The entire courtyard is full of villains

"Alright, then let the Yan family send someone to take their place." Director Wang paused for a moment.

"What if they refuse?"

“Not want to do it? Then we have a reason – the neighborhood committee offered them jobs, but they themselves didn’t want to do them.”

In the afternoon, the street office staff went to Yan Bugui's house.

"What? You want someone from our family to clean the toilets?" Yang Ruihua was stunned when he heard this.

“Yes.” The clerk said with a straight face, glancing at Yan Bugui beside him. This morning, because of the kneeling incident, Director Wang had been severely reprimanded by his superiors, and then he reprimanded Yan Bugui, the clerk in charge of No. 95 compound, and was in a bad mood right now.

“But our eldest son is like that…” Yang Ruihua was at a loss.

"Don't you have Yan Jiefang in your family?" the clerk said, then turned and left.

"Old Yan, what should we do?" As soon as the clerk left, Yang Ruihua anxiously sought advice from Yan Bugui.

Yan Bugui shook his head with a wry smile: "Old Yang, this is Director Wang retaliating against us!"

"Huh?" Yang Ruihua was dumbfounded, then burst into tears, "I told you long ago, your trick wouldn't work, but you insisted on making me kneel... Now you've really offended Director Wang!"

Yan Bugui lowered his head and remained silent for a moment before slowly speaking: "Let Jiefang drop out of school and take this job. Our family can't just wait to die, can we?"

"Liberation?" Yang Ruihua asked worriedly. "Would he be willing to go?"

Whether he wants to or not... he has to take the blame!

Sure enough, when Yan Jiefang returned that evening and heard that he was to drop out of school and work as a latrine cleaner, he immediately exploded:

"Dad, Mom, what are you thinking? I'm about to graduate from junior high! After graduation, I can register at the neighborhood office and at least get a formal job. Isn't that better than being a temporary worker cleaning latrines?"

"Second brother..." Yang Ruihua's face was filled with pain.

Yan Bugui, however, remained unusually calm: "The street office is registering and assigning jobs? You can only take that with a grain of salt. Your brother has been registered for years, has he heard anything?"

“That’s not…that’s not our family’s class status back then…” Yan Jiefang’s voice trailed off.

“Let me tell you, Yan Jiefang, you’re the only one our family can count on now. If you’re not going to clean the latrines, then you might as well not go to school, and we’ll just wait to die together.” Yan Bugui said in a hard tone, “Or if you don’t want to clean the latrines, that’s fine too. Starting tomorrow, we’ll pay back all the money we’ve spent on you over the years, and then we’ll split up.”

"Dad! Where am I going to get the money for school?!"

"There are only two options: either pay me and you can do whatever you want; or drop out of school and go shovel latrines. The choice is yours."

Yan Jiefang was so angry that he was trembling all over. After a long while, he managed to choke out, "...You're all forcing me! I won't choose anything!" After saying that, he turned around and ran away.

Yang Ruihua was eager to give chase, but Yan Bugui stopped her: "Come back! Why chase after him? Don't worry, he'll come back—what can he do without a penny in his hand?"

Yang Ruihua stared blankly at Yan Bugui. The Yan Bugui of the past still possessed some humanity, but now only cold calculation remained in his eyes.

Yan Bugui's calculations were very accurate. In the middle of the night, Yan Jiefang, cold and hungry, returned home dejectedly.

Yan Bugui looked at him: "Have you thought it through?"

Yan Jiefang silently finished a bowl of thin cornmeal porridge, and finally said in a hoarse voice, "...I've thought it through."

"That's fine. Have your mom take you to the school tomorrow to withdraw from the program, and then report to the neighborhood office."

P.S.: After a busy day, it's finally done! Please, Bellfiglu from Jiudu, Auntie, and Fengyi, Keyan, and Jiankangkuaile from Shejifu, send the information to my email! (Penguin) Last but not least, please help me catch up on updates!

