Chapter 649: Liu Guangtian Provokes Public Outrage

Liu Haizhong cupped his hands to everyone and said, "Give me some face, everyone. Let's resolve this matter right here in the courtyard. Liu Guangtian hasn't been out for long; if he goes back in again, his life will be ruined."

Although Liu Haizhong did not like this son, he did not want him to go back to prison either.

But Wang Qiang, Li Lin, the Zou family, and the Ding family all came knocking, insisting on holding a full courtyard meeting to expel Liu Guangtian.

Liu Haizhong sighed and shouted into the inner room: "Liu Guangfu, go notify every household in the courtyard; we're holding a full courtyard meeting at seven o'clock tonight."

Liu Guangfu sauntered out of the room, glanced at his second brother Liu Guangtian, rolled his eyes, and went to notify each house with a look of extreme reluctance.

Come to think of it, the three managing masters of this courtyard each had their own little schemes these days.

Ever since Yi Zhonghai had a son, his heart was entirely set on his wife, child, and warm bed, and he had long since stopped caring about his duties as the First Master.

As for Yan Bugui, he was famously known for never getting up early unless there was a profit to be made; he would never touch anything that didn't benefit him, and he would rather walk around it.

Liu Haizhong, on the other hand, felt he was a person of some standing in the courtyard after becoming a Workshop Director. Whenever there was some spirit from above to convey, he always liked to gather everyone for a meeting to satisfy his craving for being a leader.

Yet every time he spoke, he never hit the point, rambling on without focus, and he would invariably turn a perfectly good meeting into a crosstalk show.

He Yuzhu led the girls back to the East Cross Courtyard.

He dug out the medicine kit and carefully applied medicine to Xiaoqi and Dahua.

Among the group, their injuries were the most severe.

Once he finished, he asked, "Yushui, what exactly happened today?"

He Yushui told the whole story from beginning to end, and her eyes turned red when she mentioned that the young men who had stepped in to help were also beaten.

After listening, He Yuzhu's brows knotted into a lump.

He cursed inwardly: This Liu Guangtian is truly a menace. He hasn't been out of prison for many days and he's already causing trouble again. This time, I must give him a taste of his own medicine. On second thought, the country is currently advocating for the educated youth to go to the countryside; I might as well have him sent down, so he stops harming people in the city.

Thinking of this, he immediately called Wang Xia.

On the other end of the line, Wang Xia answered, her tone carrying a smile: "Zhuzi, you haven't contacted me in a long time. Do you have any instructions?"

He Yuzhu didn't beat around the bush: "Sister, I actually have a favor to ask of you. I just wanted to ask, does our Street Office have any organization for sending idle social elements to the countryside?"

"We do, but it's basically on a voluntary basis," Wang Xia said.

He Yuzhu sighed: "Sister, you know Liu Guangtian from our courtyard, right? He just got out of prison. His father found him a job, but he won't go, and he just wanders the streets all day. This time, he colluded with seven other idle social elements nearby and beat up my sister He Yushui and a few other girls. I think we really need to teach them a lesson this time..."

Upon hearing this, Wang Xia immediately said angrily: "Zhuzi, I'm afraid this matter has blown up; those five young people who were beaten have come to report it to our Street Office."

He Yuzhu found it very strange and asked: "Shouldn't they have gone to the police station? Why did they report it to you?"

"These kids from the big courtyards want to settle everything privately; they think reporting to the police station is a loss of face. But this time, the mother of one of the kids works here and reported it directly to me. She said that Liu Guangtian and his gang often take money from others to act as thugs, specifically bullying students, and have long been a local bully in this area."

He Yuzhu laughed upon hearing this: "Sister, then just arrest them and send them to the countryside!"

Wang Xia lowered her voice and said: "I haven't decided what to do yet; I won't talk to you for now, I have someone here."

He Yuzhu smiled: "Alright, you go ahead and get busy."

After hanging up the phone, He Yushui, who was listening on the side, had her eyes light up: "Brother, are you going to send Liu Guangtian to the countryside?"

"Mm, I have that idea."

