Courtyard House: I fish in the heavens, a professional bird abuser.

In the front yard, Uncle Yan Bugui was bending over, carefully tying several fishing rods of varying lengths and of mixed old and new, along with a tattered canvas fish basket, to the back seat of his old bicycle, which rattled everywhere except for the bell.

He wore a faded, patched-up old jacket, his eyes behind his small glasses gleaming with a calculating light. He muttered to himself, "Earthworms...steamed buns...water bottle...hmm, all set! Today at Shichahai, I'm definitely going to catch a few big crucian carp to treat myself!"

"Third Uncle, are you packing up?" He Yuanchao's voice rang out.

Yan Bugui was startled. He turned around and saw He Yuanchao and his shiny new Forever 28. He immediately put on a smile with a hint of ingratiation: "Oh! Yuanchao! So early? Going fishing too?" He glanced longingly at He Yuanchao's impressive new car, then looked at his own beat-up car and felt a pang of jealousy.

"Well, the factory's closed today, and I've got nothing better to do, so I'll try my luck at Shichahai."

He Yuanchao spoke casually, his gaze sweeping over Yan Bugui's pile of worn-out fishing gear. "We're going the same way anyway, why don't we go together? Uncle, don't bother tying up your fishing gear, just put it on the back seat of my car, I'll give you a ride, quick!"

Yan Bugui's eyes lit up instantly upon hearing this!

Riding a Forever 28 bicycle to go fishing? That's some serious style! He never even imagined it in his life!

Overjoyed, he grinned from ear to ear, rubbing his hands and saying repeatedly, "Oh! This...this is too much trouble! You've gone to so much trouble, Yuanchao! Well...this Third Uncle will shamelessly take advantage of your kindness!"

He deftly unloaded his broken fishing rod and fish basket from the old car, holding them carefully in his arms, afraid of getting He Yuanchao's new car back seat dirty.

He Yuanchao took a long stride and sat steadily on the car seat.

Yan Bugui sat carefully on the back seat, clutching his fishing gear tightly in his arms, his thin back straight, his face flushed with barely suppressed excitement.

"Hold on tight, Third Uncle."

He Yuanchao pushed off with his feet.

"Ring ring—!"

The crisp sound of the bicycle bell rang out, and the brand-new Forever 28 bicycle, carrying two people, sped out of the courtyard gate amidst Yan Bugui's deliberately raised, boastful farewell.

"Damn it! I'm going fishing at Shichahai with Yuanchao! Don't wait for me for lunch!"

The sound carried clearly throughout the front, middle, and back yards.

At the entrance of the Jia family compound in the Intermediate People's Court, Jia Zhangshi leaned against the doorframe, watching the brand-new bicycle carrying Yan Bugui disappear through the gate, listening to the piercing sound of the bicycle bell.

Hearing the faint, cheerful response from the three women in the front yard, a surge of anger mixed with boundless jealousy suddenly rose up!

"Pah! Show-off! What are you flaunting? Riding a beat-up bike makes you so great? Old Yan, you shameless old bastard! Licking someone's childless asshole! Disgraceful! You deserve a horrible death! Fishing? Fishing my ass! Come back with an empty basket to feed turtles!"

She dared not yell at He Yuanchao, but could only suppress her voice and unleash all her vicious curses on Yan Bugui, her triangular eyes filled with resentment.

The third aunt was tidying up the old clothes drying in the front yard when she heard Jia Zhangshi's cursing. She frowned, pursed her lips, and muttered under her breath, "If you're so capable, why don't you get someone to carry you? What's with the sour grapes! At least our Old Yan got half a roast duck!"

She quickly packed up the clothes, turned around and went back into the house, too lazy to deal with the mess in the middle courtyard anymore.

The taste of the Peking duck from Quanjude last night was still lingering on her lips and teeth. Yan Bugui's vivid description and the delicious dishes he brought back completely changed the Third Aunt's opinion of He Yuanchao.

At least they actually gave us real money! That's much better than the Jia family, who just throw tantrums, take things for free, and complain about how bad they are!

Inside the house, Banggeng was still crying and wailing, "Grandma! I'm hungry! I want meat porridge! I want roast duck! Waaaaaah—!"

Madam Jia was annoyed by her grandson's crying, and coupled with her still weak body, she also experienced another bout of uncomfortable, dull pain in her stomach.

She glared irritably at Jia Dongxu, who was pretending to be dead on the kang (heated brick bed), her triangular eyes darting around, and a wicked thought popped into her head.

