Courtyard House: Starting by inheriting the tradition and suppressing the barbarians.

Hongxing Courtyard, Middle Courtyard.

It was completely dark by then, and a few dim streetlights cast shadowy shadows over the courtyard.

Tonight's plenary meeting was initiated because of Yi Zhonghai.

Although he was in poor health, he specially wore his old Zhongshan suit, which he had kept hidden away, for this gamble.

He sat with a cane beside the eight-immortal table with one leg missing, his face bearing a compassionate expression.

The area was filled with neighbors.

Everyone hunched their shoulders, their eyes darting back and forth between Yi Zhonghai and the indifferent-looking Li Xuan.

No one dared to speak first.

"Cough cough..."

At this moment, Yi Zhonghai cleared his throat, "Ladies and gentlemen, now that the hospital-wide meeting has been convened..."

Let's take this opportunity to pay tribute to that poor soul who died in our courtyard—Silly Zhu.

Mentioning Sha Zhu elicited a collective sigh from the crowd.

"That was a terrible death for Sha Zhu!"

Yi Zhonghai squeezed out two cloudy tears. "That night, snow was falling heavily, and he collapsed in our yard."

"If only someone were willing to lend a hand, or give him some hot water, he wouldn't freeze to death!"

"But what about some people?"

Yi Zhonghai suddenly raised his cane, pointing it tremblingly at Li Xuan, "Some people are clearly at home!"

"They clearly heard the cries for help, but turned off the lights and pretended to be deaf and dumb!"

"What is this? This is cold-blooded! This is refusing to help someone in distress! This is murder!"

The entire audience erupted in uproar.

Although there were rumors beforehand, Yi Zhonghai's public identification makes all the difference.

"Sir, you can't just say things like that. Do you have any proof?"

He Yushui suddenly stood up.

She rushed back tonight specifically because Yi Zhonghai was up to something.

"Evidence? My eyes are the evidence!"

Yi Zhonghai stared wide-eyed. "That night I got up to use the bathroom and saw with my own eyes that the light was on in Li Xuan's room."

"As soon as Sha Zhu fell down, the lights went out!"

"Rain, your brother died unjustly! You mustn't let yourself be blinded by the petty favors of some people!"

He Yushui was so angry that she trembled all over. Just as she was about to retort, a warm, large hand pressed down on her shoulder.

Li Xuan stood up and slowly walked to Yi Zhonghai.

He held the iconic purple clay teapot in his hand, a mysterious smile on his face.

"Yi Zhonghai, since you speak with such conviction..."

"Then dare you swear to God that what you think in your heart and what you say are the same?"

"What's there to be afraid of!"

Yi Zhonghai retorted, "I, Yi Zhonghai, have always been upright and honest; I've never done anything wrong in my life!"

"it is good."

Li Xuan nodded and gently stroked the spout of the purple clay teapot with his finger.

A wisp of colorless and odorless powder drifted silently toward Yi Zhonghai on the wind.

That's a product of the system—【Potential Mantra Powder】.

This thing can force out the deepest and darkest secrets hidden in a person's heart, like beans spilling from a bamboo tube!

"Since you're so frank, then please continue your performance."

Li Xuan gestured for him to proceed.

Yi Zhonghai snorted coldly and opened his mouth to continue accusing Li Xuan.

"I'm telling you, Li Xuan is... he's..."

Suddenly, Yi Zhonghai's eyes became somewhat fixed, and the muscles at the corners of his mouth began to twitch uncontrollably.

"He's...he's smarter than me!"

"He figured out a long time ago that I wanted him to take care of me in my old age!"

Ga?

The entire room fell silent instantly, and everyone stared wide-eyed.

Yi Zhonghai seemed to realize something was wrong and tried to cover his mouth.

But his mouth seemed borrowed, completely unresponsive, and his speaking speed only increased.

"Actually, I don't care whether Sha Zhu lives or dies!"

"That idiot deserved to die!"

"He's broke, he's useless, he can't support me in my old age, and he's just wasting food!"

"Tonight's all-staff meeting is just an excuse to throw dirty water on Li Xuan!"

"I'll ruin his reputation, so he'll have no choice but to accept me as his lord and see him off in his final days!"

boom!

It was like a thunderclap exploding in the crowd.

The neighbors were stunned.

"My God, has this old man gone mad? How dare he say something like that?"

"So he wanted to rely on Li Xuan to support him in his old age! How shameless!"

He Yushui looked at Yi Zhonghai in disbelief: "What did you just say?"

"You're saying it's good that my brother died? He deserved to die?"

