Courtyard House: In times of famine, my hamster became a spirit.

"An accomplice... in the same crime? Eating peanuts?!"

Yan Bugui was so frightened that his bladder tightened, and his glasses fell off his nose and shattered on the blue bricks.

This old shrewd man demonstrated what it means to cut at the speed of light, leaping back three meters as if electrocuted, his hands waving like a giant windmill:

"No, no, no! Don't try to scam me! That's not what I meant! I didn't take a single penny from him, and I never intended to cover for him! I'm a law-abiding citizen! I'm a proud teacher!"

Fear completely crushed greed.

The neighbors who were just secretly calculating that the thousand yuan was a good deal and wanting to get a share of the soup now looked at Yi Zhonghai as if he were a grenade with a fuse, and they all retreated to the safety line.

These days, who would be crazy enough to die alongside a prospective convict?

Yi Zhonghai lay sprawled in the mud, dumbfounded.

He watched as Yan Bugui, who had just spoken up for him, retreated as if avoiding a plague. He watched the panicked footsteps of the neighbors in the courtyard and all around him. The last bit of hope he had left vanished without a trace.

"Second Uncle".

Just then, Zhou Jianguo lifted his eyelids and his gaze locked onto Liu Haizhong, who was hiding behind his head like an ostrich.

Liu Haizhong was so frightened that his whole body trembled, and he almost lost control of his bladder and bowels on the spot.

He had just been tempted, thinking that if Old Yi was willing to spend a lot of money and settle the matter privately, it would save face for him, the person in charge.

But now, Zhou Jianguo has been heavily accused of "protecting his accomplices," effectively sealing off any way out for him.

"Well... Jianguo..." Liu Haizhong wiped the white sweat from his forehead haphazardly, his tongue tied in knots.

"You're the head of our compound, so your awareness should be the highest," Zhou Jianguo said with a half-smile, deliberately emphasizing the words "head of the compound." "Just now, an old man... oh no, the criminal suspect Yi Zhonghai tried to bribe the crowd with a few dirty coins to escape the law. You saw that scene clearly, didn't you?"

Before he could finish speaking, Zhou Jianguo's eyes darkened:

"Liu Haizhong! Are you going to be this old scoundrel's protector and go in with him to work at the sewing machine? Or are you going to uphold justice, stand firm, and eliminate this black sheep for our compound?!"

This is a question that could cost you your life.

This is also an easy question.

Although Liu Haizhong's brain is full of incompetence, his sense of officialdom is sharper than a dog's.

He immediately understood the subtext in Zhou Jianguo's words: If Yi Zhonghai falls, who else but Liu Haizhong can be the head of this courtyard house?

Protect Lao Yi, and go in as a co-defendant.

Deal with Lao Yi, and you'll get promoted on the spot!

It's done!

Beat a fight, bike change bike!

In that instant, Liu Haizhong's small eyes narrowed, his timidity vanished, replaced by a fervent ambition that had been suppressed for many years.

"Outrageous! This is utterly lawless!"

In an instant, Liu Haizhong's backache and leg pain disappeared. He straightened his round belly, put his hands behind his back, and strode out of the crowd.

He pointed at Yi Zhonghai, who was slumped on the ground, and spat in the old man's face: "Yi Zhonghai! I never imagined you could be so corrupt! How dare you openly defy the law? How dare you use your filthy money to corrupt us revolutionary masses?!"

After finishing his tirade, Liu Haizhong whirled around, his face radiating righteous indignation as he shouted at the entire courtyard:

"Comrades! We must not be fooled by these old scoundrels in the class ranks! Comrade Jianguo is right, this is a crime! This is a life-or-death struggle!"

In order to completely clear his name and secure his soon-to-be-claimed throne, Liu Haizhong was more eager than anyone else to make a contribution.

He turned and glared angrily at his two sons, his voice booming:

"Liu Guangtian! Liu Guangfu! Where have you been! Didn't you hear Comrade Jianguo's words? Go! Bring me the thick hemp rope used to tie cabbages! Tie this criminal up tightly!"

"Huh?" Liu Guangtian and his brother were so used to being beaten silly that they didn't understand for a moment.

"Bullshit!" Liu Haizhong kicked Liu Guangtian hard in the buttocks. "Tie him up tightly! Take him to the factory security department immediately! Anyone who dares to stop us today is an accomplice of Yi Zhonghai!"

