Courtyard House: The Long-Lost Eldest Son Returns with Military Merit

The waiter calculated the money, collected the bill, and said, "Wait, come and get it when it's called."

After saying that, he turned and left.

Seeing her expression, Jia Dongming smiled and asked Lin Qiuyue, "Qiuyue, is this how you treat customers at your supply and marketing cooperative's counter?"

The waiter's attitude did not make Lin Qiuyue feel uncomfortable. When Jia Dongming asked her question, she smiled and replied, "We don't usually act like this. It's just that we might act like this occasionally when we're feeling down."

Apart from the copper pot which was served by the waiter, all other dishes were retrieved from the counter by Jia Dongming and Lin Qiuyue themselves.

Although this experience made Jia Dongming somewhat uncomfortable, he still tried his best to adapt to the service style of this era.

After having hot pot with Lin Qiuyue, Jia Dongming watched a movie together. Afterwards, Jia Dongming took Lin Qiuyue home and they agreed to go out together again on the next day off.

When Jia Dongming returned to the courtyard house, it was already past three in the afternoon.

He pushed his bicycle into the front yard, only to find that the usually bustling front yard was now deserted.

"Isn't today a day off? Why is the front yard so quiet?"

Looking at the empty front yard, Jia Dongming pushed his bicycle and muttered to himself.

With questions in mind, Jia Dongming pushed his cart to the moon gate and saw a large crowd gathered in the central courtyard. Curious, he asked, "I was wondering why there was no one in the courtyard earlier; turns out everyone's here?"

When Liu Haizhong, who was sitting at the square table, saw Jia Dongming push the cart in, he quickly stood up and said solicitously, "Director Jia! You're back. We were having a hospital-wide meeting to discuss the quarrel between Yan Jiecheng and Yu Li."

Upon hearing Liu Haizhong's words, Jia Dongming immediately guessed the reason for Yan Jiecheng and Yu Li's argument, and then laughed and said, "Uncle! Uncle! Uncle! You guys continue your meeting, I'll put the bicycle away and come out."

After pushing his bicycle into his own courtyard, Jia Dongming quickly returned to the central courtyard.

When Liu Haizhong saw him come out, he immediately said to Yan Bugui, who was sitting opposite him, "Old Yan! This meeting is for your family today. Come down and sit down. Give your seat to Director Jia."

"Second Uncle! This isn't the security office of the steel mill, it's the courtyard where we live."

"In the courtyard, I'm just an ordinary resident; I can just sit down here."

Yan Bugui, who was already in a bad mood, felt annoyed when he heard Liu Haizhong's words. Just as he was about to get up, Jia Dongming spoke up.

After Jia Dongming finished speaking, he walked to Qin Huairu's side, gently picked up Xiao Dang from her arms, sat down on the chair next to her, and asked Qin Huairu in a low voice, "Huairu, what exactly happened?"

When Qin Huairu heard Jia Dongming ask about it, she explained to him in a low voice: "Brother Dongming, it's like this: Yesterday, Yu Li's mother was hospitalized and needed surgery. She didn't have enough money for the surgery, so Yu Li asked Yan Jiecheng for money."

"Yan Jiecheng clearly has money, but he refuses to spend it, and he didn't even visit Yu Li's mother in the hospital."

Yu Li had a huge fight with Yan Jiecheng when she got back from this, and even said she wanted a divorce.

Jia Dongming actually knew about Yu Li's mother's hospitalization, but he didn't expect Yan Jiecheng to be so despicable: not only was he unwilling to pay for his mother-in-law's medical treatment, but he also refused to visit her in the hospital.

Yu Li's fate was undoubtedly fraught with hardship after marrying such a man.

After listening to Qin Huairu's words, Jia Dongming asked again, "Huairu, Yu Li and Yan Jiecheng's argument is ultimately a matter between them as husband and wife. Why is there a sudden general meeting in the courtyard?"

Upon hearing this, Qin Huairu thought of Liu Haizhong's pretentious manner and said to Jia Dongming with a smile, "When Yan Jiecheng and Yu Li were arguing, Second Uncle happened to come back from outside. As soon as he heard that the two were getting a divorce, he got the urge to take charge and insisted on holding a general meeting of the entire institute to discuss the matter."

