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

Zhou Weiguo merely glanced at Song Dahua without saying a word, leaving Song Dahua completely bewildered.

Although Director Wang's face was grim, he could only pretend he hadn't heard anything in this situation. He slapped his forehead in surprise and said, "Ah? Natasha? I remember now, she's the goose expert from the Red Star Steel Rolling Mill! Hey, I thought this child looked a lot like you, I thought she was your child, it was a misunderstanding."

Zhou Weiguo smiled and nodded, his lips curving upwards even further: "Director Wang, you're not wrong, this child is indeed mine and Natasha's."

The moment those words were spoken, the atmosphere turned cold. Auntie Er, however, revealed a look of delight, her fists clenched. This was a huge weakness; now she could finally bring this guy down, right?

The three aunties and Yan Fugui standing to the side changed their expressions drastically, inwardly lamenting: "My little darling, why bring up such a sore subject!" Now, even if Director Wang wanted to pretend to be confused, he couldn't continue.

Director Wang looked embarrassed. She hadn't been at the subdistrict office for long and had limited knowledge of the situation. In addition, Zhou Weiguo's marriage and divorce procedures were handled by the military and government departments and were not registered with the subdistrict office. Furthermore, his files had been taken away by the central government long ago, so she had no idea about these inside stories.

She had only heard that Zhou Weiguo was the only chief engineer at the provincial level in the neighborhood, and when she checked his file, she found that he had been transferred to the central government. She knew that he was no ordinary person, but she did not expect him to be so complicated.

"Comrade Zhou, did you misspoke just now?" she asked tentatively.

Zhou Weiguo was taken aback at first, then smiled and shook his head: "Oh, I forgot, my file was taken away, so you don't have a record of it. Don't worry, I haven't broken any laws or regulations, nor have I committed bigamy by having illicit relationships."

He patiently explained, "Tian Zao is my ex-wife; we've already gone through divorce proceedings. After that, I married Natasha, and we had this child. Not long ago, Natasha had to go back to Da'e because of some things, so we divorced, but she can't take the child with her. Tian Zao doesn't have much ability to support herself, and I can't let her sleep on the streets, so I asked her to come back and help me take care of the child, providing her with accommodation and three meals a day. That's reasonable, isn't it?"

Upon hearing this, all eyes immediately turned to Zhou Weiguo, their eyes filled with disbelief. Who didn't know that Tian Zao was the deputy director of Hongxing Steel Rolling Mill? Such treatment was called "lacking survival skills"?

Auntie Er's eyes lit up. She glanced into the courtyard and muttered under her breath, "No wonder two little vixens came. This must be the 'seamless connection' Old Man Yan was talking about!"

Director Wang's lips twitched, and he quickly interrupted her: "Song Dahua! Don't say things that are detrimental to unity!"

She then turned to Zhou Weiguo, a strange smile on her face: "Comrade Zhou is truly a helpful comrade, very good, very good. We have a clear understanding of today's situation. Song Dahua,"

She abruptly changed the subject, glaring at the second aunt, "Don't think you can cause trouble in the compound just because you're a liaison officer! If you do this again, I'll strip you of your liaison officer position, understand?"

Everyone's lips twitched instantly, even the two police officers from the local station looked at each other strangely.

But they weren't stupid. They could tell from this situation that Zhou Weiguo was someone they couldn't afford to offend. Since the director of the street office had set the tone, they naturally wouldn't cause any more trouble.

Zhou Weiguo smiled and waved his hand: "Director Wang, you're too kind. Now that the situation has been explained and the misunderstanding cleared up, that's good. If you all have nothing else to do, I'll take my child home first. The child is still young and shy around strangers."

Director Wang immediately smiled broadly: "Of course, of course! Comrade Zhou, please go back and take care of your child. We're so sorry to have bothered you today. We'll be leaving now."

As she spoke, she glared fiercely at the second aunt, then turned and left with her entourage.

The two police officers nodded to Zhou Weiguo and followed without saying a word.

After everyone had mostly left, Qin Huairu quietly tugged at Second Aunt's arm. Second Aunt then realized what was happening and quickly turned to slip away.

"Song Dahua, stop right there."

Zhou Weiguo's voice rang out from behind, "You really know how to stir things up, huh? Looks like you really want your man, Liu Haizhong, back?"

Song Dahua paused, quickly turned around, and forced a pleading look on her face as she said, "Director Zhou, would you be willing to let my husband, Lao Liu, come back?"

Zhou Weiguo looked at her with a half-smile: "Song Dahua, have you ever considered that Liu Haizhong not coming back might actually be a good thing for your family?"

Song Dahua quickly shook her head.

Having witnessed Zhou Weiguo's ruthlessness, she dared not provoke him again, and could only plead in a low voice, "Weiguo, we're neighbors in the same courtyard, I beg you, please let my husband Lao Liu come back!"

Zhou Weiguo shrugged, looking indifferent: "I don't really care. But let me make this clear beforehand, Liu Haizhong's return might not be a good thing. Are you sure you want him back? Sometimes, don't let yourself be used as a pawn while you're kept in the dark like a fool."

Upon hearing this, Aunt Er instinctively looked at Qin Huairu standing to the side.

Qin Huairu's face turned deathly pale, and her body went limp with fear. Did he know that she was the one who instigated her second aunt to frame him? Impossible! She always went to see her second aunt secretly. There was absolutely no way he could know.

She feigned a pitiful state, her eyes red-rimmed as she said, "Director Zhou, please don't joke around with Second Aunt. She just wants to save her husband. Please be merciful and let Second Uncle go. He's old, and his body simply can't handle things at the farm. If anything happens to him, you, as his neighbor and factory leader, won't be happy, will you?"

Looking at her pitiful appearance, Zhou Weiguo sneered inwardly. This woman was still pretending to be pitiful and kind even in this situation.

Qin Huairu's schemes, and the details of how she instigated Song Dahua to cause trouble, were all clearly seen when the crowd watched the show.

This green tea bitch is just jealous of how well she and Sha Zhu are doing, and that "green tea" mentality has resurfaced. She simply can't stand seeing others living comfortably.

"Qin Huairu, I didn't expect you to be such a kind-hearted person."

Zhou Weiguo took over the conversation with a half-smile, then changed the subject, "Since that's the case, I think it's not just Liu Haizhong who's getting old, but your mother-in-law, Jia Zhangshi, is also quite old. How about this, I'll send a letter to the farm later to ask about their reform progress. If they both have the will to turn over a new leaf, I'll put in a good word for them and try to get them back sooner. I just hope that neither you nor Song Dahua will regret it then."

"Jia Zhangshi?"

These three words struck Qin Huairu like a thunderbolt, instantly throwing her into a panic. The thought of her lazy, unreasonable mother-in-law returning terrified her, her face turning even paler than before. Especially if Jia Zhangshi found out she had lied to her son, her very survival was uncertain. No! Absolutely not! If she comes back, my life is completely over!