Courtyard House: The Chef's Intelligence System

Jia Dongxu was living a very carefree life at his father-in-law's house. Although he had made a mistake before, he had corrected it, hadn't he?

Besides, they brought quite a few things when they came before the New Year, so the couple spent a lot of money.

There was a pork knuckle, two bottles of good wine, a big bag of homemade Sachima (a type of Chinese pastry), and plenty of peanuts and fruits.

There were also two jin of pork ribs from Jia Dongxu.

Tong Jie was a little confused about where the ribs came from, but Jia Dongxu brushed her off.

The father-in-law was overjoyed to have so many things brought over, and he decided to let bygones be bygones and not hold a grudge against the past.

After a wonderful day, the couple returned to the city after breakfast the next day.

I didn't bring any sticks with me because it was cold.

After returning to the compound, Jia Dongxu rushed to work at the factory, hoping to make it in time for lunch.

At this time, Tong Jie also heard from her neighbors that Sha Zhu's house had been burgled and the ribs and dumplings in the ice tank had been stolen.

Tong Jie already knew in her heart that the spare ribs sent to her father-in-law's house were undoubtedly stolen by her husband. But what about the dumplings?

So she asked her mother-in-law, Jia Zhangshi, who didn't hide it from her and said that she had taken it herself.

When Tong Jie found out, she almost fainted. What kind of family had she married into?

Her husband first frequented brothels, and now he's stealing.

It's fair to say that Jia Dongxu had every single one of the worst vices a man could have: eating, drinking, whoring, gambling, and prostitution.

Tong Jie could only hide in the room and cry. When Bang Geng saw his mother crying, he was also very sad. After all, mother and son are connected at heart, so he started to wail loudly.

Seeing this, Jia Zhangshi was at a loss, and at this moment she really felt that she had done something wrong.

So he went over and gently comforted her:

"Good daughter-in-law, don't cry, okay? Mom knows she was wrong. She won't steal again."

Tong Jie became even more excited after hearing her mother-in-law speak like that:

"Mom, what do you mean by 'I won't steal anymore'?"

"Bang Geng is still young and doesn't understand things yet. Will you and your son teach him the same things when he grows up?"

"In our countryside, if someone gets caught stealing and is beaten to death, they deserve it; nobody speaks up for thieves."

"It's just that I wasn't discovered this time. If I had been discovered, I wouldn't care. I can always remarry."

"That's a great story. You have to live your whole life with the grandson and son of a thief. Do you think he'll be good to you two or hate you then?"

"You must distinguish between what is more important and what is less important."

"There won't be a next time. If it happens again, I'll immediately divorce Jia Dongxu and take Bang Geng back to my parents' home."

"Uh..." Jia Zhangshi was speechless.

Tong Jie looked at Jia Zhangshi again and said something very harsh and embarrassing to Jia Zhangshi:

"You still often mention that the Jia family is a high-ranking and wealthy family. Aren't you ashamed?"

Would wealthy and powerful families steal their neighbors' spare ribs and dumplings?

"To be honest, the way you and your son behave is worse than even the people in our village..."

"If things continue like this, there's no point in waiting for the future; sooner or later, someone will break their legs and throw them into a mass grave."

"Thump thump thump..." Jia Zhangshi was so flustered by Tong Jie's words that she took several steps back and then sat down on the ground with a thud.

His eyes were vacant and confused; he looked somewhat dazed.

Seeing that her mother-in-law showed no pity, Tong Jie realized that the family was already in grave danger.

If the crackdown isn't thorough enough, the organization will likely fall apart soon.

Tong Jie married into this family to live a normal life, not to steal.

She didn't want her son to have a bad reputation either.

Meanwhile, Jia Dongxu went to work at the factory. After greeting his mentor, Yi Zhonghai, he chatted jokingly with his coworkers about interesting things that happened in the countryside.

Yi Zhonghai didn't say anything. After the master and apprentice finished their lunch at lunchtime, Yi Zhonghai took Jia Dongxu to a secluded place.

After walking for a while, Jia Dongxu couldn't help but ask:

"Master, where are we going?"

Yi Zhonghai walked ahead without turning his head and said, "Don't say a word, just follow me."

Yi Zhonghai stopped at a construction site.

Little did they know that Li Jiuzhou and Sha Zhu had seen the master and apprentice from afar on the other side of the wall.

They hid because they saw the two people; through the hole, they could clearly see their movements and hear their voices.

After regaining his footing, Yi Zhonghai turned around and smiled gently at Jia Dongxu:

"Dongxu, no matter what happens later, don't make a sound."

Despite his doubts, Jia Dongxu chose to listen to his master and nodded repeatedly, "Master, I will listen to you."

"Hehehe, good apprentice!" After saying that, Yi Zhonghai swung his right hand and gave Jia Dongxu a big slap on both sides!

"Slap! Slap!"

Yi Zhonghai's slap on Jia Dongxu's face was exceptionally loud.

Before Jia Dongxu could even scream, Yi Zhonghai said after finishing his cigarette, "Dongxu, don't forget what you promised your master: no matter what happens, don't make a sound."

Jia Dongxu immediately covered his mouth, looking pitifully at Yi Zhonghai with tears in his eyes.

Yi Zhonghai wasn't idle either; he stepped forward and started punching Jia Dongxu repeatedly.

One minute he'd slap me, the next he'd punch me in the stomach.

Yi Zhonghai only stopped hitting Jia Dongxu when Jia Dongxu lay on the ground sobbing and Yi Zhonghai was tired of hitting him.

Li Jiuzhou and Shazhu were dumbfounded. After exchanging a glance, they decided to continue watching.

Yi Zhonghai then sat down opposite Jia Dongxu and asked in a low voice:

"Dongxu, do you know why your master hit you?"

He knew the moment Jia Dongxu was hit, and rubbing his face, he replied:

"I know my master."

"Then tell me why your master hit you."

Jia Dongxu whispered, "Because I stole the spare ribs from Sha Zhu's house."

Yi Zhonghai nodded: "Your mother saw you stealing the spare ribs from Zhuzi's house yesterday, and then she also stole the dumplings from the ice tank."

"You're not a child anymore, yet you're doing things that are worse than a child's."

"You didn't steal when you were a kid, how come you're still doing this now that you're grown up and have a family?"

"I could understand if your family was starving, but your family is clearly well-off, so why would you do something like this?"

"Just kidding, right?"

Jia Dongxu really wanted to answer that it was just a joke.

Yi Zhonghai decided to give his apprentice a good scare, so he said:

"From now on, your son Banggeng will be the son of a thief. No one will play with him when he goes to school, and he will be bullied."

Upon hearing this, Jia Dongxu immediately became anxious. His son was his Achilles' heel, his precious treasure. He roared angrily, "I'll see who dares to bully my son!"

Yi Zhonghai spread his hands:

"There's nothing we can do; having a father like that means the whole family is doomed."

"Why don't you just stop being my apprentice? I'm afraid you'll ruin my reputation."

"I want to be a good person, but you keep doing inhuman things."

Yi Zhonghai's words were already quite harsh; it remains to be seen whether Jia Dongxu will heed them.

Yi Zhonghai is truly determined to train his disciples; if things continue like this, they might become useless.