The Courtyard House: He Yuzhu Returns with Boundless Hatred for Revenge

(Another chapter added today. Thank you again to all the generous donors and to everyone who has listened to this book.)

When the emperor is angry, a million corpses lie in wait; when a commoner is angry, blood splatters five feet; when a childless family is angry, even a hen won't lay eggs. Why say such utterly nonsensical things? Because Yi Zhonghai was already extremely angry, and in his rage, he would take it out on Zhang Guifen, the hen that wouldn't lay eggs.

A full hour passed. The group of beasts inside were starving; after all, they hadn't eaten and were waiting for Sha Zhu to come and invite them. Their initial smugness and anticipation turned into impatience, and now into burning rage. Zhang Guifen boiled two stoves of water, which they drank all of, so much so that the deaf old woman even went back to urinate twice.

The He family never opened their door once; only the aroma of food and the cheerful laughter of the brother and sister wafted out. Even the most idiotic person would know by now that Sha Zhu hadn't intended to invite them to this meal at all, and was instead enjoying it all alone behind closed doors!

"Bang!" Yi Zhonghai slammed his hand on the table, making the enamel mug rattle. His chest heaved violently, a wave of humiliation at being mocked washing over him. All the moral decorum he had painstakingly maintained vanished in that instant. Especially considering his earlier confident assurances in front of everyone that He Yuzhu would come to apologize, and now he was just waiting like a fool—he had lost all face!

"Let's go!" Yi Zhonghai suddenly stood up, his face contorted with rage. "Since he's so ungrateful, then don't blame us for being impolite! We'll go find him now and get to the bottom of this! I want to see what gives this lousy cook, who's been disciplined and is about to suffer in the foundry workshop, the audacity to act so arrogantly!"

Yan Bugui was still somewhat hesitant. "Old Yi, this Sha Zhu doesn't hold back when he fights; we can't beat him..."

"What are you afraid of! He's nothing but a pile of stinking dog shit now, everyone avoids him like the plague! So many of us are going, representing the righteous spirit of the entire hospital! Let him try to lay a finger on us! We'll have the old lady go to Director Yang again tomorrow and fire him right away! With so many neighbors witnessing, what can he do to us? Does he dare to beat us all up?"

That one sentence instantly boosted everyone's morale to an unprecedented high. "That's right, they have Director Yang as their backer. If Sha Zhu keeps acting recklessly, he'll be fired. A person directly fired from a state-owned enterprise is nothing but trash at this point. They don't believe Sha Zhu hasn't considered the consequences."

"That's right! Lao Yi is right! We're going to educate him and help him recognize his mistakes! If he dares to resist, that's resisting reform, and his crime will be compounded!" Liu Haizhong, that idiot, hasn't learned anything else, but he's certainly mastered the art of leadership.

The deaf old woman also stood up, leaning on her cane, and said fiercely, "Let's go! This old woman is going to ask this little beast herself today whether he even respects us elders!"

Blinded by the roast duck and her anger, Jia Zhangshi couldn't wait any longer. She grabbed Jia Dongxu and rushed outside, shouting, "Hurry, hurry! If we're late, those two little brats will have eaten all the roast duck!"

And so, once again, a pack of beasts marched in a mighty force toward He Yuzhu's house.

. . . . . .

Inside the He family's house, He Yushui ate with gusto, her mouth greasy and her face full of happiness. "Brother, this roast duck is so delicious! I think it's probably the best meat in the world."

He Yuzhu smiled and rolled up a duck pancake for his sister. "That's because you haven't tried roasted whole lamb. That's real delicacy. If you can get into the top three in your class this time, I'll take you to Hongbinlou Restaurant."

His ears twitched slightly; he could already hear the chaotic footsteps approaching from afar. A cold smile played on his lips. These beasts seemed to have reached their limit and were about to come back to their deaths. Although he didn't know what the people in the east wing were saying while they were cooking, he could guess what those beasts were plotting.

