Courtyard House: My max-level medical skills specialize in treating beasts.

"Yudong, thank you so much! Having a doctor in our hospital is so convenient!"

Aunt Yi held He Yudong's hand tightly, her smile smoothing out the wrinkles around her eyes, her gratitude evident in them.

He Yudong handed over the written prescription, tapping his fingertips lightly on the paper:

"Here you go, just get the medicine according to the prescription." Actually, with his medical skills, acupuncture or the use of spiritual spring water could cure an old lady on the spot, but he is not some kind of "saintly mother".

The skills of a miracle doctor are never cheap charity.

"Oh dear, that won't do!" The older woman quickly reached into her pocket. "How can you see a doctor without paying? Wait a minute, I'll pay the consultation fee right now!"

"Hey, Auntie Yi!" He Yudong grabbed her hand, both amused and exasperated. "How could I possibly take your money? If you give me money, wouldn't people gossip about me behind my back, saying I'm taking advantage of someone's misfortune?"

"Alright, then I won't stand on ceremony with you!" The older woman's eyes lit up, and she slapped her thigh, saying, "I'll cook extra tonight, you, Shazhu, and Yushui can come over and eat together!"

"No need to trouble you, Auntie Yi," He Yudong waved his hand. "My brother is cooking right now, and I was just about to invite the old lady over to eat together."

"Then I'll have your uncle buy some meat another day, and you'd better come over!" Aunt Yi said, beaming from ear to ear.

As people get older, the worst thing is to be plagued by illness. Today, He Yudong not only cured her old ailment, but this young man is also kind-hearted and filial to the old lady. She sighed in her heart: If only I had a son like him...

"Ding! 1 merit point awarded for preventing Aunt Yi's coronary heart disease."

A mechanical voice echoed in his mind, and He Yudong raised an eyebrow.

It seems that the amount of merit points depends not only on "saving people", but also on the "weight" of the person being saved and the degree of help.

Grandpa Wu, whom we rescued on the train, is a big shot, so we gave him 1000 points; Aunt Yi, who is just an ordinary neighbor, received 1 point, which is better than nothing.

When He Yudong accompanied the old lady back home, Sha Zhu's braised pork was bubbling away, the rice was cooked until soft, the aroma of chicken stew with mushrooms filled the backyard, and even the tomato and egg soup had been simmered until golden oil had formed. In the Beijing compound of the 1960s, this was already the most luxurious meal.

The Jia family next door

"Mom! Sha Zhu's family made delicious food again! Why didn't they send us some? That Sha Zhu is so mean, he always eats alone!" Bang Geng clung to the door frame, looking very unhappy, like a little wolf cub protecting its food.

"That damned idiot Zhu, he has no conscience at all!" Madam Jia, with her fat head and big ears, spitting as she spoke. "Qin Huairu, aren't you usually so capable? Why don't you hurry up and bring over the meat from Zhu's house! Can't you see my grandson is growing? Eating cornbread all day long, what kind of nutrition can he get?"

"Mom! Can you stop embarrassing us?" Qin Huairu, who was washing clothes, suddenly stood up upon hearing this, her voice trembling. "If you hadn't sent Banggeng to steal meat from Shazhu's family, would Shazhu be ignoring us? He'd be lucky to have cornbread to eat!"

"Wasn't I doing that for my grandson?" Madam Jia glared. "Why didn't you say anything about stealing the meat back then? Now you're blaming me?"

"It's all Sha Zhu's brother's fault!" Bang Geng suddenly interjected, his twelve-year-old face full of malice. "If he hadn't come back, this house would be ours! Sha Zhu would definitely have given us meat!"

"That's right! It's all that damned He Yudong's fault!" Madam Jia vented all her resentment on He Yudong. "Why didn't he just die out there? He came back to bring disaster to our family!"

"Don't worry, Grandma!" Banggeng's eyes darted around, and he said fiercely, "Tomorrow I'll steal everything from He Yudong's house and see how smug he can be then!"

"My good grandson is really promising!" Madam Jia gave a thumbs up, her face full of pride.

