Siheyuan (courtyard house): My name is Shazhu!

"Liu Haizhong, keep smashing their windows tonight, kill them both, then no one will smash your windows anymore. Don't you know what kind of person Jia Zhangshi is?"

"Liu Haizhong, teach Jia Zhangshi a lesson. You're even bigger than her, why are you afraid of a shrew?"

"Mrs. Jia, the glass broke last night. Didn't you freeze to death while you were sleeping?"

"Mrs. Jia, your windows were smashed in retaliation. You're not wrong to keep smashing their windows."

After the soldiers left the courtyard, they started inciting Liu Haizhong and Jia Zhangshi to go against each other again. There were still not many good people in the courtyard, and they always wanted to stir up trouble.

Seeing that there was no excitement to watch, He Yuzhu went home to read.

Less than ten minutes after arriving home, Xu Damao came in with a big smile. He went into his room, took a deep sniff, and said, "Damn, you siblings have it so good."

The house smells strongly of roast duck. We had roast duck for lunch. You weren't home this morning, where did you buy it? My parents haven't wanted to go out to buy meat these past few days.

"I bought Quanjude roast duck this morning. Even though the snow is heavy, we still need to eat, right?"

"Don't I have potatoes, cabbage, and radishes at home? They just ate whatever they wanted at home yesterday, so I'm coming to your house to have some lamb."

We finished the lamb last night, and then had roast duck for lunch today. You're really willing to spend money. I also want to earn money in the future, just like you, and save less.

The military control officers came today, and they seemed to have no way to stop them. What do you think about me continuing to smash their windows tonight?

Qin Huairu didn't go out today. Jia Dongxu told her that she caught a fever last night from the cold. This morning, Jia Dongxu boarded up the windows and covered them with cloth. Liu Haizhong's family did the same.

"It's not good for you to continue tonight. You should give the military control committee some face, since they don't want to get involved in this mess."

You can also see how other people in the compound react. Breaking the glass isn't very damaging and is quite practical in winter.

It would be best to wait until the evening of the fifth day of the Lunar New Year, when Jia Dongxu and Liu Haizhong would be at work the next day. This would be more effective and would increase the hostility between them.

However, Liu Haizhong seems to be a coward too; he probably can't handle Jia Zhangshi.

"I'll listen to you. I've been on vacation with nothing to do these past few days, so I've dealt with Jia Zhangshi a few times. It feels really good. That old shrew deserves to be taught a lesson. Liu Haizhong is no good; he's a complete idiot."

"It will be a long time before we can deal with her. This heavy snow will cause many houses to collapse, and even repairing the roofs will take a lot of time."

"We repaired the roof ourselves, and we can't even guarantee it won't leak again. How many professional roof repairmen are there in this area?"

"There aren't many repairmen available. Even with a normal waiting list, it's unlikely they'll get a turn in a month. I suspect the military control commission has made arrangements."

"Do you think that Jia Zhangshi would honestly pay for her own roof repairs? If she doesn't repair the roof and refuses to leave, what will the people in the front yard do?"

"Who wouldn't want an extra room? The front yard house wouldn't be so easy for Jia Zhangshi to have; they'll definitely kick her out."

"Rest for two nights, observe the situation, and then make a move."

"I really want to get rid of Yi Zhonghai right now, is there any way?" Xu Damao couldn't get Yi Zhonghai out of his mind.

"Yi Zhonghai lives in the backyard, while his house is in the middle yard. The families in the front yard are struggling to make ends meet; if one of them becomes extinct, their living expenses will decrease."

"Damn, brother, you're ruthless. Taking advantage of someone who has no family to support is easy; you did it to you before, now you'll do it to him. Tan Guilan's house and Yi Zhonghai's house are only separated by half a wooden plank, half a wall. What if..."

"If we don't touch anything in Tan Guilan's house, she won't see anything. What's missing from Yi Zhonghai's house? What does it have to do with her?" Using someone else to deal with Yi Zhonghai is perfectly reasonable.

