Courtyard House: Starting as an eighth-grade worker, with too many wives.

Sha Zhu swallowed hard, a sense of dread creeping into his heart.

"You...you're right. I hadn't thought of everything. Please don't take offense!"

Yi Zhonghai forced a smile, but the wrinkles on his face bunched up, making it look even uglier.

"Yi Zhonghai, you useless piece of trash! You've been fooled by some brat?"

The deaf old lady was furious and cursed Yi Zhonghai for not being able to stand up for her.

"Grandma, if they want to lock it, let them lock it. It's none of our business."

Yi Zhonghai felt even more aggrieved. Wasn't this just asking for trouble so early in the morning?

"I have to go to work, or I'll be late."

After saying that, he walked out with his hands behind his back.

Sha Zhu also got up and glanced at the deaf old lady.

"Grandma, I brought you lunch. Don't be angry with him."

After saying that, he glanced at Li Jianguo warily, then turned and left.

---

Just then, the effects of the sacred aura surrounding Li Jianguo began to manifest.

As soon as Sha Zhu lifted his foot to step over the threshold, he suddenly lurched forward and crashed down with a thud.

Yi Zhonghai, who was walking in front, was caught off guard and pounced on, and the two rolled around in a heap.

"Oh my goodness—"

That was a terrible fall.

Sha Zhu slammed his knees hard on the stone slab, writhing in pain on the spot.

Yi Zhonghai landed headfirst, breaking half of his front tooth. His mouth was full of blood, and he lay there groaning, dazed.

---

The commotion at the entrance startled everyone in the courtyard.

Second Uncle and Third Uncle rushed over.

"What happened?"

"Oh no! Why is it bleeding!"

Seeing that the two were seriously injured, they quickly offered their help and arranged to take them to the hospital.

The deaf old lady heard a commotion outside, as if something had happened, and she became anxious.

"What happened?"

In her haste, she tried to lean over to look. This movement—

"Ouch!"

The old lady's leg, which was in a cast, hit the edge of the bed, causing her to scream in pain.

Everyone was busy taking care of the old man and Sha Zhu, and had long forgotten about the deaf old lady.

Qin Huairu was nearby and ran out when she heard the commotion.

"Grandma, what's wrong?"

"You're injured! Get me to the hospital quickly!"

Well, now those three who offended Li Jianguo are all in trouble. They just left the hospital and now they have to go back.

The deaf old lady was carried out and taken to the hospital with Yi Zhonghai and the others.

He suddenly spoke as he passed by Li Jianguo.

"Wait a minute."

Li Jianguo slowly walked up to her.

"What...what do you want to do?"

After being injured twice, the deaf old lady vaguely felt that something was wrong with Li Jianguo, but she couldn't quite put her finger on it.

These days, superstition is forbidden, but she just felt this person was eerie. Otherwise, how come all three of them got into trouble right after she finished speaking?

When she saw Li Jianguo approaching, she instinctively shrank back.

"What are you afraid of?"

Li Jianguo found her fearful and timid appearance laughable. He leaned down, leaned closer, and lowered his voice.

"Old lady, you've been living a comfortable life as a recipient of government subsidies all these years, haven't you? I'll investigate everything you did back then. I'd like to see what happens to you then."

The deaf old woman's pupils suddenly contracted.

She stared at Li Jianguo in disbelief, her lips trembling as she tried to deny it.

"You...you're talking nonsense!"

But ultimately, he felt guilty.

Li Jianguo looked at her with a half-smile, his eyes like knives, making her afraid to meet his gaze.

"Ouch—that hurts so much!"

She quickly covered her injured leg and screamed in agony.

Qin Huairu and the others rushed to take her to the hospital, quickly lifting her onto a tricycle, which saved her from a confrontation with Li Jianguo.

---

The tricycle bumped along, and the deaf old woman huddled inside, her face so gloomy it looked like it could be wrung out.

