I feel right at home in the world of the courtyard house.

When I returned to the courtyard, it wasn't completely dark yet.

There weren't many people in the courtyard; they were probably all eating at home.

As he passed by the Jia family's window, he made a point of glancing inside.

The five members of the Jia family were eating around a small table, each with a bowl of thin cornmeal porridge in front of them. There was a small basket on the table, which should have held cornbread and steamed buns, but it was empty.

Li Jing'an smiled and deliberately made some noise with the wheels as he pushed the cart.

Sure enough, the people inside heard the noise and instinctively looked outside—only to see the rear wheel of a bicycle turning around.

"Li Jing'an is back." Madam Jia Zhang said to Qin Huairu in a low voice, "Huairu, why don't you go to his house later and see if there's anything that needs cleaning? I'll wash the dishes."

"Mom, we're not even close to them. If I keep going to their house, people will start gossiping about me," Qin Huairu quickly refused.

I couldn't tell my mother-in-law directly what happened yesterday; she was also confused and didn't know what to do. After thinking about it, I decided I should first give her a heads-up.

"Mom, the chances of getting a job transfer are actually slim. Don't get your hopes up too high, so you don't suffer later."

"Oh, how can I not worry?" Jia Zhangshi said with a worried look on her face. "Look at our family's situation... Our three children can't even afford a cornbread bun at night. We two can manage by eating less, but Banggeng and the others often wake up hungry... It breaks my heart."

"Mom, many families live like this..." Qin Huairu comforted her softly.

"I know, but when will this end?" Jia Zhangshi became more and more agitated as she spoke. "Now that such an opportunity is available, how could I not be tempted? If you can really be transferred there, you can get thirty-five yuan a month, the children can have an extra steamed bun every day, and we won't have to keep asking others for help."

It's no wonder that Madam Jia reacted this way. She always harbored suspicion towards those who helped the Jia family—except for Sha Zhu. In her view, what decent bachelor would genuinely marry a widow with three children?

Even the old man, she suspected, had ulterior motives for helping the Jia family. (This was mentioned in the TV series.)

She was afraid that Qin Huairu would be abducted, and then the Jia family would really fall apart.

Jia Zhangshi's words made the children's eyes light up. Banggeng looked up and asked, "Mom, are you getting a raise?"

"...No." Qin Huairu lowered her head, staring at the little porridge left in the bowl, not daring to look into the children's eyes.

The light on the child's face dimmed instantly.

Silence fell back into the room.

---

Li Jing'an's house, east room.

He was planning to heat up the stewed chicken he had brought back. He had originally intended to eat it cold, but then he suddenly remembered reading somewhere that when a person is hungry, their nose is especially sensitive.

He wanted to try it.

Li Jing'an considered himself quite "selfless"—if he had something good, he should "share" it with everyone. Of course, this only applied to the smell, especially sharing it with the Jia family.

Fearing that others wouldn't be able to smell it if the time was too short, he added water again halfway through.

He simmered it for a full twenty minutes before turning off the heat.

Whether the other families smelled it or not is unknown. But the Jia family definitely smelled it, because he heard their commotion.

It seems the two children couldn't sit still after smelling the odor, so they ran out of the house but were pulled back by Qin Huairu and her mother-in-law.

I'll see how long you can hold out. It's okay, I have plenty of patience.

After finishing his meal and tidying up, Li Jing'an went into the bedroom and lay down.

But when I closed my eyes, my thoughts wandered, and for some reason I thought of Qin Huairu again—a sudden heat rose in my body, as if I were on fire.

"No, this needs to be resolved as soon as possible. We can't keep hanging on to Qin Huairu alone," he muttered to himself.

Suddenly, I thought of someone—the guesthouse staff. They seemed perfect in every way.

Hehehe, I'll get her tomorrow.

He didn't know how he fell asleep, only that he tossed and turned in bed for half the night, like a pancake being cooked.