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

Li Weidong's lips curled into a cold smile: "According to your logic, anyone who could save Jia Dongxu would be a sinner? Then I'll go to every hospital tomorrow and have a good talk with the doctors!"

"No, no, no, I really didn't mean that!"

Yi Zhonghai quickly waved his hand.

"Who doesn't understand your little schemes? You just want to throw dirt on me, right? Fine, you'll remember this."

Li Weidong gave a cold snort.

It was only then that Yi Zhonghai realized Li Weidong's importance in the factory. If Li Weidong were to make things difficult for him, he really wouldn't know what to do.

In his panic, it felt like someone had pushed him on the forehead. The old man lost his balance and fell flat on his back.

"Ouch!"

Yi Zhonghai sat up abruptly, touched the back of his head, and found a large bump on his palm, which was wet and bleeding.

"Hey, sir, you're so old, why are you still acting like a young man, all clumsy and rough? You've gotten yourself into trouble now, haven't you?"

Sha Zhu grinned and came over, "It's nothing, just a bump, a little scratch. I just had an older woman apply some medicine."

"Zhu Zi, your mouth can twist even the best words."

Yi Zhonghai grinned, his face contorted in pain.

At this moment, Yu Mei, who had a vertical line between her eyebrows, rushed over and pulled Yi Zhonghai into the house.

"Let's go home and cook."

Li Weidong greeted Lin Yurou.

As he passed by the Jia family's gate, he glanced at them. Jia Zhangshi and Qin Huairu were both standing by the door, their eyes fixed on him, seemingly plotting something.

"Stop! He Yushui, your bicycle..."

Sha Zhu's eyes lit up.

"Dong-ge bought it for me!"

He Yushui blurted out, "It's for me!"

"What would a little girl like you need a car for? It's useless at home, and you don't need it for school. Why not give it to your sister Qin? She needs to fill in for her at the factory..."

Sha Zhu said hastily.

He Yushui didn't even look at him, and pushed the cart to follow Li Weidong to the backyard.

"go home."

With a sullen face, Jia Zhangshi dragged Qin Huairu into the house and slammed the door shut, not caring that the room was stuffy.

"Mom, what's wrong?"

Qin Huairu asked.

"Did you hear that just now? Dongxu's death is inextricably linked to Li Weidong."

Jia Zhangshi spat as she spoke, "We have to make him pay! We need to get his father's pension, twelve hundred yuan!"

Her eyes lit up: "It would be great if I could keep this as my retirement money!"

Qin Huairu cursed inwardly: This old bastard only cares about money, doesn't he realize that Li Weidong is not someone to be trifled with?

"Mom, Li Weidong just said that this has nothing to do with him..."

Qin Huairu didn't finish her sentence.

"Snapped!"

Before she could finish speaking, Jia Zhangshi slapped Qin Huairu hard across the face.

Madam Jia yelled at the top of her lungs, "Have you taken a fancy to that little brat? You're siding with outsiders! My son just left, and you, you jinx..."

Qin Huairu was slapped and it took her a few seconds to react. She was furious—this old woman was simply unreasonable, and her ability to argue and make trouble was getting better and better.

"Mom, what nonsense are you talking about? I'm just looking out for you."

Qin Huairu quickly interrupted her, "If you go to Li Weidong to ask for your money back, he could call the police and you'd be arrested for extortion! That's what happened to Old Lady Ma on the front street, didn't it?"

Madam Jia paused, then stubbornly replied, "I'm different from her; I've lost my son..."

"Then go tell the police. Anyway, once you're in jail, I can't get you out."

Qin Huairu gritted her teeth.

"...Let's talk about this later."

Jia Zhangshi rolled her eyes. "Oh, right, you're coming to the factory with me tomorrow to collect your pension. We'll also take care of the replacement job arrangement then. From now on, you just go to work honestly and stay home to take care of the children."

"Okay, Mom. Don't worry, I will definitely raise the child."

Qin Huairu responded.

"Also, you have to give me five yuan a month for retirement."

Jia Zhangshi stared with a pair of pig-like eyes.

"Huh? Wasn't it three yuan before? If I give you this money, how will Banggeng go to school...?"

Qin Huairu was heartbroken.

"Then three yuan it is. Dongxu used to be able to earn enough to support the whole family, but now that one of the pillars of the family is gone, isn't that enough?"

Jia Zhangshi said angrily, "I've heard that your salary is the same as Dongxu's."

"Oh well, at least Sha Zhu gets a lunchbox allowance."

Qin Huairu sighed.

"That's true. But you mustn't let him actually get the better of you."

Jia Zhangshi gritted her teeth.

"No way, with his character..."

Qin Huairu's tone was full of disdain.

"What, is being good-looking enough?"

Jia Zhangshi jumped up immediately.

"No, no."

Qin Huairu quickly waved her hand.

"I can keep an eye on you at home, but what about when you get to the factory?"

At this moment, Madam Jia's mind was racing. "After we finish our business tomorrow, I'll take you to get an IUD. Otherwise, if we cause any scandals, it'll be embarrassing for everyone."

Just as Li Weidong reached the door and took out his key to open it, he saw Liu Haizhong walking towards him with a large pregnant belly, swaying unsteadily.

"Li Weidong, I'm not trying to be mean, but you're a cadre, after all. Who are you keeping your door locked all the time? Don't you trust your neighbors?"

Liu Haizhong puffed out his belly. "Don't lock the door anymore. That's the rule in the yard."

Li Weidong laughed in anger: "Who do you think you are? Trying to lecture me? Is that how a dog barks?"

"The rules of this compound? Who made them? I'd like to see who wants to be a local tyrant and sets such illegal rules!"

