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

Yi Zhonghai and the others could only watch Hao Jianguo's departing figure with furrowed brows.

This outcome was completely unexpected.

On their way here, they were planning to take advantage of Hao Jianguo, but unexpectedly, they were met with a firm rejection.

This stark contrast was difficult for Yi Zhonghai and his companions to accept.

They couldn't understand why what they considered treasures was so worthless in front of Hao Jianguo.

"What...what should we do now?"

He Yushui was also somewhat at a loss, and asked in a daze.

Yi Zhonghai turned his head and looked around at the surrounding residents. When he met their spectator-like gazes, he felt a surge of anger and gritted his teeth, saying, "Let's go back first. There's no point in staying here."

Although he was unwilling, he was at a loss for what to do.

On the way back, Sha Zhu kept cursing.

In his opinion, Hao Jianguo was simply ungrateful; the price had already been driven down so low, yet that guy was still not satisfied.

"I think he's just deliberately picking a fight, without even considering his current situation."

"We're giving him the house at a low price; he should be grateful."

Sha Zhu cursed indignantly, and He Daqing listened and wholeheartedly agreed.

In his view, one hundred yuan was practically free.

Sha Zhu has nowhere to stay right now. He gave Hao Jianguo this opportunity, so the other party should be overjoyed to accept it.

"Do you think... is this possibility possible?"

At this moment, Yi Zhonghai suddenly spoke.

"Could it be that Hao Jianguo already knows what happened in that house? That's why he refused outright and doesn't want the house anymore?"

Upon hearing this, He Yushui and the others immediately frowned.

"No...no way, Uncle Yi? Hao Jianguo hasn't been back at all these days, how could he possibly know what's going on in the courtyard?"

He Yushui hesitated for a moment, then said with a worried expression.

Yi Zhonghai shook his head helplessly. "Besides this explanation, do you have any other ideas? Why exactly did Hao Jianguo refuse us?"

He Yushui was speechless after hearing this.

Sha Zhu, standing to the side, suddenly slapped his knee and began cursing through gritted teeth.

"That's absolutely right! Hao Jianguo hasn't come back, but there are quick-witted people in the hospital who'll go find him! Those bastards like Yan Bugui and Xu Damao wouldn't even be satisfied licking Hao Jianguo's shoes! Those scoundrels better not fall into my hands, or they'll be in big trouble!"

Sha Zhu clenched his fists, his eyes flashing with a fierce light. His vicious appearance was exactly like that of Jia Zhangshi.

Seeing his expression, Yi Zhonghai felt a chill and quickly spoke up to stop him: "Shazhu, calm down! Things are already chaotic enough. If you end up in jail for hitting someone, our situation will only get worse."

He knew Sha Zhu's temper all too well; that kid could really start causing trouble without a care in the world.

At this critical juncture, Yi Zhonghai simply couldn't spare the energy to deal with any other troubles.

He Daqing also offered a few words of advice.

He was still hoping to find a marriage partner for Sha Zhu, so that the family line could continue. If Sha Zhu were locked up again, which matchmaker would still be willing to come to their door?

"Sigh, there's another problem right now,"

Yi Zhonghai said in a deep voice, "How are we going to explain this to the old lady?"

Upon hearing this, everyone looked worried.

They knew perfectly well that the old lady was particularly concerned about this matter—it was originally her idea to return the house to Hao Jianguo.

Before leaving, they solemnly promised the old lady that they would definitely take care of the house.

The results of it?

They turned around and messed things up.

If the old lady finds out, she'll probably get sick from worry.

Thinking about this, everyone felt a heavy weight pressing on their hearts.

But what they had to face was ultimately unavoidable; they had to overcome this hurdle.

"You're finally back! How did things go?"

As soon as Yi Zhonghai and his group entered the courtyard, before they even saw the old lady, they were stopped at the door by an older woman.

She frowned, looking at them with a worried expression, her brows almost knotted together.

The obvious tension was contagious, making the already uneasy group even more anxious.

"Sigh, let's go inside first and talk about it then."

Yi Zhonghai frowned in response, leading the group towards the old lady's room as he spoke. "Where is the old lady?"

