I, Yan Jiefang, will live to 2025 in this courtyard house.

Because of the high turnover rate of people in the labor camp, there weren't many prisoners in the repair shop, only about a dozen including Yi Zhonghai.

After more than half a year of targeting, Yi Zhonghai had long lost all motivation.

I'm practically a walking corpse now.

Most of the prisoners who were previously targeted by him have already been released.

The remaining one or two, seeing that he had practically surrendered, also lost interest and basically stopped targeting him.

Yi Zhonghai's life has improved considerably.

Yan Jiefang's new book, "The Task That Must Be Done," began publication a month or two ago.

The two villains, Yi Zhonghe and Yi Zhonghu, have returned to the scene. Seeing their numerous evil deeds, all readers are filled with hatred.

In addition, the fourth brother, who occasionally appears in the book, has also attracted the attention of some readers.

People speculated that the guy's name might be Yi Zhonghai.

A large number of readers wrote to the editorial department to inquire.

The editor was also curious and secretly inquired about it in an email received in early October.

Yan Jiefang did not answer this question, after all, in his book, the fourth son of the Yi family was a person in the shadows, who was never exposed and had no name.

What you readers think is none of his business.

Inside the Qinghe Farm work area, Yi Zhonghai was working with his head down, his movements mechanical and numb.

Two young soldiers on duty stepped forward and called out to them.

"Yi Zhonghai, someone is visiting you in prison. Come with us."

"yes!"

Yi Zhonghai immediately straightened up and answered.

The numbness accumulated from years of labor reform has faded somewhat, and his sunken face shows a slight concentration.

Following behind the two soldiers, he quickly racked his brains to recall the people connected to him, and in a moment he confirmed the identity of the newcomer: it could only be Li Cuilan, who had just been released from prison.

Separated by iron bars in the visiting room, Li Cuilan looked up and saw Yi Zhonghai, and was instantly stunned.

In just one year, the once respectable and upright Yi Zhonghai had become emaciated, with a sallow complexion, and looked almost unrecognizable.

His body was also extremely withered, with hardly any flesh visible.

Li Cuilan gripped the iron railing tightly with both hands, her eyes immediately reddening, and she burst into tears.

"Waaah, Zhonghai, how did you become like this in just one year?"

Yi Zhonghai remained calm and spoke softly:

"We endured the hardship of labor reform, it's nothing."

A soldier guarding the area spoke up to remind them.

"Visits are limited to 30 minutes. Make the most of your time and don't delay."

Li Cuilan wiped away her tears, suppressed her sobs, composed herself, and quickly recounted the recent situation of the courtyard house.

"The changes in the factory are too great. Jia Dongxu had an accident at the factory at the end of last year and died."

Yi Zhonghai thought about how, during his year in prison, no one from the Jia family came to visit him. His expression remained unchanged, and his tone was indifferent.

"That family of ingrates deserves to die; we don't need to worry about them."

Jia Dongxu was merely a tool in his retirement plan from beginning to end, showing no loyalty whatsoever.

He had long seen through the Jia family's selfishness and greed, but he had more faith in his own abilities.

He's barely able to take care of himself now, how can he care about anything else?

Li Cuilan continued:

He Daqing remarried, marrying a woman who had fled famine. They had a daughter this year; he had a daughter late in life, and their lives are very peaceful.

Yi Zhonghai simply nodded slightly without replying.

"Shazhu is married now. He lives in the gatehouse after marriage, and his wife, Liu Yuyan, is pregnant now."

Upon hearing this, Yi Zhonghai frowned almost imperceptibly, but quickly regained his composure.

"Yan Jiecheng from the front yard and Xu Damao from the back yard have both finished their weddings and started their own families."

When Li Cuilan spoke last of the elderly people in the backyard, her tone was tinged with grievance:

"And there's the deaf old lady, she doesn't recognize us anymore."

She asks others for help with all the little things in the yard, and when she sees me, she pretends not to know me, completely distancing herself from our family.

Yi Zhonghai's tone was calm and composed, without any fluctuation:

"Ignore her. When I return after my term ends the year after next, everything will be arranged. She's just an old woman and she can't cause any trouble."

He then changed the subject and got straight to the point.

"Are the family's bank savings still there?"

Li Cuilan immediately responded:

"It's all there, not a penny has been touched. I didn't dare to spend it recklessly."

Yi Zhonghai breathed a slight sigh of relief and immediately made arrangements:

"You did the right thing. From now on, you can visit me in prison every month and bring some food with you each time."

"Don't let it run out; I need supplies to survive here."

Li Cuilan nodded quickly:

"I'll remember, I'll come every month."

The guard urged them again.

"Time is running out, only one minute left."

Yi Zhonghai's eyes narrowed, and his speech quickened:

"Go back to the hospital and keep a low profile. Control your temper, don't provoke anyone, and don't get into any arguments or grudges with anyone."

He solemnly instructed:

"Put everything aside and wait until I get back to discuss it. Don't make any decisions on your own."

If someone bullies you too badly, don't hesitate to report it to the neighborhood committee or the police station.

"I'll remember that. You should also take good care of yourself."

Li Cuilan nodded vigorously.

As soon as he finished speaking, the guard stood up to finish:

"Time's up, visit is over."

Two soldiers stepped forward and gestured for Yi Zhonghai to get up and leave.

Yi Zhonghai said no more, turned around and walked away, his body slightly hunched, without looking back.

Li Cuilan leaned against the cold iron railing, silently watching his receding figure, remaining silent for a long time.

...

In October, after returning to school, Yan Jiefang continued to improve his music and traditional Chinese medicine skills, while spending more time studying and practicing radio, electrical engineering, and electronic components.

As for basketball, he has already reached 99/100, which is almost the limit of the sport.

Aside from necessary practice and matches each week, he rarely participates in regular training.

In the past few months, Coach Li saw that his skill level had not only not declined, but that his playing style had become more refined and elegant, so he stopped paying attention to him.

Although Yan Jiefang doesn't spend much time on the court now, his teammates always greet him whenever he comes to practice.

He never hesitates to share his knowledge with anyone who comes to ask him for advice on ball skills, and he always answers them with confidence.

Therefore, he gets along quite well with most of the team members.

Besides the basketball team, Yan Jiefang also participates in many activities in the school's radio group.

Yan Jiefang is a newcomer who joined the team this year and is now a second-year student.

In everyone's opinion, the technology is definitely not solid.

Therefore, he was just a nobody in the team.

For example, he did not qualify to participate in the first National Radio Direction Finding Championship held in Xiangshan in May.

Beiwu Electric had some highlights in this competition and performed quite well, but they just weren't particularly outstanding.

They ranked in the middle of the 20 teams.

As a specialized radio engineering school under the Ministry of Education, the school leaders were not very satisfied with the team's performance this time.

Yan Jiefang was also criticized as a result.

However, he was focused on improving his TCM skills at the time and didn't pay much attention to this matter.

Now that he had some free time, he decided to use it during his spare time to apply for access to the school's dedicated radio activity room and make his own radio direction finder.

His application was approved shortly after he submitted the drawings.