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

But he didn't care.

He has a good alcohol tolerance, and with so many people, how could he not get one of them drunk?

As he began, He Daqing, Jia Dongxu, the deaf old woman, and Jia Zhangshi came up one by one with their wine glasses. It was a relay race, one round of toasts followed by another.

Yi Zhonghai also greeted the others.

"We're all from the same hospital, so let's all show respect to Director Li. We should thank him for leading us to prosperity."

Those who were already trying to curry favor with Li Jianguo now had an excuse and came up with their wine glasses.

Li Jianguo welcomes all comers.

He drinks with everyone who comes, and after finishing his drink, he puts the cup on the table and waits for the next person.

One round passed, then two rounds passed.

Some people blushed and started to stutter. But Li Jianguo? He remained calm and composed, sitting there as if nothing had happened, his eyes even brighter than before.

"Director Li has a good capacity for alcohol," Yi Zhonghai couldn't help but say.

Li Jianguo smiled and said, "Back in the Northwest, we relied on drinking to keep warm when it was cold. I can hold my liquor."

Yi Zhonghai was stunned.

How come he didn't think of that?

But then he immediately thought: It's okay, there are so many people, I don't believe he can really drink them all under the table.

Li Jianguo looked at him, then suddenly picked up the wine pot and poured himself a full bowl. He then poured another bowl for Yi Zhonghai.

"Drinking is only truly satisfying when it's from a big bowl. Sir, how about we have a toast?"

Yi Zhonghai looked at the bowl of wine in front of him, his face turning a little pale.

But he still picked it up.

Li Jianguo, holding the bowl, looked at the people behind him.

"Since you've kowtowed and admitted your mistakes to me today, consider this bowl of wine my return gift."

They had already drunk quite a bit, and looking at the full bowl of wine in front of them, they exchanged glances—for the sake of what was to come, let's drink.

They drank it all.

Li Jianguo watched them finish drinking, then popped a peanut into his mouth and chewed it slowly.

He's waiting to see what happens.

He Daqing was the first to speak.

He held up his wine glass to Li Jianguo, intending to urge him to drink, but the words he was about to say somehow took a different turn.

"Li Jianguo, release my son right now! Don't think you can threaten him with some paperwork. Now that I'm back, no one can bully my son!"

An uproar erupted around them.

Why did the person who was just apologizing so politely suddenly turn hostile?

Li Jianguo chewed on peanuts, smiling as he looked at him: "What are you talking about? I don't understand. Sha Zhu's situation was his own fault, wasn't it?"

"Bullshit!" He Daqing slammed his wine glass on the table. "You were the one threatening him!"

He stood up, as if to rush forward, but was pulled back by the people next to him.

"Release them!"

Li Jianguo shook his head: "That's impossible. Asking me about your son is useless. Why don't you ask Yi Zhonghai? Ask him why your son is so poor that he has to steal from me?"

He Daqing was already a little dizzy. Upon hearing this, he subconsciously turned his head to look at Yi Zhonghai.

"Didn't I send money back? What happened?"

Yi Zhonghai opened his mouth.

He wanted to say something, but the words that came out were not what he intended to say at all.

"I've taken all the money you sent. How could Sha Zhu possibly support me in my old age now that he has money? I have no children; how can I not find someone devoted to me until the end?"

He paused, then said, "Besides, what's wrong with me keeping that money? When I die, it'll still be your son's money, won't it? Just consider it me saving it for him. He's made a fortune—aren't all the things we old folks have left his?"

After he finished speaking, he was completely stunned.

That's not what he wanted to say.

"Brother He, that's not what I meant..." he tried to explain, but the next thing that came out was, "I just don't want to pay, is that a problem?"

He shut his mouth and dared not speak again.

He Daqing stood there, staring at him.

That money, he painstakingly saved, penny by penny, from the very last drop of his life. His son didn't spend a single cent; it all went to this old man?

"You fucking—"

He Daqing grabbed a wine bottle from the table and smashed it over Yi Zhonghai's head.

boom!

The bottle shattered, and Yi Zhonghai suffered a gash on his forehead, with blood streaming down his face.

