Courtyard house: Just the right amount of pressure, leaving you bewildered but not brain-damaged.

Although Gao Xiaosheng couldn't see through Yi Zhonghai's intentions, he knew that Yi wanted to control the situation.

The instructor said that we should support what the enemy opposes and oppose what the enemy supports.

Those last two slaps were Gao Xiaosheng's scheme, and also a free gift to Liu Haizhong.

It will take at least three to five days for Yi Zhonghai's face to go down in swelling, and people will definitely ask him questions when he goes to work at the factory.

This was a windfall for Liu Haizhong, who had always wanted to "usurp the throne" and sit on the throne of a powerful figure.

Gao Xiaosheng didn't believe he could hold back.

Maybe by the time people leave work tomorrow, the whole steel rolling mill will be talking about the details of Yi Zhonghai being beaten.

Of course, Yi Zhonghai could have Jia Dongxu pass on a message asking for a few days of sick leave, but as long as Liu Haizhong was around, the situation wouldn't change.

At most, it's just about avoiding embarrassing oneself in front of one's coworkers.

"Gao, no, Brother Sheng, you...you went too far!"

He Yuzhu's gaze towards Gao Xiaosheng changed; he simply couldn't bring himself to deliver those two slaps.

"Was it harsh? It was just my normal performance." Gao Xiaosheng shrugged and continued, "The first three slaps were for Yushui, and they were for Jia Zhangshi and Yi Zhonghai's wife, so of course they were lighter. The last two slaps were to get justice for myself."

"Is...is that how it is?" He Yuzhu scratched his head, his eyes somewhat unfocused, and after looking around, he discovered his blind spot.

"Wait a minute, you hit Uncle San before, how come he's acting like nothing happened?"

Apart from Yi Zhonghai and his wife, everyone else pricked up their ears, eager to hear how Gao Xiaosheng would explain the issue of differential treatment.

"You mean Yan Juguan?" Gao Xiaosheng turned his head slightly to look at Yan Bugui.

"I'd like to emphasize it more, but I don't dare."

"Look at the glasses he's wearing, the legs have fallen off and are tied with a rope. Is there any difference between that and carrying a porcelain vase and dangling it on the street?"

"If he goes a little too hard, and the glasses fall to the ground, he'll definitely make me pay for a new pair. We're not going to fall for that."

"Look at his skinny frame, he's not even as good as a decent old woman. I'm afraid he'll try to scam me out of my medical bills."

Gao Xiaosheng's sarcastic remarks made Yan Bugui's face turn red and white in turns.

His neighbor, in perfect unison, moved two steps away, afraid of accidentally knocking the old man's glasses off.

Yan Bugui wanted to retort, but Gao Xiaosheng was currently riding high, and he dared not provoke him. He could only pretend that his ears were stuffed with cotton and lower his head without saying a word.

By this time, Yi Zhonghai had recovered, only feeling a burning pain in both cheeks.

Holding Wu Guizhen's hand tightly, he barely suppressed his anger and mumbled, "Wife, let's go home."

As he passed by Gao Xiaosheng, he narrowed his eyes and shot out an undisguised look of resentment.

Liu Haizhong, Li Caiyun, Yan Bugui, Yang Ruihua, Xu Fugui, and even Jia Zhangshi, the old neighbors silently made way for them, and none of them offered any words of comfort.

"Zhu Zi, Lao Sun, you two go home and tidy up the house first. I'll go get some vegetables and meat, and we'll have dinner together tonight."

"Okay, Brother Sheng, whatever you buy, I'll make it. I guarantee it will be delicious and visually appealing. I'll bring all the seasonings over in a bit." He Yuzhu agreed very readily.

"Um, Sheng... Brother Sheng, I'll be in charge of bringing the liquor, one jin of loose liquor." Sun Youtian called out to Brother Sheng awkwardly.

After what happened today, even though Gao Xiaosheng is a year younger than him, he is undoubtedly the ringleader. After all, he dared to slap an old man in public, and the slap was perfectly justified.

"Rain, come home with me, we can clean up faster if we do it together."

He Yuzhu was about to walk towards the Intermediate Court when he saw Yushui following behind Gao Xiaosheng, so he quickly called out to her.

He'd rather prepare a whole table of dishes than clean the house; that's not the kind of work a man should do.

"No, I've tidied up the side room. You can take care of the rest yourself. I still need to help Brother Sheng mop the floor."

He Yushui refused too readily, showing no respect to her own brother whatsoever.

"Rain, my dear sister, my dear sister, help me with some chores, and I'll cook you something delicious tonight."

He Yuzhu was quite humble, bowing and making obeisance to Yushui.

"Hmm...it's not impossible, but..."

He Yushui blinked her big eyes, stretched out her hand, spread her five fingers, and waved it in front of He Yuzhu.

"Huh? Didn't we agree?" He Yuzhu felt a pang of heartache and hesitated for a while before nodding with difficulty.

The allowance has suddenly decreased by a quarter; this little cotton-padded jacket is leaking a lot of air.

"Hehe, you have to give it to me first, I'm afraid you'll lie to me."

"Alright, alright, little miss, hurry up and give it to me as soon as we get inside, okay?" He Yuzhu grabbed Yushui's arm and pulled her away in an annoyed tone.

No matter how bad-natured he is, he shouldn't be so bad as to default on the money he promised his sister. Isn't that ruining his reputation in front of Gao Xiaosheng?

Gao Xiaosheng pushed his bicycle out of the courtyard, an empty cloth bag hanging on the handlebars, and headed straight for the vegetable market.

On the other side, Yi Zhonghai, back home, sat in a chair in the living room, holding a large teacup in both hands, his knuckles protruding and veins bulging.

"Zhonghai, bear with it a little longer, I'll go get a basin of cold water to put on your face." Wu Guizhen hurriedly went out with the basin in her hand.

Yi Zhonghai showed no reaction whatsoever, as if he hadn't heard his wife's words, his eyes fixed on the teacup in front of him.

He suffered such a crushing defeat today that he still can't accept the consequences.

The key issue is that Gao Xiaosheng is too cunning. He set traps for him step by step, starting from when he blocked the front gate with hanging flowers, and he fell into a bottomless trap.

The last two slaps, in particular, shattered Yi Zhonghai's resolve, and his last hope vanished.

Yi Zhonghai knew Liu Haizhong better than Gao Xiaosheng; he had already foreseen how bad his reputation would become in the factory.

Well, the master and apprentice, one steals scrap from the factory, the other repays kindness with enmity, they are a perfect match, like a lame donkey with a broken millstone, or a crooked pot with a flat stove.

"No, we can't just let it go like this."

After much deliberation, Yi Zhonghai abandoned his plan to remain in seclusion.

If only people in the hospital knew, he could swallow his anger. After all, once the matter had passed in a month or two, no one would care anymore.

But things are different now. The factory's reputation isn't so easy to reverse. Maybe in a year or two, some coworkers will still be making fun of what happened today.

Yi Zhonghai made up his mind to have a real fight with Gao Xiaosheng, and it would be best if the street office or the steel mill's working group could come forward and severely criticize Gao Xiaosheng.

In this way, at least in the eyes of the neighbors in the courtyard, he, the steward, has regained some ground and can salvage some of his prestige.

With this thought in mind, Yi Zhonghai realized that he didn't seem to know much about Gao Xiaosheng. He only knew that Gao Xiaosheng was a security officer in the security section, but he had no idea which leader of the work group was in charge of the security section.

That won't do.

Yi Zhonghai pondered for a long time until he felt a chill on his face before remembering a relatively familiar member of the working group.