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

In the days that followed, He Yuzhu completely settled down and stayed quietly in the courtyard house, showing no intention of going out at all.

During the day, he would drag Xu Damao to practice martial arts in the open space of the yard, practicing horse stance, punches and kicks, and wood-chopping techniques, and he practiced each move with great skill; in the evening, he would obediently carry a small stool and sit next to his mother Chen Lanxiang to learn to read, and the thick Kangxi Dictionary was turned upside down with wrinkled edges.

In fact, thanks to the system's instruction, he had already memorized the contents of the dictionary. However, due to his mother's supervision, he could only pretend to be studying hard and occasionally struggling with something. His acting skills were flawless.

The one who suffered the most was Xu Damao. This kid was naturally lazy and always looking for excuses to slack off. Every time he shouted, "I'm several years older than you, I don't need to train as hard as you," He Yuzhu would press him to the ground with one hand and suppress him the next second.

Either he had to practice horse stance until his legs trembled, or he had to be pulled by the ear to recite boxing manuals. Before Chen Lanxiang could even conduct an on-the-spot assessment, He Yuzhu took over the spot check task in advance and made Xu Damao completely subdued.

To say that Xu Damao was stupid would be pure nonsense. This kid was very clever, but he just refused to study hard. He Yuzhu forced him to practice for half a month, and not only did his martial arts skills improve a lot, but he also learned a lot more characters.

These peaceful days passed in the blink of an eye for half a month, but He Daqing felt as if a heavy stone was pressing on his heart, and he was restless and anxious all day long.

That evening, he seized the opportunity when Chen Lanxiang took He Yushui to the backyard to pick vegetables, pulled He Yuzhu to the corner of the middle courtyard, puffed on his pipe incessantly, and looked worried.

"Zhu Zi, let's have a heart-to-heart talk. When are you going to get those supplies you mentioned? I really can't hold on any longer!"

He Yuzhu raised an eyebrow and asked slowly, "Dad, has Fengzeyuan's business really gotten this bad?"

He Daqing sighed heavily, his brows furrowing deeply: "It couldn't be worse! These past two or three months, I've been taking sick leave and missing work, so my wages have been completely deducted. I haven't earned a single penny. The prices of grains, oil, and vegetables outside are sky-high; even coarse grains are selling for exorbitant prices, and meat is out of the question. If we keep sitting around like this and living off our savings, we'll run out of food sooner or later!"

Upon hearing this, He Yuzhu pressed on, "What exactly is the situation inside and outside the city lately? Tell me the truth."

"Several major battles have been fought outside the city, causing a huge commotion. Soldiers are being transferred out of the city in batches, and the city is under extremely strict surveillance!"

He Daqing lowered his voice and told him in detail the rumors he had heard.

He Yuzhu knew perfectly well that the supplies in his space were already fully prepared, but seeing that there was still food left at home, and that his mother was watching him learn to read every day, it was obvious that she was afraid he would go out and take risks, so he had not brought it up himself.

He looked up at He Daqing and asked only one question: "Dad, did Mom agree to let me go out?"

He Daqing was speechless for a moment, scratching the back of his head as he said, "I haven't told your mother yet, but in this situation, you really can't stay home any longer! If we can hold on for another half month, our family will probably be eating nothing but cornbread!"

There was a lot of exaggeration in that statement. After all, Fengzeyuan was a large restaurant with its own exclusive supply channels. He couldn't get the best stuff, but he could still manage to get enough cornmeal and a small amount of wheat flour.

He said this simply to force He Yuzhu to bring the supplies home as soon as possible.

With the world in chaos lately, all the wealthy families in the city have become extremely low-key, and no one dares to hold lavish banquets anymore. He Daqing has completely cut off his way of earning extra money by catering banquets.

The locals are frantically searching for the mysterious person who has been attacking them one after another. They could easily frame someone for treason and have them executed. No one dares to defy the law.

