Courtyard House: My Hidden Wheat Seeds Caused a National Sensation

The two went straight into the house. He Yuzhu closed the door and asked in a low voice:

"How's it going over there?"

"Everything has been done as instructed."

Jia Dongxu emerged from the inner room, his eyes shining. "Now all that's left is Lou Xiao'e."

"I'll take care of it right away."

He Yuzhu nodded, turned around and slipped out again, finding his way to the deaf old lady in the backyard.

He whispered a few words in the old lady's ear. The old lady looked at him for a moment with her cloudy eyes, and then tapped her cane on the ground twice, neither too hard nor too softly.

"Silly boy..."

The old lady sighed, but didn't say anything more. She slowly stood up and said, "Xiao'e, help me out for some fresh air. It's stuffy in here."

Lou Xiao'e agreed, took the old lady's arm, and the two slowly walked out of the courtyard.

He Yuzhu hid behind the door and watched them walk away before slipping out and running back to his room.

"All done?"

Jia Dongxu came forward to greet him.

"All done."

He Yuzhu rubbed his hands together, barely able to contain his excitement.

"Then...shall we make a move?"

He Yuzhu nodded emphatically and winked at his master, who had remained silent.

The three of them moved silently to Li Jianye's door. The old craftsman fiddled with a few small tools in his hands, and the latch popped open gently.

He Yuzhu took off his shoes and stepped in barefoot, taking each step carefully, his eyes scanning the ground to make sure nothing was left behind.

He found a pair of old cloth shoes belonging to Li Jianye, then tiptoed out and quickly turned into He Yushui's room.

He rummaged through the rain-soaked house for a bit, grabbed a coat that Qin Jingru often wore, and deliberately left a few dusty shoe prints in a conspicuous place.

After doing all this, he quickly retreated back into Li Jianye's room, crumpled the garment, and stuffed it into the innermost corner of the wardrobe.

Then, he walked backwards, wiping away any possible traces with his sleeve, and finally took off his cloth shoes by the door and gently placed them back in their original positions.

Exit and close the door behind you.

The padlock clicked.

With a sound, they closed.

The two retreated back into He Yuzhu's room, exchanged a glance, and almost simultaneously let out a long sigh of relief.

"It's done."

Jia Dongxu grinned.

"Now we're just waiting for Qin Jingru to come home from school."

He Yuzhu wiped non-existent sweat from his forehead, his eyes gleaming with satisfaction. "Brother Dongxu, how about something nice tonight? To celebrate?"

Jia Dongxu's smile faded slightly: "I'm short on money."

"I have connections,"

He Yuzhu immediately chimed in, "You name a number, I'll arrange it, and I guarantee it'll be a good deal."

Jia Dongxu hesitated for a moment, then gritted his teeth and said, "You wait."

He turned and went home, returning a short while later with two crumpled bills in his hand, which he slapped into He Yuzhu's hand: "Twenty, spend it carefully."

"Just you wait and see!"

He Yuzhu carefully pocketed the money and went out excitedly.

Jia Dongxu was left alone in the room, feeling completely relaxed.

He strolled back to his home, took down the cherished feather fan from the top of the cabinet, and pulled out the worn-out copy of "Romance of the Three Kingdoms." He leaned back in his chair, fanning himself idly, his eyes fixed on the pages, but his mind was already drifting to the evening, to the good show that was about to begin.

He hummed a tuneless little tune softly, his feet tapping silently on the ground.

Sunlight slanted across the old courtyard wall, casting dappled shadows on the bluestone slabs.

As He Yuzhu hummed a tune and stepped into the courtyard, an irrepressible smile still lingered on his face.

Not long after, Jia Dongxu returned from outside with a beaming smile.

This courtyard is known as the "Hidden Dragon"

With "God of War"

The two, who were known as "the two friends," unexpectedly gathered together today, squatting by the public sink, washing and chopping vegetables while chatting and laughing, creating an atmosphere that was almost unusually harmonious.

Qin Huairu, who was standing to the side, was stunned and forgot to wring out the clothes she was washing.

