Rebirth in a Courtyard: I Am a Little Hunter

Finally, just as Sha Zhu was about to be consumed by his own rage, Liu the Matchmaker's voice came from outside the courtyard gate: "Master He? Is He Yuzhu home?"

Sha Zhu sprang up from the stool like a spring and opened the door. Liu the matchmaker stood outside, her face showing a mixture of embarrassment and pity.

"Aunt Liu, how is it? Did you get the answer?" Sha Zhu asked urgently, his voice hoarse.

Matchmaker Liu glanced around and lowered her voice, "Let's go inside and talk."

After the two entered the house, Matchmaker Liu sighed and said, "I went to Chunmei's house and, after much pleading, the girl finally tearfully told me what happened. She said that near the public toilet in your courtyard, she met a man who claimed to be a film projectionist from the steel mill, named Xu... Xu something-mao?"

"Xu Damao!" Sha Zhu squeezed out the three words through gritted teeth.

"Yes, Xu Damao," Matchmaker Liu nodded. "That man told her that you...you have a bad temper, you like to hit people, and all the young people in the courtyard have been beaten by you; he also said...that you go crazy when you drink, hitting people and throwing things; that your father ran away with a widow, and you don't care about your family; he also said that you're stingy even with your own sister, letting her starve to the point of being skin and bones...basically, not a single good word was said about you. Chunmei is an honest girl, she believed it after hearing it, and then she asked around among the other people in your courtyard, and the result was..."

"What was the result?!" Sha Zhu's fists clenched so tightly they cracked.

"It turns out that someone in your courtyard said something similar..." Matchmaker Liu said helplessly, "Master He, I'm not trying to criticize you, but with your temper and your family's affairs... sigh, it's no wonder the girl is afraid."

Sha Zhu felt a rush of heat to his head, and his vision blurred. It really was him! It really was that bastard Xu Damao! And those gossipy women and snobs in the courtyard! They were all laughing at him! They were all kicking him while he was down!

"Xu! Da! Mao!" Sha Zhu enunciated each word clearly, his voice hoarse and filled with deep-seated hatred, "If I don't kill you, I'm not He Yuzhu!"

The matchmaker, Liu, was startled by his murderous look and quickly advised, "Master He, please don't do anything rash! Hitting someone is against the law! It's not worth it for someone like that! Let's just forget about it, I'll keep an eye out for other girls for you..."

"Just let it go?" Sha Zhu turned his head abruptly, his bloodshot eyes glaring at Matchmaker Liu. "He ruined my life's most important event! You want me to just let it go?! Aunt Liu, thank you so much for today! You can go back now, I'll handle this myself!"

Seeing his expression, Matchmaker Liu knew she couldn't persuade him otherwise. She shook her head, sighed, and turned to leave. She thought to herself, "I can't easily take on matchmaking with Silly Zhu in the future; he's too much trouble!"

After seeing off Matchmaker Liu, Sha Zhu calmed down. But this calm was the stillness before the storm, the final repression before a volcanic eruption.

He moved a small stool and sat down at his front door, facing the moon gate leading from the front yard to the middle yard, like a cold stone statue, motionless. His eyes held no warmth, only a somber, impending storm.

People coming in and out of the courtyard would be frightened by his appearance and would walk around him, whispering among themselves.

"What's wrong with Sha Zhu? Is he possessed?"

"I heard your blind date fell through. Are you feeling down about it?"

"Look at those eyes, they're scary. I hope something bad is going to happen."

"Xu Damao seems to have gone drinking with the boss today, he hasn't come back yet..."

As darkness fell completely, lights came on in every house, and the aroma of food wafted out. But Sha Zhu remained seated, like a statue.

Qin Huairu came out to pour water. Seeing him like this, she opened her mouth as if to say something, but in the end she didn't dare to speak and hurriedly went back into the house.

Yi Zhonghai saw this from inside the house, his brow furrowed, but he didn't come out. He knew that Sha Zhu wouldn't give up until he was truly angry. He could only wait for Xu Damao to return and assess the situation.

Around 8 PM, a sound finally came from the Moon Gate. Xu Damao hummed a tune and swayed in. He had been drinking with the propaganda department leaders that day and had been plied with drinks; he was now slightly tipsy, his steps unsteady, but his face was flushed with satisfaction—clearly in a good mood. He had ruined Sha Zhu's blind date and also curried favor with the leaders—double happiness!

As soon as he entered the courtyard, he saw a figure sitting at his door. By the dim light coming through the windows of the houses, he recognized it as Sha Zhu.

Xu Damao's heart skipped a beat, and he sobered up considerably. What was Sha Zhu doing sitting here so late? And staring straight at him? Could it be... he knew? Impossible, that girl and Matchmaker Liu shouldn't have told anyone, right? He hadn't been very discreet...

His heart was pounding, but he forced a calm expression, even managing a forced, slightly mocking smile: "Hey, Sha Zhu? Sitting here like a doorman so late at night instead of sleeping? What's wrong, failed to get a wife, now you're starving?"

He originally intended to use words to stab Sha Zhu, to test him, and to vent his anger.

Sha Zhu slowly stood up, his movements slow yet carrying a chilling sense of oppression. He didn't speak, only stared at Xu Damao, his gaze icy and piercing, like a knife scraping across Xu Damao's face.

Xu Damao felt uneasy under his gaze and subconsciously took a half step back, chuckling dryly, "Why...why are you looking at me like that? I don't owe you any money..." As he spoke, he tried to walk around Sha Zhu and slip away to his own house.

"Stop." Sha Zhu spoke, his voice low and hoarse, yet carrying an undeniable ruthlessness.

