Siheyuan (courtyard house): My father, Li Yunlong!

These thoughts were noticed by the shrewd and calculating Yi Zhonghai.

Since being removed from his position as an elder, Yi Zhonghai's status in the courtyard has plummeted, and Li Zhenhua's strong rise has made him feel an unprecedented crisis.

He increasingly felt that Sha Zhu was the most crucial, and perhaps the final, part of his retirement plan.

We must get Sha Zhu married as soon as possible, but the bride must be someone Yi Zhonghai can control. We absolutely cannot allow another one like Qin Huairu who is out of our control.

Therefore, Yi Zhonghai began to "enthusiastically" arrange Sha Zhu's marriage.

He used his connections from his early years to ask around and introduce potential partners to Sha Zhu.

But the girls introduced to him were either not to his liking, because he thought they weren't good-looking or that they didn't have anything in common.

Either Yi Zhonghai didn't like her because he felt her family background was too complicated, or the girl was too opinionated and he was afraid she would be difficult to control in the future.

Persistence pays off. On this day, through the connections of a distant relative, Yi Zhonghai actually found a "perfect" candidate for Sha Zhu.

The female worker in the textile factory was named Zhao Xiaoyun.

According to the matchmaker, Zhao Xiaoyun was a few years younger than Sha Zhu, with a decent appearance and an honest, introverted personality. Crucially, her family was small; her parents were ordinary workers, and she only had a younger brother still in school. In Yi Zhonghai's view, this family background made her easy to manipulate, and the girl's gentle nature made her easy to control.

Yi Zhonghai excitedly told Sha Zhu about it. Sha Zhu was initially reluctant to go on a blind date, but he couldn't resist Yi Zhonghai's persuasion, which was "for your own good," and after hearing that the girl was a good catch, he reluctantly agreed to meet her.

Fearing any unforeseen complications, Yi Zhonghai arranged the meeting at his own home on Sunday evening, with him and an older woman accompanying him, making it formal yet understated.

On Sunday evening, Zhao Xiaoyun, accompanied by the matchmaker, arrived at Yi Zhonghai's courtyard house on time.

As the introduction described, the girl was indeed pretty and tall, wearing a simple plaid coat. She was a little shy when she entered the room, and didn't talk much, answering only when asked, appearing very quiet.

At first glance, Sha Zhu was somewhat satisfied.

Yi Zhonghai and the older woman warmly welcomed them, showing concern and care, and the atmosphere was quite harmonious for a while.

After chatting about everyday things for a while, Yi Zhonghai felt that the time was right, so he gave the old lady a wink. The old lady understood and asked Sha Zhu to go to the inner room to get some peanuts and melon seeds, thus sending Sha Zhu away.

Only Yi Zhonghai, the matchmaker, and Zhao Xiaoyun remained in the main room.

Yi Zhonghai put on a kind smile and said to Zhao Xiaoyun.

"Miss Xiaoyun, don't be nervous. I've watched Zhuzi grow up. His character is impeccable. He's honest, kind, and has excellent cooking skills, so he won't go hungry. It's just... he's a bit straightforward, but he's kind-hearted and doesn't have any bad intentions."

Zhao Xiaoyun nodded, blushing.

Yi Zhonghai changed the subject, seemingly sighing casually, and lowered his voice to say something.

"However, there's something I feel I should tell you beforehand. Zhu Zi is a loyal and kind person, which is a good thing, but sometimes it can also cause gossip. In our courtyard, there's a widow surnamed Qin who used to be quite poor. Zhu Zi is kind-hearted and has helped them a lot. Over time, some rumors have started circulating in the courtyard... Of course, we all know Zhu Zi is innocent; he's just genuinely helping out. But it's still... not a pleasant thing to say. I'm worried that you might hear some gossip and feel uncomfortable about it."

His words were extremely insidious.

While seemingly explaining things for Sha Zhu and praising his kindness, she was actually hammering keywords like "widow," "helping out," and "gossip" into Zhao Xiaoyun's ears like nails.

It's no wonder a young woman would feel uncomfortable upon hearing that her blind date was entangled with a widow in the neighborhood.

Zhao Xiaoyun's expression changed instantly; her smile froze on her face, and her eyes were filled with surprise and unease.

She instinctively twisted the hem of her clothes, lowered her head, and remained silent.

Seeing this, the matchmaker quickly tried to smooth things over.

"Oh, Master Yi, look at what you're saying. That's all in the past. Everyone knows Comrade Zhu is a kind-hearted person..."

Just then, the curtain to the main room was lifted, and Sha Zhu came out carrying peanuts and melon seeds, saying happily.

"What's all this commotion about?" He noticed Zhao Xiaoyun's strange expression at a glance and paused for a moment.

As fate would have it, at that very moment, Qin Huairu came back to pick up some things from the guesthouse and happened to pass by Yi Zhonghai's window.

