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

In He Yuanchao's small house in the backyard, the atmosphere was reaching its climax.

The small square table now appears as a "luxury".

Right in the center is a huge bowl piled high with twice-cooked pork!

The slices of pork, with their perfect balance of lean and fat, were stir-fried to perfection, their edges slightly curled and crispy, coated in a glistening, reddish-brown sauce. The fatty parts were translucent, while the lean meat displayed a clear and enticing marbling.

Interspersed with dark green garlic shoots and golden-brown dried chilies, the rich aroma of soy sauce, meat, garlic, and spiciness blend together to create a primal appetite bomb.

Next to it is a bowl of steaming, glistening white rice!

Each grain of rice was plump and slender like jade, and the rising steam carried a sweet and pure aroma of rice, which complemented the domineering aroma of meat next to it.

On the corner of the table was a chipped rough porcelain bowl containing several clean, crisp white scallions.

He Yuanchao sat at the table, in front of him was a large bowl filled to the brim, with rice packed tightly on top and a thick layer of glistening twice-cooked pork.

He had just shoveled a large mouthful into his mouth when the soft, sweet rice, the savory and fatty meat slices, the fresh aroma of garlic sprouts, and a perfectly balanced spiciness exploded in his mouth.

The intense satisfaction made him squint his eyes in comfort.

Just then—

Knock knock knock.

A soft, hesitant knock sounded, carrying a cautious, tentative tone.

He Yuanchao paused in his chewing motion, his brows furrowing instantly.

Did the smell attract flies? He didn't need to guess to know who was outside the door.

In this courtyard, the only person who would stoop so low as to knock on his door at this time is the Jia family's son.

His eyes turned cold. He didn't say a word and continued to shovel rice into his mouth, deliberately making loud chewing noises.

The "crunch" sound of the meat being chewed between the teeth was exceptionally clear.

Tap tap tap… tap tap tap…

The knocking continued several times, urgent and pleading.

He Yuanchao swallowed the last bite of rice in his mouth before slowly putting down his chopsticks and wiping his mouth.

Instead of getting up to open the door, he picked up a scallion from the table, slowly broke off a piece, and took a bite with a crisp, loud "crunch."

A brief silence fell outside the door.

immediately,

A woman's voice, thick with a nasal tone, deliberately softened and gentle, and filled with a pitiful air, timidly rang out:

"Yuanchao... Yuanchao brother? It's... it's me, Qin Huairu... please open the door, sister-in-law... sister-in-law has something to tell you..."

He Yuanchao's lips curled into a cold smile.

sister in law?

Now you know it's your sister-in-law?

He still didn't move, and then took another bite of the scallion with a "crunch," making it crunchy.

Qin Huairu, standing outside the door, felt a mix of emotions swirling within her.

The aroma of meat and rice, so close at hand, was so strong that it made her dizzy.

Separated only by a thin door panel, she felt as if she were in a completely different world.

While the people inside were eating delicacies, she and her child were eating cornbread that was worse than pig feed outside.

The immense disappointment and regret gnawed at her heart.

She could hear the clear chewing sounds inside, and even imagine the glistening slices of meat being bitten open, causing her stomach to spasm.

She took a deep breath, forcibly suppressing her surging emotions, her voice becoming even weaker, with a clear sob in it:

"Brothers from North Korea... please open the door... sister-in-law... sister-in-law, please... Bang Geng and his children..."

I'm so...so hungry I can't stand it anymore...the smell of your delicious food...it made me cry so much...the child is so young...

"He's so ignorant... Just have pity on him... Give him a sip of broth... or even... even just a mouthful of rice to fill his stomach... Sister-in-law... Sister-in-law kowtows to you..."

Towards the end, his voice choked up, as if he were about to cry.

He Yuanchao's eyes grew even colder.

It's the same old set again!

Using children as a shield! Moral blackmail!

He put down the scallions, finally stood up, walked to the door, but did not open it immediately.

He suddenly reached out and pulled open the latch!

