Courtyard House: In this life, I have a new home!

He knew in his heart that the table was made of old elm wood; it didn't look big, but it was incredibly heavy to lift. The materials were so solid that it wouldn't break even after another hundred years.

Now that Li Weidong had kicked him to pieces, Cui Dake had a sudden realization—if that kick had landed on him, he would have truly said goodbye to this world.

"W-what are you going to do? I'll tell you... ah!"

Cui Dake tried to say a few polite words, but before he could finish, Li Weidong grabbed him by the collar and slapped him twice across the face.

"Cui Dake, I fucking want to kill you!"

Li Weidong gritted his teeth and cursed, "Why don't you take a piss and look at yourself in the mirror? What kind of thing are you, daring to make a move on my Xiaorou?"

"Fine, I'll investigate how you became a worker tomorrow. You're a farmer, there's definitely something fishy going on here. Also, you're definitely not from a poor peasant family, I'm going to dig deep into your background."

Three generations of ancestors were farmers? Li Weidong didn't believe it at all. Even if there was no problem, he could still create some trouble for Cui Dake. Just the procedure of changing from a farmer to a worker would be enough to give him a hard time.

"I...I...this 'I'..."

Cui Dake was so frightened that his legs went weak and he could barely speak.

Li Weidong leaned closer to his face and lowered his voice: "Cui Dake, don't you think your worker status is pretty cool? I'll strip you of that status and see what you can brag about then."

Cui Dake felt weak all over, and only then did he realize that he was nothing in front of Li Weidong.

Xu Damao was so frightened by Cui Dake's words that he almost lost his mind and quickly pushed his car towards his door.

"You little bastard, you've learned to play dirty tricks now?"

Li Weidong grabbed the wheelchair armrest and slapped it twice.

The crisp sound of the slap echoed through the courtyard.

Xu Damao covered his face and wailed, "I'll never do it again! I really won't!"

"Get lost!"

Li Weidong struck again, making Xu Damao see stars.

His mother, Tian Guifen, stood right next to him, but didn't dare to say a word.

She knew perfectly well that the brat had done something shameful again and had been caught red-handed.

The neighbors in the front and middle yards were all woken up and crowded over to see what was going on.

Yi Zhonghai slowly stepped forward, his voice sarcastic: "Chief Engineer Li, it's true you're skilled in martial arts, but that doesn't mean you can just hit people like this. Why don't you take the police to resolve this?"

The implication was that Xu Damao and Cui Dake were urging each other to report the incident to the police immediately.

Li Weidong sneered, "Yi Zhonghai, you just want them to call the police? Fine, let them go. You think you're so smart?"

Xu Damao, having recovered his composure, shouted, "Why did you hit me? Yes, I was the one who told Cui Dake to pursue Lin Yurou. Even if you're unhappy, you can't just hit someone!"

"Exactly! What right do you have to hit people?"

Yi Zhonghai's eyes lit up; he felt he had caught someone red-handed.

Li Weidong snorted: "You old bastard, you have a problem with that? I'll beat them both up. Let them call the police if they dare."

"You dare to insult me..."

Yi Zhonghai was so angry that he trembled all over.

"Insult you? I didn't."

Li Weidong looked completely innocent. "I'm telling the truth. You're not an old woman without children? Fine, then have a baby, boy or girl, and I'll kowtow to you as an apology."

Yi Zhonghai's face turned pale and then red, he opened his mouth, and then closed it again.

Sha Zhu jumped out from the side, spat, and said, "Pah! Li Weidong, do you know that the old man couldn't have children because of the old woman's problems? It's not that the old man is bad; on the contrary, it's because he's a good person. He stayed by her side through thick and thin, living with her all this time. And now you're calling him an old man without children? Don't you feel any remorse? Doesn't it hurt?"

As soon as Sha Zhu said that, Yi Zhonghai immediately straightened his back.

Right, what does the matter of having no descendants have to do with him?

Besides, he's not truly childless. Even though Yu Mei can't have children, he still stays by her side and lives with her through thick and thin. Who can match that level of commitment?

Of course, the fact that Qin Huairu and he had a relationship is another matter.

"Silly Zhu, you really are an idiot."

Li Weidong scoffed, his face full of disdain. "Yi Zhonghai is just an old castrated rooster, all talk and no action, he can't even lay an egg, where would he get his seed?"

"You...you're talking nonsense!"

Yi Zhonghai was furious.

"I farted?"

Li Weidong sneered, "You all think that infertility is a woman's problem? Xu Damao is a living example. Let me tell you, if a woman can't have children, seven or eight times out of ten it's the man's fault."

"I could tell at a glance, Yi Zhonghai, that you're one of those seven or eight out of ten. You're an old castrated rooster, you were frozen as a child and your children had to raise you."

"You can cultivate the land, but you don't even have seeds, and you still want offspring? Dream on."

Na Yumei stood to the side, tears streaming down her face.

She had always wanted to be a mother, but couldn't conceive, always thinking it was her own problem. It turned out that Yi Zhonghai had been the one who had delayed her for so many years.

Yi Zhonghai stared intently at Qin Huairu, his eyes burning with fury.

He was initially stunned—how could he not have children? Didn't he already have his son, Bang Geng?

But then I thought about it again, and Li Weidong is a man who never lies.

Thinking back, when I was sixteen or seventeen, I fell into an ice hole in Northeast China, and my legs below the waist were frozen solid, like iron rods. I guess that's where the illness started.

Upon realizing this, Yi Zhonghai's expression changed drastically. That bastard... wasn't his child at all!

His gaze suddenly shifted to Qin Huairu.

Qin Huairu felt uneasy, grabbed the stick, turned around, and left.

