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

"Now, do you remember?"

Looking at the scattered items on the ground, Yi Zhonghai trembled all over, his heart and liver trembling with fear.

The neighbors in the courtyard were all shrewd people; seeing this, they immediately guessed what was going on.

"Yi Zhonghai is such a scoundrel! He's even resorting to bribery to frame someone?"

"This is bribery! Those who slander heroes should be arrested!"

"Pah! How could such a shameless person appear in our courtyard!"

Angri curses rang out one after another.

"Hey, Uncle Yi, didn't you say Hao Jianguo was involved in speculation and profiteering? If he really did something shady, why would you be secretly giving him gifts? Isn't that a contradiction?"

Xu Damao suddenly appeared out of nowhere and interjected with this sarcastic remark, looking like he was enjoying the show.

"Shut up! Nobody thinks you're mute!"

Sha Zhu immediately flew into a rage and gritted his teeth as he cursed back.

He had never gotten along with Xu Damao, and the previous incident only made him dislike him more.

But as soon as he said that, Director Liu's sharp gaze swept over him.

"What, you think you can act tough in front of me? If you're this arrogant in front of me, you can imagine what kind of person you are normally."

"Was that comrade wrong? If you truly believed Hao Jianguo had problems, why would you resort to such underhanded tactics?"

Sha Zhu was so scolded by Director Liu that he couldn't lift his head and shrank his neck in silence.

Yi Zhonghai's face turned pale and then flushed—he had never expected that Director Liu would expose his intentions in public and even throw the gifts he had given him back, which was like slapping him in the face in front of everyone.

But Yi Zhonghai was a shrewd man, and he knew that arguing at this point would only make things worse.

"Director Liu...it was my mistake, I promise I won't do it again."

He didn't even struggle; he immediately gave in.

Yan Jiecheng, standing to the side, chuckled and teased, "Uncle Yi, don't admit it so quickly! Didn't you give such a detailed account yesterday? Everyone wants to hear your explanation!"

The other people in the courtyard also joined in the commotion.

Hao Jianguo remained silent, simply standing quietly to the side and watching.

In the current situation, there's no need for him to do anything more—the spittle from the crowd is enough to embarrass Yi Zhonghai.

How could Yi Zhonghai dare to speak again? The more he said, the more flaws he would reveal.

Seeing his appearance, Director Liu's anger flared even more.

The thought that this person dared to frame his daughter's savior made him feel a surge of anger.

What he hated most in his life were these kinds of backstabbing and sabotaging people.

"Yi Zhonghai, didn't you previously accuse Comrade Hao Jianguo of speculation and profiteering? You said it with such certainty, but where's the evidence? If you can't produce it, it's a false accusation!"

"I've checked, and nobody knows anyone named Hao Jianguo."

Your claim that he's engaging in speculation is utterly baseless.

"As for the money, we have also verified it. The source is clear and there is nothing like the kind of shady business you mentioned."

With each sentence Director Liu spoke, Yi Zhonghai's face paled a little more.

There was no such person found—meaning his previous guesses were all wrong?

Reporting someone without evidence and secretly offering gifts to bribe officials... This matter hardly needs further discussion; the nature of the offense is already clear.

The happiest person was Liu Haizhong.

He finally got his chance to bring Yi Zhonghai down.

He could also see that Director Liu was clearly protecting Hao Jianguo. If he didn't take this opportunity to kick Yi Zhonghai while he was down and curry favor with Director Liu, when would he have a better chance?

"Yi Zhonghai, Yi Zhonghai, after being a big shot for so many years, where have you lost your moral compass? I think you're just jealous of Hao Jianguo's good life, that's why you made up this charge! You're so old, how can you be so narrow-minded?"

"Who doesn't know you and Hao Jianguo have a grudge because of Qin Huairu? But no matter what, you can't resort to such despicable methods! It's unbearable to watch!"

Liu Haizhong eagerly spoke up, one sentence after another, as if afraid that someone else would snatch this opportunity to show his loyalty.

Seeing this, Yan Bugui quickly adjusted his glasses and put on a pained expression:

"Old Yi, you are the oldest man in the courtyard, you should take the lead in talking about morality and set an example."

