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

Li Weidong coldly replied, "Even if Qin Huairu really hanged herself at my doorstep, can the police convict me? I originally wanted to talk things out properly, but you insist on making trouble. Then just call the police and let them handle it."

Qin Huairu, Sha Zhu, and Yi Zhonghai were all stunned. So Li Weidong hadn't intended to kill them all? Then what were they making a fuss about?

Madam Jia started wailing again: "Heaven is blind! Someone is trying to force us to our deaths—"

"Shut up!"

Yi Zhonghai yelled, "Say one more word, and I'll send you to the neighborhood committee right now!"

Yi Zhonghai knew perfectly well that Jia Zhangshi would start attacking anyone, even her own people, as soon as she opened her mouth.

Qin Huairu wiped away her tears and asked directly, "Li Weidong, how do you want to resolve this? Tell me."

"Simple. First, a thief is a thief, there's no question about that."

Li Weidong glanced around and said, "If anyone denies it, we'll call the police to settle the matter."

"Okay, continue."

Yi Zhonghai gritted his teeth and forced out a sentence.

He knew that, at least within the compound, Banggeng's reputation as a thief was inescapable. He could only privately instruct others not to spread it.

"Secondly, we'll lose money. How much did you buy the chicken for—Liu Guangtian, you tell me."

Liu Guangtian stood up: "Two yuan."

Sha Zhu immediately jumped up: "Great, so the leader is taking bribes. I'm going to report you tomorrow—"

"You really live up to your name; you're incredibly stupid."

Li Weidong scoffed, "I taught Liu Guangtian a skill, and he used the money he earned to buy me things as a token of his respect. What's the problem with that?"

Sha Zhu choked on his words.

Yi Zhonghai rubbed his temples: "Zhu Zi, don't meddle in things you don't know."

Li Weidong sneered: "Steal one, pay three, six yuan. Foolish Zhu, you're too talkative, double that, eight yuan."

Sha Zhu felt a pang of heartache; he knew he had to pay for it himself.

"Okay, eight yuan, I'll cover it for Sister Qin."

Sha Zhu took out the money and handed it to Li Weidong.

"Tsk tsk, he's quite self-aware of being a simp."

Li Weidong shook his head. "Liu Guangtian, come here."

"Brother Dong, what can I do for you?"

Liu Guangtian's attitude towards Liu Haizhong was extremely respectful.

"Use this eight yuan to buy Cuban candy and distribute it to the elementary school kids in the neighborhood."

Li Weidong stuffed the money into Liu Guangtian's hand and added, "Let's split it equally!"

Cuban sugar is cheap and doesn't require coupons; you can buy a whole bunch for eight dollars.

Liu Guangtian quickly replied, "Okay, I'll go right away!"

He took off running outside, and the families with children in the yard all beamed with joy.

Yi Zhonghai gritted his teeth and made a final decision: "Fine, let's leave it at that. Nobody should mention it again."

"Don't rush, Bang Geng needs to learn from this."

Li Weidong spoke in a calm tone, then turned to Yan Bugui, "Teacher Yan, do you have a ruler at home? Take it out and strike your palm ten times."

"You're the teacher, you handle this."

Li Weidong had already planned this out—to let the Jia family and the Yan family fight each other first.

If Yan Jiefang reports Banggeng, and Yan Bugui beats Banggeng up again, won't Qin Huairu and Jia Zhangshi hate the Yan family to the core?

In this day and age, there's no such thing as a teacher being forbidden from hitting students. If a teacher does use force, the parents are even expected to be grateful, thinking the teacher is genuinely concerned.

Yan Bugui hesitated for a moment. He knew Li Weidong had no good intentions and was trying to shift the blame onto him. He knew all too well what kind of people those two widows in the Jia family were; they were not reasonable people at all.

"Alright, alright, Lao Yan, go ahead and hit him."

Yi Zhonghai spoke up.

