Courtyard House: Starting as an engineer, crushing a yard full of poultry

Although Jia Zhangshi's hands were also very numb, she could still feel the bald top of his head.

“Oh…ah!”

Jia Zhangshi crowed like a hen, then her eyes rolled back and she fainted, lying on the ground. Even with her face covered in soot, it was clear that Jia Zhangshi's mouth was severely crooked.

"Huai Ru, pinch your mother-in-law's philtrum to wake her up and get her to the hospital immediately," Yi Zhonghai said hastily. "We hope there won't be any lasting effects."

Upon hearing this, Qin Huairu nodded weakly and reached out to pinch Jia Zhangshi's philtrum.

Qin Huairu pinched Jia Zhangshi's philtrum with her left thumb, and a soft "pop" was heard. Qin Huairu's thumbnail had broken through Jia Zhangshi's skin and dug into the flesh.

Now that Qin Huairu has this opportunity, she'll make sure to torment Jia Zhangshi to the core. If others see Jia Zhangshi bleeding later, they'll say it's because Qin Huairu was worried about Jia Zhangshi and used too much force in her haste.

Qin Huairu knew Jia Zhangshi's temper, so she pinched her and quickly pulled her hand away, standing up and getting out of Jia Zhangshi's reach.

"Ow!"

Jia Zhangshi let out a scream like a pig being slaughtered. Her two hands flailing wildly; anyone nearby would surely have been hit by her.

"Who...it hurts so much!" Madam Jia sat up, touched her philtrum, and quickly withdrew her hand in pain: "It's bleeding, who did this?"

"Grandma, you've fainted. We need to pinch your philtrum to wake you up," Qin Huairu said pitifully. "Hurry, let's go to the hospital. What if there are any lasting effects..."

Madam Jia was in excruciating pain in her philtrum, gasping for breath, silently making a fuss over Qin Huairu. She knew Qin Huairu must have used this opportunity to hurt her. But now wasn't the time for revenge; she needed to get to the hospital quickly.

If she really suffers any lasting effects and becomes unable to move, then she'll truly be in Qin Huairu's hands, and even a peaceful death won't be possible.

As an old widow, Jia Zhangshi certainly understood who Qin Huairu was!

"Hurry up, get me to the hospital quickly!" Jia Zhangshi said frantically, "Shazhu, carry me on your back..."

"Get out!" Sha Zhu didn't want to say another word to Jia Zhangshi.

He'd be more suited to carrying Qin Huairu on his back, but not Jia Zhangshi.

“How dare you speak to your elders like that, Zhu Zi? If you can't carry it, just say so. That's all you need to say.” Yi Zhonghai said righteously, “Go to Xu Damao’s house and bring out his bicycle…”

Xu Damao was displeased: "Is this how you act as an old man? You didn't even ask me before you wanted to push my car out for me to use?"

"Next time the Jia family needs money, will you just come to my house and get it?"

Yi Zhonghai's face turned ashen upon hearing this; he knew it was due to Li Xiangdong's influence. The residents were filled with resentment; things could never return to normal.

"Xu Damao, you're asking for it! I'll beat you up today..." Sha Zhu yelled, about to make a move.

"Go ahead and hit me, go ahead and hit me today. If I don't send you to jail for the New Year, then I'm your grandson!" Xu Damao shouted, "Is there no law anymore? How dare you rob me..."

Yi Zhonghai's scalp tingled. If he beat Xu Damao, things would be different from before. He couldn't fool or pressure Xu Damao into not calling the police.

If we were to report this to the police, it would definitely be considered robbery by Sha Zhu. And it was all at Yi Zhonghai's suggestion.

Yi Zhonghai rushed over and hugged Sha Zhu tightly.

Sha Zhu calmed down, realizing that if he made a move, his only fate would be to end up in jail.

"Xu Damao, no one wanted to rob you. In the heat of the moment, I forgot to tell you first while saving people." Yi Zhonghai always stands on the moral high ground:

"I'm telling you now, you won't disagree, will you?"

Xu Damao said smugly, "Of course I disagree, because the car isn't mine. It's a public bus! I can only use it to go to and from get off work and to go to the movies."

"You're lucky I stopped you, you idiot. Otherwise, you'd be robbing public property, and you'd better think about it. And you even dared to hit me? Go ahead and try!"

Yi Zhonghai was stunned; he hadn't expected Xu Damao's car to be a government vehicle. In this day and age, anyone who tries to take advantage of public resources is in for a world of hurt.

Of course, Sha Zhu brought back food. That would be stealing, and if he got caught, it would be a big deal.

“Well… only Li Xiangdong has a car. Wait a minute, Uncle San, your car…” Sha Zhu looked at Yan Bugui.

"The vehicle you used? Three cents!"

Yan Bugui said calmly, "Jia Zhangshi is so fat, she'll damage my car!"

"Three cents? Why don't you just rob someone!" Sha Zhu shouted. "Hire a rickshaw and take me there, it'll only cost one cent."

"Then go hire one. I didn't ask you to use my car," Yan Bugui said slowly.

"At this hour, is it still possible to hire a rickshaw?" Sha Zhu said angrily.

"You know that too?" Yan Bugui said smugly, feeling that he was about to earn three cents.

"I'm going to borrow a flatbed cart from Old Huang next door," Sha Zhu said as he ran out.

"Uh, two cents... one cent is fine too!" Yan Bugui regretted it, watching the money slip away.

Sha Zhu quickly borrowed a flatbed cart and stepped off the gate. Then he pulled Jia Zhangshi towards the hospital. Lying on the flatbed cart, Jia Zhangshi looked exactly like a fat pig being led to the meat processing plant.

The people in the courtyard dispersed, but everyone was puzzled as to where the thunder had come from.

