Qin Huairu, after being taken to the police station, kept protesting her innocence. But no matter what she said, the outcome was the same. With so many people unanimously agreeing, Qin Huairu was labeled a thief even though she wasn't one.
Qin Huairu was sentenced to one year in prison for theft, but considering that her hands and feet were injured in the beating, she was granted special permission to serve her sentence outside of prison. She was required to report to the police station every week. However, the theft was recorded in her file.
Moreover, the incident was reported to the steel rolling mill, and when the mill learned that Qin Huairu was a thief, they immediately fired her.
There was no fingerprint identification in this era. With all the evidence pointing to Qin Huairu's theft, she had no way to defend herself.
Returning to the courtyard house, Qin Huairu looked as if she had aged five or six years. At this moment, she finally felt some regret for offending so many people. If she hadn't schemed against others, she wouldn't be falsely accused of being a thief now.
Back in the courtyard house, Qin Huairu finally calmed down. She knew her injuries wouldn't heal for at least a year or two. To get through this time, she had to ask her cousin to continue caring for her child. Given her current situation, she had no other choice but to rely on her cousin.
Although Qin Jingru agreed to stay, she wasn't foolish enough to support them with her own money. While she would take care of them, she prioritized her own needs. She would help Qin Huairu with the children, and the Jia family provided for their basic needs.
Even if Qin Jingru wanted to use her own money, she didn't have much, because she didn't even have five yuan on her. Staying in the city was much better than going back to the countryside; at least the city was more comfortable, and there was a chance to find a job.
Normally, Qin Jingru would take care of the children for Qin Huairu and also look after Qin Huairu. But Qin Jingru would still go out to see if there were any jobs available, or take on some handicrafts to earn some extra money.
Even if Qin Huairu had her complaints, there was nothing she could do. If her cousin left, her whole family would starve. At Xiao Dang's age, she probably wouldn't even be able to cook.
With her hands and feet injured, Qin Huairu was completely incapable of plotting against the others; no matter how many schemes she devised, they were futile. And a courtyard house is a courtyard house—it's a zero-sum game where everyone schemes against each other. While Qin Huairu became more obedient, the others were not.
The matter between Sha Zhu and Yan Jiecheng seemed to be resolved, but it wasn't truly resolved at all. Sha Zhu, knowing that Yan Jiecheng had deliberately set him up, was unlikely to let Yan Jiecheng off easily. Every day in the cafeteria, he would find new ways to torment Yan Jiecheng.
Especially after Sha Zhu became the canteen supervisor, Yan Jiecheng's life became even more difficult. If Yan Jiecheng dared to slack off, Sha Zhu would definitely fine him by deducting his wages. Both father and son in the Yan family were extremely stingy, and Yan Jiecheng would always write down the fines in his little notebook.
This also affected the relationship between Sha Zhu and the Yan family. Although Yan Jiecheng had separated from the family, he was still the eldest son of the Yan family. Separating did not mean that Yan Jiecheng no longer belonged to the Yan family.
Yan Bugui and the rest of the Yan family always looked at Sha Zhu with disdain.
Because of Yu Haitang and Liu Guangtian's situation, the Liu family now looks down on the Yan family. That's how people are; once they're related, they tend to stick together. Even though Liu Guangtian and Yu Haitang had only just started dating, the Liu family didn't hesitate to side with Sha Zhu.
The two sides would argue every few days in the courtyard. Whenever they argued, the courtyard would become incredibly lively. Although Yan Jiecheng, the main character, was absent, it provided everyone with a lot of fun.
A fight is out of the question because the consequences would be far too great. Yan Bugui had already been injured, and Yan Jiefang was a cripple.
The Liu family wasn't doing too well either. After all, Liu Guangqi had been to prison for assault, and the Liu family was even more afraid of that kind of thing. Sha Zhu wouldn't risk a fight, so they only argued in the courtyard. Every time he argued with the Yan family, Yan Jiecheng would be miserable for several days.
Because of the workers' high status, Sha Zhu could only punish Yan Jiecheng, but he had no way to get rid of him.
Yan Jiecheng is in a very difficult situation right now. He is criticized or fined every day at the steel rolling mill, and at home he has to endure Zhang Qiuju's accusations.
At first, Zhang Qiuju didn't care much, but as time went on, Yan Jiecheng's problems began to affect their relationship.
The long period of marriage without pregnancy also affected Zhang Qiuju, even though the responsibility for the situation lay entirely with Yan Jiecheng. She couldn't stop her friends and family from constantly bringing it up.
