Courtyard House: The Road to an Industrial Power

Before long, two kerosene lamps were hung under the big locust tree in the courtyard, their dim light barely illuminating the open space in the center of the courtyard.

Zhao Xiulan sat solemnly in front of the square table.

Yi Zhonghai stood to one side, sandwiched between Liu Haizhong and Yan Bugui, his head drooping almost to his chest. His once straight back had collapsed, and the dignity of an eighth-grade fitter was completely gone.

An older woman sat in the front row of the crowd, her eyes red and swollen from crying. Her handkerchief was twisted into a ball. People around her either whispered or cast disdainful glances, but no one came forward to comfort her.

"Quiet down, everyone!"

Zhao Xiulan slammed her hand on the table. "The reason we're holding this hospital-wide meeting today is to seriously deal with the misconduct of Yi Zhonghai and Zhang Guilan! Yi Zhonghai, you're a veteran worker at the steel rolling mill, and also a respected elder in our courtyard. You should be leading by example in upholding the rules and maintaining a positive atmosphere. But what have you done? You've committed such a disgraceful and immoral act, bringing shame to the factory and the entire courtyard!"

No sooner had she finished speaking than Madam Jia slapped her thigh, her voice booming, "Director Zhao is absolutely right! That old bastard is a disgrace! He's even brought black smoke to our Jia family's ancestral graves! He must be severely punished!"

Yan Bugui chimed in, his small eyes darting around: "That's right! As an elder, he doesn't set a good example, but instead corrupts the atmosphere. He's a disgrace to the courtyard!"

Zhao Xiulan raised her hand to quiet the room, then looked at Yi Zhonghai and asked, "Yi Zhonghai, tell me yourself, is this true?"

Yi Zhonghai raised his head, his face ashen, but he still stubbornly argued, "I...I admit I was wrong, but it's not entirely my fault! Zhang Guilan seduced me!"

"She wasn't doing well at the Jia family's house and complained to me every day. Today, in the cellar, she was the one who pulled at me first, saying she wanted me to help her get a divorce. I was confused for a moment and made a mistake!"

"You're talking nonsense!"

Zhang Guilan trembled with rage. "Yi Zhonghai, have you no shame! You were the one who approached me first, saying you could help me escape the Jia family's hellhole and that you'd protect me. Now that things have gone wrong, you're trying to pin all the blame on me! What kind of man are you?!"

"You're talking nonsense!" Yi Zhonghai jumped up and down in a panic.

She stubbornly protested, "You seduced me! Otherwise, why would I go to a place like a vegetable cellar!"

"That's enough!"

Zhao Xiulan sternly stopped her, "Even now you're still trying to distort the truth! Wei Dong saw you two enter the cellar one after the other, and when he locked the door, he heard a pulling sound inside. The neighbors all saw it clearly. Are you still trying to deny it?"

She paused for a moment, then continued, "First, Yi Zhonghai must apologize to the Jia family in front of the entire hospital."

"Secondly, compensate the Jia family with fifty yuan for reputational damage."

"Third, write a profound self-criticism of 3,000 words, post it on your front door for a month, and let everyone supervise you!"

"Furthermore, Zhang Guilan, you and Yi Zhonghai will have to go to the subdistrict office every afternoon after get off work to receive education and then clean the streets for a month."

Upon hearing that he had to pay fifty yuan, Yi Zhonghai's face turned deathly pale. He had just been fined three months' wages by the factory, and his family's grain jar was almost empty. This fifty yuan was practically the death of him. Just as he was about to beg for mercy, a cold snort suddenly came from outside the crowd.

"Director Zhao, aren't you being a bit too harsh?"

The deaf old woman walked in slowly, leaning on her cane, followed by an older woman. Lin Weidong didn't expect that the older woman would actually help Yi Zhonghai in this situation.

"Old Yi made contributions to the factory when he was young and also put a lot of effort into the courtyard house. He just made a mistake because of a moment of confusion. Why be so ruthless? Besides, it takes two to tango. If Zhang Guilan had been virtuous, would this have happened to her?"

"Grandma, I don't agree with what you're saying!"

