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

"Of course! You should learn from your brother-in-law in this respect. Don't be away from home all the time and make my sister worry." Qin Huairu coiled her two braids behind her back and rolled up her sleeves. She was about to knead the dough.

Qin Xueru then took out the cured meat she had brought back.

"Xue Ru, your family has quite a few people now, so you'll have to be careful with your finances from now on." On the way, Qin Huairu told her about Niu Dazhuang taking in three sixteen or seventeen-year-old boys.

"I don't know what your husband was thinking. He's just adding three mouths to our bellies. Those are three young men, each of them can eat as much as two of us."

Qin Xueru brushed her bangs aside, looking helpless. "Since Grandpa didn't object, it must be their reason. Dazhuang and my brother-in-law have different personalities; if you say too much, he'll find it troublesome. Never mind, as long as I have something to eat, that's fine."

"Xueru!" Qin Huairu lowered her voice at this moment, "Did Grandpa Niu say he'd find you a job too?"

"Sister, I only met Uncle once, at our wedding!"

Qin Huairu turned her head to look at the two people smoking outside, and whispered, "You are her own niece-in-law. He has no other relatives. He saw through her at a glance. He will definitely rely on you to support him in his old age."

"Yes, Dazhuang did mention this to me, and he even said that if we have any children in the future, we should give one to Grandpa!"

"That's fine. You can ask Dazhuang to talk to Grandpa Niu and see if he can find you a job. Once you have a job, it will ease the burden on your family a bit."

Qin Xueru was persuaded: "Is this appropriate? You just found a job for Dazhuang, and now you're finding one for me too? Isn't that too much of a burden?"

"Silly girl, you should spread the word first. Finding a job isn't something that can be done in a day or two. What if an opportunity comes along? If you don't speak up, even if an opportunity arises, they won't think of you."

Let's talk about it in a few days.

It was completely dark outside when the three little ones returned. Knowing that Niu Dazhuang had gone back to pick someone up, they rushed over to see what their sister-in-law looked like.

The three little ones came over, bickering and joking. Seeing Qin Xueru busy inside, they fell silent. They nudged and shoved each other.

It was Qin Xueru who spoke first: "You're Dazhuang's three brothers, right?"

Qin Xueru also has high emotional intelligence. She said this very skillfully, avoiding the sensitive word "take in".

The three little ones quickly lined up and bowed in unison, saying, "Hello, sister-in-law."

Then the automatic registration process began. After registering, the three little ones went inside to help with cooking. Big Bear helped start the fire, Dayong washed the vegetables, and Dayu helped Qin Huairu knead the cornbread.

With so many people cooking together, dinner was ready in no time.

"Dazhuang, don't just stand there, go and call the old man over for dinner!"

In the Niu family, there was no custom of not allowing women to sit at the table. Not only did Qin Xueru sit at the table, but Niu Youliang also made Qin Xueru sit to his left.

An old octagonal table was packed with eight people. Niu Youliang was even pleased: "Huai Ru, you two aren't outsiders either. Let me say a few words first. Children, remember this: a family can only prosper if there are people. Without people, everything is meaningless! I'm happy today, let's have a drink!"

Qin Huairu quickly ate two cornbread buns and drank a bowl of corn porridge before going home. She could ignore Jia Zhangshi, but she couldn't ignore Xiaobanggen.

Niu Youliang drank two ounces of wine and then started eating. The three kids didn't drink any alcohol and drove off. Everyone else had finished eating and left the table, but Niu Dazhuang was still drinking with Jia Dongxu.

Niu Dazhuang only took Jia Dongxu back after he had drunk so much that he was slurring his words.

Sha Zhu and his friends, who were chatting in the Intermediate People's Court, saw this:

"You said you'd like some drinks tonight to liven things up, can Jia Dongxu break the record?" Yan Jiecheng asked in a low voice.

"I want to try something different tonight. Have you seen Niu Dazhuang's wife? Well! No wonder she's Qin Huairu's cousin, tsk tsk..." Liu Guangqi's eyes lit up.

"Go ahead, I can't beat him." Thinking back to the day Niu Dazhuang hit him with two back kicks, He Yuzhu still felt lingering fear.

Liu Guangqi gestured with his chin towards Xu Damao: "And you?"

"I'm not going either." Xu Damao is so shrewd.

"Look at you cowards! We're just eavesdropping, what are you going to do to Niu Dazhuang?"

"Go by yourself. You didn't see how he beat up Sha Zhu. If you upset him, he might just lean against you and you won't be able to get out of bed for three days."

Xu Damao witnessed the whole process; his small frame couldn't withstand Niu Dazhuang's leaning against him.

Besides, Uncle Niu is the deputy section chief of the steel rolling mill. They'd be too busy currying favor with him.

"Brother Guangqi, you go scout ahead first. If nothing goes wrong tonight, I'll go with you next time!"

Liu Guangqi said irritably, "Or maybe you're not gaining weight, but all you've gained is cunning. I'll still need you after tonight."

"Hey, Guangqi, I heard you spent the day thinking about your crush. How was it? Tell us guys about it." Xu Damao changed the subject.

"Want to hear it?" Liu Guangqi said smugly.

It was almost eight o'clock when Niu Dazhuang brought Jia Dongxu back. The four of them chatted for a while, and then everyone in the courtyard went home to sleep.

The four exchanged glances, crouched low, and tiptoed to Jia Dongxu's window.

Inside the room, Qin Huairu felt guilty, so she was very cooperative tonight...

The three people outside were now in for a treat...

Just as the three were getting engrossed in the story, Liu Guangqi returned, grumbling, "Was it really that bad? It burned me to death!"

"Shh..." The three of them gestured to Liu Guangqi in unison.

To everyone's surprise, Liu Guangqi not only didn't lower his voice, but deliberately shouted loudly, "Catch the thief!" After saying that, he turned around and ran back to his house.

The three of them quickly ran towards Sha Zhu's house.

"Damn it, this Liu Guangqi, he doesn't like what he hears, and he won't let us hear it either. He's so damn unethical."

The quiet night was disturbed by Liu Guangqi's shout. Yi Zhonghai was the first to shout from inside the house: "Where is the thief...?" After shouting a few times, he came out of the house.

Before long, the courtyard was filled with people.

Yi Zhonghai asked the other two elderly men, who both said they hadn't seen the thief. This time, everyone was relieved.

As for Jia Dongxu, he was at a critical moment when Liu Guangqi's sudden shout startled him so much that he immediately became dejected.

She was furious and wanted to go out and see who it was, so she put on her clothes. But Qin Huairu grabbed her arm.

Qin Huairu suppressed a laugh: "Alright, I shouldn't have let you have such a good time today. Go to sleep!"

"Let me catch my breath."

"Come on, listen—there are people outside. Just go to sleep."

Niu Dazhuang had incredibly sharp ears; he heard Liu Guangqi arrive as soon as he did. He didn't have that habit, though; he grabbed the thermos, pushed open the window, and collapsed inside.

Liu Guangqi was also stubborn and didn't utter a sound.

"Dazhuang, what are you doing?" Qin Xueru had no idea what was going on.

"There are a few people in this compound who love to eavesdrop on other people's conversations. Your third sister's house is always being listened to."