The entire courtyard is full of villains

“Master, I... I don’t think I heard it clearly either... but I did hear the name ‘Zhang Erhe’ on the radio.”

"Old Yi, you heard me right!" Guo Da Piezi strode out of the office. "The factory held a meeting the day before yesterday afternoon and decided to set up a new workshop specifically for manufacturing well drilling equipment. A notice will be posted at the workshop entrance soon; anyone willing to transfer can come and sign up here." He glanced at Yi Zhonghai. "What, do you know this Zhang Erhe?"

"Yes, I know him." Yi Zhonghai forced a smile. "He's a young man who lives in the compound. I didn't expect him to be so capable."

"Wow, Lao Yi, your compound is full of hidden talents! Isn't Sha Zhu, the cook who made special meals for the department leaders the other day, also from your compound?"

As soon as Guo Da Piezi left, Yi Zhonghai's smile vanished. He kicked the tin bucket next to him—but some lazybones had stuffed it with workpieces. When he kicked it, the bucket flew away, and he himself clutched his foot in pain, hopping on one leg.

"It hurts so much! It hurts so much!"

Qin Huairu quickly stepped forward to help him sit down and carefully took off his shoes, only to see that his toes were already red and swollen.

"Huai Ru, go tell Director Guo that I can't work today."

Qin Huairu went to find Guo Da Piezi. Guo Da Piezi came over, looked at Yi Zhonghai's swollen toe, and shook his head: "Old Yi, you've been a long-time employee, how could you be so careless? I'll approve a few days off... Is three days enough?"

Yi Zhonghai tentatively began, "Three days... I'm afraid..."

"Alright, I'll approve a week's leave! Take good care of yourself and come back next week. But be careful, if you keep taking leave like this, they'll be looking at your year-end performance review."

"Understood, Director Guo, thank you."

Qin Huairu stood to the side, a chill running through her. She had thought that with Yi Zhonghai back at the factory, she would finally have someone to rely on, but who knew that this support would be gone after only a couple of days. Helpless, she had no choice but to take leave as well and help Yi Zhonghai walk back.

Meanwhile, in the maintenance department, a group of people were congratulating Wu Liqun and Zhang Erhe.

"Congratulations, Director Wu and Deputy Director Zhang!"

Wu Liqun smiled and took out cigarettes, handing them out one by one. Zhang Erhe, however, remained sitting lazily outside, not moving.

“Ladies,” Wu Liqun called out, “anyone willing to come with me to the new workshop, raise your hand now! I’ve already spoken with the factory manager, and once the list is submitted, you’ll definitely be transferred.”

The craftsmen looked at each other, and three or four of them raised their hands, while the rest hesitated and did not move.

Wu Liqun looked around and found that only a few younger technicians were willing to go with him; none of the older ones raised their hands. Seeing this, he couldn't help but secretly admire his apprentice's earlier reminder—if he had actually reported the entire maintenance department yesterday, people might not say anything to his face, but they would inevitably complain about him behind his back.

That's fine. Let those who want to stay in the maintenance department and live a stable life stay.

“Okay, Master Yu, Master Ding, Master Hong, and the rest of you,” he nodded, “I’ll report your names later. The factory will send people to renovate the new workshop this afternoon, it will take at most two days. We’ll go there together to report the day after tomorrow morning.”

He then looked at the remaining old buddies who hadn't raised their hands and said half-jokingly, "Don't think you can just relax! Let me tell you, when the new workshop is just starting out and we're too busy, we'll have to drag you guys in to help out for a while."

A chorus of wails erupted from below.

"You old Wu, you're trying to squeeze oil out of a dead person!"

"Of course!" Wu Liqun waved his hand with a smile, then raised his voice, "But tonight it's my treat. It's my house, we won't leave until we're drunk! None of you are allowed to miss it."

"Alright!" the two experienced chefs below practically gritted their teeth as they agreed. "Tonight, we're going to drink you, Mr. Wu, under the table, or we won't be able to get rid of this 'worry' in our hearts!"

Chapter 67 Gaining the Upper Hand

At the entrance of the courtyard house, Qin Huairu, her forehead beaded with sweat, struggled to support Yi Zhonghai. Yi Zhonghai, however, was somewhat distracted—Qin Huairu's voluptuous figure meant that their bodies inevitably brushed against each other as she supported him, the warm touch stirring a strange, indescribable feeling within him. Unfortunately, the journey was far too short; before he could fully savor it, they had already reached the courtyard gate.

Qin Huairu didn't think much of it and focused on helping him into the house. Just then, Tan Saihua came out of the house and exclaimed in surprise when she saw the situation: "Zhonghai, what happened to you?" Before she finished speaking, tears were already falling.

"Stop crying," Yi Zhonghai said in a low voice with a stern face. "Help me inside quickly. Do you want people to laugh at me if I stay in the yard?" Tan Saihua then noticed that several women in the yard had already peeked over and gathered around. She quickly shut up and, together with Qin Huairu, helped Yi Zhonghai into the house.

"Master's wife, Master's injury is nothing serious. Just try not to move around for the next few days, and he'll be fine once the swelling goes down." Qin Huairu said softly, then turned to Yi Zhonghai: "Master, I'll go back now."

