Courtyard Houses: Starting with the principle of hard work paying off

Chapter 229 Mutual Showdown: Qin Huairu Learned a Lesson

“Aunt Wang, Li Hongbing is just that kind of person. Why bother trying to win him over? It’s not worth arguing with him. What’s so great about him…”

Knowing what had just happened in the front yard, Jia Dongxu immediately took the opportunity to comfort Wang Guihua, appearing as if they shared a common hatred.

Jia Dongxu did this not because he genuinely sympathized with Wang Guihua, but because he disliked Li Hongbing.

on the other hand.

This was an attempt to curry favor with Wang Guihua and rekindle their relationship.

Before Yi Zhonghai got into trouble, Wang Guihua was Jia Dongxu's teacher's wife, and the two families were very close!
Now that Yi Zhonghai's abuse of Wang Guihua has been exposed, Yi Zhonghai has been sent to northern Xinjiang for labor, and Wang Guihua has divorced him. However, Jia Dongxu and Yi Zhonghai are no longer in a master-disciple relationship.

Originally, when Jia Zhangshi caused a scene at the courtyard, Yi Zhonghai intended to use a strategic retreat to gain leverage over Jia Dongxu and the Jia family. However, before he could complete his plan, his own men were killed.

When Yi Zhonghai publicly announced the severance of his master-disciple relationship, it indirectly helped Jia Dongxu by sparing him from being implicated in his troubles.

Now that Wang Guihua has returned and "inherited" everything from Yi Zhonghai, including the two east wing rooms in the central courtyard, she has turned misfortune into blessing, making people extremely envious.

Jia Dongxu's idea was actually very simple, even more so than before: to profit from the descendants of the deceased.

This kind of thing happens all the time in rural areas, and it's not uncommon in cities either.

The practice of exploiting the descendants of the deceased is not uncommon throughout history.

Actually, Jia Dongxu and Jia Zhangshi had the same idea before, but the master-disciple relationship between Yi Zhonghai and Jia Dongxu made it seem less realistic and blatant.

Of course.

Yi Zhonghai, being such a shrewd and calculating man, naturally knew this as well. However, he had his own purposes and mainly used this to scheme for Jia Dongxu to take care of him in his old age.

With no bloodline to continue the lineage, and with material possessions that cannot be taken with one's body after death, Yi Zhonghai's only thought and hope is that someone will take care of him in his old age and see him off in his final days.

They each had their own agendas; it's not a matter of who was better or worse, but simply a matter of one being willing to give and the other being willing to receive.

Yi Zhonghai is no longer in Beijing, but the situation hasn't changed much. Wang Guihua is still all alone, and there's no one to take care of her in her old age. So Jia Dongxu wants to rekindle their relationship.

In this regard, Jia Dongxu is full of confidence.

Looking at the entire courtyard, Wang Guihua used to have the best relationship with their family, especially with Qin Huairu; almost no one could compete with them.

only.

Hearing that Jia Dongxu had publicly belittled Li Hongbing in order to please her, Wang Guihua showed no joy. Instead, she said with a stern face, "Dongxu, you should say things like that less often in the future!"

Whatever the reason, a mistake is a mistake. Li Hongbing is already being very magnanimous by not holding my past actions against me.

Things are different now, and Wang Guihua doesn't want to offend Li Hongbing.

Although things didn't go according to plan, Wang Guihua could accept the outcome that Li Hongbing publicly stated he wouldn't target her without reason in the future.

Yi Zhonghai and Li Hongbing clashed repeatedly, their relationship becoming increasingly strained. Besides Yi Zhonghai's own reasons, this was largely due to their apprentice, Jia Dongxu.

If Jia Dongxu and Jia Zhangshi hadn't repeatedly caused trouble and provoked Li Hongbing, there wouldn't actually have been any conflict or irreconcilable differences between Yi Zhonghai and Li Hongbing.

As a woman, Wang Guihua clearly understood this point even better than Yi Zhonghai.

In comparison, Wang Guihua didn't have as much of that so-called male "dignity" and competitiveness.

