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

That evening, at the Xu family's residence.

Xu Fugui smoked a cigarette, seemingly lost in thought. He had just returned from showing a movie in the countryside with his son, and in the few days he'd been gone, the courtyard had been turned upside down. Xu Damao sat beside him, listening with great interest, surprised that Shazhu was actually quite capable; he had underestimated him before. Xu's mother then recounted the major events that had occurred in the past few days in detail.

"Impressive!" Xu Fugui exhaled a smoke ring, his eyes filled with apprehension. "This He Yuzhu is no ordinary man! Without a sound, he completely uprooted the brothel that those old guys, Yi Zhonghai, had built up over many years. Ruthless and decisive, no wonder he's He Daqing's son!"

He recalled the past, when He Daqing was still around. He was a ruthless and fearless man, with connections in both the legitimate and criminal worlds. Later, He Daqing ran away, leaving behind Sha Zhu, a mere teenager. Although Xu Fugui had some connections with He Daqing, it wasn't worth going head-to-head with Yi Zhonghai and his gang for a mere kid. Besides, Yi Zhonghai and his group had been openly and covertly ostracizing him for years, forcing him to decide to transfer his steel mill job to Xu Damao ahead of schedule. He also had a movie theater that needed him to go there, so he could move to a quieter place.

"Dad, how come Shazhu suddenly became so capable? He was good at fighting before, but he didn't seem like a very smart person! How did he become an official?"

"Fool!" Xu Fugui glared at his son. "You think this can be done just by being ruthless? There's a lot more to it than meets the eye! Look at his whole scheme, each step meticulously planned. By leveraging the momentum, he completely exposed Yi Zhonghai and his gang's secrets! And he even managed to snag an official position himself. That skill, that cunning..."

Xu Fugui grew increasingly horrified as he spoke. Jia Dongxu's legs were broken—was it really because he won money gambling and was robbed? Did they really need to chop off someone's legs for a robbery? What kind of deep-seated hatred could that be...?

"Da Mao, from now on, stay away from He Yuzhu! No, that's not right..."

Xu Fugui paused, a glint of shrewdness flashing in his eyes. "From now on, when you see He Yuzhu, be polite! Don't call him 'Silly Zhu' anymore, or if he beats you up, you deserve it, I won't care. From now on, call him Brother Zhu directly." At this moment, he had already made up his mind.

Upon hearing this, Xu Damao immediately objected. "Dad! Are you telling me to curry favor with Sha Zhu? He's just a lowly deputy director of the canteen, a nobody! When I get promoted, I'll still be a projectionist, and I'll be on the propaganda department's payroll, no less. Why should I fawn over him?"

"You fucking know nothing! You do exactly what I say, or I'll beat you up!"

After being scolded by his father, Xu Damao immediately fell silent. Xu Fugui was once a figure on par with He Daqing. Even though Xu Damao was an adult, he could still beat him without hesitation, and his beatings were no less severe than Liu Haizhong's beatings of his son.

. . . . .

The next morning, Qin Huairu hurriedly returned to the courtyard house. She stayed at the hospital all night, and Jia Dongxu woke up several times in the middle of the night in pain, groaning and complaining about various things. In addition, she was worried about Banggeng at home, so she didn't get any sleep at all.

Pushing open the door, I saw Banggeng curled up in the blankets, his little face pale, unable to utter a sound, almost on the verge of death. It was only because he was a child of good fortune that he survived; otherwise, without food for a day and two nights, and in such cold weather, any other child would probably be a stiff corpse by now.

"Bang Geng! My son!" Qin Huairu felt both pain and anger, cursing Yi Zhonghai's ancestors for eighteen generations. What? You think you can get rid of the Jia family now that Dongxu is ruined? Dream on! Your Yi Zhonghai family's houses and money will all be left to Bang Geng from now on! We'll drive you two old dogs to the streets to beg for food.

They quickly lit the stove to warm the room. They also cooked some thin porridge and fed it to Bang Geng little by little. Bang Geng was extremely hungry and drank two large bowls, finally improving his complexion. As expected of the Thief Saint, a little food was enough to almost fully restore his mental energy, and he was soon jumping around again.

Seeing her son like this, Qin Huairu felt relieved. She needed to hurry back to the hospital; the hospital bills were overdue. She didn't know when the factory would reimburse her. She was unaware that Jia Dongxu's injury was due to gambling, and the factory wouldn't reimburse him; they were lucky to even have him as an apprentice.

He walked to where Jia Zhangshi hid her money, took it out, and a thought crossed his mind. He still needed to buy food for the family, Dongxu needed nutrition, and he himself was pregnant and needed nourishment... He couldn't worry about that now! He had to take care of the present. As for that old hag, he'd deal with her when she came out of the security office! With a determined heart, he took out all the RMB money.

He took the money, went out again, bought an old hen, and some grain. Back home, he prepared everything and started stewing the chicken. Soon, the aroma of chicken soup wafted out.

The little rascal smelled the aroma and ran over, staring longingly at the pot. "Mom, I want chicken! I want chicken!"

Qin Huairu ladled out a bowl of chicken soup, tore off a chicken leg, placed it in the bowl, and handed it to Banggeng. "Eat slowly, be careful it's hot."

Banggeng grabbed a chicken leg and wolfed it down, devouring it in a few bites until only the bone remained, even drinking every last drop of the broth. After finishing, he held out the bowl: "Mom, I want more!"

"Bang Geng, be good. This chicken is for your dad to nourish his body." Qin Huairu tore off a small piece of chicken for him. "Stay home and don't go out. Mom's going to bring your dad some food; she'll be back later. There are cornbread buns in the pot; grab one if you're hungry!"

As soon as I stepped out of the house, I saw an old woman named Zhang Guifen coming out of the east wing. She looked haggard and walked with some difficulty.

Qin Huairu was seething with hatred inside, but she didn't show it on her face. She forced a smile and greeted her, "Good morning, ma'am?"

Zhang Guifen glanced at Qin Huairu, her expression anything but friendly. It was this family that had dragged Old Yi down to this state! And now she was being blamed for it too. Too lazy to even speak to them, she simply walked out of the courtyard.

Qin Huairu was furious after being snubbed. "A barren hen, yet she dares to act so arrogant? One day, I'll have Yi Zhonghai divorce you, then let's see what you're got to be so cocky about!"

. . . .

In the hospital room, Jia Dongxu had just woken up, and his complexion was better than yesterday. His eyes lit up when he saw the chicken soup Qin Huairu had brought. He hadn't eaten properly for two days; how could he resist the temptation of chicken soup?

Qin Huairu helped him sit up and carefully fed him soup. After drinking the warm chicken soup, Jia Dongxu felt a little stronger and his spirits lifted.

"Huai Ru, you're still the best to me..." Jia Dongxu said, reaching out to touch Qin Huai Ru's face.

Qin Huairu turned her head away and whispered, "Drink it quickly, it won't be good if it gets cold."

To be honest, Jia Dongxu has treated Qin Huairu fairly well over the years, but it's far from being a loving couple. The main reason is Jia Zhangshi's instigation, plus Jia Dongxu being a mama's boy. Now that this man's legs are crippled, it's hard to say how much genuine affection Qin Huairu still has.

Just as Jia Dongxu was slowly sipping his chicken soup, the ward door was suddenly flung open with a bang!

A stout figure charged forward with a powerful lunge, and it was none other than Jia Zhangshi.