Courtyard Houses: Starting with Li Yunlong's Comrades-in-Arms

Jia Dongxu released his grip, sat back down in his seat, and continued, "I've thought about it. Mother, think about it, what's Liu Yuheng's status? He's the vice minister of the Second Ministry of Machine Building. If he really wanted to deal with our family, would he need to be so roundabout? He could just talk to our factory leaders directly, and wouldn't all the factory leaders be eager to take us down? Would our family still be able to stay in the factory then?"

Upon hearing these words, Jia Zhangshi's anger gradually subsided, replaced by a belated, embarrassed expression.

She opened her mouth, wanting to say something but not knowing what to say. In the end, she just hummed and muttered awkwardly, "Then... if he really doesn't want to help, he should just say so. Why does he have to hide it like this?"

Jia Dongxu shook his head: "Liu Yuheng isn't that kind of person. Since he promised to help put in a good word, he wouldn't sabotage us like this behind our backs. Besides, if he didn't want to help us, he wouldn't need to resort to such underhanded methods. With his position, a single word from him is more effective than anything else. So, he didn't do this."

Qin Huairu sat opposite Jia Dongxu, listening to his analysis, her expression slowly shifting from confusion to contemplation. She paused for a moment, then softly asked, "Then... if it's not Liu Yuheng, who could it be?"

Jia Dongxu was silent for a few seconds, his gaze falling on the lampshade on the table, which was yellowed from the soot. His voice was heavy, as if he had made a great decision before speaking: "I've been thinking about this for the past few days, and I think it's probably my master."

Jia Zhangshi and Qin Huairu were both stunned. Jia Zhangshi almost dropped the cornbread in her hand again, her eyes widening in disbelief: "Yi Zhonghai? Your mentor? He stopped you from buying a workstation for your wife? Wasn't he the one who was helping you with this? How could he do such a thing?"

Qin Huairu didn't speak, but her gaze slowly shifted from Jia Dongxu's face to the dish of pickled vegetables on the table, as if she were also piecing together and weighing the clues in her mind.

Jia Dongxu took a deep breath, his tone carrying a calmness born from the trials of reality: "I only figured it out today after chatting with my coworkers in the workshop. There's a worker named Zhao in our workshop, a level seven worker. A few years ago, not long after his grandson was born, he spent eight hundred yuan to buy a workstation for his daughter-in-law."

"Back then, his family was struggling financially, scraping together the money through gritted teeth. Over the years, they've long since paid off the money for the workstation, and now his daughter-in-law earns a little over thirty yuan a month. Add to that Mr. Zhao himself, his two sons, and another daughter-in-law, and a total of five people have jobs, earning nearly two hundred yuan a month from their combined income. Mr. Zhao's family is doing very well now; who in our workshop wouldn't envy them?"

He paused for a moment, then lowered his voice slightly: "Think about it, our family's situation is similar to Master Zhao's back then. Liu Yuheng has already promised to help with the household registration transfer once Huai Ru finds a job. Once the household registration is transferred, Bang Geng and Xiao Dang's rations will also be available, and with Huai Ru's salary, our family will have an extra few dozen yuan in income each month."

"By then, Huai Ru and I will pay off the debt together, and we should be able to pay off the money for the workstation in three years at most. If I work hard and get promoted one or two levels, even if I earn forty yuan a month, plus thirty yuan a month from Qin Huai Ru, that's seventy yuan a month. That's more than enough to support our family of four."

He raised his head, his gaze lingering briefly on Jia Zhangshi and Qin Huairu's faces: "Then, our Jia family's life will be much better. We won't have to scrape together money anymore, and we won't have to be at anyone's mercy. But think about it, when our family's life is better, what will Yi Zhonghai think?"

The room fell silent for a moment, broken only by the occasional crackling sound from the stove.

Jia Dongxu continued, "You all know what Yi Zhonghai meant when he took me as his apprentice. He was a childless man, and taking me as an apprentice was so that someone would take care of him in his old age. I understand that. A teacher for a day is a father for life. He taught me a skill, so it's only right that I take care of him in his old age."

"Besides, Yi Zhonghai has accumulated quite a fortune over the years. If we were to support him in his old age, we wouldn't be at a disadvantage. But he probably doesn't think that way. He's probably thinking that once Huai Ru gets a job and our family's life improves, we won't be willing to support him anymore. By then, when we've become independent, who will remember him as our mentor?"

"That's why he's trying to stop Huai Ru from buying a workstation. As long as Huai Ru doesn't have a job, our Jia family will always be poor and destitute, and we'll always have to rely on Yi Zhonghai's support to survive. That way, we'll never be able to leave him, and we'll always have to listen to him. That's his real plan."

Upon hearing this, Jia Zhangshi's expression shifted from confusion to anger, and then from anger to a furious rage as if struck by the truth. She slammed her hand on the table, so hard that the bowl of porridge on it shook and bounced, the rim of the bowl hitting the table with a crisp sound, and a few drops of porridge splashed onto the table.

Her voice was shrill and barely suppressed, almost screaming, "That old bastard! I knew he was up to no good! Taking on apprentices is one thing, but why did he have to scheme against our family?! No way, I'm going to his house right now and yell at him! I'll expose his dirty tricks in front of the whole courtyard!"

She stood up again, this time with even more force, rushing towards the door like a gust of wind. This time, Jia Dongxu didn't stop her; he simply sat there watching her rush out, his lips twitching slightly, his expression a mixture of helplessness and tacit approval.

Qin Huairu sat on the other side of the table, chopsticks in hand, watching Jia Zhangshi rush out the door, then glancing at Jia Dongxu's nonchalant attitude. Her voice held a hint of hesitation and unease: "Dongxu, is it alright for me to go and scold Yi Zhonghai like this? He's the head of the household, and your master too. What if he gets really angry and tries to trip us up again…?"

Jia Dongxu picked up his bowl of porridge, took a sip, and shook his head as he put it down. His tone carried a weariness mixed with clarity: "There's nothing wrong with making a scene. We can't let Yi Zhonghai think our family is stupid. If Mother makes a scene and angers Yi Zhonghai, I can just apologize to him later. Anyway, I'm his apprentice, he can't do anything to me. But if we keep putting up with it, he'll only think we're easy to bully, and these kinds of things will happen more and more often in the future."

He paused, his gaze falling towards the doorway. He could faintly hear Jia Zhangshi's loud voice coming from the courtyard, as if she were arguing with someone in the central courtyard.