Chapter 16: Yan Buguai’s Little Scheme
A gentle breeze stirred the leaves, scattering patches of sunlight across the ground.
Ding Qiunan smiled with pursed lips. “A while ago, I treated Mrs. He Hu at the courtyard and happened to see you there…”
Eyeing Li Aiguo, she hesitated slightly. “But back then, you seemed a bit different from how you are now.”
In Ding Qiunan’s memory, Li Aiguo had been despondent, his gaze vacant and spirit utterly drained.
Yet before her now stood a man in a pristine white shirt, sharply creased work trousers, polished black leather shoes, and neatly slicked hair—radiating vitality. He stood casually with hands in pockets, bathed in sunlight like a towering bamboo stalk, exuding boundless vigor.
He was, without a doubt, the most handsome young man in the entire city.
Li Aiguo was bewildered by Ding Qiunan’s words.
He could not recall anyone named Mrs. He Hu in the courtyard.
“Mrs. He Hu?”
“Ah?! There’s no Mrs. He Hu; it’s the deaf old lady. She’s on social welfare, very elderly and frail. Our hospital sends someone monthly to check on her health.”
Ding Qiunan paused, her expression shifting subtly as she hastened to clarify.
Her nervousness was caught outright by Li Aiguo.
Mrs. He Hu…
The deaf old lady’s surname was Hu.
And her husband’s surname was He…
Could she be the biological grandmother of Sha Zhu?
But these details were trivial.
What mattered was why that name was so crucial.
Judging by Ding Qiunan’s anxious demeanor, it was as if she had just revealed a grave secret.
Perhaps fearing further questioning, Ding Qiunan quickly changed the subject. “I also heard your Third Uncle mention you in the courtyard.”
…
Li Aiguo silently committed the earlier conversation to memory.
“You still know Yan Bugui?”
“A while back, our hospital was distributing free anti-worm candy, only to children under ten, by regulation. The Yan family had three children who qualified. But Yan Bugui insisted on getting five pieces.”
Mentioning Yan Bugui, Ding Qiunan’s youthful face was filled with helplessness.
“I explained the policy to him, but he claimed he and Aunt Third also had worms in their stomachs. If the hospital didn’t give him the candy, it was ignoring the people’s health.”
“He even told me if I gave him extra medicine, he’d introduce me to a match.”
“I was at a loss, so I gave him two extra pieces and got scolded by the director for it.”
“Yan Lao is really that stingy to do such things.”
Li Aiguo clicked his tongue.
Anti-worm candy was essentially the prototype of future tower-shaped medicinal sweets.
In this era, sanitary conditions were poor, and many harbored intestinal worms.
To address this, in 1952, a plant called wormwood was introduced from the Soviet Union.
Ground into powder and mixed with Cuban sugar, it was made into black medicinal pills—the anti-worm candy.
Consuming it caused intense stomach pain, then a rush to the latrine, as the worms crawled out through the anus—a rather terrifying ordeal.
Domestic cultivation was still limited.
The wormwood supply was scarce and prioritized for children.
Many adults suffering from worm infestations had to purchase the candy from hospitals.
One yuan per pill.
Yan Bugui thus pocketed two yuan—quite a windfall.
By noon, the rich aroma of cooking food drifted from every household.
Li Aiguo pondered inviting the young doctor home for a bowl of noodles.
Not out of stinginess—there simply was no high-quality flour at home.
Grain and vegetable coupons would only be available later in the evening from Wang Dakui’s place.
A clever cook cannot work without ingredients.
At that moment, a voice called out from afar.
“Hey, Aiguo, borrowing books, huh? Good to see you studying! So, what do you think about that match I mentioned last time?”
Yan Bugui approached, carrying a tin bucket and a handmade net.
He walked with a confident stride, clearly returning from a fruitful outing.
Third Uncle noticed Ding Qiunan following behind him.
His face changed, nearly dropping the bucket.
Pointing at Li Aiguo, then at Ding Qiunan, he stammered, “Why are you two together… So you know each other?”
“Yeah, Third Uncle, surprised? Happy?” Li Aiguo smiled.
He realized Yan Bugui’s intended matchmaker introduction was not for Ran Qiuyue, but for this young doctor.
