Courtyard House: The Chef's Intelligence System

Li Jiuzhou wouldn't let Yan Bugui easily extract information from him; he wasn't stupid.

This old guy wears glasses, and his eyes dart around when he looks at people.

He looks like a schoolteacher, but he's actually full of wicked schemes.

When we first moved in, they often came over to borrow fire, which is basically coal briquettes.

At first, Li Jiuzhou was also puzzled, but after it happened several times, he became more alert.

After entering the house, the kid kept looking around at his own home.

One minute they'd ask how much it cost to build a kang (heated brick bed), the next they'd ask how much their monthly salary was.

They just thought Li Jiuzhou was young and easy to fool.

In the end, they didn't get any information out of them.

Li Jiuzhou's income of twelve silver dollars was obtained by asking his neighbors.

Of course, this all happened a couple of years ago.

Li Jiuzhou also instructed his second brother to say he knew nothing if anyone inquired.

Today was a day off, so Li Jiuzhou didn't deprive himself of food. He ate fish for lunch and stewed mutton for dinner.

Even though he built the kitchen in the back of the house, the aroma still wafted into the courtyard.

Li Jiuzhou's cooking skills are so good, and he's so generous with the spices, that the neighbors' mouths watered just smelling the aroma.

But no one dared to come to their door asking for food.

The only shameless one was the deaf old woman in the backyard, who smelled the odor, leaned on her cane, knocked on the door, and entered Li Jiuzhou's house.

She had long since lost all shame in front of Li Jiuzhou.

Those words from the year of the siege, when he said he'd rather starve than eat a single grain of Li Jiuzhou's food, are long gone.

When Li Jiuzhou teased her, she said she couldn't hear him.

What a clever old lady who pretends to be deaf and dumb!

At the Jia family compound in the middle courtyard, Jia Zhangshi and her son were showing off wildly at the dinner table.

Today, Jia Dongxu was off work, and Jia Zhangshi prepared two catties of meat, which the two of them ate with their mouths full of oil.

While eating, Jia Zhangshi said:

"The Li family's son in the front yard is really good at cooking. He can't even cover up the aroma of our braised pork."

"But why do I feel so good eating braised pork with the aroma of mutton?"

Jia Dongxu echoed:

"Mom, you're absolutely right. From now on, we'll just wait for Li Jiuzhou to cook during our mealtimes on weekends."

"It tastes even better this way!"

"Yes, yes, Dongxu is so smart. Eat up, eat more meat."

The mother and son reached an agreement and ate even more happily.

There are only two people in the family, and they are also rich, so they can eat meat whenever they want.

I wouldn't envy Li Jiuzhou, but at most I'd envy his cooking skills.

Several households in courtyard No. 95 reached an agreement to openly eat meat on their days off.

It's not that I don't eat normally, it's just that I'm more discreet when I do.

The Yan family in the front yard also eats meat, specifically fish, which they enjoy with the delicious aroma of mutton.

There are five people eating at Li Jiuzhou's house.

The three Li siblings and the two Sha Zhu siblings.

This silly Zhu is almost inseparable from Li Jiuzhou, and he spends his weekends eating with his senior brother.

Sometimes he would go out to buy ingredients, and the two of them would cook together when he got back.

As for He Daqing?

You can hardly see anyone in the courtyard.

"Zhu Zi, what has my martial uncle been busy with lately?" Li Jiuzhou asked.

Sha Zhu didn't even look up and said, "I don't know, I haven't come back to sleep for several nights."

"I don't know where he's been gallivanting off to."

"Brother Zhu, maybe he's found you a stepmother," Shanhe casually interjected.

Sha Zhu paused upon hearing this, then asked in confusion:

"Really?"

"Why not? My uncle isn't that old, it's perfectly normal for him to find a companion."

Hearing this, Sha Zhu didn't care: "Go ahead and look for it, I don't care, the key is the rain."