Liu Haizhong was a bully who preyed on the weak. Upon hearing Li Weidong accuse him of such a serious offense, he immediately cowered: "This...this was decided by Lao Yi, it has nothing to do with me."

"What are you doing spouting nonsense? Get lost, what are you?!"

Li Weidong declared, "I'm going to lock the door, and nobody can stop me. Also, I'll definitely be keeping an eye on what you and Yi Zhonghai are doing at the factory."

Liu Haizhong's face turned pale instantly, and he wanted to slap himself. He had been so focused on showing off that he had forgotten who Li Weidong was.

Xu Damao leaned against the door frame watching the commotion, and only approached Li Weidong's door after Liu Haizhong stormed off with a red face.

He Yushui pushed the bicycle into the living room and then put the goose in the water to soak. She then casually cut open a black-skinned watermelon.

As the sweet aroma wafted out, Xu Damao's throat bobbed.

These days, watermelons are expensive; even if you have money, you might not be able to buy one.

"Take two pieces back and share them with Xiao'e."

Li Weidong handed over two pieces of watermelon.

Xiao Xi had already started eating, her face covered in juice. Xiao Dang and Huaihua had also come over at some point, each grabbing a piece and happily munching on it.

"Thanks, Weidong."

Xu Damao took the watermelon, took a bite, and mumbled, "I have something to tell you. There's a hospital-wide meeting tonight."

"Let's go ahead and see what kind of trouble Yi Zhonghai is up to."

Li Weidong replied casually.

"What else could it be but asking the Jia family for money?"

Xu Damao said irritably, "It happens several times a year."

"Now that Jia Dongxu is gone, Yi Zhonghai will definitely be even more attentive..."

Before Xu Damao could finish speaking, a chill suddenly ran down his spine. He turned around and saw the deaf old woman staring intently at him.

Xu Damao shuddered: "Um... I'll be going now."

After saying that, he took off running.

Li Weidong sneered, took a big bite of the watermelon, spat out the seeds, and turned to go into the main room.

The deaf old woman tapped the ground with her cane, drool almost dripping from her mouth. She had just smelled the watermelon; her nose was more sensitive than a dog's.

"You unfilial brat! Unfilial people deserve to be struck by lightning!"

She cursed under her breath, her voice low, but just loud enough for Li Weidong to hear.

"That old bastard is asking for it."

Li Weidong muttered to himself, his face turning cold.

The deaf old woman walked shakily towards the front yard, unable to resist the temptation of the watermelon.

She walked to the middle courtyard and happened to run into Sha Zhu putting a plate of braised pork into a dish.

"What a filial grandson! He prepared braised pork for his grandma."

The deaf old woman beamed, "You don't need to bring me, Grandma came by herself."

Sha Zhu chuckled sheepishly, "Grandma, please come in and sit down. I'll get you some rice right away."

The deaf old woman saw a small bowl of freshly steamed white rice on the stove and couldn't stop drooling: "Alright, alright, my dear grandson, you can take your time."

The deaf old woman, leaning on her cane, entered Sha Zhu's room and sat down at a broken table. The room was empty; there was nothing of value. The old woman was furious, cursing under her breath, "This is all that damn widow's doing!"

"I have to find a way to keep my precious grandson away from her. Qin Huairu is a jinx."

Sha Zhu, carrying a bowl of braised pork and a pot of white rice, walked to the front of the Jia family's gate and bumped into Jia Zhangshi.

"Hey, you're the one who really cares about me, Sha Zhu. I'm feeling really hungry..."

Jia Zhangshi grinned and reached out to take the bowl of meat and rice.

Upon hearing this, Sha Zhu almost couldn't resist kicking her away. He secretly wished Jia Zhangshi would die soon. This food was specially prepared for Qin Huairu; how could it have fallen into this old hag's hands?

He took two steps back to avoid Jia Zhangshi's outstretched hand, and was about to call for help when he saw Qin Huairu come out of the house.

"Zhu Zi, did you need something?"

As Qin Huairu spoke, her peach blossom eyes seemed to have hooks, constantly glancing at Sha Zhu.

"Sister Qin, you've been busy all day and haven't had a good meal."

Sha Zhu smiled and said, "I specially stewed meat and steamed rice for you, so eat it while it's hot."

As he spoke, he stuffed the food in his hand into Qin Huairu's hands.

When Qin Huairu took it, her fingers touched Sha Zhu's hand. The sensation made Sha Zhu feel as light as a feather.

Standing to the side, Jia Zhangshi's face was long and drawn, her eyes fixed on her daughter-in-law and Sha Zhu struggling. If it weren't for the food, she would have already rushed over and scratched Sha Zhu's old face raw.

"Zhu Zi, you should go back now. The old lady is still waiting for you in your room."

Qin Huairu quickly sent Sha Zhu away. Firstly, she noticed that Jia Zhangshi's face was as black as the bottom of a pot, and secondly, Sha Zhu's prematurely aged face was disgusting to look at.

Besides, the smell on Sha Zhu was so strong it could kill mosquitoes even in the middle of summer.

Sha Zhu tries to avoid taking showers as often as possible when it's hot. Because after showering, he still has to change and wash clothes, and the real drama of Qin Huairu washing his underwear hasn't happened yet.

Reminded by Qin Huairu, Sha Zhu realized that the deaf old lady was still waiting at his house. He quickly let go of Qin Huairu's hand and hurriedly ran back to bring the old lady her meal.

"Qin Huairu, you were pulling and tugging at Sha Zhu right in front of me, do you even respect me?"

Jia Zhangshi was furious.

"Where will this food come from?"

Qin Huairu replied indifferently, "Hurry up and take it back to eat, Bang Geng is still hungry."