"Old man, you shouldn't concern yourself with the Jia family's affairs anymore. You've already done more than enough," Jin Yumei advised Yi Zhonghai.

Just then, the two of them returned carrying the eight-immortal table. Yi Zhonghai then remembered that he had forgotten to tell Li Xiangdong to pay for the table.

Chapter 41 Silly Pillar Isn't Silly (Thanks to everyone who voted and threw flowers!)

“No, I still have to take care of the Jia family,” Yi Zhonghai said helplessly. “Otherwise, if I leave someone to watch over them after Jia Dongxu dies, what kind of person would I be?”

"This Li Xiangdong is really something. He saw through some of my plans perfectly. No wonder he's an eighth-level engineer at such a young age."

"Yes, yes. He's still a leading cadre, why are you making a fuss with him? He can get you promoted to level seven with just a few words." Jin Yumei said helplessly, "So..."

“I didn’t want to go up against him either, but it’s already come to this. I’d like to give it a try.” Yi Zhonghai muttered, “If that old deaf guy hadn’t been so difficult, I would have dealt with Li Xiangdong long ago!”

"Could it be that the old lady really did what Li Xiangdong said..." Jin Yumei whispered.

"Definitely. She said something about giving straw sandals, haha, that's hilarious. She probably just heard it from someone else and then applied it to herself. Doesn't she realize where she is? This is Beijing! Who wears straw sandals here? Does she think she's in the South?" Yi Zhonghai said indignantly.

"Besides, that great army had never been active here before liberating this area. Why would she send straw sandals? Even if she did send shoes, it wouldn't make sense!"

"And her status as a family member of a martyr is definitely fake too!"

Jin Yumei was stunned for a moment before asking, "Then will we still take care of her in the future?"

"We'll take care of him the same way as before," Yi Zhonghai said through gritted teeth. "We'll set an example for Zhu Zi. That way, when we get old, he can take care of us like this."

"That old deaf woman got off easy, damn it! She and Sha Zhu are on good terms. That old deaf woman has a sharp eye. She took a liking to Zhu Zi right away. Before, she only spent a little money, but she won Zhu Zi's heart."

Sha Zhu quickly took Jia Zhangshi to the hospital. The doctor examined her and found that she was fine for the time being, but she would need to stay overnight for further observation.

"Who's going to pay the fee? Five yuan!" the doctor said.

Jia Zhangshi was already lying in her hospital bed, and upon hearing this, she quickly closed her eyes. The matter of spending money had nothing to do with her.

Qin Huairu was also stunned. She had thirty yuan given to her by Jia Zhangshi, enough for a month's living expenses. And it just so happened to be the New Year, so thirty yuan was simply not enough.

Every family eats dumplings during the Lunar New Year. The expenses for the New Year are considerable. If we don't spend enough, Jia Zhangshi will definitely make a scene.

"Zhu Zi, could you lend me five yuan?" Qin Huairu said softly.

Sha Zhu is still somewhat rational; he hasn't reached the mindless state he becomes later on. He still knows to save money to get married. Of course, he doesn't want to marry a widow with three children.

Sha Zhu dreamed of marrying a young, unmarried woman while also taking care of Sister Qin. That would be the perfect blessing, a life of having two wives.

Bringing Qin Huairu some leftovers is fine, and eating less myself is also fine. But lending her money is not an option.

"Sister Qin, I didn't bring any money with me when I came out. You're in a difficult situation too, having Aunt Zhang pay for it herself. Isn't all your family's money under her control?"

Sha Zhu spoke quite frankly. If this were the later stages of a simp's life, Sha Zhu would have simply run back to get the money. Not to mention, Sha Zhu still had money on him.

"Bullshit! Why would I need to spend money? You, idiot Zhu, earn thirty-seven yuan and fifty cents a month. What's wrong with giving me five yuan?" Jia Zhangshi yelled at the top of her lungs.

"Fine, I won't argue with you. Sister Qin, I'm going to return the car to Old Man Huang." Sha Zhu said, then turned and left.

“Mother-in-law, you know whether I have money or not. That little bit of money is barely enough to get by for another month. What do you think I should do?” Qin Huairu said directly.

The doctor shook his head and said, "Hurry up and pay, otherwise... you'll have to pay before you leave!"

After the doctor finished speaking, he turned and left.

Madam Jia glared at Qin Huairu with resentment and said, "You're really useless. You can't even handle that big idiot."

Jia Zhangshi had no choice but to pay for it herself. Paying those five yuan felt like having a piece of her flesh torn out.

The next morning, Li Xiangdong ate breakfast in the mysterious space as usual. It was a simple bowl of noodles topped with large chunks of spiced beef.

When he came out, he even tore off a cucumber. He ate it while putting on his coat, hat, and locked the door, then pushed his bike and drove off.

Just as I was about to leave the screen door, I was eating the cucumber right at its bottom. Anyone who has eaten a truly natural-grown cucumber knows that the bottom is bitter.

Li Xiangdong couldn't stand bitter tastes, so he tossed the cucumber, which was still five or six centimeters long, aside and quickly pushed his cart away.

Just then, Yan Bugui returned from the restroom. As he brushed past Li Xiangdong, Yan Bugui twitched his nose and caught the fresh scent of cucumbers.

This smell wouldn't bother anyone during a season when vegetables are plentiful. But this is winter. It's not the era of greenhouses everywhere.

Right now, all we have are radishes, potatoes, and Chinese cabbage. As for more refined vegetables like cucumbers and green peppers, it's not that they're unavailable, but these aren't things that ordinary people can afford; even if you have money, it's not guaranteed.

Yan Bugui sniffed, certain that what he had just seen Li Xiangdong throw away was a cucumber. Looking around to make sure no one was watching, Yan Bugui quickly slipped through the screen door and picked up the cucumber's bottom.