Sha Zhu was in a good mood on his way home from work, and Yi Zhonghai was also in a good mood. Yes, Huang Xian had also spoken to him. Huang Xian said that he was a pillar worker of the steel rolling mill and that he should be given more important responsibilities in the future.

Who doesn't want to be a leader? Yi Zhonghai was even more anxious after seeing Liu Haizhong become the deputy director. He felt that he, the eldest uncle, was always inferior to Liu Haizhong, the second eldest uncle. But after so many years in the workshop, although his skills were top-notch, he had never been promoted.

That's great! The new factory director has already given him a talk upon taking office; his time in the industry is almost here.

Actually, if you look closely at the people Huang Xian talks to, you'll find that none of them are honest, technically skilled individuals. Honest people only know how to do the work; they don't speak up or promote him.

He wanted people with good skills but even better communication skills, like Sha Zhu or Yi Zhonghai. These people, once valued, could spread the word about Huang Xian valuing his workers.

"By the way, Zhu Zi, why haven't I seen Qin Huairu today?"

Now, Yi Zhonghai's relationship with the Jia family has improved considerably, but he is not as concerned about Qin Huairu as before, so he doesn't know where Qin Huairu is.

"Ah, it seems he was called in for a talk too. Yeah, why hasn't he come back yet?" Sha Zhu asked, puzzled.

He went to see Qin Huairu before leaving get off work. He heard from her coworkers that Qin Huairu had been called in for a talk, but he wasn't sure which criterion Qin Huairu met. Could it be that she was poor?

Yi Zhonghai was surprised to find Qin Huairu also being called in for a talk, and he began to ponder. This Qin Huairu was no pushover, and she was also quite attractive; could that be what had attracted Factory Director Huang?

The two chatted as they slowly returned to the courtyard house, only to find a large crowd gathered at the entrance. Sha Zhu, always eager for a good show, immediately started running towards the crowd.

"Make way, an old man is coming." Sha Zhu squeezed in.

Wow, when I went inside, I found Jia Zhangshi lying stiffly on the ground in the very center, still cursing and swearing. Next to her sat two women, one in her thirties and the other in her fifties, both disheveled and filthy, making their own accusations with tears streaming down their faces.

The three of them looked like they had just had a fight, and Jia Zhangshi had likely won.

Yi Zhonghai finally managed to get in, and upon seeing Jia Zhangshi, his head began to ache. He didn't even need to ask what had happened; Jia Zhangshi was never a good person, and he was the only one who provoked her, no one dared to mess with her. Yi Zhonghai didn't want to get involved in the Jia family's mess, but as a senior member of the compound, and having conflicts with outsiders, it wouldn't be good to leave it unresolved.

A simple inquiry revealed that Yi Zhonghai was even more astounded.

It all started with that brat Banggeng. This kid, now in second grade, started thinking he was a big shot and could bully younger, weaker first-graders. So, Banggeng gathered a few classmates and started intercepting the first-graders on the way to school, stealing their pocket money or other nice things.

At first, finding a few pencil stubs in someone's schoolbag was fine; later, it escalated to stealing snacks, and eventually, it came down to directly asking for pocket money. If a first-grader didn't have pocket money, he would encourage them to go home and steal money. If they couldn't steal money, he would start hitting them.

As time went on, some parents noticed something was wrong. Through observation and tracking, they finally found the culprit, a chubby second-grade boy.

The parents initially didn't intend to make a big deal out of it; they simply dragged Banggeng home to find his parents. But Banggeng backed down on the way, remaining as quiet as a quail. As soon as they arrived at the compound, he immediately ran off to Jia Zhangshi's arms.

"Grandma, these two people hit me. Look, my ears are all red. They're coming after you. Go and beat them up."

Banggeng was fearless from a young age, believing that his grandmother was the best in the world and that with her as his backer, he could handle anything.

As expected, Jia Zhangshi lived up to expectations. Seeing her eldest grandson's ears turn bright red, she ignored all explanations and started fighting with the two men. She fought two against one, holding her own and knocking them both out.

The two women opposite them had never imagined that women could be so fierce, and that they would act completely unpredictably. Normally, women would start by arguing, then get into a fight, right? Why did they start with a large pen? The two women were beaten so badly they could only run away with their heads in their hands, finally bursting into tears.

Seeing her two opponents dealt with, Jia Zhangshi didn't continue her arrogance. Instead, she pretended to be even more miserable than them. She spat a few times into her hand, then swiped her hand back and forth on the ground until it was covered in dirt. Finally, she started smearing the dirt on her face and body.

The two women exchanged a glance, realizing they'd been outmaneuvered; they'd run into a professional. With their skill level, it was no wonder they'd been knocked out.

Just as the neighbors were all gathered around watching, Sha Zhu and his friends returned and witnessed the scene.

“Why don’t you all get up and go back inside to sit down? Standing like this at the entrance of the compound is not only inconvenient but also obstructs traffic,” Yi Zhonghai advised.

Seeing that someone was in charge, the two women were ready to take advantage of the situation and back down, but Jia Zhangshi wouldn't allow it. Yi Zhonghai and Sha Zhu were her assistants, one skilled in literature and the other in martial arts; how could she let these two women go after they arrived?

"Grandpa, Shazhu, you're just in time. These two not only robbed Banggeng on his way home from school, but they also threatened him all the way home. When they saw me, they tried to rob me, and when I didn't give them any money, they beat me up like this."

Look at me, is there a single clean spot on my face? Are there any decent clothes left?

"You two are just in time. Make sure you catch them and take them to the police station. Let me tell you, one of them is an old man from our compound who knows everyone in the neighborhood and the police station; the other is the head chef from our steel mill. He could take on ten of you by himself."

Jia Zhangshi took shamelessness to the extreme, dragging Yi Zhonghai and Sha Zhu down with her.

The two women were shocked to find that the person who came was so close to this crazy woman; they felt they had really run into bad luck today.

"Alright, stop talking nonsense. Tell me what we should do," Yi Zhonghai interrupted Jia Zhangshi's ramblings. If she continued, he, Yi Zhonghai, would become an accomplice of evil forces.

"I have no other demands. I'll let them hit me and curse me; I'll give them face. But it's absolutely unacceptable for them to bully Bang Geng. They must compensate me, 100 yuan." Jia Zhangshi made an outrageous demand.

The two women were now only thinking about getting back safely and leaving this den of thieves, so they had no choice but to bargain. Finally, the price was set at 20 yuan, but Jia Zhangshi refused to lower it, and the other party had no choice but to agree.

The two finally pulled out all the money they had hidden in their underwear, barely managing to scrape together enough before limping away from the place of their sorrow.

After receiving the money, Jia Zhangshi counted it over and over again at home, thinking to herself that she had really made a profit today. She never imagined that what she had done was illegal and criminal.

"This is the house. Their door is locked from the inside. Someone, break down the door!" Jia Zhangshi was counting money when the door was suddenly kicked open from the outside.