Siheyuan: Reborn Silly Pillar, Taking Control of the Entire Courtyard

Just as Zhao Fengnian turned around to turn back, he caught a glimpse of a dark figure rushing towards him out of the corner of his eye. Upon closer inspection, he realized it was none other than the ever-present Yi Zhonghai.

Yi Zhonghai, a forced and obsequious smile plastered on his face, briskly approached Zhao Fengnian, his waist slightly bent, his tone excessively warm: "Engineer Zhao, what a coincidence... Where are you headed?"

Zhao Fengnian felt a surge of annoyance, but his face remained impassive. He glanced at him indifferently and said, "Coincidentally? I was just about to go out to buy something when I realized I'd forgotten my money. I was about to go home to get it."

"Hey...it's no big deal..." Yi Zhonghai's eyes lit up, and he immediately patted his chest, his tone becoming even more solicitous, "I brought money...please take me with you when you go shopping, I also want to buy some things, let's go together..."

Zhao Fengnian frowned, his tone turning colder: "There are plenty of shops on the street, you can go by yourself, why do you need me to take you?"

Yi Zhonghai misunderstood, thinking Zhao Fengnian was waiting for him to reveal the benefits. He immediately took half a step forward, lowered his voice, and said with a smug look, "Engineer Zhao, I know the rules... If this matter is handled well, you will definitely get your share of the benefits, don't worry..."

"You're so weird." Zhao Fengnian felt nauseous from his clingy behavior, and his tone was already showing impatience. "What rules and benefits? I don't understand a word of them. I'm going home now, so don't wander around outside, just go back..."

He just wanted to get rid of this troublesome old man as soon as possible so he could deal with the urgent matter over there, but Yi Zhonghai was determined to stick to him.

"No, Engineer Zhao... You've already come out, how can you go back empty-handed? I'll go with you..."

Yi Zhonghai was still arguing and pulling at each other, the two of them locked in a stalemate, arm in arm, when suddenly, "Bang—..."

A sharp, piercing gunshot suddenly rang out from the distant alleyway, shattering the silence of the night...

Yi Zhonghai, who was arguing and making a scene, suddenly shuddered. His legs cramped instantly, becoming as weak as overcooked noodles, and he almost collapsed to the ground. His face was ashen, and he gripped Zhao Fengnian's arm tightly with both hands, his nails digging into his flesh. His voice trembled uncontrollably: "Zhao... Engineer Zhao... my legs are weak... I can't walk... you can't leave me..."

Zhao Fengnian cursed inwardly: Useless... He has no skills but insists on taking on a job he can't handle, and he's been following me around for no reason. Now look what's happened, he's dragged himself into this mess...

But his deep-seated beliefs wouldn't allow him to abandon an innocent civilian, especially since this person had only fallen into danger because of a twist of fate following him. He abruptly turned around and looked at the young man who had brought the news, only to see that the man had already drawn his pistol and was exchanging fire with the pursuers, the flashes of gunfire flickering in the darkness.

Zhao Fengnian's eyes welled up with tears. He took a deep look at his comrade who had sacrificed himself to cover him, gritted his teeth, gripped Yi Zhonghai's arm tightly, and pulled him forward with all his might, shouting, "Run..."

Yi Zhonghai couldn't stand steadily at all. He was dragged forward by Zhao Fengnian, staggering and losing one of his shoes. His heel was burning from the friction, but he dared not let go. The gunfire behind him did not recede but instead became more intense. Bullets whizzed past his ears, scaring him out of his wits.

As Zhao Fengnian ran, he looked back and saw that the young man who had brought the message had been shot and fallen to the ground, but he was still lying on the ground, raising his gun to return fire, his firepower undiminished. A tear slid down Zhao Fengnian's cheek, only to be instantly dried by the wind. His heart ached as if it were being torn apart, but he could only hold onto Yi Zhonghai and run even faster.

His old injuries hadn't fully healed, and he felt a tightness in his chest. Dragging a heavy adult weighing over 100 pounds was draining his strength rapidly. He couldn't help but yell at him sharply, "Hurry up... if you keep dragging your feet like this, I'll abandon you right now..."

Yi Zhonghai was panting like a broken bellows, his chest aching as if it were about to explode, but he held Zhao Fengnian's arm tightly with both hands, not daring to loosen his grip even for a moment.

After running another hundred meters or so, the gunfire behind him gradually subsided. Zhao Fengnian spotted a dark, narrow alleyway to the side, exerted his strength, and shoved Yi Zhonghai into it.

"You go back yourself via a detour... don't follow me..."