Yi Zhonghai then took a closer look—the only thing that resembled him about the hamster was its curly hair; otherwise, it was nothing alike.

Those triangular eyes, with more white than black, gave them a shifty, rat-like appearance. How could they compare to Yi Zhonghai's upright and honorable looks?

In that instant, countless thoughts raced through Yi Zhonghai's mind.

"What, you don't believe me?"

Li Weidong raised his chin. "Why don't you just go to the hospital for a checkup? You're just like Xu Damao. He was injured by a beating, you were injured by frostbite."

Xu Damao stood by, tears streaming down his face.

What did he do to deserve this? Why is he being dragged out and dredging up again?

Yi Zhonghai staggered home. He knew that Li Weidong had once again stripped him bare. Tomorrow, the factory would be buzzing with the news.

"Cui Dake, do you want to die?"

Li Weidong turned to look at Cui Dake, his eyes as cold as knives. "If you want to die, do you think I won't bury you?"

"I won't do it again, I won't do it again, I'll never do it again next time."

Cui Dake trembled like a leaf.

Li Weidong turned and went back to his own home. Lin Yurou had already taken Xiao Xi to He Yushui's place to help prepare dinner.

Yi Zhonghai sat down on a small stool by the door with a dark expression. Inside the house, Yu Mei's crying came in waves, making his heart feel like it was being fried in oil, causing him great pain.

"Sir, things have come to this point, there's no point in thinking about it anymore."

Sha Zhu went over and offered a word of advice, then added, "I'll stir-fry some snails tonight, let's have a couple of drinks to pass the time."

"Silly Zhu, hurry up and cook it!"

Banggeng shouted from the side, "Remember not to put chili peppers in it, I can't handle spicy food!"

"Kid, if you don't add chili peppers, the fishy smell won't be masked. And I don't have all the seasonings I need."

Sha Zhu scratched his head. "It would be perfect if there was some fermented soybean paste in it. That would make the flavor just right."

"Why are you talking so much nonsense? Just hurry up and cook it!"

Bang Geng was getting a little impatient.

Yi Zhonghai remained silent, squinting as he scrutinized the hamster. Its eyes were mostly white with little black, triangular in shape, with protruding ears, a bulbous nose, a long face, and a pointed chin—it didn't look like his at all.

Yi Zhonghai was furious, his fists clenched tightly, wishing he could grab the kid and beat him senseless.

"Qin Huairu, you shameless bastard, how dare you lie to me for so many years!"

He cursed under his breath.

Thinking about all the money he had spent on Qin Huairu over the years, and all the feelings he had invested, Yi Zhonghai felt completely drained and numb all over.

"Zhu Zi, add more chili peppers."

Yi Zhonghai's voice was as cold and brooding as iron. "The fishy smell is too strong; it's inedible. If you can't eat the stalks, then don't eat them."

"Okay then—I'll cook a pot first, set some aside for the stems, and then add the chili peppers."

Sha Zhu pondered for a moment and came up with a compromise.

Sha Zhu was also wondering to himself, "Has this old guy taken the wrong medicine today? Didn't he used to spoil Bang Geng in everything?"

Qin Huairu was feeling very anxious and didn't know what to do for a moment. But she quickly calmed herself down.

If Yi Zhonghai tried to confront her privately, she would insist that Bang Geng was his child and wouldn't budge.

If Yi Zhonghai dares to expose this in front of everyone, she'll simply deny it to the death, since no one really knows what happened between them anyway.

Besides, Yi Zhonghai wouldn't dare to really break off relations. If this matter escalated, he, Yi Zhonghai, would end up in jail.

Banggeng was stamping his feet anxiously beside him. Shazhu didn't have many spices on hand, but he gave plenty of ginger, scallions, and garlic, and also added a lot of star anise and Sichuan peppercorns. The snails stewed in the pot tasted pretty good.

"It's boiling! It's boiling!"

Banggeng couldn't help but shout, "Hurry up, put it in this bowl!"

Banggeng brought back an earthenware pot. Shazhu glanced at the soup in the pot; it was almost done. He scooped half a pot out and told Banggeng to take it away. Then he grabbed a handful of red chilies and threw them into the pot, put the lid on, and continued to simmer.

Banggeng carried the snails into the house, and Jia Zhangshi snatched the basin and put it on the table. She stretched out her dark hand, grabbed a snail, and stuffed it into her mouth.

"It's hot! It's burning me!"

Even so, Jia Zhangshi couldn't bear to spit it out. She rummaged through her mouth for a while before it cooled down and she could taste it.

"That idiot Zhu, is he trying to scald me to death by making it so hot?"

Jia Zhangshi smacked her lips, "But the soup tastes alright."

Banggeng had already used a needle to pick out a snail meat and stuffed it into his mouth, chewing it vigorously: "Hmm, it's alright. It's just a bit hard, I can't chew it properly."

"It's good enough to have something to eat."

Madam Jia snorted, "But the smell is far worse than what that little bastard made."

Qin Huairu looked worried as she ate dinner with Xiao Dang and Huaihua. The two girls reached for a snail, but were startled by Bang Geng's glare and withdrew their hands.

After finishing dinner, Li Weidong took a shower and went back to his room. The electric fan was whirring, and he began practicing telekinesis—lifting the table up, putting it down, lifting it up again, and putting it down again.

Once my mental energy is almost depleted, I can finally sleep soundly.

He does this work every day; it's almost become a habit. When he's completely exhausted, he falls asleep as soon as his head hits the pillow and sleeps soundly.

He had just fallen asleep a little after nine o'clock and was having a sweet dream when a banging on the door woke him up.

Who is it?