Courtyard House: Drunk and tipsy, the whole courtyard exposed at the start.

"Huh? What genetics?" He Yushui was dumbfounded. Where did this come from?

Let's start with He Daqing!

"Your father likes widows, and your brother likes widows too..."

He Yushui pondered for a long time, and realized that this was nothing compared to the fact that she had also fallen for Zhang Dabiao, who already had a girlfriend…

What exactly is this habit in my family?

"Perhaps, maybe..."

"Is this a family trait?"

She was at a loss for words, both amused and exasperated.

Forget it, it's not good to criticize Sha Zhu. I'm just as bad as him, we're pretty much the same.

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When Yi Zhonghai returned to the Jia family, he told Jia Zhangshi what had happened. Jia Zhangshi immediately exploded: "They're all ungrateful wretches! When Dongxu was alive, he helped them a lot!!"

"How can they all be so heartless!"

"Old Jia! Dongxu, my son! Come quickly! Look how heartless these people in the courtyard are! They're bullying our Jia family, a widow and her children! No one even offered to help you on your final journey! Please show your power and take these heartless people down to pay with their lives! Protect us, don't let our Jia family be driven to ruin!"

In the dead of night, Jia Zhangshi began calling back the soul again.

She was crying and wailing there, while Yi Zhonghai inwardly complained—

[Dongxu is helping them?]

[Whom did you help, and for what purpose? Tell me!]

Do you think I don't know my apprentice?

"Mom," Qin Huairu grabbed her, her voice trembling, "it's no use saying this now, we have to think of a way..."

"What can we do?" Jia Zhangshi plopped down on the ground, slapping her thigh and wailing, "There's no man in the house anymore! We're being bullied because we have no man! Dongxu, open your eyes and see how these beasts are bullying us, a widow and her orphan..."

Her cries echoed in the yard, but the neighbors, who remained silent in their own homes, had grown accustomed to it.

In the end, Yi Zhonghai made the final decision: "Stop crying! Go find Wobo. Paying money to get things done is better than having no one to carry the coffin."

"How much?" Jia Zhangshi immediately stopped crying.

"If it's four people carrying it, it'll probably cost... eight yuan?"

"Eight yuan?!" Jia Zhangshi nearly jumped up. "This is robbery!"

"Then you'll carry it yourself?" Yi Zhonghai also got angry. "Aunt Jia, I've run my legs off, asked everyone in the courtyard! Nobody wants to. Just because of what your family did to the Zhang family before the New Year, no one except Sha Zhu is willing to carry your coffin! They're afraid of being schemed against by your family again! But Sha Zhu has to prepare the banquet tomorrow, and he won't have enough time to carry the coffin back and forth!"

"Liu Haizhong said to just go directly to Wobo, it's convenient and saves you trouble! If you think it's too expensive, let Dongxu lie here tomorrow, and when it rots and stinks, the neighborhood committee will come and forcibly take it to the crematorium and burn it."

"That'll solve everything!"

"You decide what to do!"

Jia Zhangshi was intimidated by his imposing manner and stammered, not daring to speak.

Qin Huairu quickly tried to smooth things over: "Uncle Yi, please don't be angry. My mother was just flustered. Eight yuan is fine. As long as the funeral goes smoothly, it's worth any price."

She paused, then said in a low voice, "But in Siping, four people carrying it... isn't that too shabby?"

Yi Zhonghai gave a wry smile: "Huai Ru, it's already good enough if we can gather four loads. Eight loads? Don't you know what year this is?"

[Eight-bearer coffins were typically used by well-off families, such as small merchants or old Beijing gentry, for funerals. The coffin was made of thick wood, and the eight bearers, four at the front and four at the back, made the coffin more stable and were considered a "decent funeral"—but would your Jia family be able to afford that?]

[You all keep saying the Jia family is a high-ranking and wealthy family, but do you actually believe it yourselves?]

