Courtyard House: I only wiped out 30,000 Japanese pirates

Four or five pounds of rice—in these chaotic times of war, you can't buy it even if you have money.

This is something that can save lives.

He Liu was overjoyed; Dajun was truly good at earning rice, and her sister-in-law Bailing was incredibly generous. Only in this way could the sisters-in-law get along harmoniously.

This was something He Dajun and Bai Ling had agreed upon beforehand, and they were only temporarily using a small amount.

I had noodles for breakfast again, plus half a can of beef from last night.

He Liu and Bai Ling took a little bit of the canned beef head and put it into the noodle soup. The beef fat floated on the soup, and a rich aroma of meat wafted out from the kitchen, making the whole house smell so good that it was hard to stay still.

Sha Zhu held the small bowl and slurped down a large bowl of noodles, his cheeks puffed out like a squirrel's, while glancing at He Dajun's bowl with his eyes.

He Dajun put a piece of beef from his bowl into the little guy's bowl, and the little guy grinned, revealing his big front tooth.

While we were eating, someone knocked on the door.

He Dajun put down his chopsticks and went to open the door.

The door opened, and Jia Zhangshi was standing outside.

At this time, Jia Zhangshi was still very young. After all, her son Jia Dongxu was only six or seven years old, and she was only in her early twenties.

He wore a drab gray jacket, his hair was casually tied in a bun, and his expression was both shrewd and mean. The tip of his nose was slightly red, like a cat that had smelled fish.

She stood at the doorway, first craning her neck to peek into the house, then sniffing the air twice. Her eyes darted around quickly, scanning the table, stove, pots, and bowls inside.

He then said, "Hey, Dajun, what are you eating that looks so delicious?"

As she spoke, she squeezed in from the side of He Dajun.

Standing inside, his eyes lit up when they landed on the pot of beef noodle soup on the table, like a wolf that hadn't eaten for days seeing meat.

He Daqing sighed. He knew Jia Zhangshi well; she had caught on to his intentions, and he wouldn't be able to eat in peace without some kind of benefit.

Just as he was about to speak, He Liushi spoke first.

He Liu put down her chopsticks, a smile on her face, and spoke softly, as if chatting casually: "Sister Cuihua, it's nothing, it's just that my husband Dajun just got married and brought back some pickled vegetables from outside. The pickled vegetables are all gone now, only some soup is left."

This is a clear rejection.

Madam Jia Zhang was taken aback by Madam He Liu's refusal, and her face stiffened for a moment.

The smile was still on his face, but it had changed; it was like a mask stuck to his face that couldn't stay on any longer and was about to fall off at any moment.

She looked down at Jia Dongxu, who was tugging at her clothes.

The six- or seven-year-old child was as thin as a bean sprout, his clothes were covered in patches, and he stared longingly at the bowl of noodles on the table, his mouth watering and his Adam's apple bobbing as he swallowed.

Madam Jia forced a smile, her skin so thick it could be used as a shoe sole: "It smells so good, have you finished eating? Is there any soup? I'd like my Dongxu to have a sip. The child hasn't eaten anything since last night and has been crying from hunger."

That's shameless.

Bai Ling looked at Jia Dongxu and felt a pang of pity.

A six or seven-year-old child, so thin, stood in front of the table staring longingly at the noodle soup; that look in his eyes was unbearable.

Especially since she was a member of a major party, she couldn't bear to see the people suffer.

Unexpectedly, just as she was about to open her mouth, He Dajun gently nudged her with his foot under the table and gave her a look, meaning not to speak.

Bai Ling paused for a moment, then finally shut her mouth.

Jia Zhangshi said a few more words, but seeing that no one in the room responded and He Liushi remained silent, the smile on her face finally faded.

He suppressed his smile, turned his lips down, and glared fiercely at He Liu Shi. The resentment in that glare was hotter than the fire in the stove.

Then, pulling Jia Dongxu around, they turned and left. As they reached the door, he muttered to himself, "Fine, fine, you all live the high life while we, a widow and orphan, starve. We're all from the same courtyard, how can you be so shameless?"

This logic is absolutely brilliant.

After Jia Zhangshi had walked away, He Liushi put down her chopsticks. She turned around, looked at Bai Ling, and said in a very soft voice, "Sister-in-law, it wasn't that I was being petty earlier."

She sighed and explained softly, "Firstly, things are chaotic right now. The Japanese have occupied the city, and all the grain shops are closed. Nobody has any surplus grain. If people find out about what we have, it will cause a lot of trouble."

