Siheyuan (courtyard house): My name is Shazhu!

Xu Damao knocked on the door and entered the room.

"I can tell from the smell that you're stewing mutton. Do you have any for me? I brought a bottle of wine and some candy for Yushui. The road is slippery, or you can go buy some cooked meat." Xu Damao's good point is that he doesn't eat for free.

"You're welcome. Eat whatever you want. There's plenty of mutton soup." Yushui cleared the table, took a bowl, and ate. Damao brought the mutton soup to the table.

"Goodness, a whole basin full! You're amazing, being a cook means you never lack meat." Xu Damao gave He Yushui a handful of candy as she entered the kitchen.

"Thank you, Brother Da Mao." He Yushui and Xu Da Mao were already quite familiar with each other.

"I didn't know you were coming, so I only prepared three dishes. Eat more lamb."

"There's plenty of meat in the mutton soup, enough for the three of us. There's also a bottle of Fenjiu liquor; let's try some."

Have you ever drunk baijiu? Fenjiu is strong.

"I've secretly drunk a few times, and I can easily handle half a jin of liquor." I wasn't a good kid growing up.

"We'll split it in half, I'll drink with you."

"Zhu Zi, you've really lived up to your reputation as a cook! The lamb is delicious, tender, and not at all gamey. The stir-fried potato shreds and cabbage are also very appetizing, with a perfect balance of sour and spicy. Let's have some!"

You promised yourself you could drink half a jin of liquor, so why did you get drunk after only three liang? How are you going to manage the "one big and three small" situation in the future? You're just being ridiculous.

If He Yushui hadn't helped him up, Xu Damao could have gone under the table to report to his superiors.

"Brother Da Mao drank too much, should I put him on your bed?" He Yushui asked.

"Put him on my bed, take off his shoes, cover him with the blanket, and let him sleep for a while. He can only handle three ounces of liquor, but he boasts he can drink half a pound."

"Brother Da Mao, he's only eaten half of his meal. Should we let him sleep?"

"Let him sleep. He can't eat right now, so let's eat first, and he can eat something else when he wakes up. You should also eat more vegetables."

I'm eating vegetarian food.

"Eat one shredded potato or one leaf of cabbage at a time, and eat a lot each time."

"Okay." She agreed verbally, but when she picked up the shredded potatoes, she turned one into two, and the same went for the cabbage. I couldn't be bothered to say anything to her.

Xu Damao will eat the remaining mutton soup when he wakes up; he can't let his guest go home hungry.

"Da Mao is back. The food must have been good. Judging from your appearance, you must have been drinking. Did you drink too much?" Xu Fugui didn't blame Xu Da Mao for drinking and coming home late.

"I drank half a jin of liquor, rested on He Yuzhu's bed for a while, and then ate some mutton after waking up. He stewed a lot of mutton today, a whole big pot, and it tasted delicious."

"You young people are really something, you've had too much to drink and are still resting on someone else's bed. Wash your faces and get ready for bed."

"Wait a while before going to sleep. Tonight, I'm going to smash up Jia Zhangshi's house... Dad, do you think I should smash the old deaf lady's window? Yi Zhonghai is at her house."

"You can smash the windows of Jia Zhang's house, and even Liu Haizhong's house, and nothing will happen. But smashing the windows of the deaf old lady's house is still not good. It won't cause much damage, but they might think of you."

Let's think again about what method we can use to deal with them without harming us. Xu Fugui was very cunning.

Let's think about it together.

At 11 p.m., a loud crash was heard as glass shattered. He Yuzhu, who was still awake, knew that Xu Damao had done it.

I put down my book and stepped out of the house. Not two minutes later, I heard Jia Zhangshi cursing again. It was so damn annoying.

Five minutes later, Jia Zhangshi stopped cursing, probably because Jia Dongxu persuaded her to go home.

He turned off the lights, sat behind the curtains, and kept a close eye on the passageway, helping Xu Damao observe whether Jia Dongxu would return to the Central Court to keep an eye on him.

If you promise Xu Damao something, you should do it well; a person should keep their word.

No one was there.

