Courtyard House: A Veteran Returns Home and Becomes a Father

As evening approached, the closing bell rang precisely on time at the Hongxing Steel Rolling Mill.

Jia Dongxu quickly packed up his tools and walked briskly to Yi Zhonghai, who was wiping down the machine tool. His face showed a hint of anticipation: "Master, my mom made cabbage and vermicelli stew today. I'm going home now!"

"Go ahead, drive carefully." Yi Zhong-Hai nodded, a hint of satisfaction flashing in his eyes as he looked at his most prized disciple.

In the canteen, Sha Zhu had just finished bragging to the kitchen helpers, humming a little tune, and swaggered into the courtyard carrying a lunchbox full of leftovers.

Liu Haizhong, the second uncle in the backyard, locked his tool shed, his big belly protruding, his hands behind his back, and strode home with an air of official authority.

The men of the entire courtyard, having finished their day's work, returned one after another to this home filled with trivial matters.

Jia Dongxu was the first to rush into the house. Before he even entered, his voice preceded him: "Mom! I'm home! What's for dinner today?"

Qin Huairu was pacing around the room with a stick in her arms. When she saw him return, a complicated expression appeared on her face, and she hesitated to speak.

Jia Dongxu didn't notice his wife's unusual behavior; he immediately saw Jia Zhangshi lying on the kang (a heated brick bed) with her back to the door.

"Mom, why are you lying down? Are you feeling unwell?"

He stepped forward with concern, wanting to help his mother up.

Upon hearing her son's voice, Jia Zhangshi slowly turned around.

When that face, with its cheeks swollen high and covered with clear finger marks, resembling a pig's head, was exposed in front of Jia Dongxu, his mind went blank and exploded instantly!

"Mom! Your face...who hit you?!" Jia Dongxu's voice suddenly rose, his eyes turning red.

All the pent-up frustration Jia Zhangshi had been holding in all afternoon finally exploded the moment she saw her son. She burst into tears, snot and tears streaming down her face, pointing at her own face and wailing, "Dongxu! You're finally back! I was going to be beaten to death!"

With tears streaming down her face, she began to tell the story she had made up, portraying herself as a poor old woman who had kindly reminded her neighbor but was beaten by a bully for no reason.

"...That brat who just bought the east wing! When Mom saw he was going to repair the yard, she kindly went up to ask him about it, and he accused Mom of meddling and slapped her twice across the face! He even called me an old hag! Dongxu, Mom has never suffered such an injustice in her life..."

Jia Dongxu was furious, his fists clenched so tightly they cracked. As a notorious "mama's boy," Jia Zhangshi was his everything, and now that someone had stabbed a hole in his roof, he completely lost his temper.

"This is outrageous! A newcomer dares to bully my mother! I'm going to settle the score with him right now!"

Jia Dongxu roared and tried to rush out.

"Dongxu! Calm down!" Qin Huairu quickly grabbed the child and stopped him.

"I don't care! He dared to hit my mother, I'll take his life!" Jia Dongxu's eyes were bloodshot, and he looked like a madman.

"Yes! Son! We can't let this go!" Seeing her son getting agitated, Jia Zhangshi immediately jumped off the kang (a heated brick bed) and continued to fan the flames, "Go find your master! Find Uncle Yi! Isn't he the most reasonable person? Let him stand up for us!"

Upon hearing this, Jia Dongxu felt as if he had found a pillar of support.

Yes, he also has a master!

He shoved Qin Huairu aside, rushed out of the house without looking back, and headed straight for Yi Zhonghai's house in the Central Court.

"Master! Master! Something terrible has happened!"

Jia Dongxu kicked open the door to Yi Zhonghai's house and rushed inside.

Yi Zhonghai had just picked up his rice bowl when he was startled by this, and his hand trembled so much that he almost spilled the rice.

"Dongxu? What's wrong with you? You seem flustered."

"Master! My mother has been beaten!" Jia Dongxu gasped for breath, repeating Jia Zhangshi's story again.

Upon hearing this, Yi Zhonghai's brows furrowed instantly.

The Jia family is his future retirement security. If Jia Zhangshi is beaten, it's a slap in the face to him! Moreover, for a new outsider to be so arrogant in the courtyard is definitely a challenge to his authority as the eldest uncle!

This matter must be addressed, and it must be addressed very seriously!

"Outrageous!" Yi Zhonghai slammed his fist on the table, feigning anger. "Dongxu, calm down. Go and call Liu Haizhong, Yan Bugui, and Shazhu over! Let's discuss what to do!"

Soon, Jia Dongxu invited the group to Yi Zhonghai's house.

Upon hearing that there was something to discuss, Liu Haizhong's ambition for power immediately kicked in, and he sat up straight with his belly sticking out. Sha Zhu, on the other hand, had just had a few drinks, and when he heard that someone was bullying the elderly in the courtyard, he immediately became indignant and shouted that he would go and beat them up.

Only Yan Bugui sat in the corner, his mind filled with unease.

Yi Zhonghai cleared his throat and solemnly recounted the "process" of the incident, concluding with righteous indignation: "...The one who assaulted someone is the owner of the east wing today! Comrades, we cannot stand idly by when such a heinous incident occurs in our compound!"

Upon hearing "the new owner of the east courtyard," Yan Bugui's eyelids twitched violently.

That jinx!

He is back!

This morning he was so scared he almost wet himself, all because of the new owner of the east wing!

"An outsider, so arrogant?" Liu Haizhong slammed his hand on the table, exuding official authority. "Old Yi, what do you say we do? This kind of person needs to be taught a lesson, let him know the rules of our courtyard house!"

"That's right!" Sha Zhu chimed in. "Uncle, if you give the order, I'll drag him over tomorrow and make him kneel down and apologize to Aunt Jia!"

Yi Zhonghai waved his hand, saying shrewdly, "Tomorrow is Sunday, he'll definitely come back to check on the yard renovations. A few of us will go to the east wing and ambush him. When he gets here, we'll reason with him first. If he's not convinced, we'll teach him a lesson! Let him know this yard isn't a place for an outsider like him to run wild!"

"That's a great idea!" Liu Haizhong clapped his hands in delight. "We need to teach him a lesson!"

The group chatted amongst themselves, discussing how to teach the "newcomer" a lesson tomorrow, each one eager to get started, completely unaware of who they had provoked.

Only Yan Bugui sat in the corner, his heart growing colder with each word, cold sweat breaking out on his back.

Should we try to intimidate that scoundrel?

These people really don't know how to spell "death"!

The memory of that cold grenade from five years ago is still vivid in his mind, and he has no desire to experience it again.

His eyes darted around, and he immediately clutched his stomach, forcing a pained expression on his face: "Ouch...ouch, I can't take it anymore...my old problem has flared up again, my stomach hurts terribly. Everyone, you guys discuss this, you guys discuss this, I...I'll go back and lie down for a while..."

After saying that, he ran away as fast as he could, without waiting for anyone's reaction, as if a tiger was chasing him.

"Hmph! He always messes up at crucial moments! What a stingy old man!" Liu Haizhong spat disdainfully.

Yi Zhonghai frowned, not taking the incident to heart, and continued, "Never mind him! It's settled! We'll meet at the east courtyard gate first thing tomorrow morning! Dongxu, don't go out tomorrow either, come with us! We have to let that kid know that No. 95 Nanluoguxiang is not a place where just anyone can cause trouble!"

"Okay! I'll do whatever Master says!" Jia Dongxu was moved to tears.

Thus, a "trap" targeting Su Mo was quietly set in motion by this group of self-righteous "righteous people".