Courtyard House: The Fisherman Never Goes Sick

"Didn't I tell you guys I was going to leak some 'explosive information'? Why didn't you listen!"

Bang Geng glared angrily, and before he could finish speaking, he swung his fist at Jia Zhangshi. Although he was young, he was quite strong, and since Jia Zhangshi's leg injury hadn't fully healed, the punch sent her staggering back several steps before she landed on her bottom with a thud, groaning in pain.

Bang Geng wasn't about to give up. He had been waiting for ages, only to find out it wasn't the stinky tofu he wanted. How could he not vent his anger by punching Jia Zhangshi a few times? So he rushed forward and started punching her again.

"I told you to put out the 'material' but you wouldn't!" he yelled as he hammered the object.

When Qin Huairu rushed over and grabbed his arm, Jia Zhangshi was spared from further beatings. But she couldn't bear to say a single word to her grandson, after all, he was the only heir of the Jia family and had to be treated with respect.

Unable to hit Jia Zhangshi, Bang Geng simply sat on the ground and rolled around, yelling at the top of his lungs, "I want to eat stinky tofu! I want to eat Yang Wei's stinky tofu with 'spice'!"

Madam Jia's face darkened. Her face was bruised from her grandson's punch, but she wasn't distressed. Instead, she was worried: Why couldn't her stinky tofu, made according to Yang Wei's method, taste as good as his? Could it be that, as Bang Geng said, she needed to add "ingredients"? Maybe... she should try it herself?

Just as Jia Zhangshi was pondering what "ingredients" to add to the tofu, Yang Wei returned carrying a turtle and a pile of gifts. These were things he had given to fishing enthusiasts when he taught them to fish; they had insisted on giving him candy and snacks, filling a whole bag, and he couldn't refuse them no matter what.

[Ding! Congratulations, host, for completing the fishing quest! You have received one Immortal Pill, one Little Man Talisman, 3 catties of melon seeds, and five bottles of soda!]

The system notification sounded, and Yang Wei's mind raced. The reward had arrived in his account: Laoshan soda, melon seeds, magic pills, and little talismans. He would study them later.

As soon as he entered the courtyard, people surrounded him: "Yang Wei, you caught such a big turtle?"

"It's alright," Yang Wei said modestly.

"So where did you get these gifts?"

"I taught some anglers how to fish, and they gave it to me as a gift." Yang Wei laughed. There was no need to hide it; there were bound to be people from the compound among the anglers. Even if Yan Bugui didn't say anything, his fishing skills would spread sooner or later.

"Seriously? You can teach people how to fish? You're that good?"

"Barely enough," Yang Wei said with a smile.

"Don't be modest! You're definitely amazing!" The man gave a thumbs up. He could get a bunch of gifts just for catching a fish. Yan Bugui, that old man who loved fishing, usually only caught a few small fish. How could he compare?

As soon as everyone left, the news spread throughout the yard: "Yang Wei caught a giant soft-shelled turtle while fishing and received a bunch of gifts!"

Yi Zhonghai frowned. He knew turtles were hard to catch, and although he didn't like fishing, he was still surprised. Liu Haizhong's face was grim. Yang Wei had accepted gifts while playing chess before. This kid always seemed to get the better of everyone. He Yuzhu felt a pang of jealousy: he was taking leftovers from the cafeteria, while Yang Wei was getting all the benefits, accepting gifts while fishing and even catching turtles. Turtle soup would definitely be delicious! But then he thought again that Yang Wei had no cooking skills and couldn't make anything good, and he became smug again.

While everyone was discussing it, the Jia family's new stinky tofu was ready. Jia Zhangshi added "ingredients" according to "Yang Wei's recipe," and the stench suddenly "whooshed" throughout the yard, like a stinky bomb, making people sniffle.

"What does it taste like?"

"Making stinky tofu again? Is this a family tradition from the Jia family?"

"It's much stronger than Yang Wei's; it makes me dizzy!"

"It's like stepping into a latrine!"

Everyone covered their noses and came out to see what was happening, and there they saw Jia Zhangshi, Banggeng, and Jia Dongxu eating heartily.

"Grandma, our stinky tofu is way stinkier than Yang Wei's!" Bang Geng said, his cheeks puffed out.

"Of course! It was made by your grandmother herself, how could it be bad?" Jia Zhangshi smiled broadly. She thought Qin Huairu's cooking was bad, so she took matters into her own hands and added some special "ingredients".

Qin Huairu didn't eat any. She had seen Jia Zhangshi add "ingredients" to the tofu with her own eyes, and the smell made her want to vomit. How could she dare to eat it? Could it be that Yang Wei added it when he made it? Seeing the three of them eating so happily made her feel nauseous.

Someone outside asked, "Jia Zhangshi, your house stinks! Are you making stinky tofu?"

"Of course! Want to try some?" Jia Zhangshi said smugly. She was usually stingy, but now she had to show off.

Banggeng ran out with a small bowl, chin raised, shouting, "Everyone, try this! My grandma makes it, it's way stinkier than Yang Wei's!"

"Hey, why does your stinky tofu smell so bad?" someone asked, covering their nose.

"Grandma's cooking is amazing!" Banggeng picked up a piece, stuffed it into his mouth, and exclaimed as he chewed, "Delicious!"

Seeing him eating with relish, someone reached out to pick some more. Just as they were about to put it in their mouth, a voice suddenly boomed from the side: "Hey, are you eating shit?"