Yi Zhonghai tried desperately to shake his head, but what came out of his mouth was: "Yes! It's better if they're dead!"

"I fooled this idiot my whole life; he was a muddle-headed fool until the very end!"

"Ha ha ha ha!"

At this moment, Yi Zhonghai's face showed extreme terror.

He was laughing maniacally, and the jarring sound was chilling.

"Why...why are you treating idiot Zhu like this?"

"He used to treat you like his own father!" He Yushui questioned, her eyes red.

"To be a biological father? Pshaw!"

Yi Zhonghai's mouth completely lost control, like a malfunctioning loudspeaker.

"If I had a son that stupid, I would have strangled him long ago!"

"I just thought he was stupid and easy to control!"

"I want him to take care of me in my old age, that's why I don't want him to get married or have children!"

"If he has his own family, will he still listen to me?"

"That's why I helped that widow Qin Huairu suck his blood!"

"That Qin Huairu is a slut too, but we both got what we wanted!"

"Only by locking Sha Zhu up in the Jia family can he be my good eldest son!"

The whole place erupted in chaos.

This is absolutely shocking news!

It turns out that the tragedy that Sha Zhu endured his whole life was all orchestrated by this old man!

"You beast! You old beast!"

He Yushui was so angry that she trembled all over, and tears welled up in her eyes.

"Don't rush, there's more to come."

Li Xuan casually added from the side, "Yi Zhonghai, you're so good to Sha Zhu."

"You've been keeping the money He Daqing sent back all those years ago safe for Sha Zhu, haven't you?"

Upon hearing the name "He Daqing," Yi Zhonghai's body trembled violently, and the fear in his eyes was almost overflowing.

Do not!

I can't tell!

This absolutely cannot be said!

That's a crime punishable by imprisonment!

However, under the domineering effects of the [Powerful True Word Powder], his willpower was as fragile as paper.

"Money...money..."

Yi Zhonghai suddenly roared, "I've swallowed all the money!"

Quiet.

A deathly silence.

Even the sound of the wind seemed to have stopped.

Yi Zhonghai's face was full of despair, but his mouth was spewing out words like a machine gun.

"That old bastard He Daqing didn't actually abandon the children when he ran away!"

"He sent ten yuan to the hospital every month! He did it for ten whole years!"

"How old was Shazhu back then? How much rain was falling?"

"If they knew they had this money, those two siblings would be living the high life!"

"Does that mean you need an old man like me to help you out?"

"So I took screenshots of all the remittance slips! I hid them all!"

"I told Shazhu's dad he didn't want him anymore!"

"That way he'll be grateful to me! He'll see me as his benefactor! He'll take care of me in my old age!"

"I didn't give them a single penny of that 1,200 yuan!"

"Hahaha! Aren't I incredibly smart? Aren't I exceptionally cunning?"

"Snapped!"

A crisp slap interrupted Yi Zhonghai's frantic confession.

He Yushui rushed forward and, with all her might, slapped Yi Zhonghai hard across the face.

"Yi Zhonghai! I'm going to kill you!"

He Yushui has gone mad.

At this moment, years of grievances, years of hunger, and years of resentment all erupted.

She always thought she was an orphan abandoned by her own father.

She still remembers the days when she was a child and was so hungry that she drank cold water to fill her stomach.

She was always grateful for the occasional steamed bun that Yi Zhonghai would give her.

So... so all this suffering was caused by this hypocrite!

He intercepted his father's love!

He stole the happy childhood that she and her brother should have had!

"You devil! Give me back my money!"

"You indirectly caused my brother's death!"

He Yushui pounced on him, grabbed Yi Zhonghai by the collar, and scratched and clawed at him.

Yi Zhonghai, his mouth bleeding from the slap, was still under the influence of the drug and kept shouting, "No money!"

"I've already spent all my money!"

The neighbors were furious.

If the previous calculations about retirement were merely a moral issue...

Embezzling child support payments and nearly starving two children to death is blatant crime!

It's utterly inhumane!

"Beat him! Why keep this old bastard alive for the New Year if we don't beat him to death?"

"That's outrageous! I've called him 'Grandpa' for twenty years!"

"Call the police! We must call the police! This is fraud! This is embezzlement!"

Even before Li Xuan could lift a finger, several strong young men rushed up and beat Yi Zhonghai to the ground.

Li Xuan looked at Yi Zhonghai, who was being scorned by everyone and wailing in the mud, and gently blew on the floating tea leaves on the purple clay teapot.

"Truth Powder, it really is a good thing."

"Yi Zhonghai, your dream of a comfortable retirement has come to an end tonight."

......