Chapter 276

The warm house's cooking fumes had not yet cleared, and life in the Siheyuan returned to its usual rhythm, but that lavish dinner, like a stone tossed into a lake, stirred a different ripple in some people's hearts.

In the Xi Kua Yuan Li Family, life was steady and solid. Lin Xueqing's pregnant belly grew increasingly evident, Li Yaozong ran around wildly, and his little mouth babbled, starting to learn more words.

Li Ping'an traveled daily between the workshop and home, making the protection of his small family the top priority in these chaotic times. The supplies he quietly retrieved from the space always replenished the household consumption just right, keeping his wife and children with a healthy rosy complexion despite the generally impoverished era.

Yet this stability appeared glaringly conspicuous in the eyes of some people.

In the Central Courtyard Jia family, the low house was filled with a lingering gloom that would not disperse. Bang Geng crouched at the doorway, looking toward the Xi Kua Yuan, inhaled sharply, as if he could still smell the faint meat aroma from that day, and saliva helplessly dripped down. Xiao Huaihua cried softly on the kang, her voice like a weak kitten.

"Crying, crying, crying! Always crying! Worthless goods!" Jia Zhangshi cursed irritably, and Sanjiao Yan glared fiercely westward, "Some people are truly black‑hearted! They eat themselves greasy, yet never help our orphaned widows! Their conscience has been eaten by dogs!"

Qin Huairu silently fed Xiao Huaihua a thin rice broth, while inside her heart it felt as if being gnawed by ants.

Li Ping'an's household kept improving, the younger sister also moved to a spacious house, yet they had to remain in this dilapidated home, shuttling between the workshop men and the harsh mother‑in‑law, barely making a living with that pitiful scheming and reputation. Why? A sour brew of jealousy and resentment bubbled at the bottom of their heart.

In the rear courtyard Xu Damao's family, the situation was entirely different. Wang Cuihua still firmly held the family's "Finance" and "Speech" authority, and Xu Damao, in front of her, was like a grasshopper whose wings had been pinched, unable to leap. Yet the wicked fire in his heart had never been extinguished, especially after being publicly humiliated by Qin Huairu in the mess hall.

"Damn it, everyone wait for me!" Xu Damao snarled at the empty wine bottle, "Li Ping'an, what are you bragging about? You're just a lousy chief! Qin Huairu, you stinky widow, shameless! And Wang Cuihua…"

He glanced at Wang Cuihua's sturdy back as she hung laundry in the courtyard, swallowed the vicious curse behind him, turning it into deeper resentment. He was like a poison snake lurking in a gutter, spitting venom, looking for any chance to bite someone.

In the Front Courtyard, Yan Bu Gui wasn't harboring any ill will; he was merely calculating. He adjusted his glasses and scribbled in his little notebook: "This time Li Family's warm house, pork at least three jin or more, millet looks pricey… Li Ping'an's methods are getting wilder. From now on, need to move around more; a little slip through the finger cracks will be enough for my family to improve a meal." His accounting was shrewd, yet limited to that meager rice, oil, and salt.

This surging undercurrent, a few days later that evening, found an outlet for venting.

The weather was muggy, and courtyard residents carried small stools outside to cool off. Li Ping'an, holding his son, sat with Lin Xueqing at the Xi Kua Yuan entrance, enjoying the rare coolness of the day. The little fellow squirmed restlessly in Li Ping'an's arms, babbling and pointing toward the Central Courtyard.

Just then, a characteristic, tearful wail from Jia Zhangshi came from the Central Courtyard:

"It's outrageous! Bullying our orphaned widows! Everyone, come and see!"

People turned toward the voice and saw Jia Zhangshi sitting on the ground, slapping her thigh, while opposite her stood a pale‑faced Qin Huairu holding an empty bowl. Yi Zhonghai and Liu Haizhong were also startled and hurried out of the house.

"What now?" Liu Haizhong said, holding an enamel jar, striking the pose of a Second Elder.

"Second Elder, you must arbitrate for us!" Jia Zhangshi sniffed and wept, "Huairu saw the child starving pitifully and wanted to borrow some Bang Geng noodles from Sha Zhu's house to make a porridge for the child's stomach. But Sha Zhu… he said 'the Jia family's rice is unaffordable', and even pushed Huairu away! You see, isn't this trying to starve us to death?"

Sha Zhu, at this moment, also burst out of the house gripping a rolling pin, his face full of fury: "Your mother's damn nonsense, Jia Zhangshi! Who pushed her? She herself couldn't hold steady! The grain in my house didn't just blow in with a big wind! The one borrowed the other day hasn't been repaid, and now this? Do you think I'm running a charity hall?"

