All the heavens begin with the love in the courtyard.

Speaking of his little crush on Qin Huairu, it all started when Qin Huairu got married.

Qin Huairu was indeed beautiful when she was young. He Yuzhu was captivated at first sight and thought that it would be great if he could marry such a beautiful wife in the future.

As it turned out, her wish was only half fulfilled when Qin Huairu's husband died in a childbirth accident.

Okay, let's not talk about that anymore. The news of He Yuzhu's promotion to canteen director was quickly posted and everyone in the steel plant knew about it.

This is a good thing. In order to appease his somewhat restless apprentices, He Yushui suggested that he treat them to a meal in the canteen that evening. This suggestion was immediately met with approval. These days, there isn't much entertainment, and it's not easy to get a little something to eat.

Most importantly, these days, every family has many children. If you satisfy your own needs, you can also help the kids out. That's one of the purposes.

As the only woman in the cafeteria, Liu Lan looked at the radiant He Yuzhu, but her face didn't show much excitement; instead, she looked a little downcast.

Actually, someone introduced her to He Yuzhu last year. At that time, she had just started working as a temporary worker in the workshop. Not only was it hard and tiring every day, but her salary was only 18.5 yuan. She longed to work in the canteen.

So when someone introduced her to He Yuzhu, she was a little hopeful, since He Yuzhu was indeed a very good catch.

But one time, she saw He Yuzhu and Qin Huairu pulling and tugging at each other, especially Qin Huairu, who was so affectionate towards He Yuzhu that it was clear they weren't just ordinary neighbors.

Upon further inquiry, it turned out that this fool Zhu had an ambiguous relationship with a widow, and everyone at the steel mill knew about it. If she and He Yuzhu really got together, how would she ever face anyone again?

The scene Liu Lan witnessed has happened quite often in the past few years. He Yuzhu enjoys Qin Huairu's ambiguous relationship with him, but he doesn't know that it is precisely Qin Huairu's true strength.

With such good conditions and such a large steel mill, everyone knows that marrying into the He family would benefit the whole family. But in those days, reputation was more important than hunger.

This is perhaps what they call "the onlooker sees more of the game than the player."

Now that He Yuzhu has merged with the soul of an observer, he can naturally see through all the tricks and schemes of demons and monsters.

He Yuzhu and a few others from the cafeteria drank until after 8 p.m. before going home. Half asleep, he took out his key to open the door. Just as he opened the door, before he could close it, someone pushed it open, and Qin Huairu stood at the door with a shy Qin Jingru.

Upon seeing Qin Huairu and Qin Jingru behind her, He Yuzhu sobered up considerably. Not wanting the two to stand at the door, he had no choice but to open the door and let them in.

"Sister Qin, what are you doing so late at night?"

"Silly Zhu, are you really that stupid or just pretending? Look at this, such a beautiful young lady, I brought her for you, Sister Qin wasn't lying to you, was she!"

"Uh...didn't you say she went back today?"

"She stayed an extra day specifically for you, don't you have any conscience! You let a young woman stay in my house for several days, she came all the way from the countryside, and you don't even say anything in return?"

What happened this morning made He Yuzhu extremely wary of Qin Huairu. However, Qin Jingru was indeed beautiful, especially after drinking a little alcohol; the hazy feeling made him even more thirsty.

However, He Yuzhu was truly uneasy about anyone associated with Qin Huairu, fearing that he might be tricked if he wasn't careful.

But since they've said all that, as a man, I should at least show some hospitality.

He Yuzhu hurriedly started to tidy up the mess. Qin Huairu hadn't cleaned the house for several days, and it had become a doghouse again.

Seeing this, Qin Huairu snorted, her eyes slightly red, and silently began to tidy up naturally. Her skill was so great that she seemed to be the mistress of the house, leaving Qin Jingru behind her stunned.

He Yuzhu naturally knew why Qin Huairu felt wronged. In the past, Qin Huairu had always been the one to clean his room. These past few days, he had been guarding her family like they were thieves. How could he not feel wronged?

What kind of mess is this?!

He Yuzhu sighed helplessly and hurriedly tried to pour water for Qin Jingru, but after searching for a long time, he couldn't find any hot water. In the end, he could only sit there awkwardly, facing each other. The atmosphere was a little awkward for a moment.

Qin Huairu probably realized that it wasn't good for her to be a third wheel, so after tidying herself up a bit, she casually said...

"Then I'll get you some hot water. Please have a seat for a while!"

He Yuzhu nodded awkwardly.

Qin Huairu glanced at him, her eyes red, picked up the thermos in the room, and walked outside.

