Chapter 107

Worldly affairs are unpredictable.

There's always something unexpected waiting for you beyond the plan.

The hypocrite Yi Zhonghai worried that Shazhu, after drinking too much, would beat him; having done something unjust to Shazhu, his usual ways of manipulating people were useless against Shazhu. He was extremely careful, consulted with the eldest madam, and bolted the door with a latch, making it impregnable.

Yet this latch, at the crucial moment, betrayed the hypocrite; someone who came to settle scores with Yi Zhonghai kicked it to pieces with one foot.

Mistaking that Shazhu had come to cause trouble, Yi Zhonghai didn't even see who the person was, and he slapped the blame for kicking the door onto Shazhu's head.

Looking over the Siheyuan, only the grudge between Shazhu and Yi Zhonghai's families would warrant Shazhu coming to cause trouble late at night.

Shazhu!

The shrill howl was extremely loud; on one hand, it was meant to shout at Shazhu to intimidate him with a loud voice; on the other hand, it was also meant to call someone.

Shazhu, after drinking too much, wants to beat me again; these people in the Siheyuan should at least come out to intervene.

Considering that a drunk person might do anything, they worried that drunk Shazhu could not control himself, brandishing a kitchen knife to confront Yi Zhonghai.

Yi Zhonghai, who had been beaten twice by drunk Shazhu, knew just how terrifying drunk Shazhu was—his strength was boundless; even if the three head stewards of the Siheyuan were tied together, they likely wouldn't be a match for him.

The hypocrite's scheming was not in vain.

With a single shout, he called out the neighbors who hadn't yet gone to bed to Zhong Yuan.

The scene before his eyes.

The neighbors were startled, all sucking in a breath of cold air.

Yi Zhonghai's door was actually kicked to pieces by a single foot—was it because the door was old and dilapidated, or because the kicker was just too strong?

Yi Zhonghai, who dared not come out from inside the house, heard the commotion in the courtyard, realized the neighbors had come out, and his confidence inexplicably rose a bit.

Just now, while hiding inside and not daring to come out, the eldest madam, the foolish advisor, had already worked out a plan for Yi Zhonghai.

The fact that someone kicked the Yi family's door to pieces could be fully exploited by Yi Zhonghai and his wife—turning misfortune into blessing, as the saying goes.

It could be considered a tragic drama.

Following the eldest madam's instructions, Yi Zhonghai prepared to use this opportunity to thoroughly clean up his image and salvage his career from dire straits.

He certainly didn't want countless people pointing at his spine and cursing his ancestors for eight generations.

The hypocrite wanted to stage a great drama of suffering a tremendous injustice before the Siheyuan neighbors, especially for the two head stewards Yan Fugui and Liu Haizhong, using Yi Zhonghai's miserable incident as Head Steward to touch the bottom line in Liu Haizhong and Yan Fugui's hearts, so that they could ally with Yi Zhonghai in dealing with Shazhu.

The hypocrite didn't even look to see who the person before him was; he simply assumed it was Shazhu's doing and began to act out the script on his own.

"Shazhu, what exactly do you want to do? I admit I did something wrong to you, scheming against you in the matter of recommending you as an apprentice, but I had no choice—you're sixteen, and the Yagangchang regulations say only those seventeen or older can be recommended as apprentices; cooking is a big deal, and as Head Steward I worried you're too young to hold back, lest you cause the workers to get diarrhea, and I did it for your own good."

After some thought, Yi Zhonghai regretted not having come up with this excuse earlier, and adopted the approach of mending the pen after the sheep are lost, voicing the excuse he had devised.

"You resent Head Steward, Head Steward admits it—who made Head Steward your elder? Since the Qing is gone, Head Steward must look after you. Shazhu, let's settle our families' affairs openly before the neighbors today, speak clearly, and let the neighbors judge whether I've wronged you or you've wronged me, Head Steward."

Yi Zhonghai abruptly stopped his words.

He noticed the neighbors' strange expressions, and there stood a figure in front of the door that he found somewhat familiar but couldn't recall at the moment, with several people standing behind that figure.

Shazhu!

Yi Zhonghai scanned the crowd for Shazhu's figure; the eldest madam's plan to cleanse his image relied on Shazhu being present—without Shazhu, would Yi Zhonghai be performing a solo act?

His gaze darted back and forth in the crowd.

He didn't see Shazhu.

His heart inexplicably fluttered.

Such a big thing happened in the Siheyuan, why didn't Shazhu come out?

Shazhu didn't come out; who kicked his own door to pieces? Could it be Xu Daming? But Yi Zhonghai didn't see Xu Daming in the crowd.

