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

He Yuzhu and He Yushui had just returned home. Before the siblings could even catch their breath, there was a knock at the door. He Yuzhu opened the door and saw Wang Xia standing there, excitedly asking, "Aunt Wang, what brings you here?!"

Wang Xia said, "I'm on duty today. I just stopped by on my way home from get off work." Then she asked, "What?! You two siblings just got back?!"

He Yushui spoke first: "Aunt Wang, my brother took me to the temple fair."

"Aunt Wang, please sit down!" He Yuzhu gestured for Wang Xia to sit, then poured her a cup of Le Koufu coffee and placed it in front of her, saying, "Aunt Wang, it's getting late. Why don't you eat here before you leave?"

"No need! My family is waiting for me to come back! I'm relieved that you two siblings are alright!" After saying that, Wang Xia took out a red envelope and handed it to He Yushui.

He Yushui didn't accept the red envelope immediately, but instead secretly glanced at He Yuzhu. Seeing He Yuzhu nod, He Yushui took the envelope and respectfully said, "Thank you, Aunt Wang!"

"Then I'll be going now." Wang Xia said, standing up.

"Wait!" He Yuzhu called out to Wang Xia, quickly walked to the vegetable cabinet, opened the door, took out five lunchboxes full of vegetables, put them into a cloth bag, and then walked up to Wang Xia with the bag, saying, "Aunt Wang, these are some dishes I made myself. I originally wanted to bring them to you, but I didn't know where you live. Since you're here today, I'll take them back with me."

Wang Xia hurriedly said, "Zhu Zi, you guys keep it for yourselves!"

He Yuzhu said, "Aunt Wang, even in a famine, a cook won't starve. Although I'm not a cook anymore, making some food is still no problem for me. Since you treat my brother and me like family, please don't stand on ceremony."

Wang Xia thought for a moment, then took the cloth bag from He Yuzhu's hand and instructed him, "You two siblings must be careful when you go out."

"Understood, Aunt Wang!" He Yuzhu and He Yushui saw Wang Xia off at the door. As they were about to leave, Liu Haizhong blocked their way and asked, "He Yuzhu, wasn't that Deputy Director Wang from the Military Control Commission?! You two seem quite familiar with each other. What's your relationship?!"

He Yuzhu replied, "What other relationship could it be?! A superior-subordinate relationship." Then he asked, "What do you take us for?!"

Liu Haizhong was stumped by He Yuzhu's question. After a few seconds, as if he had caught He Yuzhu red-handed, Liu Haizhong demanded, "Weren't you working at the machine tool factory? Why were you at the Military Control Commission again?!"

He Yuzhu said, "The machine tool factory is too far from here, and it's inconvenient for me to take care of Yushui. I'll switch jobs with someone else." Then he asked, "Liu Haizhong, what business is it of yours where I work?! Judging from your usual behavior, I really suspect you're lying about your background!" After saying that, He Yuzhu took He Yushui home.

Watching He Yuzhu's retreating figure, Liu Haizhong felt a surge of anger welling up inside him. Liu Haizhong's ancestral home was in Shandong Province, and he had some kinship ties with the Kong family, the family of the legendary teacher who wrote the surrender document for the Japanese. Liu Haizhong was the third child in his family, with an older brother, an older sister, and three younger brothers. In his youth, Liu Haizhong was fond of fighting and disliked studying, thus failing to win his father's favor. Shortly after his marriage, his parents separated him from his family and he moved out.

Liu Haizhong's parents probably gave him money when they divided the family property, as they were essentially giving him away to beggars. To make a living, Liu Haizhong and his wife followed other members of their clan to Beijing. At that time, the Lou family's steel rolling mill was hiring, and Liu Haizhong, being strong, used his connections to get a job as a forger at the mill.

Liu Haizhong returned home and slumped into a chair, looking dejected. Ma Cuilan, who was mending clothes beside him, noticed his odd expression and asked, "Honey, you were perfectly fine when you went out. Who made you angry?!"

"Who else could it be?! That bastard Sha Zhu!" Liu Haizhong finally released the resentment that had been building up in his chest. He continued, "I wonder what connections that kid found to get a job at the Military Control Commission?"

Ma Cuilan said, "I know about this. The Military Control Commission opened a state-run restaurant called the Workers' and Peasants' Restaurant to take care of the families of martyrs and soldiers. He Yuzhu thought it was too far to go to the machine tool factory, so he switched jobs with the purchasing agent at the Workers' and Peasants' Restaurant. The Military Control Commission was also short of a purchasing agent, so they kept He Yuzhu and found another purchasing agent for the Workers' and Peasants' Restaurant."

Liu Haizhong asked, "On what grounds do they have to keep He Yuzhu here?!"

Ma Cuilan sighed, thinking to herself, "How could I have chosen such a stupid man?!" Then she said, "You forgot. He Yuzhu's uncle was a martyr."

Liu Haizhong still had some self-awareness; he knew what he could and couldn't touch. The families of martyrs were among those he couldn't touch. Otherwise, he wouldn't even know how he died.

Time quickly passed to noon on the second day of the Lunar New Year. After lunch, He Yuzhu took He Yushui to the home of Shan Zhiqi, He Daqing's sworn brother.

"Fifth Uncle, I brought rainwater." As soon as He Yuzhu entered the courtyard, he saw Shan Zhiqi setting up a stove in the middle courtyard.

"Zhu Zi's here?! Come inside quickly!" Shan Zhiqi called out, shouting into the house, "Old woman, come out quickly! Zhu Zi and Yu Shui are here!"

Hearing her husband's voice, Shan Zhiqi's wife, Gao Guimei, came out of the house and said with a smile, "Zhuzi, Yushui, it's been a long time since we last saw each other. Come inside!"

"Fifth Aunt!" He Yuzhu and He Yushui called out in unison, then entered the living room. Gao Guimei said, "Zhuzi, I heard about your father's situation from your fifth uncle. That guy is really unreliable."

He Yuzhu said, "Fifth Aunt, this matter is over. My siblings and I are doing just fine without him." Then he asked, "Fifth Aunt, where is your kitchen?!"

Gao Guimei said, "The kitchen is right next door."

"Okay! I'll get back to work now. Please look after Yushui for a while." After saying that, He Yuzhu took out a bag of snacks and a few comic books from his bag and gave them to He Yushui. Then he took out an apron and sleeves, put them on, and took the knife he had brought with him to the kitchen next door.

Although Shan Zhiqi's house was also a large tenement, Shan Zhiqi was resourceful. He had three main rooms in the central courtyard, plus east and west side rooms, and two rooms in the east wing. The Shan family's kitchen was converted from the west side room; half was a kitchen, and the other half a storage room. Entering the kitchen, He Yuzhu quickly scanned the vegetables inside before starting to cook.

About half an hour later, Shan Zhiqi came to the kitchen and asked, "Zhu Zi, is anything else missing here?!"

He Yuzhu asked, "Fifth Uncle, how many tables are we having tomorrow?!"

Shan Zhiqi replied, "Eight tables." Then he asked, "What's wrong?!"

He Yuzhu said, "Fifth Uncle, if we have eight tables, we're still short two chickens."