Rainwater, upon hearing her name mentioned, said sweetly:

"I don't mind, a stepmother can do my laundry and cook for me..."

Li Jiuzhou laughed. "Fine, you don't care, right? Don't cry when He Daqing runs away."

Whether He Daqing runs away or not is not a big problem. Sha Zhu is following me now, so I'm not afraid of being turned into an idiot by Yi Zhonghai.

It is said that He Daqing was indeed seducing a widow, and that person was Bai Lian, the widow.

And as it turns out, there really was some connection between him and Yi Zhonghai.

Yi Zhonghai had a coworker in the workshop named Bai Gui. During their conversation, he learned that Bai Gui had a cousin named Bai Lian.

Her husband had died, and she came from Baoding to seek refuge with him.

Bai Gui naturally wanted to help his cousin, whether it was finding her a job or helping her marry someone; these were perfectly normal thoughts.

Jobs are easy to find, but they're only temporary. Don't even think about getting rich; just enough to make a living.

It is very difficult for a widow to remarry, especially in Beiping.

Upon learning of the situation, Yi Zhonghai immediately thought of He Daqing.

However, he didn't say it explicitly, only that the kitchen seemed to be short of helpers, and that Lao Bai could introduce his cousin to try it out.

He was certain that He Daqing would take the bait.

Why? Because he had seen Bai Lian, the widow, at the factory.

She's no older than 30, has fair skin, a large bust that looks like it's full of food, and a round, firm bottom.

Even Yi Zhonghai himself was tempted, let alone the old lecher He Daqing.

For several years, the two of them frequently went into the alleys to help the female bodhisattva. They knew each other well.

Sure enough, the moment the White Widow entered the kitchen, He Daqing set his sights on her.

The true nature of a simp is immediately revealed.

All the lunchboxes and dishes prepared for special meals were given to the White Widow.

They hit it off after a while.

He Daqing even rented a house for Widow Bai in Beiping.

With a woman by his side, He Daqing no longer cared about his son and daughter.

They're currently in their honeymoon phase.

He Daqing had been without a woman by his side for many years, and Bai Lian was a smooth talker.

After they moved in together, they treated He Daqing incredibly well.

They showed concern and took excellent care of He Daqing in every way.

He would just call him "Master" all the time, which melted He Daqing's heart.

Women are often the most deadly poison for men, and no man can resist that.

If you can resist, it means the temptation wasn't strong enough!

The silly siblings were completely heartless; they didn't even realize that many of He Daqing's clothes and personal belongings were missing from the house.

They were completely unaware.

At night, in a room in a large courtyard, He Daqing and Bai Lian talked after their intimate encounter.

"My lord, will you marry me?" Bai Lian asked softly.

"Lianmei, of course I'm willing. Let's go get the marriage certificate tomorrow," He Daqing said.

Bai Lian said pitifully:

"But I have children in Baoding, and I can't abandon them."

"They can't live without me, they're too young."

"Sigh..." He Daqing let out a long sigh. This problem had troubled him for a long time.

He Daqing, the widow, really wanted to marry her.

The problem is that the white widow has children; her husband is dead, but they are not divorced.

They're basically having an affair; if it gets out, at worst their reputation will suffer.

It's not that serious. They were in a free-love relationship; at most, they slept together a little too early.

The white widow was subtly and overtly hinting that they should go to Baoding together to live a life as a couple.

But He Daqing knew very well that Bai Lian truly liked him and genuinely wanted him to join her side!

But what if his mother likes her taste?

Bai Lian has children, and He Daqing also has a son and a daughter!

The two have yet to come up with a plan, and the wedding has been repeatedly postponed.

He Daqing was at a loss and said, "I'm tired, let's go to sleep first, we'll talk about it tomorrow."

Bai Lian had no choice but to go along with He Daqing. What if he ran away?

So all these days I've let people sleep with me for nothing?

Who the hell will compensate me for these losses?