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

25

Unless the deaf old lady truly has the ability to help Xu Damao recover his health and give birth to a son, it's unlikely that she can have a son.

But Xu Damao wouldn't tell anyone about his problem. Even if the deaf old lady wanted to mediate, someone had to give her a way out.

"Mediation? No way. You just wait, I'll make sure you never have a peaceful life again!"

Xu Damao uttered this harsh remark, then turned and went inside, leaving everyone in the yard standing outside.

The people in the courtyard started whispering among themselves.

"In the end, the deaf old lady shouldn't have pushed Lou Xiao'e towards Sha Zhu. Everyone knows Xu Damao and Sha Zhu are mortal enemies."

"If I were Xu Damao, and I'd just gotten divorced, and my wife immediately remarried to my rival, I'm afraid I'd also..."

The rest of the sentence was left unsaid, but everyone understood what it meant.

The group of people thought about it more and more and felt that the deaf old lady had acted unfairly in this matter.

They live in the same courtyard, and Lou Xiao'e and Xu Damao had such a falling out. If she really marries someone else in the courtyard, given Xu Damao's personality, will things ever settle down?

"Alas, the deaf old lady's good intentions have backfired this time."

Most people haven't yet figured out the little schemes the deaf old lady was hiding in this matter.

The old lady's face darkened upon hearing these words.

After everyone had left, she gently tapped He Yuzhu with her cane and asked, "What trouble have you gotten into now? Why does Xu Damao hate you so much?"

He Yuzhu looked completely bewildered, scratching his head: "What could I have done? I didn't do anything! He just can't stand seeing me with Xiao'e!"

The deaf old woman was so angry that her chest heaved, and she banged her cane on the floor several times.

"This has nothing to do with Xiao'e!"

She was extremely anxious. In the past, Xu Damao and Shazhu had their share of squabbles, but they were nothing serious.

But this time, Xu Damao's eyes clearly showed that he wanted to torture Sha Zhu to death.

She walked towards the backyard with her cane and immediately spotted Fang Chengxuan, Yang Yuande, Leng Si, and a few others sitting at the gate.

"Fang Chengxuan, did you do something to make Xu Damao hate Sha Zhu so much?"

"I know Sha Zhu is a brainless idiot who has offended you time and time again. I'll make him apologize to you, so please forgive him this time."

The deaf old lady stared at Fang Chengxuan, her tone suggesting that she was convinced that the whole mess between Xu Damao and He Yuzhu was caused by Fang Chengxuan.

Fang Chengxuan looked at the old lady, and in his extreme anger, he actually laughed.

"Deaf old lady, you've really taken the phrase 'abusing your age' to a whole new level. You think you can take advantage of my kindness?!"

His smile vanished, replaced by coldness.

The deaf old woman choked on her words, her chest ached, her face turned pale, and she staggered back half a step, barely suppressing her anger: "Fang Chengxuan, I'm begging you, please let Sha Zhu go."

"Deaf old lady, this isn't about whether I release He Yuzhu or not. It's your selfishness that's made things this way."

Fang Chengxuan stared at the deaf old lady, took a breath, and then spoke with sarcasm.

"Back when Lou Xiao'e and Xu Damao were still married, you came to me asking if I could bring them together?"

"I told you long ago, even if Lou Xiao'e really got together with He Yuzhu, Xu Damao could come up with a hundred or eighty ways to ruin it."

"You don't believe me."

"Don't you even use your brain? Men have so much pride. Even if Lou Xiao'e is divorced, she's still Xu Damao's wife. Of all the men she could marry, why did she have to marry someone from the same compound? How could Xu Damao not be furious?"

"Not to mention that idiot He Yuzhu."

"So, the reason Xu Damao and He Yuzhu have fallen out like this is all your fault, old deaf lady!"

The deaf old lady's eyelid twitched.

She kept a straight face and gritted her teeth: "You're talking nonsense. Xu Damao was angry at Shazhu, but he wouldn't go so far as to kill him."

"It must have been you who did this."

Her tone was firm.

Squinting at Fang Chengxuan, he understood—Xu Damao hated He Yuzhu, and it wasn't just about Lou Xiao'e.

Fang Chengxuan grinned.

"That was He Yuzhu's own doing. Why hit Xu Damao in the groin when he could hit him anywhere else?"

"You don't understand? Deaf old lady, you should know better than I do."

"Lou Xiao'e has been married to Xu Damao for so many years, why hasn't she gotten pregnant?"

The deaf old woman gasped for breath, her face turning pale.

"If you hadn't sided with He Yuzhu in the past and had only protected his safety, things wouldn't have come to this."

"Trying to back down now? Too late."

Fang Chengxuan saw the deaf old woman sway and her face turn ashen, and knew that the old woman knew what was going on.

Those underhanded things couldn't escape his notice.

"They were already mortal enemies, and then Lou Xiao'e came along, and now this mess has happened... tsk tsk."

Fang Chengxuan was sharp-tongued, and his eyes were as cold as knives.

"Deaf old lady, you don't know yet, do you? Who was it that snatched He Yuzhu's bicycle and tried to grab it from his right side?"

The deaf old woman suddenly looked up and stared at him.

"Do you really think He Yuzhu's hand can be healed with just a little rest?"

"I advise you to take him to the hospital for another check-up."

"If someone is determined to scheme against someone, they will use any means necessary."

Fang Chengxuan looked at the deaf old woman frozen in place, his face full of mockery, and sneered.

"I still consider you one of the few sensible people in this compound."

"Looking at it now, it's just so-so."

One sentence after another pierced the deaf old woman's heart like a knife.

Her mind raced, her body hunched slightly, she seemed deflated, aged more than ten years, and stumbled.

