The train driver in the courtyard

Chapter 1126 Jia Dongxu and Qin Huairu join forces to put on a grand show, betraying Yi Zhonghai.
Just as I was about to take a break, I heard a quarrel outside.

"Jia Dongxu, how can you be so shameless? I'm heavily pregnant, and you've spent all my salary. What will we do when the baby is born?"

"Having a baby doesn't cost money. Besides, you can borrow some from your parents' home. It's not like we won't pay it back."

"Jia Dongxu, how dare you! The dried sweet potatoes I borrowed from my parents' home last time have been gone for so long, and you still haven't returned them. Those were money my parents saved up from the bottom of their teeth."

"The dried sweet potatoes were moldy, and I didn't eat much of them, so why should I pay for them?"

The noise was so loud that Li Aiguo couldn't sleep, so he opened the door to look.

Jia Dongxu and Qin Huairu were seen standing by the tree pit, arguing loudly.

A large crowd had gathered around, including Yan Jiecheng, Yan Jiefang, Liu Guangqi, Xu Damao, and the young wives from the compound.

Xu Damao caught sight of Li Aiguo approaching and greeted him with a wink, "Brother Aiguo, you're arguing, hehe, you're arguing."

This guy practically had schadenfreude written all over his face.

"What's wrong?" Li Aiguo has been busy with the Changxindian Locomotive Factory lately, leaving early and returning late, and rarely appears in the compound. There are many things he doesn't know.

Xu Damao gestured towards the Jia couple with his lip: "What else could it be? Jia Dongxu's old habits have kicked in again! He gambled away his newly received salary! Huai Ru's belly is so big, she's about to give birth, and they desperately need the money!"

Only then did Li Aiguo understand why Qin Huairu had wanted to receive an advance on her salary.

Upon hearing this, Li Aiguo immediately lost interest. The melon was neither big nor sweet, and its ripeness was not guaranteed.

The onlookers, however, were full of enthusiasm, pointing and commenting on Jia Dongxu.

Jia Dongxu went too far this time; his wife was about to give birth, yet he was completely unprepared.

Perhaps touched a nerve, Jia Dongxu's tone softened: "Wife, it was my fault. But the money is gone, it's gone. What can I do?"

Qin Huairu's eyes reddened, and her voice trembled with tears: "What can we do? Giving birth costs money!"

As she spoke, she raised her hand to wipe away her tears.

Li Aiguo observed coldly, and gradually sensed something was amiss.

The way the two of them were acting, singing in unison, seemed more and more like they were deliberately putting on a show.

Could it really be aimed at Yi Zhonghai?

as predicted.

Jia Dongxu chimed in at the opportune moment, "How about I go and borrow some from an old man?"

Qin Huairu looked worried: "Would that old man be willing to lend it to us? You really offended him last time; he hasn't come to our door these past few days."

Jia Dongxu waved his hand: "Probably not. Uncle Yi is a moral exemplar in our compound, and he's also my mentor. He doesn't know that our family is in trouble, but if he did, he would definitely lend a helping hand immediately."

Well, this is like putting on a stage play in front of everyone!

There were quite a few shrewd people in the courtyard, and many residents quickly figured it out.

Those who had initially retreated quietly, fearing being targeted by the Jia family, perked up when they discovered that the focus was on Yi Zhonghai.

"Yes, yes, yes! That old man is the most righteous, how could we not help him!"

"Dongxu, Huairu, listen to your aunt, hurry up and go borrow from Uncle!"

"That's right, I verbally support you!"

Everyone chimed in, urging them on.

Xu Damao, who was watching the drama unfold, stepped forward, patted Jia Dongxu on the shoulder, and shouted, "Hey, we two brothers don't usually get along, but having a baby is a big deal! Borrow money! Go borrow from Yi Zhonghai right now!"

Jia Dongxu and Qin Huairu exchanged a quick glance, a hint of smugness flashing across their lips.

After rehearsing for quite some time, the play has finally reached its crucial moment!
This story begins with Jia Dongxu losing money.

Qin Huairu was indeed very angry when she found out, but she also knew that even if she beat Jia Dongxu up, it would be of no use.

Jia Dongxu knew he had caused trouble and suggested borrowing money from the residents to get through the crisis.

However, Qin Huairu rejected it.

Firstly, the residents in the compound have become smarter after being scammed several times.

Secondly, the residents are already living a very difficult life, so how much money could they possibly have?

The only truly wealthy families are Li Aiguo and Yi Zhonghai.

Liu Haizhong's salary is high, but there are too many people in the family. Liu Guangqi will get married in the future, and Liu Haizhong will need to drink alcohol, so there definitely won't be much money left.

