Chapter 227: Turmoil in the Siheyuan

He Yuzhu didn't need to turn around to know who it was; apart from that girl Chen Xueru, no one else could see right through him at a glance.

He deliberately stiffened his face, turned his head, and lowered his voice to scare her: "Stinking girl, if you dare to leak a single word of my business today, I won't be done with you!"

"Do you think I'm an idiot?" Chen Xueru's big eyes swept over his face, carrying a hint of curiosity. "Not bad, you've really spruced yourself up. You've permed your hair, glued on a mustache, penciled your eyebrows, and even popped out some foreign words. Where did you learn this fake foreign devil act?"

"I'll have you know, I spent half a year in the United States!"

"Come on, go to the Houyuan with me to talk; I have serious business." Chen Xueru pulled him and started walking.

The two of them bumped right into Qin Huairu, who was coming over. She looked at the pair with a strange expression—men and women should keep their distance; to be pulling and tugging like this in public, how shameless!

The two stood still under the persimmon tree.

"What's the matter, in such a rush?" He Yuzhu asked.

Chen Xueru sighed: "The storefront you got for me last time is truly great! But in the current climate, the common people have pockets cleaner than their faces; many are scared off by the storefront and don't dare enter..."

"People can barely afford to eat, and you still want to sell clothes to make money? I'm out of ideas too!" He Yuzhu spread his hands.

"Hurry and think of a way for me!" Chen Xueru urged him. "I have over a hundred people under me waiting to eat!"

He Yuzhu pondered for a moment and said: "In this day and age, what the common people want is something practical and durable... You'd be better off making more cotton and linen clothing, with simple and elegant styles..." He then proceeded to explain to Chen Xueru the ins and outs of minimalist design, marketing, and brand promotion from later generations.

He Yuzhu spoke with great enthusiasm, and Chen Xueru listened, completely absorbed.

These words were like a sudden enlightenment, opening the door to a new world for her.

"That's all for today. When I have time, I'll draw some blueprints for you; it'll be more intuitive! There are too many eyes and ears today, it's not convenient!" He Yuzhu said.

"Fine, then you'd better hurry!" Chen Xueru instructed.

"How did you get here today?" He Yuzhu only then remembered to ask.

"Li Xiangxiu often buys fabric from me, so she's a big client of mine. We got to know each other over time, and she's the one who invited me."

He Yuzhu's heart stirred. This girl Li Xiangxiu had started doing big things without making a sound; it seemed that joining the organization really could temper a person.

"If you see Lou Xiaoe, absolutely do not mention that you ran into me." He Yuzhu instructed solemnly.

"Do you even need to say that?" Chen Xueru rolled her eyes at him.

"The people the Lou Family knows are too mixed. I'm not afraid for myself, but I'm afraid of implicating the friends around me." He Yuzhu explained.

"You're pretty good to your friends!" Chen Xueru praised.

He Yuzhu had changed a lot in her heart. At first, when he disguised himself as a Japanese soldier to rob the pharmacy, she thought this guy was just a bandit; later, when he helped her beat up the thugs at the shop entrance, she thought he was a man of his word; it wasn't until he saved her father that that sense of affection truly emerged... The scenes of them dealing with each other flashed through her mind one by one, and she suddenly felt that He Yuzhu was indeed a friend worth having for a lifetime.

"So I've helped you so many times, and you only realized today that I'm a good person?" He Yuzhu pretended to be displeased.

"You have no idea how bad my impression of you used to be!" Her eyes suddenly softened, and her voice grew quiet. "Honestly... the day I watched you being taken away by them, my heart... it really ached!"

"Forget it, you were just afraid that if I really died, there'd be no one left to draw pictures for you for free, right?"

Chen Xueru wasn't annoyed and gave a faint smile. She was already used to it; this guy couldn't speak a civil word.

Just as He Yuzhu returned to the main hall and sat down, Li Xiangxiu quietly slipped him a note.

Following what was written on the note, he entered the warehouse behind the restaurant, where Chen Qingshan had already been waiting inside.

"Siqiang, were you looking for me?" He Yuzhu asked.

Chen Qingshan rubbed his hands. "Zhuzi, I brought quite a few fellow villagers out from Qin Family Village, but this shop only has three rooms; it's really too crowded. I want to let six people stay in the East Cross Courtyard for now."

"Siqiang, why are you being so polite with me? By the way, you must pick someone careful and diligent to live in my house; otherwise, if no one lives there for a long time, the house will deteriorate quickly."

Chen Qingshan waved his hands hurriedly: "That won't do, what if they move in and break the things inside..."

"You really are stubborn!" He Yuzhu's tone was firm. "Let me be honest with you: if that house stays empty, there's no telling how many people in the Siheyuan might start getting ideas."

After finishing the meal, He Yuzhu returned to the courtyard in Shichahai with Liu Rusi.

As soon as they entered the courtyard gate, Liu Rusi called him into the living room and sent the servants away.

"Sister, looking at how you're beaming and chatting so warmly with those bosses, did you land a big deal?"

The corners of Liu Rusi's eyes and brows were full of smiles: "Jin Hai acted as a go-between; a boss from Tianjin wants to order five hundred bicycles! This is the biggest order since we opened!"

He Yuzhu nodded: "That's great news! But we must keep a close eye on the supply of Special Steel; it cannot be cut off."

"I have it under control." Liu Rusi pondered for a moment. "In a couple of days, I'll arrange to talk with Lou Laoban in detail."

