Siheyuan: I will never tolerate gambling and drugs!

Yi Zhonghai, East Wing of the Central Courtyard of a Siheyuan

"Old Yi, what do we do now? Xu Lin is too ruthless when he fights. All the men in our courtyard who could help have joined in, but we still can't beat him. Taking action is definitely not an option."

Ouch~, Old Yan, be gentle!

After being beaten, Liu Haizhong, Yi Zhonghai, and Yan Bugui gathered at Yi Zhonghai's house. While applying medicine to their wounds, Liu Haizhong said angrily.

After all, this was another beating he took for standing up for Yan Bugui, so even though Yan Bugui himself was in pain, he still endured it, rinsing his wounds with cold water before applying cold compresses to the bruises on Liu Haizhong and Yi Zhonghai's bodies.

Mentioning Xu Lin again, Yi Zhonghai looked at Liu Haizhong with even more anger: "We had everything under control, but you had to pick a fight with Xu Lin. Now everyone's been dragged into this mess and got a good beating. All the prestige he'd built up in the courtyard over the years was wiped out by Xu Lin's two punches."

"We still need to find something on him and have the neighborhood committee or the joint defense office deal with him directly to get rid of him," Yi Zhonghai said through gritted teeth, his face dark.

"Yes, yes, yes, as long as we can find something on him, I don't believe he can still fight with the neighborhood committee's bullets. He definitely has something going on with that slut Tan!"

Yan Bugui immediately agreed with Yi Zhonghai's statement and then went on to express his own thoughts.

"Last time we only kept an eye on the Tan family's gate, not on Xu Lin's movements. Remember that night the three of us got messed with by him? In the end, that kid climbed over the wall of the back building."

The reason we didn't catch him last time was probably because he climbed out of that spot again and then climbed in through the window behind the Tan family's house. When I went out for a walk, I saw faint footprints under the window of the Tan family's house; those must have been left by Xu Lin!

Upon hearing Yan Bugui's words, Yi Zhonghai and Liu Haizhong immediately became excited, as if they could already see Xu Lin being arrested and shot by the street police. "Alright, let's rest for a day and recover from our injuries. Starting tomorrow night, we'll take turns keeping watch, just like last time. This time, we'll watch Xu Lin's front door and the windows of his back room..."

On the other side, the main house of Sha Zhu's family in the central courtyard.

"Seriously, you're really tough, Sha Zhu. Xu Lin kicked you so far, and guess what? Dongxu, come look, you're completely unharmed! Amazing!"

Xu Damao and Jia Dongxu surrounded Sha Zhu, who was shirtless.

At this moment, Sha Zhu also put on an act, saying smugly, "Don't be fooled by Xu Lin's fighting prowess. It's just that I can't hit him. If he could take two punches from me, he definitely wouldn't recover as quickly as I have..." Jia Dongxu and Xu Damao were stunned for a few seconds before they realized what Sha Zhu meant.

"But honestly, compared to Xu Lin, what angers me the most today is that old bastard Yan Bugui." Xu Damao said slowly, a cigarette dangling from his mouth, after handing one to Sha Zhu and Jia Dongxu.

Jia Dongxu scoffed at this, "You don't blame Xu Lin? You didn't even lift a finger, you didn't get hit, so of course you don't blame Xu Lin, right?"

Xu Damao knew that Jia Dongxu was blaming him for being a coward in the courtyard and not daring to make a move. Knowing he was in the wrong, he didn't argue and continued on the original topic, "Today's incident was caused by Yan Laokou not wanting me to hit his son. He protected his own son and that's why he organized the whole courtyard meeting. Later, Yi Zhonghai and Liu Haizhong went after Xu Lin, which led to the fight. The three of us were dragged down by those three old geezers and that's why we got beaten up. Shazhu, tell me, wasn't it the same last time?"

Sha Zhu had already put his clothes back on by this time. He smacked his lips and thought about it carefully before nodding and saying, "That's right. Originally, Xu Lin and Aunt Tan were going to go back, and they didn't say a word the whole time. It was only because Liu Haizhong couldn't stand Xu Lin not donating money and Yan Bugui was reluctant to take out his money that they started fighting."

Sha Zhu was still siding with Yi Zhonghai at this point, so when discussing responsibility, he removed Yi Zhonghai and placed all the blame on Liu Haizhong and Yan Bugui. Jia Dongxu also agreed with Sha Zhu's statement, "In my opinion, this is all Yan Laokou's fault. His son getting beaten is no big deal. His second son has always been just like him, a clueless idiot. When they were kids, they fought tooth and nail with their older brother over food..."

