Pursued by the Heavenly Dao, first level up in the courtyard.

The US proposed negotiations for two reasons: it is experiencing problems with its supply lines and has suffered too many casualties.

Qi Bing felt that since the soldiers who sacrificed their lives in Xia were to be buried on the spot now, they would eventually have to be returned to Xia anyway. It would be better to take advantage of each negotiation to send all the remains of the fallen soldiers back to Xia.

After meeting with many leaders and putting in a lot of effort, Qi Bing finally got what he wanted.

The two rooms in the Jia family's courtyard were partitioned off from a west wing. Ever since Jia Dongxu married Qin Huairu, the Jia family has often found themselves in awkward situations because of the issue of having children.

During dinner, Zhang Cuihua said, "Dongxu, Huairu, our house is too small. We can manage to live here now, but it won't be enough after you have children."

Upon hearing this, Qin Huairu felt distressed but powerless to do anything about it.

Zhang Cuihua added, "I'll stay outside, and you'll stay inside. This can't go on forever."

Jia Dongxu put down his chopsticks and said in a muffled voice, "Mom, what can I do? This is all the conditions we have at home. The rooms are already very small, and even if we wanted to partition off another room, there's not enough space."

Qin Huairu advised, "Mom, Dongxu has it tough too. He has to go to the steel rolling mill every day. His job is not easy. Let's think of a solution slowly."

Madam Jia glared at Qin Huairu and said irritably, "Take your time thinking about it? Once you have your babies, this house definitely won't be big enough. If you have several children, there won't even be room to stand."

Qin Huairu was speechless and lowered her head, remaining silent.

Jia Dongxu said, "Mom, please don't make things difficult for Huairu. I'll think of a way."

Zhang Cuihua rolled her eyes and whispered, "What are you still thinking about? There are already plenty right here in the courtyard! Look at that silly boy, Sha Zhu, he lives in the main house in the middle courtyard, which has three large rooms and a side room, just him and his sister. What a waste!"

Jia Dongxu was somewhat troubled: "Mom, that's Sha Zhu's house, how could they possibly give it to us? Besides, with his personality, he only responds to gentle persuasion, not force. If we ask for it, we won't get the house, and we'll get scolded by Sha Zhu."

Qin Huairu reminded her, "Yes, Mom, Shazhu's father ran away. If we ask him for the house, many people in and around the courtyard will definitely scold us for bullying an orphan."

Zhang Cuihua didn't take it seriously: "Our house is really not big enough. It's not like we're stealing his house. We pay to rent two main rooms and give him 20,000 yuan a month."

Jia Dongxu said, "Mom, the house belongs to Sha Zhu. If we do this, people will definitely make fun of us."

Madam Jia scoffed, "Dongxu, I think you're just too honest. The three of us live in one side room, Shazhu lives alone in three main rooms, and we rent two rooms. Who can say anything about that?"

Qin Huairu was speechless. A spacious and bright main room, rented for only 10,000 yuan a month, what else could it be but taking advantage of others?

Intrigued, Jia Dongxu asked, "How do we tell Sha Zhu?"

Zhang Cuihua's eyes darted around and she said, "Go and sound him out first. Tell him that the house is really cramped and ask if he can rent two rooms. We won't treat him badly in the future."

The next morning, with a nervous heart, Jia Dongxu arrived at He Yuzhu's door. After hesitating for a long time, he finally raised his hand to knock on the door and called out, "Silly Zhu, are you home?"

He Yuzhu, dressed in a cotton-padded coat, opened the door and asked, "Brother Dongxu, what's up?"

Jia Dongxu rubbed his hands together, a smile spreading across his face. "Shazhu, it's nothing much, we just wanted to rent two rooms from you. My place is really too cramped, could you rent us two rooms?"

He Yuzhu stood there dumbfounded, and couldn't help but ask, "Brother Dongxu, are you still asleep? Why should I rent my house to you? It's your problem if your place is cramped, what does it have to do with me?"

Jia Dongxu blushed and hurriedly explained, "Shazhu, I know this is a bit abrupt, but my family really has no other choice. My mother is old, and Huairu is also inconvenient. Please just do me a favor."

"Don't give me that!" He Yuzhu waved his hand and asked again, "How much are you offering?"

Jia Dongxu said in a serious tone, "I'll give you ten thousand yuan a month for each house."