Chapter 17: Who Knows My Own Tears?

After seeing her cousin leave, Qin Jingru, who had been shy and timid, suddenly began to reveal her true nature. Her silly, goofy expression came out all at once, and she began to show her true self.

"Silly Pillar, why do they call you Silly Pillar?"

He Yuzhu was stumped by the first question this silly girl asked. Is that how you ask a question?

However, knowing this silly girl's personality, he didn't think much of it and decided not to be so reserved. He stood up, took out some candy he had brought back from the boss's house yesterday from the drawer, and said...

"It's just a nickname, it doesn't matter what you call me, call me whatever you like, here, have some candy!"

Qin Jingru, a country girl, rarely had any snacks. When she saw the candy in He Yuzhu's hand, she was immediately attracted. She quickly took the candy, her eyes shining, and carefully examined each candy.

Seeing her silly attitude, He Yuzhu shook his head helplessly.

"When we get back, I'll take some more with me; I still have some here!"

Qin Jingru nodded happily.

"Thank you so much!"

"Eat up, there's more!"

He Yuzhu took the lead in peeling open a milk candy, popping it into his mouth, and enjoying the rich milky flavor, which helped to clear up some of the drowsiness in his mind.

Qin Jingru followed suit, peeled one open, and popped it into her mouth. The sweet taste immediately attracted this naive and ignorant girl.

She looked at He Yuzhu sitting to the side, her eyes wide open, smiling as she gazed at the man before her. Her fondness for him instantly increased considerably.

She thought to herself with delight, "If I could marry him, that would be wonderful. I would be a city dweller, eating and drinking well every day, and even having candy. This is the life I've always dreamed of."

He Yuzhu was still half-awake from the alcohol. If he had known that this silly girl was thinking this way, he definitely wouldn't have taken out the candy.

After spending more than a month in this world, He Yuzhu gradually adapted and found life quite nice. He also started to think about his lower body. Since in this era, one can only have one partner, why bother with someone related to Qin Huairu?

Besides, although this silly girl is not bad looking and has a figure that is seven-tenths as good as Qin Huairu's, He Yuzhu feels that this silly girl is not suitable for him, and the two of them will definitely not have much in common in the future.

Furthermore, if we were to rate Qin Jingru based on a combination of factors such as appearance, figure, and personality, she would only score a maximum of 6 out of 10 in my opinion. At best, she would barely pass.

As for Ran Qiuye, the teacher who taught alongside the Third Uncle, she was at least a 7.5 out of 10 in terms of appearance, figure, and personality. Her only drawback was her family background, which was a bit of a problem in this era, but that could be overcome.

So, after considering everything, he's lost interest in Qin Jingru. But as a man, he can't just refuse a girl who's come to him. Besides, this silly girl has a pretty straightforward personality, so there's nothing wrong with getting to know her.

He Yuzhu felt a little awkward when he saw that Qin Huairu hadn't returned from getting water for a while. He and Qin Jingru didn't have much to talk about either. They ate candy, and Qin Jingru just stared at him with a dry smile. It was the middle of the night, which was kind of scary.

"Hey Jingru, it's getting late, you should go home and get some rest. You have to go back tomorrow. Here, I have a pound of milk candy here, take it with you!"

"Okay, I'm going back now! Thank you, Brother Silly Zhu!"

Seeing the silly girl's silly grin, He Yuzhu knew that this silly girl didn't understand at all that he was trying to get rid of her.

"Okay, that's perfect." He Yuzhu took out a bag of candy wrapped in oil paper from the drawer, filled it with about a pound of candy, carefully packaged it, and handed it to Qin Jingru.

The silly girl happily accepted the gift, and before leaving, she didn't forget to take two milk candies from the table, then happily returned to Qin Huairu's room.

He Yuzhu looked at the silly girl's back and shook his head. In the original story, he was really driven by lust and couldn't wait to take this kind of thing to bed. Sigh!

Back in the room, just as he closed the door and was about to wash up and go to bed, Qin Huairu pushed open the door without saying a word, walked in carrying a thermos, and without even looking at He Yuzhu, went straight to the table, put down the thermos, and left angrily without saying a word.

What is this thing?

Never mind, time to sleep!

When Qin Huairu returned to the room, she saw the candy that Qin Jingru had brought back on the table, and a wave of sadness washed over her once again.

Before, Sha Zhu would bring any food to his family right away, but now he knows to hide it. He even locks the front door during the day. Isn't that obvious?

