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

3

Madam Jia stood at the door, her face so dark it seemed to drip water.

"Hitting someone is wrong? I'm disciplining my own daughter-in-law, what right do you have to interfere?"

She spat towards the doorway.

"Yi Zhonghai, you're not some big shot in the courtyard anymore, stop acting all high and mighty!"

Inside the house, the commotion grew even louder.

As she hit him, Jia Zhangshi yelled, "Tell me! Isn't that Yi Zhonghai your lover? Did you have an affair with him behind my son's back?"

"Qin Huairu, you shameless bastard!"

Qin Huairu dared not run outside, and could only hide around the table, tears streaming down her face.

"I didn't... If you really don't believe me, Mother-in-law, then I'll leave."

"Walk?"

Madam Jia sneered, "The moment you leave, I'll tell Banggeng that your mother doesn't want you anymore, that she's going to remarry. See how much she hates you then!"

Qin Huairu felt a lump in her throat.

She only has this one son.

In the middle of the night, Qin Huairu turned over and glanced at her sleeping mother-in-law and Banggeng, then quietly got up.

Once outside, he looked around to make sure no one was watching before sneaking up to Yi Zhonghai by the window and lowering his voice, "Uncle, are you asleep?"

9. "Qin Huairu?"

Yi Zhonghai was not asleep. Hearing the noise, he didn't turn on the light. He put on his coat and opened the window a crack.

"What are you doing here so late?"

Qin Huairu cried with tears streaming down her face. She rolled up her sleeves, revealing bruises on her arms. "Uncle... my mother-in-law has left me and my child with no way to survive. I really don't know what to do."

Yi Zhonghai frowned. "I have some ointment in my room, I'll get it for you."

Qin Huairu looked at him gratefully, her voice trembling, "Uncle, how am I supposed to live from now on?"

"I lost my job."

"My mother-in-law is the boss at home. She only cares about herself and her son. My two children and I can't even get a hot meal."

Yi Zhonghai, his face grim, took a deep breath, his tone barely concealing his anger, "It's all that Fang Chengxuan's fault. Ever since he entered this compound, he hasn't had a moment's peace."

Qin Huairu looked up, her eyes red-rimmed. "Uncle, is there really no way to get Fang Chengxuan to stop keeping an eye on our family?"

"I really can't take it anymore."

"The way everyone in the hospital is looking at me now... it's making me feel awful."

She reached out and grabbed Yi Zhonghai's hand, a tear falling onto the back of his hand, burning and stinging.

Yi Zhonghai grabbed her wrist with his other hand. "Don't cry."

Qin Huairu bit her lip as she looked at him.

"Let me think about how to stop your mother-in-law from tormenting you like this."

Yi Zhonghai squinted and thought for a while, then his eyes suddenly lit up. "I've got it. Go back tomorrow and tell your mother-in-law that you want to remarry."

Qin Huairu's eyes widened suddenly, and she quickly pulled her hand back.

"no."

"If Bang Geng finds out, he'll hate me to death."

Yi Zhonghai lowered his voice: "I'm not really telling you to remarry, I'm just trying to scare your mother-in-law. You really need to pay attention to Kebangeng."

"Your mother-in-law dotes on that boy the most. If Banggeng is willing to side with you, why are you worried about not being able to control her?"

Qin Huairu lowered her head, a thoughtful look in her eyes.

"I see."

An old man nodded, his eyes glancing at the face in the moonlight, and a thought suddenly popped into his head. "Why don't we come in and sit down? I bought some braised pork tonight."

Qin Huairu's heart tightened.

She quickly glanced around the backyard; it was dark and deserted. But what if…?

"It's inconvenient, isn't it?"

Yi Zhonghai also looked around the courtyard, his gaze finally settling on Fang Chengxuan's house.

"Then go to the cellar and wait for me. I'll bring the braised meat and ointment over."

He phrased it differently.

Qin Huairu knew she couldn't escape tonight, and whispered, "Let's not go to the cellar. Let's go to Sha Zhu's house. I don't feel safe in the cellar."

The old man nodded.

Qin Huairu slipped away quietly, pushed open He Yuzhu's door, and went inside in the dark; the lights were off.

Not long after, an old man carrying some things came out of the house, crouching low.

None of them noticed that there was an extra person under the wall tonight.

Only after the two left did the shadow appear.

"Brother Fang is absolutely right. Qin Huairu got beaten by Jia Zhangshi, so she'll definitely come looking for Uncle Yi."

Yang Yuande looked around and then tiptoed after them.

The night was eerily quiet, and everyone was fast asleep. No one noticed the clandestine operation.

He Yuzhu's home.

Yang Yuande crouched under the window, and could hear hushed sounds from inside, from a man and a woman. He reached for the door; it wasn't locked.

He gently pushed the door open, pulled out a bundle of clothes, and then took a lock from his pocket and locked the door.

He tossed his clothes into the yard. He gathered a pile of firewood and wild vegetables, stacked them against the wall, and lit a fire.

Flames leaped up.

He grinned, then turned and went back into the house.

As soon as the door opened, Qin Jingru sat by the window in the moonlight.

Where did you go?

Her voice was filled with anger.

On the first night of their marriage, instead of sleeping, they went out.

Upon sensing something amiss in the tone, Yang Yuande quickly went over and put his arm around the person. "Don't worry, Brother Fang asked me to do something."

"Get something done? What is it?"

Qin Jingru was about to press for more information.

A shout suddenly erupted in the courtyard: "Fire! Everyone get up and put out the fire!"

Qin Jingru was stunned. Without asking any more questions, she grabbed Yang Yuande and ran outside.

As soon as I stepped outside, flames shot into the sky.

The whole courtyard erupted in chaos, with people carrying buckets and basins, creating complete confusion.