"Shazhu and Xu Daming?"

Yi Zhonghai's tone carried a hint of urgency.

"Head Steward, Shazhu, Xu Daming, and San Daye are drinking inside; they haven't come out at all—what are you making a fuss about for whom to see? And Shazhu kicked your door!" The neighbors who disliked Yi Zhonghai's actions, taking advantage of the night's cover, muttered a few remarks: "Again putting the blame on Shazhu's head!"

Yi Zhonghai's mind.

A complete blank.

It was as if he had heard the most terrifying news in the world.

Shazhu and Xu Daming didn't come out!

They didn't come out, so how can this image‑cleansing drama continue?

Yi Zhonghai became like an ant on a hot pan; he ignored the eldest madam, who also felt bad inside, and latched onto the belated Liu Haizhong as his lifeline.

"Old Liu, look at this!"

Seeing Yi Zhonghai treat himself as the person in charge of the Siheyuan, Liu Haizhong felt a flicker of pleasure; after all his struggle with Yi Zhonghai, this moment was what he'd been aiming for.

With great power in hand, he stepped on Yi Zhonghai's face!

He threw his head back.

He placed his hand behind his back.

He truly regarded himself as a Siheyuan bigwig whose word carried the weight of nine tripods, his gaze sweeping sideways at the several uninvited guests standing at Yi Zhonghai's door.

It was quite obvious.

They were neither residents of the Siheyuan nor neighbors nearby.

He opened his mouth.

He wanted to utter a few rebukes, but when Liu Haizhong's gaze fell on that sturdy man, his liver lurched—this build, this physique, and that face that looked like a villain at first glance.

Laba month eggplant.

It had wilted.

Having a rare moment of shrewdness, he thought: "That bastard Yi Zhonghai, I don't know what he did to offend these people; they've come to his door, Yi Zhonghai is scared, so he's deliberately playing weak and pushing me, Liu Haizhong, to take the lead—seeing that leader's ferocious, evil‑looking face, Liu Haizhong was frightened out of his wits."

Liu Haizhong had someone call out Yan Fugui, who was drinking in Shazhu's house.

Shazhu and Xu Daming, upon hearing that someone was causing trouble for Yi Zhonghai, also followed behind Yan Fugui into the courtyard.

The scene before his eyes.

It left Shazhu with deep feelings.

If a person is unlucky, even drinking cold water gets stuck in their teeth; previously, there was the incident where Shazhu single-handedly tore off Yi Zhonghai's hypocritical gentleman's mask, and later, there was the incident where villains kicked down the door to settle scores with Yi Zhonghai.

They all gathered together.

Watching the show.

The deaf old lady from the rear courtyard also appeared, leaning on her crutch.

This concerns Yi Zhonghai.

The deaf old lady is fully enthusiastic.

Support the elderly!

The residents of the siheyuan have all gathered.

"Old Yan, the door of Old Yi's house has been kicked to pieces by these few; you see how this should be handled?"

Yan Fugui felt a hint of resentment.

Don't think that just because he holds the title of siheyuan steward...

Speaking frankly.

He really has no idea.

Not mentioning any benefit, he was also made the main contributor two or three times by Yi Zhonghai using the identity of the Third Steward, and he donated money several times for the deaf old lady.

"Old Liu, you decide on this."

Seeing Yan Fugui ignore him.

Liu Haizhong gritted his teeth.

Even if timid, he had to steel himself.

"Gentlemen, I am the Second Steward of this grand courtyard, my name is Liu Haizhong. Last night you kicked the door, disturbing the neighbors' rest; I'll ask a bit more: what happened, why such great anger, kicking the door to pieces?"

Only then did Shazhu notice.

The door of Yi Zhonghai's house was kicked to pieces.

The force was strong enough!

"What's the matter?" A youngster two years younger than Shazhu was pushed to the front by the vicious big man, who pointed at the youngster and asked Yi Zhonghai in a deep voice, "Yi Zhonghai, do you know him?"

Yi Zhonghai, borrowing the light, sized up the child.

He looked familiar.

He wasn't sure where he had seen him before.

Considering the vicious big man's hostile posture, he cleverly chose to deny.

Yi Zhonghai's thought was to firmly decide not to admit anything; he thought that as long as he said no, those people wouldn't do anything to him.

He also wasn't afraid of being beaten; Yi Zhonghai actually hoped the other side would strike, for as soon as they used force against him, the hypocrite would seize the opportunity to stage a bitter ploy, using his own misery to try to recover his utterly ruined reputation.