"Eating Yi Zhonghai's extinct family is a good idea. There's only one lock, so it's not very useful. I'll go and spread the word for Yi Zhonghai. Old Gou and his gang are extremely poor." Xu Damao chuckled slyly again.

"Be careful, don't make your words too obvious. The people in the front yard aren't stupid. Yi Zhonghai considers everyone to be neighbors!"

"Haha, let's see what Yi Zhonghai says then. I can handle this little thing. I'm going to the front yard now, see you later." Xu Damao left with great interest.

He Yuzhu put aside his business with Yi Zhonghai and focused on reading "The Travels of Xu Xiake," which would allow him to increase his geographical and literary knowledge at the same time. He was a little slow reading the traditional Chinese characters.

Time flies. In the blink of an eye, it was 9:30 pm. He Yushui went back to her little house to sleep.

He Yuzhu was still reading. It didn't matter if he read slowly; he estimated he could finish in another three hours, which wouldn't affect his dealings with Yi Zhonghai.

At 1 a.m. on the fourth day of the Lunar New Year, He Yuzhu quietly walked from the central courtyard to the door of the deaf old lady's room.

He took out a smoke tube and blew the smoke into the room through the crack in the door. This was a method he had come up with a few days ago. Smoke is a powerful tool for navigating the world of martial arts.

Originally, the price of 'Joyful Smoke' wasn't expensive either, ranging from ten to one hundred gold coins.

He Yuzhu wanted to arrange it, but the system refused to sell 'Happy Cigarettes' because Yi Zhonghai and the deaf old lady's crimes did not warrant death.

This also made He Yuzhu realize that Yi Zhonghai's various crimes had not yet reached the point of being punished severely.

The same applies to the deaf old woman; there is no evidence to suggest that she was a truly wicked person.

Using "happy cigarettes," they could be discovered while committing crimes and potentially be shot.

Next, we need to get Yi Zhonghai to intercept the remittances even faster, until he reaches the point of being punished. We should also search the deaf old lady's house tonight to see if we can find any evidence.

He blew out a pipe of sleeping powder and retreated to a corner of the backyard, where he waited for fifteen minutes in the cold winter.

Quietly use a knife to loosen the door latch, half-open the room door, and let it ventilate for five minutes to allow the smoke in the room to dissipate.

He Yuzhu, his face completely covered, entered the deaf old lady's home and closed the door behind him.

To prevent them from not sleeping soundly enough, he slapped them twice on the neck. This would keep them awake and make it easier for He Yuzhu to do his thing.

The first thing to do is to cripple Yi Zhonghai's right arm within three years, making it impossible for him to become an eighth-level fitter. This is the maximum leniency allowed by the system.

It's like planting a seed, which will blossom and bear fruit within three years. Without external intervention, it might take ten years to see any hope.

An external force may have provoked Yi Zhonghai to become enraged, to the point that he could fall ill within a month.

He Yuzhu only has this one chance, and he must use it on Yi Zhonghai. At most, he will fall ill in ten years, which is only 62 years. He absolutely cannot let him suffer.

He Yuzhu always believed that Yi Zhonghai's ability to command respect in the courtyard was not due to his PUA skills, but rather to his status as an eighth-level fitter and his own martial prowess.

In a few years, as the number of workers in the steel rolling mill increases, his status as an eighth-grade fitter will play a very important role, making the young workers in the compound listen to him and tolerate any dissatisfaction.

Even for Liu Haizhong, a level seven fitter, the difference of just one level seems like heaven and earth. Their status in the steel rolling mill is far inferior. Yi Zhonghai can make certain spare parts, but he cannot.

Today, He Yuzhu came to the deaf old lady's house to block Yi Zhonghai's path to becoming an eighth-level fitter, and to give him absolutely no chance to turn things around.