Wait for the fire to be extinguished.

Someone looked down and saw a pile of clothes under their feet. They picked it up and saw underwear underneath. They paused, stunned.

"This dress...it looks like the one Qin Huairu wore during the day?"

Everyone looked in the direction he was pointing, and someone bent down to pick up the man's clothes from the ground, grinning, "This jacket... why does it look like it belongs to an old man?"

The people in the courtyard exchanged glances, but no one said a word.

"The whole courtyard is full of people, even the deaf old lady has come to see what's going on, but where are the old man and Qin Huairu?"

"And when was the door to Sha Zhu's room ever locked?"

Inside He Yuzhu's house.

The moment the flames first appeared, the old man and Qin Huairu were terrified, breaking out in a cold sweat and barely daring to breathe. They tried to slip out, but their clothes had vanished. They tried to open the door, but it was locked tight. They tried to push the window, but it was surrounded by clutter and couldn't be opened at all.

"Hey, why is someone wandering around in Sha Zhu's house? Could a thief have broken in? Otherwise, why would a fire suddenly start?"

Lin Qinqin pointed at He Yuzhu's window and shouted.

"Thief? I'd like to see which blind fool dares to steal from my yard!"

Yang Yuande and Lin Qinqin worked together, grabbed an old torch, strode forward, and kicked the door open.

Several grown men in the courtyard followed him and squeezed to both sides.

"Hey, old man... Qin Huairu..."

Holding a torch, Yang Yuande scanned the two people in the room, who had nowhere to hide, from head to toe. He smacked his lips and said, "Tsk tsk, stealing a widow, huh? You old man, you're such a good-natured person who always asks everyone to help Qin Huairu, you really know how to play the game."

Upon hearing that there was excitement, everyone in the courtyard crowded into the house.

The scene inside the house was truly unbearable to look at.

Qin Huairu was wrapped in a thin blanket, her fair shoulders and calves exposed. An old man, shirtless, awkwardly tugged at the corner of the blanket, trying to pull it over himself.

"I knew Qin Huairu and that old man were having an affair. Otherwise, why would he and Sha Zhu only help her and not others?"

"Exactly! No wonder that old lady keeps complaining of chest pains. Who wouldn't feel good about their man being bewitched by a widow?"

The crowd was chattering.

It took Uncle Liu Haizhong a long time to come to his senses.

"Yi Zhonghai, you're having an affair?"

Jia Zhangshi also squeezed in, trembling violently, and rushed up to Qin Huairu, giving her a thorough beating.

"Shameless bastard! Are you that desperate for men?"

"You've only been a widow for a short time! You couldn't stand it and went off to have an affair!"

Jia Zhangshi had previously thought that since the two men were dressed neatly, she might have taken advantage of them a little, but they hadn't actually done anything.

But right now...

Qin Huairu shook her head and cried as she dodged, "Grandma, I really don't know anything. I woke up here."

"Grandpa, what happened? Who did this to us?!"

Qin Huairu looked pitifully at the old man Yi Zhonghai with teary eyes, shaking her head repeatedly while her lips moved silently, hoping that he could quickly resolve the matter and clear her name.

The old man, Yi Zhonghai, had a face as black as the bottom of a pot.

If he still can't see that he's been set up at this point, then he's lived such a long life in vain.

Who could have done it?

An old man scanned the crowd, his gaze finally settling on Fang Chengxuan's face. His eyes darkened as he thought to himself: Who else could it be but this kid?

"Fang Chengxuan, did you do this?"

The old man gritted his teeth and kept his voice very low.

Fang Chengxuan was taken aback for a moment, then burst out laughing: "Hey sir, do you think that whenever something bad happens, you have to pin the blame on me?"

Yang Yuande immediately chimed in, "Grandpa, don't just spout off. We all escaped while helping put out the fire. Everyone knows what you and Qin Huairu were doing in Sha Zhu's house!"

Lin Qinqin was already annoyed with the old man. "Exactly. You two are perfectly healthy people, doing something so shameful in the middle of the night. It's one thing to be shameless, but you're blaming others. Did they force you two to go to Sha Zhu's house to take your clothes off?"

Second Uncle Liu Haizhong had long disliked Yi Zhonghai. If it weren't for this old man constantly picking fights, would things have escalated to this point?

"So that's why you always seem to dislike Fang Chengxuan. You always have to kick him out. Turns out, someone caught you two fooling around, and you're afraid it'll get out, so you're doing this to get back at him?"

This whole mess has wiped out the seats for all three old men in the compound.

The thought of this made Liu Haizhong's anger flare up. Nowadays, people call him "Second Uncle," but who really takes him seriously?

Yi Zhonghai's face turned green, and he trembled all over: "You stubborn fool! This is obviously a setup!"

"Otherwise, why would the door be locked and then a fire break out?"

Liu Haizhong curled his lip. "Even if locking the door and setting the fire were planned, you two doing something shameless in the middle of the night, you can't deny it, can you?"

"Tsk tsk, you used to pretend to be such a nice guy, I never knew you were such a good actor."

"Gentlemen, what should we do about this today?"

Liu Haizhong raised his voice high, feeling like he had become the person in charge of the compound again.

"Call the police."

Someone spoke up.

Qin Huairu quickly shook her head: "We can't call the police. Mother-in-law, you have to think about Banggeng. We also need to consider the reputation of our compound. If word gets out, what will the neighbors think of us? How will those of us with daughters and sons in our families face anyone?"

As soon as he said that, everyone frowned.

"This really can't be told to anyone."

Those with children at home remained silent for a few seconds before nodding.

Liu Haizhong was stunned.

"What should we do then?"

"That's it?"

Everyone remained silent, as if this was the only way to go.