An hour later, He Yuzhu saw a dark figure walk to the back wall of Jia Zhangshi's house, swing his arm, and there was another crashing sound.

There sounded like screams coming from inside, but I couldn't hear clearly. Someone was injured in the attack.

The dark figure was Xu Damao, who quickly and stealthily made his way back to the backyard, quite cautiously.

A few minutes later, Jia Dongxu arrived at the Intermediate Court with a flashlight, shone it around a few times, and found no one. He then returned to his home in the Intermediate Court.

Less than a minute later, carrying a small cloth bag, she returned to the front yard. "Was anyone injured? Why isn't Jia Zhangshi making a fuss anymore?"

It was already midnight. He Yuzhu didn't think much of it; he would find out who in the Jia family was injured tomorrow morning.

Half asleep, I heard a noisy commotion in the front yard again. Couldn't they let me sleep?

He Yuzhu was very sleepy and didn't want to get up at all. It was still more comfortable in bed during the cold winter.

I slowly drifted off to sleep amidst the arguing in the front yard, not knowing when the argument would end.

The next day, He Yuzhu had just gotten up and hadn't even had time to wash up when Xu Damao came to his house.

"Hahaha. Zhu Zi, you didn't come out last night. Jia Zhangshi's head was smashed open, and she had bandages wrapped around her head. She was arguing with Liu Haizhong for more than half an hour."

Jia Dongxu went to report to the authorities, but the military control commission probably ignored him, and he returned dejectedly.

My buddy smashed Liu Haizhong's window too. Liu Haizhong thinks Jia Zhangshi did it, and they've been arguing ever since. I don't know how they're going to resolve this today. "Xu Damao's scheme succeeded, and he's quite happy."

"Distinguish yourself from the situation, don't let them find out it's you. Try again in a couple of days; it will be even more effective."

"I'll be careful. You go ahead and pack up. I'm going back to eat." Xu Damao said, and then disappeared.

He Yuzhu thought that the military control committee members would come to the courtyard to take a look, since Jia Dongxu had already reported the case last night.

After tidying up and cooking, the aroma of wontons immediately woke He Yushui, who groggily got up to get ready.

The snow had not yet melted, and at ten o'clock in the morning, the military control commissioners had not yet come to the courtyard to investigate the case.

He Yushui had already gone to the gate of the yard to continue the snowball fight. The snow piled up in the corner of the wall was not dirty and would not melt for three days.

He Yuzhu strolled out of the courtyard gate, intending to go to the market to buy some meat. Besides, the meat he brought back before the Lunar New Year had taken a while to arrive.

"Brother, where are you going? When are you coming back? I want to come with you too." He Yushui ran into her as she left the courtyard.

"I'm going to the market up ahead to buy some meat for dinner. I'll be right back. You play with the kids."

"Brother, I'm not playing anymore. I'll go buy meat with you." Was He Yushui still afraid of being abandoned?

"If you don't want to play, come with me. The road is slippery, so be careful." He Yuzhu agreed to go with her.

"Brother, I'll be careful." He Yushui jumped up happily.

With a "plop," he landed on his bottom. His cotton-padded clothes and trousers were very thick, but luckily he had the strength to stand up by supporting himself with his hands.

"Hehe, you're worried about the slippery road and the snow on the ground, yet you still want to jump around."

"Brother~~, I was talking just now, it was an accident." He Yushui also felt embarrassed.

Take her with you and head towards Jiaodaokou Market. Nanluoguxiang Market is too small and might not be open. Jiaodaokou Market is much more crowded.

Moreover, since there were no meat vendors in the market, it was convenient to take a bus to Quanjude or Bianyifang to buy roast duck.

The Jiaodaokou market was deserted; no one had started doing business yet, and their New Year celebrations were not over.

"Rain, there's no meat shop here. Shall we go to Quanjude or Bianyifang and buy a roast duck?" Let's ask He Yushui for her opinion.

"Quanjude roast duck is oily and delicious." He Yushui has been eating hearty dishes for over a year and still likes oily dishes.

"As you wish, how about we buy roast duck for lunch and have hot pot at Donglaishun for dinner?"

"Okay, brother, Donglaishun hot pot is delicious."