He Daqing, do you know how I've lived these past years?

The wealthy old woman chuckled as she watched the door being closed again.

Heaven has been kind to this old woman.

When the investigation into her background first began, the wealthy old woman panicked; everyone in the older generation around her knew her true identity.

Especially those three-inch golden lotuses, most people can't afford to raise them.

That same day, he secretly left the courtyard to find the defense officer his youngest son had mentioned.

But after asking around at the military control office for a long time, someone finally told her that General Yue had led his troops eastward.

The helpless old woman then went to find General Yue's sister, Director Huang, who was in charge of her neighborhood.

Although she didn't know the situation, since it involved her brother, she should be able to give him face.

The elderly woman, who was in a hurry, arrived at the neighborhood office while having dinner.

Because of the large-scale investigation into family background, none of the staff at the office went home, and oil lamps were lit one by one.

But no matter what the old woman said, the security guard wouldn't let her in, telling her to come early the next morning.

The helpless old woman, despite her hunger and anger, sat on a rock not far away and muttered curses at the old man.

Just then, a man in military uniform rushed over carrying a small bundle.

The security guard greeted him with a smile, opened the gate, and let him in.

The wealthy old woman rubbed her eyes vigorously, afraid she had mistaken someone for someone else.

Only when the man in military uniform turned around to thank the security guard did the wealthy old woman realize that the man was one of the two people she had saved at the alley entrance before.

His surname seemed to be Jin, and he even gave me a talisman as a keepsake.

The old woman's eyes darted around, and she chuckled as she stood up and walked towards the security guard.

"Hey bro, who was that guy just now? He was so enthusiastic."

The security guard also waved to shoo the old lady away, saying:

"Go away, who's your 'brother'? We need to call him 'comrade' now, you know? That person just now was the wife of Deputy Director Wang from our neighborhood committee."

The wealthy old woman immediately became arrogant and pointed at the old man, saying:

"Go in and tell him that an old friend has come to visit."

The old man, seeing the rich old woman's expression, was also furious and began to curse:

"What are you pointing at? Do you still think this is the old days? The Qing Dynasty is over. Now the people are the masters of their own destiny. Let me tell you, you old woman with bound feet, if you keep arguing, I'll beat you up."

The wealthy old woman retorted fiercely:

"Fine, you dog of a lackey, if this were before, I would have beaten you to death. You'd better think carefully. If I and that person were old acquaintances, do you think you'd get away with this?"

The security guard, upon hearing this, was also unpredictable in mood, and stormed inside.

A moment later, the man in military uniform ran out, and upon seeing the wealthy old woman at the door,

She immediately smiled broadly and said:

"It's you! Come in, come in and sit down!"

The wealthy old lady walked in with a smile, glancing up at the old man who followed her.

"Comrade, how are you feeling now? I hope your injuries from back then haven't left any lasting problems. I have a few remedies that can help you recover."

The man surnamed Jin also smiled and shook his head, saying:

"It's alright, being wounded for the people is an honor,"

The wealthy old woman calmed down and asked:

"I was relieved to see you were safe and sound. Later, I brought food to look for you, but you were no longer in the courtyard. I was worried for a long time."

You have a companion, how is he doing?

The man surnamed Jin immediately replied:

"At that time, there were spies secretly investigating the area, and we didn't dare to implicate you, so we left the next day. As for Lao Yang, he's better off than me; he's now the director of Lou's Steel Plant."

"What brings you here so late at night?"

The wealthy old woman was so happy to hear that the man surnamed Yang was now the factory manager of the steel plant that she almost burst out laughing.

The people in the courtyard are mostly steelworkers; won't they continue to act like tyrants and bullies like before?

Seeing the man ask the question, the old woman stammered and said:

"I used to be from a village outside the city. When I was little, my family was poor, so I was sold to the city to be a child bride, and that's why my feet were bound."

My two sons went south to join the uprising years ago, and I haven't heard from them for many years. I'm afraid they're in grave danger. Now I'm all alone. I've heard they're investigating my family background, and I'm afraid someone will try to harm me.”

The man surnamed Jin hesitated for a moment and said:

"I'll ask my wife about this; I'll definitely help if I can."

After saying that, he walked out.

After an incense stick had burned a while, the man surnamed Jin walked in, followed by a woman.

The wealthy old woman immediately recognized the woman as her daughter-in-law, Deputy Director Wang.

He also hurriedly stood up to greet them.

Deputy Director Wang also looked grave. After asking the old woman several questions, he hesitated for a long time before finally speaking:

"Logically, you are my husband's savior, so I should take care of your matter immediately, but that would violate organizational discipline."

"Okay, I'll change your status to low-income household and give you five guarantees, but you can't go out often, otherwise people will definitely have something to say when they see your bound feet."

The wealthy old woman breathed a sigh of relief and quickly expressed her gratitude.

The two then laughed and chatted about everyday things. When they learned that the old lady hadn't eaten yet, Deputy Director Wang turned around and gave her the dinner her husband had brought back.

On the way back, the old lady was overjoyed, especially after learning from Deputy Director Wang that, in order to prevent and catch lurking spies, each large courtyard would have three elders assigned to manage it.

While at the office, the old lady decided that Yi Zhonghai would follow in his father's footsteps and become that kind of old man.

Liu Haizhong, the son of a bodyguard, became the second-in-command, while He Daqing, that ungrateful lackey, didn't learn a single ounce of loyalty from his grandfather, He Dayuan.

And then there's his father, He Daming. The Prince's Mansion trained him in cooking, but that ingrate thought that by currying favor with the Tan family, He Daqing would stay away. He deserved to be poisoned to death by Zhonghai's father.

Daming, once this old woman has driven your son away, your grandson will continue to serve me. I heard he's gone to learn Sichuan cuisine.

Haha, with your Shandong cuisine, He Daqing's Tan family cuisine, and Sichuan cuisine, this old woman is going to enjoy life!

Thinking of this, the wealthy old woman hurriedly wiped the drool from the corner of her mouth.

He hurriedly got up and left the room, heading towards the central courtyard.

When Yi Zhonghai learned that there would be an election for the old man, he was determined to get rid of He Daqing as soon as possible.

Right now, in the courtyard, only he, Liu Haizhong, He Daqing, and that scoundrel Xu Wude are qualified to compete for the title of "the three elders."

He doesn't get along with Hüwood, and Hüwood even had designs on Tracy in the past. He needs to figure out a way to get rid of him.

Liu Haizhong is a good-for-nothing, utterly useless; we need to find someone else.

Hmm, that Yan Bugui in the front yard is alright. He's a small business owner, so I can use his family background to control him.

Thinking of this, Yi Zhonghai repeatedly expressed his gratitude and said he would go find Widow Bai.

So, under the satisfied gaze of the wealthy old woman, he ran towards the courtyard gate.

Along the way, Yi Zhonghai's mind kept replaying various stories of his father's antics in the courtyard when he was a child, and his hands unconsciously began to wave.

After identifying the direction of Qin Family Village, he felt the thirty-odd silver dollars in his pocket and hurried off.

Just as I was passing by an alleyway, I noticed Jia Dongxu standing on tiptoe, gazing into the distance.

Could this idiot have fallen for Huai Ru after meeting her there once last time, and is now waiting here during his break to ambush her?

Hehe, Dongxu, my good disciple, let your master taste it himself to see if it's salty enough.

……