Courtyard House: Drunk and barging into the Xu family's house, I woke up numb.

"Thank you!"

Cao Xu walked to the stove, opened the door, scooped out the ash, and added some more coal.

"Cao Xu".

Seeing that Cao Xu was busy, He Yushui thought for a moment and then spoke first.

You probably already know about my situation.

Cao Xu put down the fire hook in his hand and said.

“I ran into you two at the Temple of Heaven last week. I was planning to settle things with you when you come back this week.”

“I didn’t expect your brother to be so impatient. He gave me a hard time first thing yesterday morning.”

He Yushui's face fell when she heard that her brother had come to cause trouble.

"I'm sorry, Cao Xu."

He Yushui apologized first, then asked somewhat nervously.

"My brother, he didn't do anything outrageous, did he?"

Cao Xu sat back down in his chair and poured himself a cup of tea.

"You should go back and ask him yourself about whether he's gone too far."

After saying that, Cao Xu sighed and picked up the teapot to refill He Yushui's tea.

"Has it been decided?"

He Yushui looked at the window by the door and said.

"It's settled, the 22nd of the twelfth lunar month."

Cao Xu picked up his teacup and smiled calmly.

"A happy marriage for a hundred years."

Upon hearing the words "May you have a long and happy marriage," He Yushui knew that the engagement was off.

Her relationship with Cao Xu had come to an end, and it was all her own choice; she had no one to blame but herself.

She raised her teacup in return.

"Thank you!"

I also wish you will meet the right person soon.

After finishing her tea, He Yushui took out a box and an envelope from her bag and placed them on the table.

"This box contains Aunt Cao's watch, and the envelope contains three hundred yuan."

"The bicycle that Uncle Cao bought belongs to a woman. He has been riding it for several years, and it belongs to a woman."

"It's not convenient for you to ride it out, so let's just buy a new one."

Cao Xu picked up the envelope, looked at the thick wad of money inside, and asked.

"He Yushui, a bicycle costs no more than 180 yuan."

"Are you trying to silence me with this extra money, or do you want to cut ties with me completely?"

He Yushui shook her head.

"Cao Xu, we practically grew up together, we ate from the same pot and slept in the same bed."

"Although we can't be husband and wife, we are still siblings and family."

"Can our relationship of over ten years be severed by this little bit of money?"

Cao Xu stared intently into He Yushui's eyes, observing her expression.

Cao Xu felt that He Yushui's words did not seem to be false, and he made up his mind.

"Alright, I'll accept the watch and the money. Let's leave it at that."

Hearing Cao Xu say those words, He Yushui breathed a sigh of relief.

"Then you should go eat, I'll head back now."

After saying that, He Yushui got up to leave, and Cao Xu said calmly.

"The chickens at Xu Damao's house were stolen by Banggeng, and your brother is going to take the blame for him."

He Yushui stopped and looked at Cao Xu, who was sitting in the chair.

"What did you say?"

"Did the chicken get stolen by the thief?"

Seeing Cao Xu nod, He Yushui sat down again and asked.

"you saw it?"

Cao Xu shook his head. He couldn't say that he had seen it, but he had a ready-made reason.

"I overheard Qin Huairu discussing something with your brother in the room before you came back."

"Given your brother's personality, he's probably already agreed."

He Yushui rested her chin on her hand and thought for a moment before speaking.

"Sister Qin is indeed living a very frugal life, but it's wrong for Bang Geng to steal things in the first place."

“My brother probably took the blame for her because he felt sorry for her and also because he felt sorry for Bang Geng.”

"Forget it, it's just a few words of abuse and a few dollars in compensation."

"If he's willing to carry it, then let him carry it."

Upon hearing this, Cao Xu thought to himself, "This really is He Yuzhu's younger sister."

"You're getting married soon, your fiancé should be the local police officer in our area."

Aren't you afraid this will have some impact on you?

He Yushui said nonchalantly.

"Well, it's just a show in the courtyard. They paid Xu Damao money, and that's the end of it."

"The idle gossip in the courtyard after meals doesn't have much of an impact."

Cao Xu looked at He Yushui with a complicated expression.

"I'm afraid Xu Damao won't let your brother off so easily."

He Yushui looked at Cao Xu with a suspicious expression.

"Cao Xu, did Xu Damao say something to you?"

Cao Xu picked up his teacup and said.

"What could he possibly say to me? Besides, I've already told you everything I needed to say."

"Just you wait and see!"

Chapter 17 Backstabbing: Xu Damao Betrays Cao Xu

The open space in the front yard of the courtyard house was full of people, and some people were standing or sitting under the veranda.

"Now that almost everyone has arrived, let's begin."

Liu Haizhong was the first to speak.

"We are holding this plenary meeting today for one purpose only."

"Xu Damao's family had one of their chickens stolen."

"At that moment, there happened to be a chicken stewing on someone's stove."

"Maybe it's a coincidence, or maybe it's not."

"I analyzed the situation with Uncle Yi and Uncle San and we decided to hold a hospital-wide meeting."

"Now, please welcome our most senior gentleman in the institute to preside over this meeting."

After Liu Haizhong finished speaking, he sat back down in his chair, picked up the enamel mug on the table next to him, and took a sip of tea.

Yi Zhonghai, sitting in the middle, looked down at He Yuzhu with a sullen face.

"I won't say anything more, everyone should know that already."

"He Yuzhu, tell the truth, did you steal Xu Damao's chickens?"

As soon as Yi Zhonghai finished speaking, Liu Haizhong and Yan Bugui fixed their eyes on him.

They had already spoken with Xu Damao, and they had plenty of arguments to keep He Yuzhu quiet if he dared to deny it.

However, to everyone's surprise, He Yuzhu did not refute at all, but instead readily admitted it.

"That's right, I stole Xu Damao's chickens!"

This statement caused a huge uproar among the crowd.