Siheyuan: From Chef to Black-Market Mogul

Reborn in the 1950s, He Yuzhu, a cook in a steel mill canteen, sees the true colors of the freeloaders in the courtyard and stops letting them take advantage of him.

Thanks to his access to the canteen kitchen, he secretly stockpiles scarce goods like grain, cooking oil, meat, eggs, cigarettes, liquor, and industrial coupons. He moves between black markets, underground channels, and factory supply departments, starting with quietly swapping ration coupons and eventually building a supply network across districts. Step by step, he becomes an untouchable black-market tycoon in the capital.

At home, he deals with Yi Zhonghai, Xu Damao, and the Jia family. Out in the world, he makes money, hoards goods, builds connections, and protects his own. In the tightest years of rationing, he lives better than anyone.