Yi Zhonghai suppressed the strange emotions in his heart and nodded, saying, "Huai Ru, thank you for your hard work."

“Master, what are you saying? Dongxu and I have long said that we will take care of you and your wife in your old age. This little thing is nothing.” After saying that, she turned around and went back to the west wing.

Inside the room, Madam Jia, who had been asleep, immediately sat up upon hearing the door open: "Who is it?"

"Mom, it's me, Huairu."

"It's already noon? Did you bring back lunch from the cafeteria?" Jia Zhangshi asked, getting out of bed.

"It's not even noon yet."

"Then why did you come back?" When Jia Zhangshi heard that she hadn't brought any food, her face immediately turned sour.

"My mentor injured his foot in the workshop, so I took leave to bring him back."

"What? You took leave? What about the deducted wages?" Jia Zhangshi's voice suddenly rose. "Go find the old man who's left without a job and make him pay the deducted money! Otherwise, I won't stand for it!"

"Mom!" Qin Huairu's tone became more forceful, "Have you forgotten what I told you last night?"

Madam Jia was taken aback. Remembering Qin Huairu's repeated instructions last night to cultivate a good relationship with Yi Zhonghai, she reluctantly stopped talking and asked curiously, "How did Yi Zhonghai get injured?"

"He kicked the waste bin, but he didn't expect there to be workpieces inside, and he injured his toe."

"Wow!" Jia Zhangshi immediately looked gloating. "Even the old man who has no descendants has met his end! Did someone in the workshop say something?"

"Some people are gossiping, but that's not the main point... The important thing is that Yi Zhonghai heard that Zhang Erhe is going to become the deputy director of the workshop."

"Good heavens! Zhang Erhe as deputy director?" Jia Zhangshi's eyes widened. "Such a good thing is possible?"

"Of course! His mentor is the director, so what's wrong with him being a deputy director?"

Qin Huairu's words left Jia Zhangshi stunned for a while before she finally spoke softly, "Huairu, what do you think... I'll ask Zhang Erhe to transfer you to their workshop?"

“Mom,” Qin Huairu said helplessly, “That’s a new workshop for them, so it would be great if we could be transferred there. But don’t you know what kind of relationship our family has with Zhang Erhe’s family? Do you think he would be willing to help us? I’m afraid he wouldn’t even let us in the door, and instead we’d become a laughing stock in the whole hospital.”

Upon hearing this, Jia Zhangshi slapped her thigh in frustration, saying, "If only I hadn't listened to Yi Zhonghai and gone to occupy his house! We weren't close before, but we still maintained a polite facade. Now look what's happened, we've completely fallen out..."

She suddenly stood up, her eyes darting around, "No, I have to tell Guan Xue this news. Since Zhang Erhe can't be trusted, I might as well sell this information to Guan Xue and get closer to her." With that, she swayed her plump body and hurried off to the front yard.

Guan Xue was washing her daughter Zhang Jiao's clothes by the pool, scolding her as she did so: "Be careful when you play! You're always covered in mud! If you don't behave, I'll have your dad beat you!"

"Hehehe—" Zhang Jiao made a face, "My dad won't hit me!"

"Sister-in-law! Sister-in-law!" Jia Zhangshi called from afar, her round body rolling over like a ball. "Why are you still washing clothes here? Why don't you hurry up and buy some good vegetables?"

Guan Xue didn't even look up, and said coldly, "Jia Zhangshi, why would I buy vegetables?"

"Oh, why call me Jia Zhangshi? We're all family, just call me sister!"

"No, no, no," Guan Xue interrupted immediately, "Our Erhe doesn't agree with that. If I say that, I'll definitely get a scolding later."

Jia Zhangshi wasn't embarrassed at all. Instead, she leaned closer and lowered her voice, but couldn't hide her excitement: "Listen to me, hurry up and buy some good meat and vegetables! When Erhe comes back tonight, we have to have a good celebration—Erhe is really something now, he's become the deputy director of the workshop!"

"What? Our Erhe has become the deputy director of the workshop?" Guan Xue was truly stunned.

Several women nearby heard this and gathered around.

"Jia Zhangshi, what nonsense are you spouting? Can Zhang Erhe be the deputy director of the workshop?"

"Exactly! Yi Zhonghai from the Intermediate Court and Liu Haizhong from the Back Court are both senior technicians, and they've been working for years without even becoming a team leader. How come it's Zhang Erhe's turn?"

"If you want to curry favor with the Zhang family, you can't just make up lies like this, can you?"

Upon hearing this, Jia Zhangshi immediately put her hands on her hips and raised her voice:

"Shut up, all of you! Huai Ru told me this news herself. The steel mill even broadcast it over the loudspeaker. What are you all still spouting nonsense about?"

"Let me tell you, none of the men in your families are any good! How can any of them compare to Zhang Erhe?"

"Liu Haizhong's wife, don't look at others, I'm talking about you! Who in the compound doesn't know that your old Liu is green with envy for a government position? Now that Zhang Erhe has really become the deputy director, your family must be the most unhappy in the whole compound, right? With your face, you still want to be a leader's wife? Bah!"