But she still couldn't let go of He Yuzhu. Leaning on her cane, she took a deep look at Fang Chengxuan and turned to walk towards the central courtyard.

Fang Chengxuan stared at the direction the deaf old lady had turned around, and pressed the corners of his mouth down.

"Deaf old lady, what good will it do to take He Yuzhu to the hospital?"

His voice was not loud, but every word was barbed.

"Do you want him to kill Xu Damao, or do you want Xu Damao to kill him?"

He Yuzhu's hands, once crippled, are truly useless.

Even if it heals completely, don't expect it to be as agile as before.

With He Yuzhu's temper, how could he tolerate this after finding out about it?

The deaf old woman stopped walking, her cane planted firmly on the ground.

She turned her head to meet the gaze above her.

Fang Chengxuan didn't dodge; his chin was raised, and the mockery in his eyes was undisguised.

Looking into those eyes, the deaf old woman felt all the favoritism, scheming, and petty thoughts she had kept hidden for so many years suddenly exposed to the light of day.

She gripped her cane tightly, then finally turned and left.

"It's getting late, everyone should rest."

Fang Chengxuan shook his head slightly, glanced around the yard, sighed, and turned to go back into the house.

the next day.

Fang Chengxuan thought that He Yuzhu would definitely fight with Xu Damao.

As a result, the courtyard was calm and peaceful, and everyone went about their business as usual.

It was as if nothing had happened.

He paused for a moment, then pushed his bicycle and went out the door.

In the house of the deaf old lady in the backyard.

The old lady stood by the window, watching Fang Chengxuan walk away.

She turned around and looked at He Yuzhu sitting in the room.

He Yuzhu didn't go to the factory today; he took the day off.

Clutching the letter delivered by the neighborhood committee in her hand, she learned that it was written by Lou Xiao'e.

He seemed completely out of his mind.

"Deaf old lady, what did I do wrong?"

Those images kept replaying in He Yuzhu's mind.

When everyone congratulated him and Lou Xiao'e, they said "congratulations" but their eyes betrayed the fact that their relationship wouldn't last.

And then there's Lou Xiao'e's father's disdainful attitude, and her mother's constant nagging.

Lou Xiao'e made it very clear in her letter that she was not coming back and told him to take the letter to get a divorce.

The deaf old woman took a deep breath and said in a low voice, "Shazhu, go and ask Fang Chengxuan."

He Yuzhu frowned and suddenly looked up.

"Looking for him?"

"How did I end up in this state without Fang Chengxuan's involvement? You want me to ask him?"

He Yuzhu raised his voice, his whole body radiating anger.

The deaf old lady didn't reply; her gaze fell on He Yuzhu's right hand.

Yesterday, she took He Yuzhu to the hospital, and while changing his dressing, she subtly asked the doctor a question.

The doctor said that He Yuzhu's hand will look no different from a normal person's in the future.

But compared to before, it's far worse.

I can't muster the strength to lift heavy things.

Whether you can hold a kitchen knife steady is a problem.

If He Yuzhu can't even keep his cooking skills, how will he make a living in the future?

The deaf old woman leaned on her cane, her voice low and deep.

"Silly Zhu, if you still care about this old woman, then stop arguing with Fang Chengxuan. From now on, when you see him, just like Yang Yuande, lower your head and take a detour."

She finally understood.

Fang Chengxuan is a real pro. Even if everyone in the compound were tied together, they couldn't touch a hair on his head.

With such a petty mind as He Yuzhu's?

If he can't even handle Xu Damao, how dare he mess with Fang Chengxuan? He's asking for death.

But if we take a different approach, we might be able to find some good deals. Look at Yang Yuande, he used to be just a street thug, but look at him now? Thanks to Fang Chengxuan, he got a stable job at the steel mill and even married Qin Jingru. His life is getting better and better.

Look at those families in the courtyard who used to be so prosperous; aren't they all living in a mess now?

He Yuzhu stiffened his neck and tilted his head to one side.

"You want me to bow down to Fang Chengxuan? No way. I was thrown into a labor camp, and my job at the steel mill is getting worse and worse. Now even Lou Xiao'e is making trouble for me."

"What matter has nothing to do with Fang Chengxuan? I'll remember this."

"Once my hand heals, I'll make him regret it!"

Seeing his stubbornness, the deaf old lady stomped her cane on the ground in anger.

"Silly Zhu, it was never Fang Chengxuan who harmed you!"

"If you don't provoke him, why would he bother you?"

The old lady used to be too lazy to bother with these trivial matters, thinking they were all insignificant. But now she realizes that if these little squabbles aren't handled properly, they're bound to cause a huge mess later on.

Just like He Yuzhu beating up Xu Damao.

Just like He Yuzhu went and provoked Fang Chengxuan.

"How could it not be him? My bicycle was stolen, and my right hand was broken. It must have been Fang Chengxuan who instructed that thug Yang Yuande to hire him!"

He Yuzhu gritted his teeth, his voice filled with hatred.

He had considered that perhaps it wasn't Fang Chengxuan who did it. But he had been fighting with Xu Damao for so many years, and it had never escalated to this point.

He quickly realized it wasn't Xu Damao.

The deaf old woman was so angry at his behavior that her chest tightened. She didn't want to spill the beans, fearing he would turn around and fight Xu Damao, and she would suffer even greater losses then.

Now that Xu Damao has been thoroughly defeated by He Yuzhu, if things continue to escalate, the two sides will inevitably fight to the death.

With a ruthless guy like Xu Damao scheming behind people's backs, how can He Yuzhu have a good life for the rest of his life?

"It wasn't Fang Chengxuan! If he were to target you, he would always do it openly. It was Xu Damao!"