After dinner, He Yudong, Shazhu, and He Yushui helped the old lady out of the house. They saw Qin Huairu squatting in front of the laundry tub washing clothes, her shoulders sobbing and tears streaming down her face. The laundry tub was only a few steps away from Shazhu's house, and Qin Huairu often "bumped into" Shazhu there, but today Shazhu's door was tightly closed.

He Yudong winked at Sha Zhu. He had warned him last night that this widow loved to play the victim and that he shouldn't fall for it. After saying that, he led He Yushui and the old lady back to the backyard.

No sooner had He Yudong left than Qin Huairu wiped away her tears, stood up, and moved closer to Sha Zhu: "Sha Zhu, I have something to tell you."

"Speak," Sha Zhu said, arms crossed, looking at her warily.

"You won't let me in?" Qin Huairu's eyes reddened, and she was about to shed tears again.

"No, Sister Qin!" Sha Zhu took a half step back, speaking righteously, "If a man and a woman alone in a room, how am I supposed to get married? Let's say it right here!"

He Yudong had already made his point clear inside the house: Qin Huai had just lost five yuan and spent twelve yuan on Bang Geng's medical treatment, so he was short of money. He probably wanted to "borrow" money from Sha Zhu. If he did, it would be like throwing good money after bad.

"Silly Zhu, are you disgusted with me now?" Qin Huairu's tears streamed down her face, her acting skills comparable to a Hollywood actress. "What did I do wrong that you're treating me like this?"

"I didn't look down on you!" Sha Zhu said hurriedly. "Just say what's on your mind, don't cry, it's like I'm bullying you!"

Qin Huairu chuckled to herself: Little brat, with your simple-minded look, you're just as easy to manipulate as I want.

She wiped away her tears, her voice choked with emotion: "You know, there are five of us in my family, and we live on just over twenty yuan a month. Banggeng and Mom spent twelve yuan in the hospital, and we also gave Yudong five yuan in compensation... How are we going to survive this month? We're almost starving!" She took a step closer and lowered her voice, "Shazhu, could you lend me twenty yuan? I'll pay you back next month when I get my salary."

Sha Zhu scratched his head, clearly hesitant.

He Yudong, who was watching from the corner, pinched He Yushui's arm. Just as he had said, the widow had indeed come to ask for money!

"Sister Qin, it's not that I don't want to lend it..." Sha Zhu stammered, "I just bought my brother a bicycle and new clothes, and I've spent all my money..."

"Silly Zhu, are you really going to just stand by and watch someone die?" Qin Huairu's cries suddenly rose, drawing the attention of passersby.

Sha Zhu was so upset by the crying that He Yudong pulled He Yushui out from the corner and said, "Brother, I need to talk to you about something."

"Hey!" Sha Zhu felt like he had been granted a pardon and quickly followed He Yudong into the house, not forgetting to glare at Qin Huairu as he turned back.

When Qin Huai saw that He Yudong had ruined her plans, a hint of resentment flashed in her eyes. It was all because of this bastard!

If he hadn't come back, the house would have belonged to the Jia family long ago, and Sha Zhu wouldn't have been so cold to him.

She transferred all her resentment towards fate onto He Yudong: Why did her "good days" turn upside down the moment he arrived?

Inside, He Yudong closed the door tightly, and after confirming there was no movement outside, he sneered, "Brother, I guessed right again, didn't I?"

"Brother, isn't this a bit inappropriate?" Sha Zhu asked, somewhat reluctantly. "Sister Qin's family is really having a hard time..."

"Brother, do you still want to get married?" He Yudong poked his forehead in exasperation. "If you want to get married, you'd better listen to me! Stay away from Qin Huairu before you're settled, or you'll be childless!"

Why?

"That widow is no saint!" He Yudong whispered. "The worst person in the courtyard isn't Xu Damao, it's her! Xu Damao is like a little brother to her. Believe me, if she borrows twenty yuan, she'll make you pay back two hundred next month!"

"Then...then you have to introduce me to someone!" Silly Zhu scratched his head.

"Okay!" He Yudong snapped his fingers. "But you have to do as I say first. Don't send lunchboxes to Qin Huairu these next few days. In less than three days, she'll definitely introduce you to her cousin."

"Isn't this great?" He Yushui interjected.