Yi Zhonghai's legs gave way and he collapsed against the wall. He scrambled to his feet and reached out to grab Zhao Fengnian's clothes, his face filled with fear and dependence. He cried, tears streaming down his face, "Engineer Zhao...you can't leave me...I'm too scared to go alone..."

Looking at Yi Zhonghai, who was so cowardly yet trying to put on a righteous facade, Zhao Fengnian felt utterly contemptuous and almost cursed him out. Suppressing his anger, his eyes were as cold as ice: "If you don't want to die, shut up now and run back... If you keep arguing, nobody will survive..."

After saying that, Zhao Fengnian ignored him and turned to run off in the opposite direction, quickly disappearing into the night.

Yi Zhonghai slumped against the wall, his legs too weak to stand, and could only shuffle slowly deeper into the alley. But after only a few steps, a burst of gunfire rang out in the distance, the sound so close it seemed to be right behind him.

Extreme fear instantly ignited his will to survive. He didn't know where the strength came from, but he suddenly got up from the ground and rushed into the depths of the alley like a madman.

But after running for less than half a minute, he was dumbfounded—at the end of the alley was a three-meter-high blue brick wall, a dead end…

"Damn it..." Yi Zhonghai slapped himself hard across the face, then slapped himself twice more, hating himself for being blind and going the wrong way.

Backing away meant gunfire, forward meant a high wall, there was nowhere to retreat...

The gunshots grew closer, and footsteps could be faintly heard. Yi Zhonghai looked up at the rough, mottled high wall, gritted his teeth, and climbed up, stepping on the cracks and protruding bricks. The sharp edges of the blue bricks tore his trousers and cut his palms, drawing blood, but he was oblivious, only thinking about escaping as quickly as possible.

Having finally and miserably scaled the wall, his feet barely touched the ground before he heard a sharp, low cry from a woman: "Master... there's a thief... someone's climbed into the yard..."

The next second, several dark figures pounced from the darkness, smashing rolling pins, firewood sticks, and hoe handles down on Yi Zhonghai...

"Don't hit me...don't hit me...I'm not a bad person..." Yi Zhonghai squatted on the ground, clutching his head, screaming repeatedly until his voice cracked.

"Not a bad guy? There were gunshots outside, and you climbed over the wall into the yard. What else could you be but a bad guy...?" a man roared, his fists and feet becoming even more ferocious.

"I was dodging bullets... I'm really just an ordinary citizen..." Yi Zhonghai desperately explained.

But nobody believed him. A dirty, tattered rag was shoved into his mouth, silencing him. Then, even heavier punches and kicks rained down on him. Someone kicked him hard in the groin, the force so great it felt like it would shatter his bones.

"Aww—...Ugh...Ugh..."

A heart-wrenching scream was choked in his throat. Yi Zhonghai curled up on the ground like a shrimp, his body convulsing violently. A sharp pain shot from his lower body to the top of his head. His vision went black, and his consciousness blurred instantly.

In his hazy state, he heard someone say coldly, "This man can't stay in the house. Didn't you hear the gunshots outside? They might be arresting him. Throw him out..."

When he regained consciousness, Yi Zhonghai found himself lying in a cold, unfamiliar alley. The moon was high in the sky, and the cold moonlight shone on the ground, casting a distorted and miserable shadow on him.

It felt like every bone in my body had been torn apart and then put back together. Every inch of my body ached terribly, and my body felt sticky and hot. Waves of intense pain came over me, and the slightest movement felt like being cut by a knife.

He crawled outwards, supporting himself on the ground, his fingernails filled with dirt and blood, grinding his flesh raw. Finally reaching the alley entrance and then the main street, he was utterly devastated—the empty street was deserted, not a single rickshaw in sight, utterly silent, not a soul in sight.

His consciousness gradually faded, and he bit his tongue hard, the sharp pain instantly bringing him back to his senses.

"I want to live... I want to go home..."

With this single thought in mind, he crawled along the corner of the wall, bit by bit, until he finally made it back to No. 95 Nanluoguxiang.

Just as he trembled and raised his hand to knock on the door, everything suddenly went black, his body went limp, and he collapsed onto the steps of the front door, completely unconscious.

On the other side, after shaking off his pursuers, Zhao Fengnian was still worried and went back to look for Yi Zhonghai. However, he couldn't find him after searching for a long time. He thought to himself that something was wrong and had no choice but to rush back to the courtyard house.

Just as he reached the courtyard gate, he suddenly tripped over something. He looked down and his heart sank – Yi Zhonghai was lying motionless on the steps like a dead dog, his clothes torn and covered in blood.