She vaguely heard people talking inside, and they seemed to mention "pillar" and "widow" or something. Her heart skipped a beat, and she slowed down.

Every word of Yi Zhonghai's earnest "reminder" that followed reached her ears.

Qin Huairu's blood rushed to her head with a "whoosh"!

You, Yi Zhonghai!

You old bastard!

When you lose hope yourself, you can't stand to see others doing well!

They actually resorted to such despicable tactics behind my back, splashing dirty water on the pillar and on themselves!

If this gets out, what will become of Qin Huairu's reputation, now that she's just become the director of the guesthouse?

How can Zhu Zi get married?

New and old grudges surged into my heart at once.

Thinking back to Yi Zhonghai's attempt to seize the pension, his usual hypocrisy and scheming, and how he had finally made some progress with Li Zhenhua's help, this old bastard still dared to cause trouble!

Qin Huairu exploded instantly!

She abruptly lifted the curtain and rushed into Yi Zhonghai's main room, her eyebrows furrowed, pointing at Yi Zhonghai's nose and launching into a tirade.

"Yi Zhonghai! You old bastard! What nonsense are you spouting?! Who's having an affair with Zhuzi? Huh? You'd better explain yourself today!"

Everyone in the room was stunned!

Yi Zhonghai was completely taken aback by Qin Huairu's sudden appearance and heard everything clearly. He was so frightened that his face turned pale and he was speechless.

"Huai...Huai Ru? You...what are you doing here? I...I didn't say anything..."

"Bullshit!"

At this moment, Qin Huairu was completely desperate, and the grievances and anger that had been building up for many years erupted like a volcano.

"I heard it all! You were telling that Zhu Zi helped me out, spreading rumors! Yi Zhonghai, are you even human? Zhu Zi is kind-hearted; he saw how pitiful we orphans and widows were and helped us out, so what? How come it sounds so filthy in your mouth? Your own heart is dirty, so everything you see is dirty! Let me tell you, I, Qin Huairu, am upright and honest! My relationship with Zhu Zi is completely innocent, nothing happened between us! Stop spouting nonsense and ruining Zhu Zi's good deed!"

Her barrage of scathing rebukes was perfectly reasonable and piercing, tearing Yi Zhonghai's facade to shreds.

Yi Zhonghai was trembling from the scolding and couldn't utter a single word. An older woman tried to intervene, but Qin Huairu's sharp glare silenced her.

The matchmaker looked embarrassed and wished she could disappear into the ground.

Zhao Xiaoyun was terrified, her face turning pale. Looking at the scene before her, she felt both ashamed and angry, tears welling up in her eyes.

Sha Zhu was initially confused, but after understanding what was going on, a surge of anger rushed straight to his head!

He's always had a fiery temper; he's easily provoked.

He went through all that trouble to find a blind date, but that old bastard Yi Zhonghai sabotaged him behind his back and made such a terrible impression of him and Sister Qin!

This is even more painful for him than being beaten up!

"An old man!"

Sha Zhu slammed his hand on the table, making the teacups rattle, and his eyes widened like copper bells.

"What the hell do you mean? Huh? When did I ever have an affair with Sister Qin? If you don't explain yourself clearly today, I'm not done with you!"

Faced with Sha Zhu's roar and Qin Huairu's angry curses, Yi Zhonghai completely lost his composure and stammered his explanation.

"Zhu Zi, you...you listen to me, that's not what I meant. I'm doing this for your own good, because I'm worried about the future..."

"You're doing me a disservice!"

Sha Zhu was furious and pointed at Yi Zhonghai's nose, cursing.

"Yi Zhonghai! I was so blind before, I thought you were a good person! I never imagined you were such a despicable stab in the back! You're unhappy because you see me getting along well with Sister Qin, aren't you? You're afraid I'll help her and abandon you in your old age, aren't you? Let me tell you, from this day forward, I, Shazhu, have severed all ties with you, Yi Zhonghai! We'll never see each other again! Even if your family starves or dies of illness, don't expect me to take care of them anymore! Get out!"

Sha Zhu roared out the last word, "Get out," filled with immense anger and disappointment.

He pulled up Zhao Xiaoyun, who was still crying (although the marriage was probably off), and then said to Qin Huairu.

"Sister Qin, let's go! It's bad luck to stay with this old man who's childless!"

After saying that, he grabbed Zhao Xiaoyun and Qin Huairu, and rushed out of Yi Zhonghai's house without looking back.

This farce had already alarmed the neighbors in the courtyard.

Many people gathered in front of Yi Zhonghai's house, pointing and whispering.

Yi Zhonghai slumped in his chair, his face ashen, while an older woman stood beside him, silently weeping.

He knew it was all over, completely over.