"Sister, I'm thinking we need to find a place to open another steel mill. I'm always worried that someone is going to set their sights on Lou Laoban's steel mill."

"Are you talking about the people on my father's side?"

"With a major war about to break out, Lou Laoban being able to produce Special Steel makes that place a piece of fat meat; how could people not covet it?" He Yuzhu analyzed.

"You're right. Whatever you need, I'll do my best to have Zhao Ying handle it." Liu Rusi stated her position.

On the other side, Li Xiangxiu led Qin Huairu and a group of young women and men from Qin Family Village to the entrance of the Nanluoguxiang 95 Siheyuan.

Just as they entered the courtyard, they were stopped by Yan Bugui, who had heard the news and trotted out.

"Stop! Everyone stop!" Yan Bugui pushed up his glasses and vigilantly sized up this group of new faces. "You lot, coming in such a swarm, what are you doing?"

Li Xiangxiu stepped forward and said politely: "This uncle, they are all relatives of Chen Qingshan, here to stay temporarily."

Yan Bugui frowned. "No! Absolutely not! Last time he arranged for people to stay, how many collaborators did it attract? It made the whole courtyard chaotic! This time, even if it were his own father, he can't stay!"

Seeing him blocking them like this, Li Xiangxiu also got angry, and her tone rose a notch: "Uncle, the East Cross Courtyard was bought by the Chen Family with real money. For you to block us like this, aren't you overstepping your bounds?"

Being told this, Yan Bugui couldn't keep his face straight and immediately stiffened: "If you want to stay, you must go to the Police Bureau to register first!"

At this moment, Qin Huairu stepped forward with a smile on her face. "Uncle, I am Chen Qingshan's niece, and this time I'm here specifically to look after the house for the He Family. If you won't even let us stay, isn't that being too unreasonable?"

"You're saying the He Family members aren't dead?" Yang Ruihua interjected.

"What are you saying? The whole family is doing just fine in Handan." Qin Huairu replied.

Hearing the noise in the front courtyard, Jia Zhangshi and her son also ran out.

As soon as Jia Zhangshi heard that this girl wanted to live in the He house, she was immediately displeased. She had already come to view that house as her own, so she shouted at the top of her lungs: "That heaven-forsaken He Yuzhu caused trouble and ran away, and the collaborators squatted at the door for three months, making the whole courtyard restless. This time, even if the He Family comes back, they can't stay!"

"Auntie, I'm staying at the He house, not your house. What right do you have to stop me?" Qin Huairu was unconvinced.

As soon as Jia Dongxu saw Qin Huairu, his heart skipped a beat—this girl was just too pretty! He pulled hard on Jia Zhangshi: "Mom! You're being unreasonable! They are close relatives, why can't they stay?"

He thought to himself, having such a beautiful girl living next door was like a pie falling from the sky; how could he push that away?

"You little brat! You've rebelled, haven't you! Turning your back on your own kin!" Jia Zhangshi raised her hand and slapped Jia Dongxu.

Qin Huairu had never seen such an unreasonable woman, and she blurted out, "How can you be a mother like this?"

Jia Zhangshi cursed, "You spineless thing! A country vixen has hooked your soul away? You'd better give up that idea right now!"

Qin Huairu was furious, "If you keep blocking us, I'll call my uncle here right now!"

Yang Ruihua chimed in, "Go ahead and call him! I happen to want to have a word with him about last time! Without the Patrol Police's permission this time, no one is allowed to come in and live here!"

Yi Zhonghai paced out with his hands behind his back and said unhurriedly, "Stop arguing, all of you. Don't you know yet? Mazilian, that Patrol Police who arrested people last time, has been killed... and along with him, that Bureau Chief Lou—Lou Zhenhua's cousin—was also killed!"

These words were like a basin of cold water, dousing the scene into immediate silence.

Only Jia Zhangshi was still throwing a tantrum, "I don't care! Without a guarantee from the Police Bureau today, they are not allowed to stay!"

She probably could not have imagined how difficult it would be for her son to find a wife in the future because of the scene she was making today.

Yan Bugui had already gone to call others in the courtyard, hoping to use sheer numbers to block the people from Qin Family Village.

At this moment, Chen Daya entered from the main gate and saw what was happening at a glance. She shouted at the crowd, "Who do you think you are? It's my Chen Family's house; do I need your approval to bring my own relatives to live here?"

Yan Bugui knew Chen Daya had a fiery temper and explained, "Daya, the people you arranged to come last time, Er Gouzi said they were Red Bandits! He Yuzhu was taken away by Er Gouzi and there hasn't been a word since! We can't go wrong by being cautious..."

Chen Daya couldn't be bothered to waste words with him and waved her hand directly at the people from Qin Family Village, "Everyone, ignore them! This is my house, we'll live in it however we want!"

After the group left and the people in the courtyard dispersed, only Jia Zhangshi immediately darted into Yan Bugui's home and incited him, "Lao Yan! I think you should go report this to the authorities quickly!"

Yang Ruihua immediately objected, "Jia Zhangshi! If you want to report it, go yourself. Didn't you hear what Xu Damao said? His family's five hundred silver dollars were all looted by that bunch of Er Gouzi! Do you want our family to go bankrupt too?"

"So all you can do is talk?" Jia Zhangshi persisted relentlessly.

"If you've got the guts, you go!" Yang Ruihua retorted.

"I'll go! Who's afraid of whom!" Jia Zhangshi stomped her foot, turned around, and ran outside.