Courtyard House: She got anxious when He Yushui wasn't licked.

Fang Yue, on the other hand, seemed much more relaxed, with her hair disheveled as she studied high school English. It was easy to see that she wanted to go out and see the world in the future.

After Wang Lin returned and closed the door, he asked, "Are you hungry? What do you want to eat today?"

When Wang Baobao saw Wang Lin return, she immediately ran over, hugged his leg, and cried out, "Brother, I want to eat meat!"

Wang Beibei, imitating Wang Baobao, hugged Wang Lin's other leg and said in a childish voice, "Brother, I want to eat meat too."

Wang Lin bent down and picked up the two little ones, saying, "Eat! Your brother will make you stewed pork ribs."

Clear broth pork ribs are perfect for kids, especially when stewed with radishes and potatoes—just thinking about it makes my mouth water.

Fang Yue put down her English book, stood up, stretched, and said, "Brother Lin, I want some sweet and sour dishes that go well with rice."

"Okay, you guys get ready and I'll go cook for you." With its sweet and sour flavors, Wang Lin thought of several dishes: shredded pork with garlic sauce, sweet and sour eggplant, and sweet and sour pork tenderloin. He hadn't had these dishes in a long time and was missing them.

"I'll help," Chen Amao volunteered, raising his hand.

"Okay, A-Mao, come help. Xiao-Yue, clean the table." Wang Lin assigned the tasks.

"Brother, what about us?" Wang Beibei raised her little hand, wanting to share some of the housework.

Wang Lin thought for a moment and realized there was nothing he could get the two divine beasts to do, so he instructed them, "Just sit still and don't run around."

With Chen Amao joining the team, Wang Lin was able to cook much faster.

More than an hour later, Wang Lin had prepared several dishes.

This dish is perfect for the two mythical beasts to enjoy with some stewed pork ribs, as well as shredded pork with garlic sauce, sweet and sour eggplant, and Mapo tofu, which Fang Yue likes to eat with rice.

Chen Amao kept swallowing his saliva as he looked at the stewed pork ribs and shredded pork with garlic sauce. He had gained weight recently while staying at Wang Lin's house, and he ate very well at every meal, except when Wang Lin was not around. The food was slightly worse, consisting of instant noodles or self-heating rice.

After Wang Lin placed the dishes on the table, he said, "Wash your hands and eat."

Fang Yue led the two mythical beasts to the door to wash their hands with hot water.

The aroma of food wafted out as soon as the door opened.

The deaf old lady across the hall smelled the tempting aroma of stewed pork ribs and patted her stomach. She felt that she hadn't eaten meat in a long time. The lunchbox that Sha Zhu brought back had been intercepted by Qin Huairu on the way, and she hadn't had any meat for a while.

Looking at the corn porridge, the deaf old woman had no appetite. She picked up her cane, got up, and went out the door. At the door, she looked in the direction of Wang Lin's house and muttered curses: "You little bastard! You don't know how to respect your elders! You'll never find a wife! Even if you do, I'll ruin it for you, and you'll be a bachelor for life."

Fang Yue saw the deaf old woman leave with her cane, but she ignored her. In her opinion, the old woman across the hall was no good either. She used to frequently use Wang Lin as free labor, and if he didn't do a good job, she would verbally abuse him. She didn't treat Wang Lin like a human being at all.

Wang Baobao and Wang Beibei also disliked the deaf old woman. She always called them a burden and a money-loser, and even told Wang Lin to sell them.

Needless to say, Chen Amao was not familiar with the deaf old lady. They lived in different courtyards, one in the front and one in the back, so there was little opportunity for them to get to know each other well. Even if there were, he wouldn't want to, since the deaf old lady only had eyes for He Yuzhu.

The deaf old woman resisted her craving and came to the front yard. She stood in front of He Yuzhu's door and looked around, but He Yuzhu had not yet returned.

The first to return was Uncle Liu Haizhong. As soon as he entered the courtyard and passed by He Yuzhu's house, he saw the deaf old lady standing outside He Yuzhu's house.

The deaf old woman also saw Liu Haizhong, but she ignored him.

Liu Haizhong thought that the deaf old lady was the living ancestor of the courtyard, so he greeted her: "Old lady, are you waiting for Shazhu?"

The deaf old woman didn't want to pay attention to Liu Haizhong, but she still gave a soft hum in response.

Seeing that the deaf old woman didn't seem to like him much, Liu Haizhong silently went back to his room so as not to make a fool of himself.

About ten minutes later, Yi Zhonghai returned.

The deaf old woman saw Yi Zhonghai and went up to him, asking, "Zhonghai, where is Sha Zhu?"