His carefully cultivated image collapsed completely, his relationship with Sha Zhu broke down completely, and his last hope for retirement vanished with Sha Zhu's words of "severing all ties."

From then on.

Sha Zhu has completely broken ties with Yi Zhonghai.

We met on the road and acted like complete strangers.

Yi Zhonghai tried to smooth things over several times, even swallowing his pride and taking the initiative to talk to Sha Zhu, but Sha Zhu always firmly rejected him.

What alarmed Yi Zhonghai even more was that the wind direction in the courtyard had also changed.

In the past, people maintained a polite distance from the Yi family out of respect for his paternal authority. However, now that Sha Zhu has publicly broken with him and Li Zhenhua is gaining more and more power, many people have begun to distance themselves from the Yi family, whether intentionally or unintentionally.

Even Yan Bugui and Liu Haizhong are now preferring to avoid trouble, fearing they might get burned.

Yi Zhonghai clearly felt that he was being rapidly marginalized in this courtyard.

With Sha Zhu's passing, all hopes for a comfortable retirement vanished.

He was tormented day and night by immense loss, resentment, and the fear of a future filled with loneliness and helplessness.

He became increasingly silent and gloomy, often sitting alone in the room for half a day at a time, staring blankly out the window.

The deaf old woman saw all of this, and leaning on her cane, she knocked on Yi Zhonghai's door.

"China Overseas,"

The deaf old woman stared at him with her cloudy eyes.

"Who are you trying to impress with that gloomy look on your face all day?"

Yi Zhonghai raised his head, his face showing undisguised dejection.

"Grandma, I...I feel so choked up. Zhu Zi...I really treated him like a son, how could this happen..."

"Treat him like a son?"

The deaf old woman sneered and tapped the ground with her cane.

"You're using him as a bargaining chip for retirement! Do you think I'm senile and can't see through it? Your calculations are excessive!"

Yi Zhonghai's face turned pale when his secret was exposed.

The deaf old lady sighed, her tone softening.

"It's too late to say all this now. I told you long ago that Li Zhenhua is a powerful figure who can't be defeated. But what did you do? Not only did you not restrain yourself, you became even more reckless, even ruining Zhuzi's last chance!"

"Then... what should I do now?"

Yi Zhonghai's voice trembled slightly.

"What should we do?"

The deaf old woman squinted and lowered her voice.

"Now that you're down on your luck, everyone's kicking you while you're down. You can't rely on anyone else. If you don't want to starve or die of illness in your old age without anyone caring for you, you need to have something of your own, something that gives you leverage over people!"

A hint of confusion flashed in Yi Zhonghai's eyes.

"What...what else do I have left to manipulate people about?"

Use your brain!

The deaf old lady leaned closer and spoke even softer.

"Doesn't Li Zhenhua have any shady dealings? How did that widow Liu Lan become the canteen manager? And how did Qin Huairu get a job at the guesthouse? Isn't there something fishy going on? Besides, how did Li Zhenhua manage to get so much grain? Are his channels really that clean? Can't you be a little more careful and find some real dirt on him? Even if you can't do anything to him, having dirt on him would at least make him more wary, and maybe... you could even get something useful in a crucial moment!"

The deaf old woman's words were like a bolt of lightning, cleaving through the fog in Yi Zhonghai's mind.

Yes, if we can't win openly, can't we at least try something covert?

Collect evidence against Li Zhenhua!

This became the last straw he grasped in his despair; though dangerous, it might be his only way out.

A stubborn and sinister light rekindled in his cloudy eyes.

Meanwhile, on Zhao Xiaoyun's side, although the blind date ended badly, Sha Zhu felt bad for the girl afterwards, so he specially asked the canteen to buy some in-demand pastries and had Ma Hua deliver them to the textile factory to apologize and explain.

Zhao Xiaoyun was initially both angry and ashamed, but seeing Sha Zhu's sincere attitude and hearing the matchmaker's repeated assurances that Sha Zhu was indeed righteous and that his relationship with Qin Huairu was purely a fabrication by Yi Zhonghai, her mind slowly began to stir again.

In addition, although Sha Zhu was a scoundrel, he was good-looking, had a high salary, and was a chef so he wouldn't go hungry, making him a good prospect at the time.

After some twists and turns, the two began to cautiously make contact.

All of this, of course, did not escape Li Zhenhua's notice.

When Qin Huairu was reporting on the work of the guesthouse, she mentioned it seemingly unintentionally.

"It seems that Zhu Zi has recently reconnected with that girl from the textile factory, and even asked MCA to deliver some things to her."

Upon hearing this, Li Zhenhua simply gave a faint "hmm" without commenting.

He was happy to see Sha Zhu get married, as it would make Sha Zhu more stable, reduce his unrealistic thoughts about Qin Huairu, and also prevent him from causing trouble.

As long as it doesn't affect his overall situation, he might even give it a push when necessary.