She pulled some strings to become a recipient of the "Five Guarantees" (a government-provided social welfare program for the elderly, disabled, and orphans). If anyone were to investigate, she would definitely be in serious trouble.

How did he know?

She was both scared and panicked. She thought about it over and over again and finally came to a conclusion.

"That's definitely Li Zhigang and his wife talking nonsense!"

The only possibility was what Li Jianguo's parents had said. Thinking of this, she cursed the deceased couple a thousand times over, using every vicious word she could think of.

---

Li Jianguo watched them leave, then turned and leisurely went to work.

Walking down the street, watching people riding bicycles back and forth, he suddenly slapped his forehead, feeling both amused and exasperated.

"I bought so much stuff yesterday, how could I forget the most important thing: my bicycle?"

He shook his head in frustration and could only resign himself to taking the first step.

Fortunately, the journey wasn't too far, but it would definitely be much more convenient if I had a bicycle.

---

Meanwhile, the Jia family kept a close eye on his movements.

He had barely left the hospital when the Jia family started making their move.

"Grandma, he's gone! I saw him leave through the door; he was already at the alley entrance. He definitely isn't coming back!"

Banggeng, with the air of a petty thug, strut in to report. He had been following and tailing the person the whole way, and only returned after watching them walk away.

"Good job! Well done! Our Banggeng is capable now."

Madam Jia gave a thumbs-up, her face full of approval.

"Wait a little longer, then sneak into his kitchen. Take whatever good food you see, don't be shy."

"Oh, Grandma, don't worry! I know what's good to eat. There's definitely meat in his kitchen; I've been craving it for days."

"Okay! I'll cook the meat for you tonight. By the way, do you know how to pick that lock?"

"Won't."

Banggeng shook his head. At most, he'd steal something like an eraser or an egg – petty theft. He really didn't know how to pickpocket.

"I was thinking of smashing the lock, it wasn't very big."

"That won't do! Go learn from your dad, he knows how!"

Jia Zhangshi pushed Jia Dongxu forward.

She wasn't ashamed that her son could pick locks; on the contrary, she was quite proud. This was a skill others didn't possess, and her son's ability meant he was smarter than most.

Qin Huairu felt uneasy, but the thought of meat dispelled her anxiety. As long as she could eat it, she didn't care about anything else.

"Yes! Learn from me, it's super easy. Your dad learned this skill in less than an hour back in the day!"

Jia Dongxu was beaming with pride. He had never been caught stealing as a child, all because of this skill. He would sneak in when no one was looking, grab what he could, and leave. Even if someone discovered something was missing, they would never suspect him.

Bang Geng was even more clever than his father; he learned it in no time and immediately wanted to try it out.

---

The lock that Li Jianguo hung on the kitchen door wasn't worth much. There was just some food inside, and he hadn't given it a second thought. He never imagined that someone would try to break into his house for food.

---

Li Jianguo finally arrived at the gate of the steel rolling mill.

The security guards reached out and stopped him.

"Stop right there, what are you doing?"

"Reporting for duty. This is my work ID."

Li Jianguo took out his job transfer certificate and handed it over.

"Oh—it's Master Li! I've heard you were coming, but I didn't expect it..."

The security officer found it somewhat strange that Li Jianguo walked over carrying only a small bag and without even riding a bicycle.

"It's the first day, and we haven't gotten everything we need yet. As time goes on, we'll get used to it."

Li Jianguo took the documents and casually asked a question.

"Which direction is the factory office in? I'm going to report to the factory manager."

"Xiao Zhao, take Master Li over there!"

As soon as he finished speaking, a young man walked out from behind and silently led Li Jianguo toward the factory office.

---

Just as we reached the halfway point, we saw a group of people ahead of us, their faces full of excitement, hurrying towards us.

"Oh—is this Engineer Li Jianguo?"