Yi Zhonghai smiled and said to the deaf old woman, "Shazhu might be behind us. The cafeteria will probably close a bit late today."

"Okay, I'll keep waiting." The deaf old woman was relieved to hear He Yuzhu behind her, and she continued to wait.

Yi Zhonghai didn't invite the deaf old lady to his home for dinner. He could tell that she missed He Yuzhu. Anyway, Sha Zhu would be back soon, so he just let her wait.

The deaf old woman waited and waited, and the third person she waited for was Qin Huairu, not He Yuzhu.

When Qin Huairu entered the courtyard, she saw the deaf old woman standing in front of He Yuzhu's door. She wondered if the deaf old woman had something to ask He Yuzhu today.

The deaf old woman disliked Qin Huairu; she knew Qin Huairu's character very well.

Although curious about why the deaf old woman was waiting for He Yuzhu in front of his door, Qin Huairu went back first.

He Yuzhu walked in with a flourish, carrying a net bag. As soon as he saw the deaf old woman, he went up to her and said with concern, "Oh, old lady! Why are you standing here? It's so cold!"

The deaf old woman held He Yuzhu's hand and said to him with a smile, "I want to eat meat."

Upon hearing this, He Yuzhu immediately picked up the net and boasted, "What a coincidence! We have some meat today. Let's go inside and eat."

The deaf old lady came today to intercept Qin Huairu.

Qin Huairu tidied up the house and, estimating the time, waited for He Yuzhu to return. She then took the basin to the door, but when she arrived, she was dumbfounded – the deaf old woman had snatched her lunchbox!

"This meat is delicious; my grandson's cooking is the best."

The deaf old woman ate the lunchbox that He Yuzhu had brought back in He Yuzhu's room. Her resentment dissipated a lot. He Yuzhu still cared about her, the old woman, and it was no wonder that she had always doted on him.

"Of course, my skills are passed down from my ancestors." He Yuzhu said with great pride.

"Shazhu! Do you have any dirty clothes to wash?" Qin Huairu pretended to wash Shazhu's clothes as soon as she entered the door, but her eyes were fixed on the lunchbox that the deaf old lady was eating.

"Sister Qin." He Yuzhu immediately stood up and greeted Qin Huairu with a smile.

"Today's lunchbox..." Qin Huairu looked at He Yuzhu pitifully, hoping that He Yuzhu would share some food with the deaf old lady so she could take it back with her.

"Oh dear, what bad luck, there aren't many leftovers today, maybe tomorrow." He Yuzhu was also in a dilemma. The deaf old lady had come to watch over him today, and she had already eaten his lunchbox. He had no choice but to apologize to Qin Huairu.

Knowing that there was no hope for lunch today, Qin Huairu changed her expression and said, "Since there are no dirty clothes, let's do it another day."

Qin Huairu used the phrase "Some people face forward, no one faces backward" very vividly.

He Yuzhu didn't pay much attention. It had happened several times before, and he was used to it. As long as he brought a lunchbox back the next day, Qin Huairu would still greet him with a smile, speak sweetly, and even act coquettishly.

The deaf old woman ate her minced meat, ignoring Qin Huairu's methods. Anyway, the lunchbox was already in front of her, and even if Qin Huairu wanted to eat it, she couldn't take it away. She savored it slowly.

Qin Huairu didn't stay any longer; she picked up the basin and left somewhat angrily.

He Yuzhu didn't chase after her. He returned to the deaf old woman's side and talked to her to strengthen their relationship, since he would need her support in the future.

Chapter 83 Is He Yushui going to be a simp?

"Old man! Now you've even started playing tricks."

Qin Huairu returned to her room and grew angrier the more she thought about it. Why was that deaf old woman running around the front yard trying to steal lunchboxes instead of staying in the backyard? Did she, an old woman, lack even a little bit of food? She was almost in her coffin, and she still wanted to eat meat!

When Banggeng got home, the first thing he asked was, "Mom, where's Shazhu's lunchbox? Did you forget to bring it back?"

Recently, due to his diligent training, Bang Geng felt very hungry. How could he practice martial arts and teach Wang Lin a lesson if he couldn't eat his fill?

Qin Huairu frowned and said unhappily, "We're having corn porridge tonight, there are no lunchboxes."

Seeing that Qin Huairu seemed wronged, Banggeng immediately became displeased and asked, "Did Shazhu bully you?"

Qin Huairu was already in a bad mood, and on top of that, she had to cook for her child and mother-in-law, so her tone became even more unpleasant: "Do your homework. Don't meddle in adult matters."

"That dog who slaughters pigs!"

Bang Geng clenched his fists. He realized that Sha Zhu must have bullied his mother, otherwise his mother wouldn't have gotten angry at him.