It turned out that Qin Huairu, seeing the family truly unable to lift the pot, and Bang Geng crying from hunger, mustered the courage to go to the neighboring Sha Zhu's house to borrow some Bang Geng noodles. Although Sha Zhu wasn't ill‑hearted, he was irritated by the Jia family's habit of borrowing without returning and constantly pressing, so his words came out sharp. Qin Huairu, already feeling guilty, trembled when he shouted, dropping the bowl which shattered on the floor, prompting Jia Zhangshi's outburst.

"Dongxu! Open your eyes and look! You've only been gone a short while, and already someone is bullying your mother and your daughter‑in‑law's child!" Jia Zhangshi pounded her chest and stamped her feet, wailing even more fiercely.

Yi Zhonghai furrowed his brows, stepped forward to smooth things over: "Enough, enough, say fewer words! Zhuzi, watch your tone! Old sister‑in‑law, get up quickly and behave! Huairu too, when you have difficulties seek the organization, seek our Second Elder; how can you keep bothering the neighbors?" He rebuked each sharply, attempting to quell the dispute.

But Jia Zhangshi was not so easily dismissed. She shifted her focus and actually pointed at Li Ping'an's family, who were quietly watching the child nearby:

"Organization? Can an organization be eaten as food? Our courtyard isn't lacking good conditions! Some families eat lavishly every day, and a little slip through their finger cracks is enough for us to survive a few days! Yet their hearts are as hard as stone! They see death and do nothing!"

When these words were spoken, everyone's gaze drifted faintly toward the Xi Kua Yuan. Lin Xueqing, feeling uneasy, clutched her son tighter.

Li Ping'an's expression remained calm, as if he hadn't heard the veiled insult, merely patting his son's back lightly, his gaze sweeping over the wailing Jia Zhangshi, the sobbing Qin Huairu, the smoothing Yi Zhonghai, and the surrounding neighbors—some sympathetic, some watching the spectacle, some indifferent.

He knew Jia Zhangshi was using the incident to drag his own family into the mire, morally blackmailing him to bleed. If he spoke now, whatever he said would be seized by Jia Zhangshi.

At that moment, Xu Damao emerged from somewhere, sarcastically adding, "Oh, that makes sense! Distant relatives aren't as good as close neighbors! Li Chief's family is well‑off; helping the needy families of fellow workers is only proper!" He seemed eager to muddy the waters and make a joke of Li Ping'an.

Li Ping'an sneered inwardly, about to speak, when a voice cut in faster than he could.

"Xu Damao! Stop fanning the flames!" Sha Zhu slammed the rolling pin onto the ground, staring at Xu Damao, "I won't lend grain; what does Li Chief have to do with it? Stop randomly slapping labels! Jia Dama, don't point east and west; if you have the guts, come at me!"

Sha Zhu was a shrewd fellow, but he stuck to his principles. He felt this matter was his own conflict with the Jia family, and dragging Li Ping'an into it was unfair. Moreover, he owed Li Ping'an a favor (helping with hunting to improve meals, his sister's warm house asking him to take charge of the cooking), so he stepped forward to block it.

Sha Zhu's interference instantly stalled Jia Zhangshi's and Xu Damao's momentum.

Li Ping'an finally rose slowly, his gaze calm as he looked at Yi Zhonghai: "First Elder, you are the one in charge of the courtyard. The Jia family's situation has factory subsidies, and the courtyard knows it. Mutual aid is a matter of sentiment, not an obligation. If the difficulty truly makes survival impossible, the three Elders should step forward, report to the street office, and apply for relief. Not this way of wailing and rolling, blaming neighbors for not helping. This atmosphere must not be allowed to start."

His voice was low, yet each word was clear, reasoned and substantiated, directly elevating the issue to the level of courtyard conduct and rules.

Yi Zhonghai, taken aback by his words, looked somewhat displeased, yet could not refute, and only nodded: "Ping'an is right, old sister‑in‑law, you get up first; we'll discuss this matter later."

Jia Zhangshi, seeing no one side with her, Sha Zhu furrowed his brow coldly, and Li Ping'an, flawless as ever, realized he couldn't gain anything today, so with Qin Huairu's assistance he muttered his way back into the house. The disturbance was temporarily suppressed.

But everyone knew this was only a temporary calm. The Jia family's predicament was real, Qin Huairu's scheming would not cease, Xu Damao's resentment and provocation would not disappear, and Yi Zhonghai's "He Xini" was merely a band‑aid, not a cure.

The undercurrent beneath the courtyard wall would only grow more turbulent with each friction and calculation.

Li Ping'an carried his son back to the Xi Kua Yuan, closed the door, cutting off the outside clamor and scheming.

He knew that safeguarding his family's peace might require more effort and cost in the future. The days in these four‑sided courtyards had never truly been peaceful.