Sha Zhu nodded in agreement: "That's right, a cousin is always more reliable than a widow!"

He Yudong rolled his eyes: "You guys really think Qin Huairu is that kind? When your cousin arrives, she'll definitely introduce her to Xu Damao first. If Xu Damao finds out it was introduced to you, won't he try his best to sabotage it? Then your cousin will have a bad impression of you, and you'll have no one to blame but yourself!"

Sha Zhu was stunned, and He Yushui also gasped. If He Yudong hadn't pointed out the intricacies, they really wouldn't have been able to see through the widow's scheme!

He Yushui was skeptical of He Yudong's "prediction": "If you don't believe me, just wait and see. Anyway, you don't have to go to class recently, so I'll show you how formidable this widow is."

The next morning, Sha Zhu locked the door and went to work, while He Yudong drove off with He Yushui on the back. He Yushui, sitting on the back, stared wide-eyed in astonishment: "Brother, why don't you pedal this bicycle? It's going like the wind!"

"It's been modified. I added an electric motor, so it's now an electric bicycle," He Yudong said. "I'll buy you a regular bicycle later, and then I'll install the motor when you can ride it. This thing is too fast; you can't handle it."

After the three siblings left, a shifty head peeked out from the Qin Huai Rujia hotel, looking quite sly. He hated He Yudong and planned to steal from his house. Reaching He Yudong's door, he found it locked and kicked it in anger. He then checked He Yuzhu and He Yushui's rooms, which were also locked. He tried to pick the locks with a wire, but couldn't find the keyhole.

"Damn that idiot Zhu! Damn He Yudong!" Bang Geng cursed as he went home.

"Grandma, Sha Zhu's house is locked!"

"These heartless bastards, who are they guarding against?" Jia Zhangshi cursed, "They're guarding against you thieves!"

These past two days have been a holiday, and Banggeng has been bored, so he's been taking his two younger sisters out for walks, stealing whatever they see. One day, he sneaked into the backyard and spotted two hens in Xu Damao's chicken coop. His eyes lit up. He crept closer, put a tattered burlap sack over one of them, and carried it away. His innate talent for thievery was completely silent.

Hongxing High School

Just as He Yudong finished helping He Yushui move the books, a pretty and innocent-looking girl approached them: "Yushui, who is this?"

"Haitang, this is my brother He Yudong, he just came back from the army," He Yushui introduced. "Brother, this is Yu Haitang, our school beauty, she's also going to work as a broadcaster at the steel mill."

Yu Haitang stared at He Yudong, his sword-like eyebrows and bright eyes, tall and imposing, fulfilling all the fantasies of a young girl about the perfect man. She was instantly mesmerized, her pretty face flushed red as she reached out her hand: "Brother He, it's a pleasure to meet you."

"Hello." He Yudong smiled faintly and shook hands.

Yu Haitang volunteered to help carry the books, but in reality, she wanted to get to know He Yudong better. When she learned that He Yudong was also a doctor at the Red Star Factory, she was overjoyed: What a coincidence! We'll be able to see each other more often in the future.

On the way back to the courtyard house, He Yushui asked, "Brother, I want to apply to a teachers' college, what do you think?"

"A teachers' college? What's so great about getting into a lousy school?" He Yudong scoffed. "If you're going to take the exam, take the Tsinghua University exam. There are only a few months left until the college entrance exam. High school courses are all over. You can study at home, and I'll give you targeted practice questions. Ask me if you don't understand anything. What's so difficult about getting into Tsinghua University?"

He Yudong first took He Yushui back to the courtyard house, then went to the Hongxing Factory to familiarize himself with the medical room equipment. As he rode his bicycle past the steel mill's open space, he saw Banggeng making beggar's chicken with his three younger sisters. He smiled and said, "Wait here, I'm going to Shazhu's canteen to get some soy sauce. It tastes better with soy sauce." Banggeng grabbed a small bottle and ran towards the canteen.

Xu Damao had just returned from showing a movie in the countryside when the factory manager treated him to a meal. He went to the canteen to brag to Sha Zhu, feeling resentful because Sha Zhu's salary had increased to over seventy yuan, more than thirty yuan more than his! His childhood nemesis was currently running for deputy head of the propaganda department.