Chapter 173 Rainwater Persuades Brother

Inside the steel rolling mill's security department, Sha Zhu shuffled out, head bowed and stooped. Standing at the factory gate, he squinted at the long-awaited sun—he'd finally had his fill of work in the security department these past few days.

Several security guards who had previously had their portions secretly reduced by him finally got their chance this time, and every few days they would "practice" a beating on him. But these people were very careful with their blows, and there wasn't a single scratch on his face. Only Sha Zhu himself knew how much pain he was in.

After basking in the sun for a while, he dragged his heavy steps toward the courtyard. Director Yang's secretary said he could rest for three days, after which he would have to report to the foundry workshop.

Exhausted and hungry from the journey, he finally made it back to courtyard number 95. As soon as he entered the front yard, he saw a group of women chatting idly. Seeing him come in, they all pointed and whispered among themselves. Sha Zhu didn't bother with them—he had completely lost face this time.

Walking to the water tap in the middle courtyard, he saw a woman squatting there washing clothes. At first glance, he thought it was Qin Huairu, but when he got closer, he realized it wasn't. The woman looked a little older than Qin Huairu, and because she was scrubbing vigorously, her neckline was hanging low, revealing a dazzling expanse of white skin.

Sha Zhu blushed instantly and stood there stunned.

The woman, however, was completely oblivious and continued scrubbing the clothes.

"Pillar!"

A voice suddenly startled him awake. Sha Zhu hurriedly turned around and saw that it was Tan Saihua calling him.

"Hey, an old lady..."

"The old lady is calling you." Tan Saihua paused, then said, "Zhuzi, don't call me 'old lady' anymore, call me Aunt Tan."

"Ma'am, what...what happened?"

Tan Saihua glanced at the woman by the tap and whispered, "Your uncle has remarried. I... divorced him."

"Huh? When did this happen?" Sha Zhu was taken aback.

"Let's go, the old lady is waiting in the back." Tan Saihua was clearly unwilling to say more and turned to go to the backyard.

Sha Zhu had no choice but to follow. After they left, Widow Hu, who was washing clothes, looked up, wiped her sweat, and pursed her lips at Tan Saihua's back. She muttered under her breath, "What's so smug about... a hen that doesn't lay eggs."

When they arrived at the deaf old woman's room in the backyard, she was leaning against the kang (a heated brick bed). Sha Zhu quickly stepped forward, but before he could speak, his eyes welled up with tears: "Old woman, this time I..."

"Alright, Pillar," the deaf old woman waved her hand. "No need for further words. Do you have any bath tickets left?"

Yes, yes.

"Go take a good bath to get rid of the bad luck." The old lady then said to Tan Saihua, "Saihua, put a brazier in front of his house later so that Zhuzi can step over it."

"Understood, ma'am."

After Tan Saihua left, the deaf old lady called Sha Zhu over and said, "Zhu Zi, I used up all my last bit of favor to get you out of here. Your uncle... is no longer on our side."

Sha Zhu hurriedly asked, "Grandma, what exactly happened to me these past few days? Aunt Tan just said that she and Uncle Yi divorced, is that true?"

"It's true." The deaf old woman sighed. "Your uncle has found another widow."

"How could an old man do this? He's not—"

"Zhu Zi," the old lady interrupted him, "you can only say this to me, don't mention it outside. From now on, live your life honestly. Once these three months are over, I'll find a way to transfer you back to the canteen. Remember, there's no one to back you up in the backyard anymore, so be careful, understand?"

"Okay," Sha Zhu replied hesitantly.

"Go on, take a shower and get some rest."

Sha Zhu came out of the backyard and passed through the middle courtyard, where Widow Hu was still washing clothes. He glanced at her again, almost as if possessed—the white mass was still swaying.

He couldn't help but swallow.

Widow Hu looked up abruptly, only to meet Sha Zhu's staring gaze. She glanced down at her chest, blushed, and spat.

Sha Zhu, like a startled rabbit, hunched over and ran away in a flash.

Widow Hu watched his disheveled figure disappear, then laughed and cursed, "What a disgrace!"

