The Beginning of a Courtyard House: Sixty Years of Internal Strength

Li Jianguo was speechless when he saw Yang Ruihua. He had specifically chosen to come back in the afternoon, hoping to avoid that stingy old man Yan. He didn't expect that his wife was still there. They had truly become a perfect couple, guarding the door around the clock.

"Ah, Aunt Yang, we've been working hard for several days, so we'll go home now."

Li Jianguo dodged Yang Ruihua's outstretched hand and went straight home. Yang Ruihua shook her head helplessly. She dared not say anything, after all, an old man in the courtyard had been beaten, and she dared not cause trouble.

After the two finished their meal, Li Jianguo wanted to find out if the rumors had spread, so he went to the backyard to find Xu Damao.

When he walked to the middle courtyard, Jia Zhangshi stared at him with a vicious look, cursing him, saying things like "May you have no offspring, and may your children be born without an anus."

Although the voice was soft, Li Jian was powerful enough to hear it and turned to walk towards Jia Zhangshi.

Jia Zhangshi was also startled and shouted in a trembling voice.

"Li Jianguo, what do you want to do?"

Before she could even stand up, Li Jianguo slapped her across the face.

"You old hag, who gave you the audacity to curse me?" Li Jianguo glared fiercely at Jia Zhangshi.

Jia Zhangshi quickly lowered her head, not daring to look at Li Jianguo, and dared not throw a tantrum, because she knew that Li Jianguo really dared to hit her.

At this moment, Qin Huairu, who was squatting next to the tap washing clothes, said something in a low voice.

"Jianguo, my mother-in-law knows she was wrong, so please don't hold it against her."

"Qin Huairu, stop acting with me. If you say another word, I'll slap you."

Jia Dongxu, who was inside the house, also heard the commotion, but he didn't dare to come out because he knew it would be useless.

In the short time it took to say a few words to Qin Huairu, Jia Zhangshi had already sneaked back home and closed the door.

Li Jianguo shouted something towards the door.

"You old hag Jia Zhangshi, if I ever see you glaring at me or cursing at me like that again, I'll beat you to death."

Li Jianguo gave Qin Huairu a cold snort in a good mood and walked towards the backyard.

Is Da Mao home?

Upon hearing Li Jianguo's voice from inside his home, Xu Damao immediately rushed out.

"Brother Jianguo, is there something you need?"

"It's nothing. Come on, let's go to my place. I'll treat you to a drink."

Xu Damao was immediately delighted upon hearing this and went home with Li Jianguo.

Wang Yao had already laid out the dishes at home: peanuts and a stewed chicken, and opened a bottle of cabbage.

"Da Mao, have you heard any rumors circulating on the streets lately?"

Li Jianguo thought for a moment. Five or six days had passed; surely there should be news by now.

"Oh, Brother Jianguo, you're really efficient. Rumors have been circulating these past two days about the old lady in the backyard, the easy extinction of the family line, and the rain."

Just you wait and see, it will definitely escalate in a couple of days. The only problem is that there's been no movement from Baocheng; He Daqing still hasn't returned. Logically, in four or five days, the letter should have arrived by now.

Li Jianguo thought for a moment and figured it should be soon. Logically, it should be in the next day or two. When he comes back, it will be another good show.

"By the way, Damao, is Rainwater still taking care of the old lady?"

"That's right, it's been so many days, Qin Huairu has recovered long ago, and she's been squatting by the tap in the middle courtyard washing clothes every day."

Sha Zhu just watched gleefully, not even bothering to ask someone to take over for his sister. What a scoundrel!

"He Yushui didn't even resist," Li Jianguo asked curiously.

"Who said that, Brother Jianguo? A while ago, He Yushui wanted me to help write a letter to He Daqing. I told her directly that you had already written to He Daqing, and she was overjoyed."

Xu Damao smiled sheepishly.

"Fine, if you know, you know." Li Jianguo didn't mind.

The two then ate and drank, and before Da Mao got drunk, they sent him home.

"Jianguo, it seems the money wasn't wasted; it's starting to show results so quickly," Yao Yao said excitedly.

"It's alright, but the efficiency isn't very high. It's been five or six days and there's only a faint rumor. It's not fast enough, but we're not in a hurry. We'll take our time playing with them and won't go out for the next couple of days. He Daqing will be back soon."

The two then went to bed.

The home of the White Widow in Baocheng.

He Daqing was extremely anxious after receiving the letter. He never expected that after teaching Yi Zhonghai a lesson last time, Yi would still dare to scheme against his own children.

After dinner, He Daqing began packing his things and told Widow Bai about the events in Beijing.

"I have to go back to Beijing. Tomorrow is my day off, so I've taken another day off."

After hearing this, the white widow helped tidy up.

"I really didn't know He Daqing was this kind of person. You absolutely have to come back."

"Xiao Bai, don't worry. I came back last time, didn't I? This time I'm going back to Beijing mainly to see my daughter and my silly son, and also to teach Yi Zhonghai a lesson."

After receiving He Daqing's assurance, Widow Bai felt relieved; she was still somewhat confident that she could control this man.

The next day, He Daqing boarded a train to Beijing and didn't arrive until noon. He didn't eat lunch and went straight home.

At this moment, Li Jianguo was pointing out the meridians and acupoints on Yao Yao's body when he suddenly heard voices at the courtyard gate. He quickly peeked out and saw that it was He Daqing.

"Yaoyao, come quick! He Daqing is back!"

The two then rushed to the Intermediate People's Court, but then realized something was wrong; it was rush hour, and Yi Zhonghai should have already gone to work.

He Daqing rushed into the Yi family home, but as expected, he didn't see Yi Zhonghai.

When Li Cuilan saw He Daqing, she forced a smile.

"The Great Qing Dynasty, you've returned."

He Daqing looked at Li Cuilan with a forced smile. "Yi Zhonghai's?"

"You mean Lao Yi? He went to work and hasn't come back yet."

"Hmph, I won't hit a woman today. We'll settle this score when Yi Zhonghai gets back."

He Daqing went home, kicked open the door of the main house in the middle courtyard, and went inside.

As expected, no one was home; Shazhu went to work, and Yushui went to school.

He Daqing immediately started preparing his lunch.

Seeing He Daqing's attitude, Li Cuilan knew things were going to get complicated. She didn't even bother cooking, hurriedly locked the door, and rushed towards the steel rolling mill.

After arriving at the steel rolling mill and having someone inform him, Yi Zhonghai arrived shortly afterward, limping, because his injury had not yet fully healed.

"Old Yi, Old Yi, something's happened again. He Daqing is back because of the rain. Could it be that this little brat had someone write a letter to He Daqing?"

Yi Zhonghai felt a sudden jolt in his heart.

"It was probably that brat Li Jianguo who did it. Alright, you go back first, I'll think about what to do about this."

"Alright, Lao Yi, be careful. I think He Daqing is really angry; he's probably going to make a move again."

"Okay, I understand. You can go back now."