She was puzzled. What was wrong with these two people who never got along? Had the sun risen in the west? But with so many questions stuck in her throat, she didn't dare to go up and ask.

The bruises from the punch Jia Dongxu had thrown a few days ago hadn't completely faded yet, and she was truly terrified.

As the sun gradually moved westward, the children, like sparrows returning to their nests, chirped and chattered as they poured into the yard after school.

Qin Jingru, carrying a faded schoolbag, also returned with the crowd.

As soon as she reached the door of her house, He Yuzhu and Jia Dongxu, as if they had planned it, suddenly jumped out from the side and blocked her way, one on each side.

What are you doing?

Qin Jingru was startled and looked up at the two strange-looking men in front of her, her eyes full of confusion.

"Jingru, ah..."

He Yuzhu rubbed his hands, trying to make his tone sound natural. "Here's what happened... We heard that we saw a stranger enter Yushui's house. It's probably a thief! Just to be safe, don't rush in. Go to the police station and report it to the police."

"thief?"

Qin Jingru was stunned, her brows furrowing slightly. "How did you know there was a thief? Did you go inside to check?"

"No, no."

Jia Dongxu answered hastily, his voice a little anxious, "We heard it from people in the hospital, and they made it sound very convincing."

Stop asking so many questions and go now!

"If you hear a thief, just shout it out, right? There are so many people in our compound."

Qin Jingru's suspicions deepened. After all, she wasn't an ignorant child. "Besides," she said, "whether a thief has really broken in or not, I should at least check what's missing before I can be sure. There's no reason to report a crime before anything is even stolen."

She bombarded him with a barrage of questions, and He Yuzhu and Jia Dongxu's expressions gradually became tense; their feigned patience was about to run out.

"Just go when I tell you to! Stop with the nonsense!"

Jia Dongxu's face darkened, and he adopted the airs of a brother-in-law. "I'm your brother-in-law, so you have to listen to me! When the police come, just say that a thief broke into your house and stole some things."

He took a half step forward, lowered his voice, and said in an unquestionable, commanding tone: "If the police ask what exactly is missing, just say... say that your underwear is missing."

Got it?

"What?!"

Qin Jingru's eyes widened in surprise.

Although she was young, she was quick-witted and immediately understood seven or eight parts of the strangeness in those words.

A surge of anger, fueled by humiliation and deception, rose within him.

The ground caught fire.

"You...you stole my clothes, were you trying to harm someone?!"

She pointed a trembling, thin finger at the two men, her voice rising with anger, "Those are mine! How could you do such a despicable thing! You scoundrels! You two are both scoundrels!"

The grievances and anger turned into scalding tears, instantly flooding my eyes.

She exclaimed "Wow!"

She burst into tears and turned to run towards her sister, Qin Huairu, who was hanging clothes to dry.

"elder sister--"

She threw herself into Qin Huairu's arms, sobbing uncontrollably, and poured out her story, along with her own speculations, in broken sentences.

As Qin Huairu listened, her face first turned pale, then green, and finally flushed red.

She abruptly flung aside the soaking wet clothes in her hands, splashing water everywhere, and rushed to Jia Dongxu in a few steps, her chest heaving: "Jia Dongxu! Is what Jingru said true?! You really did such a shameless thing?!"

"It's a man's business, you woman shouldn't meddle!"

Jia Dongxu was exposed to his face and lost face. A surge of anger rose in his head.

He was especially afraid that if Qin Huairu continued to shout, more neighbors would hear, and he would truly be disliked by everyone.

In a moment of desperation, without thinking, he swung his arm and slapped Qin Huairu across the face.

A crisp sound exploded in the courtyard.

"You do whatever I tell you to do! Who's in charge here?! Hurry up and tell your sister to do what I say! Otherwise... otherwise, pack your things tomorrow and send her back to her hometown in the countryside!"

He roared fiercely, trying to cover up his guilty conscience with his arrogance.

"Jia Dongxu! What right do you have to hit me?!"

He Yuzhu couldn't stand it any longer. He stepped in front of Qin Huairu, who was covering her face and whose eyes had instantly reddened. "Can't you talk things out properly? What kind of person are you to hit a woman?"

