Time flies, and before you know it, it's the weekend. Ma Hua, fast asleep, was awakened by the noise from the people in the courtyard.
Ma Hua rubbed his eyes, got dressed, and looked outside. He then saw that the courtyard was full of people. After a quick wash, Ma Hua walked towards the door.
As soon as I stepped outside, I heard Sha Zhu shouting in the yard: "Director Wang, even if my grandma is wrong, you can't do this! She's so old, and it's so cold. You're trying to drive her to her death!"
When Director Wang heard what Sha Zhu said, his face immediately darkened: "He Yuzhu, what do you mean by this? We are only doing this for the old lady's sake. What do you mean we are trying to force her to her death? He Yuzhu, I think you have a serious problem with your thinking!"
"Zhu Zi, get out of the way! This isn't your business. Yi Zhonghai, pull Zhu Zi away right now!" The deaf old woman was pleased to see Sha Zhu defending her, but also felt a vague unease.
"Silly Zhuzi, this is the director of the neighborhood committee, not someone from the courtyard house. We can't afford to mess around with them." He immediately called Yi Zhonghai over for help.
Yi Zhonghai, who had been watching the commotion from the sidelines, saw the old lady calling him and immediately scolded Sha Zhu, "Zhu Zi, what are you making a scene for? This is for the old lady's own good. Get out of the way!"
"Don't delay the neighborhood committee's work. Besides, the old lady is so old, the neighborhood committee will definitely take special care of her. How could they possibly harm her? Don't talk nonsense."
Director Wang glanced at Yi Zhonghai without saying a word. Good heavens, still trying to play tricks on me? Who do you think you are? Director Wang also wanted to see if Sha Zhu knew what was good for him. If he didn't, she wouldn't mind making an example of him.
Under the combined persuasion of the old lady and Yi Zhonghai, Sha Zhu had no choice but to reluctantly step aside, allowing the neighborhood committee staff to escort the old lady out of the courtyard.
Upon witnessing this scene, the residents of the courtyard immediately followed the street office officials. They also wanted to see how the old woman would be criticized, since this damned old woman had been deceiving them for so many years.
Soon, the crowd followed the street office staff to the alley's crossroads. People poured in from all directions, and the intersection was soon packed with people.
When Director Wang of the subdistrict office saw that the crowd had gathered enough, a staff member from the subdistrict office immediately shouted to the crowd, "Quiet down, be quiet."
Seeing that everyone had quieted down, the staff immediately began to explain the content of the criticism meeting, even though the residents of the alley already knew about it.
But hearing it from a staff member of the neighborhood committee still feels unbelievable; how could someone be so audacious?
Anyway, I don't have to work on the weekend, so I might as well just watch the fun.
Through the neighborhood committee's description, the residents of the courtyard learned for the first time the deaf old woman's background. Just as Ma Hua had said, she was not a martyr's family member.
She was a remnant of the Manchu Qing dynasty. The deaf old lady's real name was Bai Qiaomei; her entire family was killed by traitors and the Japanese. As for the story of her sending shoes to the Red Army, that's utter nonsense.
The organization saw that the deaf elderly woman was all alone and felt particularly sorry for her, so they specially applied for "five guarantees" status for her to ensure her livelihood.
When the neighborhood committee said that the old woman was impersonating a martyr's relative and taking advantage of her age in the courtyard, everyone looked at her angrily. How could such a person be so wicked?
"It's a wonder the neighborhood committee has been so kind to her, how could she do this?" Everyone immediately looked at the deaf old woman with disgust.
After the staff member finished speaking, Director Wang said calmly to the deaf old lady, "Grandma, what do you have to say?"
At this moment, the deaf old woman, tears streaming down her face, choked out to Director Wang and the others, "I have let the organization down, I have let the neighborhood office down."
But I'm really scared, old lady. I'm all alone, and I'm afraid of being bullied. I have no choice.
I never imagined I'd cause such a huge problem for the neighborhood committee. I deserve to die a thousand deaths. I don't ask for forgiveness from the neighborhood committee or the people; I know my sins are unforgivable. I'm so sorry.
Seeing the deaf old woman's pitiful state, the crowd gradually felt sympathy for her. Yes, what had the old woman done wrong? She just wanted to live; that era was indeed chaotic.
Director Wang glared at the deaf old woman resentfully. "Fine, she's still not behaving herself at a time like this."
"Madam, according to the law, you should be sent to prison. We only gave you a lighter sentence because of your age. Don't you have anything else to say?" Director Wang said indifferently.
"I'm guilty, sob sob sob." Old Mrs. Long wept uncontrollably, and Sha Zhu couldn't bear to see her like this.
He immediately stood up and shouted at the neighborhood committee, "The old lady just made a mistake, is it really necessary to make such a fuss? The matter is over, the old lady can just apologize, why does your neighborhood committee have to be so ruthless?"
"Yes, I think this old lady is so old, why is their courtyard house still decorated like this? They actually reported it to the neighborhood committee."
"Exactly, I think this old lady has had a hard life. Just apologize, and that'll be enough."
"Yes, you have a conscience. We don't have one in our courtyard. Why don't you take the old lady away and let you taste what it's like to be oppressed?"
When the people in the courtyard saw everyone speaking up for the old lady, they immediately panicked. Good heavens, could it be that we were in the wrong?
The crowd, who had just been overflowing with compassion, immediately shut their mouths upon hearing this. How could he dare to take the old lady away? He still wanted to live in his own courtyard house.
"Hmph, what's wrong, you silly Zhu? Do you think you're some kind of good person? Whenever we make something delicious, the old lady comes over asking for it. If we don't give it to her..."
"You punched and kicked us, and you make it sound so easy. You're no better than me, you thief. Bah!" A loud shout came from the crowd.
"Bullshit! Who dares to slander me? Believe me or not, I'll beat you up!" Sha Zhu's eyes were red as he looked towards the source of the voice, but unfortunately, there were too many people, and he couldn't see who was speaking at all.
"That's right, and there's also Yi Zhonghai, that accomplice. He used his status as an old man to speak up for the old lady in our courtyard quite a bit. We were angry but dared not speak out." Another voice came from the crowd.
"That's right, Yi Zhonghai, Sha Zhu, and the old lady are all in cahoots in our courtyard, none of them are good people."
The deaf old woman heard it clearly. It seemed that someone was deliberately making things difficult for her. Who could it be?
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