"You wouldn't know unless you went around looking around; I never imagined there were so many problems in the hospital."
Yan Bugui murmured as he looked at the items written in his notebook, then looked at Liu Haizhong and said, "The weather is dry now, and many of these things could potentially cause fires. These are problems left over from when Yi Zhonghai was in power, and now we can only solve them one by one."
Yan Bugui and Liu Haizhong exchanged a glance and shook their heads helplessly.
The two had intended to use the notebook to provoke Yi Zhonghai, but considering his earlier attitude, they decided against it.
"This Yi Zhonghai is really stubborn. I heard from Xu Damao that he's still thinking about going back to his position as the manager." Liu Haizhong chuckled. "With his lack of manners, he can only dream about it."
Just as the two were about to leave the backyard to go to Yan Bugui's house to discuss their next plan, they suddenly heard a commotion coming from the middle courtyard.
"Why can't my family hang our clothes here? Who made that rule? I'm going to hang them here anyway. Let's see what Liu Haizhong and Yan Bugui can do to me!"
"Mom, stop making a fuss. This is just for showing a movie. They didn't say we couldn't air it out after the movie."
From a distance, they could hear Jia Zhangshi's shouts and Qin Huairu's attempts to persuade her.
Liu Haizhong and Yan Bugui rushed to the Intermediate People's Court.
"Jia Zhangshi, what are you trying to do?"
Liu Haizhong rushed over and pointed at Jia Zhangshi, "Do you know what you're doing? Our courtyard is showing movies to benefit the neighbors before the New Year, but you're trying to sabotage it. What kind of behavior is this? If word gets back to the neighborhood office, you'll be in big trouble."
Yan Bugui also stood angrily to the side, looking at the neighbors watching, and said loudly: "Everyone, tell me, isn't this film screening a good thing? The New Year is coming soon, and we have the convenience of projectionist Xu Damao in our courtyard, so we just wanted to make it lively for everyone, but Jia Zhangshi pulled this stunt!"
The vast majority of people support showing movies in theaters.
The reason why Jia Zhangshi made such a fuss was because Qin Huairu, after returning home, inadvertently mentioned Liu Haizhong and Yan Bugui's attitude towards Yi Zhonghai.
Madam Jia was putting on an act for Yi Zhonghai, hoping to gain some favor with him.
Sure enough, a short while later, Yi Zhonghai and Sha Zhu walked over from the front yard.
Madam Jia's eyes darted around, and she shouted loudly, "What kind of movie are you showing? It's making a mess of the courtyard. Who would come here? What if something gets stolen?"
"I think the way Old Yi did when he was a big shot was the best. It was just nice for everyone in our courtyard to sit together, eat sunflower seeds, and chat."
Outside the crowd, Yi Zhonghai revealed a barely perceptible smile, thinking to himself that this Jia Zhangshi was quite sensible, and that his favoritism towards the Jia family during his time in power was not in vain.
Upon hearing this, Sha Zhu objected, as he was still waiting to see young women and wives.
"Aunt Jia is right. Everyone should be careful when the time comes, lest the 'banggeng' raid our homes."
Sha Zhu shouted from outside the crowd; he still remembered how Bang Geng had set fire to his house.
Laughter erupted from the crowd.
"Yes, yes, when it comes to preventing thieves, it's really important to guard against thieves within your own household. This guy almost ransacked Xu Damao's house, so everyone should be careful!"
"Showing movies is a great thing, it's a way to get a taste of the New Year in advance. What's the point of sitting around chatting and eating melon seeds?"
"Exactly, I haven't seen a movie in years. I finally had the chance, but that old hag from the Jia family still wants to cause trouble. She's a real scoundrel. So what if she's on good terms with Yi Zhonghai and doesn't want to see Liu Haizhong's activities? But she shouldn't have kept everyone from watching the movie."
"Do they really think Yi Zhonghai is still some big shot in the compound, that everyone gives the Jia family face? Without Yi Zhonghai, the Jia family is nothing. I wonder who will donate money to them in the future."
“That’s right. As long as we don’t let Yi Zhonghai be the mediator, the Jia family won’t be able to act so arrogantly.”
Hearing the murmurs of the crowd, Yi Zhonghai, who was standing on the outside, immediately turned pale. He snorted coldly, picked up the chamber pot, and walked home without looking back.
"Sigh, isn't that Yi Zhonghai? Looks like he heard everything we said."
“Just listen to him, don’t be afraid of him. What kind of person is he? If it weren’t for his backing before, would the Jia family be so arrogant and Jia Zhangshi be so domineering and unreasonable in the courtyard? They’ve really spoiled them.”
"That's right, we're going to watch a movie. If this clothes-drying area isn't cleaned up, we'll all smash it up and make sure the Jia family can never dry their clothes again!!!"
Hearing the murmurs of the crowd, Jia Zhangshi panicked. Seeing Yi Zhonghai leave with a dark expression, she regretted making such a scene, as it had now caused public outrage and was difficult to resolve.
Liu Haizhong, Yan Bugui, and Xu Damao, who had just arrived, felt relieved.
“Jia Zhangshi, this is what the people want, something Yi Zhonghai can’t do.”
Liu Haizhong waved to everyone, signaling them not to discuss it for now, and then said, "As mediators in this compound, we are here to serve the residents. We can't act like some people who bully others."
"We're tidying up the courtyard so that when our neighbors from the next courtyard come over, they can say a few words of praise. And when they leave, they can tell others that our Hongxing Courtyard is making us look good!"
Wang Dabao had just pushed his bicycle out when he heard Liu Haizhong giving a passionate speech.
"Slap slap slap!!!!"
Leaning the bicycle against his body, Wang Dabao was the first to applaud.
With Wang Dabao taking the lead, everyone clapped their hands.
Liu Haizhong was beaming with joy. At this moment, he finally experienced the blissful and glorious moment of being an old man in the compound!
Yan Bugui, standing to the side, adjusted his glasses with a hint of envy. He coughed lightly twice, wanting Liu Haizhong to let him say a few words as well.
But Liu Haizhong was caught up in his excitement, and even if he had noticed Yan Bugui's little tricks, he wouldn't have stopped at that moment.
Liu Haizhong waved his hand again and nodded with satisfaction: "I feel everyone's enthusiasm, but I want to say that this is not an idea I came up with alone. Lao Yan and Da Mao also contributed a lot to this."
"If you have any difficulties, please tell us and we will organize people to help you solve them."
"Next, we'll present our compound with a brand-new look, ready to be inspected and admired by our neighbors!"
The young people and children in the courtyard excitedly applauded again.
"Xu Damao, you've been a projectionist for a long time, this is a good thing, you haven't forgotten everyone." Someone in the crowd joked with Xu Damao.
Xu Damao, however, looked smug: "This is called enjoying life, what do you know? In the future, everyone in the surrounding compounds will envy our Hongxing Courtyard."
The crowd began to discuss it animatedly.
The brothers Liu Guangtian and Liu Guangfu, standing in the crowd, seemed to have forgotten the arduous task of weeding. They eagerly awaited the screening, imagining the lively scene in the courtyard and the many young women and wives on that day, and silly smiles unconsciously appeared on their faces.
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