Chapter 191: Joy Throughout the Courtyard

“He’s here! Director Li is here! And so is Yimin!” someone at the entrance of the siheyuan immediately ran back to spread the news.

Everyone in the courtyard perked up.

They had all been waiting for praise and rewards! The families whose children hadn’t participated were full of regret. Such an honorable event, and their household wasn’t part of it.

Before long, Director Li and Zhou Yimin walked into the siheyuan.

Zhou Yimin was holding the prizes in his hands. Some of these, like ration tickets, were his share.

He was well aware that the “earnings” from that song weren’t limited to just this—there would be more to come. It was only a matter of time before a film production team reached out to him, not to mention the Young Pioneers of China. But Zhou Yimin was in no hurry.

“Let’s all welcome Director Li to Courtyard No. 56! A round of applause, everyone!” The First, Second, and Third Elders of the courtyard were all good at reading the room, and they immediately rallied the residents to clap.

As soon as they spoke, the courtyard erupted in applause.

Director Li made a calming gesture with both hands and smiled, “This time, Courtyard 56 has brought great honor to our subdistrict. Very good. I’m here today mainly to hand out rewards.”

The children who participated in the performance had already been pushed forward by their parents and lined up neatly.

Everyone’s faces were beaming with smiles and anticipation.

Director Li began handing out the prizes, starting with a set of clothes for each child, including a pair of shoes.

That alone delighted the parents. Cloth was already hard to come by these days, let alone ready-made clothes—and these outfits were of decent quality.

“Wow! Just look at this outfit—it must cost at least several yuan per piece, don’t you think?” a woman said, practically bursting with joy as she stroked the outfit her child received.

A full set, plus shoes—wasn’t that worth nearly ten yuan?

The subdistrict office was being quite generous.

Cheng Siguang was also full of joy. Though his salary wasn’t low and he didn’t care much for the material reward, he cherished the honor his godsons had earned.

Shengli and Shengyi now treated him like their real father. Every day when he got home from work, they would bring him a towel, help him massage his back—it made all his exhaustion vanish.

What more could he possibly ask for?

Next came stationery—pencils, notebooks, and other school supplies.

These prizes weren’t to every kid’s taste. No matter the era, there were always children who hated studying. The moment they saw books, they got dizzy and just wanted to sleep.

“Smile, will you! Who are you sulking at?” one parent smacked their kid on the back of the head.

Director Li was watching!

What was that gloomy face for? Was the child unhappy with the subdistrict office?

After getting slapped, the little one squeezed out a reluctant smile.

Zhou Yimin couldn’t help rolling his eyes. If you want to discipline your kid, can’t you do it in private?

Not liking school wasn’t shameful. At least, Zhou Yimin felt the values taught in their courtyard were decent—not like some TV dramas where the whole family was a mess.

After all, studying isn’t the only path in life.

As long as one’s moral compass is intact and they’ve inherited the traditional virtues of China, they’re not a failure.

Finally, there were snacks: candies, preserved fruits, peach crisps—all things kids rarely got to eat. At this, every child was truly delighted.

“In a few days, the district will also be distributing rewards. I’ll come by again then,” Director Li added.

The Elders, always good at social etiquette, immediately launched into another round of flattery.

Flattery doesn’t cost a dime, after all.

Barring any surprises, Courtyard 56 had pretty much locked in the title of “Model Siheyuan” this year.

All the siheyuans competed fiercely for this title—not just for the sense of honor, but also for tangible benefits. Each household would receive a portion of peanuts, flour, meat, etc.

Even if the amount wasn’t large—mosquito legs were still meat!

Once the prizes were handed out, the parents led their kids home and began putting things away.

Take those new clothes and shoes, for example—no one would wear them now. They were being saved for Chinese New Year. As for the candies, one piece was enough for now—the rest would be stored away.

Director Li went to Zhou Yimin’s home to sit and chat for a while.

Not long after, the sound of children crying rang out.

Of course!

No need to guess—some parents must’ve gone overboard, probably confiscating everything except the school supplies.

The First Elder went to handle it.

“Pay attention to appearances! Director Li is still here! Not even giving the kid a single candy—how is that acceptable?” the First Elder stood up for the child.

The embarrassed parent let out a sheepish laugh and begrudgingly gave the child a piece of peach crisp.

Back at Zhou Yimin’s home, Director Li began discussing events from the past few days.

First, the comprehensive housing safety inspection carried out by their subdistrict revealed 13 buildings as hazardous. These were officially classified as dangerous structures, and the residents had been temporarily relocated until the danger could be eliminated and they could move back in.

This initiative not only earned the support of the residents but also won praise from the higher-ups, who even instructed other subdistricts to learn from their example.

Especially within their district, a full-scale inspection had already kicked off.

This had practically become a political task.

“Good thing you gave me the heads-up,” Director Li said with a mix of relief and gratitude.

Had someone been killed, their subdistrict office would’ve been in a tough spot. As the director, she would also have taken a hit.

Thanks to Zhou Yimin’s reminder, the whole thing had turned into a good deed.

Zhou Yimin humbly waved it off. “Auntie Li, it was your foresight that made it all happen. Otherwise…”

Director Li playfully scolded, “Don’t give me that. Enough of that. About your suggestion that we develop our own subdistrict-run businesses—I’ve reported it to the higher-ups. They support it in principle. It doesn’t violate any regulations.”

So, the subdistrict was now setting up its own construction team, planning to include one-third of the unemployed young men from the area.

From now on, all construction projects—big and small—within the subdistrict would be handled internally. They also planned to take on outside contracts to avoid disbanding.

At present, the subdistrict’s main projects were rebuilding dangerous housing and constructing the contract manufacturing plant.

“Next, about the factory—I’ve reached out to both the steel plant and the instant noodle factory. Both agreed to outsource part of their operations to our subdistrict,” she said.

With the construction team and the factory, nearly all the unemployed young men in the area would have jobs.

The only downside was that everyone’s wages would be low at first.

There was no way around that.

Whether construction or contract manufacturing, the profit margins were thin.

Still, this was fantastic news for unemployed youth. Having a job meant a better shot at finding a wife, too.

“That’s great. As long as it forms a positive cycle, the subdistrict will grow wealthier. Once there’s funding, more can be invested into renovations, keeping the construction team going,” Zhou Yimin said.

Of course, they couldn’t operate like the future—where roads are dug up and repaved repeatedly: once for electrical cables, again for water pipes, and then again for gas lines.

That might help boost GDP in the future, but in this era? If you want even a single peanut, try pulling that trick.

(End of Chapter)