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

Dan Zhiqi quickly calculated in his mind that he was indeed short two chickens. Without further ado, he checked the prepared vegetables again, said goodbye to He Yuzhu, and went out to buy groceries. Although it was still the Lunar New Year, live chickens were still available for sale in Luomashi. Dan Zhiqi's home wasn't far from Luomashi, so he quickly bought the chickens.

He Yuzhu worked for almost three hours, preparing all the cold dishes and chopping all the necessary vegetables. Seeing that it was almost time, he stir-fried a few more dishes using the leftover ingredients. After having dinner at Shan Zhiqi's house and exchanging a few words, he took He Yushui home.

When He Yuzhu and his sister reached the entrance of the courtyard house, they noticed the neighbors were giving them strange looks. He Yuzhu immediately looked puzzled. Just then, Aunt Pang spoke up, "Yuzhu, you should go back now! Your father is back."

"What?! My dad's back?!" He Yuzhu was shocked and immediately ran home with He Yushui.

"Father!" As soon as He Yushui ran into the courtyard, she saw He Daqing standing there. He Yushui called out and immediately rushed towards He Daqing.

He Daqing caught He Yushui and picked her up, asking, "Yushui, did you miss your dad?!"

He Yushui nodded emphatically, then shook her head. Seeing He Yushui's reaction, He Daqing smiled and asked, "So, do you want to or not?!"

He Yushui said, "I miss my dad, but I'm afraid that when he comes back, he'll abandon my brother and me and run off with someone else again."

Only now did the reckless He Daqing truly realize how much his escape had harmed his daughter.

He Yuzhu walked up to He Daqing and asked, "Are you still leaving?!"

He Daqing replied, "I originally planned to come back after I finished dealing with things in Baocheng. But then I thought I'd better come back first. I'll go back to Baocheng on the fourth day of the Lunar New Year, finish up my work, and then come back."

He Yuzhu nodded silently, took out his key, unlocked the door, pushed it open, and went inside, saying, "Sit down for a while, I'll cook for you."

He Daqing asked, "Where have you two been so late?! Have you had dinner yet?!"

He Yuzhu replied, "I took Yushui to Uncle Shan's place. Uncle Shan's son is getting married tomorrow. He asked me to cook. Yushui and I had dinner at Uncle Shan's house." After saying that, He Yuzhu opened the stove's damper to warm up the room. Then he went to the stove and started cooking.

He Daqing played with He Yushui for a while, then walked over to He Yuzhu and asked, "Zhuzi, where do you work now?!"

He Yuzhu replied, "The Military Control Commission. I'm currently working as a purchasing agent in the Military Control Commission's canteen."

He Daqing asked, "You really don't plan to continue being a chef?!"

He Yuzhu said, "Cooking is just a hobby for me, not a profession. Besides, I'm doing quite well at the Military Control Commission now." He then asked, "Did you receive the letter I wrote to you?!"

He Daqing replied, "I received it. Even if you hadn't written to me, I was still coming back. Widow Bai has been arrested."

He Yuzhu was stunned for a moment, then asked, "What happened?!"

He Daqing said, "I don't know the specifics. I just heard that the widow's family is Manchu. I guess she has some connection with the deaf old lady in the backyard."

He Yuzhu asked, "You're back. Where are you planning to work?!"

He Daqing said, "Where else can we go?! Of course, we'll go back to Lou's Steel Rolling Mill. If we can't go back to the steel rolling mill, I'll use my connections to find other places."

He Yuzhu said, "Dad, as long as you have your own plans, that's fine."

He Daqing asked, "I just saw you tidying up the house?!"

He Yuzhu said, "Yes! I originally planned to do it myself slowly. But now that you're back, I can't do it slowly anymore."

He Daqing said, "You don't need to worry about this. I'll go to your Uncle Shan's house with you tomorrow. I'll talk to your Uncle Qian about this then and have him bring some people over to clean up the mess."

He Yuzhu asked, "Dad, does Uncle Qian Liu have this skill?!"

He Daqing said, "Don't underestimate your Uncle Qian Liu. Although their family isn't as famous as the Lei family, their craftsmanship in house repair is still very renowned."

He Yuzhu tossed the wok a couple of times, ladled the vegetables onto a plate, then took two warmed steamed buns from the steamer and placed them on the table, saying, "Dad, dinner's ready!"

"Hmm!" He Daqing responded and sat down. He Yuzhu took a bottle of baijiu (Chinese liquor) from the cabinet and placed it in front of He Daqing. He Daqing glanced at the bottle, then looked at He Yuzhu and said, "Have a drink with me."

"Okay!" He Yuzhu replied, sat down opposite He Daqing, picked up the wine bottle, poured a glass of wine for He Daqing first, and then poured half a glass for himself.

He Yushui immediately ran to the cabinet, took out a bottle of Beibingyang soda, then sat down at the table and said with a smile, "Dad, I'll have a drink with you too."

"Haha!" He Daqing was immediately amused by He Yushui's little expression. He Daqing said with great satisfaction, "In the blink of an eye, my daughter can drink with her father now."

Nothing happened that night. The next morning, He Yuzhu got up early. After washing up, he started preparing breakfast. Not long after, He Daqing also got up. As He Daqing carried his toiletries to the pond in the middle courtyard, Zhao Shufen happened to come out of the house. He Daqing greeted her, "Shufen, you're up early enough?!"

Zhao Shufen glanced at He Daqing and asked, "Are you leaving again after you come back?!"

He Daqing replied, "I'll go back in a couple of days to take care of the work in Baocheng, then I'll come back. Unless someone plots against me, I probably won't leave again."

Zhao Shufen sighed and said, "The person who plotted against you probably won't be coming back."

Seeing Zhao Shufen's haggard appearance, He Daqing abandoned his idea of ​​taking her back as his wife. He Daqing knew that his reputation wasn't good these days. But with his skills, even if he couldn't find a virgin, finding someone prettier than Zhao Shufen would be easy.

He Da had just finished washing up and returned home when Jia Dongxu came out of the house. Upon seeing Zhao Shufen, Jia Dongxu immediately broke into a bright smile and said, "Master's wife, I'm getting married today. My master said he would give me a sewing machine as a wedding gift. He's not here now, could you please give me the money for the sewing machine?!"

If Yi Zhonghai hadn't chosen Jia Dongxu to be his caregiver, Zhao Shufen wouldn't have given him a single kind word. Zhao Shufen had assumed that with Yi Zhonghai in jail, the two families would never speak to each other again. Unexpectedly, Jia Dongxu shamelessly came to ask for the money he owed for the sewing machine. Without hesitation, Zhao Shufen said, "Go find whoever promised you that. Yi Zhonghai is in detention. If you want to find him, go to the detention center. Besides, I'm divorced from Yi Zhonghai now. I have nothing to do with him." With that, Zhao Shufen poured the water from the basin aside, took her toiletries, and went back inside.