Li Jianguo recognized the man at the head of the group immediately; it was Factory Director Yang. He was all smiles, his face crinkled with wrinkles, and he was incredibly warm and friendly.

"Hello, I am Li Jianguo."

"We've been waiting for you! Come on, this way, please!"

Factory Director Yang was extremely excited.

The security department just said that someone had arrived, so he immediately led a group of factory cadres out to greet them.

He was slightly taken aback by Li Jianguo's excessively young age. But then he remembered what the person above him had said when he submitted the report requesting Li Jianguo's return—

This is absolutely a high-achieving student, a true gem. The factory absolutely must keep this kind of person.

Along the way, Factory Director Yang warmly introduced him to the various leaders following behind him. Basically, all the people in charge of things in the factory were here.

"Come, let me introduce you. This is Deputy Factory Director Li, and this is—"

Factory Director Yang pointed to a man wearing glasses and introduced him with great seriousness.

"This is our factory's technician. You'll be in contact with him most often in your work from now on."

"From now on, you'll have to cooperate well with Master Li, understand?"

The technician nodded quickly.

"There are indeed quite a few problems backing up in the factory. My skills are limited, and I've been looking forward to Engineer Li's arrival so he can explain to me how to solve these issues."

"No problem. If you have any questions in the future, just come to me and we'll discuss them together."

The problems in the factory are nothing more than machine wear and tear. Modern machines are inherently bulky and have low technological content, so there aren't many complex parameter issues. Most of the problems are minor issues like aging or incompatible parts.

These were no big deal to Li Jianguo.

But he didn't come here to be a tailor, to do mend and repair. He wanted to promote technological innovation, to use technology to change lives, and to make this business truly take off.

---

When Li Jianguo appeared at the factory, he was greeted in such a grand manner by the factory director and a group of leaders.

It was right at the start of the workday, so I saw everything I was supposed to see.

Gossiping is human nature, especially in an era with little entertainment.

The crowd gathered in small groups, all talking about Li Jianguo's background.

Yu Haitang had just seen Li Jianguo talking to the security guards at the entrance, but before she could strike up a conversation, he was led away.

As soon as I entered the factory, I heard everyone talking about him.

She quickly went over.

"What are you talking about?"

"Did you see that young man our factory leadership greeted in the yard today?"

"I see it! I was just about to ask, who is that? I don't think I've seen it before."

Ma Hua, who was standing nearby, overheard their conversation and came over.

"You don't know, do you? I do!"

"You know who it is? So young, which company's leader is he?"

Yu Haitang quickly pressed for more information.

Her family has been pressuring her to go on blind dates lately, but she doesn't like any of the men, they're all ugly and unattractive.

But today, she's taken a liking to this young man.

He looks impressive and was personally greeted by a high-ranking leader; he must be someone special.

If only I had the chance...

Thinking of this, she became even more anxious.

"Oh, stop keeping me in suspense, just tell me!"

"What's the rush? Haitang, what's wrong? You've got your eye on someone?"

MCA joked with a smile, which earned them a punch.

"Okay, okay, I'll talk, I'll talk, please stop hitting me!"

He covered his head and hid, and was only let go after begging for mercy.

"I heard about it too. He's the level eight engineer that our factory has been talking about transferring over, a really capable person."

"Engineers—"

Yu Haitang's eyes lit up instantly.

I never expected that this person would not only be good-looking, but also so capable.

He's an engineer! If she marries an engineer, not only will she earn over a hundred yuan a month, but everyone in the factory will treat her with utmost respect.

"Anything else?"

After Ma Hua revealed his identity, he fell silent, leaving Yu Haitang feeling uneasy and extremely uncomfortable.

"What else could it be? I don't know either. I've never seen him before; it was just the security guards who mentioned him when we came in."

She didn't even know his name, only that he was an engineer. Yu Haitang felt a little disappointed.

"Time to go to work! What are you all doing?"

When the work bell rang, everyone dispersed.