Bai Ling naturally disagreed with this statement.

He Liu glanced outside the door to make sure no one was there, and then said, "Secondly, you don't know about Jia Zhangshi, sister-in-law, since you've just arrived. She takes advantage of her bone cancer to borrow things from everyone and never returns them."

She never returns the rice she borrows, the money she borrows, or the salt and oil she borrows. If you give in to her once, she'll come back tomorrow and the day after. Even if you bring her our whole rice jar, she'll still complain that you didn't give her enough.

Bai Ling was speechless; she couldn't believe there were people like this.

He Daqing nodded in agreement, unusually chiming in, "Bai Ling, your sister-in-law is right. That Jia Zhangshi is a real problem."

As Bai Ling listened, the discomfort in her heart gradually subsided, but then she thought that she still had some money on her, and she would give some to Jia Zhangshi later.

Then He Dajun said, "In this courtyard, Jia Zhangshi is the worst. You have to be careful around her."

As he said this, he pinched Sha Zhu's ear.

Sha Zhu, in pain, said, "Second Uncle, why are you pinching me?"

He Dajun smiled and said, "I'm only doing this because your second uncle dotes on you. I'd be happy to pinch other people's ears too."

So, silly Zhu, being a bit dim-witted, gave over his other ear as well.

He was immediately scolded by He Liu Shi: "Zhu Zi, you're really stupid. Your second uncle lied to you."

Bai Ling couldn't help but laugh.

The atmosphere at the He family home was quite pleasant.

After finishing breakfast, He Dajun stood up, said to He Daqing and Bai Ling that he had to go to the factory, and went out the door.

Walking into the courtyard, I saw Xu Wude sitting at home, holding half a cornbread in his hand, munching on it with a worried expression.

He Dajun walked over and stood in front of Xu Wude, like a real person in charge giving instructions: "Uncle Wude, I'll call everyone to work later. Don't be late, and don't give the little... Imperial Army any excuses."

Xu Wude raised his head and looked at He Dajun.

The person who suddenly appeared and took his place is now standing in front of him, giving orders.

He was filled with mixed feelings. Yesterday, he was Lou Bancheng's plenipotentiary representative, and He Dajun was just a troublesome worker trying to stop the factory from being bombed. Today, He Dajun was riding on his head, and he had to listen to He Dajun.

But he also had to admit that He Dajun was right.

The Japanese fired shots outside again last night. Judging from the noise, it wasn't a small-scale operation. The explosions were coming in waves, like thunder. The Japanese will definitely be checking the streets more thoroughly this morning.

Being late at this time is like handing your life to the Japanese. Everyone's life is precious; being angry is one thing, but life is more important.

He sighed, stuffed the remaining half of the cornbread into his mouth, and puffed out his cheeks.

A minute later, Xu Wude stood in the courtyard and shouted at the top of his lungs, "All you brothers working at the steel mill, come out and assemble! Don't be late! If you're late and the Imperial Army blames you, no one can bear the consequences!"

The workers gradually emerged from the various rooms.

Yi Zhonghai, wearing his faded work clothes, with a slightly hunched back and a blank expression, walked into the courtyard, glanced at He Dajun standing next to Xu Wude, his eyes flashed for a moment, and then he lowered his head.

Liu Haizhong emerged, still sitting ramrod straight. Da Zhou, Xiao Zheng, Lao Zhang, one after another, and soon all thirteen people were present.

No one spoke; even coughs were coughed with their mouths covered.

Everyone heard the explosion in the alley last night. The noise was so loud that the kang (a heated brick bed) was shaking. No one asked what happened, and no one dared to ask.

The less you know, the longer you live.

Just then, footsteps sounded outside. Soon, a group of Japanese soldiers, accompanied by several puppet troops, walked over and entered the courtyard. He Dajun and the others who were still standing in the courtyard couldn't help but change their expressions.

Something seems to have happened.

Among the people who came this time was the same village head who had come yesterday. He led his men to He Daqing's door and said, "He Daqing, come out. The Imperial Army has something to ask you."

The Japanese sergeant opened the booklet in his hand, his gaze lingering on He Daqing's face for a moment, and asked, "You...do you know Tan Zhengyong?"

He Daqing was a little nervous. He had lived for almost thirty years and had never been questioned like this by a Japanese soldier with a gun.

He rubbed his fingers together on his trouser leg, then nodded and said, "I know him. Tan Zhengyong, the head chef of Tan Family Restaurant. I used to work for him."

The sergeant closed the booklet and waved to the soldier beside him: "Take him away."