Although Qin Huairu was turned away by Li Aiguo, she got a solution from him: borrow money from Yi Zhonghai.

However, Yi Zhonghai certainly wouldn't lend the money to the Jia family, so we need to come up with a better solution.

Thus, this stage play came about.

Over here, Jia Dongxu and Qin Huairu had already led the residents to Yi Zhonghai's door. Jia Dongxu knocked on the door.

Yi Zhonghai also heard Jia Dongxu and Qin Huairu arguing, but he didn't want to get involved and was currently resting at home.

He opened the door and saw Jia Dongxu and Qin Huairu, with a group of residents standing behind them, and that annoying Li Aiguo was smiling at him.

Yi Zhonghai instinctively felt that something was wrong.

He forced a smile: "Dongxu, is something wrong with you two?"

“Master, Huai Ru is about to give birth, and we’re broke. I’d like to borrow some money from you, and I promise to write you an IOU.” Jia Dongxu said directly.

Upon hearing this, Yi Zhonghai immediately tried to plead poverty.

Xu Damao stepped forward to play the straight man: "Jia Dongxu, what's with all this talk about lending money? Everyone in our compound knows that Yi Zhonghai is a master chef, earning over eighty yuan a month. He's also a moral exemplar, always eager to help others. If you don't ask, Yi Zhonghai will just deliver the money to your house."

Yi Zhonghai felt something was off when he heard this; wasn't that one of his lines?

Other residents started to jeer.

"Yes, the old man often teaches us to help our neighbors, and he will definitely do a better job."

"The old man is Jia Dongxu's mentor, almost like a father. Now that his son is in trouble, his father will definitely be willing to help."

"Guess whether the old man is planning to lend Jia Dongxu ten yuan or twenty yuan?"

"You underestimate an old man like me. I'll borrow at least fifty yuan."

The words that Yi Zhonghai was about to say were swallowed back down.

After all, he has always called himself a moral exemplar, and now he won't even help his apprentice borrow money, which is a slap in his own face.

Most importantly, this tactic is so vicious, it's utterly immoral, inhumane, and utterly depraved.

What? This is a trick that Yi Zhonghai invented himself? Oh well, never mind.

Seeing that Yi Zhonghai had been rebuffed, Xu Damao became even more emboldened and said sarcastically, "What's wrong, Yi Zhonghai? Why aren't you helping? So all this talk and no action has been just empty words."

Yan Jiecheng, always eager for drama, chimed in, "Yeah, Yi Zhonghai only knows how to lecture us. When it comes to himself, he refuses to do it."

A chorus of cheers and whistles rose from the crowd.

Li Aiguo watched with great interest; this melon was finally getting interesting.

He sensed someone watching him, turned his head, and glimpsed the deaf old woman hiding behind the window, looking in their direction. Seeing Li Aiguo looking this way, the deaf old woman's eyes widened, her face contorted with malice, and she actually spat a mouthful of yellow phlegm at Li Aiguo through the window.

This old woman is really starting to take advantage of her age more and more.

Do you really think that hiding inside means we can't do anything to you?
In addition, it's time to find out more about the deaf old lady.

Li Aiguo squinted his eyes.

Yi Zhonghai now finds himself on the hot seat of trouble.

If he refused to lend money, his reputation in the compound would plummet, and he would be seen as a hypocrite.

If he borrows money, Jia Dongxu definitely won't pay it back.

Yi Zhonghai quickly gave the older woman a wink, hoping she would help him out of the predicament.

The older woman was initially reluctant to get involved in such messy affairs, but she only had a small amount of savings at home, and if she squandered it all, her future retirement would be in jeopardy.

"Um, Dongxu, it's not that we're unwilling to lend money, it's just that we really don't have any at home," an older woman said hesitantly as she stepped forward.

At this moment, someone who surprised everyone spoke up, saying something that no one could understand.

"Hey lady, did you lend money to this deaf old lady for medical treatment?"

Everyone turned to look, and it was Li Aiguo who was speaking.

Given that Li Aiguo and Yi Zhonghai have always had a bad relationship, why would Li Aiguo try to exonerate Yi Zhonghai?

Just as everyone was puzzled, Yi Zhonghai's eyes lit up, and he slapped his thigh: "Yes, yes, yes, I lent the money to the deaf old lady. I'll go get the money back now and lend it to Jia Dongxu."

Done.

Yi Zhonghai turned and ran towards the deaf old lady's house.

Xu Damao was completely confused and muttered, "Why is Yi Laogou acting like a lapdog today? He treats Li Aiguo's farts as imperial edicts?"

