Courtyard House: Initial Donation of 50 Million

The news of Wang Huanbo's promotion to chief engineer and his monthly income of 650 yuan swept through No. 95 Nanluoguxiang like a whirlwind, instantly easing the gloom brought by Jia Dongxu's work injury. Of course, this is relative.

In the front yard, at Yan Bugui's house, the third uncle was frantically pressing buttons on a calculator (in his head): "Six hundred and fifty! Six hundred and fifty a month! Seven thousand eight a year! My God! This... how many kilograms of flour and pork could that buy!" His eyes behind his glasses gleamed with extreme envy, then dimmed again as he looked at his meager salary and sighed. "Jiecheng, do you see? Knowledge is power! It's money! You'd better study hard from now on..."

The atmosphere was oppressive at Yi Zhonghai's home in the Intermediate People's Court. An older woman, looking at Yi Zhonghai's gloomy face, cautiously asked, "Old Yi, Engineer Wang... his promotion is too fast! His salary is almost half a year's worth of yours..."

Yi Zhonghai slammed his hand on the table, sending his teacup flying. "Fast? That's because they're capable! What's the use of being envious?" His chest heaved violently, his heart heavy with unease. The more successful Wang Huanbo was, the more it highlighted his own failure and incompetence. His retirement plan had completely collapsed, Jia Dongxu was useless, Sha Zhu was disaffected, and now even his voice within the institution was being utterly crushed by this young man. He felt like this "old man" had become a complete joke. A sense of panic at being abandoned by the times and a profound feeling of defeat almost overwhelmed him.

In the backyard of Liu Haizhong's house, a completely different scene unfolded. "Bang! Bang!" The cries of Liu Guangtian and Liu Guangfu, mingled with the sound of belts whipping flesh, echoed through the night. "Useless things! Look at Wang Huanbo! And look at you! How could I have given birth to two good-for-nothings! Seventh-grade worker! What good is a seventh-grade worker!" Liu Haizhong vented all his jealousy of Wang Huanbo and his resentment at failing to be promoted to eighth grade on his two youngest sons. Liu Guangqi, hiding in the inner room, listened to the screams outside; the urge to escape this house had never been stronger.

At Wang Huanbo's house in the west courtyard, the place was bustling with visitors. Xu Damao was the first to arrive, carrying two bottles of fine wine and a plump duck to offer his congratulations: "Engineer Wang! Congratulations on your promotion! You're the best in our institute... no, in the entire city of Beijing!" He gave a thumbs-up, his face beaming with a fawning smile, "I hope you'll give me a good chance to advance in the factory in the future!"

Sha Zhu also happily brought over a plate of freshly cooked braised pork: "Huanbo, you're doing great! You're the chief engineer now! If you have any requests for the canteen's meals in the future, just let me know! I'll make sure you get it all right!" He was genuinely happy for Wang Huanbo and felt proud of himself.

Even Yan Bugui shamelessly brought an old book as a gift to try and get closer to him. Wang Huanbo received everyone who came to congratulate him politely, but maintained an appropriate distance. He knew that these were all matters of social etiquette.

In stark contrast to the bustling activity in the west courtyard, the Jia family was experiencing a period of misery and hardship.

Jia Dongxu sat blankly on the kang (a heated brick bed), his arm in a sling, his eyes vacant. The 300 yuan compensation from the factory and the 50 yuan monthly salary increase after being transferred to the logistics department were still a drop in the ocean compared to the enormous medical expenses and the bottomless pit of future financial hardship. Although the factory would reimburse medical expenses and subsequent treatment costs, it was still a mere drop in the ocean. Jia Zhangshi stopped crying and making a scene, and instead resorted to a more suffocating, endless stream of curses and lamentations.

"That damned Yi Zhonghai! That childless old man! He killed my husband and maimed my son! Why doesn't he just die?!"

"Old Jia! Open your eyes and look! Your son has been harmed like this, and nobody cares!"

"Fifty yuan a month? What can that even cover? Bang Geng needs to eat, Huai Ru is about to give birth, and I, this old man, still need to take medicine. Dong Xu also needs follow-up treatment and nutritional supplements... I can't live like this!"

Whenever she heard the commotion coming from Wang Huanbo's side in the west courtyard, Jia Zhangshi's curses would become especially shrill: "So what if you're rich! So what if you're an official! They all laugh at our family's misfortune! None of them are good people!"

Qin Huairu, heavily pregnant, silently shed tears. After serving her husband and mother-in-law, she also had to care for her young son, Banggeng. Listening to her mother-in-law's curses, seeing her husband's dejection, and comparing it to Wang Huanbo's success, she felt a surge of despair and a hint of resentment she herself didn't want to admit. If... if only she had... she quickly extinguished this dangerous thought.

Yi Zhonghai would occasionally bring some grain or a few coins, but Jia Zhangshi would always yell and beat him, kicking him out: "Get out! You're just crocodile tears! If it weren't for you, would Dongxu be like this? Take your stinking money and get out!"

Each time, Yi Zhonghai left dejectedly, his guilt towards the Jia family gradually replaced by disgust. He knew that he could never fill the hole left by the Jia family, and they had completely lost their value.

Wang Huanbo wasn't indifferent to the Jia family's plight, but he would never offer indiscriminate sympathy. He had Sha Zhu occasionally deliver leftovers from the canteen to the Jia family in his own name (actually, Wang Huanbo had Sha Zhu make extra), as a token of neighborly courtesy. He wouldn't do much more. A small favor is appreciated, but too much breeds resentment; the more he helped the ungrateful Jia family, the bigger the trouble would be.

The birds in the courtyard, all exposed before Wang Huanbo's "demon-revealing mirror," displayed their true nature. There was jealousy, sycophancy, despair, and also simple friendships like that of Sha Zhu. The small courtyard house was a miniature version of the martial arts world.