Volume 1, Chapter 56: Su Jianshe Changes Completely

Yi 中海 and Qin Huairou, who had originally thought Silly Zhu was merely testing them, panicked instantly.

They certainly dared not let Silly Zhu fight Su Jianshe to the death. In the event of any fatal accident, let alone the courtyard's subsidy quota, even stick-boy might become implicated.

After all, he was the instigator of the incident.

"Don't be impulsive, Zhuzi! Have you forgotten the fist mark on the old locust tree when you came back?"

"A punch like that landed on a person would likely cost them their life. You're injured now, so take my advice and stay home to recover properly!"

With a worried expression, Yi 中海 quickly tried to stop Silly Zhu.

He could see that Silly Zhu was firmly determined to seek justice and compensation this time.

He quietly exchanged a glance with Qin Huairou.

Qin Huairou quickly snapped out of her daze and hastily tried to dissuade him:

"Zhuzi, absolutely do not be impulsive!"

But Silly Zhu interrupted her:

"Sister Qin, stay out of this. Today, I must get an explanation!"

Silly Zhu's eyes were bloodshot as he stared fixedly at Su Jianshe not far away, his gaze revealing absolute determination.

He knew very well that he was now a cripple, and only by actively fighting for himself could he gain anything.

Even if he demanded compensation from the Jia family, it was uncertain how much he would actually get.

However, if he could extract compensation from Su Jianshe, at least he wouldn't have to worry about this winter.

Especially when he thought of Su Jianshe's house, warm as spring, and the extravagance of five stoves, Silly Zhu's last shred of rationality vanished in the cold wind.

Leaning on his crutches, he moved his body with difficulty and soon arrived in front of Su Jianshe.

The onlookers in the courtyard quickly dispersed upon seeing this, fearing they would be caught in the crossfire.

"Are they really going to fight?"

"Hard to say. I think Silly Zhu wants to demand compensation from Su Jianshe."

"If Silly Zhu gets compensation, will he help us too when we have hard times in the future?"

Silly Zhu's face was flushed, devoid of any joy.

Only hatred burned in his eyes.

Ignoring the surrounding discussion, he stared hideously at Su Jianshe:

"Su Jianshe, you instigated stick-boy to do such a thing; you'll get what's coming to you once you're in prison!

If you don't pay compensation today, I'll go to the police station. I refuse to believe there's no justice in this world!"

Having finished speaking, Silly Zhu, who had been busy all day, finally had a chance to catch his breath.

He threw away his crutches, leaned against the door of Su Jianshe's house, felt the warmth inside, and stared fixedly at Su Jianshe.

As it turned out, Su Jianshe and Chu Yan had forgotten to lock the door when they went out to watch the opera.

The two of them were not worried about anyone trespassing.

For one thing, the bathroom facilities could not be easily operated by ordinary people.

For another, ever since the stick-boy incident, all kinds of cabinets in the home, especially where grain was stored, had been locked up.

Yi 中海 strode over to Silly Zhu's side, a trace of difficulty flashing across his gaze as it fell upon Su Jianshe.

As the primary elder of the courtyard, facing the unyielding Su Jianshe, he inevitably felt a headache coming on.

Liu Haicheng and Deaf Grandma still stood where they were, not daring to approach.

Liu Haicheng was intimidated by the fist hanging from the old locust tree at the entrance, while Deaf Grandma recalled her own experience of being beaten.

"What on earth has this kid Su Jianshe been through?

He used to be just a drunkard; how has he turned into this sort of person now?"

Silly Zhu did not give Yi 中海 a chance to question further, leaning against the warm door with a smug smile on his face.

"Su Jianshe, let me tell you, if you don't compensate me with this room today, this matter is far from over!

My dilapidated house is old and drafts come through every crack, which is bad for my recovery.

Your house here is spacious and warm.

Let me tell you, today you will hand over this house whether you are willing to or not!"

Seemingly convinced that Su Jianshe could not fight back, Silly Zhu added from the side:

"From today onwards, this room is mine, and everything inside belongs to me too!

Su Jianshe, if you dare to disagree, we'll let the police judge the case!

I don't believe it—there is justice in this world! You instigated a child to do such things, aren't you afraid of retribution?!"

Everything would belong to Silly Zhu?

As soon as these words were spoken, the crowd of onlookers in the courtyard caught a gleam in their eyes.

Seizing this opportunity, they finally managed to catch a glimpse of the background of Su Jianshe's household.

In Su Jianshe's home, not only were there a sofa, books, and an alarm clock, but also rice, coal, stoves, and all kinds of fine goods readily available.

"Su Jianshe's family is truly wealthy; I think I even caught a glimpse of a radio!"

"Where? I didn't see it, I just think that sofa looks amazing. Sitting on a sofa that big must be so comfortable!"

"If Silly Zhu could manage to get some things from Su Jianshe's house, wouldn't that be wonderful!"

