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

He Daqing returned home, parked his bicycle, and went straight into the kitchen. His eyes lit up when he saw what He Yuzhu was taking out of the sack, and he exclaimed, "You've brought back quite a lot this time!!"

"Yes!" He Yuzhu echoed, taking out deer antlers and deer penis from another sack and handing them to He Daqing, saying, "Don't say your son hasn't treated you well!"

He Daqing smiled when he saw the things and said, "I really didn't know you were so filial. I'll keep these things and find someone to make a recipe for making medicinal wine later."

He Yuzhu then took out four more wolf pelts and said, "Dad, you know a lot of people, find someone to help you dispose of these pelts!"

He Daqing agreed, "Okay, I'm free tomorrow anyway. I'll have someone clean up all these hides."

He Yuzhu then asked, "Dad, what are your plans for the Lunar New Year this year?!"

He Daqing understood He Yuzhu's meaning and said, "On New Year's Day, Boss Lou is having a gathering at his house. He's already arranged it with me beforehand. On the second day, I'll accompany your Aunt Liang to your uncle's house. It's like accompanying her back to her parents' home. On the third day, some of my sworn brothers are coming to our house for the New Year." He then asked, "Do you have any plans?!"

He Yuzhu replied, "The usual routine for New Year's Day is to first visit my mother's grave, then go to my master's house. I'll have lunch at Aunt Wang's. The afternoon will be mostly free. On the second day, you take Aunt Liang to that old man's house, and I'll take Yushui out for a stroll. On the third day, we'll stay home. Your sworn brothers are all my uncles. If they come, I can't let you cook."

"You've got a conscience after all!" He Daqing muttered, glancing at the venison in the basin. "This venison is pretty good. I'll process it later. I'll take some to Boss Lou on New Year's Day as a way of repaying his favor."

He Yuzhu asked, "Is Rain Water going with you on New Year's Day?!"

He Daqing thought for a moment and said, "Let Yushui stay home with your Aunt Liang on New Year's Day!"

"Alright!" He Yuzhu didn't waste any more words. After taking everything out of the sack, he told He Daqing he was going back to his room. Looking at the two wooden basins piled high with meat, He Daqing felt a surge of inexplicable peace. He Daqing had been a chef for many years. The mountains of meat he'd seen before all belonged to others. The meat he saw today was all from his own family. He Daqing put on an apron and sleeves, walked to the knife rack, pulled out a cleaver, tested the blade, and began to work.

Meanwhile, not long after He Yuzhu left home that morning, Jia Dongxu, along with Qin Huairu and Banggeng, went out. The three of them took a long-distance bus ride of more than two hours to arrive at the place where Jia Zhangshi was serving her sentence. Jia Dongxu handed over the certificates issued by the Military Control Commission and the Public Security Bureau to the person in charge of registration at the gate.

After the person in charge of registration reviewed the documents and confirmed there were no problems, they immediately had Jia Dongxu and his family taken to the reception room. Not long after, Jia Zhangshi was brought in.

When Jia Zhangshi saw Jia Dongxu arrive, she burst into tears of joy: "Dongxu! You've finally come!" Then, seeing the baby Banggeng that Qin Huairu was holding, she immediately pushed Jia Dongxu aside, rushed to Qin Huairu, and took the child from her arms, saying while playing with the baby, "Banggeng, I'm your grandmother." Then, as if remembering something, Jia Zhangshi couldn't help but curse, "That damned He Yuzhu! If it weren't for him, I wouldn't be suffering here!"

Jia Dongxu took the child from Jia Zhangshi and handed him to Qin Huairu, then took out the dishes he had brought and said, "Mom, this is the food I brought for you. Eat up!"

"I've suffered a lot here," said Jia Zhangshi. "I really need to eat something good to recover!" she exclaimed. With that, she picked up her chopsticks and eagerly grabbed a piece of meat, stuffing it into her mouth. One piece, two pieces, until two-thirds of the meat in the lunchbox was in her mouth. Only then did Jia Zhangshi slow down her eating, casually asking, "Dongxu, how are you doing at the factory?!"

Jia Dongxu said, "Mom, my martial uncle is now my master."

Madam Jia frowned slightly and asked, "Yi Zhonghai's junior brother?! How come I've never heard Yi Zhonghai mention him?!"

Jia Dongxu replied, "He's not Yi Zhonghai's junior brother. He's my father's junior brother, Gao Peilin."

"What?!" Madam Jia's expression changed slightly. "Why would he take you on as his apprentice out of the blue?!"

Jia Dongxu said, "Mom, you know what kind of life I've had at the factory since Yi Zhonghai's incident. Your son is like a rat crossing the street; I'm lucky if everyone doesn't want to beat me up. Forget about getting a raise. I'm already lucky if I'm not fired. Only my martial uncle took me on as an apprentice because of my father." He then asked, "Mom, where did you offend your martial uncle? I feel like he doesn't have a good impression of you."

Madam Jia snorted and said, "Who told your father to be impotent?! Otherwise, I wouldn't have been unable to keep my promise and he wouldn't have caught me. He even advised your father to divorce me?!"

Jia Dongxu hesitated for a moment, then asked, "Was my father killed by Yi Zhonghai because of this?!"

"You're asking me? Who am I supposed to ask?!" Jia Zhangshi retorted, finishing the rest of the meat. She then looked at Qin Huairu and said, "Dongxu's wife, I'm warning you! Don't do anything to betray my Dongxu. Otherwise, when I get out, see how I deal with you!"

Jia Dongxu said, "Mom, you don't need to worry about our affairs. You should mind your own business!"

Madam Jia then asked, "Dongxu, when will you come to see me again?!"

Jia Dongxu replied, "That's hard to say. Don't worry! I'll come see you whenever I have time."

Knowing that further words would be useless at this point, Jia Zhangshi obediently changed the subject. The mother and son chatted for a while longer before Jia Zhangshi was taken away. Jia Dongxu, meanwhile, left the place where Jia Zhangshi was serving her sentence with his wife and child.

Two days passed in the blink of an eye. It was New Year's Eve. He Daqing got up early to prepare the dishes for dinner. He Yuzhu took He Yushui out for a stroll. Around 11:00 AM, He Yuzhu and He Yushui returned. As soon as the siblings entered the courtyard, they were stopped by Yan Bugui. Seeing the three boxes He Yuzhu was carrying, Yan Bugui grinned greedily and asked, "Zhuzi, where did you get your fortune?!"

He Yuzhu replied, "Teacher Yan, when are you going to be normal?! Stop thinking about those unrealistic things. If you want to get rich, you can only rely on your own hands and hard work. You've chosen the wrong time to try and make money through shady means."

Yan Bugui said with a smile, "He Yuzhu, these three radios you have are not cheap."

He Yuzhu replied, "It's not cheap, but we have so many people in our family who earn wages! Teacher Yan, you don't need to be envious. Others may not know your family's situation, but I know it very well."