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

"What's done is done. If we keep making a scene, the whole courtyard will lose face! Here's what we'll do, Zhu Zi, you apologize to Dongxu's mother and pay her ten yuan as compensation for emotional distress! Let's just leave it at that, and no one is allowed to mention it again!"

"Ten yuan?"

Sha Zhu was furious when he heard that.

"Why should I? I'll apologize, but I don't have any money!"

Upon hearing that there was money, Jia Zhangshi's crying instantly subsided by half, and she stole glances at Yi Zhonghai and Sha Zhu.

Yi Zhonghai's face darkened.

"No? If not, I'll report it to the neighborhood committee! Let Director Wang judge this! Let's see what the punishment is for stealing an elderly person's underwear! It won't be something that can be resolved with just ten yuan!"

Sha Zhu fears nothing but Director Wang of the neighborhood office, a man whose unruly nature can be subdued even by Sha Zhu.

He glanced at the disdainful or amused looks around him, then at Yi Zhonghai's unquestionable expression, and considering the consequences of escalating the situation to the neighborhood committee, he finally lowered his head like a defeated rooster, gritted his teeth, fumbled in his pocket for a long time, pulled out a crumpled ten-yuan note, and reluctantly tossed it to Jia Zhangshi.

Jia Zhangshi snatched the money and quickly stuffed it into her bosom. Her crying stopped abruptly, and a hint of smugness even flashed across her face, but she still wouldn't let it go.

"Hmph! I'm only doing this because of you, Grandpa! If you dare do it again, I'll scratch your face black!"

The farce ended with Sha Zhu losing money and feeling frustrated.

The neighbors dispersed amidst their gossip, and the Jia family mother and son helped the "humiliated" Jia Zhangshi back into the house, while Sha Zhu was taken away by Yi Zhonghai for "ideological education."

Li Zhenhua watched the whole show, a faint, mocking smile always playing on his lips.

He exhaled a smoke ring and shook his head.

Life in this courtyard house was even more dramatic than the power struggles in the factory.

These people will do anything outrageous for a pittance.

On his rare day off, Li Zhenhua didn't plan to stay home idle.

He decided to find a place to relax.

Do it when you think of it.

On a whim, he quickly placed an order for a complete set of fishing gear on Pinduoduo.

An ordinary-looking but high-quality carbon fiber fishing rod, a set of fishing line and hooks, and a can of super bait that is said to have a "secret recipe and is invincible in attracting fish".

The items were instantly stored in the system space. He then found an old cloth bag as cover, took out the fishing gear from the space, carried it on his shoulder, and pushed his bicycle out the door.

He vaguely remembered that Beihai Park had good water quality and was a good place for fishing; many anglers from the neighborhood went there.

After riding for about half an hour, I arrived at the riverbank and stopped at a bend in the river where the water was calm and shaded by trees.

The surroundings were indeed quiet, with only the sound of flowing water and the occasional birdsong, which made him feel relaxed and happy.

I had just set up my bicycle and taken out my stool to prepare to start fishing when I caught a glimpse of a familiar figure not far away out of the corner of my eye.

Upon closer inspection, hey!

Isn't that Uncle Yan Bugui, the "calculator expert" from the courtyard house?

The old man was sitting on a small stool, wearing his signature worn-out glasses, staring intently at the fishing float on the water, his fish basket beside him empty.

Li Zhenhua was filled with doubt.

"How strange, what day of the week is it? Old Yan should be in elementary school, what's he doing fishing here? Could he be skipping work too?"

He walked over discreetly and deliberately raised his voice to greet them.

"Hey! Uncle San! What a coincidence, you're here fishing too?"

Yan Bugui was staring at the motionless fishing float with worry when he was startled by the sudden sound. He turned around abruptly and saw that it was Li Zhenhua. A look of panic flashed across his face. He adjusted his glasses and forced a dry laugh to keep himself calm.

"Ah...it's Zhenhua! What a coincidence! I...well, I finished my classes this morning, no classes this afternoon, school's on holiday! Yes, holiday! I'm just killing time anyway, might as well get out and do some exercise, go fishing, and cultivate my mind!"

Seeing his guilty look, Li Zhenhua knew perfectly well that the old man had probably made up an excuse to slip away.

However, he wasn't interested in exposing it, and just smiled meaningfully.

"Oh, a holiday? That's great, it's time to relax."

His gaze swept over the empty, broken fish basket at the feet of the third uncle, and he joked.

"Uncle, judging by your posture, you've been struggling with the river for a while now, haven't you? How's the battle going?"

Yan Bugui blushed and awkwardly patted the empty fish basket.

"Ugh, don't even mention it! The fish around here are so clever, they just won't bite! Maybe my bait isn't working right..."

Li Zhenhua stopped teasing him and smiled.

"Alright, then you can take your time practicing. I'll find a place to set up my pole."

As he spoke, he sat down in a place with abundant aquatic plants a dozen meters away from Yan Bugui, and calmly took out his fishing gear.

The brand-new fishing rod, the complete equipment, and especially the strange aroma of mixed grains that wafted out when he opened the can of "secret bait" made Yan Bugui, who was secretly observing him, stare wide-eyed and mutter sour thoughts in his heart.

"This kid, when did he get such a set of gear? This bait smells amazing, it definitely didn't cost cheap!"

Li Zhenhua skillfully baited the hook, cast the line, and the hook traced a beautiful arc before landing precisely in the ideal fishing spot.

It's amazing how the bait had been in the water for less than five minutes when the float suddenly sank!

With a flick of his wrist, Li Zhenhua bent the fishing rod into an arc shape, and the reel made a "sizzling" sound as the line was released.

"Whoa! They're here!"

Li Zhenhua remained calm and began to play the fish.

After several rounds, he pulled a large golden carp weighing over two pounds, its scales shimmering in the sunlight, out of the water!

Yan Bugui, who was standing to the side, stared so wide that his eyes almost popped out of his head, and his mouth was agape enough to fit an egg!

He sat there for most of the day and didn't catch a single fish, while Li Zhenhua caught such a big one as soon as he cast his line.

However, this is just the beginning.

For the next hour or so, Li Zhenhua seemed to have a cheat code activated, with his floats being dragged into the water one after another.

Crucian carp, grass carp, catfish...

One after another, they were caught, and they were all quite big. They splashed around in the large bucket he had brought, and it was almost full.

In contrast, Yan Bugui remained unmoved and complacent.

Unfortunately, all I'm fishing for is loneliness.

His fishing float remained perfectly still, like a stabilizing needle.

Watching Li Zhenhua's "frenzied" fish being caught, and then looking at his own empty fish basket, Yan Bugui felt a mix of envy, jealousy, and disbelief.

He couldn't sit still any longer, so he put away his fishing rod and awkwardly moved closer to Li Zhenhua.

"Ahem... Zhenhua..."

Yan Bugui forced a fawning smile onto his face, his eyes fixed on the lively fish in the bucket.

"You...you're incredibly lucky! Your skills are amazing! Look at me, this old man, my luck is so bad today...sigh, we haven't had any meat at home for days...you have so many fish, we can't possibly eat them all, so...could you...give one to me? Just to help out the neighbors?"