"Get out of here! Get the hell out of here! Renting two proper rooms for only 20,000 yuan a month? There's no such thing as a free lunch!"

"Silly Zhu, how much do you want?"

"One main room costs 100,000 yuan per month."

"Why don't you just rob it?"

"Renting a room outside would cost 50,000 yuan per month."

Jia Dongxu was rebuffed and slunk home.

Seeing her beloved son return, Madam Jia immediately asked, "How did it go? Dongxu, did he agree?"

Jia Dongxu shook his head and said irritably, "Mom, don't even think about it. That kid Shazhu is impervious to reason. He scolded me as soon as I opened my mouth, saying I was delusional."

Madam Jia Zhang angrily said, "You fool Zhu, you're a heartless wretch! We've always helped him out whenever there's trouble in the yard, and now he won't even rent two rooms to us! You beast!"

Standing to the side, Jia Dongxu felt both amused and exasperated. Ever since he was a child, his family had never helped Sha Zhu.

Qin Huairu quickly advised, "Mom, don't be angry. If Shazhu doesn't want to, we can't force him. Let's think of another way. Maybe there are other solutions."

"Other options? What other options are there?"

As soon as Zhang Cuihua finished speaking, she walked to the Jia family's door, sat down on the ground, and patted the ground with her hand.

"Why is my life so miserable? My son got married, but we don't even have a decent house. I can't live like this anymore! Old Jia, come on up here..."

Zhang Cuihua performed a summoning spell in the courtyard, attracting many neighbors to watch.

Liu Haizhong arrived at the Intermediate People's Court, frowning as he asked, "Jia Zhangshi, why are you crying?"

Zhang Cuihua cried out, "Old Liu, you have to stand up for me! Our house is so cramped we can barely move, and we wanted Sha Zhu to rent us two rooms, but he absolutely refused. He's taking advantage of us, a widow and her child!"

Liu Haizhong said speechlessly, "Jia Zhangshi, you can't say that. The house belongs to Shazhu. He can rent it if he wants to, or he can't force him to. I can't control this matter."

Yan Bugui chimed in, "Jia Zhangshi, I'm not trying to criticize you, but Shazhu's house was left to him by his father, and he cherishes it dearly. You shouldn't go there and risk getting rejected. You should think of another way."

Zhang Cuihua glared at Yan Bugui: "Old stingy Yan, you're not even defending me! If my house were big enough, would I need to rent from him? All you ever do is scheme and never think about your neighbors!"

Yan Bugui was speechless after being rebuked. He smiled awkwardly, thinking to himself that he had asked for trouble, and turned to leave.

"Mom, stop making a fuss, it won't help," Jia Dongxu said, helping Zhang Cuihua back into the house.

Qin Huairu suggested, "Let's go find Dongxu's master. He has a high reputation in the courtyard, and maybe he can put in a good word for us. Shazhu listens to him the most."

Zhang Cuihua slapped her forehead and said impatiently, "That's right, let's go find Yi Zhonghai now."

Zhang Cuihua, Jia Dongxu, and Qin Huairu arrived at Yi Zhonghai's doorstep.

Zhang Cuihua and Jia Zhangshi raised their hands and knocked on the door. Yi Zhonghai's voice came from inside.

"Who is it? Come in."

The three pushed open the door and entered. Yi Zhonghai came out of the room and asked, "Sister-in-law, Dongxu, Huairu, what brings you here? Is something the matter?"

Jia Dongxu asked, "Master, are you asleep?"

Yi Zhonghai said in a serious tone, "He wasn't feeling well, so he ate and went to sleep."

Not wanting to waste time, Zhang Cuihua said directly, "Old Yi, you have to help my family. Our house is so cramped. The three of us are crammed together, and there's not even a place to stand."

Jia Dongxu nodded and echoed, "Master, it's like this, our house is really not big enough, so we wanted to ask Shazhu if we could rent two rooms, but he absolutely refused and even scolded me back."

Qin Huairu added, "Uncle Yi, we don't want to trouble you, but we really have no other choice. It's really inconvenient for us to stay at home. Please put in a good word for us."

Yi Zhonghai pondered for a moment and said, "Sister-in-law, Dongxu, Huairu, it's not that I don't want to help you, but this is difficult. He Yuzhu's house belongs to He Daqing."