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

The surrounding neighbors were in an uproar. Yan Bugui, not even bothering to pick up the broken bowl, pushed through the crowd to Zhang Dabiao, his calculating face plastered with a fawning smile: "Dabiao, could you do me the trouble and help Third Uncle with his fortune telling? Is Yu Li's baby a boy or a girl, and what's her name?"

"Yeah, Da Biao! Help me calculate for Guangqi too! When will Guangqi and Hongjuan have a second child, and will it be a boy or a girl?" The second aunt chimed in from behind. Liu Guangqi and You Hongjuan only have one daughter, which has always been a worry for their family.

Surrounded by this group of people, Zhang Dabiao was incredibly annoyed. He stuffed his pen into his pocket and waved his hand impatiently, "Go away, go away! What's there to calculate! That was all my dad's calculation, not mine. I can't do it! Don't come looking for me again. If you do, it means you don't know anything. My dad never said that. Okay, everyone go back to what you were doing!"

After saying that, Zhang Dabiao parted the crowd and strode back to the east courtyard, slamming the gate shut with a "bang." No matter how much the people outside called out to him, he ignored them.

Yu Li? Did she have a child in the original drama?

Zhang Dabiao had no recollection of Liu Guangqi's second child.

I can't just say that carelessly; getting it wrong is more embarrassing than not knowing at all.

Xu Damao was just stirring up trouble for no reason. Now he has to explain over and over again that this has nothing to do with Sha Zhu... Isn't he just asking for trouble? It's incredibly embarrassing.

Seeing Zhang Dabiao return to his house, the people in the courtyard didn't dare knock on the door. Zhang Dabiao's status was becoming increasingly multifaceted—a vocational school graduate, now enjoying the待遇 of a section-level official, working part-time in three ministerial-level units and one factory, and expected to directly enter a ministry after graduation. His father was also a "semi-divine being," knowing many "secrets," and possessing wealth, power, property, and land—

Ordinary people really wouldn't dare to mess with him now. He's practically a high-ranking official; the common people don't fight with officials, and the poor don't fight with the rich—he's got it all covered. Everyone gathered in the courtyard, chattering about the strange thing that had just happened, their excitement not going to subside anytime soon.

Meanwhile, in the central courtyard of the court.

Qin Huairu sat alone on the cart, cradling her newborn locust flower. A gust of early winter wind blew by, stirring up a few fallen leaves. She pulled her headscarf tighter, feeling a chill run through her from head to toe.

She had thought that once she returned to the hospital after giving birth, even if it was a daughter, everyone would gather around to offer comfort and care, bringing eggs and noodles. Wasn't that the treatment everyone received when they gave birth? But now? Everyone in the hospital was completely captivated by Zhang Dabiao. Even Sha Zhu, who had always been hovering around her, was now staring blankly in the direction of the east wing, completely forgetting that there was a new mother sitting on the cart.

There were no greetings, no concern, not even a single person to help carry her things. Qin Huairu, once the most pitiful young widow in the courtyard, was now left hanging in the middle of the yard like a ghost.

Qin Huairu gritted her teeth. She lowered her head, looking at the thin, withered locust flower in her arms, a nameless resentment welling up inside her. Zhang Dabiao! It's Zhang Dabiao again! Ever since this man's mind cleared up, everything has gone wrong for the Jia family. Now, even with the birth of a child, he's stolen all the limelight.

"Silly Zhu!" Qin Huairu couldn't hold back any longer, her voice tinged with grievance and slight anger. "What are you standing there for! Hurry up and pull me back inside!"

Sha Zhu was snapped back to his senses by the shout. He looked at Qin Huairu's pale and angry face, quickly bent down, grabbed the cart belt, put it on his shoulder, and said with a forced smile, "Sister Qin, I'm so sorry, I was just stunned by Da Biao's skills. Come on, let's go back inside."

The cart tumbled to the Jia family's door. Jia Zhangshi and Banggeng had already come out. They glanced at the locust blossoms Qin Huairu was carrying, their faces darkened again, they snorted coldly, and turned to go to the front yard, not even bothering to help Qin Huairu out of the cart. Qin Huairu could only struggle to enter the house with the help of He Yushui and Qin Jingru.

------------

In the afternoon, the courtyard gradually quieted down.

Inside the Jia family's house in the central courtyard, there was not a trace of joy at the arrival of a new baby. Qin Huairu lay half-reclined on the kang (a heated brick bed), secretly wiping away tears. She hadn't eaten well in the hospital these past few days, and now she felt dizzy and lightheaded, her chest aching painfully. Her baby was crying from hunger, but she had no breast milk at all.

On the table in the outer room sat a half-bowl of cold cornmeal porridge and a dish of pickled vegetables. Madam Jia Zhang held a hard cornbread in her hand, gnawing on it while cursing, "Crying! All you do is cry! You gave birth to a money-losing child and you still have the nerve to cry! You jinx, the Jia family will be ruined by you sooner or later!"

Banggeng sat beside her. He didn't understand why his grandmother was scolding his mother, but he knew that there was another mouth to feed in the family. But since it wasn't a boy, the family wouldn't be able to carry on the Jia family line. With more boys in the family, there would be someone to help them if they got into a fight...

He didn't know if his grandmother was right or wrong, but he himself actually quite liked the little girl named Huaihua. After all, if it were a little brother, he would have to compete with him for the family fortune, right?

He didn't say anything, grabbed a piece of pickled vegetable, stuffed it into his mouth, and chewed it with a crunching sound.

The He family's side of the Intermediate People's Court.

Sha Zhu, wearing an apron, was busy at the stove. A hen was stewing in the casserole; he had bought it at a high price at the market yesterday because today was a big day—an old man was going to take him on a blind date, and the date was coming to the yard in the afternoon.

This is the main dish served to your blind date.

But now, the rich aroma of chicken soup was wafting into his nose, and he frowned, unsure of what to do.

But the faint cries of the baby in the Jia family, and Qin Huairu's suppressed sobs, were like barbed whips, lashing at Sha Zhu's heart again and again.

He paced back and forth in the room, fidgeting with his hands. The oath he'd sworn a few days earlier kept echoing in his mind: "If I ever interfere in the Jia family's mess again, I, Sha Zhu, am a dog!"

"Silly Zhu, silly Zhu, you're going on a blind date this afternoon, don't do anything foolish..."

But… Qin Huairu’s pale, haggard face kept flashing before his eyes. That was Sister Qin! That figure, those eyes, that helpless look. She had just given birth and couldn’t even get a bowl of hot soup; her baby was crying from hunger. And that old hag Jia Zhangshi was a heartless wretch.

"Damn it, I'll be a dog!"

"I'm not human anymore! I'm not going to be human again!"

"So what if I'm a dog? Is that illegal?"

Sha Zhu slapped his thigh, grabbed a large, rough porcelain bowl, and filled it to the brim with golden chicken soup, topped with a thick layer of oil and a succulent chicken leg.

He carried the chicken soup, walked to the door, took a deep breath, and pulled the door open.

A cold wind blew by as Sha Zhu, carrying a steaming bowl of chicken soup, walked step by step across the blue bricks of the courtyard to the Jia family's gate. He didn't knock; instead, he pushed the door open and went inside.

"Sister Qin—"

Yi Zhonghai, who lived across the street, witnessed this scene and cursed in exasperation, "That good-for-nothing bastard!"

"He's incorrigible!"