All the heavens begin with the love in the courtyard.

"Pah! You son of a bitch, you're as good as dead! If you don't kill me today, I'll definitely kill you someday!"

Zhong Yuemin was speechless with anger at this guy's temper, so he stopped arguing.

He kept throwing punches, but he didn't aim to kill him; he just wanted to beat him up!

If it weren't for his ruthlessness and that dagger, he would just be an ordinary seventeen or eighteen-year-old boy. At that age, his personality is immature, and he doesn't know what fear is. Just like he said, "I have a worthless life, do you dare to trade it?"

The soul in Zhong Yuemin's mind, who was in his thirties, also came from the lower class. He understood Xiao Badan's emotions, or rather, most people from the lower class would have Xiao Badan's emotions. But you can have them, but you can't resolve them in this way. You are breaking the rules and playing with your own life!

Therefore, Zhong Yuemin decided without hesitation to deal with the little rascal. Of course, he would not resort to violence to stop violence. The fate of such a person was already sealed, and there was no need for him to dirty his hands.

Punch after punch, until the little rascal had black eyes, Zhong Yuemin was still not satisfied. He then delivered several more hard punches to the little rascal's arm joints, completely incapacitating him.

Only when the little rascal collapsed to the ground, head drooping, completely unable to resist, did Zhong Yuemin breathe a sigh of relief. After resting for a while, he picked up the little rascal and struggled to climb over the wall, walking back step by step.

Zhong Yuemin was in a sorry state, walking with a limp, and the little rascal was picked up by him like a dead dog.

Zhong Yuemin walked for a while and was so tired that he put the little rascal down and rested with his hands on his hips for a while. Just then, he saw several familiar figures running towards him from a distance.

Zhong Yuemin squinted and saw that the people coming were Zheng Tong and others. Obviously, they had followed the trail. When they saw Zhong Yuemin from afar and the little rascal beside him, they all showed excitement.

Several men ran to Zhong Yuemin's side and raised their feet to kick the little rascal, but Zhong Yuemin quickly stopped them. If the little rascal were to die accidentally like this, it would be a real problem.

When Zhong Yuemin saw that his brother had arrived, he immediately relaxed and collapsed to the ground like a little rascal.

The matter of the little rascal was finally resolved. Several people carried him over to the police, and there was almost no other possibility for him.

Zhong Yuemin was also in pain all over his body, but fortunately, youth is an advantage. After applying some medicine, he slept the next day and was fine except for some redness and swelling on his thighs.

Dealing with the little rascal made Zhong Yuemin an overnight sensation, and his reputation quickly rose in the circle of children of high-ranking officials. The next day, many people came to his courtyard to find him and wanted to be his friend.

More friends mean more paths, especially for these children of high-ranking officials. Given their status, they are likely to become leaders in their respective fields in the future, so Zhong Yuemin welcomes all of them, including Zhang Haiyang.

When Zhang Haiyang arrived, there were already more than a dozen young men from the compound at Zhong Yuemin's house, chatting and laughing with him. They were all young people, and they never ran out of things to talk about.

Zhong Yuemin's personality is perfect for making friends. With Yuan Jun and Zheng Tong, two talkative guys, constantly throwing in jokes and pushing the atmosphere to a climax.

When Zhang Haiyang entered the house and saw so many people inside, he felt a little embarrassed to greet them.

Upon seeing him, Zhong Yuemin immediately stood up and called out to the people in the room.

"Everyone, let me introduce you to a brother. Come on, this is Zhang Haiyang from Courtyard No. 2. Haiyang is a loyal and righteous man, you can trust him as a brother!"

Zhang Haiyang was surprised that Zhong Yuemin valued him so much, and he was immediately moved. He stepped forward and shook hands with Zhong Yuemin, but at this moment Zhong Yuemin patted Zhang Haiyang on the shoulder and continued to speak.

"Haiyang has many good points, but he has only one flaw: he's a bit of a repressed flirt."

