The Courtyard House: The story begins with He Yuzhu beating up the White Widow.

Yan Bugui came out of the house and asked, "Old Liu, what did you say?!"

Liu Haizhong rolled his eyes at Yan Bugui and said, "I was talking about He Yuzhu!" Then he asked, "Old Yan, do you know what those two people were doing just now?!"

Yan Bugui replied, "A relative of He Yuzhu."

"What?!" Liu Haizhong's face showed an incredulous expression. "They have relatives like that?! Old Yan, you're not kidding me, are you?!"

Yan Bugui said, "It really is."

Liu Haizhong muttered, "How come the He family always gets all the good things?!" With that, Liu Haizhong left the front yard.

Yan Bugui watched Liu Haizhong's retreating figure and muttered to himself, "This Liu Haizhong, is he really obsessed with becoming an official?!"

He Yuzhu returned home and opened the two cloth bags on the table. One bag contained some food, and the other bag contained Zhang Dabiao's belongings. He Yuzhu put the things away and busied himself preparing dinner.

Nothing more was said that night. The next morning, He Yuzhu and He Yushui ate breakfast at a small stall at the entrance of the alley, and then went to the Military Control Commission. Just as they arrived at the entrance, before the siblings even entered, Xu Dali, the head chef of the Military Control Commission's canteen, came out from the gatehouse. Seeing the siblings, he unconsciously sized up He Yuzhu and said, "My name is Xu Dali, head chef of the Military Control Commission's canteen. You're the new purchasing agent for our Military Control Commission?!"

He Yuzhu nodded and said, "Uncle Xu, I hope you will take good care of me in the future." After saying that, He Yuzhu took out his cigarette case, took out a cigarette and handed it to him.

Xu Dali took the cigarette, deftly tucking it behind his ear, and said, "Come on! I'll take you to my usual shopping place today. Starting tomorrow, it's your job."

"Hey!" He Yuzhu responded and looked at He Yushui.

He Yushui understood immediately and said, "Brother, I'll go with you."

"Okay!" He Yuzhu replied, took the two cloth bags Xu Dali gave him, and left the Military Control Commission with Xu Dali.

As they walked, Xu Dali said, "Our military control commission is different from other units. Here, apart from the grain which is allocated from above, we have to purchase all other non-staple foods ourselves. Our standard is 2 yuan a day, for breakfast, lunch, and dinner."

He Yuzhu did the math in his head and said, "Uncle Xu, that works out to 2 yuan a day, not much!"

Xu Dali said with a smile, "I used to worry myself sick about making sure everyone ate well every day. But now I don't care anymore! It's all your responsibility from now on."

Xu Dali dutifully led He Yuzhu around the familiar stalls in the market. Soon, He Yuzhu, carrying two large bags of vegetables, followed Xu Dali back to the Military Control Commission.

The Military Control Commission was originally a four-courtyard house. When the Japanese attacked Beijing, the fourth courtyard was mostly destroyed by artillery fire. Later, after the Military Control Commission took over, the fourth courtyard was simply repaired and used as the Commission's canteen. The canteen had one head chef and three assistant chefs. The three assistant chefs were all families of martyrs. The oldest was named Zhao Hongdou, and the other two were Jin Qiao'er and Miao Lan.

Seeing He Yuzhu following behind Xu Dali, Zhao Hongdou asked with a smile, "Uncle Xu, when did you start taking on an apprentice?!"

Xu Dali replied with a smile, "He's not my apprentice. He's a new purchasing agent."

"Purchasing agent?!" Zhao Hongdou and the other two looked at He Yuzhu in unison.

He Yuzhu greeted everyone with a smile: "Hello, ladies! I'm the new purchasing agent, my name is He Yuzhu. This is my sister, He Yushui." After saying that, He Yuzhu took out a handful of candy and continued, "This is our first time meeting. Here's some candy for you to sweeten your mouths." After saying that, He Yuzhu winked at He Yushui.

He Yushui, understanding the unspoken message, took the candy from He Yuzhu's hand and said, "Aunties, have some candy!"

Zhao Hongdou and the other two accepted the candy, thanked them, and then got to work with the groceries they had bought.

He Yuzhu stayed on the sidelines for a while and then helped with the work.

While working and chatting, He Yuzhu quickly became friends with everyone in the cafeteria. He Yushui also became the cafeteria's darling. Xu Dali, who was sitting on a low stool smoking, watched He Yuzhu work efficiently and thought that this kid was really good.

With He Yuzhu, being an experienced worker, the job would have been finished quickly. Now that he had a break, He Yuzhu looked at the empty space beside him and asked, "Aunt Zhao, can we grow vegetables in that empty space over there?"

Zhao Hongdou said, "There are bricks underneath over there, so you can't plant there. But you can plant in the neighboring courtyard. It's just that we haven't been able to because we didn't have enough manpower before." Then she asked, "You want to plant?!"

He Yuzhu said, "Aunt Zhao, we only have 2 yuan a day for vegetables. It seems like a lot, but it's not much in the long run. Although we don't do physical labor here, a lot of it is mental work. Using your brain requires more nutrition than physical labor. The regulations are strict. We can't break them. But we can be flexible! We can grow some vegetables, enough for our daily needs. The extra money can be used to buy meat to improve everyone's nutrition."

Xu Dali chimed in, "You're right, kid. I've been wanting to clear out the land next door and plant something for a while now. It's just that I'm getting old, and the spirit isn't what it used to be. Since you want to plant, then go ahead and plant!"

He Yuzhu asked, "Shouldn't we inform Director Wu about this?!"

"No need! I can handle this! There are tools in the storage room next door, you can take them!" With that, Xu Dali went into the kitchen.

He Yuzhu didn't immediately begin clearing the land. Driven by curiosity, he opened the door to the adjacent courtyard. Although he was somewhat prepared, he still gasped in surprise at the desolate state of the courtyard. A four-courtyard house—how could the side courtyard be small?! From the layout, He Yuzhu immediately recognized it as a former garden. He Yuzhu led He Yushui on a tour of the courtyard, gaining a better understanding of its layout. Before eating, He Yuzhu went to the storeroom to retrieve tools and began clearing the weeds.

Two things are happening at once. While He Yuzhu and He Yushui were shopping for groceries with Xu Dali, Wu Jiangyong arrived at the detention center. After completing the formalities, Wu Jiangyong entered a small room. Just as Wu Jiangyong sat down, Yi Zhonghai was brought in.

Seeing Wu Jiangyong was like seeing a lifeline for Yi Zhonghai, and he said excitedly, "Director Wu! I was also deceived by that deaf old woman, you must believe me!"

Wu Jiangyong said, "Yi Zhonghai, it's not enough for me to just believe you. Evidence is crucial now. Don't worry! We won't wrong an innocent person, nor will we let a guilty person go unpunished. I'm here today because of you and your wife."

Yi Zhonghai was taken aback and asked, "What's wrong with my wife?!"

Wu Jiangyong took out the diagnosis report that the hospital had given to Zhao Shufen and handed it to Yi Zhonghai.

Looking at the diagnostic report in Wu Jiangyong's hand, Yi Zhonghai asked, "What is this?!"