He also felt that Banggeng deserved a beating, otherwise the child would be ruined sooner or later. Such a good kid, but that old hag Jia Zhangshi has led him astray.

Banggeng stared at Li Weidong with dead fish eyes, wishing he could pounce on him and bite him.

Yan Bugui took the ruler from Yan Jiekuang, cursing a thousand times in his heart. Why should he be made to do this kind of troublesome, offensive work? He wouldn't get a single benefit from it.

"Old Yan, hurry up, we still have things to do down there."

Yi Zhonghai gave Yan Bugui a wink, the meaning was clear: the ruler is in your hands, you know how to use it lightly, just make sure it looks good on the surface.

Besides, we're going to talk about workstations soon, so what are you dawdling for?

Under the murderous gazes of Jia Zhangshi and Qin Huairu, Yan Bugui grabbed the hand holding the stick and raised the ruler to strike.

"Snapped!"

With a crisp crack, Bang Geng felt a numbness in his hand, but no pain at all. He stared wide-eyed at Yan Bugui.

His hand didn't hurt much. Even if he was stupid, he would know that Yan Bugui had gone easy on him.

Jia Zhangshi and Qin Huairu exchanged a glance, both understanding—Bang Geng wouldn't suffer this loss. That stingy scholar Yan Bugui wouldn't dare to really go all out.

Qin Huairu felt something was off. Bang Geng didn't utter a sound, and by the time Li Weidong realized what was happening, this was definitely not over.

She reached out and pinched the buttocks of the stick.

"Aww!" (a sound of excitement)

He cried out, turned around and glared at her, about to get angry, when he saw Qin Huairu winking at him. This kid wasn't stupid; he immediately understood.

"Ouch, it hurts!"

Banggeng cried out, "Third Grandpa, can you be a little gentler?!"

Sha Zhu stood to the side and saw the whole scene clearly.

He thought to himself: Hey, this little rascal Banggeng really has my style, he's a clever little devil.

Yi Zhonghai understood as well and nodded inwardly. If this matter could be so easily glossed over, they would be incredibly lucky.

After ten strokes of the ruler, the hand that had been struck by the stick looked completely unharmed.

"Alright, if you do it again, I won't let you off easily!"

Yan Bugui adjusted his glasses and, holding a ruler, spoke.

Li Weidong sneered without saying a word. He had been standing to the side, secretly imbuing the ruler with his telekinetic power, ensuring each strike penetrated deep into the flesh. Soon, that hand of his would be swollen like a steamed bun.

Right now, this kid only feels numbness in his palms. Before long, he'll be crying for his parents.

"There's one more thing."

Yi Zhonghai began, "The steel rolling mill needs to hire 100 apprentices. Many young people in our institute are out of work."

"Weidong, you're a leader in the factory, why don't you give the young people in the factory a chance?"

Li Weidong sneered: "Master Yi, you're mistaken about that first. When we're talking about work, you should call me Chief Engineer Li. When we're not talking about work, just call me Li Weidong."

"Don't call me 'Weidong,' we're not that close. We're just neighbors at most."

Yi Zhonghai's face flushed red. Yan Bugui quickly tried to smooth things over: "Then, Chief Engineer Li, about the recruitment quota..."

"Those who want to work in the steel rolling mill, go and register on Monday. The factory will select people; if you're suitable, you're in; if not, that's it."

Li Weidong said in a calm tone, "No need for any other nonsense."

"Yan Bugui, your Hongxing Primary School is affiliated with the steel rolling mill. Don't think you have no connection with the factory."

Yan Bugui immediately backed down. It was true, although the primary school was under the jurisdiction of the Education Bureau, it was still an affiliated unit of the steel rolling mill. If Li Weidong wanted to deal with him, wouldn't that be easy?

"Chief Engineer Li, about the number of positions available..."

Liu Haizhong shamelessly leaned closer.

"I told you, I'll go to the factory to register and be selected."

Li Weidong's tone remained calm.