Everyone in the courtyard harbored identical thoughts at this moment.

Compared to the stingy Su Jianshe, everyone preferred that Silly Zhu take over this house.

In the courtyard, who didn't know that Silly Zhu was kind-hearted and soft?

If any family wanted to eat meat in the future, they only needed to say a few nice words to Silly Zhu, and wouldn't the meat be theirs?

Liu Haicheng locked his eyes onto Su Jianshe's high-end sofa instantly; he had been coveting this item for a long time.

"No, I must get Silly Zhu to occupy Su Jianshe's house. If I speak a few sweet words to Silly Zhu, wouldn't this sofa belong to me?"

Liu Haicheng, who had previously failed to successfully occupy this house, rolled his eyes and hatched a plan.

"Su Jianshe, Silly Zhu doing this is letting you off easy. If he really goes to report you to the police station, just the charge of instigating others to commit violence alone is enough for you to spend a few years in a major prison!"

"Take the weather right now, for instance. If you were really to spend even a single day in a police jail, you'd likely lose your life!"

"Official policy clearly states: leniency for confession, severity for resistance!

If you agree, we can settle this privately, and you can avoid a prison sentence. Think it over carefully!"

Liu Haicheng spoke with a deadpan earnestness.

Anyone unaware of the truth would truly think he was a kind-hearted soul going to any length for the courtyard.

Yet his small eyes never left Su Jianshe's sofa.

Thinking the situation would blow up, Qin Huairou saw how composed Su Jianshe was, and a light went on in her heart.

She couldn't even bother comforting stick-boy beside her:

"Su Jianshe, stick-boy is still just a child, and yet you taught him to do such a thing—isn't this driving our Jia family to a dead end?!"

"Today you must give our family an explanation, otherwise you're paying damages!"

The shrew Jia Zhangshi saw the scene spiraling out of control, with everyone pointing fingers at Su Jianshe, and could not help cracking a smile.

"Su Jianshe, you godforsaken wretch, how dare you instruct my grandson to do such a thing, aren't you afraid of having no descendants?

I'm telling you, if you don't pay compensation today, our Jia family is not finished with you!"

"A hundred isn't enough; without five hundred yuan, this matter won't be settled. I'll go right down to the police station and report you, and make sure your lineage is cut off!"

Meanwhile, the onlookers in the courtyard, seeing a chance to profit, joined the chorus of accusations.

"Su Jianshe, you're in the wrong here; how could you instigate a child to do this sort of thing!"

"When your mother was alive she seemed so kind, how on earth did she give birth to a wretch like you!"

"Truly, you can never tell what's in a person's heart. I thought you were a good man, but I never expected you to be such scum."

"Su Jianshe, if you're a real man, compensate Silly Zhu with the house and issue an apology, and then this matter will be dropped!"

"That won't do; Silly Zhu traded his body for this. Whenever his family has issues in the future, you must help out!"

...

Su Jianshe looked at this pack of beastly people with utter disdain. After comforting his wife, he slowly began to speak.

"Compensate Silly Zhu? You must still be dreaming!"

Ignoring them, Su Jianshe looked straight at stick-boy, who was lowering his head and peeking at him.

Their gazes met briefly, and stick-boy shuddered violently, quickly retracting his sight, not daring to look again.

Su Jianshe glanced at stick-boy and let out a cold snort.

"Where is the evidence? You claim I instigated stick-boy to kick Silly Zhu where it hurts—where is the proof?"

"Who saw me direct stick-boy?"

"To deal with a piece of trash like Silly Zhu, one hand is more than enough; why would I need to borrow the strength of a child? Utterly absurd!"

Hearing this, Silly Zhu's face turned ashen, yet he was rendered speechless.

He knew very well that what Su Jianshe said was true; once he provoked the other party, compensation was a minor issue, but his own safety might be compromised.

Besides... he possessed no solid evidence in his hands.

"Call the police? Hmph, even if you hadn't mentioned it, I would have gone. Since you insist on this, hurry up and do it!"

"Just right, I also need to report a crime. Someone in this courtyard has maliciously slandered and framed me, and I want to see if the police can bring the real culprit to justice!"

With that, Su Jianshe had no wish to entangle himself further with this group of people and led his wife back home.

"Make me pay compensation? Pure wishful thinking!"

Bang!

Su Jianshe slammed the door shut with a thunderous echo.

He was by no means a pushover; if anyone dared to frame him groundlessly, they would inevitably suffer the bitter consequences.

"How dare Su Jianshe be so arrogant? He actually incited a child to take action; if not for his instigation, how could it have come to this!"

"Call the police, we must call the police. I refuse to believe there's no one who can put him in his place!"

"Stick-boy is only a ten-year-old child; at that age, I didn't even know about relations between men and women! If Su Jianshe hadn't instigated him, how would stick-boy have known to kick Silly Zhu's vital spot?"