Hao Jianguo is a positive, upright, and righteous person. Why do you always pick on him?

Once the two old men took the lead, the others in the courtyard followed suit and began to criticize.

One sentence after another, like needles pricking Yi Zhonghai.

His face drained of color, and he wished he could disappear into a crack in the ground right then and there.

I've really embarrassed myself today.

When Yi Zhonghai's gaze swept over Liu Haizhong and Yan Bugui, a hint of anger burned in his eyes.

How could he not understand the schemes these two were plotting?

"Nonsense... This is all made up!"

Sha Zhu blushed with embarrassment and still wanted to argue.

Overwhelmed by shame and anger, he took a sudden step forward and shouted at the top of his lungs.

But in this situation, the wisest thing to do is to bow his head and admit his mistake; his shout only provoked public anger.

Accusations and insults came crashing down on him like a tidal wave, with spittle almost drowning him.

Inside the Jia family house, Madam Jia Zhang had already been awakened by the commotion outside.

She and Jia Dongxu huddled by the window, peeking nervously.

Qin Huairu had already told the mother and son everything about Sha Zhu coming to them for help—she needed to clear herself of any wrongdoing in front of Jia Dongxu.

Madam Jia felt a chill run down her spine and couldn't help but mutter in a low voice, "Luckily I was fast asleep... otherwise I would have been the one getting scolded."

After muttering to herself, she started cursing again, this time targeting Sha Zhu.

In her opinion, Sha Zhu was a complete scoundrel—how dare he drag her into this mess? Wasn't he just trying to make her take the blame?

"Pah! I knew that idiot was up to no good! Luckily, I was exhausted from diarrhea last night, otherwise I... Ouch, my stomach hurts again! Qin Huairu! What are you standing there for? Hurry up and help me to the outhouse!"

Looking at the mother and son, Qin Huairu felt utterly disheartened.

What sins did I commit in my past life to deserve this kind of life?

The thought that Hao Jianguo had become a hero praised by everyone, while she had to serve these two lazy good-for-nothings, made the fire of regret and resentment in her heart burn brighter and brighter.

Throughout the entire process, Hao Jianguo did not utter another word.

He simply stood quietly to the side, watching the farce unfold before him as if he were watching a play.

For him, this scene was even more spectacular than anything performed on a stage.

Weren't those two arrogant just now? Didn't they stop him from making a bet? Well, let's see how they plan to clean up this mess now.

"Wait a minute!"

Amidst the chorus of curses, a deep, aged voice suddenly rang out.

Everyone looked in the direction of the sound and saw an older woman helping a deaf old woman hurriedly walk out of the backyard.

Although Aunt Yi still harbors some resentment towards Yi Zhonghai after what happened before, he is ultimately her husband.

Seeing Yi Zhonghai being surrounded and attacked, she immediately turned around and went to ask the deaf old lady for help.

The old lady was quite respected in the courtyard and even in the neighborhood office.

Even Director Liu's expression softened and he smiled when he saw her appear.

"Grandma, why are you out here?"

The deaf old woman sighed, "How could I not come and see what Zhonghai and his gang had done?"

I've heard the gist of what happened.

In my opinion, Zhonghai and Shazhu did make mistakes, but their intentions were good—speculation and profiteering are no small matter. If someone in the compound really committed a crime, it would be dereliction of duty for him, as the head of the household, not to report it.

The old lady naturally sided with Yi Zhonghai, saying, "I absolutely do not believe that Zhonghai is jealous of Hao Jianguo."

His salary isn't low, so why be jealous? Besides, it's even less likely that he would deliberately frame someone.

"Director Liu, you are a reasonable person. You will understand after a little thought: the truth of this matter can be found out with a simple investigation."

If it is a false accusation, it will not only fail to harm others, but will also backfire.

Even if Zhonghai and his ilk are muddle-headed, they wouldn't be so stupid as to do something that harms others and doesn't benefit themselves, would they?

As soon as the deaf old woman finished speaking, Sha Zhu and Yi Zhonghai hurriedly echoed her words, trying to take the opportunity to smooth things over.

Director Liu listened, his brows furrowing slightly.

He had to admit that the old lady's words did make some sense.