When Sha Zhu returned after his bath, the gossiping women in the front yard had already dispersed. He walked into the middle yard and glanced at the water tap—the person washing clothes was gone, and he felt a strange emptiness in his heart.

Stepping over the brazier that Tan Saihua had placed at the door, Sha Zhu had just entered the house and sat down when he heard hurried footsteps outside, accompanied by a sobbing voice.

"elder brother--!"

He Yushui rushed in through the door and crashed into Sha Zhu's arms. Sha Zhu stumbled from the impact, his hidden injuries aggravated, and he grimaced in pain.

"Rain, be gentle..."

He Yushui raised her face, looked him up and down, and then punched his arm hard:

"I hate you!"

Sha Zhu gasped in pain, "Are you trying to murder your own brother?!"

"Yes! Killing you would be better than you constantly causing trouble outside!" He Yushui's eyes were red. "Whose fault is this? It's all your own fault for insisting on going head-to-head with those people in the cafeteria..."

"That was..."

"Brother..." Hearing him say that, He Yushui quickly turned around, closed the door, and lowered her voice:

“What’s wrong with you? You used to say you’d ‘play dumb,’ but now you’re acting more and more genuinely stupid. You’ve offended Zhang Erhe, and now you’re fighting at the factory… In the end, I had no choice but to ask the deaf old lady for help. You’ve incurred such a huge debt of gratitude; how are you going to repay it?”

Sha Zhu was taken aback upon hearing this.

Over the years I've been "pretending to be stupid," but somehow it seems like... I've really become stupid?

He made a face and sighed, "Rain, don't worry, I'll definitely change."

“You’d better really change.” He Yushui squeezed his hand. “I’m afraid if you continue like this, you’ll be completely tied down by that deaf old lady and the others. Dad can’t be relied on, you can’t go on like this…”

"Alright, let's not talk about this anymore," Sha Zhu interrupted her. "Tell me, what's been happening in the yard these past two days?"

"Yi Zhonghai across the street... got married."

"Did he really marry her?"

"Yeah, he married a widow, not much older than Qin Huairu. She's always so flirtatious—" He Yushui finished speaking and stuck out her tongue, "This isn't what I said, it's what the second aunt in the backyard said."

"Is there anything else?"

He Yushui glanced quickly at her brother and whispered, "Zhang Erhe in the front yard... had a son."

Sha Zhu clenched his fists instantly.

Zhang Erhe is a year younger than him and is already a father of two. And what about himself? He's been disciplined this time, and it'll take at least a year or two to get back to the cafeteria. If this continues…

Seeing her brother's expression, He Yushui knew he was upset and quickly comforted him:

"Brother, don't be discouraged. Zhang Erhe has his parents helping him, so his life is definitely better than ours. I'm graduating from junior high this year, and once I get into a vocational school, you'll probably be able to go back to the cafeteria too. Let's save up some money and find you a beautiful wife."

She paused, her voice becoming even softer: "Once you're married, we'll go to Baoding to inquire and find He Daqing... to show him that we can live a good life without him."

Sha Zhu nodded heavily:

"Understood, Rainwater."

P.S.: You guys are all being so polite, hurry up and send your addresses! What if someone else gets the lottery later? Don't you know the story of Zigong redeeming people? Finally, please keep updating! Keep updating! Keep updating!

Chapter 174 Never Offend Zhang Erhe

On Xinjiekou North Street, in the film studio's residential compound, Xu Damao was chatting with his parents about the novelties of living in a courtyard house.

"Mom and Dad, guess what? That old widow Yi Zhonghai finally couldn't hold back anymore. He kicked out the barren hen in the house and replaced her with a young and beautiful widow!" Xu Damao said excitedly, even smacking his lips—he had actually witnessed the scene that Sha Zhu saw this morning as well.

"Alright, Da Mao." Xu's father, Xu Fugui, glanced at him. "I told you long ago, stop worrying about things in that yard. That yard is a complete mess all day long."