"Waaah..."

Qin Huairu's sobs finally escaped through her fingers, initially suppressed sobs, gradually turning into heart-wrenching wails.

This time, there was no pretense whatsoever.

The burning pain on my cheeks was nothing compared to the icy despair and regret I felt inside.

She suddenly remembered that silent yet reliable figure from many years ago... If she had gritted her teeth and chosen a different path back then, would she not have to endure these beatings and hardships now? This thought was like a poisoned needle, piercing the softest part of her heart.

Tears of regret mingled with humiliation, flowing down uncontrollably.

"Cry! Still crying?!"

Seeing her cry even harder, Jia Dongxu became increasingly irritated and threatened her without thinking, "If you keep wailing, believe me, I'll really beat you to death!"

The air in the courtyard seemed to freeze, leaving only the woman's suppressed sobs, which sounded particularly desolate in the gradually darkening courtyard.

Before the clumsy scheme even began, its absurd and cold nature was already revealed amidst the crying and confrontation.

Qin Huairu's sobs ignited Jia Dongxu's anger.

His voice suddenly rose, almost as if he were shouting.

He Yuzhu's face also darkened.

He couldn't stand seeing Qin Huairu shed tears, and seeing her shoulders trembling as she cried, a surge of anger rushed to his head.

"Jia Dongxu!"

He Yuzhu stepped forward, his voice laced with suppressed anger, "I'll say it again, don't lay a hand on a woman! Try touching her again and see what happens!"

He clenched his fists until his knuckles turned white, and his gaze at Jia Dongxu was as cold as ice.

Who do you think you are?

Jia Dongxu stiffened his neck, spitting almost flying out, "That's my wife! I can do whatever I want with her, who are you to act like a hero here?"

The two men, who were just calling each other brothers, suddenly became hostile towards each other.

"I'll show you today whether it's your turn or not!"

He Yuzhu was furious and threw a punch, hitting Jia Dongxu squarely in the face.

"Pillar! Stop it!"

Just as He Yuzhu was about to pin Jia Dongxu to the ground and beat him—

A figure hurriedly cut in.

It is Yi Zhonghai.

He moved with astonishing speed, rushing between the two men in a few steps and pulling Jia Dongxu away from He Yuzhu's grasp with a forceful and uncompromising manner.

"What's going on?! Huh?"

Yi Zhonghai's gaze swept over the two men, his brows furrowed. "These neighbors, always shouting and threatening violence, what kind of talk is this?"

Looking at the two people in front of him, he felt both anxious and pained.

They were all people he valued, so how did things end up like this?

My gaze involuntarily turned to Qin Huairu, who was wiping away tears.

Without a doubt, this whole controversy is probably going to revolve around her again.

"Huai Ru,"

Yi Zhonghai softened his tone, "Tell me, what exactly happened?"

Qin Huairu, sobbing, recounted the argument that had just taken place.

Upon hearing this, Yi Zhonghai's heart skipped a beat.

As expected, Jia Dongxu took action, following the method they had agreed upon...

He couldn't help but glance at Jia Dongxu, his disappointment deepening.

"Dongxu, Zhuzi, come with me."

With a sullen face, Yi Zhonghai turned and walked towards He Yuzhu's house.

Although the two were unwilling, they dared not disobey and followed in silence.

Once inside He Yuzhu's room, Yi Zhonghai closed the door behind him.

"Make sure the door is closed tightly."

He Yuzhu reluctantly complied, then turned around with a puzzled look: "Uncle, shouldn't we be sending Jingru to the police station right away? Why are we calling her here? What if Li Jianye finds out when he gets back?"

"Foolish!"

Yi Zhonghai scolded him with exasperation, "When Dongxu first suggested this idea to me, I thought he had become shrewd and knew how to scheme."

Now that I see it, you two still haven't used your brains!

"Where did I go wrong?"

Jia Dongxu retorted stubbornly, "My plan was flawless!"

"Flawless? I think it's full of loopholes!"

Yi Zhonghai pointed his finger at him, "Do you know what's most important when framing someone? Witness testimony and physical evidence! Do you have both?"

"Of course,"