Courtyard House: Starting with a 28-inch motorcycle

"Zhu Zi! It was all my fault for asking Yu Shui for food last time!" Her voice trembled, and tears welled up in her eyes. "Please, have mercy and stop letting the factory people target Dong Xu... He's not even getting enough to eat, and he's constantly swaying while working in the afternoon. If this continues... he'll really collapse!"

He Yuzhu sneered and shook his head: "I don't understand what you're talking about."

He's not getting enough to eat? That's because he has a big appetite, it's none of my business.

"Zhu Zi, I really know I was wrong!" Qin Huairu hurriedly took a package of oil paper from Yi Zhonghai's hands and presented it with both hands. "We brought an apology... We couldn't buy sausages, so we specially bought a pound of beef jerky, which cost almost five yuan... Uncle Zhonghai queued for half a day and paid a high price for the tickets... Please accept this and put in a good word for them, tell them to stop shaking the ladle..."

She was about to kneel down again, her voice choked with sobs: "I'll kneel down for you... please, speak up..."

The room fell silent for a moment, with only her trembling breaths sounding like a string that might snap at any moment under the dim light.

Seeing He Yuzhu's ashen face and lack of reaction, Qin Huairu steeled her heart, bent her knees, and knelt on the ground with a thud. Tears welled up in her eyes, and she begged for mercy in a trembling voice.

Ten seconds of deathly silence.

The air seemed to freeze.

Finally, He Yuzhu slowly raised his eyelids, his voice as cold as if he had been pulled out of an ice cellar: "This is the last time."

If you dare touch a drop of rainwater again, I'll let your sturdy dog ​​experience what it means for the sky to fall and the earth to collapse—believe me or not, I really can do it.

Qin Huairu trembled all over, her heart almost stopping.

Banggeng was the apple of her eye; she'd give her life for him, but this child absolutely couldn't be harmed! She kowtowed repeatedly, saying, "I won't dare! I really won't dare! I swear!"

Yi Zhonghai stood to the side, his head buzzing with shock.

He never expected that the "Silly Pillar" who used to be so foolish and easily manipulated would now dare to utter such harsh words to his face.

A surge of anger rushed to his head: Threatening his own mother with an ignorant child? Is this still the same soft-hearted He Yuzhu from before? The deaf old lady must be blind to expect him to support her in her old age? It's like raising a tiger to cause trouble!

His face remained expressionless, but his mind was in turmoil, his thoughts sharp as a knife: sooner or later, he would turn this courtyard upside down.

"Alright." He Yuzhu waved his hand impatiently, as if shooing away flies. "Get lost if you have nothing else to do."

I'll go to the factory tomorrow to inquire about what you mentioned.

Remember, don't repeat yourself.

His tone was so harsh it left a dent in the ground.

The two exchanged a glance, and not daring to linger any longer, they scrambled to their feet, bowed their heads, and left the house.

As soon as the door closed, He Yuzhu let out a heavy sigh of relief, feeling as if he had just escaped from a quagmire—being with this group of people made him want to pick up a stool and smash someone.

He glanced at the bag of beef jerky on the table; the once fragrant treat now looked greasy.

He grabbed it casually and walked straight into the rain-soaked house.

That little girl loves eating this the most; her grin is sweeter than candy.

This whole scene was witnessed by Jia Zhangshi, who was peering out the window.

Her eyes instantly reddened, her nails digging into her palms as she cursed inwardly: "What a treasure! Her eldest grandson didn't even get a taste, and it's all going to some worthless piece of trash? Even if she didn't pay for it, it's still heartbreaking to see! If Sha Zhu hadn't taken it, this stuff should have belonged to her grandson!"

"You better behave yourself from now on!" Yi Zhonghai said coldly, his gaze like a knife piercing Jia Zhangshi's face. "If you provoke Sha Zhu again, next time it won't just be Huairu kneeling."

Madam Jia was stunned for a moment, then her face turned pale—it turned out that she had seen through the whole thing long ago, and that she had instigated Qin Huairu to do it.

Hearing the commotion, Jia Dongxu, who was inside the house, looked up abruptly: "Master, Sha Zhu... is making my wife kneel?"

His voice trembled, his face flushed red, and he was filled with shame and indignation.

Who does Xu Damao think he is? His wife was properly married into the family! How could he be forced to kneel and beg for mercy by a cook? It's an utter disgrace!

Yi Zhonghai said in a deep voice, "Dongxu, what did I say? To endure! Now is not the time for a head-on confrontation!"

"Can--"

"But what?!" Yi Zhonghai's eyes flashed with sternness. "You're going to go out and fight him right now? You have two kids to raise! Do you want them to grow up without a father?"

In short, it's like a chain around the throat.

Jia Dongxu opened his mouth, but finally slumped onto the bed, his face ashen and his body stiff, like a stone statue frozen solid by frost.

Madam Jia also shut her mouth, shrinking into the corner and not daring to breathe.

They were afraid that if they let slip a single word, they would offend everyone.

"Go to sleep first." Yi Zhonghai sighed, patted Jia Dongxu on the shoulder, and said, "From now on, focus on the technology."

"Get certified as a senior technician first, and establish yourself firmly before worrying about anything else."

After offering a few words of comfort and seeing that Jia Dongxu's emotions had calmed down a bit, he turned and went back to his room.

For nearly two months since Qin Huairu knelt down that day, the courtyard house has been unusually quiet.

As the old saying goes: whether the courtyard is in chaos or not, the Jia family has the final say.

As long as the Jia family doesn't cause trouble, other trivial matters won't make a fuss.

He Yuzhu continued to keep to himself and ignored everyone.