Liu Lan glared at him: "Use your pig brain! Where would Yi Zhonghai get any money from the old lady? He's trying to squeeze money out of her funeral savings to ward off disaster!"

"I see..." Xu Damao suddenly realized, then leaned forward and asked, "But what is Li Aiguo after?"

Liu Lan frowned and shook her head: "It's hard to say... It looks like they're trying to find out what's going on with the deaf old woman's family."

While the two were discussing this, Yi Zhonghai had already arrived at the deaf old lady's house and recounted everything that had just happened.

"Grandma, when they slap my face, they're slapping yours." Yi Zhonghai wanted to say "slap my face," but then realized he was a generation younger than the deaf old lady, so he quickly changed his words to "slap my face, they're slapping your buttocks."

"Fool! You've been a big shot for half your life, and you can't even keep a bunch of peasants in check! You should have chosen He Daqing to replace you back then!"

The deaf old lady was so angry that her heart ached.

She saw Li Aiguo there today, so she didn't dare go out at all, but she was still stuck with him.

Could it be that Li Aiguo is retaliating for spitting? That kid holds a grudge too much.

However, the deaf old lady couldn't just stand by and watch Yi Zhonghai lose his position as an old man.

Sha Zhu will be out in two years, and he will need Yi Zhonghai's help then.

She lived in the compound and also needed Yi Zhonghai's help with errands.

The investigations have become increasingly strict in the past two years. In some places, they are investigating things from before the liberation. If someone exposes our past, things could get very bad.

After thinking it over, she finally pulled out twenty yuan and threw it at him: "Just this once! Remember this!"

Yi Zhonghai gripped the money tightly, gritting his teeth and saying angrily, "Don't worry! It must be Li Aiguo's doing. We'll deal with him sooner or later!"

After saying that, he hunched over and retreated.

The door closed, and the deaf old woman lay back on the bed, her cloudy old eyes staring at the ceiling.

"The weather in this courtyard is probably about to change..."

Yi Zhonghai returned home with the money and generously took out ten yuan: "Dongxu, this is a loan from your master."

Seeing that he only had ten yuan, Jia Dongxu was somewhat dissatisfied.

Qin Huairu quickly tugged at his arm and gave him a wink.

Ten yuan may not be much, but it's enough for a natural birth.

"Thank you, Master." Jia Dongxu knew that Yi Zhonghai couldn't lend him any more money, so he immediately accepted it.

"Wait, write an IOU." Yi Zhonghai took the money back.

"what"

In the end, Jia Dongxu wrote an IOU, signed his name, and put his fingerprint on it.

The summer sun lingers a little longer than usual.

But they will die eventually.

Night fell over the entire courtyard.

As Yi Zhonghai lay in bed, he thought about what had happened during the day, and the more he thought about it, the more depressed he felt.

He has indeed suffered a few losses in the past two years, but none of them have made him angrier than this one.

Not only did Jia Dongxu blatantly betray him, but what was most infuriating was that this ingrate used a method that Yi Zhonghai himself had invented!

“Jia Dongxu… this pawn cannot be kept.”

Yi Zhonghai clenched his fist, his knuckles cracking in the darkness.

At this time, the Jia family...

Jia Dongxu was very excited. He could keep five yuan for Qin Huairu to use for having a baby, and use the remaining five yuan to gamble.

His luck will definitely get better and better; five dollars will turn into five hundred dollars, then five thousand dollars, and he'll be able to reach the pinnacle of his life.

Seeing his carefree expression, Qin Huairu couldn't help but remind him, "Dongxu, this money is on an IOU, you still have to pay back that old man..."

"Hahaha..." Jia Dongxu burst into a shrill, strange laugh, as if he had heard the funniest joke in the world.

"What are you laughing at?" Qin Huairu felt uneasy at his laughter.

Jia Dongxu's smile vanished, his eyes suddenly turning icy: "Tell me... if the creditor suddenly 'closes their eyes' one day, does that mean the debt... will never have to be repaid?"

Qin Huairu suddenly shuddered.

A chill ran down my spine, startling me so much that my hair stood on end and goosebumps instantly covered my arms.

Seeing her frightened expression, Jia Dongxu quickly put on a relaxed smile and said, "Look how scared you are! I was just joking."

Qin Huairu breathed a sigh of relief: "That really scared me to death, Dongxu, you can't say things like that."

Jia Dongxu nodded: "Don't worry, I know what's important."

He turned and walked to the window, lifting a corner of the curtain. Outside, the night was deep and still, with a cold moon hanging alone in the sky.

Jia Dongxu's lips slowly twitched upwards, forming a cold, curved shape.

(End of this chapter)