An extraordinary life journey through old Beijing courtyard houses

Chapter 230 Tickling Him to Death - Catching His Adultery (Thank you for the votes, I've been working hard writing and haven't had a chance to thank you yet, thank you)

When the banquet ended, everyone said goodbye with tears in their eyes.

Jiang Baobin, in particular, received an extraordinary amount of popularity.

The reason was not that he performed the best among the entire delegation.

It's not because it's the youngest or because it's particularly attractive.

It's because he—paid back the money!

Previously, when everyone secretly inquired among themselves, they finally confirmed that he had borrowed money from all the team members, and the total debt was nearly ten million.

Everyone was almost in despair, because the number was astronomical for any of them!

Everyone thought that even if the debt wasn't settled, it would be owed for ages.

I didn't dare to press him for answers, for fear that he might commit suicide in a fit of anger, and then all the money would be wasted!

However, to everyone's surprise, he returned the money in full just one day after he came back.

Everyone was so grateful they were moved to tears; even the more cunning among them bowed to him.

I'm so grateful that he paid me back on time.

I have no idea what it feels like to be owed money and not paid back.

Sometimes I really want to kill the other person! Other times I really want to slap myself!

Tsk tsk! It's a long story!

After receiving the money, everyone felt a different level of joy.

But the only thing everyone is curious about is where Jiang Baobin got his money from.

Jiang Baobin was quite puzzled: "I get paid for my writing! Didn't you know?"

"Didn't you already donate your royalties? It was even published in the newspaper."

"Hey! This is the first donation, there's still a second one to come—"

Everyone was stunned into silence, inwardly cursing at the same time—

That bastard! How infuriating! If you had any royalties, you should have said so earlier! You pawned a worthless pen all over the place!

Look how worried we are! We haven't slept well for so many nights.

Jiang Baobin (shaking his head in a pretentious manner): Sigh, some people...

He can remain calm in the face of life and death, but when it comes to money, even a hero loses his nerve.

Someone shouted, "Go for it! Tickle this kid to death!"

"Hehehe, hahaha, brothers, have mercy!"

Nanluoguxiang.

A middle-aged man's voice, sounding quite helpless, said, "Why are you asking for money again?"

"I'm out of money, could you help me out?"

"Didn't I just give you 3 last week?"

"What can that buy? With the little money I earn from sewing, it's all gone in one go, just to buy a piece of clothing."

"Why are you buying clothes again? I've heard you say that so many times!"

"When children get married, at least the bride and groom should have new clothes."

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"And then there's me, this old woman. I only have one son, and he has to live a respectable and dignified life!"

The man said impatiently, "That's enough."

"I'm not being unreasonable, am I? Just buy the child a pair of leather shoes, and everything will be complete."

"Leather shoes! Those cost tens of thousands!"

"Keep your voice down, what are you shouting for? Are you afraid people won't hear you?"

"I'm not printing money, how can I afford to support your extravagant spending?"

"Just give me 5 this time, I'll figure out the rest myself."

"That's too much."

"Are you even a man? Don't say I look down on you!"

"Sigh, I've given you all the money in my pocket."

"Hehe, thank you!"

"No need for thanks, but let's agree that this is the last time."

"What do you mean, the last time? I still need to buy Dongxu a sewing machine, it costs 150 million, and you have to pay for it all!"

"What? Are you crazy?! You couldn't sell me for that much money!"

"I don't care, you're his adoptive father, you have to give him a big gift for his wedding."

The man immediately flew into a rage: "What nonsense are you spouting? Who wants to be his cheapskate father?"

"I asked you to give me a son! But have you given birth to one?"

"How can you blame me? You only work sporadically, even a goddess couldn't get pregnant that way."

The man retorted, "I'd like to stay in your room often, but will you allow it?"

Jia Zhangshi retorted, "Didn't you say you didn't want your wife to know?"

"She's not stupid, she can't possibly stay oblivious forever."

"So what do you mean?"

Yi Zhonghai finally emerged from the shadows and, with great determination, said, "I'll find a way to transfer Dongxu to another place so he can work the night shift for three consecutive months."

"I'll go to your place every day then. I'm going all in! It's all down to this!"

"What about the sewing machine?"

"I'll pay, but you have to do it for three consecutive months, not a single day less, and I'll pay you afterwards."

"Tch, I was afraid you wouldn't be up to the task. Give me half first, and the rest later."

"Hmph! I'll risk my life to have a son! I can't stand people talking about me being childless!"

Jiang Baobin, who was listening intently, could hear the cracking sound of teeth clenching. It must have taken a lot of determination.

Sha Zhu once said something quite insightful—"Widows are the smartest women in the world."

Jia Zhangshi was clever; seeing an opportunity, she immediately raised the price.

"If you do that for three consecutive months, you'll have to pay two million!"

Yi Zhonghai was filled with resentment—why am I so unlucky? I'm just born to clash with women!