Zhao Xiulan stood her ground, staring directly at the deaf old woman. "Merit is merit, and fault is fault; they cannot be confused! Yi Zhonghai made a mistake, and he must be punished according to the rules! If everyone uses merit as a shield, what's the point of the street rules?"

The deaf old woman was speechless, her face turning pale and then red. She pointed at Zhao Xiulan for a long time, but couldn't utter a single word in rebuttal.

She had hoped to use their past relationship to say a few kind words, but Zhao Xiulan showed her no respect whatsoever.

Seeing his backer fall, Yi Zhonghai completely deflated, slumping to the ground and muttering to himself, "I accept the punishment... I accept the punishment..."

Zhao Xiulan looked around at everyone and said in a loud voice, "That's all for today's meeting! Dismissed! Remember, anyone who dares to disrupt neighborhood order will be punished double according to this standard!"

The neighbors dispersed amidst their chatter. Yi Zhonghai took out five large black ten bills, handed them to Jia Zhangshi, and went home. Before leaving, he gave Lin Weidong, who was standing in the crowd, a resentful look.

Back in the house, looking at the older woman, he was surprised that she had actually helped him today.

"Um, actually I..."

"Stop talking about it, let bygones be bygones," the woman said, then got into bed, turned to her side, and lay down with her back to Yi Zhonghai.

As soon as Zhang Guilan entered the Jia family home, she was pushed down by Jia Zhangshi next to Jia Dongxu's bed.

"Ouch, Mom! What are you doing!"

Before he could finish speaking, Jia Dongxu grabbed Zhang Guilan's hair and said, "You bitch, how dare you cheat on me with that old bastard Yi Zhonghai?"

"I'll beat you to death!" Jia Dongxu said as he slapped Zhang Guilan's face. Jia Zhangshi, who was standing next to him, also rushed over and kept pinching Zhang Guilan.

Even the servant was cursing Zhang Guilan: "You bitch, you deserve to be beaten to death by Grandma! Beaten to death!"

As he spoke, Banggeng came up and kicked Zhang Guilan.

When Zhang Guilan heard that Bang Geng was talking about her like that, she instantly exploded and pushed Jia Zhangshi and Jia Dongxu away.

She rushed out of the courtyard and ran back home. As soon as she arrived, the Zhang brothers, seeing their sister's disheveled state, asked, "Sister, what happened? Did that old woman from the Jia family bully you again?"

Next, Zhang Guilan told her two older brothers what had happened. After hearing the whole story, they understood that it was all Yi Zhonghai's fault. Not only did he plot against his sister, but he also dared to turn the tables on her.

"Little sister, if you're alright, you can stay at home for now. If it really doesn't work out, just divorce the Jia family, and your two older brothers will take care of you!"

"As for Yi Zhonghai, we'll see how we deal with him."

The next evening, just as the steel rolling mill's closing bell rang, Yi Zhonghai walked out of the factory gate with his head down and a dejected look on his face. As soon as he turned into the alley, he was blocked by two burly men.

"You're Yi Zhonghai?" one of the men asked, arms crossed, his eyes menacing.

Yi Zhonghai's heart skipped a beat. Just as he was about to nod, he was punched in the face, making him wince in pain.

Two men punched and kicked him, cursing, "You old bastard! How dare you bully my sister Zhang Guilan! Today we'll teach you a lesson!"

It turns out that these two men are Zhang Guilan's older brother. Yesterday, they heard that Yi Zhonghai had turned the tables and smeared his sister, so they came to block him from leaving get off work.

Yi Zhonghai curled up on the ground, clutching his head. His cries of pain attracted a crowd of onlookers, but no one came forward to help.

After the two men had finished fighting, they said, "If you dare to bully my sister again, I'll break your legs," and left. Only then did Yi Zhonghai cover his face, which was swollen like a pig's head, and get up in a sorry state, limping home.

At that moment, Lin Weidong was still in his office organizing data on machine tool modifications when a crisp notification sound suddenly rang in his mind:

[Ding! The host has exposed despicable acts and upheld public order and good morals, triggering a system reward!]

[Reward: One advanced atlas of basic industrial materials science and one set of core parameters for heat treatment of special steel!]