Yi Zhonghai, who was sitting in the main seat, never expected that Liu Haizhong would suddenly ask Yan Bugui to give up his seat to Jia Dongming, and he didn't know what to say for a moment.

Only after hearing Jia Dongming's response did he secretly breathe a sigh of relief. Before Liu Haizhong could speak again, he continued, "Since Dongming is unwilling to sit down, let's continue the meeting."

As Yi Zhonghai spoke, he turned to Yan Jiecheng and asked, "Jiecheng! Our institute has always been known in the neighborhood for its respect for the elderly and care for the young."

"Yu Li's mother is your mother-in-law. She's sick and hospitalized. It's one thing that you're unwilling to contribute financially, but why won't you even visit her in the hospital? Is this true?"

When Yan Jiecheng heard Yi Zhonghai's question and saw the people in the courtyard pointing at him and looking at him with disdain, he hurriedly defended himself, saying, "Uncle! Other parents will try to find a job for their children, but you know my family's situation."

"I don't have a formal job, I can only earn some money by doing odd jobs every day, and I don't have much left after a month of hard work."

As a result, my dad also wanted us to pay for food and lodging. After paying those, I had no money left, let alone money to help my mother-in-law with her medical expenses.

"Besides, I'm just a son-in-law, not a son. And my mother-in-law has sons too, so why should I, her son-in-law, have to pay for her hospital treatment?"

"As for why I didn't go to the hospital to visit my mother-in-law, it's mainly because I have to go out to do odd jobs and I really can't find the time."

"If I don't do odd jobs, I won't earn any money. If I don't earn any money, I won't have money to pay for food and lodging next month."

"If I don't have the money to pay these fees, my dad will definitely cause me trouble."

"I have no choice. I work so hard to earn money so that we can have a better life."

Yu Li stood to the side and saw that Yan Jiecheng could make up such a nice story for that little bit of money, and her anger flared up instantly.

She gave Yan Jiecheng a cold look, her lips curling into a sneer, her words dripping with sarcasm: "For our future happiness? Yan Jiecheng, listen to that! Isn't it ridiculous?"

"You keep saying it's for the two of us, but you won't even take out twenty yuan when I ask you to."

Is this what you call "for us"?

Yan Jiecheng always felt that money was far more important than face.

Upon hearing Yu Li's sarcastic remark, he immediately put on a show of being deeply wronged and began to complain to Yu Li: "Yu Li! It's not that I don't want to help Mom, it's that I really can't afford it."

If you don't believe me, search me and see if you can find a single penny.

Although the two managed their own money, Yu Li knew perfectly well whether Yan Jiecheng had any money and where he hid it.

Seeing Yan Jiecheng's feigned pitiful appearance, Yu Li felt the fire in her heart burn even brighter.

She didn't care about saving face for the Yan family and glared at Yan Jiecheng, demanding, "Yan Jiecheng! You say you have no money, then whose is that fifty-odd yuan stuffed in those old shoes under the bed?"

As she spoke, Yu Li became more and more agitated, her voice rising: "Also, you just said that you have to do odd jobs outside to earn money for food and lodging, which is why you don't have time to visit my mother in the hospital? But since I married into this family, we've always paid our own food expenses."

Even when my sister came to stay for a few days, and your dad said he would pay for her food and lodging, I paid for it myself.

"In this courtyard, which family doesn't have a man earning money to support the whole family? I married you, Yan Jiecheng, and now I have to earn money to support myself."

Besides, the idea of ​​relatives coming to your door to ask for money is something you won't find anywhere else in Beijing, except perhaps your Yan family!

"Your dad is always scheming and calculating, but he still manages to support a family of six on his own."

But what about you? You're not even willing to support your own wife.

"I must have been blind to marry someone like you."

"You said our Yu family has male members, so why should you pay for the medical expenses? Did I ask you to cover everything? I went to the grain station to find you this morning and made it very clear: Mom needs to have surgery immediately, and the surgery will cost more than two hundred yuan. The family has already raised most of it, and we are only short of twenty-odd yuan."

"As soon as you heard that I needed money, you just said that you didn't have any and told me to go borrow it from your dad."