"Uh, Aunt Wang, I was just saying that because I felt sorry for you."

Jia Dongxu's attempt to flatter backfired, leaving him extremely embarrassed.

It wouldn't matter if it were someone else, but the key issue is that Wang Guihua herself embarrassed him.

Upon hearing this, Wang Guihua did not take Jia Dongxu's words seriously. Instead, she said with a serious expression, "Dongxu, I know you and Li Hongbing don't get along, but this has nothing to do with me. From now on, I just want to live my life peacefully. I hope you can understand."

"Aunt Wang, I understand."

Upon hearing Wang Guihua's clear statement, Jia Dongxu's expression changed slightly, and he said somewhat awkwardly.

Sensing the tense atmosphere, Qin Huairu quickly stepped forward and explained to Wang Guihua on Jia Dongxu's behalf, "Aunt Wang, Dongxu didn't mean anything by it. He was just feeling indignant on your behalf, or perhaps he was simply venting his frustrations about Li Hongbing. Please don't overthink it; you've misunderstood Dongxu..."

"Huai Ru, I understand what you mean, but I would like to give you some advice. If you want to live a good life, you should stop causing trouble for Li Hongbing. You are no match for him, and it will not do you any good."

After saying this, Wang Guihua turned around and went back into the house, leaving Jia Dongxu and Qin Huairu looking at each other in bewilderment.

In fact, Wang Guihua had wanted to give this advice to Yi Zhonghai, Jia Dongxu, and Jia Zhangshi for a long time, but at that time she had no say and no one would listen even if she did.

and.

Wang Guihua knew that if such words came out of her mouth, even if it wasn't betrayal, it would still be a sign of disloyalty and alienation. This was something Yi Zhonghai would absolutely not tolerate and would never give her a kind look. That's why she had been holding back and dared not say it.

Wang Guihua had this idea not because she was particularly sensible, but because she was afraid of Li Hongbing, especially after seeing Yi Zhonghai and Jia Dongxu suffer misfortune time and time again, and she didn't want to continue opposing Li Hongbing.

Sometimes, being hidden in the shadows allows you to see things more clearly, just like the saying "the bystander sees more of the game."

Now that Yi Zhonghai has been exiled and she has divorced him, regaining her freedom, she no longer needs to worry about what she does or says, which is why she dares to speak these words.

More importantly.

Wang Guihua did not intend to place her hopes for retirement on Jia Dongxu, like Yi Zhonghai did.

On the one hand, although Jia Dongxu did not take advantage of Yi Zhonghai's misfortune, his indifference disappointed and disheartened Wang Guihua.

Logically, as the victim, Wang Guihua shouldn't sympathize with Yi Zhonghai, the perpetrator. However, she has witnessed how much effort Yi Zhonghai has put into Jia Dongxu over the years, and how much he has invested in the Jia family and Jia Dongxu.

It's not just about time and effort, but also about real money.

Even if Yi Zhonghai's motives were impure and he had his own calculations, in truth, he did not wrong Jia Dongxu.

Even if Jia Dongxu's actions this time were motivated by a desire to protect himself and avoid harm, and given that Yi Zhonghai had already publicly severed their master-disciple relationship, this approach seems justifiable. However, considering Jia Dongxu's previous efforts to repair the master-disciple relationship with Yi Zhonghai, from Yi Zhonghai's perspective, all his previous calculations and sacrifices have become a joke.

Putting herself in his shoes, Wang Guihua has come to realize, through Jia Dongxu's behavior in the Yi Zhonghai incident, that Jia Dongxu is not a reliable person. Naturally, she will not place her hopes for her old age on him like she did with Yi Zhonghai before.

on the other hand.

This time, when Fuqin stepped in, she not only rescued and re-educated her, but also solved her problems in life and took into account her future retirement arrangements.

In fact, just like the deaf old woman present, if she did not want to enter the state's nursing home, she could have continued to live in the nursing home and, when she got old, find a family to take care of her daily life until the end of her life.

Even the final step of caring for the elderly in their old age will not be a problem, so there is no need to worry about who will take care of it.

