Xu Damao casually found a place to sit down, and unexpectedly, Sha Zhu and He Yushui were sitting next to him, so he greeted He Yushui.
"Xu Damao, what are you looking at?" He Yushui was about to greet him when Shazhu, who was very unhappy with Xu Damao's look, started to nitpick.
Faced with Sha Zhu's sudden food-protecting behavior, Xu Damao didn't respond at all. He simply looked up at the old men and waited for the meeting to begin. With this kind of person, the more you react, the more they'll act up.
Sha Zhu hadn't expected the kid to stop talking to him, leaving him with nowhere to vent his pent-up anger. Just then, he saw his sister looking at Xu Damao, seemingly wanting to say something but holding back, and immediately unleashed his fury on He Yushui.
"What are you doing attending meetings, you little brat? Go back and study. You're graduating soon and have to take the college entrance exam. You're still acting like a child." Sha Zhu scolded.
He Yushui never expected her brother to say such things about her in front of so many people. Tears streamed down her face uncontrollably, showing how wronged she felt.
From a young age, Sha Zhu treated He Yushui well, supporting her all the way through high school. But as she grew older, He Yushui realized that her existence seemed to be affecting her brother's chances of getting married, so she began to be more sensible. She did most things herself and rarely came back to bother her brother.
In recent years, her brother, who used to be very good to her, seemed to have forgotten about her. Sometimes he would forget to give her tuition and living expenses, and give all the things the family could give her to the neighbor, Jia's wife. He Yushui thought that her brother wanted to marry her, so she endured it as much as she could.
I never expected to be scolded like this by my brother today. He looked at Xu Damao earlier, not because Xu Damao was handsome, of course. She's about to graduate, and with no hope of going to university, she's thinking about finding a job. At this time, it's not difficult for high school students to find jobs, but good jobs are hard to come by; they've already been reserved.
For example, her best friend Yu Haitang has reportedly already found a job and will be able to work at a steel rolling mill after graduation. He Yushui is more mature than Sha Zhu, understands social dynamics, and knows that finding a job through connections makes a world of difference.
She looked at Xu Damao, hoping to get closer to him and casually mention her work. She had heard that Xu Damao was now the factory manager, so assigning work was a piece of cake for him.
She never expected that her well-planned scheme would be ruined by her foolish brother. Being publicly berated like that, she couldn't stay any longer and could only return home in tears.
Xu Damao hadn't expected that his casual greeting would lead to He Yushui being scolded like this by Sha Zhu, and he still felt a little ashamed.
The commotion here was quite significant, but it was insignificant compared to the fact that the conference hadn't been held in a long time. Everyone's attention was quickly diverted to the meeting that had begun.
"Everyone, please be quiet. Our courtyard meeting is about to begin. It's a bit cold today, so let's try to be quick. I won't say much more. This meeting was proposed by an old man, so let's welcome him to speak."
The meeting was chaired by Liu Haizhong. Normally, this guy talks as much as he can, and he won't stop unless someone interrupts him.
Perhaps it was the training at the auto repair shop, or perhaps it was just really cold, but after a few words, he handed the conversation over to Yi Zhonghai, which immediately won him enthusiastic applause, much to Liu Haizhong's surprise.
Yi Zhonghai took over the topic, coughed slightly, as if he was organizing his thoughts or gathering his emotions, which made those who knew a little about the situation realize that today's meeting would not be easy to pass.
"Good evening, everyone. Have you all eaten?" Yi Zhonghai seemed to be trying to ease the somewhat oppressive atmosphere by interacting with the residents.
Some of the residents below were giving Yi Zhonghai face and loudly proclaimed that they had eaten, which did improve the atmosphere.
“Yes, it’s good that everyone has eaten. But what I want to say is that while everyone has eaten, don’t forget that there are still families in our compound who haven’t eaten. Our compound is an advanced and civilized courtyard house, so we should help each other and at least make sure everyone has food to eat and clothes to wear,” Yi Zhonghai said.
The person who had just chimed in felt utterly exasperated. He'd only been playing the straight man, how had he fallen for the trick? And this talk of mutual help? He might as well have just called out the Jia family directly.
"Yes, what I wanted to talk about is the Jia family." Yi Zhonghai did not disappoint and immediately got to the point.
"Everyone in our compound knows about the Jia family's situation. Now, Qin Huairu is the sole breadwinner for the family. And with the food shortages in recent years, the Jia family's life has become increasingly difficult."
Originally, the Jia family had seen some improvement thanks to the enthusiastic help of comrades like Sha Zhu, and their lives had begun to look forward. But then, unexpectedly, Bang Geng accidentally knocked down and injured a classmate while playing at school. This not only meant paying for medical expenses but also other medical costs, making the Jia family's situation even worse,” Yi Zhonghai continued.
But the people below were already in an uproar. The Jia family was indeed in a difficult situation, but most of these difficulties were self-inflicted. Jia Zhangshi was hoarding the compensation money and not giving it to the family, she was not very old but unwilling to work, and Bang Geng had a constant habit of petty theft.
Furthermore, since Jia Dongxu's death, Sha Zhu has taken care of the Jia family like Bang Geng's stepfather, providing them with good food and drink, and occasionally offering financial assistance. So, while the Jia family is said to be in difficulty, it's only relative; there are indeed families in the compound that are worse off than theirs.
Yi Zhonghai hadn't expected that the commotion would erupt so quickly before he even revealed the purpose of the conference. Looking around, thankfully, Xu Damao wasn't the leader; otherwise, today would have been a complete waste.
"Everyone, please be quiet." Yi Zhonghai slammed his hand on the table a few times, and the people in the courtyard gradually quieted down.
"Bang Geng needs to pay a total of 50 yuan in compensation for this accident. Once the compensation is paid, Bang Geng can continue to go to school. If the compensation is not paid in full, Bang Geng will not only be unable to go to school, but may also have to go to the police station."
Everyone knows the Jia family's situation; they are destitute. To promote the spirit of mutual help within our compound, I suggest organizing this meeting to raise funds for the Jia family. Our principle is that all donations are voluntary, not mandatory, but of course, we hope everyone will do their best to help others.”
Yi Zhonghai finally finished speaking. But as soon as he finished, the courtyard, which had been somewhat noisy, fell completely silent. Everyone seemed afraid that if they made a sound, they would be forced to donate money first.
After nearly half a minute of silence, Yi Zhonghai turned his gaze to the two old men, but they both looked away, unwilling to meet his eyes.
Having no other choice, Yi Zhonghai took out the donation box himself, then nodded to Sha Zhu, signaling Sha Zhu to follow later.
"Well then, as the eldest grandpa in this courtyard, I'll take the lead and donate 10 yuan as a small token of my appreciation. If everyone agrees, let's start donating," said Yi Zhonghai.
"I have a problem with that!"
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