"Hey, Xu Damao, I'm beating up Widow Qin's son, what are you doing getting involved?" Sha Zhu laughed when he saw the rolling pin hit Xu Damao. "Do you know who's treating today? The factory manager!"

"Don't try to win me over. The factory manager might just ask if we can show a movie," Sha Zhu retorted. "You're just a lousy cook. Did I give you laxatives? Did you bring any toilet paper?"

Xu Damao was walking out when he almost bumped into He Yudong, who was entering the cafeteria: "Can't you watch where you're going?"

"You're blaming me for not watching where you're going?" He Yudong said, dissatisfied.

Xu Damao recognized him: "You're not from the factory, are you here to steal something?"

"Steal your sister's stuff!" He Yudong glared. "If you keep swearing, believe me, I'll slap you!"

Xu Damao took several steps back. He couldn't beat He Yudong before he joined the army, and now that He Yudong is over 1.8 meters tall and has served in the army, how could he be a match for him?

"This is a factory, don't mess around!" Xu Damao bluffed. "I'll report you!"

"I can't be bothered with you," He Yudong sneered. "You'd be better off checking on your old hen."

"What do you mean?" Xu Damao thought he was referring to his wife, Lou Xiao'e.

"It means exactly what it says, figure it out yourself." He Yudong smiled as he entered the cafeteria.

When He Yuzhu saw his younger brother arrive, he smiled and said, "The factory manager is treating us. I saved half a chicken; I'll take it back with me later."

"The leaders are always eating and drinking, corrupt." He Yudong shook his head. "Give half a chicken to Ma Hua. There's still a rooster at home that we haven't eaten. If you take the old hen back, you'll get into trouble."

"What's wrong? What's going on?" Sha Zhu had just entered the courtyard when He Yudong called out to him.

"When I arrived, I saw the Banggeng siblings roasting beggar's chicken. That chicken must have been stolen from Xu Damao's house," He Yudong said in a low voice. "If you take this half-hen back with you, Uncle Er and Uncle San will definitely team up with Xu Damao to label you a 'chicken thief,' and you'll be the one taking the blame!"

"Hey, this little rascal is really going astray!" Sha Zhu frowned. "He stole meat yesterday, and chickens today. I can't control him!"

"Alright, Ma Hua, take the lunchbox back with you," Sha Zhu called to his apprentice.

"Master, this isn't a good idea..." Ma Hua hesitated.

"Just take it!" Sha Zhu shoved the lunchbox over. Ma Hua's eyes welled up with tears: "Thank you, Master! Thank you, Uncle!"

"Just call me Master, don't call me Uncle-Master, I have nothing to teach you." He Yudong smiled and rubbed Ma Hua's head.

He Yudong was delighted when he took a break to enter the miniature world. The rooster and three hens he had initially put in had grown significantly in just two days, and each hen had brought with it ten chicks! At this rate, it wouldn't be long before they were ready to eat adult chickens.

After cooking for his boss, Sha Zhu and He Yudong went home. He Yudong had just taken the rooster to the yard to butcher it when the window of Qin Huairu's house next door creaked open. Jia Zhangshi, peering through the window, stared at the chicken, drooling, her face scrunched up like a dried orange peel: "That wretched girl! She ate meat yesterday and is killing a chicken today, living like it's New Year's! She doesn't even know how to be filial to our family!"

"That's someone else's stuff. You can't take it if they don't want it." Qin Huairu leaned against the door frame, her voice full of exhaustion. Today, Sha Zhu came back without even bringing a lunchbox. She tried to talk to him, but he ignored her completely, and she felt really anxious.

"It's your fault!" Madam Jia spat. "Where's all that flirting skill you usually have? Before, Sha Zhu would obediently hand over his things when he saw you? Now you're all deflated? I don't care, Bang Geng is still growing, go and get the chicken later!"

"Mom, are you being unreasonable?" Qin Huai was furious. "Can't you get your own food if you want to? What's wrong with Sha Zhu lately? He won't even let us bring our own lunchboxes!"

"Fine, I'll go!" Madam Jia pushed open the door and skipped into the courtyard.