"Alright! Ordered to catch the thief!"

Yi Zhonghai, relying on his position, often took sides and made the two brothers get beaten with shoes.

Hearing today that this old, widowed man had embezzled the money meant to save an orphan's life, I was already cursing him to death.

Now that he has his own father's approval, it's legal to commit violence!

In less than half a minute, Liu Guangtian, carrying a hemp rope as thick as his wrist, rushed back to the front yard like a whirlwind.

"Old man, you've finally fallen into my hands!" Liu Guangtian grinned maliciously, filled with the pleasure of revenge. He pounced on Yi Zhonghai like a hungry tiger, pinning the old man to the ground and slamming his knee into the old man's back.

"Ouch! Murder! Help!" Yi Zhonghai screamed like a pig being slaughtered, his old legs thrashing about frantically. "Old Liu! Liu Haizhong! You can't do this to us after decades of friendship!"

"Shut up!"

Not to be outdone, Liu Guangfu grabbed Yi Zhonghai's arm—the one that had just been gesturing about prices—and twisted it behind his back.

A crisp "crack" sounded.

Yi Zhonghai's old arm dislocated on the spot, causing him to roll his eyes in pain. His old face was shoved hard into the mud, and he ended up with a mouthful of icy, fishy soil.

The neighbors' eyes nearly popped out of their sockets.

They watched helplessly as the "elderly man of the highest rank" was being relentlessly rubbed and crushed in the mud by the two Liu brothers, just like a pig waiting to be slaughtered.

The rough hemp rope was tightened round and round, sinking deep into the thick cotton-padded work jacket, creating a solid knot.

The visual impact is even more thrilling than seeing a ghost.

Yi Zhonghai's "sky" has collapsed.

In just two minutes, Yi Zhonghai was bound up like a rice dumpling, kneeling in the snow, shivering.

His face was covered in mud and blood, and he was whimpering and sobbing. Where was the dignity of an eighth-grade worker?

"If only I had known then what I know now."

Zhou Jianguo bent down and picked up the scattered remittance slips from the snow.

"Old Yi, when you get to the security department, be tough, or I'll look down on you."

Zhou Jianguo slowly folded the receipts and then slowly stuffed them into Yi Zhonghai's collar, which was tightened behind his neck.

Zhou Jianguo patted Yi Zhonghai's old face, lowered his voice, and chuckled softly as he leaned closer:

"What goes around comes around, and retribution is inevitable. The evil you sowed, I will punish on behalf of Heaven. Don't expect the deaf old lady in the backyard to come back from the dead and save you; this case is ironclad, even a god couldn't overturn it. You'd better prepare to spend your whole life pedaling a sewing machine behind the fence. Oh, right, that's assuming you live that long."

Yi Zhonghai stared at Zhou Jianguo, who was so close to him, and the last glimmer of light in his cloudy eyes was completely extinguished.

His face turned ashen, and he slumped down, as if resigned to his fate.

"take away!"

Liu Haizhong waved his hand, prematurely assuming the power of life and death of the top leader, and roared with a flushed face, "Guangtian, Guangfu! Grab him! We're going to the security department! To rid the people of this scourge!"

"Let's go!"

The two brothers, one on each side, supported Yi Zhonghai's arms and shoved him towards the courtyard gate.

The cold wind howled, and the fine snow began to fall again.

Zhou Jianguo walked to the wall and steadily helped He Yushui, who was so weak she was about to fall, to her feet.

"Let's go, Rainwater." Zhou Jianguo's voice was steady, but it carried a hint of ruthlessness. "I'll take you to see with your own eyes how he vomits back every last drop of the blood and flesh that devoured you."

With red eyes, He Yushui nodded desperately and, with Zhou Jianguo's help, stumbled along with the group.

The entire compound was instantly filled with neighbors who shrank to both sides, making way for a path.

No one dared to make a sound, not even a cough.

Qin Huairu, who was peeking through the crack in the window of the courtyard, covered her mouth tightly with both hands, her eyes filled with uncontrollable terror.

She held her breath, afraid of making the slightest noise and being remembered by Zhou Jianguo, that living devil.

Everyone watched as the grim-looking team dragged the once arrogant Yi Zhonghai away, disappearing into the snowy night.