Courtyard House: Drunk and tipsy, the whole courtyard exposed at the start.

Moreover, the Jiaodaokou Police Station has no jurisdiction over the security department of the steel rolling mill. The security department of such a large state-owned enterprise is under dual leadership, and its personnel and staffing are completely subordinate to the steel rolling mill itself. It is a functional department within the mill.

Business operations and work are subject to the guidance and supervision of the Economic Security Division (Economic Security Division) of the Municipal Public Security Bureau.

Since you're going to file a complaint, you should naturally go to the higher-level authorities.

I originally wanted to file a complaint with the Municipal Women's Federation, but I didn't know where it was, so I had to give up.

Why did you complain to the Women's Federation? I'm only 16 years old, a minor, and still in the third grade of elementary school!

Who dares to say I'm not a child?

Although there were no laws protecting minors as detailed as those in later generations, the work and responsibilities of women's federations naturally covered the basic rights and welfare of all minors and young women.

Even if it's just the women's federation in a steel rolling mill, they wield considerable power.

The Municipal Public Security Bureau is the easiest to find, located on Qianmen Public Security Street (the site of the later National Museum), only four or five kilometers away from Nanluoguxiang.

I finished delivering the mail around 7 a.m., before everyone else went to work, ate a hot breakfast outside, and then walked back, stopping by Beihai Park along the way.

Perhaps I arrived too early and missed seeing that splash of crimson. Helpless, I turned back, a cigarette dangling from my lips.

Around 10 a.m., Zhang Dabiao finally returned to the courtyard house in a saunter-back manner. On the way, he stopped at the supply and marketing cooperative to buy some Daqianmen and Mudan tea, and also went to the vegetable market to buy some vegetables. He was really getting tired of eating pre-made meals all the time, and his mouth was burning.

In addition, the bicycle problem still needs to be solved. I spent four or five hours walking all morning without doing anything else. From Nanluoguxiang to the steel mill, then to the front gate of the Municipal Bureau on Gong'an Street, then to Beihai Park, and finally back to Nanluoguxiang... it's more than ten kilometers round trip, and it's really inconvenient without a bicycle.

But Zhang Dabiao had neither money nor tickets, so there was really no way to solve the bicycle problem for the time being.

While pondering whether to go to the Pigeon Market black market to sell supplies and make money, Zhang Dabiao carried the groceries back to the courtyard house.

As a result, goalkeeper Yan Bugui was not guarding the gate on the hanging flower side.

He always seems to be missing something when he doesn't guard the door; bad review.

He strolled into the central courtyard with a nonchalant air, and only then did he understand what was going on.

They're all at the Intermediate People's Court. What's going on? Another court-wide meeting?

But sitting in the middle was Gai Ziwang, whose face was extremely dark, and next to him was Yi Juehu, who was sitting in a wheelchair covered with a blanket? Was he pushed back?

There's also that idiot Zhu with his arm in a sling and plaster cast, that old deaf man with a new cane, and those pretentious Fatty Liu and Stingy Old Man Yan.

Qin Huairu was holding Xiao Dang, with an unfamiliar old farmer beside her...

Something definitely didn't look right.

It's 100% targeted at me!

Xu Damao and Liu Guangqi were giving Zhang Dabiao meaningful glances, but after watching for a long time, Zhang Dabiao still didn't understand what they meant.

Is this telling me to run away?

Should I leave?

Before Zhang Dabiao could even speak, Yi Zhonghai preemptively launched his attack—

"Zhang Dabiao, do you have even the slightest sense of time? Making all the neighbors wait for you in this freezing weather?! If they get cold, you'll have to pay for it—"

"Cough cough cough cough—"

Yi Zhonghai coughed violently from overexertion. Dong Dabao's blow was aimed at his back, and the shouting caused him to cough up blood, which aggravated his internal injuries.

Zhang Dabiao wasn't backing down and retorted directly, "Wait my ass!"

"?!" Everyone—

"..." Director Wang—

Has he always been this brave?

"Did I keep you waiting?"

"Nobody told me there was going to be a college-wide meeting. If you want to hold one, go ahead, but it can't be held without me, is it?"

"Who the hell told me to come out and walk around?"

Everyone was stunned. This whole college meeting was held for you, so why are you still so stubborn?