Under constant persuasion from friends and family, Zhang Qiuju's resentment towards Yan Jiecheng grew stronger. The two also argued frequently about not having children.
The pressures of work and marriage caused Yan Jiecheng immense distress. The long-term oppression finally led him to rebel. He either ignored or did the opposite of what Sha Zhu told him to do. But the result was that he was fined more and more money.
The canteen manager couldn't possibly help Yan Jiecheng, since Yan Jiecheng had no skills whatsoever. Besides, the tasks assigned by Sha Zhu were all for completing the canteen's work.
The canteen manager still had to rely on Sha Zhu's culinary skills to curry favor with the steel mill leaders. It was simply impossible for him to quarrel with Sha Zhu over Yan Jiecheng.
Yan Jiecheng received a minor demerit for disobeying work assignments. Yan Jiecheng and his wife's relationship was already strained. When Zhang Qiuju learned of Yan Jiecheng's demerit at the steel rolling mill, how could she let it go? This was related to his future promotion.
Yan Jiecheng was already in a bad mood. Under Zhang Qiuju's constant nagging, he slapped her twice, and those two slaps became the final straw that broke Zhang Qiuju's back.
Feeling wronged, Zhang Qiuju packed her belongings and moved back to her parents' home. The next day, Zhang's family went to find Yan Jiecheng and, citing infertility, went directly to the neighborhood office to process the divorce.
Even if Yan Jiecheng disagreed with this reasoning, there was nothing he could do. In the end, the couple divided their property, and Yan Jiecheng moved back to the courtyard house. Even though Yan Jiecheng received more property, Zhang Qiuju still took some of it with her. The Zhang family wouldn't let their daughter suffer a loss.
From then on, the relationship between the Yan and He families was completely broken. Yan Jiecheng blamed all the mistakes on Sha Zhu. If Sha Zhu hadn't made things difficult for him at the steel mill, he wouldn't have hit Zhang Qiuju.
The relationship between the two families in the courtyard house deteriorated further. Although they hadn't actually fought yet, sarcastic remarks were commonplace.
When Sha Zhu uttered the word "eunuch," Yan Jiecheng could no longer hold back. He immediately started fighting. Seeing that Yan Jiecheng had made a move, Sha Zhu didn't hesitate either, and a fight broke out between the He and Yan families.
It's said that a hero needs three helpers, and a fence needs three posts. The bond between a father and son is definitely much stronger than that between brothers-in-law, especially since Liu Guangtian and Yu Haitang aren't married yet, they're just dating.
No matter how bad the relationship between father and son was, they were still father and son. After Yan Jiecheng made his move, Yan Bugui and Yan Jiefang also rushed up, while Sha Zhu had to fight three against one.
If Yan Bugui and Yan Jiefang hadn't been in poor health, Sha Zhu would have been beaten even worse. But even with Sha Zhu's strength, he was still no match for the three of them.
It's said that old ladies always pick on the weakest ones. It's better to break one finger than injure all ten. Sha Zhu could only avoid the young and strong Yan Jiecheng and focus on dealing with Yan Bugui and Yan Jiefang.
Yan Bugui, who had just recovered, was punched several times by Sha Zhu and then kicked into a corner. He lay there for a long time, unable to get up. Yan Bugui was already in poor health, and after being kicked by the strong Sha Zhu, he had no strength left to rise.
After dealing with Yan Bugui, Sha Zhu began to gain the upper hand. Yan Jiefang was, after all, a cripple, and Sha Zhu consistently targeted his feet with kicks. Seizing any opportunity, Sha Zhu delivered several vicious kicks to Yan Jiefang's broken leg. Soon, Yan Jiefang was also incapacitated, clutching his leg and screaming on the ground.
The nickname "Courtyard War God" wasn't just given; it was earned through sheer hard work. Without Yan Jiegui and Yan Jiefang, Yan Jiecheng was nothing more than a human punching bag.
Sha Zhu knew the nature of the people in the courtyard well. If he didn't teach Yan Jiecheng a severe lesson, the Yan family would definitely come back to cause trouble. So this time, Sha Zhu was really angry. Even if not for himself, he had to think about his wife and children. He grabbed Yan Jiecheng's hand and broke off one of Yan Jiecheng's middle fingers.
Grabbing Yan Jiecheng's middle finger, he punched him several times. Soon, Yan Jiecheng's face was covered in blood.
"If you dare to lay a hand on me again, I'll see how many fingers you have."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com