Xu Damao paused, then turned around with a forced smile: "What? Sha Zhu, let me tell you, I haven't done anything to you, so don't be reckless!"

"Didn't you provoke me?" Sha Zhu laughed, but the laugh was more like a grimace, filled with boundless anger and coldness. "Xu Damao, you son of a bitch! You think I don't know what you've done today?!"

Xu Damao's heart tightened; he knew he'd been exposed. But he wouldn't admit it, stubbornly retorting, "I... what did I do? Sha Zhu, don't make false accusations! You're incompetent, you couldn't keep the girl, and you're blaming me? What a joke!"

"I'm making baseless accusations?" Sha Zhu approached step by step, his fists clenched white. "You dare say that when Han Chunmei went to the restroom today, you didn't stop her on her way? You didn't tell her that I have a bad temper, that I like to hit people, that I drink and act crazy, and that I treat my sister badly?!"

Xu Damao's expression changed, and he retorted, "Who...who saw it? Do you have any evidence? Sha Zhu, let me tell you, framing an innocent person is illegal!"

"Evidence? I am the evidence!" Sha Zhu's anger was finally ignited by Xu Damao's stubbornness. He could no longer control himself and slammed a fist into Xu Damao's horse-like face. "Go to hell with your evidence!"

Although Xu Damao had been drinking, he was still alert and quickly dodged to the side. Sha Zhu's fist grazed past his ear, creating a whooshing sound.

"Silly Zhu! You really hit me?!" Xu Damao sobered up instantly, dodging and shouting, "Help! Silly Zhu is hitting someone! Help!"

"I'm going to beat you up, you treacherous backstabber!" Sha Zhu, enraged by his missed attack, launched a flying kick at Xu Damao's stomach. Xu Damao couldn't dodge in time and was hit squarely, crying out "Ouch!" as he staggered backward, clutching his stomach and knocking over a small stool that someone had placed by the door.

This caused quite a commotion. Lights came on in every house in the courtyard, and doors opened one after another as neighbors peeked out. When they saw that Sha Zhu and Xu Damao were fighting, they immediately swarmed around like they'd been injected with adrenaline. This was going to be the biggest show of the year!

"Stop! Zhu Zi! Xu Damao! What are you doing!" Third Uncle Yan Bugui stood at his door, shouting at the top of his lungs, but his feet seemed rooted to the spot, and he wouldn't move forward an inch. He knew that Sha Zhu was in a fit of anger, and if he went to break up the fight, he might get dragged into it as well.

"This is outrageous! Fighting in the middle of the night! What kind of behavior is this!" Uncle Liu Haizhong, his belly protruding, rushed over from the backyard, his face radiating official authority, and shouted sternly, "Stop it, all of you! Do you hear me?!"

But Sha Zhu and Xu Damao weren't listening to any of this at the moment. Sha Zhu's anger, which had been building up all day, finally exploded. New and old grudges surged into his heart, and he just wanted to beat Xu Damao's foul mouth to a pulp.

Xu Damao was shocked, angry, and frightened. He dodged awkwardly while cursing, "Idiot Zhu! Are you fucking crazy! Is it worth it for a woman? Whose fault is it that you're incompetent? You deserve to be a bachelor!"

These words only added fuel to the fire. Sha Zhu's eyes turned red, and like a raging lion, he pounced on Xu Damao, grabbing his collar and punching him in the face with his other hand. With a muffled thud, Xu Damao took a solid punch to the face, and blood spurted from his nose.

"Ah! My nose! Sha Zhu! I'll fight you to the death!" Xu Damao was seeing stars from the beating and panicked. He reached out to grab Sha Zhu's face without thinking and kicked wildly.

The two immediately started fighting, escalating from the doorway to the middle of the yard, knocking over the clothesline and the jars of pickled vegetables, leaving the yard in a mess. Sha Zhu, strong and burly, and fighting in anger, quickly gained the upper hand, pinning Xu Damao to the ground and raining punches down on him.

"I'll teach you to spread rumors! I'll teach you to do bad things! I'll teach you to ruin my marriage! I'll beat you to death, you bastard!" Sha Zhu cursed as he hit him.

Xu Damao howled in pain as he was beaten, only able to cover his head with his hands while still defiantly shouting, "Idiot Zhu! You dare hit me! I'm going to report you! I'll make sure you're in jail!"

"Go ahead and sue me! I'll beat you to death first!" Sha Zhu hit harder.

More and more neighbors gathered, adults and children alike, pointing and whispering amongst themselves, but no one dared to intervene. Jia Zhangshi, hiding behind the crowd, watched with great interest, muttering to herself, "Fight! Fight harder! Like dogs fighting, it'll leave a mess!"

Qin Huairu stood at the door holding Xiaodang, her face showing some worry, but she didn't dare to say anything.

Seeing that his shouts were ineffective and that he himself dared not step forward, Liu Haizhong yelled at his son Liu Guangtian, who was watching the commotion, and Yan Jiecheng, who had rushed over from the front yard after hearing the commotion: "Guangtian! Jiecheng! What are you two standing there for? Go and pull them apart!"

Liu Guangtian and Yan Jiecheng were young and impetuous, and they had been singled out by their second uncle. After hesitating for a moment, they still gritted their teeth and rushed forward, trying to grab Sha Zhu's arms from the left and right.

"Get out of my way!" Sha Zhu, still furious, didn't care who it was, assuming they were there to help Xu Damao. He threw two punches, one landing on Liu Guangtian's shoulder and the other grazing Yan Jiecheng's cheek. The two cried out in pain and quickly retreated, not daring to approach again.

The scene was chaotic and on the verge of spiraling out of control.