One is a barren hen that doesn't lay eggs, and the other is a debt collector who only knows how to ask for money!

Yi Zhonghai angrily retorted, "Don't even think about it! Are you addicted to bullying others?"

"How is this extortion? First of all, during the time I'm serving you, Dongxu's wife can't be married into the family, right?"

"If we change the date, we have to give our in-laws something, right? That can't be done without spending money, can it?"

"And another thing, in three months, my reputation will be completely ruined. You'll have to compensate me then, won't you?"

"Who would have known? I just went over in the middle of the night."

"Hmph, do you think everyone else is a fool?"

"A few days ago, He Daqing tried to take advantage of me, and he used this incident to blackmail me!"

"You let him get his way?"

"Bullshit! I'm not some prostitute from another courtyard! He Daqing should take a good look in the mirror; he reeks of swill and still wants to eat swan meat, grandma!"

Jiang Baobin almost burst out laughing. Did this swan fall from the sky and cause its endocrine system to become disordered?

Yi Zhonghai breathed a sigh of relief: "That's good, but I won't let that bastard He Daqing get away with it!"

Madam Jia pressed further, "You agreed to the two million?"

"One million six hundred thousand, that's the most I can ask for."

"I don't care, if you're short a single penny, you can forget about sleeping in this bed. Just wait until your family line ends!"

"Grandma, you want me to sell my blood? Even this much, I'd have to borrow a huge sum of money—"

After some haggling, the two men each compromised and settled on a price of 1.75 million.

Jiang Baobin peeked out and saw that the two had already separated and gone home.

He was a little unsure, as this was part of the original plot of the TV series.

It was the butterfly effect caused by his own time travel.

In either case, he was impressed that these two people, at their age, were still so capable of causing trouble.

Especially Jia Zhangshi, she really has a way with people, she actually managed to bewitch Yi Zhonghai like this.

At the advanced age of forty, she actually went and had a child through surrogacy.

It's not that there's no hope at all; it's not uncommon for the youngest son to be younger than the eldest grandson.

But it is an indisputable fact that Yi Zhonghai was completely bewitched and lost his bearings.

In the end, it will only end up like a blind man lighting a lamp—a complete waste of time!

Hmm, why does this metaphor feel so apt?

This scene came out.

The awkward parts of the TV series all make sense now: why did Yi Zhonghai always favor the Jia family and even make Jia Dongxu support him in his old age?

And after Jia Dongxu's failure to live up to his potential and his death, Yi Zhonghai, even though he had already become an old man in his fifties or sixties, was left behind.

But Jia Zhangshi still guarded against his contact with Qin Huairu as if he were a thief.

She was afraid that having the same person as both mother-in-law and daughter-in-law would cause a huge scandal.

That's why they say you can't have a guilty conscience, otherwise everything will look like a ghost.

Does Yi Zhonghai have both the will and the ability? He's just casting a wide net so that someone can support him in his old age.

However, Jia Zhangshi's taboo was also justified.

The older generation might not know about her messy affair with Yi Zhonghai, but the younger generation certainly does.

Didn't you see? When Yi Zhonghai gave Qin Huairu the white flour, Liu Haizhong's eyes almost popped out of their sockets.

They're just waiting for a scandal to break out. If that happens, what kind of old man is he? Yi Zhonghai will be completely ruined!

However, now that things have gotten into Yi Zhonghai and Jia Zhangshi's place, no one is too surprised.

After all, the concubine system, which had been in place for thousands of years, was only abolished a year ago.

People's attitudes haven't completely changed—an old man without a son longs for an heir, and an old widow struggles to make ends meet.

Isn't it common for two people to hook up?

Those days when Beiping was besieged were incredibly difficult.

Jia Dongxu was an unpaid apprentice, and if Jia Zhangshi didn't find a way to rely on someone, she really wouldn't be able to survive.

And who could be more suitable than Yi Zhonghai?

This person may seem cunning, but they also have inner demons.

Targeting this fatal weakness, Jia Zhangshi only needed to seduce him a little, and he was hooked.

Unlike He Daqing, who is a lecherous man who not only fails to get anything out of her but also gets himself into trouble.

Madam Jia understood the intricacies of the situation perfectly, which is why she was able to refrain from taking advantage of He Daqing's small gains.

They placed their bets solely on Yi Zhonghai.

These days, people are very practical. If you want to take advantage of a woman, you have to give her something in return. Nobody cares about feelings or love.

In the eyes of people like Jia Zhangshi, those were things only idle people would think about.

Jiang Baobin sighed to himself for a while: "A courtyard house is actually a condensed little world."

Call it down-to-earth or stale, however you like.

But isn't this just how life is?

Poverty, in particular, can make people ugly.

That's why we have the saying, "When the granaries are full, people know etiquette; when they are well-fed and clothed, they know honor and shame."

In fact, for thousands of years, the vast majority of people have been trying to make their own lives better.

It's just that some people went astray —