“Third Uncle, I just met Comrade Li Aiguo yesterday—it’s not what you think,” Ding Qiunan said shyly.
She seemed uneasy, about to explain further.
Seeing her bashful expression, Yan Bugui slapped his thigh abruptly.
“Ah, how could you two know each other!”
Then he grabbed his tin bucket and dashed off like a rabbit.
“What’s wrong with him?” Ding Qiunan watched his swift retreat, puzzled.
Li Aiguo crossed his arms, chuckling softly. “Nothing much, Third Uncle feels he’s lost out.”
“Lost out? How so?” Ding Qiunan was more confused.
…
“I lost out, big time!” Yan Bugui hurried home with his tin bucket.
“Oh, three big ones, two small ones? Old Yan, you did well this time,” Aunt Third said, dropping her work to clean small fish.
“What profit? I’ve been tricked!”
“Who could trick you? Did you gain something else?”
Aunt Third gave a wry look at Yan Bugui’s gloomy face.
“This time, I’ve really been outplayed.”
Yan Bugui took a swig from his enamel cup. “Guess who I saw on the street just now?”
“I won’t guess,” Aunt Third rolled her eyes.
Yan Bugui took a deep breath. “I saw Li Aiguo and Doctor Ding! Their closeness, oh, you wouldn’t believe it.”
“Doctor Ding? The young Dr. Ding from the community hospital?”
Aunt Third’s expression grew serious. “How could she know Li Aiguo so soon!”
“Exactly! I was counting on matchmaking them to earn some fat pork, but now it’s all ruined.”
Yan Bugui clutched his chest in pain. “And if we introduce Doctor Ding, she might give us extra medicine when we visit the hospital.”
“Li Aiguo is reckless, bypassing me, the matchmaker, and talking directly to the girl.”
“Poor me, my win-win plan is completely ruined.”
He wandered into the house like a man who lost money, pulled the quilt over his head, and cried.
“My fat pork… my worm medicine…”
…
Yan Bugui didn’t stay upset long; soon he was laughing heartily.
Aunt Third burst into the room, calling to him wrapped like a dumpling, “Old man, business is here. Li Aiguo wants to borrow a bicycle.”
The crying stopped abruptly.
Yan Bugui threw off the quilt and sprinted to Li Aiguo.
Seeing tears in Yan Bugui’s eyes, Li Aiguo chuckled, “Third Uncle, getting roughed up at Aunt Third’s house?”
“Don’t stir trouble!” Yan Bugui said, hands behind his back, chin raised. “Aiguo, you’re an old resident, so you know our rule…”
“To borrow without free,” Li Aiguo said, pulling out twenty cents.
Yan Bugui’s eyes narrowed but he swallowed his words and handed over the wire lock key. “We’re close; I won’t ask for a deposit. But if it gets scratched or damaged, you have to compensate.”
“Got it, Third Uncle. Don’t worry—if I crash it, I’ll get a new one from Liu Haizhu. I think you saved up for this bike there, right?”
“Ahem, nonsense, this is a proper store-bought bike,” Yan Bugui stomped his foot just as Li Aiguo wheeled the bike out of the courtyard.
…
The summer sun set late.
Just after seven in the evening, the fiery clouds painted the horizon a vivid red.
After collecting tickets from Wang Dakui, Li Aiguo detoured to the Chaoyang Market.
He wandered through the stalls until he reached the meat vendor.
Only scant strips of pork remained on the rack—all lean cuts.
The middle-aged seller sat on a small stool, puffing away on a cigarette.
“Brother, any fat pork left?” Li Aiguo asked.
“Sold out since morning; only lean meat left, fifty cents a jin,” the man replied without looking up.
“Do you need meat coupons?”
“No need; no one buys this stuff anyway.”
“Alright, give me two jins.”
Li Aiguo handed over a yuan.
The man stubbed out his cigarette on his shoe, grabbed a cleaver hanging on the wall, and without much care, chopped.
A flash of white light followed, and Li Aiguo caught the meat.
The man sliced a small hole in the pork, tied it with straw rope, and hung it on the scale hook.
“Two jins, a bit extra.”