Courtyard House: The Frog Boy Brings Back a Genetic Potion at the Start

That past event is still clear in my memory—He Daqing rented the house to Hao's father out of goodwill. Renting and gifting are two different things. How could they be confused?

The old lady, leaning on her cane, raised her voice, and naturally, she stood on the side of the pillar without hesitation.

Everyone in the courtyard knew perfectly well that these people were in cahoots.

How much of the truth could be in the old lady's testimony to Zhu Zi?

Just as many people were about to speak up in rebuttal, they saw the old lady stretch out her finger and point vaguely around the room.

"My old woman's memory isn't that bad! Yes, I do not get along with Hao Jianguo, but I would never lie against my conscience."

I'm going to state my opinion here today: He Daqing never made that promise.

"In my opinion, it's just that you lot are getting old and your memories are fading."

She paused, then raised her voice: "If you're not deliberately trying to curry favor with Hao Jianguo by spouting nonsense here, then you're truly senile and can't remember things!"

The old men who had just spoken up for Hao Jianguo were so angry upon hearing this that they felt a tightness in their chests.

They were telling the truth, but the old woman turned around and accused them of being mentally unstable.

Where can I explain this logic?

But seeing the old lady's stubborn and unyielding demeanor, the elderly people felt a little scared.

In terms of seniority, she was a cut above them; and in terms of character, they all knew her temperament well.

If we continue to argue head-on, I'm afraid we won't come out on top.

Everyone fell silent for a moment, and all eyes turned to Hao Jianguo.

They trusted Hao Jianguo's character and believed he would always find a way to handle the situation.

Seeing that no one responded, the old lady immediately perked up—in her view, her authority remained, and these people were ultimately afraid of her.

Thinking of this, she straightened her back and a smug look appeared on her face, as if she had won a battle.

She hadn't felt this sense of triumph in a long time.

"Hmph, now Old He is here too."

Hao Jianguo, are you planning to keep occupying this house forever? There's no such logic in this world.

This time you have to move out. Even if it takes to the police station or the neighborhood committee, Zhu Zi is still in the right!

The old lady spoke with conviction, appearing to be upholding justice.

Seeing her imposing manner, many people around her felt annoyed, thinking that she was simply being unreasonable.

"Not only do you have to move out, but you also have to pay back the rent for all these years, plus a depreciation fee—you've lived in the house for so many years, it's old and broken, the loss should be accounted for, right? I gave you an estimate before, and for Lao Hao's sake, I'll say the depreciation is two hundred dollars, plus the eight hundred dollars you owe, for a total of one thousand."

You must hand over this money.

As soon as he said that, there was a moment of silence, followed by a low gasp.

One thousand dollars—that's an even more astonishing amount than what Zhu Zi just mentioned.

"Goodness...this old lady really dares to ask for it?"

The young man from the Yan family muttered in a low voice, his eyes wide open, "So this is how money can be made? I've really seen something new today."

"I used to think that Granny Jia was greedy, but now it seems that this one is just as greedy."

The third son of the Liu family shook his head and sighed softly.

"This old house, you have to pay a thousand in compensation after living here for a few years? And you're talking about depreciation... This house isn't even new to begin with, it's ridiculous."

"I think they're so obsessed with money that they can say such absurd things."

Whispers gradually rose in the courtyard, filled with dissatisfaction and sarcasm.

The crowd was both angry and disgusted by the old lady's blatant distortion of the truth and exorbitant demands.

If a person doesn't even care about their reputation, then there's really nothing that can restrain them.

Clearly, the old lady and her group had long since forgotten their sense of shame and were completely unconcerned about the criticisms from others.

They knew perfectly well that in the eyes of this group of people, their reputation was already ruined, and any attempt to salvage it would be futile.

Yi Zhonghai interjected at this moment, his tone still that of a peacemaker: "Hao Jianguo, we're saying this for your own good, and also out of consideration for your father."

If Sha Zhu really makes a scene at the neighborhood committee, you'll look even worse.

In my opinion, we should move out this time; why keep this stalemate?

Hao Jianguo never expected Yi Zhonghai to be so shameless.

They've clearly fallen out, yet they insist on pretending to be kind and benevolent.