The Jia family in the front yard had long been starving, drinking only thin gruel that was so watery you could see your reflection in it every meal. Madam Jia Zhang cried and wailed at home every day, disturbing the peace of the entire yard.

Later, Li Guihua even came to He Daqing's door, wanting to ask him to get some fine grains for Yi Zhonghai, who was bedridden, to help him recover. He Daqing refused without even thinking about it.

He knew in his heart that if he agreed to send things to Yi Zhonghai today, everyone in the hospital would come knocking on his door tomorrow demanding food, and then the trouble would only increase.

"Let's wait until my mother agrees."

He Yuzhu waved his hand, refusing to compromise in the slightest. For the past two weeks, he had been nagged by his mother and grandmother in turn, and his head was about to explode with pain. He didn't want to suffer any more.

He Daqing had no choice but to bite the bullet and go back to discuss it with Chen Lanxiang. But as soon as he opened his mouth, he was scolded by Chen Lanxiang.

"Are you out of your mind? There's chaos and war outside. If anything happens to Zhuzi, this family will fall apart! No matter how valuable material possessions are, are they more valuable than my son's life?"

He Daqing was rendered speechless by the scolding and could only slink away and shut his mouth, never daring to mention letting He Yuzhu go out again.

During this time, Chen Lanxiang and He Yushui have moved back to the Intermediate Court, and Yi Zhonghai has completely quieted down, staying indoors all day and no longer acting arrogantly as before.

Li Guihua became the punching bag, always looking gloomy and crying. Yi Zhonghai couldn't get out of bed, so he vented all his resentment on her, and his cursing was even more vicious and shrewish than Jia Zhangshi's.

He was just too proud to admit it, so he always kept his voice down when he cursed, afraid that the neighbors in the courtyard would hear him and he would lose face.

Zhao Fengnian had once kindly visited Yi Zhonghai, but as soon as he entered the house, he met Yi Zhonghai's venomous eyes. The hatred in those eyes was almost overflowing. Even though Zhao Fengnian had seen a lot, he couldn't help but feel a chill run down his spine.

As Zhao Fengnian walked out of the Yi family's gate, he shook his head helplessly, thinking to himself: "They've taken me for an enemy." From then on, he never set foot in the Yi family's house again. Even Jia Laonian in the front yard noticed that Yi Zhonghai's gaze towards him was extremely strange, and he felt uneasy about it, so he never dared to visit again.

May arrived in the blink of an eye, and the tense atmosphere in Beijing gradually dissipated, while the fighting outside the city also came to a complete halt.

After being cooped up for several months, Yi Zhonghai finally stepped out of his house. However, his face was as pale as paper, his eyes were deeply sunken, he walked with a limp, and his legs were still not agile. He only dared to take advantage of the darkness at night to slowly stroll around the yard and stretch his muscles.

This was tough on He Yuzhu, who had to stay obediently by his mother's side every day until Yi Zhonghai finished his activities and returned to his room, at which point he could be allowed to return to his own side room, with no freedom whatsoever.

Another half month passed, and Yi Zhonghai's health had mostly recovered, so he went directly to the steel rolling mill to resume work.

When his familiar coworkers saw him return, they all came forward to greet him with concern, but Yi Zhonghai kept a straight face, gave them a few perfunctory replies, and then turned his head back to work without saying a word more.

Fortunately, neither Zhao Fengnian nor Jia Laonian were gossips, and the secret of Yi Zhonghai's castration remains unknown in the factory to this day.

After resuming work, Yi Zhonghai would make excuses to go out every night, but in reality he would go to small bars outside to drink heavily, often returning to the compound drunk late at night.

The neighbor who was responsible for opening the door at night wanted to curse him, but when he saw his gloomy face, he swallowed back the words he was about to say and could only quickly open the door to let him in and urge him to go home quickly.

He claimed to be an alcoholic, but in reality, he would secretly go out to "recover" his health. The meals at home were bland and watery, with no oil or fat whatsoever, which was not enough to heal his damaged body.