She moved closer to the stalk of a dog, lowered her voice, and said seductively, "My dear grandson, stop howling! Howling won't do you any good! If you want to eat well, you have to rely on yourself!"

Banggeng's crying stopped abruptly. He raised his teary-eyed little face and looked at his grandmother with a mixture of confusion and expectation.

A sly and ruthless glint flashed in Jia Zhangshi's cloudy triangular eyes. She gestured with her chin toward He Yuanchao's house in the backyard, her voice lowered, like a viper spitting its tongue: "See? That childless man locked himself in and left early this morning!"

Inside the house…tsk tsk, meat and oil everywhere…who knows what other good stuff is hidden away! That silly Zhu, he's been being watched by the neighborhood committee these past few days, who knows what good stuff he's hiding…he won't starve himself!

Banggeng's little eyes lit up instantly! Steal? He knows this stuff like the back of his hand!

Sha Zhu's lunchbox, Xu Damao's peanuts, Yan Bugui's garlic on the windowsill in the front yard... every time he "visited," he could easily get them.

But… he recalled He Yuanchao’s calm yet frightening gaze yesterday, and the ruthlessness with which he had dealt with Sha Zhu and the old man. A chill ran down his spine, and he stammered, “Sha… Uncle Sha’s family… seems to be almost gone… He… He Yuanchao… he…”

"What's there to be afraid of!"

Jia Zhangshi glared with her triangular eyes, slapped her grandson on the back of the head to encourage him, "He's a good-for-nothing! He's the only one in the family! Stealing from him is doing him a favor! Besides, he's probably starving at the sea right now with that old swindler Yan!"

They won't be back for a while! Hurry up, grab some food and supplies, and come right back out! Without anyone noticing!

That meat porridge...that oil...and who knows, there might even be flour in it! Enough for us to eat for several meals!"

She became more and more excited as she spoke, as if she could already see her grandson returning home with a full load of goodies, without ever considering what would happen if he made a mistake.

In her opinion, Banggeng was a clever kid; stealing something would be a piece of cake for him. No matter how capable He Yuanchao was, could he conjure up some kind of contraption at home?

Banggeng was completely bewitched by his grandmother's description of the "delicious prospects," and the cravings in his stomach roared wildly, overpowering any slight fear.

He nodded vigorously, his little face revealing a greed and eagerness beyond his years: "Grandma! You wait! I'm going right now!" After saying that, he tiptoed out of the house like a nimble cat.

Jia Dongxu lay on the kang (a heated brick bed), his cloudy eyes moved slightly, glancing at Bang Geng who had slipped away and Jia Zhangshi with a calculating look on her face. He let out a meaningless "ho ho" sound, and then fell silent again.

He closed his eyes, which was taken as tacit consent.

I'm hungry, really hungry.

Face? That thing is worthless in the face of hunger and paralysis.

On the shore of Shichahai Lake, the morning mist had not yet completely dissipated, and the water surface was shrouded in a thin veil.

Many anglers had already gathered along the shore, mostly middle-aged and elderly men, dressed simply and carrying basic fishing gear, occupying what they considered to be good spots in twos and threes.

The lake was calm, with the occasional fish leaping out and creating ripples that drew everyone's attention, their eyes filled with anticipation.

Yan Bugui led He Yuanchao to what he considered a "golden fishing spot"—a small earthen slope slightly protruding from the lake, with several flat large rocks on the shore, offering a wide view and abundant aquatic plants.

As he unloaded his worn-out fishing gear, he proudly shared his experience: "Yuanchao, see this? Right here! I've been watching this place for a long time! The water depth is just right, there's an undercurrent, and lots of seaweed, so fish love to congregate here! When you come back, sit here! I'll go to that rock over there, it's not far, so we can keep an eye on each other!"

He told He Yuanchao to sit in the "golden fishing spot," but he himself deftly placed his tattered stool on the larger, flatter rock, which was indeed in a slightly better position.

Then he pointed to a slightly smaller, slightly off-center stone next to him and said to He Yuanchao, "You sit here! It's safe!" Clearly, Yan Laokou had reserved the best spot for himself.

He Yuanchao saw right through Yan Bugui's little scheme, but didn't expose it. He just smiled faintly and said, "Alright, I'll listen to Third Uncle."

He casually placed his tackle bag on the small rock, his movements relaxed, completely lacking the seriousness and tension that other anglers showed when repeatedly adjusting their tackle.