I painted an aircraft carrier on the courtyard house for Dongda University.

Zhou Weiguo sneered inwardly: This old fox, he's quite the smooth operator of the "praise first, then kill" tactic! Trying to morally blackmail me and Zhuzi? No way! Sure enough, Yi Zhonghai changed the subject: "And then there's the Jia family in our compound. Only one of their four family members has a ration, and they're really struggling to make ends meet. Our compound is a place of honor, shouldn't we lend a helping hand? When others encounter difficulties, the neighbors will help too. Don't you agree?"

Jia Dongxu immediately stood up and shouted, "That's right! That old man is absolutely right!"

Everyone else lowered their heads and remained silent.

Yi Zhonghai looked at He Yuzhu: "Zhuzi, the Jia family is in such dire straits, could you lend them a hand? I believe they will remember your kindness."

Qin Huairu looked at Sha Zhu pitifully, "Zhu Zi, please help our family. We're having such a hard time. Bang Geng and I will definitely repay you in the future."

Just as Sha Zhu was about to speak, Zhou Weiguo kicked him, sending Sha Zhu sprawling to the ground. Clutching his crotch, he sat back down on the stool, head bowed, and said, "My uncle makes the decisions for my family; don't ask me."

Yi Zhonghai persisted, "Zhu Zi, you're the head chef in the courtyard, and we've been neighbors for decades. You wouldn't want to see someone in the Jia family starve to death, would you?"

Sha Zhu kept his head down and remained silent, and everyone's gaze turned to Zhou Weiguo. No one wanted to help the Jia family, but if He Yuzhu was willing to help, wouldn't that save them trouble?

Zhou Weiguo looked at Yi Zhonghai with a half-smile: "Comrade Yi, you said you'd have Zhu Zi help the Jia family, but how exactly will you help them?"

Thinking there was a chance, Yi Zhonghai quickly said, "Zhu Zi is the factory's head chef, and he has leftovers every day. It's a waste to throw them away. Why don't we have him bring them back to help the Jia family? It would be a good deed for our compound!"

Zhou Weiguo looked at Yi Zhonghai and thought to himself that this man really doesn't learn his lesson.

He stood up again, walked over to Yi Zhonghai, looked around for a long time but couldn't find a good spot to pat him, so he slammed his hand heavily on Yi Zhonghai's shoulder: "Comrade Yi, we are glorious communists! How could glorious communists steal state property? The factory's leftover food is public property. You had Zhu Zi take it back to help the Jia family. What's the difference between that and instigating him to steal and commit a crime? As the liaison officer of the institute, you actually instigated others to embezzle state property. Is this what you call 'good deeds'?"

Yi Zhonghai's face flushed red, whether from being hit or frightened, and he hurriedly explained, "It's all a misunderstanding! I just wanted to maintain harmony in the compound and help the Jia family. I had absolutely no bad intentions..." As he spoke, he stole glances at the reactions of those around him, and fine beads of sweat appeared on his forehead.

Zhou Weiguo's gaze was piercing: "Whether you have bad intentions or not, only you know! Are you saying the Jia family is the only one in this courtyard facing hardship? Zhuzi, come here! Tell me, how many families in this courtyard are worse off than the Jia family?"

He Yuzhu looked at Zhou Weiguo with admiration: "That's quite a few, at least two or three families! The Third Uncle's family has six people supported by just one person's salary, and they even have to count the pickled vegetables... He even tastes the manure cart as it passes by... Oh my!"

Zhou Weiguo kicked him: "Get lost! You jerk, you deserve a beating! If you can't speak properly, just shut up!"

He turned to Yi Zhonghai: "Comrade Yi, you keep saying you're helping the Jia family, but you're a senior technician, earning several tens of yuan a month. Jia Dongxu is your apprentice, why don't you help him? Why do you have to drag my Zhuzi into this, even making him make mistakes to help you? What are you really up to?"