The sarcasm in his eyes was noticed by Yi Zhonghai, making the other man extremely uncomfortable. "Uncle Yi, why waste time arguing with this scoundrel? He has to move today, whether he likes it or not, and he has to pay compensation! Otherwise, I'll sue him immediately!"

Sha Zhu started yelling, tearing down all pretenses—he was clearly trying to extort money from him, trying to cheat him, and what could Hao Jianguo do about it? He only insisted on one point: this house originally belonged to the He family.

Hao Jianguo remained silent.

No matter how much chaos the people in front of him were causing, he remained unmoved, simply taking in the expressions on each face.

In his mind, this was nothing more than a clumsy farce.

"Are you really going to take this house back?"

Hao Jianguo finally turned his gaze to He Daqing, speaking in a casual tone as if asking a casual question.

For some reason, the moment He Daqing, the elder, met the calm gaze of the younger man, his heart trembled.

A nameless fear surged up within him; he didn't even dare to look Hao Jianguo in the eye, and guilt washed over his chest like a tidal wave.

He coughed a few times in a panic, trying to cover up his guilty conscience.

In the end, He Daqing did feel a little guilty.

Although he had schemed against Lao Hao back then, Lao Hao had ultimately saved his life.

He has never forgotten this favor.

Even though he resented Hao Jianguo's treatment of Sha Zhu, he ultimately couldn't bring himself to be ruthless when it came to truly eliminating him.

Humans are inherently contradictory.

At this moment, he couldn't even lift his head, let alone make eye contact with Hao Jianguo.

"Hey, He Daqing, why are you cowering like a child who's done something wrong? Answer me! Are you going to take the house or not?"

Yan Jiecheng shouted loudly from the side.

Xu Damao also moved closer to Hao Jianguo, wary of Sha Zhu suddenly making a move.

"Uncle He, are you feeling guilty? If you really are, doesn't that prove that Sha Zhu was just talking nonsense? To put it bluntly, it was all a group of you who bullied Hao Jianguo."

Pressed by the two, He Daqing, already in the wrong, turned even more red and white-faced. "This...this..."

He stammered, the words stuck in his throat.

"Uncle He, I'll ask you one more time on behalf of my father: How can you do this to my father?"

He Daqing's face burned like fire, and all his prepared remarks fell apart.

Seeing the situation was turning against him, Sha Zhu glared fiercely at Xu Damao and his group: "What nonsense are you spouting! My dad is soft-hearted and can't bear to take the house! But Hao Jianguo, are you some kind of robber? Picking on the weak and trying to take advantage of my family? Let me tell you, this isn't over today, you have to get out!"

Sha Zhu's cursing grew louder and louder, almost lifting the roof off.

Sha Zhu's anger surged. Hao Jianguo hadn't even looked at him properly since he entered the room, always giving him that indifferent look, which made Sha Zhu feel suffocated.

He tugged hard at He Daqing's sleeve, lowering his voice to urge, "Dad, say something! Since he won't admit it until he's faced with the truth, just be blunt and make him give up on this idea completely!"

Even so, Sha Zhu himself was also worried – looking at his father’s hesitant expression, could it be that he would change his mind at the last minute and side with Hao Jianguo again?

He Daqing was truly caught in a dilemma, and sweat beaded on his forehead.

Just as things were at a stalemate, Hao Jianguo suddenly spoke up: "Uncle He, if you just say to me today that you don't owe me anything, I'll pack my things and leave immediately."

Upon hearing this, Sha Zhu and the others immediately beamed with joy, urging him repeatedly, "Old He, what are you waiting for? Have you forgotten how Hao Jianguo treated your son before? If you side with him now, who will take care of you in your old age?"

The deaf old woman also spoke, leaning on her cane, her tone revealing her dissatisfaction.

She couldn't allow the plan to go wrong, even though they had clearly discussed it last night.

He Daqing sighed deeply, finally steeling himself, and said vaguely, "This matter... I'll listen to my son."

He was cautious and pushed the decision onto Sha Zhu, so that even if he did get the house back later, it wouldn't be a matter of pride for him—at least he could save face.

Of course, this was just wishful thinking on his part.

Sha Zhu, fearing that Hao Jianguo would say something else, stepped in front of his father and glared at him, saying, "Hao Jianguo, did you hear that? I'm in charge of the He family now."