"That won't do! Everyone knows that all the spots have been allocated to you officials."

He muttered something in his bangs.

"Master Liu, you need to take responsibility for what you said!"

Li Weidong's voice turned somber.

Liu Haizhong's face turned pale, and he hurriedly waved his hands, "Oh dear, I was just talking nonsense, it was just something I said offhand!"

He's still aiming for a higher position; if he really offends all the leaders, his career path will be over.

Yan Bugui's eyes darted around. Since his two spots were just sitting there empty anyway, he might as well offer them up so that everyone could benefit from them.

Li Weidong sneered, his words dripping with sarcasm: "Old Yan, have you lost your mind? Should I talk to your principal? Just because someone doesn't need something right now, you're supposed to get it for free? Your thinking is nothing short of exploitation! Yi Zhonghai's family has so much money they can't spend it all, does that mean they have to give it to you to spend too?"

Yan Bugui shuddered at the weight of the accusation: "No, no, no, I was just saying it casually. If you disagree, fine, just pretend I didn't say anything!"

"Forget it? You wish."

Li Weidong picked up Xiaoxi from his arms. "A workstation costs at least five to seven hundred yuan. You think you can get something for nothing with just a few words? Who gave you the audacity?"

Before the words were even finished, a pig-like scream suddenly erupted in the courtyard.

Banggeng clutched his left hand, jumping around on the ground in pain, his face covered in tears and snot: "My hand! My hand is going to break!"

Jia Zhangshi and Qin Huairu quickly went over to take a look, and saw that the palm of her left hand was swollen like a small steamed bun, and the skin was stretched so hard that it was shiny, as if it could be pierced with a needle.

Shazhu grabbed the thrashing stick and asked, "What... what's going on?"

Yi Zhonghai frowned with heartache: "Old Yan, you were too reckless! Look what you've done to the child!"

Yan Bugui was completely stunned: "I swear, I really didn't use any force! My hand was perfectly fine right after I hit it!"

"You're only saying this now?"

Sha Zhu roared.

Like a mad bull, Madam Jia charged headlong at Yan Bugui, yelling, "You poor wretch, are you trying to cut off the Jia family's lineage?! I'll fight you to the death!"

Yan Bugui was thrown a long way by the impact and landed hard on his buttocks.

Yi Zhonghai, his face grim, shouted, "Alright, sister-in-law, stop making things worse! Get the child to the hospital right away!"

Seeing Banggeng's state, Yi Zhonghai felt as if his heart was being torn apart. This was his own son!

Yan Bugui scrambled to his feet, adjusting his glasses as he hurriedly said, "Wait! Isn't Li Weidong a doctor? He's the one who made me do this; he has to take responsibility for the treatment!"

Even now, Yan Bugui is still scheming. If Banggeng goes to the hospital, he'll definitely be the one paying. Dragging Li Weidong into this mess will at least save him a few cents.

Li Weidong glanced at him indifferently: "I don't have any medicine here. I told you to teach him a lesson, not to beat him up like this. You're not satisfied? Go to the police station and report me. Xiao Xi, let's go home."

Just then, a person rushed in from outside, pushing a bicycle while covered in sweat.

Workshop foreman Zhou Dahai's face was full of anxiety: "Chief Engineer Li, Lao Yi! Get back to the factory immediately! There's an urgent mission!"

Zhou Dahai yelled at the top of his lungs, "Hurry up! Sha Zhu, you come with me too. Quickly prepare the food; we'll probably be busy until dawn tonight!"

"Is there an urgent mission?"

Li Weidong was stunned for a moment.

"Young man, you haven't experienced this."

Yi Zhonghai quickly chimed in, "This kind of thing is not common, but it's not the first time either."

"Master Yi, I am indeed younger than you."

Li Weidong smiled coldly, "Then let's see who's the best at the fitter's bench."

He carried Xiaoxi in one arm and his belongings in the other as he walked home.