Squeak-!

He forcefully pulled the door open, leaving it wide open!

In an instant, the bright light in the room, the bowl of glistening twice-cooked pork piled high like a small mountain on the table, and the steaming, translucent, fragrant rice...

As if illuminated by a spotlight, it was completely exposed to Qin Huairu outside the door, as well as to the neighbors in the middle and front yards who had quietly gathered around!

A rich, overpowering aroma, a blend of savory meat flavor and premium rice fragrance.

Like a floodgate bursting open, it surged and rushed out of the doorway, fiercely assaulting everyone's olfactory nerves!

"Hiss..." Someone gasped sharply.

Immediately following was a chorus of suppressed, rising and falling sounds of swallowing saliva!

Gudong!

Gudong!

Like a dull drumbeat, it struck the now-silent courtyard.

Qin Huairu froze at the doorway!

She was closest to it, so the visual and olfactory impact of that bowl of meat was the most direct for her!

Glistening, marbled slices of meat, a vibrant red sauce, and bright green garlic sprouts…

That bowl of white rice, shimmering like pearls…

The intense hunger and overwhelming temptation caused her to lose her composure instantly, her mind went blank, and she forgot all the prepared words she had prepared.

He just stared intently at the bowl of meat, his throat bobbing violently, his chapped lips involuntarily opening, and saliva almost spilling out.

Her gaze involuntarily shifted from the bowl of meat to the man standing beside the table.

Under the dim light, He Yuanchao stood there with an upright posture.

Six years of hammering and forging in his fitter career transformed his originally thin body into a robust and powerful one, his broad shoulders making his work clothes look fuller.

His face was expressionless, his eyes calm and still, even carrying a hint of undisguised indifference and scrutiny as he looked down at Qin Huairu, who was standing at the door, looking haggard, pale, and somewhat disoriented from the aroma of meat.

The contrast at this moment is so stark it's almost blinding.

Qin Huairu's mind went blank.

This tall, muscular man with sharp eyes and an air of control…

Is it really He Yuanchao, the apprentice she disliked six years ago for being too poor, thin, small, and taciturn?

Then look at Jia Dongxu at home, paralyzed in bed, with a bad temper, covered in bedsores and smelling terrible.

And then there's that greasy, calculating idiot Zhu who's always trying to take advantage of others...

Immense regret, like a poisonous vine, instantly tightened around her heart, almost suffocating her!

How could I have been so blind back then?!

Why did they choose Jia Dongxu?!

"What's wrong?"

He Yuanchao raised his eyelids with a cold smile, breaking the silence. His voice was neither too loud nor too soft, just loud enough for anyone in the courtyard who was eavesdropping to hear.

"What's up?"

He asked the question knowing the answer already, his tone as indifferent as if he were asking about the weather today.

Qin Huairu suddenly came to her senses, her face burning with shame, and she wished she could disappear into the ground.

She forced herself to lower her head, not daring to look at the bowl of meat or into He Yuanchao's eyes, her voice trembling uncontrollably:

"Yuanchao...brother...brother...look...look at how much you've made...so fragrant meat and rice...one person...one person can't finish it all, can he?"

Banggeng… Xiaodang… Huaihua and the others… the children are young and don't understand, they smelled the food… and started crying terribly… they were so hungry they kept screaming… Sister-in-law… Sister-in-law really doesn't know what to do…”

As she spoke, tears welled up again, this time with a genuine sense of helplessness.

"Please...please have pity on the children...spare a little bit...just a sip of meat broth...soak some cornbread for the children...okay?"

Sister-in-law... I'll repay you in my next life by being your ox or horse...

As she spoke, she leaned forward slightly, actually making a gesture as if she were about to kneel.

The courtyard became eerily quiet in an instant.

All eyes were focused on the open door and the two people standing in the doorway.

Jia Zhangshi hid behind her own door curtain, her triangular eyes gleaming with malice and greed.

An elderly man named Yi Zhonghai frowned, his face serious, as if he was brewing something.