The table was overturned, and food was scattered all over the floor. The people sitting around scattered in an instant, but not one of them left—with such a lively scene, who would want to leave?

Blood and wine mingled together, flowing all over the ground.

Yi Zhonghai was hit twice and couldn't dodge in time. He also got angry as the alcohol took effect.

"Get the hell out of here! All that money of yours will be your son's after I die, won't it? You don't even raise your son properly, and I've raised him for so many years, and instead of being grateful, you hit me?"

"Don't think I won't fight back!"

He Daqing sneered.

"Don't think I don't know what you're thinking! You want my son to take care of you in your old age? Dream on!"

"Pah! You won't raise your son yourself, but I will, so he has to support me in my old age!"

Yi Zhonghai was trembling with rage. He had searched for so many years, finally finding someone like Sha Zhu to take care of him in his old age—how much had he sacrificed? And now they were just going to say they wouldn't let him have him?

Just as he was about to speak, He Daqing suddenly laughed.

That laughter sent chills down your spine.

"I'll accept having my son collect your corpse," He Daqing said. "Anyway, didn't your wife sleep with me back then? It's just that she was a barren hen, otherwise you might have been raising my son!"

He grinned, revealing a mouthful of yellow teeth: "I'll take a loss, and this filial son will give you half!"

The courtyard was quiet for a moment.

Then it exploded.

Yi Zhonghai's face turned white, then green. He slowly turned his head and looked at the old woman.

An older woman sat there, trembling all over. She didn't dare to look up, didn't dare to look at him, and wished she could disappear into the ground.

"You—can do it." Yi Zhonghai gritted his teeth, squeezing out the two words.

"Zhonghai, no..." The middle-aged woman wanted to explain, but what could she say? It was true.

"A pair of despicable people!"

Yi Zhonghai grabbed a stool from the side and lunged at He Daqing.

The two men wrestled, with benches and fists flying everywhere.

Everyone around was stunned.

No one expected that these two longtime friends would have such a story between them. Everyone's gaze towards the older woman changed—this woman had been hiding her true intentions well.

Things that happened decades ago are only being brought up now.

After drinking, Uncle Erda couldn't keep his mouth shut and sarcastically shouted from the side, "Yi Zhonghai, you're no good! You've been cheated on for so many years and only just realized it? Is your head so shiny you could run a horse on it?"

"Hahaha!"

Laughter erupted.

"This might be the reason why Yi Zhonghai has no son."

"No, even if he did, it wouldn't be his."

Xu Damao got even more excited, fanning the flames from the side: "Uncle, you're no good, you can't even beat someone in a fight. No wonder Auntie doesn't want you, what use are you? Hey Uncle He, you need to use your strength, from behind—think about your money, go all out!"

He was shouting back and forth, busier than someone who was fighting.

Li Jianguo sat far away, holding a bowl of wine. He found a spot on the steps, looking down at the farce, taking sips every now and then.

Dogs fighting, a mouthful of fur.

It looks pretty good.

Even the Jia family members couldn't sit still in the corner.

Madam Jia was the kind of person who thrived on chaos. She had long disliked Yi Zhonghai, and now that he was in trouble, she couldn't be happier.

"Good! Well done!"

She clapped her hands and shouted, almost as if she were banging gongs and drums.

He Daqing kicked Yi Zhonghai to the ground, and when he heard Jia Zhangshi cheering, he turned his head to look. He remembered that the Jia family had also contributed to his son's imprisonment, and a cold smile appeared on his face.

"You guys surnamed Jia," he said, "the louder you shout, the more foolish you are."

Yi Zhonghai's expression changed.

"Stop talking!" he shouted.

But He Daqing had already spoken.

"Isn't your family also being cuckolded? It was Yi Zhonghai who put it on you, wasn't that a pleasant surprise?"

Jia Zhangshi stood up abruptly.

"Bullshit! That's impossible!"

She pointed at He Daqing and yelled, "You wish for others to suffer just because you yourself deserve a terrible death? My daughter-in-law is old enough to be his daughter, how could that be!"