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

Sha Zhu walked beside Qin Huairu, trying several times to help her up, but Qin Huairu avoided him each time. Yi Zhonghai walked in front, his steps quick, as if he were fleeing something. Xu Damao and Lou Xiao'e walked together, talking in hushed tones, their expressions not very pleasant.

It was already past 2 p.m. when we got back to the courtyard house.

A few simple tables were set up in the courtyard—they were really just a few tables put together, with cabbage stew with vermicelli, cornbread, and a bowl of watery vegetable soup on them.

This is a funeral custom called "return meal," which is eaten by those who attended the funeral.

Chen Fei found a corner to sit down, picked up a steamed bun, and ate it slowly.

He didn't have much of an appetite, but he had to eat. Everyone else was eating, and it would be too conspicuous for him not to.

While I was eating, I heard Yi Zhonghai and Liu Haizhong talking in hushed tones at the next table.

"Old Liu, what did Deputy Factory Director Li say about the factory matters?" Yi Zhonghai asked.

Liu Haizhong's face was grim: "What else can I say? They'll make me write a self-criticism and deeply reflect on my actions. As for the position of deputy workshop director... forget about it."

"Serves you right," Yi Zhonghai sneered. "Who told you to have such wicked thoughts?"

"Old Yi, I really didn't!" Liu Haizhong cried out anxiously. "That whistleblower letter... I don't know anything about it!"

"You don't know?" Yi Zhonghai stared at him. "The handwriting is yours, and you don't know?"

"I..." Liu Haizhong was speechless.

Chen Fei listened, a cold smile playing on his lips.

Dogs fight, let's continue.

After finishing his cornbread, he got up to go back to his room when he suddenly heard Jia Zhangshi scream, "Ah—!"

Everyone looked over.

Jia Zhangshi pointed towards the mourning hall, her face deathly pale: "Bang Geng... Bang Geng is back!"

Everyone looked in the direction she pointed, and the mourning hall was empty, with only white banners fluttering in the wind.

"Aunt Jia, you're seeing things," Yi Zhonghai said. "That's a white banner."

"No! I saw it!" Jia Zhangshi's voice trembled. "Bang Geng was wearing that blue cotton-padded jacket, standing in the mourning hall, looking at me..."

"Mom, don't scare yourself," Qin Huairu supported her. "Bang Geng is gone."

"No! He didn't leave!" Jia Zhangshi suddenly grabbed Qin Huairu's hand. "Huairu, did Banggeng die unjustly? Has he come back to find us?"

As soon as he said that, the courtyard fell silent.

Everyone remembered the note: "Thieves will die a horrible death."

And there were footsteps last night in the middle of the night...

Could it be that Bang Geng's death was not an accident?

Chen Fei's heart skipped a beat; this was an opportunity.

He stood up, walked to the edge of the mourning tent, looked around carefully, and then said, "Aunt Jia, you're probably just too tired and hallucinating. There's nothing here."

"What do you know!" Madam Jia suddenly yelled at him, "It's you! You didn't save Banggeng! You killed him!"

These words were so abrupt that everyone was stunned.

Chen Fei was also stunned, but quickly recovered, his face showing grievance and anger: "Aunt Jia, what are you saying? I risked my life to save Bang Geng, and instead of being grateful, you blame me?"

"It was you!" Madam Jia went berserk. "Bang Geng was such a good swimmer, how could he drown? You must have failed to save him properly!"

"Mom!" Qin Huairu quickly grabbed her, "Don't talk nonsense! Xiao Chen has already done his best!"

"Trying his best? He'd love to see Bang Geng die!" Jia Zhangshi blurted out, "The Chen family isn't a single good person! They've killed the whole family, and now they want to kill my Bang Geng too!"

That's incredibly malicious.

Everyone in the courtyard frowned. Jia Zhangshi was overwhelmed with grief and had started biting people indiscriminately.