If the deaf old woman hadn't insisted on courting death, living out her remaining years peacefully would have been a good outcome.

Yi Zhonghai wasn't unaware of these things; he was simply afraid that he had entrusted himself to the wrong person and would be bullied and at the mercy of others when he got old. Therefore, he wanted to take control of his "fate," which is why he had so many schemes and plans.

Now, with the support of the women's federation and the state, Wang Guihua obviously doesn't need to worry about this issue anymore.

If Yi Zhonghai knew that what he had painstakingly planned had been accomplished so "easily" by Wang Guihua, I wonder what he would think.

In truth, regardless of the misfortunes or blessings she encountered, all of Wang Guihua's success was still thanks to Yi Zhonghai.

Upon seeing Wang Guihua return to the house, Jia Dongxu's expression darkened.

He could clearly sense that Wang Guihua's attitude towards him had become much colder since she returned to the courtyard house.

"Huai Ru, do you think I did something unintentionally that upset Wang Guihua and that she has a problem with me?"

Back home, Jia Dongxu couldn't help but ask Qin Huairu, "No, right?"

Qin Huairu thought about it and was also a little puzzled.

"Could it be... because I was once Yi Zhonghai's apprentice?"

“But we had already broken up, and it was Yi Zhonghai who abused her, not me…”

“Although I knew about it, she probably didn’t know that I knew about it. In fact, she even begged others not to tell anyone about it. So you can’t blame others for not helping her escape Yi Zhonghai’s abuse, can you?”

"If she were to blame me, her former apprentice, for all her grudges against Yi Zhonghai, I would be so wronged..."

"..."

Jia Dongxu was somewhat frustrated and uttered a series of perplexing thoughts and guesses.

No matter how hard Ren Jiadongxu racked his brains, he never imagined that Wang Guihua would be disappointed in him because of his performance in this incident.

"This... Dongxu, I don't understand what Aunt Wang is thinking either..."

Jia Dongxu couldn't figure it out, and Qin Huairu couldn't figure it out either, so she could only say helplessly.

Frustrated by his inability to understand, Jia Dongxu decided to stop thinking about it and said directly to Qin Huairu, "Huairu, I don't see any change in Wang Guihua's attitude towards you. Try to chat with her more often when you have free time."

She's all alone now, and she's just been through all that, so she must be feeling terrible. You should seize this opportunity to show her more care and concern, and make sure your relationship doesn't drift apart.

That way, if we ever need anything from her in the future, we can easily ask for it..."

Yi Zhonghai is gone, but all his savings over the years are still in this courtyard house, or rather, in Wang Guihua's hands.

at this point.

Not only Jia Dongxu, but many people in the courtyard guessed it.

Even Yi Zhonghai's original two houses are now under Wang Guihua's name, and other assets are probably no exception.

With the intervention of the woman, Yi Zhonghai not only divorced Wang Guihua, but also left with nothing, making him a complete loser in life.

Jia Dongxu's intention was clearly to turn Wang Guihua into a second "Yi Zhonghai".

Hearing Jia Dongxu's direct and blunt explanation, Qin Huairu was silent for a moment before nodding and replying, "Dongxu, I understand."

……

the next day.

After breakfast, the people in the compound who had jobs gradually went out to work.

It didn't take long.

From time to time, some noises and commotions came from the east wing of the courtyard, attracting the attention of many people in the courtyard.

"Aunt Wang, what are you doing? It's still a long way from the New Year, why are you starting the spring cleaning now?"

Many people gathered around. Qin Huairu, who was heavily pregnant, saw that Wang Guihua had packed out a lot of clothes and other things that she didn't usually use, and couldn't help but ask curiously.

"Hey, these are some useless things. I figured it's annoying to keep them, so I might as well pack them up and take them to the consignment shop to see if they'll take them. Maybe I can sell them for some money..."

Wang Guihua said to Qin Huairu while she was busy.

After Wang Guihua said that, everyone understood her idea.

