I was married off to a disabled hero in lieu of marriage; my in-laws doted on me and I aspired to gr

I had only eaten a few bites of food when the dilapidated gate outside the rented house was kicked open.

Zhao Weiguo, the leader, stormed into the house, followed by a dozen or so henchmen carrying sticks.

Yao Xing was startled and exclaimed, "Brother Zhao, what are you doing?"

Before he could finish speaking, Zhao Weiguo overturned the small dining table on the kang (a heated brick bed), then said to his henchmen behind him, "Beat them."

The house only had a few old cabinets; the only valuable things were the stove, pots, pans, and dishes in the kitchen.

"What are you doing? The Four Pests Campaign is over, and you're still doing this? I'm calling the police to arrest you."

Yao Hongbing didn't recognize these people and quickly stood up to stop them.

Gu Tong'an knew of Zhao Weiguo, but this was their first meeting.

"Anyone who tries to stop us will be hit," Zhao Weiguo said fiercely.

"Screw you! Is there no law anymore? Coming to our door in broad daylight to vandalize and destroy things, you bunch of reactionaries!"

Yao Hongbing, hot-blooded and impulsive, picked up the dining table from the ground and smashed it at Zhao Weiguo.

Zhao Weiguo dodged, but his dozen or so henchmen, who were just looking for something to smash, saw Yao Hongbing make a move and swarmed around him with their fists.

Yao Xing knew he was in the wrong and was unwilling to fight. But since you want to beat my brother, I'll fight you too.

Gu Tong'an searched everywhere for something, but there was nothing in the poor hut except for a broken rice bowl on the ground.

Without a second thought, he grabbed a shard of porcelain and started brandishing it wildly, shouting, "You bunch of bandits, you're lawless!"

"Just wait, you're going to jail."

He swung his arms for a long time, but didn't hurt anyone else; instead, he got punched countless times.

Three weak and frail teenagers cannot defeat more than a dozen strong men.

Even if you can't win, you have to fight; it's a matter of attitude.

Soon, the three men, their faces bruised and swollen, huddled together, none of them begging for mercy.

Zhao Weiguo waved his hand, saying that they couldn't fight anymore, or someone would die.

Zhao Weiguo stepped on Yao Xing and said, "Yao Xing, this beating is for my uncle. When you went into the sludge treatment room, my uncle saved the best food for you and gave you the easy work. Even this room was found for you by my uncle."

You actually reported my uncle for the sake of the disinfection factory! My uncle is in jail now. What will happen to his family of six? You despicable person! For your own benefit, you've left my uncle's family without a pillar of support. Can you bear to watch them starve to death? Anyone can report my uncle, but you can't.

Zhao Weiguo roared, his eyes red.

Yao Xing curled up, not saying a word. He felt guilty, and he had been feeling guilty all along.

"Hahaha, I'm dying of laughter. It was clearly you, the nephew, who caused your uncle to go to jail, but to ease your conscience, you're blaming Yao Xing."

Gu Tong'an laughed, but the corner of her mouth was twitching painfully. However, she still had to laugh, otherwise she wouldn't have the presence she was expected to have.

"What nonsense are you talking about?"

Zhao Weiguo stepped on Gu Tong'an.

Gu Tong'an lay on the ground like a dead dog, letting Zhao Weiguo step on his chest, and slowly said, "You and the director of the disinfection plant are in cahoots, doing all sorts of petty theft. How could you possibly cause a loss in a perfectly good factory? Where did all the money you made go? It all went into your pockets."

Why did the municipal party committee contract out the disinfection plant? Are those leaders stupid? Don't they know what you've been doing? And you, thinking you've got a lucky break, put your uncle in the bidding.

Zhao Weiguo, use your ass to think, do you think you can even get the disinfection plant? Your uncle is your fault. If you weren't so greedy and hadn't let your uncle bid, he wouldn't be in any trouble.

