The entire courtyard is full of villains

"I'll stay with Lao Si for a while."

After everyone left, Zhang Erhe took out a few bottles of liquor from the car. It wasn't anything fancy, just the Erguotou commonly found in Beijing. In his early years, when he and Ma Qianli were struggling financially, they could only afford this kind of liquor by scraping together a little money from home. Back then, the two brothers were young, and although the liquor was rough, they always drank with exceptional enjoyment.

He walked over and squatted down in front of Ma Qianli's grave.

I unscrewed the bottle cap, tilted my head back and took a big gulp, then slowly sprinkled the rest onto the grave soil.

"Fourth brother, there's so much I want to say... but seeing you lying here, I suddenly can't say anything."

The northwest wind swirled the scraps of paper money around the grave, making Zhang Erhe's hair flutter wildly.

He spoke in a hoarse voice:

"The pair of spies who dragged you down with them were gone on the spot. But their superiors, and their superiors... I've caught them all. You can rest in peace now."

He raised his hand and wiped his face, whether to remove dust from the wind or something else, it was unclear.

"Now only that bastard Zhang Guowei is left. Don't worry, it won't be long before I send him down."

The voice suddenly choked up:

"You're really stupid... Knowing that I had fallen out with this bastard, why did you still go to save him? Didn't you think about Qiqige, or the child in her belly? You... are a fucking idiot."

He opened another bottle and tilted his head back to gulp down half of it.

"Don't worry, I'll take good care of Qiqige, Yunduo, and the one in her belly. As for you, when you get down there and see your father, don't keep bringing up how much trouble you've caused all these years... Live a good life, find a beautiful female ghost, and make it work. If you need money, just send a dream to your second brother, and he'll burn you a lot of money."

He said a few words, then took a swig of wine. The four bottles were quickly emptied.

"Alright... I'm not talking to you anymore."

He slowly sprinkled the last drop of the bottle on the grave mound:

"I remember what you said last. You wait for your second brother down here. When I come down, we'll continue to be brothers."

He stood up unsteadily, walked towards the car, and waved behind him without looking back.

Tears silently streamed down his face, unaware that behind him, a gust of wind swirled up ashes from the grave, like a gentle hand waving softly in the air, as if reluctant to say goodbye.

Zhang Erhe fell ill, and his illness came on suddenly and became severe.

Yang Ruihua stumbled upon them in the courtyard—Sun Xiangdong and Wu Qian were carrying Zhang Erhe out hurriedly, one after the other, using a door panel. Guan Xue didn't show up, but Zhang Jiao's sobbing could be heard from inside the Zhang family's house; it was heartbreaking to hear.

She ran home so fast her feet barely touched the ground, and before she even entered the door, her voice preceded her words: "Old Yan! Zhang Erhe is dying—they had him carried out! Judging from the looks of it... I'm afraid he's not going to make it!"

On the bed, Yan Bugui leaned against the wall and slowly opened his eyes: "Old Yang, how many times have I told you, stop asking about these gossips in the courtyard."

"I don't care about other people's business!" Yang Ruihua said, feeling wronged. "But this is Zhang Erhe! Have you forgotten how our family..."

“That’s precisely why we can’t interfere,” Yan Bugui interrupted her, his eyes calm and undisturbed.

Yang Ruihua opened her mouth, but ultimately swallowed her words.

In the hospital, the doctor looked at the thermometer, his brow furrowed: "Forty-one degrees! You only brought him in when he had this fever? What kind of brothers are you?"

Wu Qian was sweating profusely with anxiety: "Doctor, my second brother..."

"Bring down the fever first." The doctor waved his hand. "If we delay any longer, the fever could cause serious problems."

The two exchanged a glance and simultaneously breathed a sigh of relief. Sun Xiangdong lowered his voice: "Fourth brother just left, if something were to happen to second brother... Qian'er, your second sister-in-law is in her postpartum period and can't take a shock. Second brother's illness was caused by what happened to fourth brother. We'll take turns watching over him, and we'll make sure he gets better no matter what."

"Okay." Wu Qian nodded emphatically. "Big brother, I'll keep an eye on things tonight. Go and give Second Sister-in-law a heads-up, don't let her overthink things. Also, go to the steel mill and ask Second Brother for leave."

Sun Xiangdong agreed and turned to leave.

The ward fell silent. Wu Qian dragged a stool to the edge of the bed, looking at Zhang Erhe's pale face, the medicine dripping slowly, drop by drop, making one anxious.

“Second Brother, you have to hold on…” His voice choked. “Fourth Brother is gone, but his child is still here. We brothers swore brotherhood back then, what did we say? We’ll share the hardships and the joys – Fourth Brother’s child is our child. You have to watch that child grow up, and when we finally see Fourth Brother in the afterlife, we can stand up straight and say: Brother, don’t worry, we’ll raise the child for you.”

As he spoke, tears streamed down his face: "My dear second brother, please wake up..."

The person on the hospital bed still had his eyes closed, with only the slight rise and fall of his chest proving that he was still breathing.