The term "secretly flirtatious" is still unfamiliar to most people these days, so Zheng Tong quickly asked jokingly.

"Yuemin, we've heard of being sassy and flirtatious, but we've never heard of 'muffled sassiness.' Tell me about it!"

The crowd burst into laughter.

Zhong Yuemin also laughed heartily, stepped forward and put his arm around Zhang Haiyang's shoulder, speaking mysteriously to everyone.

"The meaning of 'mèn sāo' can be understood literally. For example, if Haiyang likes me, but he doesn't dare to say it, he can only keep it to himself. That's called 'mèn sāo'!"

Zhong Yuemin's example made all the young people present burst into laughter. Zhang Haiyang's face flushed red with embarrassment. Seeing this, Zhong Yuemin waved his hand, signaling everyone to continue chatting.

He put his arm around Zhang Haiyang's shoulder and walked outside. Once they reached the outside of the compound, he let go of Zhang Haiyang's shoulder and said with a smile.

"Ocean, just kidding, don't mind it!"

Zhang Haiyang snorted and said to Zhong Yuemin.

"Yuemin, I don't think we're that close, do I? Why do I feel like we're really good friends?"

Zhong Yuemin laughed heartily and said in a very generous manner.

"Haiyang, I'm good at judging people. Don't be fooled by how many friends I have. I, Zhong Yuemin, only truly consider a few as brothers. But Zhang Haiyang, the moment I saw you, I knew you and I would be brothers for life, so I just naturally became friends with you!"

Zhang Haiyang, a seventeen-year-old boy, was deeply moved by such passionate words. He stepped forward and put his arm around Zhong Yuemin's shoulder. But suddenly Zhang Haiyang paused, as if remembering something, and quickly spoke up.

"Yuemin, I remember the first time we met, we were fighting, weren't we? You treated me like a brother, yet you hit me so hard?"

Zhong Yuemin also remembered this, laughed heartily, and replied casually.

"Don't worry about the details. Fighting is a sign of affection, scolding is a sign of love. We showed our brotherhood with a fight on our first meeting. Isn't that great?"

Zhang Haiyang nodded, somewhat persuaded by Zhong Yuemin, but something still felt off. However, seeing Zhong Yuemin's friendly face, he stopped thinking about it. Zhong Yuemin had just said something right: don't worry about the details!

Chapter 143: The Backup Plan

This matter concerning the little rascal has come to an end. In this special period, people like him will continue to appear in the future, perhaps even more like Little Dog Egg or Little Donkey Egg, but these are no longer related to Zhong Yuemin.

Zhong Yuemin only cared about keeping the people around him safe, and he never thought of using the little rascal's reputation to rise to power.

Ning Bin wasn't killed by the little rascal with a single stab like in the original story, but perhaps due to the inertia of the original work, he still took a hit in the stomach and will probably have to lie down for a while.

Zhong Yuemin was already very satisfied with this result!

After this incident, Zhong Yuemin made a lot of friends, and his name became a household name in the circle of children of high-ranking officials. He even overshadowed Li Yuanchao at one point.

However, Zhong Yuemin had no intention of being the leader. Apart from making more friends, his subsequent behavior was no longer as restless as before.

Aside from chatting with a group of friends in the courtyard every day, Zhong Yuemin rarely goes out anymore. In his spare time, he also begins to prepare for what's to come.

Because he knew that in the days to come, he would soon be separated from this group of friends, and he would also leave Yanjing to go to the countryside in northern Shaanxi.

The fates of these children from the compound will be different for each of them. Whether they join the army or go to the countryside, their footprints will be all over the country. The wonderful memories of talking with them today will become topics of conversation when they meet again in the future.

Zhong Yuemin couldn't remember how long he spent in northern Shaanxi in the original novel, it seemed to be a few years. During those years, he seemed to often go hungry because there wasn't enough food there.