Even knowing that He Yuzhu had changed his mind, Qin Huairu could do nothing but silently endure it all. Her only weapon was flirting, but now that had lost its effect, she vaguely understood that she might lose this man.

I'm unwilling to accept this, but what can I do? I can only take it one step at a time.

Qin Jingru lay on the kang, her face still showing excitement and joy, chattering about He Yuzhu's situation. Qin Huairu answered her questions half-heartedly, but she could tell that this silly girl was obviously very satisfied with He Yuzhu.

Qin Huairu felt like a seven-year-old girl whose beloved doll, which she had played with for many years, was about to be taken away by another girl.

Before, I wouldn't say I particularly liked this doll, but seeing someone else like it and about to take it away, the feeling of impending loss was indescribable.

Qin Huairu had no interest in discussing Sha Zhu, but the squinty-eyed old woman next to her was quite enthusiastic and started talking to Qin Jingru about Sha Zhu.

They also encouraged her to get on good terms with Sha Zhu as soon as possible. Once she married into the family, the two families would live across the street from each other, and her own family's ungrateful children would start calling Sha Zhu "uncle." It would then be perfectly legitimate for her to go to Sha Zhu's house to freeload.

This old woman had another little scheme she didn't reveal: once Qin Jingru married Sha Zhu, her flirtatious daughter-in-law would finally give up on that idea. Otherwise, she might end up sleeping with Sha Zhu one day, ruining the Jia family's reputation.

Although her son has passed away for many years, this daughter-in-law has been quite responsible in the past few years, fulfilling her duties as a daughter-in-law and mother to the family.

But she knew Qin Huairu's restless heart all too well. She was afraid that one day Qin Huairu would abandon her three children and marry another man. What would she and her three children live on then?

Besides, since she took over her son's job, she had the obligation and responsibility to raise the three children. This old woman didn't ask for anything else, she just wanted to keep the family in order and ensure that the three children had food to eat and a place to sleep.

Especially since Banggeng is the only male heir in the Jia family, he must ensure that Banggeng's quality of life does not decline. If his daughter-in-law really remarries, who knows whether Banggeng will take the Jia or Wang surname?

Therefore, as long as she lives, Qin Huairu will never be able to remarry!

Qin Huairu leaned against the wall, listening to her mother-in-law and Qin Jingru chatting animatedly. She turned around and, in the dim light, glanced at her three children who were sleeping soundly. When she turned back again, tears welled up in her eyes, and she bit the blanket, trying her best to remain silent.

Who can know the bitterness and pain in my heart?

Chapter 18: A Delicate Balance

He Yuzhu was unaware of Qin Huairu's heartache, and even if he had, he would not have sacrificed his own lifelong happiness to fulfill someone else's, as in the original story.

He Yuzhu never witnessed the spirit of sacrifice and dedication described in the original novel during his month-long experience living there.

The old man does love doing good deeds, but he never does them voluntarily; his spirit of universal love has not yet become excessive.

He only does what he thinks he should do, and he does good deeds without ever making a fuss.

For example, he treated the deaf old lady like his own mother, taking care of her bodily needs, feeding her well, and caring for her for many years. Everyone in the neighborhood knows about this, but who has ever come out to praise him?

Because everyone knows that you can do this kind of good thing secretly. Even if we know, we'll pretend we don't. As for the reason, you can think about it carefully.

Second Uncle's ambition for power is ridiculous. He's just the second uncle in charge of the courtyard, but he really thinks he's some big shot. He acts like a bully in the courtyard, always looking down on everyone, lecturing this person and that person. He Yuzhu tries to avoid seeing him and avoids running into him as much as possible.

As for the third uncle, needless to say, his stinginess is indescribable. He always tries to take advantage of his neighbors, even for a penny.

What He Yuzhu found most unbearable was that even the excrement and urine from his own chamber pot every day were not taken to the public toilet. Instead, he put them in a large earthenware jar to ferment, calling it top-quality fertilizer!

As for the other neighbors, they're not much better. They all have their own little schemes, and there are plenty of stingy, selfish, and arrogant types. As the situation outside becomes more and more severe and resources become increasingly scarce, everyone is now locking their doors, and everyone is speaking very cautiously.

Fortunately, the three old men were also busybodies and quite prestigious, so the courtyard maintained a delicate balance. However, He Yuzhu naturally knew that this balance would not last long.

I don't care about anything else, I just want to live a comfortable life, and I don't want to be a hero.

He slept soundly that night, covered with his newly bought quilt. In the dead of winter, sleeping was truly a pleasure.

Oops, I forgot to wash my feet again!

The bed smells so good!