Siheyuan came through and sent Jia Zhang to prison

In the next room, He Yuzhu frowned as he looked at his uncle He Feng lying on the table. Although he didn't know what happened in the bureau, he knew that his uncle must have encountered some difficult problems because he had no appetite these days and he could always hear the noise of his uncle turning over in his room at night. It was obvious that he was drinking to drown his sorrows. He turned to look at Qin Jingru beside him and lowered his voice: "Jingru, sit here for a while. I'll go to the kitchen to make some sobering soup for your uncle. You see, his face is all red after drinking it. He will definitely have a headache later."

Qin Jingru nodded, her eyes filled with genuine worry. "Go quickly. I don't know what Uncle has been busy with these days. He looks much more tired than usual. He barely moved his chopsticks while eating just now, just drinking." She picked up the teapot on the table, poured a cup of warm water for He Yuzhu, and handed it to him. "Drink some water while the soup is cooking. Don't be so busy that you forget to take care of yourself."

He Yuzhu replied, "I see," and turned to the kitchen. The fire crackled, its orange-red glow casting a long shadow on the wall. As he added water to the casserole, he pondered: Uncle has always been a strong man, never one to frown easily. To make him so worried must be something serious. Once the hangover soup is ready, I'll have to give him some good advice. His health is his capital; he can't let it wear him down like this.

Elsewhere, He Feng slumped over his desk, his mind a jumble of thoughts. Zheng Qiang was the deputy director of the Public Security Bureau. If word of this got out, it would cause a huge uproar. Where would the bureau's reputation be? But even more worrying was who the person threatening Zheng Qiang was. He knew full well that given Zheng Qiang's current state, he wouldn't reveal a single word. That person, like a shadow lurking in the shadows, remained an unsolved mystery. Who knew what kind of trouble they might cause in the future?

Just as he was about to get up and lie down on the bed, there was a light knock on the door, and He Yuzhu's voice came from outside: "Uncle, I'm Zhuzi."

He Feng calmed himself down, stood up and opened the door. Seeing He Yuzhu standing at the door holding a white porcelain bowl, he asked, "Zhuzi, why are you here so late?"

He Yuzhu walked into the room and placed the bowl on the table. Steam rising from the bowl carried a faint ginger aroma. "Uncle, why did you drink so much? I was really worried about you, so I made you a bowl of hangover soup. Drink it while it's hot."

He Feng looked at the bowl of hangover soup with chopped green onions floating in it and smiled, his tone a little tired. "It's nothing, I just have some things on my mind lately, and I want to drink some wine to relax. You may not understand even if I tell you. Why haven't you rested yet? It's almost midnight."

He Yuzhu knew his uncle's temperament. He would naturally say what he should say, and there was no point in asking questions that he shouldn't ask. So he smiled and said, "Hey, I'm just worried about you. Uncle, drink it quickly. This soup won't taste good if it gets cold. Drink it and have a good sleep. We can deal with any problems tomorrow."

He Feng lifted the bowl, the warm soup slid down his throat, a warmth soothing his internal organs. A wave of emotion welled up in him—no matter how many worries there were outside, there was always this real sense of longing back home. No need to pretend, no need to worry about anything. This was probably the taste of home. He sipped his soup, watching He Yuzhu busily clearing the table. His nerves, tense for the past few days, finally relaxed a little.

He Feng picked up the enamel bowl and took a sip of the warm egg soup. The warmth slid down his throat, dispelling some of the drunkenness. He looked across at He Yuzhu and said slowly, "Zhuzi, if Qin Jingru needs leave, just let me know. I know Director Wang of their textile factory. I'll give him a heads-up and he'll definitely approve it."

He Yuzhu nodded quickly, his eyes falling on the half bowl of white wine in front of He Feng, and he couldn't help but persuade him: "Uncle, don't drink so much in the future. Drinking too much will damage your liver and it's really bad for your health."

He Feng put down the soup bowl, smiled, and waved his hand: "I know, it's because something happened that I drank a few more cups." He changed the subject and asked, "Has the Jia family bothered you again recently? Did Qin Huairu come to take advantage of you again?"

He Yuzhu looked at He Feng and moved his lips. In fact, Qin Huairu had knocked on his door that morning, saying that Banggeng needed a pen for school and wanted to borrow it, but he had found an excuse to refuse. But when he thought of his uncle who had been busy with work recently and was a little drunk, he swallowed the words that were on the tip of his tongue and just smiled: "Uncle, it's okay. They've been quiet lately and haven't come again."

He Feng should have noticed the flash of hesitation on He Yuzhu's face, but he had indeed drunk a bit too much at the moment, and his head was very dizzy, so he just thought it was his own fault. He waved his hand, his voice a little tired: "Zhuzi, it's getting late, you should go back and rest first, I'll sit for a while."

He Yuzhu looked at his uncle's flushed cheeks and the bloodshot eyes, and his heart was full of words - he wanted to talk about Qin Huairu's entanglement, wanted to talk about the right and wrong in the courtyard, but looking at the situation, he knew that it was useless to say anything, so he could only nod: "Uncle, then you can drink slowly, the soup is still warm, I'll go back first."

He Feng hummed, watching him get up and leave. After He Yuzhu left, he drank another half bowl of soup, which made his stomach feel better and the drunkenness dissipated. After a quick wash, he turned off the lights and went to bed.

The next morning, He Feng had just walked out of the courtyard when he saw He Yuzhu and Qin Jingru standing at the entrance of the alley, talking. They were both holding lunch boxes, apparently getting ready for work. He walked over and said with a smile, "Zhuzi, Jingru, I have a lot to do these days, so I'm afraid I'll be home late often. Don't wait for me to eat, just eat on your own."

He Yuzhu said quickly, "Uncle, don't worry and go about your business. Jingru and I can take care of ourselves. Besides, we're family, so it's only natural for us to wait for you." He paused, then added sincerely, "Jingru and I can get along thanks to your matchmaking. This is nothing."

He Feng felt warm at heart after hearing this and patted him on the shoulder: "That's what family should say." He seemed to remember something and pulled out a neatly folded ticket from his pocket and handed it over. "By the way, I have a bicycle ticket here. Take it and take some time to go to the supply and marketing cooperative to pick out a sturdy one. It will be convenient for you two to go to get off work in the future."

He Yuzhu was stunned for a moment, then quickly took it with both hands and unfolded it. It was indeed a brand new bicycle ticket. He held the ticket in his hand, a little embarrassed, and scratched his head: "Uncle, this... is too expensive..."

He Feng guessed about 70% of what he was thinking when he saw his expression, and asked with a smile, "Are you a little short of money?"