Courtyard House: Starting as an engineer, crushing a yard full of poultry

"Then what nonsense are you spouting? Don't bother the police!" Li Xiangdong sneered.

“Bang Geng is still young. If he gets a criminal record, his life will be ruined.” Yi Zhonghai pleaded with a red face, “You can’t condemn a child for making a mistake.”

"Yu Li, open the door and go inside to see what's missing!" Li Xiangdong said. "Don't wander around. If it's just a pot of chicken soup that's missing, deal with it in the courtyard. If there's anything else, then call the police."

Yi Zhonghai felt a chill run down his spine. Just now, Xiao Dang came to this old lady crying. She was crying because her grandma and Bang Geng were eating chicken together, and they wouldn't let her have a drop of soup.

An older woman named Jin Yumei liked Xiao Dang and often gave her food. Xiao Dang liked to come and visit Jin Yumei.

Upon hearing the word "chicken dinner," Yi Zhonghai immediately sensed something was wrong. He rushed to the Jia family's gate and kicked open the half-closed door.

Jia Zhangshi and Bang Geng were gnawing on chicken bones, and there was hardly any chicken soup left in the pot.

"Yi Zhonghai, what are you doing? You startled me!" Jia Zhangshi's plump face trembled. "What kind of expression is that?"

"Jia Zhangshi, are you out of your mind? How could you steal chicken soup from Li Xiangdong's house?" Yi Zhonghai said angrily.

"What do you mean by stealing? That kid was eating alone, so I had Banggeng go to their house to get some of their food. This is doing him a favor," Jia Zhangshi said nonchalantly.

"Do you think he's just an ordinary resident in the compound? You think I can handle him?" Yi Zhonghai said angrily. "When Li Xiangdong comes back, he'll definitely go and call the police!"

"Call the police? So what? I just went to their house and took some chicken soup. What can they do to me?" Jia Zhangshi said dismissively.

"You'll have to spend at least a few days in detention, and Banggeng will have to go to a juvenile detention center," Yi Zhonghai said angrily. "You don't care, but if Banggeng has a criminal record, his life will be ruined!"

"Oh, that little bastard actually called the police? He can't be that cruel, can he?"

Madam Jia panicked: "What should we do now?"

"What should we do? Did you take anything else, Bang Geng?" Yi Zhonghai asked anxiously.

"I didn't take it, I didn't have time. I smelled the aroma of the chicken soup and brought it back." Banggeng was equally indifferent.

"Sigh, you guys... never mind. Where's Qin Huairu?" Yi Zhonghai asked.

"Go back to your parents' home to take a look." Madam Jia Zhang knew things were not good; it seemed she had gotten into trouble.

"I'll go talk to Lao Liu about it. Bang Geng, you go and keep watch by the hanging flower gate. As soon as Li Xiangdong returns, come back and tell me," Yi Zhonghai said hurriedly.

Bang Geng knew things were serious; he had heard the words "juvenile detention center." He hurriedly did as Yi Zhonghai instructed.

"What do you want?" Jia Zhangshi asked.

"What else can we do? As soon as Li Xiangdong gets back, we'd better go and apologize!" Yi Zhonghai said angrily, "Those who should pay compensation, should pay it..."

"My God, I can't live like this! I have to pay compensation for eating a chicken..." Jia Zhangshi immediately protested. There was no way she would pay compensation.

"Fine, then wait for the police to come and arrest both you and Banggeng." Yi Zhonghai wanted nothing more than to give Jia Zhangshi a huge sack of cash: "Even if you pay compensation, they might not accept it!"

"If you don't want it, then there's nothing we can do. You can just wait to go to the detention center."

Chapter 55 Interacting with Yu Li (Seeking flowers and votes!)

"I don't have the money. Go get it from Qin Huairu." Jia Zhangshi sat on the stool and grunted like a well-fed old sow.

It's impossible to get Jia Zhangshi to pay for it.

"Sigh, if it weren't for Dongxu's sake, I wouldn't be human if I interfered in your family's affairs." Yi Zhonghai stomped his foot angrily and turned to leave.

In Yi Zhonghai's mind, the worst that could happen was he'd have to pay Li Xiangdong for a hen. Two yuan at most, which was nothing compared to his monthly salary of ninety-nine yuan for an eighth-grade worker... no, he was now a seventh-grade worker, earning just over eighty-eight yuan. That wasn't a big deal.

As soon as Li Xiangdong returned, Yi Zhonghai brought Liu Haizhong along.