"I told you to move out, so you have to move out. This house belongs to the He family!"

He raised his chin, looking smug, as if he had finally gotten the better of Hao Jianguo and could finally let out the pent-up anger he had been holding in for so long.

This aggressive attitude was noticed by all the neighbors in the courtyard, and many people pointed at Sha Zhu and whispered among themselves.

But Sha Zhu and his gang didn't care at all; their skin was so thick it was impervious to swords and spears.

There's only one path ahead of us.

Sha Zhu stiffened his neck, his tone becoming increasingly arrogant, "Pay up, get out of here, and shut up!"

Before Hao Jianguo could react, the onlookers were already furious, their eyes practically spitting fire—this family was utterly despicable.

"Hao Jianguo, let me tell you this: there's no room for negotiation! If you don't move out by tomorrow, don't blame me for being impolite."

I can smash or throw things around the house whenever I want, because it's my home.

Calling the police won't do any good; they might even arrest you!

Sha Zhu became increasingly arrogant, and his arrogant demeanor made several young neighbors clench their fists, wishing they could beat him up.

But everyone knew in their hearts that the house ultimately belonged to the He family, and they couldn't back down even if they wanted to help Hao Jianguo.

Everyone could only stare helplessly, cursing inwardly: From now on, who in this courtyard would dare to associate with this family? They're two-faced, who can afford to be betrayed?

Many people gritted their teeth in secret, hating Sha Zhu for his ruthless actions and annoyed that he had cut off their chance to befriend Hao Jianguo—after this, how could they possibly have any dealings with him in the future?

Everyone knows that Hao Jianguo, at such a young age, is already the workshop director, and his future is sure to be bright.

If they hadn't lived in the same courtyard as him, these people might not even have had the chance to flatter him.

Sha Zhu and his gang's commotion has effectively blocked all other people's avenues of opportunity.

Hao Jianguo glanced indifferently at the smug Sha Zhu. In fact, he didn't care much about whether or not they moved out.

"Okay, in that case, I agree, I'll move."

He spoke crisply and directly, without any hesitation.

Sha Zhu originally thought that Hao Jianguo would not easily swallow this insult and would inevitably argue and reason with him, and might even take it to the neighborhood committee or the police station.

He was even prepared for a protracted war.

Unexpectedly, the other party agreed so readily.

Even Sha Zhu and the others were stunned for a moment, unable to come to their senses.

"Hahaha, good! That's satisfying! Hao Jianguo, you know what's good for you!"

Coming to his senses, Sha Zhu immediately grinned broadly, his eyes and brows radiating arrogance as he looked at Hao Jianguo.

In his eyes, this was undoubtedly a great victory, enough to ensure that Hao Jianguo could never recover.

He raised his head again, his gaze sweeping over everyone in the courtyard, as if showing off some remarkable achievement.

"Hmph, even Hao Jianguo suffered a setback at my hands. Let's see who dares to put on airs in front of me, Sha Zhu, from now on."

He muttered to himself.

The deaf old ladies couldn't hide the joy on their faces.

Hao Jianguo's quick agreement surprised them, but they weren't worried about him playing tricks.

Right now, it seems that reason is on their side, so there's nothing to be afraid of.

"Hao Jianguo, it would have been so much better if you had been more sensible sooner. If you hadn't been so arrogant before, you wouldn't be in this predicament today."

He Yushui also stepped forward, her words sharp and unforgiving.

"This house is all ours. What gave you the right to be so arrogant before? Didn't you think about the consequences before you did anything?"

She kept rambling on and on.

"Don't say I didn't give you any face, Hao Jianguo. You can start packing your things now."

Sha Zhu, looking quite pleased with himself, turned and left with his men after finishing his sentence.

Watching the departing figures of those people, the onlookers in the courtyard finally couldn't help but erupt in a commotion, all expressing their indignation on behalf of Hao Jianguo.

"Hao Jianguo, are you really going to move? Isn't this blatant bullying? We can't let this go unpunished!"

Yan Jiecheng spoke hastily, his eyes filled with confusion.

Based on his understanding of Hao Jianguo, this man was definitely not one to easily back down.

Not only Yan Jiecheng couldn't understand it, but everyone in the courtyard found it unbelievable.