When Li Huaide finished get off work, he rushed to the hospital. When he arrived, Zhang Erhe was still unconscious. The doctor was also puzzled: normally, the fever should subside after an IV infusion, but Zhang Erhe's case was different—his body temperature dropped during the infusion, but as soon as the fluid was finished, the temperature immediately rose again, and he remained unconscious.

After Li Huaide inquired about the situation, the doctor suggested observing for another day. Li Huaide sat down by the hospital bed and whispered to Zhang Erhe, "Erhe, those people have all been arrested, and the steel rolling mill has been cleaned up. Old Yang even got a scolding from the Ministry of Metallurgy today. By the way, Comrade Ma Qianli's martyr title has been approved. Wake up, let's go see him off together."

Another day passed, and Zhang Erhe still hadn't woken up. Despite being in her postpartum period, Guan Xue insisted on coming to the hospital to see him. She brought her child to the ward, but Zhang Erhe remained unconscious.

For a whole week, Zhang Erhe remained unconscious. Rumors began to circulate in the courtyard, saying that Zhang Erhe had contracted a strange illness and was on the verge of death. Suddenly, the courtyard, which had once been so quiet under his influence, began to stir again.

Chapter 184 It's best if he never wakes up again.

Inside the main room of the courtyard, Sha Zhu sipped his wine contentedly while eating peanuts. Although he had been working himself to the bone in the foundry workshop lately, the news from the courtyard that afternoon made him feel exceptionally gratified—that damned Zhang Erhe, he'd finally met his match!

Last time, some hero must have failed to kill him with a single blow, allowing this bastard to survive. Fortunately, fate finally decided he was too arrogant and domineering, and now it's time to take him away. Sha Zhu smacked his lips, downed a glass of wine, and exclaimed with a satisfying "Awesome!"

"Brother, it's not a holiday, why are you drinking?"

He Yushui, who had just finished school, pushed open the door and came in.

“Rainwater,” Shazhu replied, “I’ve already cooked the cornbread and pickled vegetables for dinner in the pot, you can eat them.”

He Yushui put down her schoolbag and walked over: "Brother, is something wrong in the yard? When I came in, I saw a large group of people gathered in the front yard, making a fuss."

"Hey, those old ladies in our compound always love to gather together and gossip. Who knows what kind of idle chatter they're having this time."

Sha Zhu ultimately didn't tell his sister the details. This kind of thing was too sordid; it was best not to offend her ears.

In the front yard, just as He Yushui had described, a group of women were surrounding Liu Haizhong's wife. Although she tried her best to lower her voice, she couldn't hide the excitement in her words:

"If you ask me, Zhang Erhe is just outrageously arrogant! Arrogance brings rain, and arrogance brings disaster. As a leader, he drives official cars all the time, and his family lives such a lavish life. Who knows if he got it all through embezzlement... Otherwise, why would God have let him get this strange disease?"

The women around him nodded in agreement.

Liu Haizhong's wife got even more excited:

"If you ask me, Guan Xue is destined to be a widow! Last time, Zhang Erhe was almost beaten to death and it took him a long time to recover. Instead of learning from their mistakes, they've become even more outrageous. Now, Guan Xue is really going to be a widow!"

As she spoke, she glanced gloatingly at Zhang Erhe's house:

"Zhang Erhe doesn't have any relatives, just his father-in-law. Who knows, this house might end up in his father-in-law's hands. Guan Xue has completely taken advantage of the Zhang family!"

"What nonsense are you spouting!" Widow Wang had long disliked her. "Zhang Erhe has a son, do you think he's just a decoration?"

"How old is your son?" Liu Haizhong's wife scoffed. "Her younger brother is about to get married. With these two big houses, wouldn't her father consider his son's future? If Guan Xue wants to live peacefully in the courtyard—think about how many people Zhang Erhe has offended before—can she manage without her brother's support? So, in the end, this house will still belong to the Guan family!"

In the east wing of the courtyard, Yi Zhonghai was in an exceptionally good mood. Although Zhang Erhe had helped him marry Hu Tiehua, Yi Zhonghai still felt a sense of satisfaction recalling the humiliations he had suffered at Zhang Erhe's hands.

"Zhang Erhe, you think you're so tough? Let's see you be tougher in another way!"

At dinner, looking at the dejected Yi Laonian, he put down his chopsticks:

"Second Uncle, the people from the neighborhood committee came to ask me today. They said you've been in the compound for a while now and it's time for you to go back."

Yi Laonian raised his head: "My good brother said he would put in a good word for me with the neighborhood committee."

"Second Uncle, Zhang Erhe is lying in the hospital half-dead right now, how can he care about this? How about this, you go back and rest for a while, and buy a ticket to come over in the second half of the year. I will call the village then."

Yi Laonian was somewhat exasperated, but Yi Zhonghai had made up his mind: as long as he could get him back this time, he would be willing to give the village five yuan a month to look after Yi Laonian—even if the money wasn't actually spent on him, it didn't matter. After Yi Laonian passed away, the house would revert to the village. With this arrangement, he wasn't worried about the villagers not helping him keep an eye on things.

