Courtyard House: The Road to an Industrial Power

On the other hand, Yan Bugui had made a little money fishing these past few days. Sometimes when he caught too many fish, he would put them in a basin by the door, planning to sell them on the black market the next day.

The next morning, when he got up, he found that the fish in the basin were gone!

He immediately panicked and shouted at the top of his lungs all over the yard, "Who stole my fish! Who stole my fish!"

The neighbors all peeked out to see what was going on, but no one responded.

Lin Weidong happened to come out of the house and, seeing this, pointed discreetly in the direction of the Jia family's house.

Yan Bugui immediately understood, and angrily rushed to the Jia family's door, kicking open the half-closed door.

There, Jia Zhangshi was squatting on the ground, holding a pair of scissors, happily scaling fish. There were two fish on the ground.

"You damned Jia Zhangshi! How dare you steal my fish!" Yan Bugui was so angry that he jumped up and down, rushing forward to snatch the fish.

Seeing this, Jia Zhangshi remained calm, stood up abruptly, and with all her might, rammed into Yan Bugui.

Weighing nearly 200 pounds, she was quite strong. Yan Bugui, a frail old man, couldn't withstand her impact and was sent flying backward, landing in the yard, wincing in pain.

With her hands on her hips, Jia Zhangshi pointed at Yan Bugui and yelled, "What do you mean, 'stole your fish'! I picked up this fish! Picked up! If you dare to cause me any more trouble, I'll go to your doorstep every day and wail, calling Old Jia to take you downstairs, so you'll never have a peaceful life!"

Upon seeing this, Liu Haizhong, who was heading out to the steel rolling mill, shouted, "Old Yan, you've finally met your match? Serves you right! Jia Zhangshi was right, he was just adopted."

Jia Zhangshi snorted and said, "Did you hear that, Yan Laoxi? Liu Pangpang both said that my fish were picked up from the ground."

Liu Haizhong didn't care at all about Jia Zhangshi calling him Fatty Liu; what he cared about now was Yan Bugui's misfortune.

Yan Bugui clutched his back, slunk up, and went home cursing.

From then on, Yan Bugui never dared to leave the fish he caught at the door again. Every time, he would carefully carry them back into the house, for fear that Jia Zhangshi would steal them again.

In the middle of the night, the courtyard was quiet.

Qin Huairu lay in bed, tossing and turning, unable to fall asleep.

My due date is approaching, and these past few days I've been experiencing severe back pain.

In the middle of the night, a sudden, intense abdominal pain struck her. She groaned and felt her water break.

"Pillar! Pillar!" Qin Huairu's voice rang out.

It startled He Yuzhu, who was fast asleep beside him.

He Yuzhu sat bolt upright, and upon seeing Qin Huairu covered in sweat, he panicked: "Huairu! Don't worry! I'll go get someone right away!"

He didn't even have time to put on his shoes properly before rushing out of the house barefoot, heading straight for the Lin family's house.

At this moment, Lin Jianjun and Zhao Xiulan were asleep in the Lin family home, while Lin Weidong had just returned from working overtime at the steel rolling mill and was preparing to rest.

"Weidong! Uncle! Help! Huairu is about to give birth!" He Yuzhu shouted anxiously.

Lin Weidong and Lin Jianjun got up without saying a word.

Zhao Xiulan quickly put on her clothes: "Quick! Bring our cart out!"

Hearing the commotion, He Daqing ran out of the house wearing his clothes, and He Yushui also rushed over with clothes and towels that she had prepared in advance.

Several people hurriedly helped Qin Huairu onto the cart. Lin Weidong and Lin Jianjun pulled from the front, He Yuzhu and He Daqing pushed from behind, and He Yushui supported Qin Huairu from the side as they raced towards the hospital.

Before leaving, Zhao Xiulan took He Yuzhu's eldest daughter, He Nannan, home: "Nannan, don't be afraid. Sleep with Auntie. Your mother is going to give birth to your little brother."

On the way, He Yuzhu was sweating profusely, constantly shouting, "Huairu! Hang in there! We'll be at the hospital soon!"

They arrived at the hospital shortly after, and the doctors and nurses quickly wheeled Qin Huairu into the delivery room.

He Yuzhu and the others waited anxiously outside the delivery room, pacing back and forth in a panic.

Time passed second by second, and the sky gradually turned a pale white.

Just when everyone was extremely anxious, a loud cry of a newborn baby came from the delivery room.

"It's a boy! It's a big, healthy baby boy!" The nurse came out smiling to announce the good news.

He Yuzhu collapsed to the ground, muttering, "I have a son! I have a son!"

The next morning, in the hospital corridor, a limping figure was walking unsteadily; it was Xu Damao, who had come to the hospital to have his cast removed.

His arms and legs were broken by Lin Weidong last time, and he still has difficulty walking.

As he passed through the corridor outside the delivery room, he overheard He Yuzhu and He Daqing talking excitedly.

"Dad, look at my son! He's so strong and healthy!"

"That's right! It's from our He family! No doubt about it!"

Xu Damao stopped abruptly, his ears ringing.

He recalled the three years he was exiled to the far northwest, the humiliation of having his arms and legs broken by Lin Weidong, and the fact that he might never be able to have children in his life.

A venomous flame instantly ignited in his heart, and his eyes became bloodshot.

He stared intently at He Yuzhu's retreating figure, his teeth grinding together: "He Yuzhu! Why is it that you have both a son and a daughter while I have to be childless?!"

For the next few days, He Yuzhu went straight to the hospital after get off work every day, staying by Qin Huairu's side and her newborn son's side.

He worked in the factory during the day and stayed up all night at the hospital to take care of his patients. In just a few days, he developed dark circles under his eyes, and his eye sockets became sunken.

That evening, seeing her brother's haggard appearance, He Yushui took his arm and said:

"Brother, you haven't slept well for days. I'll keep watch tonight. You go home and get some sleep, and come back tomorrow morning."

He Yuzhu looked at his wife and children sleeping soundly on the hospital bed, then at his sister, and nodded: "Alright, don't overwork yourself. Let me know if anything happens."

He rubbed his sore eyes, dragged his tired body, and walked out of the hospital.

Just as he reached a corner, a dark figure suddenly darted out from behind a tree, carrying a wooden stick.

"He Yuzhu! Prepare to die!"

Before He Yuzhu could react, the wooden stick slammed into the back of his head.

With a muffled thud, He Yuzhu's vision went black, and he fell straight down.

Xu Damao pounced on He Yuzhu, straddling him and pounding him with the wooden stick, all the while yelling, "I'll teach you to hit me! I'll teach you to have a son! If it weren't for you, I wouldn't be childless! It's all your fault! It's all your fault!"

His eyes were bloodshot as he watched He Yuzhu lying helplessly on the ground, a glint of madness flashing in his eyes.

He threw away the stick, muttering, "If I'm not having a good time, you won't either! I'm going to cripple you! I'll let you taste the bitterness of having no offspring!"

As he spoke, he raised his foot and stomped hard on He Yuzhu's groin!

Just at this critical moment, a brick suddenly flew through the air and slammed into Xu Damao's back.

"Bang!"

Xu Damao screamed in pain and fell forward.

He turned around and saw Lin Weidong standing not far away, holding a thermos in his hand.