Yi Zhonghai was speechless after being questioned for a long time before finally saying, "Comrade Zhou, I respect that you are a college student, but you can't slander me like this! Over the years, I've helped my neighbors a lot in the compound. I've always been there for anyone in need. The Jia family has an orphan and a widow, and I couldn't bear to see them go hungry, so I wanted to get everyone to help. My abilities are limited, but Zhu Zi is young and strong and works in the canteen; lending a hand wouldn't be difficult for him. How does that become instigating a crime?"

Zhou Weiguo suddenly threw his head back and burst into laughter. "Is this the legendary 'a pillow delivered when you're sleepy'?" he thought. "Since you've brought this up, don't blame me for firing on top of it: 'What a fine 'limited ability'! Since we're on the topic, let me ask you: If you have limited ability, does that mean you'll use He Yuzhu and He Yushui's life-saving money? Does that mean you'll swallow the living expenses He Daqing sent to the children?'"

These words were like a bomb, instantly causing an uproar in the courtyard. The crowd buzzed with discussion, while Yi Zhonghai's face turned deathly pale, he broke out in a cold sweat, his legs trembled, and he couldn't utter a single word.

Just then, the sound of a cane clicking came from the backyard, and the deaf old woman walked in, leaning on her cane. She scanned the crowd, a fake smile on her face: "You must be Xiao Zhou, right? This is a misunderstanding! Everyone in the compound knows that Xiao Yi has taken care of Zhu Zi and Yu Shui for so many years. He's put in both effort and money; how could he possibly embezzle Zhu Zi's money?"

Hearing this, many of the neighbors confirmed, "Yes, the old man has taken good care of Zhuzi over the years. There must be some misunderstanding."

Yi Zhonghai also realized what was happening: "Yes, Comrade Zhou, this is absolutely a misunderstanding. Don't believe those slanderous words!"

Zhou Weiguo crossed his arms: "Misunderstanding? You make it sound so easy! Yi Zhonghai, you really won't give up until you're completely convinced. Since you're so stubborn, don't blame me for producing the evidence directly."

The deaf old woman spoke again: "Little Zhou, I'm old, and my back hurts after standing for a long time. Could you come inside with me to talk?"

Zhou Weiguo understood that she wanted to protect Yi Zhonghai's reputation, and he looked at the deaf old woman with a wicked smile.

The deaf old woman squinted her eyes: "Little Zhou, don't worry, I'll definitely satisfy you. Shall we go inside and talk?"

Zhou Weiguo's heart skipped a beat: "Going into the room to talk is fine, but three or five people won't solve the problem."

The deaf old woman paused for a moment, then nodded: "Don't worry, I keep my word."

Zhou Weiguo ignored the people in the courtyard and followed the deaf old woman and Yi Zhonghai toward the Yi family home. He Yuzhu and his sister quickly followed.

The deaf old woman sat down shakily, gesturing for everyone else to sit as well, then looked at Yi Zhonghai: "Speak, Xiao Yi, what exactly happened? Don't hide it anymore."

Yi Zhonghai was covered in sweat, his head bowed, seemingly trying to organize his thoughts or fabricate an excuse.

Seeing this, Zhou Weiguo stood up and said, "Since you won't talk, then talk to the police!" He made a move to leave, and He Yuzhu and his sister also got up.

The deaf old woman hurriedly used her cane to stop him, almost falling over in the process.

Yi Zhonghai panicked: "I'll talk!" He briefly recounted the events, then said to He Yuzhu, "Zhuzi, when I mentioned He Daqing, you got angry with me, so I couldn't give it to you. I was thinking of saving it for you first, and giving it all to you when you get married." After saying that, he ran to under the bed, pulled out an iron box, and handed it to He Yuzhu.

He Yuzhu looked at Zhou Weiguo. Zhou Weiguo shook his head: "These are pieces of evidence of crimes, each a separate matter. This isn't compensation. Don't accept compensation until you've received it."

The deaf old woman sighed, "Zhu Zi, Grandma said that just now to save face for everyone, don't blame Grandma." She then turned to Zhou Weiguo, "Xiao Zhou, it's good to be forgiving. Whatever you want, as long as it's not excessive, I can give you an explanation."

P.S.: Please urge me to update more and give me good reviews. Thank you!