You asked me how serious my mother's illness was and whether I needed to go to the hospital to help—and you, as her son-in-law, didn't mention a single word about it.

"My parents raised me with great difficulty, and now they won't even give me twenty-odd yuan."

This alone is enough to show that in your heart, Yu Li is not even worth twenty-odd yuan.

"Since that's the case, let's not stay together anymore, let's get a divorce!"

Liu Haizhong never expected that Yan Bugui could be so stingy.

But in order to put on airs as the second uncle, when Yu Li brought up divorce again, he immediately adopted an official tone and said to Yu Li, "Yu Li! Our courtyard is an advanced courtyard house as rated by the neighborhood committee."

If you two really get divorced, it will definitely affect the evaluation of advanced individuals in the hospital.

Therefore, this marriage absolutely cannot end in divorce!

Yu Li's words made Yan Jiecheng lose face, but in his heart, money was more important than face.

The thought of losing the fifty-odd yuan he had painstakingly saved immediately darkened Yan Jiecheng's face. He demanded sharply of Yu Li, "Yu Li! Tell me honestly, did you steal my money and use it to pay for your mother's hospital bills?"

These days, divorce is a rare thing in people's eyes.

Yu Li's return and the scene where she said she wanted a divorce was really just a way to vent her resentment.

Upon hearing Yu Li mention the fifty-odd yuan, Yan Jiecheng assumed that she had taken the money, and his attitude changed drastically.

Yu Li finally saw what kind of person Yan Jiecheng was, and her heart sank. She coldly replied, "Yan Jiecheng! Don't worry, I, Yu Li, am not the kind of person who values ​​money more than life."

From now on, you'd better just live off your fifty dollars! We'll go our separate ways and never see each other again!

"Uncle! We've really learned something new today."

Your son Yan Jiecheng is so stingy; he must have inherited your true character.

In the entire city of Beijing, you're probably the only ones who have to charge relatives for lodging when they visit.

Sha Zhu, who had always looked down on the Yan family, couldn't help but mock Yan Bugui after watching the play.

Normally, if the people in the courtyard saw Sha Zhu making fun of the Yan family like this, they would just think he was being sarcastic.

But what just happened completely overturned everyone's impression of the Yan family.

Almost everyone stared at the Yan family father and son with disdain, whispering among themselves about Yan Jiaqian's affairs.

Yu Li's tirade just now was tantamount to trampling on the Yan family's face in front of the entire hospital.

As a result, Yan Jiecheng turned against Yu Li on the spot for just over fifty yuan.

This made Yan Bugui, who was usually shameless enough to do anything for a little scheming, wish he could disappear into a crack in the ground.

Faced with Sha Zhu's mockery, Yan Bugui had no intention of arguing with him at this point.

He kept thinking about one thing: all these years of scheming and calculating to support his children, was it right or wrong?

Over the years, Yi Zhonghai has been instilling the idea of ​​respecting the elderly and caring for the young in the residents of the nursing home in order to plan for his own retirement.

Yan Jiecheng's actions today have truly opened Yi Zhonghai's eyes.

Seeing Yan Bugui's face turn pale and then red, and seeing Sha Zhu still relentlessly mocking him, Yi Zhonghai quickly spoke up to stop him: "Zhu Zi! How dare you speak to Third Master like that? Hurry up and apologize to Third Master!"

Yan Bugui, who was immersed in the atmosphere, slowly came back to his senses when he heard Yi Zhonghai's voice.

He looked at Yan Jiecheng in front of him and said to Yu Li in a low voice, "Yu Li! I'm sorry, it was my scheming that led me to raise such a wicked child who only cares about money."

On behalf of the Yan family, I apologize to you.

When Yu Li saw Yan Bugui bowing his head and admitting his mistake, she was at a loss for what to do. But the events of yesterday flooded her mind, and she ultimately turned her face away without responding.

Seeing that Yu Li ignored him, Yan Bugui did not get angry. Instead, he turned to Yan Jiecheng and said, "Jiecheng! All my plans are for you four siblings to have enough to eat and be able to study."

Since you think I'm taking advantage of you by charging you for food and lodging, then you can move out tomorrow and don't need to pay any more money to the house.

"Old man! What nonsense are you spouting!"