Kill the beasts in the courtyard, I fled to Hong Kong, surrounded by beauties on both sides.

Chen Fei sat in the darkness, without lighting a kerosene lamp. Firstly, to save on lamp oil—his family had even "borrowed" the money to buy it; secondly, he needed the darkness to conceal his thoughts.

His stomach was growling with hunger, and that half-eaten cornbread wouldn't be enough to stave off hunger. But he endured it.

In modern society, although he was a hoodlum, he had experienced hunger before. Back then, he would fight three people for a single loaf of bread. This bit of hunger now wouldn't break him.

The key is to understand the situation.

Chen Fei closed his eyes and carefully sorted through the original owner's memories.

The original owner of this body was named Chen Fei, nineteen years old this year. After graduating from junior high school, he was introduced by the neighborhood office to work as an apprentice in a steel rolling mill, learning fitter skills from his father, Chen Jianguo. His father was a level six fitter, earning a monthly salary of sixty-eight yuan and fifty cents, which was considered a high income in those days.

My mother, Li Xiulan, is a textile factory worker, a level three worker, earning forty-two yuan a month. My younger sister, Chen Xiaoyu, is fourteen years old and in the second year of junior high school at a nearby school.

A family of four, both working, should have been living a good life. But the problem lies in this courtyard house.

Number 95 Nanluoguxiang is a large, three-courtyard house housing more than a dozen families. The three "uncles" in charge are not officials, but rather unofficial positions created by the neighborhood committee to manage neighborhood disputes.

There was an old man named Yi Zhonghai, an eighth-grade fitter at the steel rolling mill, who was the highest-paid person in the compound, earning ninety-nine yuan a month. He had no children and had always wanted to find someone to take care of him in his old age.

Second Uncle Liu Haizhong, a level seven forging worker at the steel rolling mill, was obsessed with becoming an official and dreamed of it all.

Uncle Yan Bugui, the third uncle, is a primary school teacher. His salary is not high, but he is very calculating and can stretch every penny to its limit.

These three people are the "core of power" in the courtyard house.

Other residents: the Jia family, Jia Dongxu and Qin Huairu with their mother-in-law Jia Zhangshi, son Banggeng, and daughter Xiaodang; Shazhu, a cook at the steel mill canteen, in his early thirties and still unmarried; Xu Damao, the projectionist at the steel mill, who is Shazhu's sworn enemy; and the deaf old lady, and several families in the backyard...

In Chen Fei's memory, after his father's accident, Yi Zhonghai was the first to step forward and, on the grounds that "Chen Fei is too young to handle affairs," collected the compensation on his behalf—a full eight hundred yuan, plus the factory's promise of "a substitute job."

After her mother passed away, Qin Huairu's mother-in-law, Jia Zhangshi, began spreading rumors that Chen Fei was "unlucky and would bring misfortune to his relatives" and that they should stay away from him. The way people in the courtyard looked at him changed.

After his younger sister drowned, the third uncle, Yan Bugui, "kindly" suggested, "Don't waste Xiaoyu's school spot. My Jiekuang just wants to go to middle school..." After being rejected by the original owner, Yan Bugui never gave him a kind look again.

What's most disgusting is that these beasts, while scheming to take advantage of the Chen family's property, also pretend to be "thinking of you."

Yi Zhonghai said, "I'll keep the pension for you for now, and give it to you when you're settled down and have a family."

Liu Haizhong said, "I'll talk to the factory about your dad's workstation and see if my son Guangqi can take over."

Yan Bugui said, "Your grain coupons are easy to lose if you leave them with you, so I'll keep them for you for now."

Jia Zhangshi said, "Your house is just sitting empty anyway, what's wrong with borrowing it from me for a bit?"

Xu Damao said, "It's a waste for you to keep your dad's watch. I'll get rid of it for you."

Sha Zhu said, "Don't be ungrateful, kid. This old man is doing this for your own good!"

The original owner of this body was timid and weak-willed. The successive deaths of his parents and sister were too much for him to bear, leaving him completely stunned. Coupled with the constant chatter from the people in the courtyard, he had no idea how to resist.

The result was: the pension was gone, the food stamps were gone, the work position was coveted, the house was threatened, and even a lot of the sister's belongings were stolen by the gangster.

"These bastards..." Chen Fei opened his eyes, his eyes bloodshot.

He could sense that the original owner's resentment still lingered in this body. It was a mixture of unwillingness, anger, and despair, like a fire burning in his chest.

"Don't worry," Chen Fei said in a low voice, as if speaking to the remnant soul of the original owner, "I will avenge you. I will mourn your family for you. From today onwards, I am you, and you are me. None of those who bullied you will escape."

As soon as he finished speaking, he felt the tightness in his chest ease a little.

But not enough.

Chen Fei knew that ruthlessness alone wouldn't be enough. He was currently penniless, lacking food, and physically weak. Meanwhile, those beasts had been operating in the courtyard for years, their connections deeply entrenched.

Yi Zhonghai is a level eight worker and has connections in both the factory and the neighborhood office.

Although Liu Haizhong was just a blacksmith, his eldest son, Liu Guangqi, worked in the neighborhood office.

Yan Bugui is a teacher and knows many people.

Although the Jia family was poor, Qin Huairu knew how to feign pitifulness, and Sha Zhu was completely infatuated with her, willing to be her henchman.

Xu Damao is treacherous and a master at stabbing people in the back.

Sha Zhu is a good fighter; there are few people in the courtyard who can match him.