Qin Huairu went to cook, feeling annoyed.

When Jia Zhangshi returned from outside, she saw Qin Huairu busy preparing dinner and asked, "What are we having for dinner tonight?"

Qin Huairu replied, "What else can we eat? Corn porridge."

Seeing Qin Huairu's angry and defiant demeanor, Madam Jia, relying on her status as her mother-in-law, angrily retorted, "Qin Huairu, what kind of tone do you have? How dare you speak to me like that?"

Qin Huairu realized she had said the wrong thing, so she changed her words and said to Jia Zhangshi, "Mother-in-law, Shazhu's lunchbox was intercepted today."

Upon hearing that her food rations had been intercepted, Jia Zhangshi immediately began to jump up and down, cursing, "Which bastard intercepted them? A good-for-nothing with a father but no mother to teach him, doesn't he know how poor our family is? I'm going to go and get them back from him. We don't even have anything to eat, and he still wants to eat? I think he'd be better off eating shit."

Qin Huairu uttered three words: "Deaf old lady."

"Deaf old woman!" Madam Jia dared not continue her tirade, for the other party was a deaf old woman!

The deaf old lady has lived in this courtyard for a long time. When Jia Zhangshi was young, she was punished by her. If there was anyone in the courtyard who was afraid, it was the deaf old lady.

Seeing Jia Zhangshi wilted like a frostbitten eggplant, Qin Huairu felt a sense of satisfaction, after all, it was not easy to see Jia Zhangshi suffer a setback.

Although she knew that the deaf old woman had stolen He Yuzhu's lunchbox for tonight, she still grumbled in order to maintain her authority in front of her daughter-in-law: "Isn't it a waste of food for an old woman who's about to go to her coffin to eat meat? Wouldn't it be better to give my grandson corn to supplement his nutrition? Damn it!"

Qin Huairu couldn't stand Jia Zhangshi's cursing and said to her, "Mother-in-law, go back to your room and continue sewing shoe soles. I'll go cook."

Jia Zhangshi swayed her hips as she entered the room. She saw Bang Geng staring blankly at his homework and assumed he was pondering a problem, so she didn't disturb him.

Actually, that's not the case. Bang Geng is thinking about where to get money to continue practicing martial arts, because his beggar master recently wanted to eat meat.

He needed a lot of meat to sustain his martial arts training, according to his beggar master. Although he could occasionally have a treat with his beggar master, it was all money he stole from his grandmother's hidden stash. If Jia Zhangshi found out that her secret stash of money was missing, she would be in deep trouble.

Jia Zhangshi picked up the shoe sole and continued working, completely unaware of the abnormality of the stick stem.

Qin Huairu cooked corn porridge, stir-fried some cabbage, and steamed some buns; that was their dinner.

Compared to many other families, Qin Huairu's family had a much larger dinner portion; at least they could eat their fill.

Perhaps because the deaf old lady intercepted the lunchbox today, Qin Huairu was in a bad mood while cooking, which resulted in the stir-fried cabbage being a bit burnt and not tasting very good.

At the dinner table, Banggeng was eating steamed buns and drinking corn porridge. His thoughtful expression caught Qin Huairu's attention. "Banggeng, what are you thinking about while you're eating? Did your teacher Ran say something?"

Banggeng snapped out of his daze and shook his head, saying, "No! Teacher Ran didn't say anything."

Qin Huairu thought that Teacher Ran would have a bad opinion of He Yuzhu, but she didn't say anything. Could it be that she really has a crush on Sha Zhu?

Jia Zhangshi knew what Qin Huairu was worried about. She was afraid that Banggeng's teacher would fall for Shazhu. As someone who had been through it all, she told Qin Huairu, "As long as you keep the balance right each time, even if the Seven Fairies fell for Shazhu, it wouldn't matter."

In order to get He Yuzhu to join their cause, Jia Zhangshi and Qin Huairu went to great lengths.

Bang Geng didn't understand; all he could think about right now was how to make money.

He Yuzhu must have money in his house!

Bang Geng seemed to have come up with a good idea. He and his two younger sisters liked to play in the yard, and they liked to hide in He Yuzhu's house when they played hide-and-seek.

He Yuzhu's bed and cabinets were thoroughly searched by the shovel. They even found a one-yuan coin under the bed, and they kept finding it for several days in a row.

Having made up his mind, Bang Geng decided to take advantage of the absence of others tomorrow at noon to thoroughly search He Yuzhu's house.

Xiao Dang had no idea what his brother was planning, but judging from his distracted state, it was definitely not something good.

After the family finished dinner, Qin Huairu started washing the dishes again.

Banggeng continued doing his homework. With exams approaching at the end of the year, he had much less time to play.