June arrived in the blink of an eye. Yi Zhonghai had fully recovered and regained some of his former energy and spirit, but a lingering sinister aura remained deep in his eyes.

That night, lying in bed, he suddenly turned over, staring intently at Li Guihua beside him, his voice as cold as icy shards in winter: "Where does that palace person you invited to save me last time live?"

Li Guihua was startled by his sudden question, her body trembled violently, and she timidly retorted, "Husband, why are you asking this? He's your savior!"

"My affairs are none of your business, just tell me your address!"

Yi Zhonghai suddenly raised his voice, his eyes fierce and terrifying, like a wild beast about to devour someone.

Li Guihua was so frightened that she trembled all over and stammered out the address: "No. 5, Qianliang South Lane..."

Yi Zhonghai pressed further, "How many people live in the courtyard?"

"I've only ever seen him, no one else..." Li Guihua's voice was so soft it was like a mosquito's buzz.

"Go to sleep."

Yi Zhonghai left a sentence, turned his back to Li Guihua, and in the darkness, his eyes were bloodshot, his heart filled with surging hatred.

He hated the old eunuch who knew his secret, and he hated everyone who had seen him in such a sorry state. He wanted to eliminate all those who knew the truth to prevent future troubles.

The night was calm and uneventful; no one knew that Yi Zhonghai harbored such a terrifying murderous intent.

The next evening, after finishing work, Yi Zhonghai did not go home as usual, but walked straight towards Qianliang Hutong.

Instead of barging into Qianliang South Alley, he found an inconspicuous little tavern at the alley entrance, chose a seat by the window, ordered a pot of cheap liquor, and sipped it while keeping a close eye on the alley entrance and carefully observing the passersby.

After observing for more than an hour and confirming that Qianliang South Alley was deserted and that no suspicious people were coming or going, Yi Zhonghai paid for his drinks, went out and circled the alley for a long time. After making sure that no one was following him, he quietly slipped into Qianliang South Alley.

As soon as he entered the alley, Yi Zhonghai's brows furrowed tightly.

The walls of the courtyards in this alley were much higher than those of the traditional courtyard houses, and the walls were smooth and flat, offering no foothold. His original plan to climb over the wall and sneak in was completely thwarted.

Left with no other choice, he left the alley, bought two bottles of liquor and a bag of pastries at a nearby grocery store, and returned to Qianliang South Alley with his belongings. Standing in front of the gate of No. 5 Courtyard, he raised his hand and knocked heavily on the door.

"Knock knock knock—"

The dull knocking sounded particularly jarring in the quiet alley. After a long while, a hoarse, aged voice with a high-pitched lilt came from inside, impatiently scolding, "Who is it? What are you knocking on so late at night? Everyone's asleep. Come back tomorrow if you need anything!"

Yi Zhonghai suppressed the murderous intent surging within him and feigned respect in his voice: "I'm from Nanluoguxiang, and I've come specifically to thank you for saving my life!"

"Nanluoguxiang? Heh, thank me?" A mocking laugh came from inside the door, the tone full of disdain and sarcasm. "Fine, then this old man will see how you, this little monkey, are going to thank me!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the door bolt slammed to the ground with a "bang," and the heavy wooden door creaked open halfway.

The moment the door opened, Yi Zhonghai's murderous intent exploded, no longer concealing itself in the slightest!

He suddenly darted into the room like a cheetah, his eyes fixed on the old man who was speaking.

That shrill, piercing voice tormented him for months like a nightmare, etched into his very bones, and he would never forget it for the rest of his life.

The moment Yi Zhonghai saw the old man's face clearly, his hatred completely spiraled out of control. He flung his hand and smashed the wine and pastries in his hand to the ground. The glass bottle shattered with a crash, and wine and pastry crumbs were scattered all over the ground.

Immediately afterwards, he drew a hidden sharp dagger from his waist. The cold light flashed in the dim courtyard. He roared and pounced on the old man with all his might, wishing he could tear him to pieces to vent his hatred!