A direct confrontation? In his current physical condition, he couldn't even withstand a single punch from Sha Zhu.

"We must outsmart them," Chen Fei murmured.

He groped around in the dark and pulled a small wooden box from under the bed. This was where the original owner of the body hid things; there should still be some of his savings inside.

He opened the wooden box and, by the moonlight streaming in from the window, saw several things inside: a small family photo, a Hero brand fountain pen (a birthday gift from his father), a tin frog toy (his sister's), and... three grain coupons.

Chen Fei picked up the three grain coupons and examined them carefully.

One was a city grain coupon, worth one jin; another was a coarse grain coupon, worth five jin; and the third was a pastry coupon, worth half a jin.

This was all the original owner's belongings.

Chen Fei remembers that in those days, buying grain required not only money but also grain coupons. A pound of wheat flour cost 18 cents, but you also had to pay for a pound of grain coupons. Coarse grains were cheaper, cornmeal cost 8 cents a pound, but you still needed coarse grain coupons.

After the original owner's father passed away, the rations in the family's food book were "helped" out by the people in the courtyard. These three food coupons were secretly hidden by the original owner.

"I need to get something to eat." Chen Fei stuffed the food coupons into his pocket.

It's already past nine o'clock at night, the black market should be open. In this era, there was a distinction between the open market and the black market. The open market consisted of state-run stores and supply and marketing cooperatives, which required tickets and certificates; the black market was a private transaction, with higher prices, but no tickets were required.

The original owner's memories included the locations of several black markets: near Dongdan vegetable market, outside Deshengmen, and along the moat.

Chen Fei decided to try his luck.

He quietly opened the door; the courtyard was silent. The early spring night wind was still cold, making him shiver.

He tiptoed out, hugging the wall. As he passed the courtyard, he saw that the light was still on in Yi Zhonghai's house, and two figures were reflected in the window—Yi Zhonghai and an older woman talking.

Chen Fei held his breath and hid in the shadows.

"...That kid's acting strange today," Yi Zhonghai's voice came through the crack in the window, "He actually dared to talk back to Qin Huairu."

"They're probably starving," an older woman said.

"No matter what, we need to get things settled as soon as possible." Yi Zhonghai lowered his voice. "The Jia family is eyeing the Chen family's house, and the Yan family is also interested. My idea is to have Chen Fei move to the factory dormitory first, and then we can decide who to give the house to later."

"What about the compensation?"

"The compensation..." Yi Zhonghai paused, "Chen Fei is young, and it's easy for him to go astray if he takes so much money. I'll keep it for him and give it to him when he gets married."

Chen Fei, standing outside the window, had his fists clenched tightly.

Keep it as a savings account? Wait until he gets married? It'll probably be ages before this money "naturally" becomes Yi Zhonghai's retirement money!

"There are still work positions available," Yi Zhonghai continued. "Chen Jianguo is a level six worker, and his position is vacant. The factory has agreed to give him a place to fill in. I think Jia Dongxu's family is doing well. Although Dongxu is a level two worker, if the Jia family gets another job, Dongxu will appreciate my kindness, and his retirement won't be a problem."

Jia Dongxu? Qin Huairu's husband, who was originally supposed to die in a work accident next year. Is Yi Zhonghai trying to give the Chen family's job to the Jia family?

No… Chen Fei recalled carefully. After his father passed away, the factory did promise to give him a job replacement, but only if he was a direct relative. In other words, that job should have been Chen Fei's!

Is Yi Zhonghai trying to get this spot given to the Jia family? What about Chen Fei then?

"But what about Chen Fei..." the older woman hesitated.

"He's just an apprentice, what difference does it make where he works?" Yi Zhonghai said. "I've already spoken to the factory. Chen Fei is too young and his skills aren't up to par; he can't handle a level six worker position. We'll find him an easier job later; it's for his own good."

What a convenient excuse for "doing it for his own good"!

Chen Fei gritted his teeth. They took his family's compensation, then his job, and now they're even going after his house! Yi Zhonghai, you're a ruthless maniac!

He suppressed the urge to rush in and fight back, and continued listening.

"What about Old Yan..."

"Old Yan wants Xiaoyu's school spot, and I can give it to him," Yi Zhonghai said. "But he has to support me on the house issue. As for Liu Haizhong, I promised to help his son get a permanent position, and he'll be on my side too."

"In this way, Chen Fei has no way out."

"There shouldn't have been a way out in the first place." Yi Zhonghai's voice turned cold. "The Chen family is down to just one person; he can't hold onto those things. Helping him deal with them is easing his burden. Besides, which family in the compound isn't struggling? The Jia family has five people crammed into one room, and the Yan family has four children in school—it's not easy for any of them. Sharing the Chen family's things is a good deed."

Accumulating good deeds? Chen Fei almost laughed in anger.

These beasts! They make it sound so noble to seize other people's property! "Let's all share it"? Clearly, it's just a few of them in charge dividing it up!

The conversation inside the window continued, but Chen Fei couldn't listen anymore.

He quietly stepped back and continued walking out.

As he passed by the Jia family's window, he heard Jia Zhangshi's voice coming from inside: "...Once we get the house, Dongxu and you can move in. Then our family will live in the main house."

"Mom, isn't this a bit inappropriate?" It was Qin Huairu's voice.

"What's wrong with that?" Madam Jia said matter-of-factly. "The Chen family only has one young boy left. Isn't it a waste for him to occupy two rooms? We're helping him! Besides, we can move out after he gets married."

"But will Chen Fei agree?"