"So we can't let those three old geezers lead us by the nose. If we keep offending Xu Lin, how long can those three live? We'll have to deal with Xu Lin a lot in the future, so we have to find a way to teach those three old geezers a lesson, so they'll know that Xu Lin isn't the only one in this courtyard who's not to be trifled with..." Xu Damao gritted his teeth and said fiercely.

Jia Dongxu and Sha Zhu agreed with Xu Damao's words. They really didn't want to offend Xu Lin. After all, everyone knew Xu Lin's reputation in the steel rolling mill. The three old guys were either not in the steel rolling mill or had high ranks and could ignore Xu Lin's authority, but they couldn't. They were just starting out in the steel rolling mill, and if they offended Xu Lin too much, it would definitely not end well.

After finishing his cigarette, Jia Dongxu was about to go home when Sha Zhu and Xu Damao stopped him. They exchanged a glance, and then Xu Damao hesitantly spoke up, "Brother Dongxu, you and Sha Zhu have had a rough time today, how about the three of us go have some fun?"

Sha Zhu was also standing to the side, nodding frantically. Before Jia Dongxu came, Xu Damao had already told Sha Zhu that if Jia Dongxu was willing to go today, Xu Damao would cover his share of the expenses. So now he was absolutely unwilling to let Jia Dongxu go back.

"No way, Sha Zhu! Xu Damao is one thing, but you were kicked away. Do you think you'll be any better today?" Jia Dongxu asked in shock. Sha Zhu smiled shyly, "Yes, yes, I've tried it myself these past few days when I had nothing to do. It's rock hard."

Hearing Sha Zhu's words, Jia Dongxu rolled his eyes. Last time, he was kept awake all night by their snoring... But mentioning them only made him more alert. After thinking for a while, he said, "Okay, let's meet at Sha Zhu's house at the same time tonight. But let's make it clear first, we can't stay overnight this time. Last time, you guys kept me up all night."

Xu Damao and Sha Zhu were overjoyed. They hadn't planned to stay overnight anyway. So Xu Damao and Jia Dongxu went their separate ways, while Sha Zhu lay on the bed, legs crossed, humming a song. The memory of being beaten was completely gone; they truly didn't forget their mistakes.

In the backyard of the Tan family

"Brother Xu, you're amazing! You took those guys down in no time! Sister Tan and I were just thinking of calling the police at the neighborhood committee, but you took care of them so quickly. You're incredible!" Qin Huairu looked at Xu Lin with stars in her eyes, praising him. Xu Lin felt a little embarrassed, but then he thought, this is the mainstream in this day and age; a strong physique is essential to avoid being bullied, and admiration for strength is an instinctive instinct for everyone.

"I just couldn't stand those three old geezers causing trouble in the yard today, and I was too lazy to waste my breath arguing with them, so I figured it was easier to teach them a lesson. I just didn't expect Sha Zhu, Xu Damao, and Jia Dongxu to join in too." After saying that, Xu Lin glanced at Xiao Yushui beside him, a little embarrassed in his eyes. After all, he was the little girl's older brother.

He Yushui understood the meaning behind Xu Lin's words and immediately said, "It's alright, Brother Xu. This isn't your fault. My brother was just being foolish and was used as a pawn. If I had been there, I would have definitely helped you instead of him." After saying this, the girl felt embarrassed and ashamed of her brother's behavior, and she clenched her small hands.

Xu Lin noticed the girl's embarrassment, gently patted He Yushui's head, and comforted her tenderly, "It's okay, this is between your brother and me, it has nothing to do with you. You are you, and your brother is your brother. As long as you don't blame me."

He Yushui immediately waved her hand, "No, no, next time I run into them, I'll definitely help you beat them up." She even raised her little fist. Xu Lin smiled, pinched the little girl's nose, and then let her and Xiao'e go upstairs to sleep.

After the two young maids went upstairs, Madam Tan began to complain to Xu Lin, "How could that silly Zhu be like this? One second he was sitting with us eating, calling us 'Brother Xu, Brother Xu,' and the next second he was fighting with you on someone else's behalf. If it weren't for your good skills, I really wouldn't know what to do today..." As soon as she finished speaking, tears welled up in her eyes.

Xu Lin couldn't bear it, so he immediately stepped forward, hugged Tan Shi, and comforted her...

Qin Huairu, standing to the side, was dumbfounded. "Huh? That works too...?"