It was Yang Wei who spoke. He saw a group of people gathered in the yard, and it smelled terrible. He came out to take a look and saw Bang Geng showing off with a bowl. He knew exactly what was going on!

"You, Yang Wei, make stinky tofu and put shit in it, so why can't our Jia family do the same? My grandma's skills are better than yours, and her stinky tofu is even stinkier than yours!" Bang Geng said smugly.

"They actually put out the shit!" Yang Wei was shocked. He had guessed, but he hadn't expected the Jia family to actually do it.

"You guys really shit?" The person who was about to taste the stinky tofu turned pale.

"How can it smell like this if you don't poop?" Bang Geng chuckled foolishly, even picking up a piece and stuffing it into his mouth.

"My God!" The man was so frightened that he threw the "stinky" tofu on the ground and quickly rubbed it with his hands. It was clearly covered in feces! The others also backed away, covering their noses and feeling disgusted.

"You guys also poop when you eat Yang Wei's stinky tofu, but it's not okay for you to eat ours?" Bang Geng said with a look of disdain.

"That's right! Eating Yang Wei's shit is the same as eating our Jia family's shit!" Jia Zhangshi chimed in, sticking her head out.

"Our stinky tofu is stinkier and tastier than Yang Wei's!" Jia Dongxu added.

Everyone felt a chill run down their spines. Someone quickly asked Yang Wei, "Did you really put shit in your tofu?" Several people frowned, feeling nauseous; if it was shit, they'd be vomiting for three days and three nights!

Yang Wei laughed: "My stinky tofu has a lactic acid bacteria flavor from fermented tofu. How can it be the same as Jia's? I didn't put any shit in it at all."

"I see!" Everyone breathed a sigh of relief.

"What lactic acid bacteria! It doesn't taste like this without adding shit!" Jia Zhangshi scoffed, picking up a piece of stinky tofu and putting it in her mouth.

Seeing her eat with relish made everyone even more nauseous. Some vomited on the spot and hurriedly covered their noses and ran away, shouting, "Go! Get out of here! The Jia family can eat shit with relish, we can't stay here!"

As soon as they left, news of the Jia family making stinky tofu from excrement spread throughout the courtyard. Those eating felt nauseous, and the brothers Liu Guangfu and Liu Guangwei grabbed Banggeng and mocked, "Banggeng ate shit! I'm going to tell my classmates!"

"You're the one who eats shit! Your whole family eats shit!" Bang Geng cried out.

Inside, Jia Dongxu, no longer finding the stinky tofu appetizing, threw it on the ground, vomiting with nausea: "That damned Yang Wei, he tricked us!" Jia Zhangshi, her face green with rage, her breath reeking of excrement: "That heartless Yang Wei! He tricked us into eating shit, we'll settle the score with him!"

At the home of an elderly man named Yi Zhonghai, he was eating stinky tofu made by an elderly woman. The taste was a bit strange, but he was still enjoying it.

"The Jia family's stinky tofu has been put in poop! Jia Zhangshi, Banggeng, and Jia Dongxu are eating it with great relish!" The murmurs drifted in from outside, and Yi Zhonghai quickly went out to ask.

After the two recounted the Jia family's affair, Yi Zhonghai felt a pang of panic: Had his wife put excrement in her stinky tofu too? Remembering the strange taste he'd just eaten, he rushed in and asked an older woman, "Honey, did we put excrement in our stinky tofu?"

An older woman glanced at him and said, "I can't get the right flavor; I added a tiny bit of poop."

Yi Zhonghai was stunned. He had actually eaten feces! His stomach churned, and he vomited. Then, remembering something, he rushed to the deaf old lady's house. He had just made some stinky tofu and specially delivered a portion there, saying he hadn't tasted it before bringing it over. The deaf old lady praised him for his kindness. It was a little hot at the time, so the deaf old lady didn't eat it immediately.

Yi Zhonghai prayed that the deaf old lady hadn't eaten, but when he arrived, he found that the stinky tofu in the bowl had already been eaten! He felt a chill and his stomach churned, but fortunately he managed not to vomit in front of the old lady.

The deaf old lady laughed and said, "Your stinky tofu smells strange, but it reminds me of my youth."

"Grandma, I'll take the bowl back first." Yi Zhonghai quickly slipped away, afraid of being exposed. If the deaf old lady found out he had defecated, how could he possibly give her a good face in the future? How could he then take her house?

At Xu Damao's house, upon hearing about the Jia family's affair, Xu Damao frowned in disgust, thankful that Lou Xiao'e hadn't made stinky tofu: "If she had, she might have put shit in it too!"

Everyone dispersed, and Yang Wei went home. Just as he entered, the system beeped:

[Ding! New mission activated: Cook a meal of crayfish! Rewards: Bad Luck Charm, a pack of White Rabbit Creamy Candy, three pounds of pork, and ten pounds of rice!]

Yang Wei was happily getting the lobsters out of the bucket when he heard hurried footsteps and shouts outside:

"Yang Wei! You heartless bastard! You tricked the Jia family into eating shit! How could you be so cruel! Why doesn't God punish you?! You tricked us into eating shit, you owe us a hundred yuan!"

It turned out that Jia Zhangshi went to ask Lou Xiao'e and found out that the smell of stinky tofu was not excrement. She immediately vomited all over Xu Damao's house.

She didn't care about anything else and rushed over to make a scene with Yang Wei.