Courtyard House: Inheriting the Restaurant, the Jia Family Wants to Get It for Free

A new factory needs to be built, and three more need to be built. How many workers will that require?

In those days, getting a job in a large state-owned factory was practically a guarantee of a stable, secure job. With such a golden opportunity right under their noses, who wouldn't be envious?

The first to act was Xu Fugui in the backyard.

Unlike before, he didn't go directly to Cheng Shuhai. He became smarter and deliberately chose times when Cheng Shuhai wasn't home, bringing along a seemingly honest young man to find Chen Xueru.

"Xueru," Xu Fugui said with a fawning smile, "this is a distant nephew of mine. He just came from the countryside and hasn't found work yet. You see, although he's not very educated, he's reliable and hardworking! There are so many positions in the new factory; just assign him any kind of manual labor, like carrying things around! We won't be picky!"

Yan Bugui, from the front yard, was not to be outdone.

He didn't bring anyone with him, but instead carried a bag of peanuts he had roasted himself and found Qin Huairu, who was watching over the children in the yard.

"Huai Ru, you've been working hard lately, managing accounts and people," Yan Bugui said politely at first, then changed the subject, "I heard that the new factory is hiring and needs some people to watch the warehouse and manage logistics? My wife has a relative who's very honest, but a bit introverted and doesn't like to talk much. Do you think this kind of work would be perfect for him?"

Even Liu Haizhong, who had always wanted to compete with Cheng Shuhai in the courtyard, couldn't sit still any longer.

He didn't mention his son because he knew Liu Guangtian was already Cheng Shuhai's apprentice, and it wasn't appropriate to bring it up again. He directly led a burly middle-aged man and blocked the entrance to the Cheng family's house.

"Director Cheng!" he shouted at the top of his lungs, "This is a relative of mine from my hometown. He used to work as a blacksmith in a rural blacksmith shop for twenty years! His skills were top-notch! People called him 'Living Lu Ban'! Our new factory definitely needs this kind of technical backbone!"

For a time, the entire No. 95 courtyard was filled with a murky atmosphere of "finding connections and getting in through back channels".

These people didn't dare to bother Cheng Shuhai directly, so they put all the pressure on Chen Xueru and Qin Huairu.

Today, this family delivered two pounds of eggs. Tomorrow, that family will bring an old hen. Some people even sit right in front of the Cheng family's house and refuse to leave, crying about how difficult their lives are and how much their children need a job.

They wanted to use this emotional blackmail to force the Cheng family to give in.

Chen Xueru has a fiery and direct personality.

One afternoon, when Xu Fugui brought his "distant nephew" with him, carrying a basket of peaches that were supposedly "just picked from the tree," to "visit" Chen Xueru.

Chen Xueru simply pushed the basket back.

"Master Xu, we appreciate your kindness. But we can't accept these peaches." Her voice was icy. "The new factory belongs to the state, not the Cheng family's backyard. All recruitment requires passing a standardized exam. Anyone who wants to get in must pass the exam based on their own ability. Trying to get in through bribery or connections is out of the question!"

These words left Xu Fugui blushing with embarrassment, and he could only awkwardly leave with his men.

Qin Huairu's approach was gentler and more watertight.

She always greeted the neighbors who came to plead for her life with a smile, first pouring them a glass of water. Then, unhurriedly, she would take out a piece of paper and a pen.

"Auntie, I know your family is struggling financially. Here, I'll write down the job requirements for our factory this time for you."

She wrote down clearly on a piece of paper the educational background, age requirements, political background check requirements, and even the scope of the written test and interview that might be involved in the recruitment.

"Have your child prepare according to this plan. As soon as the official recruitment notice is posted, have him apply immediately. If he passes the exam, we will definitely give him priority in hiring. However, it's really useless for you to come to me now. Even Consultant Cheng doesn't know the exam questions; they are all set by higher-ups. If I were to give you this backdoor, it would be a mistake, wouldn't you say?"

She delivered the harsh truth in the gentlest way possible, upholding her principles without offending anyone.

Although the neighbors were unwilling, seeing that she had said so much, they really couldn't continue to argue, and could only leave reluctantly.

However, things did not end so simply.

That night, just as Qin Huairu was about to go home after get off work, the old man at the gatehouse of the new factory stopped her and mysteriously handed her an envelope.

"Mr. Qin, this is what someone asked me to give you just now."

Qin Huairu opened the envelope, and inside was a neatly printed "recommendation list".

The list contained seven or eight names, each accompanied by a brief introduction. Among these names were Xu Fugui's distant nephew and Yan Bugui's brother-in-law.

Most importantly, at the end of the list, there was a bright red official seal of the subdistrict office!

Qin Huairu's heart skipped a beat.

She immediately realized something was wrong. Director Wang of the neighborhood committee would never pull strings in this kind of situation.

She carefully examined the official seal under the light.

The design and font of the seal were exactly the same as the real one. However, she noticed that the serial number below the seal was different from the one she had seen when she got her seal stamped at the street office a few days earlier.

This is a fake official seal!

Someone is forging official documents!

A cold sweat instantly broke out on Qin Huairu's back.

This is no longer a simple matter of using connections or backdoors. Someone is setting a huge trap. They want to exploit the neighbors' eagerness to find jobs, forge a recommendation list, and submit it to the factory.

If the factory actually hires people according to this list, then tomorrow, countless letters of complaint will fly to the city and to the Discipline Inspection Commission.

At that time, Cheng Shuhai's crimes of "abusing his power, engaging in favoritism and corruption, and placing his cronies in power" will be fully confirmed.

How malicious this intention is!

She didn't dare delay and immediately took the list and ran home.

After listening to her story, Cheng Shuhai took the list, and his eyes instantly turned cold.

Unlike Qin Huairu, he was not afraid.

He simply uttered two words coldly.

"court death."

He neither suppressed the list nor conducted a private investigation.

He decided to play along.

He wants to put this matter in front of everyone, openly and clearly, and resolve it.

He wanted to show everyone who was behind these insidious tricks.

A storm that will sweep through the entire No. 95 compound is about to break.