Chen Fei lowered his head, his shoulders trembling slightly, as if he was trying to suppress his grievances. But no one saw the fleeting cold smile that crossed his lips when he lowered his head.

Let them make a scene, the bigger the better.

The more Jia Zhangshi acted this way, the more insane she seemed. The less people believed what she said.

Sure enough, Yi Zhonghai spoke up: "Aunt Jia, calm down. It's a fact that Xiao Chen saved someone; you can't say that about him."

"Yeah," Sha Zhu chimed in, "In yesterday's situation, it was already a miracle that Xiao Chen went to rescue them. Anyone else probably wouldn't have dared to get close."

Jia Zhangshi wanted to say something, but Qin Huairu forcibly pulled her back into the house.

In the courtyard, people were talking animatedly.

"Has Jia Zhangshi gone mad?"

"The pain of losing a child is understandable, but it doesn't mean you can bite people indiscriminately."

"Chen Fei is just unlucky to run into something like this."

Chen Fei stood there with his head down, and only after the murmurs subsided did he whisper, "I'm going back inside."

After saying that, he turned and left.

His figure was desolate, his steps heavy.

Anyone who sees this will think that this is a young man who has been wronged.

But only Chen Fei himself knew how cold he felt inside.

Jia Zhangshi, you just wait.

You're next.

Afternoon: Gains from the space and new plans

In the afternoon, Chen Fei closed the doors and windows and entered the planting space.

He was stunned as soon as he entered the space.

It's only been a little over a day since I last came in, and the space has already changed dramatically.

The wheat and corn planted yesterday have already sprouted tender green seedlings, growing densely and vigorously. The potatoes and cabbages have also sprouted, lush and green, full of life.

Time flows ten times faster in this space than outside; one day outside is equivalent to ten days inside. These crops have been growing for over ten days, so this growth rate is normal.

Chen Fei walked to the spring, scooped up some water and drank a few mouthfuls, feeling refreshed.

He checked the crops and found that they did not need watering—the soil in the space had its own moisture, and the moisture from the spiritual spring would naturally nourish the land.

"What a wonderful place!" he exclaimed.

With this space, he no longer needs to worry about food. Once these crops ripen, he will have more food than he can eat, and he can even exchange it for money on the black market.

But that's not what he's most concerned about right now.

His biggest concern right now is how to deal with Jia Zhangshi.

Although no one believes Jia Zhangshi's outburst in the courtyard today, it made Chen Fei realize that this old woman is a potential threat. She's overwhelmed with grief and prone to losing control; she might say something she shouldn't at any moment.

We must get rid of her as soon as possible.

But how do we handle it?

Jia Zhangshi rarely went out and spent most of her time indoors. And now that Bang Geng had just died, she was even less likely to go out.

We need to find a way to get her out of the house.

Chen Fei recalled Jia Zhangshi's opium addiction.

In the original owner's memories, Jia Zhangshi smoked opium when she was young. She quit after the liberation, but she would occasionally secretly buy opium paste to relieve pain. This kind of opium paste could be bought on the black market and was very expensive, but Jia Zhangshi was willing to spend the money—part of the money she had hidden away was used to buy this.

With Banggeng dead, Jia Zhangshi was devastated and would certainly need to numb herself even more.

If she runs out of opium paste, she has to go out and buy some.

The black market... is a dangerous place.

Chen Fei had a plan.

He exited the space, returned to the house, and began preparations.

First, he needed to know how long the opium paste in Jia Zhangshi's possession would last.

He concentrated his mind, and his thoughts penetrated the walls to enter the Jia family's residence.

Madam Jia lay on the bed, her eyes closed, but she wasn't asleep. Under her pillow was a package of oiled paper. Chen Fei opened it with his mind; inside was a small piece of black opium paste, about the size of a thumb.

Based on Jia Zhangshi's dosage, this opium paste can last for another two or three days.

She'll have to buy a new one in two or three days.