Courtyard House: Erguotou (a type of Chinese liquor) Traded for an Aircraft Carrier, the Whole Count

The cold wind outside howled into the room, instantly dispelling the ambiguous scent of floral water.

Qin Huairu stood there blankly, looking at the dense crowd in the courtyard.

The neighbors who usually greeted her were now looking at her like she was a monster. Some were contemptuous, some were gloating, some were shocked, and some men were giving her lewd stares without any attempt to hide it.

Second Aunt, Third Aunt, Aunt Wang from the front yard, Sister Liu from the back yard... Dozens of faces, dozens of pairs of eyes, like an airtight net, completely covering her.

"ah--!!!"

The belated scream finally burst from Qin Huairu's throat. As if she had been burned, she frantically covered her open neckline, curling up into a ball, wishing she could find a crack in the ground to crawl into.

"What are you looking at! Stop looking! Get out!"

Qin Huairu screamed in despair, tears and snot streaming down her face. It was over, completely over. The image of a good wife and good mother she had painstakingly cultivated for over a decade had shattered into nothingness that night.

Jiang Chen stood on the steps, his posture as upright as a pine tree, his four-pocketed cadre uniform appearing particularly imposing under the lights. He pointed condescendingly at the loudspeaker still emitting a static sound, his voice as cold as ice:

"Qin Huairu, every word you said and every action you took was clearly heard by everyone in the courtyard, young and old. What excuse do you have left?"

Qin Huairu suddenly looked up at the loudspeaker, and her mind went blank, as if she had been struck by a bolt of lightning.

Only at this moment did she understand why Jiang Chen had been so loud and righteous just now.

So it turns out... it was all a setup he orchestrated!

"Jiang Chen! You...you are so cruel!" Qin Huairu pointed at Jiang Chen, her fingers trembling violently. She couldn't catch her breath, her eyes rolled back, and she collapsed limply to the ground.

This wasn't an act; she was genuinely overwhelmed by the immense shame and fear.

"Playing dead? You still have the nerve to play dead?"

Just then, the crowd was roughly pushed aside.

A large, obese figure rushed in like a mad boar. It was Jia Zhangshi.

At this moment, Madam Jia's hair was disheveled, and her old face was twisted like a vengeful ghost. She rushed to Qin Huairu, and instead of helping her daughter-in-law up, she grabbed Qin Huairu's hair and slapped her twice across the face!

"Slap! Slap!"

The crisp sound of a slap echoed far and wide in the quiet night.

"You shameless slut! You whore! My son's body is barely cold, and you're already having an affair! You've disgraced the Jia family! I'll beat you to death, you shameless thing!"

While cursing, Jia Zhangshi used her hands, which were used for sewing shoe soles, to pinch Qin Huairu's flesh with all her might.

She had to hit him, and she had to hit him hard. Only in this way could she absolve herself of all responsibility and make everyone think that it was all Qin Huairu's idea, and had nothing to do with her, the "innocent" mother-in-law.

Qin Huairu woke up in pain from the beating and could only lie on the ground groaning, too weak to even resist.

The neighbors, witnessing this scene, felt that Qin Huairu deserved it, but also felt a chill at Jia Zhangshi's vicious face.

"Alright!"

Jiang Chen gave a cold shout, stopping the farce.

He walked down the steps, his gaze sweeping across the entire room, finally landing on Yi Zhonghai, who had been hiding in the back of the crowd, pretending to be dead.

"Master Yi, you're a senior member of the institute and Qin Huairu's mentor. What's your opinion on this matter?"

Yi Zhonghai shuddered; he'd been called on. He forced himself to step forward, avoiding Jiang Chen's eyes, and could only lower his head, letting out a pained sigh.

"Alas! What a misfortune for our family! I never imagined Qin Huairu would stoop to such a low level! This is simply... simply beyond redemption!"

In order to protect himself, Yi Zhonghai did not hesitate to abandon this pawn.

Even the kindest and most sympathetic older woman, who usually felt sorry for Qin Huairu, couldn't help but spit out, "You can know a person's face but not their heart. Let's stay away from her from now on, lest she corrupt the children."

The wall fell and everyone pushed.

At this moment, Qin Huairu was completely "socially dead" in this courtyard.

Seeing that the cooking time was about right, Jiang Chen gave his final concluding remarks:

"Given Comrade Qin Huairu's serious problems with her ideology and conduct, and her attempt to seduce a security officer, which is extremely egregious, I will report this matter truthfully to the factory's security department and the street office first thing tomorrow morning. The organization will decide how to handle it. I also advise certain people not to think they can take shortcuts through crooked means; in Jiangchen, that kind of approach won't work!"

After saying that, he waved his hand dismissively: "Everyone, disperse! We have to go to work tomorrow!"

The crowd gradually dispersed, leaving behind a mess of sunflower seed shells and lingering spittle.

Madam Jia dragged Qin Huairu, who was like a dead dog, back to the Central Courtyard, cursing and swearing.

Xu Damao sidled up to Jiang Chen, gave him a thumbs-up, and exclaimed with admiration, "Section Chief, that was a brilliant move! Absolutely brilliant! Qin Huairu is finished now. Let's see who dares to mess with you in this courtyard from now on!"

Jiang Chen glanced at him indifferently: "Go and retrieve that bugging device, don't leave any evidence."

"Alright!" Xu Damao scurried off happily.

Jiang Chen turned around and went back into the house, closing the door behind him.

The room was still warm, but the enchanting atmosphere had long since vanished.

He opened the system panel and looked at the string of numbers that had skyrocketed in his account.

[Current sentiment score balance: 2850 points.]

This wave of "hospital-wide live streams" made him a fortune. With this huge sum of money, he could finally unlock the higher-level blueprints and items in the shop.

"Those beasts in the courtyard have basically been beaten into submission. Next..."

Jiang Chen walked to the window but didn't rush to draw the curtains. His gaze pierced through the glass and the pitch-black night, looking towards a dark corner outside the courtyard.

When I enabled the full-band broadcast plugin, the system's radar scan function also detected an abnormal signal source.

Less than 200 meters from the courtyard house, at the entrance of the alley, stood a jeep without any markings. Two people were inside, observing the situation through high-powered binoculars.

Those weren't people from the neighborhood committee, nor were they police officers from the local police station.

The radio waves at that frequency carried a scent that Jiang Chen was very familiar with, a scent that came from the gutter.

"Enemy Special Agent..."

Jiang Chen drew the Type 54 pistol from his waist, skillfully removed the magazine, checked the bullets inside, and a bloodthirsty smile curled at the corner of his mouth.

"With internal troubles eliminated, it seems time to deal with external threats."