The residents who had been criticizing Yi Zhonghai and Sha Zhu all fell silent, no one saying anything more.

Everyone knew that the deaf old lady had always sided with Yi Zhonghai and Sha Zhu.

As long as she shows her face, even the biggest problems can be glossed over and eventually forgotten.

Despite their dissatisfaction, no one could say much—after all, the other person's seniority was undeniable.

Liu Haizhong sighed inwardly, filled with disappointment.

He knew that with the deaf old lady's intervention, it was basically impossible to remove Yi Zhonghai from his position as manager.

Yan Bugui, on the other side, also frowned slightly.

His gaze subtly shifted to Hao Jianguo, wanting to see how Hao would respond next.

Hao Jianguo's face remained expressionless, but inwardly he was sneering.

"This old lady has a real knack for saying nice things."

With just a few words, they completely absolved Yi Zhonghai of any wrongdoing; their skill in distorting the truth was truly masterful.

He thought to himself sarcastically.

Seeing that Hao Jianguo remained silent, the deaf old lady turned to look at Director Liu:

"Director Liu, don't you agree? True gold fears no fire. Didn't our comrades who conducted the investigations also have to go through tests back then? Let's treat this as a test for Hao Jianguo as well."

Director Liu could easily tell the bias in her words, but the old lady's words sounded so righteous that he couldn't directly refute her. He could only force a smile.

"So, I think we should just have Zhonghai and the others apologize to Hao Jianguo, and that'll be the end of it."

The deaf old lady finished her business with a smile.

However, before Director Liu could respond, Hao Jianguo sneered.

"Grandma, your favoritism is quite obvious."

They apologized? Did they even ask if I wanted to accept it? From beginning to end, I was the one who was bullied, and you, on the other hand, only mention Yi Zhonghai and his group, completely ignoring what happened to me—your ability to smooth things over is truly remarkable.

Respecting the elderly and caring for the young?

This old lady doesn't deserve it.

Hao Jianguo spoke frankly, without beating around the bush.

The old deaf woman's smile vanished instantly.

She frowned and stared at Hao Jianguo, not expecting that even after she had put her point to this, he still wouldn't back down.

"Hao Jianguo, you..."

"What do you mean, 'me'? You've already said enough."

"As you get older, it's best to speak less and not tire yourself out."

Hao Jianguo interrupted her abruptly, his voice filled with undisguised sneer.

Although the neighbors didn't show it on their faces, they secretly cheered.

These few sentences were really enjoyable to hear!

"You say that true gold is not afraid of being tested by fire, and that you want to test your comrades? Ha, what kind of fire is Yi Zhonghai? What qualifications does he have to test me? He is neither my superior nor under my jurisdiction."

I'd like to ask him, what gives him the right? Or is he just meddling in other people's business?

These words were like a resounding slap across Yi Zhonghai's face.

He froze there, his old face turning pale.

"And, ma'am, you're really good at twisting the facts."

Is testing a comrade the same as slandering a comrade? Everyone saw how Yi Zhonghai and Sha Zhu blocked me just now—their attitude was so aggressive, they wanted to kill me on the spot, and they even brought up a fifty-yuan bet.

What do you call this? This is called framing someone, not a test.

As soon as he finished speaking, many people around him echoed his sentiments and supported Hao Jianguo's statement.

Yi Zhonghai wanted to argue a bit more, but with so many witnesses in front of him, he opened his mouth but ultimately couldn't utter a word.

"Your decision to stand up today is, frankly speaking, driven by selfish motives to protect Yi Zhonghai."

This isn't the first time you've done something like this.

Since you're acting out of personal motives, don't let this interfere with official business.

Seeing that the deaf old lady was about to speak again, Hao Jianguo raised his hand to stop her:

"What, you still want to refute? Then let me ask you a question—if I were the one being slandered by Yi Zhonghai today, would you stand up and say even half a word for me?"

Today, Yi Zhonghai and Sha Zhu committed such a despicable act of framing others. How long are you going to continue to protect them, old lady? Do you have to let them commit even more serious mistakes and cause an irreparable situation before you will finally wake up?

Given the current situation, I have every reason to report this to the police and have them detained as they deserve.

As Hao Jianguo spoke, his gaze turned to Director Liu.