He also seemed to have met another woman over there, someone with whom he had been entangled for half his life. He had completely forgotten her name, but he remembered that she sang Shaanxi folk songs beautifully and had big, bright eyes. In short, the encounters in life will come naturally when they are meant to.

He had been avoiding the topic of his relationship with Zhou Xiaobai, but fate is sometimes so mysterious. One day, Zhang Haiyang suddenly appeared at the gate of his compound with two girls, Zhou Xiaobai and Luo Yun.

Zhang Haiyang casually pointed at Zhong Yuemin, who was lying in the doorway sunbathing and reading a book, and said.

"Xiaobai, that's Zhong Yuemin, a buddy of mine. Why are you looking for him? That guy's always hitting on girls, he's really not a good person!"

Zhong Yuemin heard Zhang Haiyang slandering him from afar. He opened his eyes and exclaimed, "Oh my, why did this kid bring Zhou Xiaobai here?"

No wonder this guy slandered me like that. He had a crush on Zhou Xiaobai since he was a child and was willing to be a backup. In the original novel, he finally became the real deal and married Zhou Xiaobai when he was almost forty.

The reason he was able to be officially employed was because Zhong Yuemin disliked Zhou Xiaobai. In a fit of anger, Zhou Xiaobai called Zhang Haiyang and said, "If you are willing to get married, bring your household registration book to the Civil Affairs Bureau tomorrow."

Overjoyed, Zhang Haiyang, the backup boyfriend, got married to Zhou Xiaobai the next day. However, after the marriage, Zhou Xiaobai regretted it and moved out on the wedding day, before even consummating the marriage, leaving Zhang Haiyang to continue being the backup boyfriend, only this time with a marriage certificate.

Even so, Zhang Haiyang remained uncomplaining. On one side was his brother, and on the other was the woman he had loved since childhood. He endured and endured until Zhong Yuemin finally told Zhou Xiaobai that it was truly impossible for them. Only then did Zhou Xiaobai give up completely and finally live a normal married life with Zhang Haiyang.

Even so, Zhou Xiaobai still cared about Zhong Yuemin. Although Zhang Haiyang wasn't being cuckolded yet, he was close to it, but he could only smile and face everything.

How could Zhong Yuemin not acknowledge this kind of brother?

Zhong Yuemin saw Zhang Haiyang rambling on and on, badmouthing him to Zhou Xiaobai. He was clearly worried that Zhou Xiaobai would be attracted to him. But girls this age, besides being attracted to looks, are also a little rebellious.

The more Zhang Haiyang talked, the more curious Zhou Xiaobai became about Zhong Yuemin. Seeing Zhang Haiyang's incessant chatter, she pushed him aside and walked towards Zhong Yuemin with Luo Yun.

Zhong Yuemin looked at the group with a smile. Zhou Xiaobai was definitely not coy at all. She walked up to Zhong Yuemin, looked down at him who was half-reclining in the chair, and said directly.

"Thank you for standing up for us that day. We heard you were injured, and we felt bad about it, so we came to see you. I brought you some fruit!"

As she spoke, she placed the half-bag of apples she was carrying on the coffee table in Zhong Yuemin's room, turned around and looked at the book in Zhong Yuemin's hand, and asked curiously.

"I didn't expect you to be so studious. What books do you read?"

Zhong Yuemin was somewhat speechless. Why was this girl so outgoing?

Thinking about it, he held up the book and showed the cover to the others.

"Shaanxi folk snacks!"

Upon seeing the book title, Luo Yun burst out laughing, Zhou Xiaobai was also somewhat speechless, Zhang Haiyang stood aside, he had long disliked Zhong Yuemin, why was his goddess so curious about him, when he saw the book title that Zhong Yuemin was reading, he immediately stood up arrogantly, pointed at Zhong Yuemin and snorted.