"I haven't seen him."

On the contrary, Yan Fugui, standing aside like an uninvolved person, pointed at the youngster and interjected, "Isn't this the little Lai who is responsible for cleaning at the Red Star Bathhouse?"

The neighbors who had gone to the Red Star Bathhouse to wash, upon being reminded by Yan Fugui, immediately recalled it.

Some clever people simply imagined the reason for their visit.

In the afternoon the deaf old lady fell into the cesspit; it was Yi Zhonghai who personally went down to rescue her. After rescuing the deaf old lady, Yi Zhonghai held a water bucket at the siheyuan entrance and simply washed a few times. Afterwards people didn't see Yi Zhonghai until after six in the evening, when he finally appeared in the siheyuan. The neighbors then inquired and said Yi Zhonghai had gone to the Red Star Bathhouse to bathe.

Could it be that because Yi Zhonghai messed up their bathhouse, they brought the bathhouse staff to cause trouble!

When Shazhu discovered that Yi Zhonghai's identity as the little Lai had been exposed, he actually forced a smile, a hint of faint fear showing in his eyes.

The hypocrite has done another despicable deed!

Otherwise, the Moral Heavenly Venerable wouldn't look so cowardly.

"Little Lai!"

The reason for his timidity is that Yi Zhonghai realized that even if he were beaten, the neighbors would say he deserved it, since Yi Zhonghai had done something wrong to the little Lai.

This does not match Yi Zhonghai's imagined bitter ploy.

Beating him would be pointless.

"Yi Zhonghai, have you remembered?" the big man's tone shifted, "Just remembering is good."

In the time it took to speak.

The big man pointed at the little Lai and, to the siheyuan neighbors, explained the reason they had come to settle scores with Yi Zhonghai.

It concerns feces and urine.

Yi Zhonghai, after simply washing off the dirt on his body, took a change of clothes to the Red Star Bathhouse to bathe; his body still smelled bad, and in some places there remained traces of feces.

The little Lai wouldn't let Yi Zhonghai in.

In the past, Yi Zhonghai would surely have tried to sweet-talk the other side.

Reasoning.

But at that time, Yi Zhonghai was angry that Shazhu hadn't come back to fish out the deaf old lady, resentful of himself for going down to fish her out, and with the smell of feces and urine on him, his heart filled with resentment; he waved his hand and slapped the little Lai, ignoring the little Lai's dissuasion and charging into the bath.

Hitting someone was one reason.

The other reason was that the feces and urine smell on Yi Zhonghai ruined their pool of hot water.

Now they advocate thrift and frugality.

The little Lai inexplicably took the blame for wasting hot water; his originally confirmed promotion also went down the drain, he was also logged with a demerit, and his subsidy for the next three months was canceled, leaving only basic living support.

That can be said.

This bath and this slap by Yi Zhonghai caused the little Lai, who had been an apprentice worker at the Red Star Bathhouse for two years, to be thrown back overnight to the pre-liberation era.

Afterward came the incident of them coming to the door to demand an explanation.

Sorry.

Moral Heavenly Venerable, in front of the Siheyuan neighbors, rarely lowered his so‑called noble head and apologized to Xiao Lai Zi.

"Sorry, is that it?" the burly man shouted angrily: "Do you know or not? Just because of this bath of yours, Xiao Lai Zi's two years of hard work went to waste, and all you have is a single 'sorry'?"

I'll compensate!

This is the only solution Yi Zhonghai could think of to resolve his own predicament.

The person involved had their wages docked.

He, Yi Zhonghai, must then compensate the other party's wages.

Inside, he wished desperately to get rid of these people as soon as possible.

To linger even one more second.

Yi Zhonghai would waste another second of someone's time.

"Just because you have money does that make you great? Does having money let you do as you please? Does it let you ignore our Xiao Lai Zi, strike him whenever you want? I tell you, Yi Zhonghai, we didn't come today for your few measly coins; we came to demand an explanation—what right do you have to hit Xiao Lai Zi?"

Yi Zhonghai's inner anger.

It unexpectedly flared toward Shazhu, who was watching the show from the side.

The hypocrite dumped all the embarrassment of being questioned and forced to apologize onto Shazhu.

If Shazhu came back this afternoon and pulled Long Laotaitai out of the cesspool, then as a respected fourth‑grade worker at Yagangchang and the Head Steward of the Siheyuan, he wouldn't have to personally go fish her out, nor would he, in a fit of rage, slap Xiao Lai Zi and lose face in front of everyone in the Siheyuan.

It's all Shazhu's fault!

And there's the child.