Upon hearing Li Xiangdong's invitation to go in and take a look, Yu Li carefully pushed open the door, went inside, and then came out to say to Li Xiangdong, "Brother Dong, the pot on the road is missing."

If the pot is gone, then of course the chicken soup is gone too.

“Section Chief Li, I’ll pay you back! Two yuan a chicken should be about right. Oh, and this lock!” Yi Zhonghai looked at the broken lock lying on the ground and said, “I’ll give you five yuan in total…”

"There's another pot!" Yu Li said angrily.

"Okay, I'll clean the pot and bring it back right away," Yi Zhonghai said hurriedly.

Liu Haizhong was somewhat displeased. He had come along to show off his second uncle's official power. Now he didn't even have a chance to speak; how could this be?

"Hmm...humph!" Liu Haizhong cleared his throat, his fat face trembling. "That's it, that's good. It shows the courtyard is very united. Under the leadership of our three uncles, we'll definitely be able to..."

Li Xiangdong completely ignored Liu Haizhong and went straight to Yi Zhonghai, saying, "Yi Zhonghai, you're being too optimistic. If a thief gets caught, all they have to do is compensate for the original price. Then everyone might as well go and steal."

"If you get caught, you'll just have to pay the original price; if you don't get caught, you've already made a huge profit!"

Yi Zhonghai paused for a moment and said, "Section Chief Li, what do you suggest we do?"

“I don’t want the ‘tenfold penalty for theft’ anymore. Just threefold! And hold a big meeting to criticize the thieves.” Li Xiangdong said calmly, “This is the correct way to use the National Games, not to use moral blackmail for some trivial interests.”

Having been subtly stabbed by Li Xiangdong, Yi Zhonghai had no choice but to swallow his anger. Otherwise, Bang Geng would have been in trouble.

"Alright, we'll have a big meeting after dinner tonight to criticize and educate Bang Geng!" Yi Zhonghai nodded. He also felt that Bang Geng needed to be educated; otherwise, with his constant petty theft, how could he be a proper backup plan for old age?

“He carried the pot back, how could the adults not know? They probably even ate with him, right? We can’t let Qin Huairu off the hook either…” Li Xiangdong continued.

“Qin Huairu went back to her parents’ home. If she were at home, this would never have happened.” Yi Zhonghai said with a wry smile, “Only Jia Zhangshi ate with them.”

"Alright, these two it is then." Li Xiangdong nodded and said, "The pot went into their house, I don't want it anymore. Let's call it five yuan, and give me twenty yuan as a penalty for stealing!"

Liu Haizhong was furious. No one seemed to care about him, this old man, and hadn't let him finish his important speech. Now, he angrily exclaimed, "That's not right! Three times is fifteen yuan. Why is it twenty yuan?!"

Li Xiangdong completely ignored Liu Haizhong. He said to Yu Li, "Yu Li, you stay home and steam rice. I'm going out to buy a lock."

Liu Haizhong was pulled away by Yi Zhonghai and taken to the Intermediate People's Court. Liu Haizhong was still angrily saying, "How come it's only twenty yuan? I told you it's three times the price..."

"Three times the amount is the fine, and there's also a five-yuan compensation," Yi Zhonghai said helplessly.

"Ugh, why not just say twenty yuan? Why all the fuss?" Liu Haizhong said indignantly, "It's not honest at all!"

When Li Xiangdong returned, Yu Li had already prepared a two-pound carp and was preparing to braise it in the kitchen.

The rice was steaming on the stove in the main room. The aroma of the rice was just beginning to waft out.

Looking at the diligent Yu Li, Li Xiangdong nodded secretly.

"Yu Li, you start the fire, I'll cook the fish." Li Xiangdong walked into the kitchen.

“Okay, Dong-ge.” Yu Li said cheerfully, “Dong-ge, why are you letting that joke go like that? Don’t you hate that Jia Zhangshi?”

"It's just a chicken, we can't do anything to them." Li Xiangdong raised an eyebrow and said, "I'll give them a good beating later. Of course, if they don't steal it, that's lucky."

"But I reckon they'll just keep stealing anyway. Being criticized in a big meeting or anything like that doesn't matter to them. They didn't even pay the twenty yuan."

As Li Xiangdong spoke, he peeled a piece of White Rabbit milk candy and stuffed it into Yu Li's mouth.

Although Yu Li accepted it, she blushed. She quickly lowered her head to tend the pot. Although they had confirmed their relationship, they hadn't done anything intimate yet. The most intimate thing they'd done was when they were riding bicycles, Yu Li would wrap her arms around Li Xiangdong's waist.