"Xiaobai, did you see that? I told you on the way here that Zhong Yuemin doesn't like to study. Besides knowing a few bad poems, he doesn't like reading at all. He spends his time either loitering around on the street or harassing girls. The other day, he helped you out at the ice rink purely because he thought you were pretty and wanted to find an opportunity to chat you up. If I had been there that day, I definitely would have gone up to him too!"

Zhou Xiaobai rolled her eyes at Zhang Haiyang. Hearing Zhang Haiyang introduce Zhong Yuemin like that, her impression of Zhong Yuemin immediately worsened. This guy was only decent-looking, but she didn't expect him to be so ignorant and incompetent.

Since she had already thanked him, and Zhang Haiyang was still nagging beside her, Zhou Xiaobai lost interest and said to Luo Yun.

"Luo Yun, let's go!"

Luo Yun nodded and was about to leave when Zhong Yuemin stretched and said to the others.

"Zhang Haiyang, you're slandering me like this, do you have a crush on Zhou Xiaobai? Let me tell you, I don't have many other merits, my only merit is that I'm likable, especially to pretty girls. Or, buddy, how about I teach you a few tricks?"

Zhang Haiyang, that little sycophant, was furious and started to defend himself when Zhong Yuemin revealed his secret.

"Zhong Yuemin, I'm warning you, if you keep slandering people like this, I'm cutting ties with you. Let's go, let's go, Xiaobai, let's ignore this guy, he's so irresponsible!"

Zhong Yuemin laughed heartily. Young people of this age are sensitive and sentimental. Even someone as carefree as Zhang Haiyang is afraid that others will find out when he meets a girl he likes.

Zhou Xiaobai was quite annoyed by Zhong Yuemin's frivolous vanity. She snorted and prepared to leave with Luo Yun.

Zhang Haiyang quickly led the way for the two of them. Seeing that they were really about to leave, Zhong Yuemin felt that he might have gone too far with his joke, so he called out to them.

"Hey, hey, I said you guys came all this way to see me, and you're leaving without even eating? Are you looking down on me? I specially learned several Shaanxi-style snacks, won't you come and try some?"

Upon hearing Zhong Yuemin's words, Zhou Xiaobai immediately stopped and turned around suspiciously to ask.

"You can cook too?"

"Look at what you're saying! Haven't you heard the saying, 'The way to a woman's heart is through her stomach'? I taught myself to be a stomach doctor specifically for my future wife. Want to try some?"

Upon hearing Zhong Yuemin say that his future wife learned cooking skills, Zhou Xiaobai felt like she couldn't move. This guy was glib and obviously not a good person, but somehow she felt quite comfortable listening to him, and couldn't help but hum in agreement.

"What kind of strange and bizarre arguments are these? But we are indeed hungry. Luo Yun, let's go. We won't leave empty-handed today. Let's try some of someone's Shaanxi-style snacks!"

Luo Yun covered her mouth and chuckled, nodded, and turned back with Zhou Xiaobai.

Only Zhang Haiyang slapped his thigh in anger and chased after the two, shouting as he did so.

"Xiaobai, Xiaobai, don't listen to Zhong Yuemin's nonsense. He can't even tell the difference between oil, salt, soy sauce, and vinegar. What cooking skills does he have? You can't eat this! You can't eat this!"

Chapter 144: Master Zhong's Chicken Sandwich

Seeing Zhou Xiaobai turn around, Zhong Yuemin laughed heartily, stood up, and was really ready to get busy preparing Shaanxi-style snacks.

During this time, he also thought about how he would survive if there was a shortage of food when he arrived in northern Shaanxi to work in the countryside.

He couldn't remember the plot of the original novel very clearly. He only remembered that he seemed to have followed the local tradition and begged for food in various county towns to make a living. However, he felt that the kind of life of going hungry one day and eating a full meal the next was a bit shameful.

He also thought that with his cooking skills, he would definitely not starve. But then he realized that although he had cooking skills, he couldn't very well cook Cantonese or Sichuan cuisine.