in a match workshop.

The manager of the match workshop died of illness last year, and Xu Meiying of the neighborhood committee helped Han Shichang to become the manager of this small workshop of more than 20 people. Don't say it, Han Shichang also experienced a big scene when he was young, he had a broad vision and a bright brain, and he kept a small match workshop up and down in good order, and his turnover increased by at least 30% compared with previous years.

Because Xu Meiying single-handedly pulled herself up, Han Shichang also regarded himself as Xu Meiying's cronies, and the Li family was able to get the internal welfare of the match workshop workers, which was also handled by Han Shichang.

Han Shichang, the situation of the Li family, has also done an investigation, Li Wang's and Director Xu are fellow villagers and friends who can chat, Li Guoqing, the eldest of the Li family, is a tainted veteran, and the second and third are twins.

"Brother Han, it's not that I'm coming, I have two comrades-in-arms who came to the capital to join me, I want to ask you if I can let him work with you, at least to support himself." Li Guoqing took out two packs of Evergrande cigarettes prepared in advance from his pocket, took two steps forward and put them on Han Shichang's desk, and then stepped back.

Looking at the 3 cents and 3 packs of Evergrande cigarettes produced in Tianjin in front of him, Han Shichang shook his head with a smile, opened the drawer under Li Guoqing's nervous and worried gaze, swept the two packs of cigarettes in, pushed the drawer back, and leaned sideways to Li Guoqing and admonished.

"I can tell you in advance, only this one time."

Li Guoqing was stunned for a moment, and then he raised his eyebrows and kept bowing to Han Shichang happily: "Thank you, Brother Han, thank you, Brother Han." ”

Han Shichang waved his hand and said, "Okay, you don't have to thank me, I'm giving Director Xu face, who made your mother a good sister to her." By the way, I only have this last place left in my hand, you can figure out who to let come as soon as possible, and report directly to my office at eight o'clock tomorrow morning for onboarding. ”

Li Guoqing smiled bitterly when he heard this: "Then I'll go back and discuss with them." ”

Without waiting for Han Shichang to say anything more, he heard a woman's sharp shouting outside the house.

"Stinky boy, you stole our jujube last year, and you dare to come this year, I have to give you a melon today!"