Li Xiangdong poured oil into the pot with a splash—the same oil he used to cook the fish last time. Yu Li's eyes widened in disbelief; she'd never seen oil used like that before. She wanted to say something, but remembering Li Xiangdong's high salary, she swallowed her words.

After frying the fish until it was set, Li Xiangdong took it out of the oil. He ladled out the oil and put it into the enamel jar he had prepared earlier. He then fried the fermented soybean paste to extract the red oil, and added scallions, ginger, garlic, and dried chili peppers. He then put the fish back in, poured in beer to cover it, added some light soy sauce, dark soy sauce, and MSG, and then covered the pot with the lid.

Yu Li stood up after throwing in a piece of firewood: "Dong-ge, you're so wasteful with your cooking, using so much oil!"

Yu Li couldn't help but blurt it out, and even pouted her red lips afterward. She had no idea how alluring that pouting gesture was to Li Xiangdong.

Yu Li didn't chew the milk candy in her mouth; instead, she held it there and let it melt slowly. Her voice changed slightly when she spoke, as if it contained the taste of milk and candy.

Li Xiangdong grabbed Yu Li's waist and pulled her into his arms. Without a word, he silenced Yu Li's gasp with his mouth.

After a long while, Yu Li pushed Li Xiangdong away forcefully, her face flushed, and ran to the main room. The candy she hadn't finished eating ended up in Li Xiangdong's mouth.

Li Xiangdong smiled smugly, thinking to himself, "Hehe, the beauties of this era are really something. They don't even know how to kiss, they don't know how to breathe through their noses, and they only push me away when they can't hold their breath anymore."

"I'll teach her slowly later!"

Yu Li glanced at the rice in the main room and saw that it was cooked. She quickly took the steamer down and put the water pot on the stove. Seeing Li Xiangdong follow her in, Yu Li almost buried her head in her ample bosom.

"Yu Li, how about I call you Xiao Li from now on?" Li Xiangdong said softly.

"Mmm, whatever you like, Dong-ge," Yu Li said shyly. Her bashful and charming appearance made Li Xiangdong take a deep breath, suppressing a certain impulsive thought.

Chapter 56 The Deaf Old Woman Wants to Eat Meat (Seeking Flowers, Votes, and Rewards!)

The aroma of rice and braised fish filled the courtyard.

The deaf old lady in the backyard was about to eat dinner when Aunt Jin Yumei brought her a bowl of corn porridge and a steamed bun made from a mixture of wheat and water. The side dish was braised cabbage with tofu, with some pork cracklings thrown in.

By all accounts, her meals were quite good. However, the aroma of rice mixed with braised fish filled the yard, making the deaf old woman find it hard to swallow the steamed bun she was holding.

"That little brat! He makes delicious food, but he doesn't even bring it over to show his respect to my ancestors!" the deaf old woman said angrily. "The unfilial brat, I'll smash his windows one day!"

An older woman was still waiting there, so the deaf old lady could finish eating and clean up. Now, hearing the deaf old lady say this, I felt nothing but contempt.

"Old man, what are you pretending for? If you're so capable, go out and subdue Li Xiangdong!" Jin Yumei thought to herself. "Why say such useless things behind his back?"

"If the old lady wants to eat meat, wait for Zhu Zi to come back. He went out to do some side jobs today." Jin Yumei kept her voice as calm as usual: "We've run out of meat coupons."

"We've run out of meat coupons, can't we go to the pigeon market to buy some?" the deaf old woman said discontentedly. "Forget it, I'm not eating anymore. I can't eat."

"And Zhu Zi was bewitched by a vixen, which has a lot to do with Xiao Yi. Zhu Zi is really foolish. Poor Zhu Zi!"

The deaf old woman picked up her chopsticks and ate the small half-bowl of braised cabbage and tofu. Jin Yumei, suppressing her anger, tidied up the mess.

"Grandma, I'm going back for dinner now," Jin Yumei said, picking up her plate and heading to leave. Just then, the aroma of pork ribs wafted over.

"Whose ribs are these? They're right in the backyard!" The deaf old woman had a very sharp nose: "Yu Mei, go and get me some. They must be Xu Damao's ribs."

At this point, the deaf old woman hadn't yet established a good relationship with Lou Xiao'e. Otherwise, she would have simply waited for Lou Xiao'e to deliver the food to her door.

"Okay, okay, I'll go get it right away."

Jin Yumei readily agreed, thinking it unlikely she would get food from Li Xiangdong. But getting it from Xu Damao would be a piece of cake.