About 200 kilometers from the capital, there is a place called Laiyuan County, which is under the jurisdiction of Baoding.

In a small courtyard at the eastern end of the county town, an unexpected woman, whom everyone hadn't seen in a long time, was packing her belongings, preparing to leave.

The woman was quite efficient and quickly put everything away. She went to the main room and called out, "Grandpa, everything is all packed up."

Inside the house, an old man's voice called to her: "Qin Huairu, are you sure that if I go back with you, Shazhu will definitely take care of me?"

The woman with her signature smile could only be Qin Huairu.

She smiled and said, "Look at what you're saying, he's your son. He's gone into business now and made a fortune. Can he spend all that money by himself?"

Sha Zhu's father, He Daqing, smiled sarcastically and muttered, "Yeah, he's an old bachelor, how can he possibly spend all this money?"

In the TV series, it was almost the finale when Sha Zhu and Qin Huairu finally took over the entire courtyard house.

Having been swindled out of his entire fortune, Xu Damao couldn't swallow his anger, so he and Yan Jiefang took He Daqing back to the courtyard house.

The reason was that he knew a guy named Liu Huai-ren from the Red Star Factory. Liu Huai-ren's mother and Sha-zhu's father were neighbors. What a coincidence!

In reality, there's no reason why Qin Huairu wouldn't think of someone Xu Damao could think of.

Having been rebuffed by Qin Jingru's parents and having lost all her possessions, Qin Huairu, clinging to her last glimmer of hope, went to Laiyuan and found He Daqing.

When Qin Huairu found He Daqing, the widow he had found with He Yushui after abandoning Shazhu in order to form a gang had already died.

He himself was ill, so he decided to take Qin Huairu in as a last resort.

Qin Huairu served He Daqing for almost two years, bringing him water and medicine, mending his clothes, and acting like his wife. She was almost intimate with him.

This deeply moved He Daqing, who was old and in dire need of care, and he refused to let Qin Huairu leave.

As for Qin Huairu, she had food and drink, a house to live in, and money, so of course she wasn't willing to leave!

But she always thought about the capital, about the courtyard house, and especially about her two rooms.

Not long ago, she met someone on the street; that person used to work at their factory and lived near the courtyard house, so he told her about her family's recent situation.

Qin Huairu then learned that Bang Geng had been tricked into accumulating a mountain of debt and had run away!

Jia Zhangshi used the house to pay off her debts and went off to live a good life with Huaihua!

And there's Sha Zhu! That piece of trash named Ran Qiuye actually invested a lot of money in him, letting him open a restaurant. Now he's got a big shot on his side, and that ingrate Xiao Dang too. He's living the high life!

Qin Huairu almost gritted her teeth to pieces. Why?

Why was she forced to leave her home and live a life of hardship? And why is his only son, Banggeng, also missing?

But her mother-in-law, and her two ungrateful children, can live such a comfortable life?

Qin Huairu felt it was time, so she embellished the story and told He Daqing everything.

That's how the scene came about, where He Daqing told her to pack her bags and prepare to return to the capital to seek refuge with Sha Zhu.

Qin Huairu and He Daqing returned to the courtyard house on a moonlit night.

Supported by Qin Huairu, He Daqing stood shakily at the doorway, looking at the familiar yet unfamiliar courtyard before him. A gentle breeze caressed his face, and two streams of tears streamed down his cheeks...

Upon entering the courtyard, he felt even more unfamiliar with it.

Every household had their doors tightly shut and their lights on. Especially in the east wing, a single lamp under the eaves shone as white as snow, radiating a warm glow that illuminated the small plot of land in front of the door and brought a sense of tranquility and comfort to those returning home late at night.

At that moment, Qin Huairu whispered through gritted teeth in He Daqing's ear, "This is Fatty's house!"

He Daqing turned to look at Qin Huairu and said in a flat tone, "You said that this is the richest family in the courtyard."

After saying that, he said to her, "Go on, everyone should mind their own business and not worry about what's going on in other people's lives."

Qin Huairu then glanced hatefully at the fat man's house again before helping He Daqing walk towards the central courtyard.

Upon entering the Intermediate People's Court, a completely different scene unfolded.

Surprisingly, almost none of the lights were on. Except for the main room, which was brightly lit, the lights were off, just like in the old Jia family and Yi Zhonghai's house.

Qin Huairu stood in the courtyard, looking at her two houses and the illegal shack that had been demolished and no longer existed, overwhelmed with mixed feelings.

"..."

Inside Shazhu's house, Yi Zhonghai was drinking.

Take a sip of wine, pick up a peanut, or eat a slice of pork liver, or take a bite of pork heart.

Oh, and garlic too. Eating meat without garlic is like missing half the flavor; and if you get tired of it, grab a cucumber strip, dip it in some authentic Northeastern soybean paste—it's absolutely delicious!

Across from Yi Zhonghai, a television program was playing. But his gaze wasn't on the TV; it was fixed on He Sui, who was standing next to Sha Zhu.

This kid came to our house today and brought Sha Zhu some great news: he's not leaving this time!

He Sui was to stay in Beijing to work. He was specially hired by the preparatory group for the high-tech industrial development pilot zone as an advisor to help prepare for the construction of the science park, which was to be established in May.

If you mention this place name now, probably 9 out of 10 people wouldn't know it; but if you mention its later name, everyone knows it—it's the predecessor of Zhongguancun.

Sha Zhu was overjoyed that his eldest son could stay in the capital for an extended period. Today, he made sure his eldest son ate well, with roast chicken and lamb chops on the table.

Another person who was particularly happy was Xiao Dang.

She had just started dating her first boyfriend not long ago, but it ended badly.

That person was none other than Gao Xiang's cousin, the fat man's apprentice.

As for Ma Hua's younger brother, he's been married for several years. Does he really think everyone is a fool who has to wait for him to take advantage of him for no reason?

Speaking of Gao Xiang, he actually married Liu Jia through the matchmaking efforts of Fatty and Yu Li.

The two of them, one the head chef and the other the manager, lived a happy and harmonious life at the old Bamiantang restaurant.

Let's go back to Xiaodang. She always felt that her silly dad and her great-uncle were too old-fashioned and out of touch with the times, and couldn't understand her thoughts at all.

When He Sui arrived today, I finally found someone to confide in, and I poured out all my grievances to her!

Yi Zhonghai observed that He Sui was not only not annoyed, but was actually listening with great interest.

These two kids really do have something in common. Yes, that's the word!

"..."

Sha Zhu shouted, "The tomato and egg soup is here!" He then deliberately placed the soup in front of his eldest son.