I suggest you read more history books, like Yang Xiu from the Three Kingdoms period and Li Si from the Qin Dynasty. They were much smarter than you, but how did they die? Their cleverness backfired, hahaha…”

Gu Tong'an laughed, which infuriated Zhao Weiguo.

"Who are you? What's your name?"

"Gu Tong'an, a history student at Huailin University. Zhao Weiguo, let me tell you, you're definitely not getting the disinfection plant. Don't take it out on Yao Xing; he didn't do anything wrong. Were you wronging your uncle in what he did? A mere temporary worker dared to engage in speculation and profiteering. If everyone were like him, what future would this country have?"

Gu Tong'an said righteously that at this moment, he was a bit like Xiang Yu who was ready to die, and he had a heroic spirit.

Zhao Weiguo removed his leg from Gu Tong'an and pointed at him, saying, "Gu Tong'an, okay, I'll remember that."

Then, he kicked Yao Xing again: "Yao Xing, I swear I'll never forgive you. Things change, there's always tomorrow, we'll see."

After saying that, Zhao Weiguo left with his group of people.

"Gu Tong'an, what you said is so true," praised Yao Hongbing, who was lying motionless on the ground.

"What's so good about it? Help me up, I have a broken rib," Gu Tong'an yelled.

"Yao Xing, Yao Xing, go help Gu Tong'an, I think my ribs are broken too."

"You wait here, I'll go get someone to go to the hospital."

Yao Xing struggled to crawl out, his whole body aching terribly; his ribs must have been broken.

On Monday, Gu Tong'an did not come to school. After asking Teacher He, it was found out that Gu Tong'an had been in a fight and was hospitalized.

Qiaoqiao and Xiaoqi took leave and rode their bicycles to the Second Hospital of Huailin City.

"How old are you? Still fighting?"

Yao Xing, Gu Tong'an, and Yao Hongbing lay side by side in the hospital room, each with their chests wrapped in gauze.

"Some fights are unavoidable." Gu Tong'an smiled, quite optimistic.

"Who hit you? Did you call the police?" Qiaoqiao asked anxiously.

"Zhao Weiguo led a group of people to beat up the taxi, but didn't call the police," Yao Xing said calmly.

"Who is Zhao Weiguo? Why didn't you call the police?"

"Chen Erniu is Zhao Weiguo's uncle. Chen Erniu went to jail, and the disinfection factory also fell through. He hates me and beat me up, which is considered to repay the master-disciple relationship between me and Chen Erniu," Yao Xing said sullenly.

"Hitting someone is against the law, are we just going to let it go like this?"

Qiaoqiao didn't understand how men handled problems and was very angry.

"Yang Qiao, please don't tell Vice Governor Zhou, okay? He beat me up and won't bother me again. I just want to run the disinfection plant well and don't want to cause trouble for Vice Governor Zhou and Secretary Fu." Yao Xing pleaded with Qiao Qiao.

"You came to the Second Hospital because you were afraid my father-in-law would find out?"

"Yes, Yang Qiao, there are some things I can handle myself."

"Okay, I won't tell. Take care of yourselves. I have about ten dollars here for your food."

"No need. I'm a factory manager, no less. Even if I'm heavily in debt, I can still afford to eat," Yao Xing quickly refused.

"Who is Zhao Weiguo? Is he that powerful?"

Qiaoqiao asked curiously, "Even though you hit Yao Xing, he didn't dare to call the police."

"Zhao Weiguo is an ordinary worker at the chemical plant, but he has a lot of influence in society and a group of people follow him. Yang Qiao, let this matter rest and don't inquire about it. I'm afraid he might cause trouble for your family."

"Okay, I won't ask. Yao Xing, if he bullies you again, you can't tolerate it, you have to call the police."

"Okay, I've got it. Since none of the three of you can move, I'll send someone to take care of you."

"No need, the nurses will help you with the restrooms and meals. You should go to school now."

"Then, if anything happens, have the nurse call the school, and we'll be right there."

"Okay, okay, let's go back."

After finally managing to get Qiaoqiao away, the three of them dared to lift the blankets; it was unbearably hot.