Sha Zhu stood at his own door, looking at Qin Huairu's pitiful state, his fists clenched, his face showing both heartache and resentment.

Just as Qin Huairu was about to kneel, and the atmosphere reached its peak of tension,

A loud, authoritative voice, tinged with obvious moral superiority, rang out:

"Aid Korea!"

An elderly man named Yi Zhonghai walked out from behind the crowd with his hands behind his back, taking steady steps and a solemn expression of concern for the country and its people.

He walked to He Yuanchao's door, first glancing at Qin Huairu, whose eyes were brimming with tears and who seemed about to collapse, and then his eyes revealed just the right amount of "sympathy."

Then his gaze shifted to He Yuanchao, and the incredibly conspicuous bowl of meat on the table behind him.

His brow furrowed even more, his tone carrying the reproach and "fairness" of an elder:

"Go Korea! Look at you!"

Can one person eat all that meat and refined rice?

We can't finish it anyway, huh? Wasting food is a huge crime!

In our courtyard, who isn't tightening their belt to make ends meet? You've seen the Jia family's situation; Dongxu is paralyzed, so Huairu is the only one working, raising three children, and there's also Aunt Zhang. It's not easy for them!

The children were crying from hunger; it was heartbreaking to hear!

A close neighbor is worse than a distant relative. If we all live in the same courtyard, then we're one family!

As a family, we should help each other!

You're young and strong, and you earn a high salary. If you eat one less piece of meat and save some soup, you could save several children from a crisis! This is a truly virtuous act! How can you be so indifferent?

The old man's words were like a fuse that had been lit.

"Exactly! That old man is right!"

Uncle Er heard the noise and came over, echoing, his eyes still glancing at the bowl of meat, "Yuanchao, look at your meat, it's so fatty it's dripping with oil..."

What's wrong with sharing some with the kids? Sharing is caring!

His tone betrayed his undisguised sourness and desire to take advantage.

"Exactly! A grown man like you, eating all by yourself, isn't he afraid of choking?"

Xu Damao's sarcastic voice drifted from the crowd, tinged with obvious jealousy, "The Jia family is having such a hard time! I feel so sorry for that kid Banggeng!"

Suddenly, phrases like "neighborhood mutual assistance," "poor child," "waste is shameful," and "accumulating virtue and doing good deeds" arose one after another.

It was as if He Yuanchao would become an unpardonable, cold-blooded sinner if he didn't share the meat.

One moral accusation after another was slapped on their heads.

Qin Huairu lowered her head, her shoulders trembled slightly, and she cried even more "sadly," as if she had the support of the entire hospital.

He Yuanchao listened quietly, looking at the faces before him—faces that were either hypocritical, greedy, jealous, or self-righteous.

Looking at the old man's sanctimonious "good old man" face, seeing Qin Huairu's feigned tears, and listening to those harsh "admonitions,"

A chilling rage, mixed with endless mockery, rose within him.

Animals!

They really are a bunch of beasts in human skin!

He suddenly laughed.

It wasn't a happy laugh, but a laugh tinged with sarcasm and a chilling coldness.

He took a step forward, his tall and imposing figure exuding an invisible sense of oppression. His gaze, sharp as a knife, pierced directly at the old man, Yi Zhonghai, who stood on the moral high ground.

The sound wasn't loud, but it clearly drowned out all the noise; each word was like an ice bead hitting the ground.

"Uncle, that's a very nice thing to say! 'A close neighbor is worse than a distant relative'? 'Helping each other out'?"

He paused, the sarcastic smile deepening, his gaze sweeping over those who echoed him before finally settling on Yi Zhonghai's feignedly authoritative face. His voice suddenly rose, becoming resolute:

"Sure! Want some meat? You can have it!"

He raised his hand, his index finger pointing directly at the bowl of glistening twice-cooked pork on the table.

Amidst the sudden, greedy, and expectant gleam in everyone's eyes, each word struck like a thunderclap:

"Give me the money! To buy it!"