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The next morning, before dawn, Yi Zhonghai found four hampers.

These four men were all laborers working in the city, some of whom had experience as lever pullers. The leader was a lame man in his forties, surnamed Ma, known as "Lame Ma," who had been in this line of work for over twenty years.

"Master Yi," Ma the Cripple circled the coffin, "this job requires carrying it out of the alley first, then transferring it to a cart and hauling it to the cemetery outside the city. The distance isn't far, but for those who died violent deaths... extra money is needed."

He had already inquired about Jia Dongxu's situation on his way here; it couldn't be kept secret.

"How much?"

"Ten yuan." Ma the Cripple held up one finger. "Your master died a violent death, your aura is heavy, and we are taking a great risk."

"Ten yuan?!" Jia Zhangshi shrieked, "Why don't you just rob me?"

Ma the Cripple wasn't annoyed. He made a move to leave: "Then you can find someone else. In all of Beijing, for those who die violently, an extra ten yuan is a fair price."

"No, no, no," Yi Zhonghai quickly stopped him, "Ten yuan is fine, but you have to make it look decent."

"Of course," Ma the Cripple patted his chest. "This is our livelihood, and we'll make sure you get everything done."

Upon hearing about the last-minute price increase, Jia Zhangshi refused to budge and made a scene. Meanwhile, the auspicious time was fast approaching, and Director Wang arrived with his staff to inspect the funeral arrangements. Naturally, this money was provided by Yi Zhonghai.

What a tragedy...

As soon as the auspicious hour arrived, the lame horseman shouted, "Raise the spirit!"

With a coordinated effort from the four necks, the coffin was lifted steadily off the ground. There was no funeral music, no paper offerings, only Jia Zhangshi's intermittent wails and the lone white banner on Bang Geng's shoulder. Qin Huairu followed behind, carrying Xiao Dang, both dressed in white, which made Sha Zhu even more eager to see it.

The neighbors did go out to see him off, but only to the gate of the courtyard.

Once outside the alley, Ma the Cripple called for a cart, which they dragged all the way to the public cemetery outside the city. The grave had already been dug, and the four men with nimble hands and feet quickly piled up the mound.

Jia Zhangshi threw herself at the grave, wailing until her voice was hoarse: "Dongxu, you died unjustly! Your mother is useless, I couldn't even give you a decent funeral... It's all these beasts' fault! It's all their fault!"

She whirled around, her gaze sweeping over everyone present—Yi Zhonghai, Qin Huairu, and the few onlookers standing in the distance. The venom in her eyes sent a chill down everyone's spine.

Ma the Cripple thought there was something wrong with this crazy woman.

"We didn't kill him, why are you glaring at us?"

It's pitiful that you lost your son, but just because your family is pitiful doesn't mean we have to work for free. We're not a charity; we need to make a living too.

To avoid Jia Zhangshi causing trouble or taking advantage of the cart, Ma the Cripple and his men took the money and left immediately.

When Yi Zhonghai and the Jia family returned to the courtyard, the funeral feast had already been set up. Sha Zhu had cooked four vegetarian dishes, served a salted fish for each table, and steamed a pot of mixed flour buns.

Originally, funerals should have eight dishes, but the Jia family was reluctant to spend the money, and Sha Zhu only cooked but didn't contribute any money, so in the end they managed to put together two tables. According to the custom in the courtyard, each family should have one person at each table.

"Our relatives from Qinjiatun, Zhangjiatun, and Jiajiawazi all came over a couple of days ago," Qin Huairu said, her eyes still red as she invited the neighbors to sit down. "Today's meal is just a simple meal in the courtyard, so please don't mind."

No one complained; on the contrary, they ate with relish. These days, having food at all is already a blessing, so why be picky?

At least there's salted fish and cornbread, so that counts as having some meat, right?

Zhang Dabiao didn't come. What does the Jia family's funeral have to do with him?

If I say I won't get involved, then I won't get involved!