Liu Haizhong's wife turned ashen-faced from the rebuke, her lips trembling as she tried to retort, but found herself at a loss for words. She considered fighting back, but glancing at Jia Zhangshi's robust physique, and realizing that none of her four men—the eldest and the youngest—were present, she could only force out, "Jia Zhangshi, what are you so smug about? No matter how capable Zhang Erhe is, he's still Guan Xue's man! It's none of your business! And your family? Old Jia is gone, Jia Dongxu is in labor camp, and you still have the nerve to jump around in the yard? If it were me, I would have drowned myself in my own urine long ago!"

"So what if I'm smug? No matter what, my family is still within five degrees of kinship with Zhang Erhe!"

"Bah! Zhang Erhe said last time that the clan kicked you out long ago, and you won't even have any family members to mourn you when you die!"

The two were arguing fiercely when Xu Damao pushed his bicycle into the yard, carrying movie projector equipment on the frame. The threshold was high, and he was struggling to lift it up when Aunt Yang Ruihua quickly came forward to help him push the wheels in.

"Da Mao, what's wrong with you...?"

"Auntie, I have to go down to the countryside and come back to get two pieces of clothing."

Yang Ruihua then steered the conversation back to the main topic: "Da Mao, did you hear the announcement on the factory's loudspeaker today?"

"I heard you." Xu Damao had barely finished speaking when he noticed all the women in the courtyard staring at him. He couldn't help but swallow hard. "Wh-what's wrong?"

Jia Zhangshi rushed forward and asked, "Xu Damao, tell me, has Zhang Erhe become the deputy director of the workshop?"

"Yes, I was right next to the broadcasting station back then."

"Listen to this! Listen to this, everyone!" Jia Zhangshi immediately raised her eyebrows triumphantly, pointing at everyone, "What did I tell you? None of you believed me, insisting that I was talking nonsense! Now the factory has issued a notice, let's see who's lying through their teeth! Instead of wasting your time criticizing others, you should go home and teach your good-for-nothing husbands a lesson!"

Without waiting for anyone's reaction, she turned and slipped back to the central courtyard. She wasn't stupid; if she angered everyone now, and Liu Haizhong's wife pounced on her and tried to grab her, and the others took sides, she would definitely suffer—wouldn't it be foolish not to run away when she had the upper hand?

Chapter 68 Losing one's mind

Liu Haizhong's wife, unable to contain her anger, was about to rush forward and attack Jia Zhangshi, but unexpectedly, the latter, contrary to her usual behavior, ran away in a flash. With nowhere to vent her rage, she could only coldly utter:

“Mrs. Jia, Old Jia is dead, and Jia Dongxu has been sent to a labor camp. Instead of thinking about avenging your son, you're rushing to curry favor with your enemy! If Jia Dongxu knew what kind of person you were, wouldn't he just kill himself in the labor camp?”

With that, she turned and stormed back to the backyard. Seeing there was no more excitement to be seen, the other women in the yard also dispersed in twos and threes.

Only Yang Ruihua's eyes lit up as he moved closer to Guan Xue, his face beaming with a smile: "Guan Xue, congratulations!"

"Sister-in-law Yang, Erhe hasn't returned yet, this matter..." Guan Xue hesitated.

“No problem!” Yang Ruihua chimed in enthusiastically. “Xu Damao just said that he heard the announcement from the broadcasting station with his own ears, so it’s a done deal! You’re really lucky.” She looked on with envy. “You’re going to become a leader’s wife! Liu Haizhong’s wife has been waiting for this her whole life and still hasn’t achieved it.”

As she spoke, she glanced at Zhang Jiao beside her and lowered her voice: "Guan Xue, let me tell you, Erhe is young now and has become a cadre, so you have to be careful. I've heard that some vixens are specifically targeting men like Erhe. Don't let him get tricked and you still be in the dark... If you ask me, you have to hurry up and give Erhe a son. With a son, he won't dare to dump you no matter what."

Guan Xue's cheeks immediately turned as red as ripe fruit, while Zhang Jiao blinked, looking at Yang Ruihua and then at her mother, completely unable to understand the adults' complicated thoughts.

Around 3 p.m., Yan Bugui sneaked home early again. He parked his bicycle at the door, pulled his fishing rod from the roof beam, and started looking around for a bucket.

"Ruihua, where's our water bucket?"

Why are you looking for a bucket?

"What else can we do?" Yan Bugui said listlessly. "Let's go to Qianhai and see if we can catch some small fish to supplement our family's income."

"Old Yan, don't go today." Yang Ruihua beckoned, "Come here, I have something to tell you."

"What's the matter?" Yan Bugui approached impatiently.

Yang Ruihua gestured towards the door across the hall: "Zhang Erhe has become the deputy director of the workshop."

“Zhang Erhe? Deputy workshop director?” Yan Bugui shook his head with amusement. “How could someone like him be a deputy director? He’s just a petty hoodlum.”

"It's true! Xu Damao told me when he came back. I even specifically inquired about it this afternoon, and it's absolutely true!"

Yan Bugui was still shocked: "He can become a deputy director?"