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

He refused to take on the case at the time, citing the lack of evidence as the incident hadn't occurred. Now, Yi Zhonghai has really stirred up trouble.

This time, the case still fell into his hands, and he felt utterly bored, like someone who had been punished to clean toilets.

Before leaving, Zhao Dong looked at Yao Hao and said.

"Deputy Team Leader Yao, I've heard some inside information."

"I heard that the factory leaders want to transfer Yi Zhonghai back to the workshop under the pretext of assisting with on-site inspections. I reckon he won't be able to stay in the cleaning team for more than a few days."

Zhao Dong left after speaking, but Yao Hao did receive an important signal.

"You two go to the Sixth Hospital and keep an eye on Yi Zhonghai. If he's alright, bring him back to the security department tomorrow."

Yao Ke's men were destined not to be able to bring Yi Zhonghai back. After being admitted to the hospital for examination, Yi Zhonghai was given a hospitalization notice.

Yi Zhonghai's genitals were badly burned and blistered. Coupled with the pain in his body, he didn't close his eyes all night.

At that moment, he was filled with regret. Why did he have to provoke that wicked Qin Huairu?

Now look what happened! Not only did he fail to seduce her, but he also nearly lost his life and ruined his reputation for half his life.

I wonder what kind of trouble my wife will cause when she comes back.

Now that Qin Huairu has joined the security department, she'll probably try to shift all the blame onto him in order to protect herself.

……………………………………………………………………………………………………

On weekends, Cao Xu rests and goes out for some fresh air in the yard after breakfast.

Thinking about his promise to Ding Qiunan yesterday, he wondered whether he should go to see her or go to the Lou family to visit Lou Xiao'e.

Just as Cao Xu was hesitating, a sound of someone slamming their hand on the table came from the room next door, belonging to the deaf old lady.

"What did you say? Xiao Yi is in the hospital?"

"Was it Sha Zhu who hit him?"

"Because he acted inappropriately with Qin Huairu?"

Yes, Qin Huairu was fully clothed yesterday, while Yi Zhonghai was half-naked.

So a rumor spread in the courtyard that Yi Zhonghai was infatuated with Qin Huairu and acted like a hooligan.

"Impossible, impossible!"

"Yi Zhonghai isn't that kind of person. In my opinion, Qin Huairu must have seduced him!"

"Liu Haizhong, find someone to take me to the hospital. I want to ask him myself!"

Liu Haizhong shook his head inwardly after hearing what the deaf old woman said; this old woman was really biased.

With the facts laid bare, how could I possibly deceive her?

Yi Zhonghai isn't that kind of person, so is Liu Haizhong really?

No one expected Yi Zhonghai to embezzle money from the He family siblings, but what happened?

"Grandma, you're too old to go to the hospital."

"There are security personnel at the hospital, so nothing will happen. They'll let us know if anything does."

"This old lady will probably be back this afternoon. You should go with her then, so that the two of them don't fight."

The deaf old lady was stunned when she heard this.

"Where did the security personnel go?"

"Who went? Could it be Cao Xu?"

"Was what happened last night related to him?"

Cao Xu, who was in the courtyard, was speechless when he heard this. Had this old lady taken the wrong medicine recently, or had she not taken her medicine at all? Had she been kicked in the head by a donkey?

Liu Haizhong felt that the old lady was just picking a fight for no reason.

"Grandma, this matter has absolutely nothing to do with Cao Xu."

"If Cao Xu hadn't stopped your godson in time yesterday, Old Yi would probably be dead by now."

"If something happens to Lao Yi, Sha Zhu won't be able to get away with it either. He might even have to go to the shooting range."

"Cao Xu stopped this matter, which saved the lives of Yi Zhonghai and He Yuzhu. They owe him a huge favor."

"Also, Cao Xu is now the deputy head of the security department. Even if you ask him to help with this kind of thing, he might not get involved."

Cao Xu nodded in agreement after hearing Liu Haizhong's words, saying, "Smart. Everyone says Liu Haizhong isn't very bright, but it seems he has his strengths."

"Alright, let's not talk about these trivial things anymore. I'm going to the hospital now."

"You're not going to send someone with me, huh? Then I'll go by myself."

After saying that, the deaf old lady stood up, took her cane, and walked out.

"Ouch..."

The old lady usually walks quite steadily and doesn't need anyone's help at all.

Upon hearing the devastating news of Yi Zhonghai's passing, she was so anxious that she lost her footing and fell to the ground with a thud.

Upon seeing this, Liu Haizhong hurriedly ran over, wanting to help the old lady up.

But the old lady kept complaining of leg pain and couldn't get up.

Upon seeing this, Liu Haizhong quickly called over two young men who were at home and had them carried to the hospital.

Cao Xu watched as the deaf old lady was carried away. Well, at least the mother and daughter went to the hospital together this time, and they could keep each other company.

"Second Uncle, this old lady didn't help at all, but she certainly added to the trouble."

"You're going to have a headache from now on."

..............................................................................

Cao Xu finally decided to go find Ding Qiunan, so he rode his bicycle to the steel rolling mill.

He happened to see Ding Qiunan hanging out her work clothes to dry, and he called out to her while holding the bicycle with one hand.

"Comrade Ding Qiunan, are you coming or not?"

When Ding Qiunan saw that it was Cao Xu, she picked up the basin and went back to her room. After entering the room, she thought for a moment and then came out again.

"wait for me a while."

Before long, Ding Qiunan came out of the dormitory.

Cao Xu smiled slightly and said to Ding Qiunan, who was standing next to him.

"What are you standing there for? Get on the bus."

Ding Qiunan obediently got into the car and sat sideways in the back seat, but still seemed a little reserved.

The road conditions in this era were not as good as in later years, and the journey was inevitably bumpy. Ding Qiunan eventually managed to grab Cao Xu's clothes.

On the way, Ding Qiunan asked.

"Cao Xu, what do you usually like to do?"

Cao Xu said.

"I used to have a lot of hobbies, but now that I'm working, I mostly just read books and fish."

He loves fishing, both now and in the future, especially fishing for mermaids.

Cao Xu was riding a Phoenix brand bicycle, with a beautiful little girl sitting behind him.

On the way, they braved a chilly wind, and without realizing it, Ding Qiunan leaned against Cao Xu for shelter.

The boy was handsome and the girl was pretty, both young and full of life. The two 4-6 year olds rode their bicycles along the road to their destination, drawing envious glances from passersby.

As promised, Cao Xu took her to the library first. When they arrived, Ding Qiunan jumped out of the car, and Cao Xu parked the car on the side of the road and locked it.

At this moment, he noticed that Ding Qiunan was covering her face. He walked forward and reached out his hand, but before he could get close, Ding Qiunan took a step back.

"Be careful."

A bicycle rode by, and Cao Xu pulled her over immediately.

"Why are you dodging? You almost got hit by the car."

Thinking back to the bicycle that had just passed by, Ding Qiunan still felt lingering fear.

"I……"

Cao Xu reached out and tightened the scarf around her shoulders.

"I wish I hadn't ridden my bike. It would have been warmer to take a car instead."

Ding Qiunan smiled.

"But the journey takes a long time, and we have to wait there. In the end, we're exposed to the cold for about the same amount of time."

Cao Xu called out towards the main entrance of the library.

"Let's go see if they have the book you want to borrow."

Once inside the library, Ding Qiunan felt as free as a fish in the ocean or a bird soaring into the blue sky.

Unlike before, he had unconsciously gained a scholarly air about him.