He crouched down, reached out and checked Yi Zhonghai's breath. There was still a faint breath. He immediately stood up, raised his hand and gently knocked on the door knocker, not daring to make a loud noise to disturb him, he could only knock softly.

"Clap clap clap, clap clap clap."

The knocking was especially clear in the dead of night.

"Who is it?" came Old Jia's confused voice from inside the courtyard.

"I, Lao Zhao..." Zhao Fengnian lowered his voice.

The door hinges creaked open, and Old Jia, still wearing his coat, opened the door, rubbing his eyes and asking, "Engineer Zhao, why are you so late? What happened?"

"Open the door quickly... Yi Zhonghai is injured... He's badly injured..." Zhao Fengnian said urgently.

"Huh?" Old Jia instantly snapped out of his daze, frantically pulling open the door. "Where...where is he?"

Zhao Fengnian pointed to the ground: "Right there."

When Jia Laonian looked down, he saw Yi Zhonghai curled up on the steps, covered in injuries, his face bruised and purple, looking utterly miserable. He gasped in shock and froze on the spot, unable to move for a long time.

"What are you standing there for..." Zhao Fengnian shoved him and hissed, "Quickly call for help... find a door panel or a table, and carry him inside..."

Only then did Jia Laonian realize what was happening. He turned and ran into the courtyard, banging on doors and shouting. Before long, the lights in the front yard came on one by one, waking all the residents who rushed out in a panic.

Jia Zhangshi loved to join in the fun and was the first to rush to the door. But as soon as she saw Yi Zhonghai's miserable state, she screamed in fright, "Oh my god..." and turned to hide inside the door, her face pale.

When Jia Laonian came out, she grabbed her husband's arm, her voice trembling, "Husband, that...that really was Yi Zhonghai? It's too tragic...tsk tsk tsk, what kind of evil spirit did he offend to commit such a cruel act..."

"You stupid woman, if you can't help, don't make things worse. Hurry up and go back inside..." Old Jia said, annoyed, shaking off her hand and walking quickly to the door.

At this moment, several strong young men from the front yard carried a long table over. The group quickly lifted Yi Zhonghai onto the table and carefully carried him towards the middle yard.

Just as she stepped through the hanging flower gate, she heard Jia Zhangshi's shrill voice, deliberately shrill, shouting: "Li Gui...come out and see...your man is dying..."

Yi Zhonghai, who had been in a daze, was abruptly awakened by the shout. He struggled to turn his head, his bloodshot eyes fixed on Jia Zhangshi, his gaze filled with hatred. But that one look almost exhausted all his strength, and his head lolled to the side as he fainted again.

Li Gui hadn't slept at all; the light in the room had been on the whole time. Hearing the cries and screams outside, she rushed out in a panic and immediately saw Yi Zhonghai lying half-dead on the long table. She broke down in tears, crying, "My husband... Zhonghai... what happened to you...?"

She lunged at him like a madwoman, but was held back by several women nearby. Everyone knew that Yi Zhonghai was seriously injured and that if she lunged at him like that, he might die on the spot.

"Hold her back... whatever you do, don't let her touch her..."

"Hurry up and carry it inside...be gentle..." Zhao Fengnian glanced coldly at the talkative Jia Zhangshi and shouted in a low voice.

The group carefully lifted Yi Zhonghai off the table and slowly moved him into the room, placing him on the kang (a heated brick bed).

Li Gui was helped into the house, where she knelt by the kang (a heated brick bed) and sobbed uncontrollably, clutching Jia Laonian's hand and pleading, "Brother Jia... Brother Jia, please think of something... save our Zhonghai... I beg you..."

Old Jia was sweating profusely and at a loss: "I... I can't do anything... In this chaos, I don't know a single doctor..."

"What can we do... If he's gone, I won't be able to live either..." Li Gui cried, heartbroken.

Someone nearby suddenly reminded him, "That's right... He Daqing has a wide network of connections and knows many people, he'll definitely be able to find a doctor..."

As if grasping at a straw, Li Gui abruptly broke free from the support and turned to rush outside, screaming desperately as she ran, "Brother He... Sister-in-law He... Help! Help me!"

Shouts ripped through the night sky above the courtyard, turning the once quiet place into complete chaos. Everyone was terrified by Yi Zhonghai's miserable state; no one knew what had happened outside that night, or whether this undeserved calamity would befall them.

Zhao Fengnian stood in the corner, his face terribly gloomy. He looked at Yi Zhonghai, who was dying on the kang, and thought of his comrades who had sacrificed themselves that night. His fists clenched tightly, and his knuckles turned white.