Yi Zhonghai also recalled that he was childless; even if he had just a son, the burly man wouldn't be so arrogant and overbearing.

These people.

They're just bullying me for having no son!

Son!

The hypocrite didn't just resent Shazhu alone; even Jia Dongxu, who was watching the show, began to resent him as well.

Shazhu has no relation to Yi Zhonghai; they had a falling out before, and the two families have had nothing to do with each other ever since, so it's understandable that Shazhu remained a bystander.

But Jia Dongxu is Yi Zhonghai's disciple.

Yi Zhonghai is Jia Dongxu's teacher.

As the teacher, he was blocked at the door by people demanding an explanation.

Jia Dongxu, however, watched all of this as if he were an uninvolved bystander.

I am your teacher!

Qin Huairu is too.

Initially, to marry into the city, she treated the team captain Yi Zhonghai, who had come down to support Qin Family Village, like a father, served him devotedly, achieved her wish of moving to the city, and yet never kept Yi Zhonghai in her heart.

These Siheyuan neighbors.

They were also watching the show.

I am the Head Steward!

Yi Zhonghai's mood at this moment cannot be put into words.

He was afraid.

The hypocrite discovered that something even more disgusting than losing face was an insult to his character.

The burly man had Xiao Lai Zi slap Yi Zhonghai, saying that since Yi Zhonghai had slapped Xiao Lai Zi this afternoon, Xiao Lai Zi must return the slap.

This was even more humiliating for Yi Zhonghai than if the burly man had slapped him himself.

Yi Zhonghai's body began to tremble.

Seeing the situation turn bad, an aunt from inside the house hurriedly appeared.

This matter is our Old Yi's fault, no matter what the cause; even if our Old Yi had gone down into the cesspool to rescue the widowed old lady of Hou Yuan, an act that saves a life and merits a seven‑story pagoda, his slapping Xiao Lai Zi is still our Old Yi's fault—hitting someone is wrong, and if wrong, one must accept punishment; we accept this slap for our Old Yi, and though Old Yi is ultimately a man, I, a virtuous woman, will take this slap in his stead.

Shazhu laughed.

He discovered a secret he had never found in his previous life.

The aunt known as the Dog‑Head Strategist.

Those words were truly splendid, with a hint of goading, and they cleverly wove in the tactic of moral coercion.

No wonder she is Yi Zhonghai's wife.

Rescuing Long Laotaitai left him covered in feces and urine!

What is this?

There is a reason for everything.

It is a major deed of saving a life.

Even after saving a life, can you still keep harping on this?

Moreover, they even proposed taking the big slap in Yi Zhonghai's stead.

I've given you face, I've given you substance—what more do you want?

The atmosphere on the spot instantly turned strange; just moments ago, Moral Heavenly Venerable Yi Zhonghai and the Dog‑Head Strategist aunt were on the defensive, but in the blink of an eye they seized the upper hand and took control of the situation.

The matter of hitting a woman—

After all, it doesn't sound very good.

It's not like we caught a little devil and beat him to death.

It damages one's reputation.

Xiao Lai Zi is still a fifteen‑ or sixteen‑year‑old brat; when he grows up and wants to marry, if people hear that he has the misdeed of slapping an elderly woman, they will naturally refuse to marry him, and in his desperation he won't be able to find a wife.

No wonder the aunt, in front of all those Siheyuan residents, would suggest taking the big slap for Yi Zhonghai.

There is no way to support and nurture this protective amulet as a safeguard.

It is truly a good daughter-in-law image for the Yi family, hardworking and uncomplaining.

Hit the eldest aunt.

It is equivalent to hitting a weak woman who has no standing at all in the Yi family.

Regarding this.

Shazhu could only secretly admire.

Just when everyone thought the eldest aunt had everything under control, a sudden accident left countless people unable to dodge in time; Yi Zhonghai had an eldest aunt backing him up, while Xiao Laizi's family had his old mother supporting him.

What Xiao Laizi dares not do, his old mother dares to do.

They are all women.

How are you more formidable than me?

Xiao Laizi's old mother's shrewishness far exceeds that of Jia Zhangshi.

The shrewish expert Jia Zhangshi isn't even worthy to hold Xiao Laizi's old mother's shoes.

By the time it's spoken, it's already too late.

Then it happens quickly.

When Shazhu and the others smelled a foul odor, a furious roar rang out.

"Hit my son, and I'll treat you to yellow cake."

A petite figure suddenly appeared on the scene, the chamber pot in her hand splashing straight toward Yi Zhonghai and his wife, who thought victory was in their grasp.