Courtyard House: The Road to an Industrial Power

Although Jia Dongxu was still unwilling after leaving the Zhang family, he eventually accepted the fact that his wife weighed 180 pounds after being persuaded by Yi Zhonghai.

A few days later, the courtyard at No. 95 was decorated with lanterns and colorful streamers, and Jia Dongxu's wedding was held in a lively manner.

Several tables were set up in the courtyard for a banquet, and neighbors came to show their support. Yi Zhonghai, Liu Haizhong, and Yan Bugui sat at the main table, beaming from ear to ear.

The bride, Zhang Guilan, wore a red cotton gown and slowly walked in. She was not short, but weighed a full 180 pounds.

With his broad shoulders and thick waist, he stood out conspicuously next to the thin Jia Dongxu.

Jia Dongxu looked at his wife beside him, feeling utterly helpless.

When they first met, he was taken aback by Zhang Guilan's size and was extremely unhappy.

"Dongxu, Guilan, congratulations!" Shazhu walked over with a wine glass in his hand.

He joked with a smile, "You'd better live a good life from now on and not worry your mom."

Xu Damao also came over, his eyes sweeping over Zhang Guilan, a mocking smile playing on his lips: "Brother Dongxu, your wife is really strong; she'll definitely be a good help with housework!"

Jia Dongxu's face darkened, and he ignored him, pulling Zhang Guilan down to sit and drink.

Halfway through the banquet, Madam Jia Zhang stood up, holding her wine glass, and cleared her throat: "Dear neighbors, today is the wedding day of my son Dongxu and Guilan. Thank you all for coming! I have something to tell you all. From now on, I will be in charge of the Jia family. Dongxu and Guilan's salaries will all be handed over to me for management, and I will also be in charge of the household expenses!"

Upon hearing this, everyone at the table was stunned.

Zhang Guilan's expression changed drastically. She put down her chopsticks and said in a deep voice, "Mom, I don't agree! Why should Dongxu and I give you all the wages we earn? We need to live our own lives and save money; we can't give it all to you!"

"What did you say?"

Madam Jia glared at him. "Once you marry into the Jia family, you're part of the Jia family, so naturally you have to hand over your salary! It wasn't easy raising Dongxu, now it's his turn to be filial to me. As his daughter-in-law, you have to listen to me!"

"I can be filial to you, but I can't give you all my salary!"

Zhang Guilan also lost her temper, slamming her hand on the table and standing up. "It's my own money, I have the right to manage it myself!"

"You've gone too far! I'm going to teach you a lesson today and show you who's in charge here!"

Zhang Guilan was no pushover either, and she shoved Jia Zhangshi back, saying, "You dare hit me? I'm not afraid of you!"

Caught off guard, Jia Zhangshi stumbled and fell to the ground. She scrambled to her feet and lunged at Zhang Guilan, yelling, "You unfilial daughter-in-law! I'll beat you to death!"

Zhang Guilan was not to be outdone. She grabbed Jia Zhangshi's hair and tore at her clothes. The two rolled on the ground, and the scene was chaotic.

"Stop fighting! Stop fighting!" Jia Dongxu was so anxious that he paced around in circles and rushed forward to stop them, but he was no match for the two women. Instead, Zhang Guilan pushed him to the ground and he fell on his butt.

The neighbors were stunned, and no one dared to step forward to break up the fight. Yi Zhonghai and Liu Haizhong exchanged a glance, and Yi Zhonghai said to Liu Haizhong, "Quickly send your three sons to separate them, before they get into serious trouble."

Liu Haizhong coughed and shouted to his sons, "You guys, go and pull them apart!"

His three sons rushed over and, with great effort, managed to separate Jia Zhangshi and Zhang Guilan, who were wrestling. Both women were disheveled, their clothes torn, and their faces covered in scratches; they were in a sorry state.

Madam Jia sat on the ground, slapping her thigh and wailing, "Why is my life so miserable! I married an unfilial daughter-in-law who dares to hit her mother-in-law!"

Zhang Guilan, also panting heavily, glared at Jia Zhangshi: "You want me to hand over all my wages? No way!"

The wedding ended on a sour note, and the neighbors all knew that the Jia family's future days would likely be anything but peaceful.

That evening, Yi Zhonghai convened a general meeting of all staff members in the courtyard.

He sat at a square table, with Liu Haizhong and Yan Bugui on either side.

Yi Zhonghai adopted the airs of an old man and said in a serious tone, "Today is Jia Dongxu and Guilan's wedding, which should be a joyous occasion, but it's turned into this mess. It's outrageous!"

"Zhang Guilan, as a daughter-in-law, you have laid a hand on your mother-in-law! This is outrageous! In our courtyard, rules must be followed. It is the mother-in-law's right to make decisions. You must listen to Jia Zhangshi and hand over your wages!"

Upon hearing this, Zhang Guilan immediately exploded: "I disagree! Why should I hand over the money I earn to her? She has hands and feet; can't she earn money herself? Besides, she hit me first!"

"You dare to talk back?" Yi Zhonghai's face darkened.

"The rule in this courtyard is to respect the elderly and care for the young. You must listen to what your mother-in-law says! Today I'm making the decision: from now on, Jia Zhangshi will have the final say in all matters concerning the Jia family, and your wages must be handed over!"

"I won't agree! You want me to hand over all my wages? I'll only do that if I'm dead! At most, I'll give her three dollars a month in alimony, not a penny more!"

Yi Zhonghai frowned, pondering to himself.

He originally intended to take this opportunity to help Jia Zhangshi establish prestige, win over the Jia family, and incidentally promote the idea of ​​respecting the elderly.

But Zhang Guilan's attitude was firm, and if we pushed her too hard, things might get even more tense.

Left with no other choice, he could only reluctantly compromise: "Alright, it'll be as you say, give Jia Zhangshi three yuan a month, and you're not allowed to fight with your mother-in-law anymore, you have to be filial to her."

Although Jia Zhangshi was not satisfied, she had no choice but to grit her teeth and agree.

After resolving the Jia family's matter, Yi Zhonghai changed the subject and began to preach the great principles of "mutual help and respect for the elderly":

"Our courtyard house is like one big family, and neighbors should help each other. We should especially respect the elderly and take the initiative to care about their lives. Some people, once they become well-off, forget about their neighbors, don't know how to help each other, and don't know how to respect the elderly. That's wrong."

His words were alluding to the Lin family.

Standing in the crowd, Lin Weidong understood Yi Zhonghai's implied meaning and sneered inwardly.

He stepped forward: "Uncle Yi, you're right to say we should help each other and respect the elderly. But mutual help is reciprocal; you can't just expect others to help you without helping others in return."

"When our family was struggling, no one offered a helping hand. Now that our family is doing better, you're saying we don't help each other? Is that fair?"

He paused, then continued, "And then there's respecting the elderly. You only talk about respecting the elderly. You're always thinking about having others take care of you in your old age, scheming and calculating. Is that what you call respecting the elderly? I think you're just a hypocrite who respects the elderly!"

Lin Weidong's words hit the nail on the head, exposing Yi Zhonghai's true colors. Everyone in the hospital was stunned; no one dared to speak, and all looked at Yi Zhonghai.

Yi Zhonghai's face turned pale and then red, and he pointed at Lin Weidong in anger, unable to speak for a long time: "You child! I was trying to be nice and explain the rules, and you talked back to me in public, that's outrageous!"