For a time, the crowd within the courtyard burned with righteous indignation, rooting for Silly Zhu and stick-boy.

Yet, no one dared to step up to Su Jianshe's doorstep to scold him.

"We must call the police, this person is far too rampant!"

Deaf Grandma pounded her walking stick against the ground with a rhythmic clatter, her face flushed red with anger to the point where she could barely catch her breath.

"This beast Su Jianshe, where did he get the gall to be so arrogant?

Even if I have to risk this old life of mine today, I'm going to make sure he falls into the hands of the police!"

"Yi 中海, you hurry down to the police station and file a report; I don't believe we can't deal with this scoundrel Su Jianshe!"

Upon hearing this, Yi 中海's expression changed drastically—under no circumstances could this matter be allowed to alarm the police station.

Once the police station intervened and the truth came to light, his previous calculations would turn to smoke.

He hurriedly tried to dissuade her:

"Granny, you mustn't do that! Our courtyard has already lost its Red Flag Unit title this year, and any hope of subsidies is gone!"

"If we send this little beast to the police station on top of that, wouldn't we become the neighborhood's negative example, turning the clock back historically?"

"Granny certainly wouldn't want everyone in the courtyard to freeze and starve, either!"

Deaf Grandma, the esteemed matriarch of the courtyard, fell silent upon hearing this.

Even the young men who had just been the most vocal, shouting about capturing Su Jianshe, fell quiet at this point.

Mindful of the rich provisions inside Su Jianshe's home, they too hesitated.

"Are we just going to let that beast go unpunished? How can we not seek justice for the suffering Silly Zhu has endured!"

"That's right, Su Jianshe never puts us in his eyes on ordinary days, acting however he pleases. He even refuses to give an extra ladle of food when the cafeteria tells him to!"

"Elder Yi, you need to make a call on this, but we can't let this beast off lightly!"

"With Su Jianshe around, the courtyard won't have a moment of peace! Look at how he behaves after drinking, what has the courtyard turned into? The Red Flag Unit is gone! We used to win it year after year, who can we reason with about this?"

At this moment, Yan Buwei, standing at the back of the crowd, furrowed his brow.

"Something's off. Given Yi 中海's usual temperament, if he really could hold power over Su Jianshe, he would have gone to report it long ago!"

"Why hasn't he, and why is he stopping others from reporting?"

Yan Buwei had lived in the courtyard for many years and knew the temperament of everyone inside like the back of his hand.

"Could it be that the truth isn't what Yi 中海 and Qin Huairou claim?"

Yan Buwei looked at the crowd doubtfully, recalling the scene just moments before, and his suspicions grew stronger.

The wealth in Su Jianshe's house made Yan Buwei salivate, but as an educator, he harbored doubts about this matter.

Over the years, whenever class disputes arose, he could always rely on intuition to sniff out the culprit. Among the onlookers were smart individuals who, seeing Yi 中海 and Qin Huairou passing the buck, each harbored their own calculations.

Seeing the crowd burning with anger, Yi 中海 developed a headache. Glaring fiercely at Qin Huairou, he hurriedly mollified them: "Everyone, calm down! We will certainly pursue this matter, just not right now!" Changing his tune, he added, "Our current priority is to get through the bitter winter together. With meager grain reserves across all households, everyone is counting on the street committee's subsidies. If we make a fuss at the police station right now, the ones who suffer will be ourselves. Once winter passes, it won't be too late to settle accounts with Su Jianshe!"

Qin Huairou quickly chimed in, terrified that someone would bring up the police again: "Right, let's get through this hurdle first! Even if we throw Su Jianshe in prison, our immediate crisis is still helping everyone survive this winter!"

Thinking of the harsh winter and the depleted coal and grain reserves at home, the crowd grew anxious.

"Elder Yi, when the aid applications come down, make sure you don't forget our family!"

"There are four of us, and our grain is almost out. Grain prices have skyrocketed, we really can't afford it!"

"You must help us out; a family of five relies entirely on us parents, if this keeps up something terrible will happen!"

Those who had previously been incensed over Silly Zhu's ordeal felt a chill at the thought of the impending winter. Putting everything else aside, they crowded forward to beg Yi 中海 to prioritize their respective households.

At this juncture, even Second Elder Liu Haicheng waded into the fray.

"Old Yi, you know the situation in my family—so many mouths waiting to eat. Once the street committee's subsidy quota drops down, you must give priority to our family!"

"Our family needs to be considered too—the Jia family relies entirely on these subsidies to survive, you don't plan on competing with us, do you?"

Jia Zhangshi, who had been depressed moments earlier over failing to take advantage of Su Jianshe, perked right up at the mention of subsidies.

"Our stick-boy is so young, and he suffered such severe psychological trauma, how can you not look after him? Where is your conscience?"

"He's still just a child, carrying such a huge, thorny piece of rough wood—you all saw it with your own eyes!"