He wanted him to throw a banquet to apologize? That's ridiculous. Many times, He Yuzhu didn't understand how these beasts' brains worked, yet they all seemed to be on the same wavelength! It was too funny. Then he thought of his past life and immediately stopped laughing.

"Bang! Bang! Bang! He Yuzhu! Open the door! Open the door now!"

The familiar banging on the door and the familiar tone broke He Yuzhu's reverie and the tranquility of the entire courtyard.

He Yushui, her cheeks bulging from eating, looked innocently at He Yuzhu like a little squirrel, as if asking, "What should we do next, brother?"

He Yuzhu gave her a reassuring look. "It's okay, Yushui, you keep eating. I'm going to deal with those old bastards. They haven't been beaten in a long time, they must be itching for a beating."

. . . . . .

Outside the door, seeing no response from inside, Yi Zhonghai pounded on the door even louder, almost punching it. "He Yuzhu! Are you deaf? We know you're in there! Open the door now! The three of us, the old man and the old lady, have come here in person to have a serious talk with you!"

By this time, more and more neighbors had come to watch the commotion, pointing and whispering about the He family. Most of them wore expressions of schadenfreude, convinced that He Yuzhu was doomed and would have no choice but to bow his head and submit.

Just as Yi Zhonghai was about to bang on the door again, it creaked open.

It's the same old formula, the same old result.

With a single outstretched hand, Yi Zhonghai's collar was pulled, and four loud slaps followed. Then, with a push, Yi Zhonghai stumbled backward, finally landing on his buttocks on the ground.

By this time, the beasts who had come with him so aggressively had already fled far away the moment He Yushui opened the door. As for the deaf old woman, she didn't even come up; she lagged behind. The saying "old age makes one shrewd" is no exaggeration.

"Are you all sick or just plain stupid? You haven't been home for days and you're itching for a beating, are you? Come on, I'm going to give you your wish today. Get your old faces all straight, and I'm going to slap you one by one."

He Yuzhu's tall figure appeared completely at the doorway, his strong body blocking the entrance completely. His gaze, with a hint of amusement, swept over the crowd of onlookers in the courtyard, finally settling on the faces of Yi Zhonghai and his group at the head of the group.

"You!" Yi Zhonghai was furious. He didn't know how many times he had been slapped in the face by Sha Zhu in front of everyone. At the same time, he secretly resented the bunch of idiot teammates behind him. He knocked on the door, but they hid far away. They were using him as a scapegoat.

Wiping away the blood from his nose from being slapped, he looked heartbroken. "He Yuzhu, I never imagined you'd end up like this. You were disciplined by the factory today, transferred to the foundry workshop, and received a demerit. We, your elders, are all worried about you and trying to find a solution. We don't want to see you go further down the wrong path, so tonight not only did the three of us uncles discuss it together, but even the deaf old lady, your Aunt Jia, and Brother Dongxu came over, just to see if there's anything we can do to help you."

"I really didn't expect to be beaten by you as soon as I came to your door. You've really become so hopeless! Where did that helpful, kind-hearted, and respectful 'silly Zhu' go? Why is there only a selfish and self-centered He Yuzhu left now!"

"Look at what you've become! On the surface you may look like a human being, but what's underneath? Selfishness! Self-interest! The Jia family, young and old, are starving for food! What are you doing? You're hogging all the food!"

"In this courtyard, you beat up your elders, bully your neighbors, and even hit the children! You've ruined the wonderful atmosphere of respecting the elderly and caring for the young, and helping each other in our courtyard. You need to know that this courtyard doesn't belong to you, He Yuzhu, alone!"

"Silly Zhu, I'm scolding you today on behalf of the old lady who's lost her appetite because of you, on behalf of all the elders who care about you, and on behalf of all the neighbors in the courtyard! Silly Zhu, my silly Zhu, wake up! We're all doing this for your own good!"