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

As soon as Director Wang finished speaking, the entire courtyard fell into a deathly silence.

Pack your things!

These five words were like five iron hammers, slamming hard into Jia Zhangshi's heart (count the exclamation mark one more, making it six).

She was completely stunned, sitting blankly on the ground, her cloudy eyes filled with disbelief.

Go back to Jiajiawazi? Go back to that godforsaken, impoverished mountain village where even cornmeal is scarce?

People will die!

No! Absolutely not!

"I'm not leaving!"

A piercing scream shattered the tranquility of the courtyard. Jia Zhangshi sprang up from the ground like a mad cat and grabbed Yi Zhonghai's leg—she had originally wanted to find Bang Geng, but Bang Geng was still in the hospital.

"I won't leave! I'd rather die than go back to the countryside! This is my son's home, why should I leave!"

She was crying and looked extremely disheveled, while her hands were tightly gripping Yi Zhonghai's pants—Yi Zhonghai was so frightened that he instinctively pulled on his belt.

"Yi Zhonghai! You're my son's godfather, you have to take care of this!"

"Sister-in-law Jia, what's wrong with you? Why are you pulling down my pants?!" Yi Zhonghai was almost going crazy. With so many people watching, if his pants fell down, he would be incredibly embarrassed!

Meanwhile, Zhang Dabiao, Xu Damao, Liu Guangqi, and others stared at Yi Zhonghai's pants, clenching their fists and silently chanting— "Pull them down! Pull them down!"

But it wouldn't come down no matter how hard I tried—bad review!

If you, Jia Zhangshi, could get Yi Zhonghai to show even a glimpse of his red underwear, we'd all put in a good word for you, but you can't do that.

Director Wang's expression remained unchanged. The two street officials she brought stepped forward, ready to take action.

"Director Wang, what do you think of this..." Yi Zhonghai still wanted to make a last-ditch effort. He wanted to say a few conciliatory words. Although he knew what kind of person Jia Zhangshi was, he instinctively wanted to say a few conciliatory words for her after so many years of favoritism.

"Yi Zhonghai!" Director Wang whirled around, his gaze sharp as lightning. "What else do you want to say? It's because of your repeated attempts to smooth things over that Jia Zhangshi has become increasingly lawless! You, as the head of the household, bear an unshirkable responsibility! If you dare utter another word today, you can forget about being the head of the household!"

Yi Zhonghai was so speechless by those words that his face turned red, and he couldn't say a word. He could only retreat to the side in a huff.

He knew that Director Wang was serious this time.

Jia Zhangshi was still wailing, "You can't do this! The police station told us to settle this privately! I haven't broken the law!"

Director Wang remained unfazed: "I said this 60 years ago: if it happens again, we'll deport you immediately."

"The police station's punishment is the police station's responsibility, and my neighborhood committee's responsibility is the neighborhood committee's responsibility!"

"You have a rural household registration and no job in the city, so you are already within the scope of those to be repatriated."

"Don't say anything more, just pack your things and hurry up to get the paperwork done and get on the bus to send them off."

Director Wang didn't budge an inch; it seems he had planned this all along.

Meanwhile, Qin Huairu stood there, swaying precariously, her face deathly pale. Sha Zhu looked on, his heart aching with heartache—[Her mother-in-law has been taken away; Sister Qin must be feeling terrible, right?]

So, in a moment of impulsiveness, he decided to rush forward.

"You cannot..."

Qin Huairu's expression immediately changed—[Why are you getting involved, you idiot?]

He had barely uttered four words when Zhang Dabiao grabbed him by the back of the neck, and even He Yushui ran over to pull him away.

He Yushui was speechless. While scolding Sha Zhu, she apologized to Director Wang: "Brother, listen to me, don't get involved in this mess."

"Director Wang, my brother is just an idiot, please don't take it to heart."

Zhang Dabiao stood there, holding a bowl in one hand and grabbing Sha Zhu by the back of the neck with the other, making Sha Zhu completely unable to move.

Sha Zhu panicked: "But..."

"Shazhu, are you really stupid?" Zhang Dabiao's voice wasn't loud, but it clearly reached Shazhu's ears. "This is the neighborhood committee carrying out their duties. Do you want to harass public officials? Do you want to go to jail for a few days to calm down?"

"Besides, with Madam Jia not here, you'll just... um..."

Sha Zhu shuddered and instantly snapped back to reality.

He glanced back at Zhang Dabiao, who was slowly finishing the last mouthful of noodle soup, his eyes full of amusement as if he were watching a good show.

Sha Zhu was deflated and could only watch helplessly as the two clerks grabbed Jia Zhangshi's arms from either side.

"Let me go! You damned bastards! You'll all die a horrible death!"

Madam Jia began her most characteristic tantrum, kicking her legs wildly and cursing everyone in the courtyard with foul language.

"Old Jia! Dongxu! Open your eyes and see! This whole yard is full of beasts ganging up on us, a widow and her orphan! Take them all away!"

However, this time, her "soul-summoning magic" completely failed.

The neighbors in the courtyard watched coldly, not one of them showing any sympathy; some even had a hint of smugness on their lips.

Xu Damao was even more direct. He walked to the middle of the courtyard, cleared his throat, and shouted, "Jia Zhangshi, save your breath! Your tricks are outdated! Get out of here and stop getting in the way. Our courtyard doesn't welcome instigators like you!"

"Xu Damao! I'll haunt you even as a ghost!" Jia Zhangshi's curses became even more vicious.

The two officers were clearly experienced in handling such situations. They completely ignored her crying and dragged her into the Jia family's house like a dead dog, each taking one of her arms.

"Hurry up and pack your things. We'll be coming with you in a bit."

Jia Zhangshi's cloth shoes dragged two long marks on the ground. Her foot injury was not serious, but at this moment she was truly lame, both from fright and from being dragged.

Qin Huairu stood there, watching her mother-in-law being forcibly taken away, feeling as if her soul had been ripped out.

Her body was trembling slightly, and her face was as white as paper. She didn't know whether she should be glad that she could escape the clutches of evil or feel sad. In any case, she felt very conflicted.

She wanted to cry, but no tears would come out.

She wanted to laugh, but she couldn't manage to force a smile.

She just stood there, staring blankly, until the officers forcibly took Jia Zhangshi away.

As the scathing curses faded into the alleyway, the courtyard finally fell silent.

Xu Damao breathed a sigh of relief, feeling that the air in the entire courtyard had become much fresher.

He turned around, cupped his hands in a gesture of respect to everyone in the compound, and said, "Dear neighbors, thank you all for upholding justice today! When my son turns one month old, I will definitely treat everyone in the compound to a drink!"

"good!"

"Da Mao is spacious and bright!"

Scattered cheers erupted from the crowd.

Director Wang observed everything, finally fixing his gaze on Qin Huairu, and said sternly, "Qin Huairu, your mother-in-law's problem is resolved. But Banggeng's problem isn't over yet! He didn't steal anything this time, but as his guardian, you must take responsibility!"

"If this happens again, it won't be as simple as just a reprimand!"

"If we say we'll send her to a juvenile detention center, then we must send her to a juvenile detention center

After saying that, Director Wang turned and left the courtyard.

The crowd gradually dispersed, everyone went home, and those who needed to go to work hurried off to work.

In the courtyard, only Qin Huairu remained standing not far away, looking at Sha Zhu with a complicated expression.

Qin Huairu turned around and went back into the house. Once inside, her tears finally burst forth.

She didn't know whether these tears were for Jia Zhangshi or for the day she could finally catch her breath.

All she knew was that, from this day forward, the world had truly changed for her family.