Once Yi Laonian leaves, he and Hu Tiehua can move to that room. Right now, this broken plank bed creaks and groans at the slightest sound, which is really hindering Yi Zhonghai's "performance".

Just as they were making plans, Hu Tiehua, who was next to them, suddenly cried out "Ouch!" twice and covered her mouth to dry heave.

"What's wrong, Tiehua?" Yi Zhonghai asked quickly. He was extremely satisfied with this wife; she was not only considerate and gentle, but also had many romantic advances at night.

Hu Tiehua vomited a few times, her complexion softening slightly: "Zhonghai, I don't know what's wrong, I've been feeling nauseous these past two days..."

Yi Zhonghai's heart skipped a beat: "You...you've seen a doctor?"

"No," Hu Tiehua said, feigning ignorance.

"Hey! You wait here." Yi Zhonghai said and went out the door. Not long after, he invited Dr. Xue from the clinic at the alley entrance over.

"Dr. Xue, could you please take my pulse?"

Doctor Xue glanced at Hu Tiehua: "Put your hand up here."

Hu Tiehua quickly extended his arm. Doctor Xue took his pulse, and after a while, stood up and bowed to Yi Zhonghai.

"Old Yi, congratulations—you're going to be a dad!"

Yi Zhonghai stood there, blankly staring, unable to react for a moment. Doctor Xue, seeing his reaction, could understand—anyone nearing fifty would be stunned by such sudden news. However, Doctor Xue also had some doubts: Yi Zhonghai had consulted him many times before, and he could tell that Yi Zhonghai had some health problems. But in this situation… oh well, since Yi Zhonghai was so happy, why should he spoil the mood?

After seeing Doctor Xue off, Yi Zhonghai returned to the courtyard, his steps becoming lighter.

"Second Uncle, Second Aunt, you heard it too, Tiehua is carrying our Yi family's bloodline. The bed is too small now, it creaks and rattles when she turns over at night, I'm afraid she won't get a good rest. How about this—Second Aunt and Tiehua can stay in this room for now, and we'll go and sleep on that hard bed."

Old Man Yi felt a chill run down his spine. This Yi Zhonghai, his mind really worked fast: first he'd have his wife come over to "take care" of him, then in a couple of days he'd say the care wasn't good enough and switch over himself. But now his good brother was in the hospital, and no one was speaking up for him, so Old Man Yi had no choice but to grit his teeth and agree.

In the west wing across the street, Qin Huairu was whispering this matter to Jia Zhangshi.

"Mom, do you think Zhang Erhe might..." Before she could finish speaking, Jia Zhangshi already understood what she meant.

“Huai Ru, I think we shouldn’t try to take over their house yet. Guan Xue has a son, so we won’t have a legitimate reason to do so. Besides, our relationship with Yi Zhonghai isn’t what it used to be, so he definitely won’t help us.” Jia Zhangshi paused, “Why don’t we let someone else test the waters first? If there’s a real opportunity… we can figure something out then.”

Qin Huairu nodded. Last time, it was her family who took the lead first, and as a result, Jia Dongxu was sent to the police station by Zhang Erhe. This time, no matter what, she didn't want to be the one to stick her neck out again.

In the front yard, Yang Ruihua came home late today, but after dinner she still joined the crowd to listen to all the gossip. Right now she's gesturing and talking to Yan Bugui:

"Old Yan, Zhang Erhe is really in trouble this time! Everyone in the courtyard says he won't be able to keep his house and his brother-in-law will eat him into oblivion..."

"What does it matter to us whether he survives or not?" Yan Bugui interrupted her. "I'm warning you again, stay away from those women. If Zhang Erhe is really dead, that's fine, but if he comes back to life—"

He lowered his voice, "Just look at how Liu Haizhong's wife has been acting all high and mighty these past few days, let me tell you, she's definitely not going to get away with this! Have you forgotten how our family ended up like this?"

Yang Ruihua's gloating expression froze instantly. Yes, her family had been driven to this state step by step by Zhang Erhe. She had only made a few sarcastic remarks back then, unlike Liu Haizhong's wife who was so outspoken.

Sure enough, in the Liu family's house in the backyard, Liu Guangqi heard about his mother's "heroic deeds" over the past few days and was so angry that his eyes could kill.

Liu Haizhong was still confused: "Boss, what's wrong with you?"

"Dad! Why don't you do anything about my mom?" Liu Guangqi said angrily.

"Why should we care about her? She's just chatting with someone."

"Is that just idle gossip? That's relentlessly attacking Zhang Erhe's family! Have you forgotten how the Yan family in the front yard suffered such misfortune?"

"The Yan family? Isn't that because Yan Bugui is indecent and Yan Jiecheng is brainless?"

"Dad! Do you think things are that simple? Why his family in particular? Don't you think about it? Before the Yan family got into all that trouble, didn't Yang Ruihua offend Zhang Erhe?"

Liu Haizhong then belatedly exclaimed "Ah!" The second aunt standing nearby was also stunned.

"You're saying... Zhang Erhe did all this?" Liu Haizhong's voice trembled. Thinking of his wife's recent antics, a cold sweat broke out on his back. "Then... what do we do now, boss?"