In the entire courtyard, apart from Old Wang's family, only Xu Damao could barely manage to greet him—but he would only call out from a distance, afraid of getting too close and getting beaten up.

But Xu Damao and his son have been completely exhausted in the past two months.

For two whole months, He Yuzhu only saw Xu Damao twice.

When he came back, he was so thin that his cheekbones protruded and his eyes were sunken, looking as if a ghost had sucked his life force out.

He would say hello and then sneak back into his room, fall asleep immediately, not daring to utter a single word in his sleep.

But this father and son were quite famous in the steel rolling mill.

These two tough guys only went home once a month, and after a day's rest, they would rush to the next village. In two months, they visited nearly thirty communes and cooperatives.

Under the guise of the Third Steel Rolling Mill, the procurement went smoothly, and the department leaders were overjoyed.

This kind of hard work has completely sealed Xu Damao's fate—it's a done deal, there's no way he'll get promoted.

He Yuzhu wasn't idle either.

With my salary in my account and the extra income from two weddings and funerals, I suddenly had plenty of money.

Without saying a word, he took all his savings and went to Manager Huang to pay for the two-courtyard house in one lump sum.

Then he went straight to the Zhengyangmen Subdistrict Office and personally took the property ownership certificate into his own hands.

Three months later, after Manager Huang left, the house belonged to the He family.

The location is much better than Nanluoguxiang; it's spacious and grand, with enough courtyard space to dry three quilts.

However, given his current status as a "third-generation farmer," living in such a large house is too conspicuous.

Before the 1980s, he planned to keep a low profile, stay in the same place, and only come here occasionally.

When He Daqing returns, finding a place to stay will not be a problem at all.

This house is bright and spacious, much better than a guesthouse.

The steel rolling mills are also making rapid progress.

In just two months, all the additional worker positions were snapped up.

There are many people, but the water is shallow—60% of them are apprentices who don't even know how to switch hands when swinging a hammer, and they are far from being able to work independently.

The factory immediately held a mobilization meeting, encouraging the experienced workers to take on more apprentices.

The policy immediately sparked a frenzy: a level 4 worker can mentor two apprentices, and once the apprentices become full-fledged employees, the mentors can receive a bonus! Even more ruthless is that mentoring more apprentices gives you an advantage in the year-end performance evaluation.

If you are a skilled worker of level six or above and have trained eight apprentices, you will have a lot more confidence when you speak in the factory.

As soon as the news broke, Liu Haizhong didn't even blink; he rushed straight to the workshop director's office: "I'll take eight!"

Although he was only a level six forging worker, his skills were extremely solid, making him a pillar of the forging workshop.

Upgrading in the forging industry is extremely difficult; not only do you need excellent craftsmanship, but you also need to understand blueprints and be able to perform calculations.

Liu Haizhong took the test twice in the past two years. He passed all the technical tests, but he got stuck on the image recognition test.

For him, who had only barely finished elementary school, looking at blueprints was like reading gibberish.

But he was quick-witted and immediately figured out another way—to climb the ranks by mentoring apprentices!

Despite his bad temper, he truly believed that strict discipline could produce filial sons.

His "punishment-based teaching" method, by sheer accident, actually produced several capable apprentices.

Now, five of his students have graduated: one level four blacksmith, two level three blacksmiths, two level two blacksmiths, and a newcomer who just obtained level one blacksmith qualification this year.

Upon hearing that he had volunteered and taken on eight tasks at once, the workshop foreman immediately decided, "With your attitude, I must help you get a group leader position! I'll report this to the factory leadership at the end of the year and give you a top recommendation!"

Liu Haizhong grinned from ear to ear, declaring on the spot, "I will definitely cultivate more promising talents to help the factory generate revenue!"

In contrast, Yi Zhonghai appeared much more cautious.

Even though he wanted to take on apprentices, he didn't rush headlong into things like Liu Haizhong.

He only selected four honest-looking young men, intending to observe their character before passing on his skills.

When Yi Zhonghai selects his apprentices, he prioritizes moral character.

He initially thought Sha Zhu was a respectful and kind young man, but he ended up suffering a great setback.

This time he learned his lesson and carefully considered every glance and every word.

The entire steel rolling mill is now as busy as a high-speed rotating gear—orders are piling up, new machine tools need to be familiarized with, and apprentices need to be taught in their spare time.

But after two years of hard work, the Third Steel Rolling Mill may very well soar to new heights and become a true powerhouse under the Ministry of Industry!

As for production matters, they have little to do with He Yuzhu.

He only needs to keep a close eye on two major logistics areas: the canteen and the greenhouse.

As long as things go smoothly on both ends, he'll definitely get a share of the year-end rewards.

Every morning without fail, he first inspects the hygiene of the canteen and reviews the recipes for the day's main dishes.

Then he turned around and headed straight for the greenhouse, without missing a single step.

With his maxed-out agricultural skills, no abnormality could escape his notice.

The leaves are turning yellow? The humidity is wrong.

The seedlings are wilting? The soil is lacking nutrients.

He started treating the problem as soon as it emerged.

What's even more amazing is that he had secretly planted second-generation wheat and rice cultivated in the system space on those two 100-square-meter plots of land.

The rice seedlings are now neatly arranged, lush and green, and growing vigorously.

Upon seeing this, the technician sent by the Ministry of Agriculture was stunned and couldn't help but ask, "Director He, isn't this greenhouse for growing vegetables? Why did you plant wheat and rice here?"

He Yuzhu had already prepared his speech, and said with a righteous expression, "This is a concrete manifestation of the integration of industry and agriculture! Tell me, what best represents our farmers? Isn't it wheat and rice ears? If I plant them like this, anyone who comes to visit will immediately feel the core spirit of our factory: 'promoting agriculture through industry'."