Suddenly, Liu Pangpang turned to Yi Zhonghai and asked, "Old Yi, you said you were going to hold a hospital-wide meeting, have you informed Zhang Dabiao yet?"

Then everyone turned to look at Yi Zhonghai.

Yi Zhonghai: "..."

"I went back to the courtyard house right after being discharged from the hospital, and he wasn't home..."

Yan Bugui calmly replied, "Then it's not Zhang Dabiao's fault. You didn't say anything, so he didn't know either."

"Ignorance is no excuse."

The neighbors were quite resentful...

[Why the hell did you drag us here in this freezing weather without even notifying the parties involved?]

Zhang Dabiao chimed in, "Exactly! I'm not even home. You guys can have your meeting, why do you have to wait for me?"

"No one notified me, so why do you say I have no sense of time?"

"Yi Juehu, do you think you can't live a day without labeling others or something?"

"Shut up, you son of a bitch! Stop acting like a bully all the time. Just because Director Wang is here, you think you're all that anymore?"

"It's like you can't have a child. If you can, you can; if you can't, you can't. Stop pretending all day long."

"Cough cough cough cough—"

Yi Zhonghai was so enraged by his scolding that he couldn't refute him.

There was indeed no notification, and Zhang Dabiao was indeed unaware.

Sha Zhu hurriedly stepped forward and shouted, "This old man has been waiting for so long to stand up for everyone! This meeting was held for you, Zhang Dabiao, and you..."

Zhang Dabiao shrugged: "So?"

"what?"

"They opened the car for me without even notifying me. You were left waiting in the cold wind for hours while I was gone?"

"Is it my fault?"

"Go find who organized this and made you wait. Are you out of your mind? Making the whole hospital wait here in this freezing weather when I had no idea there was a meeting?"

After hearing what Zhang Dabiao said, everyone looked Yi Zhonghai, Sha Zhu, and Director Wang up and down, especially Yi Zhonghai, who was the one who caused the trouble.

Sha Zhu was caught in a dilemma by Zhang Dabiao's retort, and could only stammer out a few words: "Then you can't..."

"Can't what? If you're mentally ill, go get it treated. Stop babbling on and on all day long."

"You can't stop taking your medicine!"

"Zhang Dabiao, can't you speak a little more politely?"

Finally, Director Wang, unable to bear it any longer, spoke up and stopped Zhang Dabiao.

It was so vulgar and offensive that she couldn't stand it anymore.

Zhang Dabiao stood there, looking at Gai Ziwang with a troubled expression.

Finally, having no other choice, he sighed and said, "Gai... Director Wang."

"You were the one who led the way in helping with my father's burial, so I'm giving you this face."

"But to be honest, I'm giving you face since you're here."

"If you weren't in the courtyard house, I would still curse these babbling idiots without hesitation."

No matter how much Gai Zi Wang tries to cover it up, she was the one who led and directed the neighbors in the courtyard to arrange her father's burial, and she even called in the grassroots cadres from the steel rolling mill to help. Regardless of whether it was her job or not, Zhang Dabiao had to acknowledge this favor.

But you promise you won't swear at those beasts anymore?

Well, to be honest, Zhang Dabiao can't do that.

Is this all the face I can save?

Director Wang frowned. "You could say Zhang Dabiao gave you face, right? Yes, he did."

But he keeps cursing as long as no one is around, so the problem isn't solved at all. What kind of face is this?

"Zhang Dabiao? You brat, why have you become like this?"

"How did you become so vulgar? All you do is swear?"

Director Wang was puzzled.

"My father passed away not long ago, and the three old men in the courtyard and the old deaf man refused to help. They even squandered all the condolence money given to me by the steel mill, and they didn't care at all whether the money left in my family was enough for my future life."

"That's not all. On the first day of the Lunar New Year, the Jia family and Yi Zhonghai plotted against me. They got me drunk and then borrowed my house and workspace, planning to take advantage of my drunkenness to make it happen at the New Year's gathering. They completely disregarded how I, a child, would survive in the future."

"These days, it's not hard to guess whether someone like me, without a job or a house, will survive, right?"

"They don't care if I live or die, they're ready to kill me, and I'm supposed to talk to them civilly?"

"Don't you think this request is ridiculous?"