He Yushui said bitterly: "Liu Guangtian is really not a good person. His younger brother Liu Guangfu is acting all high and mighty now, constantly taking jobs on the street, trying to help others solve their problems."

At seven o'clock in the evening, the full courtyard meeting was held on time.

The courtyard was packed with people; every household had sent a representative, and even the Deaf Old Lady, who rarely went out, had brought her small stool out.

Unlike usual, the opening remarks were not hosted by Liu Haizhong, but by Yi Zhonghai, who spoke first: "Calling everyone here today is to announce a matter—Liu Guangtian gathered a group of people outside and beat up our courtyard's He Yushui, Wang Xiaomi, Li Dahua, Zou Xiaoqi, and Ding Li."

A commotion immediately broke out below.

Yi Zhonghai raised his hand to press it down: "I wouldn't have gathered everyone for a meeting just for this. The main thing is that many middle school students in our courtyard have reported that Liu Guangtian often bullies them. I heard that whoever pays him, he helps them fight; this hasn't been going on for just a day or two... I initially thought it was just kids fighting, but now that I think about it, this Liu Guangtian is already over twenty; he can't be treated as a child anymore. If this were reported to the police station, he would be sentenced to at least one to three years..."

Before Yi Zhonghai could finish, Liu Haizhong stood up and snatched the floor: "Lao Yi, let me say a few words first. Today, I, Liu Haizhong, apologize in front of everyone. As a managing master in this courtyard, I am supposed to manage everyone's affairs, but I failed to discipline my own child; it was indeed my negligence. It's mainly because I'm a Workshop Director at the factory, and I've been pouring my heart into my work, so busy I haven't had a moment to rest, and when I got home, I didn't manage to ask about the child. As for my wife, she never knew how to discipline children strictly since they were small, and one thing led to another, and... sigh, it resulted in what we have now."

When everyone heard this, some people below laughed softly, and others curled their lips.

At a time like this, Liu Haizhong still didn't forget to show off his status as a Workshop Director, unable to go three sentences without mentioning his profession.

Wang Qiang was the first to stand out, pointing at Liu Haizhong's nose and saying: "My Dahua's face is swollen, and she has several injuries on her body. Liu Haizhong, tell me what you're going to do about it! I suggest we take Liu Guangtian directly to the police station; we cannot be lenient this time!"

Li Lin chimed in: "That's right, that's right. Liu Haizhong, we have already given your son plenty of face, but he refuses to change despite repeated education. I don't think this courtyard can tolerate him living here anymore; otherwise, something big is bound to happen sooner or later!"

Liu Haizhong couldn't keep his face, bowed to everyone again, and said repeatedly: "I'm sorry! I'm sorry!"

Just as he finished speaking, the courtyard gate was pushed open with a "creak."

Wang Xia walked in with several members of the Lianfang Team, followed by five young people—the very ones who had clashed with Liu Guangtian and his group.

The five young people were all bruised and swollen, some with black eyes.

The thin young man stood at the very front, pointed at Liu Guangtian in the crowd, and said angrily: "It's him... we were acting out of a sense of justice at the time, and when we saw five girls fighting with them, we rushed up to help..."

Wang Xia waved her hand and said coldly: "Take Liu Guangtian away first! How long has it been since he got out of prison? And he's already causing trouble again. I don't think he's been reformed at all!"

Two Lianfang Team members stepped forward and grabbed Liu Guangtian, one on each side.

Liu Guangtian wanted to struggle, but after a glare from the Lianfang Team members, he immediately behaved.

The three masters, Yi Zhonghai, Liu Haizhong, and Yan Bugui, hurried up, their faces piled with smiles as they tried to smooth things over.

Wang Xia swept a cold glance at them and said: "This courtyard of yours really doesn't let me have a moment of peace." She pointed to the five young people behind her, "These five young people who came with me were skating at Shichahai when they saw some young punks harassing these five girls, and they stepped in to help... but instead, your courtyard's Liu Guangtian brought people up and beat them up without rhyme or reason..."

When Liu Haizhong heard this, his face turned white in a flash. Looking at the appearance of these five young men, they were clearly from the military compound; he feared this matter would not end well.