Aunt Yi and Yi Zhonghai have lived together for many years and she knows his personality very well.

She knew very well that if things went well, Yi Zhonghai and his men would be beaming with joy as soon as they entered the courtyard.

But right now, these people all look dejected and wilted, like eggplants that have been hit by frost.

Judging from Sha Zhu and the others' expressions, Aunt Yi had already guessed seven or eight parts of the truth.

She sighed silently, but still reached out to stop Yi Zhonghai.

"Wait a moment, think about how to talk to the old lady first."

She lowered her voice, her tone grave, "The old lady fell ill after she came back. She had a high fever and was talking nonsense... Her condition is not good."

"If you fail to handle this matter, and it gets to her, it'll only cause more trouble."

Aunt Yi's concerns are not unfounded.

On the way back, the deaf old lady was clearly in good spirits and chatting and laughing. She couldn't hide her joy at the thought that the house problem could be solved.

As for scheming against Hao Jianguo, although she hadn't given up on it, she had temporarily put it aside.

Strangely, as soon as she stepped into the courtyard, the old lady suddenly swayed and almost fell over, her face turning deathly pale.

This sudden change startled the woman, and she quickly helped the person back into the house to lie down.

To my surprise, as soon as I lay down, a high fever took hold and wouldn't go down for a long time.

Even now, the old lady is still lying in bed in a daze.

Looking at that aged sleeping face, the old lady felt a growing sense of panic—if the fever continued like this, could the old lady's body hold up?

When Sha Zhu and the others heard this, they were all stunned. They looked at each other, unable to come to their senses for a long time.

The people in the courtyard never expected things to develop in this direction.

A guess suddenly crept into their minds: Could it be that the failure to sell the house to Hao Jianguo had angered "that person" in the haunted house? Was that house really that eerie? Yi Zhonghai and the others felt a chill run down their spines and didn't dare to even glance at Hao Jianguo's house again, for fear of attracting some unclean spirit.

"Zhonghai, you're finally back... How did things go?"

The old lady was delirious with fever, but she still forced herself to wait for them.

As soon as the group stepped inside, she struggled to sit up in bed and asked in a hoarse voice.

Yi Zhonghai pursed his lips and remained silent.

How could he dare to tell the truth? He was afraid that if he spoke the truth, he would offend the old lady.

He winked at Sha Zhu, the meaning was clear: You're the one who has to take this on.

Sha Zhu was extremely unwilling, but he still reluctantly stepped forward. "Grandma, we...we did our best."

Hao Jianguo is really not the kind of person who knows how to appreciate kindness.

We've already driven the price down to that level, it's practically free, and he not only doesn't appreciate it, he even kicked us out.

Sha Zhu was filled with resentment, and his words were laced with complaints. He didn't notice that the old lady's face had turned from sallow to ashen.

He wanted to continue rambling, but Yi Zhonghai tugged at his clothes forcefully.

Sha Zhu then abruptly stopped making a sound.

"Grandma, you...you need to lie down...you look so pale..."

Sha Zhu rushed forward to help, but as soon as his hand touched the old lady's arm, she suddenly flung him away.

Even her most beloved "grandson" couldn't contain her anger at this moment. Pointing at Sha Zhu's nose, her voice trembled, "You...you bunch of fools! What did I tell you before I left? Money! Money! Money! And now, at this critical juncture, you're still thinking about that little bit of money? Are you all out of your minds?"

He was met with a barrage of insults, and Sha Zhu's face flushed red and then turned pale.

The deaf old woman was so angry that she felt a tightness in her chest and a metallic taste in her throat.

She thought that once this matter was over, she would be completely free, but little did she know that while she was free, the path was completely different from what she had imagined—this was going to kill her! She felt suffocated, filled with resentment and anger.

He Daqing, who was standing to the side, was embarrassed and quickly tried to smooth things over: "Grandma, please calm down. This matter... was handled poorly by us."

But Hao Jianguo is really...

"Shut up!"

Before He Daqing could finish speaking, he was interrupted by a stern shout from the old lady.

