Siheyuan: A master brewer starts with a jar of bone-strengthening wine!

"Hey, what's going on? Is a full-blown fight about to break out during the New Year?"

He didn't see Tian Xiuhua at first glance, but was instead captivated by the rolling pin in Jia Zhangshi's hand: "Oh my, you've got something to use?"

"These little bastards are trying to steal our Dongxu's customers!"

What?

Liu Dong was taken aback: "Your daughter-in-law?"

...Didn't I already "take" your daughter-in-law to Hong Kong to drink milk tea?

"Comrade Liu Dong!"

A clear shout brought him back to his senses.

He suddenly turned his head—

Tian Xiuhua stood there, her eyes crinkling, her face flushed crimson, and her voice slightly breathless: "It really is you!"

"Oh—Tian Xiuhua!" he exclaimed, suddenly realizing, "Yes, yes, that day in the park, I pulled you up here."

"Yes, yes! It's me!" She nodded vigorously, her smile impossible to hide. "I didn't expect you to live here too?"

"The backyard, number 37," he pointed behind him. "I haven't been here long."

"What...what are you doing here?" He Yuzhu interrupted, then realized his mistake and quickly added, "Oh dear, my brain—you're just dropping by, right?"

"Brother Liu Dong," he scratched his head, "she...she's actually the blind date Jia Dongxu was supposed to meet today!"

Liu Dong slowly opened his mouth, as if an egg had been stuffed inside.

Jia Dongxu?

match?

"No, no!" Tian Xiuhua blushed even more and quickly waved her hands. "I'm not his girlfriend! I just came to meet him, and I haven't even said yes yet!"

I don't know why, but I was so anxious that I could barely speak properly.

"Oh..." Liu Dong nodded, smiling quite naturally, "That's good."

He bowed to everyone and said, "You all continue, I'll be leaving now."

He turned and left without hesitation.

As Tian Xiuhua watched his retreating figure, she felt half disappointed and half sweet, like she had a mint candy stuck in her mouth.

Turning to the matchmaker, she whispered, "Aunt Wang, let's go."

"Okay, okay!"

As soon as the two left, the entire courtyard erupted in chaos:

"What's going on?"

"Why is Jia Dongxu's blind date so familiar with Liu Dong?"

"Familiar? Are you blind? I think the way she looked at Liu Dong was practically sparkling!" "Sigh, it's a pity Liu Dong's already taken, otherwise those two would be a perfect match!"

Someone in the courtyard whispered among themselves, and Jia Zhangshi's face immediately turned as black as the bottom of a pot, her brows furrowing into a knot.

"Mom..." Jia Dongxu's face fell, his voice muffled, "Did Liu Dong steal my boyfriend away?"

"Let's go! We'll go ask him now!" Jia Zhangshi grabbed a rolling pin, turned, and rushed out. "This isn't over until we get to the bottom of this!"

wow-

Not only her and her daughter, but also the neighbors, hearing the news, all rushed over, carrying melon seeds and enamel mugs, heading straight for Liu Dong's courtyard gate.

"Squeak—"

As soon as the door opened, Liu Dong poked his head out: "Hey? What's up?"

"Liu Dong!" Jia Dongxu was so angry his nose was crooked. "Why did you interfere and steal my girlfriend away? You already had the marriage certificate in your pocket, and you still did this kind of thing? Where's your shame?!"

"Exactly!" Madam Jia leaned forward. "How can we do this to our neighbors whom we see every day?"

Before he finished speaking, his mother-in-law also walked out of the house, stood by the door, her hands folded on her apron, and watched quietly.

Liu Dong's forehead twitched – Oh no, his mother-in-law was there, he had to clear up this misunderstanding quickly!

"That's really not what happened!" He quickly waved his hand. "Everyone has misunderstood! Just now at Shichahai Park, that girl suddenly convulsed and collapsed, her eyes rolled back and her arms shook. I saw that something was wrong with her, so I immediately went over to support her, pinched her philtrum and pressed a few acupoints..."

"Saving a life, what else could it mean?" He spread his hands, looking helpless. "When she recovered, her eyes were shining as she looked at me; she was probably thanking me!"

"I really didn't steal your boyfriend!"

The neighbors, however, completely ignored the second half of his sentence and stared intently at Jia Dongxu: "Dongxu! Your girlfriend... has epilepsy?"

"What?! This disease really exists?"

"Oh my god, how are we going to live from now on?"

Jia Zhangshi and Jia Dongxu froze on the spot, their faces burning hot enough to fry eggs.

"What about epilepsy?" Jia Zhangshi stamped her foot and slammed the rolling pin on the ground. "He's handsome, drives a Jeep, and his doorstep is so high you can't even reach it on tiptoe!"

"Let me tell you, people who are so picky won't even be interested in you!"

Liu Dong rolled his eyes—

Well, it turns out this mother and daughter knew all along that the other person was sick!

Even someone with a stone in their underwear pocket would know what Jia Dongxu was after: money, power, connections—he wanted it all!

"Bang!"

He turned and closed the door, decisively and cleanly.

If his mother-in-law hadn't been watching, he wouldn't have bothered to even open his mouth to explain.

As soon as the door closed, his mother-in-law was still there, blinking: "Liu Dong, what just happened? Who's having a fit? What's wrong? Tell me in detail!"

Liu Dong had no choice but to recount the whole story about the park from the beginning.

Chen's mother asked, "Where's Xue Ru? You all went out together, didn't you come back together?"

"I'm back!" he said. "When I got to the front yard, she said she had an upset stomach and needed to go to the bathroom, so I came back first."

As soon as she finished speaking, Chen Xueru pushed open the door and entered the courtyard, carrying half a bag of roasted chestnuts.

The mother-in-law finally breathed a long sigh of relief, her heart finally at ease.

On the other side—

Tian Xiuhua followed Wang the matchmaker home. It was only two kilometers, and they could walk there without even having to squeeze onto a bus.

"Aunt Wang... are you familiar with that young man from earlier?" she asked softly, her ears turning red.

The matchmaker glanced at her and knew perfectly well: This girl's eyes are sparkling!

He smiled and said, "I don't know him, but he seems like an honest person—sweet-talking, knowledgeable, well-dressed, and his shoes are polished to a shine; his family must be well-off!"

"Besides, his character and appearance are both top-notch!"

Tian Xiuhua's face burned even hotter, her fingertips twirling the hem of her clothes, her head bowed so low it was almost buried in her chest.

"I understand! Don't be shy!" Matchmaker Wang patted the back of her hand. "I'll find out more about him in a couple of days, how many people are in his family, what kind of job he works, and what his parents do!"

"Oh... thank you, Aunt Wang!" Her voice was so soft it was like a mosquito's hum.

My heart, however, was pounding like a little rabbit's, yearning for the future.

But the next second, her lips twitched—

If only I didn't have this disease...

About twenty minutes later, Tian Xiuhua saw the matchmaker off and went alone into the innermost part of the military compound.

A three-story old Western-style building, with mottled exterior walls and upturned eaves, exudes a heavy, old-world charm.

"Secretary Wang, open the door!" she called out.

The young man in military uniform strode forward and pushed open the iron gate with a click.

Two green Jeeps were parked downstairs, their bodies gleaming from being polished, looking like two crouching tigers.

"Xiuhua's back?" Her mother came out to greet her, dressed simply with her hair perfectly styled. She smiled and waved to her. "Come in quickly and tell Mom how it went?"

Tian Xiuhua sat down on the sofa and said softly, "Mom... today I was walking by the lake in Shichahai Park when suddenly everything went black and my legs went weak..."