Xu Damao frowned, his mind filled with doubt.
"Old Yan, what exactly is Yi Zhonghai up to? He wasn't like this before."
Xu Damao parked his bicycle, took out a cigarette and offered one to Yan Bugui, lighting it with a match and holding the flame to Yan Bugui's mouth. "We need to tell Lao Liu about this too; we need to take it seriously!"
Yan Bugui took a deep drag, as if he hadn't smoked all day, his eyes narrowing comfortably into slits. "Hmph, who knows? Maybe he's trying to win over the neighbors and rebuild his prestige. But Da Mao, you're right, we really need to be careful."
Xu Damao nodded, pondered for a moment, and said in a harsh voice, "Old Yan, you're right about that. I think he just wants to rebuild his image in the courtyard. But no matter what his intentions are, I think we should strike first."
Yan Bugui's eyes lit up, and he leaned forward. "Da Mao, what do you mean by that?"
Xu Damao leaned closer to Yan Bugui and whispered, "We can find an opportunity to trip him up and let everyone in the hospital see that Yi Zhonghai is still as worthless as he seems. What we're seeing now is just a facade."
Yan Bugui hesitated for a moment, "This isn't a good idea. If this exposes any clues about us, we won't be able to face people in the courtyard!"
"Old Yan, look at your cowardice. What are you afraid of? As long as you do it cleverly, you can rest assured that no one will find out."
Xu Damao snorted disdainfully, "Besides, do you want to just watch him take your position away? Let me tell you, Yi Zhonghai is just waiting for the three of us, Lao Liu, to make a mistake. Whoever makes a mistake will definitely be targeted. Once he wins over the good guys in the courtyard and gains a certain amount of prestige, do you think we'll have a good time?"
Yan Bugui gritted his teeth and said, "Alright, Damao, let's do it your way. But we need to discuss it with Lao Liu and Dabao. We have to be careful and not let our guard down."
Xu Damao's lips curled into a sinister smile. "Don't worry, this is what I was thinking too. I'll definitely have to talk to Da Bao and Lao Liu about it."
After saying that, the two exchanged a glance and then parted ways, each with their own ulterior motives.
The backyard, the Liu family's house.
The family was eating around the table. Although the two brothers, Liu Guangtian and Liu Guangfu, were usually noisy and boisterous in the yard, they were as well-behaved as plucked chickens at the dinner table.
"Dad, you don't know, I ran into Yi Zhonghai yesterday morning, and that old guy even greeted me first."
Liu Guangtian, holding his rice bowl, glanced at the scrambled eggs, swallowed hard, and cautiously reported to Liu Haizhong, "It's true, he was smiling and waving at me from quite a distance. I thought I was seeing things."
Liu Haizhong put down his chopsticks, which were picking up an egg, and pondered for a moment: "What did he say to you?"
"He didn't say much, just greeted me and asked about my work." Liu Guangtian frowned and thought. "At first, I thought he was trying to put me down by asking about my work, but then I realized he didn't mean that at all. He even encouraged me a bit, saying that he wasn't as good as me when he was young."
As Liu Guangtian recounted the latter half of the story with great enthusiasm, Liu Haizhong's face darkened.
"You get all worked up just because someone compliments you a couple of times?"
Liu Haizhong put his chopsticks down on the table, picked up his small wine glass and took a sip. "I think Yi Zhonghai is up to no good. As his father, I know you best. What's so praiseworthy about you? He's trying to kill you with flattery!"
"Dad, what does 'praise to death' mean?"
Liu Guangfu cautiously tried to ingratiate himself.
"Dad, I'm still your son, why are you unhappy when someone praises me!"
Liu Guangtian immediately looked listless, and his hand holding the chopsticks was too weak. "I think Yi Zhonghai spoke very seriously and sincerely, and he even encouraged me to study the skills carefully so that I could become a formal employee in the future."
Seeing that the father and son were about to have a fight, Aunt Er quickly spoke up to stop them: "Guangtian, that Yi Zhonghai is full of bad ideas. Your dad says he's not a good person, so just listen to your dad."
Liu Guangtian suddenly felt that the meal was extremely boring: "I know he's not a good person, but what he said is true. It was quite inspiring to me, and I was even thinking about working hard to learn the technology tomorrow."
*Smack!!!*
Liu Haizhong slammed his hand on the dining table. Not only was Liu Guangtian trembling with fear, but even Liu Guangfu, who was eating, was so frightened that he almost wet his pants.
Liu Guangfu was heartbroken!
If your own rules are unclear, why can't you punish each person who makes a mistake?
No, Liu Haizhong's temper flares up and he won't even let the innocent one go. Liu Guangfu has suspected more than once that his father isn't satisfied with beating just one person.
Otherwise, why would they punish both of them when it's always just one person making a mistake?
The key issue is that nine times out of ten, it's Liu Guangtian who makes the mistake, and Liu Guangfu is the one who suffers the consequences!
For example, right now, Liu Guangfu kicked his second brother's shin under the table, subtly signaling with his eyes that the other shouldn't go against Lao Liu, otherwise he would have to get beaten up again that night.
“I said he had bad intentions, and he had bad intentions. Don’t you know what kind of person you are? Yet you’re still gloating over this!”
Liu Haizhong started roaring at Liu Guangtian, scaring Liu Guangtian so much that he almost hid his head under the table.
"Guangtian, quickly apologize to your father." Aunt Er quickly got up to break up the fight, then looked at Liu Haizhong, "Old Liu, don't be angry with the child. After what happened today, they will know to be wary of Yi Zhonghai."
"Hmph, that hypocrite Yi Zhonghai has actually infiltrated my Liu family! He's utterly despicable!"
Liu Haizhong slammed his hand on the table again, pondered for a while, and then picked up his wine glass and drank it all in one gulp.
Seeing that Liu Haizhong was lost in thought and had no interest in paying attention to his two sons, the second aunt finally felt relieved. She immediately gave the two brothers a look and cleared away their dishes, saying, "Alright, go back to your room after you finish eating. Don't get in your dad's way."
"Mom, I'm still not full..."
Liu Guangfu muttered something weakly, but before he could finish, his second aunt glared at him and shut him up.
The two brothers left the table dejectedly and went back to their room.
"Second brother, I find what you're saying a bit far-fetched. That old bastard Yi Zhonghai would talk to you with a smile and even encourage you to work hard?" Liu Guangfu also found it a bit unbelievable.
"Guangfu, even you don't believe your second brother?"
Liu Guangtian lit a cigarette and started smoking by himself, completely ignoring his brother next to him who was smacking his lips. "Didn't I say that at first I also thought he was being sarcastic, but his tone was so sincere and earnest that it completely confused me?"
"Later, they even taught me how to learn technical skills and guided me step by step on how to become a full-time employee. It seems like they were doing it all for my own good!"
"Something's not right, second brother. You and Dad beat him up a few days ago. He wouldn't have forgotten about it in just a few days, would he?!"
"To be honest, I'm quite confused too, but no matter how I look at it, what they said makes sense!" Liu Guangtian was in a bad mood. He threw the remaining cigarette butt on the ground, decided not to think about it anymore, and lay down on the kang (a heated brick bed) to flip through a comic book.
Liu Guangfu hesitated for two seconds looking at the cigarette butt on the ground, then quietly jumped off the kang (a heated brick bed), picked it up, blew on it, and put it in his mouth to suck on it vigorously.
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