His gaze was as fierce as a knife, which frightened He Daqing into immediately falling silent, not daring to utter another word.

"Bullshit! What time is it? You're still trying to fool me with this nonsense? What's the use of fooling me? Nobody will escape when the time comes! Don't you know how ferocious the thing in that house is? Are you really tired of living?"

The old woman became increasingly agitated as she spoke, pounding her withered hands on the bed frame with a loud thud. "Is life more important or money? Look down at yourselves, how dark your faces are! What good are mountains of gold and silver if you're dead!"

She roared angrily, but before she could finish speaking, her eyelids suddenly rolled upwards, her body fell straight backwards, and she fainted on the bed.

Yi Zhonghai and the others were stunned by the old lady's sudden action. Before they could recover, the old lady, who had been unconscious, suddenly opened her eyes.

Anyone could see that her face was frighteningly pale, and her forehead was covered in cold sweat, as if she had fallen into a terrible nightmare during her brief period of unconsciousness.

"Grandma, what's wrong... please don't scare us!"

Yi Zhonghai's voice tightened as he blurted out the question.

Right now, the old lady is the only pillar of support among them. If she really falls ill, the rest of them will fall apart.

More importantly, everyone understands that if something happens to the old lady, they themselves will be the next to suffer.

The old woman trembled uncontrollably, raising her terrified eyes to look at Yi Zhonghai.

Just that one glance sent chills down Yi Zhonghai's spine.

"It's broken...it's all broken..."

Before he could speak, the old woman spoke in a hoarse voice, "While I was unconscious just now, I heard a voice say... none of us will live much longer, especially this old woman... I won't make it past midnight tonight."

These words were like ice water poured over his head, and Yi Zhonghai gasped in shock.

Knowing the old lady as he did, he knew she would never joke about something like that.

Even the usually composed and decisive Yi Zhonghai was completely flustered at this moment.

He was only mortal after all, and hadn't lived enough yet. How could he be willing to die like this?

He was both anxious and furious. He glared at He Daqing's family, his heart burning with anger. If it weren't for these brainless fools acting recklessly, how could they have attracted those unclean things and dragged him into this desperate situation?

"Father...Father, I don't want to die..."

He Yushui's voice trembled and became incoherent.

At this moment, she had lost the arrogance she had shown when she was cursing Hao Jianguo. Faced with the threat of life and death, she was filled with nothing but fear.

In the past, she would not have believed in these ghosts and gods, but after experiencing the strange things that the old lady and He Daqing encountered, she had no choice but to believe.

He Daqing and Sha Zhu's faces turned ashen.

Sha Zhu's legs went weak, and he collapsed to the ground with a thud—what he had seen and heard in Hao Jianguo's house that day was still vivid in his mind, and recalling it almost made him relive the experience.

He Daqing looked at his son's useless state but was powerless to scold him, as he himself was no better off at the moment.

He Daqing's expression was blank, and a wave of regret washed over him.

If he had known this courtyard house was so eerie, he would never have come back.

Even if Sha Zhu were to stay with Jia Zhangshi, even if the He family line were to end, at least he could still keep his life.

Unlike now, when even when I will die is unknown.

He couldn't help but curse under his breath, feeling that it was all Sha Zhu and the others' own fault.

If they hadn't provoked Hao Jianguo, they wouldn't have ended up in this predicament.

"Alright, He Daqing, say no more."

Nobody wanted things to come to this point.

Yi Zhonghai sighed deeply, barely managing to calm himself. After a moment's hesitation, he slowly spoke again, "Perhaps... we haven't reached a dead end yet."

These words were like a spark ignited in the dark night, and an urgent light immediately shone in the eyes of He Daqing and the others, as if drowning people had seen driftwood and were desperately trying to grab onto it.

"What turning point? Zhonghai, tell me quickly... I'm so anxious!"

The old lady leaned forward anxiously, urging him on repeatedly.

How could she not be anxious? If she couldn't find a solution, tonight at midnight would be her death day.

Yi Zhonghai let out a long breath. He wasn't really sure about the idea, but given the current situation, there was no other way but to bite the bullet and give it a try.