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

The courtyard fell silent for a moment after these words were spoken. Everyone's eyes darted back and forth between Jia Zhangshi and Yi Zhonghai, but soon, several other gazes turned to the direction of the hanging flower gate, where Liu Shuanzhu and his son Liu Erhe stood.

Liu Yuheng. Everyone in Compound No. 95 knew the significance of this name. He was a lieutenant general, the vice minister of the Second Ministry of Machine Building, and the only person in the entire compound to live in the North City Compound.

Normally, when people in the courtyard mentioned Liu Yuheng, their tone carried an unspoken reverence and distance; he was someone they couldn't reach, someone who stood on a different level. But now, Jia Zhangshi's words clearly revealed that Liu Yuheng had actually agreed to help the Jia family register their household registration. They hadn't heard a single word about this beforehand.

Liu Shuanzhu met their gazes without any particular change in expression. He slightly turned his head and glanced at Liu Erhe beside him. Liu Erhe was also looking at him, and their eyes met briefly in mid-air. Liu Erhe shook his head very slightly.

At this moment, Yi Zhonghai's face darkened further, the muscles at the corners of his eyes twitched slightly, and his voice carried an extremely suppressed anger: "Jia Zhangshi, don't make baseless accusations! A while ago, I was running around for Dongxu, helping him find a workstation in the cafeteria, and I even asked Zhuzi to help mentor Qin Huairu. These are all things I actually did, and everyone in the hospital can testify to them. I, Yi Zhonghai, have done nothing wrong, and I don't need you to throw mud at me like this! You're just here to cause trouble by slandering me."

Madam Jia immediately chimed in, her voice even louder than his: "I slander you? I slander you, you childless bastard? Do you dare swear in front of the whole courtyard that you didn't stop those people selling workstations? Do you dare say that if you did such a thing, may you be struck by lightning and have no descendants?"

The phrase "to cut off one's lineage" was like a knife stabbing into Yi Zhonghai's most painful spot.

Just then, He Yuzhu suddenly spoke up from the crowd: "Aunt Jia, Uncle Yi really did go to the cafeteria to ask about workstations! He came to me that day and asked me to help see if Sister Qin could learn a skill in the cafeteria so she could have a skill and earn more money. I promised to help. It's true, I can testify to that."

As soon as he finished speaking, a slightly sarcastic chuckle rang out from the crowd.

Xu Damao, having somehow squeezed to the front of the crowd, stood with his hands in his padded jacket pockets, tilting his head to glance at He Yuzhu with a mischievous smile: "Hey, silly Zhu, you're so eager to speak up for Uncle Yi, and so enthusiastic about helping to take care of Qin Huairu. Who knows if you have ulterior motives? Aunt Jia is standing right here; aren't you afraid people will say you have ulterior motives?"

As soon as he said that, a low chuckle rippled through the courtyard. Some people chuckled briefly and then quickly suppressed it, while others covered their mouths with their sleeves, and a few of the younger ones laughed so hard their shoulders shook.

He Yuzhu's face flushed bright red, his neck swelled up, and he glared at Xu Damao, yelling, "Xu Damao, what nonsense are you spouting! Do you get restless if you don't gossip all day?!"

Xu Damao wasn't annoyed. Instead, he shrugged and smiled even more smugly: "I was just saying it casually. Why are you so anxious? Whoever gets anxious is the one with something to hide." After he finished speaking, he took two steps back and retreated to the back of the crowd, as if afraid that He Yuzhu would really rush up and fight him.

Madam Jia was already furious. Xu Damao's words caused her to abruptly turn her gaze to He Yuzhu and Xu Damao, her eyes filled with a newfound wariness and hostility. But before she could say anything, Xu Damao had already disappeared into the distance. Unable to follow or not, she turned to Yi Zhonghai, her voice sharp with rage: "Yi Zhonghai, you wretched wretched man! You just can't stand to see our Jia family living a good life! You're afraid that Dongxu will become too powerful and won't support you in your old age! That's why you resort to such despicable tactics!"

Yi Zhonghai's face darkened considerably from her repeated use of the term "dead, childless family," veins throbbing at his temples. His voice was cold and hard, as if he were about to grind his teeth: "Mrs. Jia, I'm telling you this one last time: I have never done anything to wrong Dongxu. I, Yi Zhonghai, have nothing to hide and am not afraid of your troubles here. If you continue this unreasonable behavior, I will absolutely not interfere in anything concerning your Jia family anymore. I will not concern myself with Dongxu's affairs!"

Just then, the Jia family's door opened, and Jia Dongxu staggered out, his steps unsteady, as if he had drunk quite a bit, his face flushed an unnatural red. He walked to the center of the crowd, first bowing to the surrounding neighbors, his voice tinged with apology: "I'm so sorry, neighbors, for making a fool of myself so late at night. My mother... she had a few drinks today, and she's a bit confused, causing this commotion. I'm truly sorry. Please, everyone, move along, it's cold, don't get cold here."

After saying this, he turned to Yi Zhonghai, bowed slightly, and spoke with just the right amount of respect and apology: "Master, my mother was drunk, please don't take what she said to heart. I will personally come to apologize to you tomorrow. I will remember your great kindness. Don't worry, no matter what, you will always be my master, and I will always remember your goodness."

Yi Zhonghai stood on the steps, looking down at Jia Dongxu's face, which was flushed with drunkenness and apology. His gaze lingered on Jia Dongxu for a long while. He didn't answer immediately, but silently stared at Jia Dongxu for a few seconds, then nodded slightly, his voice deliberately cold: "Alright, stop making a scene so late at night. Take your mother home and talk to her properly. We can talk about it tomorrow."

Jia Dongxu quickly responded, turned around and walked to Jia Zhangshi's side, reached out and took her arm, and whispered, "Mother, let's go back."

Madam Jia wanted to say something more, but Jia Dongxu pulled her slightly, and she swallowed her words back. She opened her mouth, then closed it again, and was eventually half-pulled, half-dragged by Jia Dongxu back the way they came. She was still muttering something indistinctly, but her voice had become much lower and was not very clear.

The crowd gradually dispersed. Yan Bugui, holding his teacup, clicked his tongue twice, shook his head, and turned back to the front yard, muttering, "It's so late at night, they can't even let people have a moment's peace." Liu Haizhong stood under the old locust tree, glancing a few times at Yi Zhonghai's tightly closed door, then at the direction where Jia Dongxu and Jia Zhangshi had disappeared, before turning and walking towards the back yard. His steps were slower than when he came, as if he were pondering something.