Although Yi Zhonghai has left the courtyard house, many of his belongings are still here, such as his clothes, shoes, cups, towels, and other daily necessities.

It stands to reason.

Many of Yi Zhonghai's belongings can still be kept and reused, such as those clothes, which can be disassembled and remade into clothes suitable for Wang Guihua herself.

But these were things that Yi Zhonghai had used, and Wang Guihua felt uncomfortable about them, so she specially collected them and prepared to get rid of them.

Wang Guihua would definitely be reluctant to lose them, since many of them still have value.

In this era, commission shops are a good place to go.

To put it simply, it's a shop that handles the consignment and trading of secondhand goods.

Here, everything from large items like furniture, bicycles, radios, and watches to small items like washbasins, enamel mugs, and used clothes is sold.

Don't assume that old clothes are tattered. Since cotton cloth was subject to unified purchase and planned supply, cloth has become one of the scarce resources. Although there is a fixed amount of cloth ration coupons every month, this is only enough to barely meet the demand. Most families have been mending and patching clothes for three years.

As Wang Guihua cleared out items related to Yi Zhonghai one by one, the onlookers gathered around, but no one dared to utter a word about "getting a bargain."

Whenever someone offers a price, even a low one, Wang Guihua will sell these items on the spot, saving herself the trouble of making an extra trip to the consignment store.

However, since these things were related to Yi Zhonghai, not only Wang Guihua felt uncomfortable, but everyone else also felt it was bad luck.

No one knew that Yi Zhonghai had already passed away, but in everyone's mind, Yi Zhonghai was now a criminal, and unless they were in dire straits, no one would want something used by a convict, even if it was given away for free.

Even Yan Bugui, who is extremely stingy, would probably not be interested in being here and would turn around and leave immediately if he were here.

Under the policy of eliminating feudal superstition, no one dares to openly promote feudal superstition anymore. However, there are some taboos that people may not say, but they still care about in their hearts.

Only those who are unaware of the situation will "not" mind.

Under these circumstances, sending these items to the entrusted store was indeed the best option for Wang Guihua.

With Qin Huairu's help, Wang Guihua spent half a day tidying up and finally finished packing and organizing everything by the afternoon. Then she borrowed a cart and delivered the items to the consignment shop near Beixinqiao.

Qin Huairu originally wanted to go and help, but she was heavily pregnant, so Wang Guihua didn't dare to go. It took a lot of effort to persuade her to stay.

If something really happens, especially to the child in Qin Huairu's belly, Wang Guihua can't bear the responsibility.

When Wang Guihua returned from outside in the evening, Qin Huairu immediately came over and chatted with her.

As they chatted, Qin Huairu looked at the room next door, which had been cleared out and looked rather empty, and couldn't help but sigh and complain.

Hearing Qin Huairu say that she was about to give birth but her family only had one room and how cramped and inconvenient the housing was, Wang Guihua comforted her with empathy.

"Aunt Wang, you have two rooms now, and it's not enough for one person to live in all of them. Could you lend us one of your rooms first, for future use..."

Qin Huairu's true intentions were revealed. Before she could finish speaking, Wang Guihua slapped her thigh and said with great "annoyance," "Huairu, why didn't you say so sooner? It's really a waste for me to live in these two rooms by myself..."

"Aunt Wang, you agree?"

Hearing Wang Guihua say this, Qin Huairu suddenly felt as if she had been struck by a pleasant surprise, and couldn't help but look at her gratefully.

"Sigh, what's the point of me agreeing now?"

Seeing Wang Guihua's reaction, Qin Huairu, who instinctively sensed that something was wrong, couldn't help but become nervous and tentatively asked, "Aunt Wang, is there some difficulty or concern you have?"

"Huai Ru, you should have told me about this sooner. There's something you don't know..."

Under Qin Huairu's anxious gaze, Wang Guihua sighed helplessly and said with great "regret," "When I came back just now, I made a special trip to the street office and spoke to Director Wang specifically about renting out this extra room to supplement our household income. This matter... Huairu, you're too late! I'm really sorry..."

"ah?!!!"

(End of this chapter)