Courtyard houses: Those who are capable are rewarded, and many children bring many blessings.

Qin Yueru pouted: "Not senile yet!"

"Hey, how dare you talk to me like that? Is this how your parents raised you?"

Hearing the situation escalating in the outer room, Qin Huairu quickly called Yueru in: "Why are you arguing with her? If you win, people will say that girls from our Qin family are ill-mannered. If you lose, you'll just get angry. Keep your head down and endure it for another month."

"Sis, I know. The more I look at their family, the more I dislike them. Sis, I don't know what you were thinking. Since you saw through what kind of family they were, why did you still give birth to this little girl for them?"

"Shh... keep your voice down, or someone might hear you. I don't have eyes in the back of my head. It's also my fault; I haven't let him touch me for over six months. Men, if they can't get what they want at home, they'll look for it outside."

Qin Yueru, however, sensed something else in her voice. She leaned close to her sister's ear and whispered, "So, when you were pregnant with Xiaobanggeng, you weren't idle either?"

Qin Huairu slapped her younger sister's shoulder again: "What are you thinking about all day? Is that what I meant?"

"Sis, stop making excuses for that person. Wait a minute, why are Xue Ru and you, both pregnant, staying so far away?"

"What do you mean, 'not right'? Do you think all men are as beastly as Da Zhuang, who can be tortured to the point of unconsciousness, especially... ah... that donkey thing?"

"That's really something." Once Qin Yueru understood, she stopped dwelling on the matter.

"Sis, I'm moving in this month, and he can stay outside. Is that okay?"

"They couldn't be happier."

When Jia Dongxu came home from get off work, he saw the red cloth hanging at the door and knew that she had given birth to a daughter. He couldn't tell from her face that she had any changes.

Ever since the last time they bumped into each other at the alley entrance, Old Jin's daughter-in-law had been crying her eyes out, so Jia Dongxu pulled her aside and comforted her.

At first, Jia Dongxu really didn't have the guts; he was all serious, like a kind older brother neighbor.

This pretty young wife started her venting session. She was crying her eyes out.

It was quite a struggle to calm her down and stop her crying.

"Brother Jia, thank you. My name is Wang Shufen. Please don't call me 'Jin family's daughter-in-law' anymore. I have a name."

After this beautiful encounter, Jia Dongxu would run into this young wife almost every day after get off work, sometimes at the entrance of the alley, sometimes at the gate of their compound.

Saying a few innocuous words can make Jia Dongxu happy for half a day.

After dinner, Jia Dongxu couldn't stay in the courtyard any longer and often strolled alone at the alley entrance, smoking his pipe...

One is affectionate, the other is willing; all they need is an opportunity.

This opportunity arose one evening a little over a month after the two met. Wang Shufen had another argument with the man in her family and ran out crying again.

This time, Jia Dongxu didn't stop her; instead, he followed her to a dilapidated temple...

"Dongxu, you're amazing!"

"Dongxu, you're amazing!"

Jia Dongxu regained his masculine confidence with this young wife. What man could resist such praise? Seven times a night was no problem for him.

When Jia Dongxu returned home during this time, although he saw that his wife was still as beautiful as ever, he still felt that Wang Shufen could regain her confidence.

After all, the two had lived together for six or seven years, and Qin Huairu knew Jia Dongxu's temperament well. She never stayed in the courtyard every night and would fall asleep as soon as she got back.

He always looks like he's not fully awake.

Looking at his face again, his eyes were dark-circled. He'd only been married a few months, and he already looked like this.

Qin Huairu didn't expose him; she just waited until after her postpartum confinement to divorce him. Since he had someone else, the divorce shouldn't be too difficult.

After that, strange things started happening in the Jia family, especially during mealtimes. Qin Yueru would cook for the two sisters and bring the food to the inner room.

The only happy person in the family was Xiaobangeng. She ate from both sides. Qin Huairu was eating better than usual during her postpartum period, so Xiaobangeng was naturally happy to eat.

But Qin Yueru didn't indulge him. He could have a couple of bites to satisfy his craving, but if he wanted to eat his fill, no way.

This conflict arose again. Seeing her grandson crying every day, Jia Zhangshi started arguing with Qin Yueru through the door curtain.

Ever since Qin Yueru moved in, there hasn't been a moment of peace, and Jia Dongxu has become even less willing to stay at home. If it weren't for the need to eat at home, Jia Dongxu would rather not come back at all.

How can there be such a big difference between people? Qin Yueru was like a kitten at the Niu family's house, but when she came to my house, she was like a tigress, ready to ignite at the slightest provocation.

After finishing the last sip of cornmeal porridge, he hugged the little stick and said, "Okay, stop crying. Daddy will take you to buy candy."

Ever since he got close to the young wife of the Jin family at the entrance of the alley, Jia Dongxu has been keeping a close eye on things. Every month when he hands over his salary, he always finds an excuse to leave a few yuan behind.

I took Xiaobanggeng to the supply and marketing cooperative at the entrance of the alley, bought him two pieces of candy, peeled one open and fed it to Xiaobanggeng, and put the other one in my pocket.

After a chaotic period, November finally arrived, and Qin Huairu was out of confinement.

Qin Yueru helped her sister wash her hair, and that evening she took her bedding and went back to the backyard.

Jia Dongxu steeled himself and went into the inner room. He didn't say a word, just sat on the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed) and puffed on his pipe.

Qin Huairu didn't even look at him, speaking in a remarkably calm tone as if to herself, "Let's get a divorce tomorrow."

"You...you knew all along!"

"I'm not blind!"

"What about the child? What will you do after the divorce? Go back to your parents' home?"

"Children, one for you, one for me. The son is yours, the girl is mine. As for what to do with me, you don't need to worry about that."

"You've had someone else on the side too? When did that happen? How come I didn't know?"

"Just pretend I'm seeing someone else!" Qin Huairu said ambiguously.

"What do you mean 'just take'? If it's there, it's there; if it's not, it's not. How can you be ambiguous about something like this?"

"Why ask so many questions? We won't have any relationship tomorrow."

"Oh, right. So where do you live?"

"I'll stay at Xue Ru's place for a few days, and then move out once I've found a place to rent."

"You're unemployed, what will you do in the future?"

"Thank you for your kindness. Even if I have to beg for food in the future, I won't come to your Jia family's door. Alright, that's enough. You can sleep in the outer room tonight."

Jia Dongxu went to the outer room and told Jia Zhangshi about the divorce.

"Let's get a divorce, what's the big deal? I'll find you someone better. Qin Huairu isn't the same Qin Huairu she used to be," Jia Zhangshi said deliberately, pointing towards the inner room.

Qin Huairu lifted the curtain: "Am I still the silly girl who came to the city? I won't let you take advantage of me like that."

"The divorce is because your son did something to wrong me. We're getting a quiet divorce to save face for your Jia family. If you're not happy about it, let's have the neighbors in the compound judge!"