He Yuzhu Was Beyond Saving

Silly Zhu borrowed Lin Zhen's bicycle and went to the hospital to find Qin Huairu.

After all, no one knew when Qin Jingru would be back.

Bang Geng and Xiao Dang couldn't be left without anyone to look after them.

Silly Zhu hurried frantically to the hospital.

Meanwhile, Xu Damao and Qin Jingru were eating hotpot at an upscale restaurant.

It was Qin Jingru's first time eating at such a fancy restaurant in her life.

Her opinion of Xu Damao took a complete one-eighty.

Whatever Xu Damao said, she nodded with complete trust.

"Eat up, Jingru. Tomorrow, I'll take you out for roast duck too."

"Mm, you're really nice!"

"Ah, that's nothing. As long as you're eating, it doesn't matter how much I spend!"

"Then are you richer than Silly Zhu?"

"Who? Silly Zhu? Oh, don't even mention him. How can a cook compare to me? I'm a projectionist—the fattest job in the factory. Not only is the pay high, but I often go out to the countryside to show films, and every trip brings in extra money. In our courtyard, aside from Lin Zhen, no one's richer than me."

Qin Jingru's heart began pounding.

He was even richer than Silly Zhu. How much did he make in a month?

"Then... why haven't you gotten married yet?"

"Ah! My standards are too high. Aunt Liu from the neighborhood office introduces me to someone every month, but not one of them has caught my eye."

"What kind of woman do you like?"

"Someone like you!"

Xu Damao looked at Qin Jingru with deliberate gravity, wearing the overbearing expression of a man who had her completely in his grasp.

Qin Jingru blushed and lowered her head. "I want to live in the city too, but my sister said you, Silly Zhu, and Liu Guangtian are all unsuitable for me."

The moment Xu Damao heard that, he glared in anger.

"See? I've never said anything bad about her in front of you, yet she's already badmouthing me. With all her own messy affairs, I'm almost embarrassed to bring them up!"

"What happened to my sister?"

"What happened? She's eating from her bowl while eyeing the pot. She wants everyone in the courtyard to support her. I'm not Silly Zhu, so of course I won't keep filling the holes in her household. That's why your sister has nothing good to say about me."

Qin Jingru nodded.

Xu Damao continued, "I've stayed single because I wanted to find someone truly suitable, unlike Silly Zhu and Liu Guangtian!"

"What about them?"

"Liu Guangtian doesn't have the means, but his father, Liu Haizhong, has ridiculously high standards. He's stuck in the middle and can't find anyone suitable."

"What about Silly Zhu?"

"Silly Zhu? Hmph. He only has eyes for your sister, Qin Huairu. I'm only saying this here, but everyone in the courtyard knows it. No one brings it up, that's all."

"Huh? No way?"

Qin Jingru's eyes widened. Thinking about it, Silly Zhu really did seem a little too close to Qin Huairu.

And whenever Jia Zhangshi mentioned Silly Zhu, she cursed him out.

Xu Damao said, "Listen, Jingru. Even if Silly Zhu wants to marry you, he'd only be treating you as Qin Huairu's replacement!"

"I... I don't want to be anyone's replacement!"

"That's right. You're Jingru. You're not the slightest bit worse than Huairu!"

"Hehe, thank you for praising me like that!"

"When we get back tonight, don't mention what we talked about. Just keep your eyes open. One look is enough to tell what Silly Zhu really feels for your sister."

"Mm, I'll listen to you!"

"Are you full?"

"Mm!"

"Come on, let's buy you some new clothes."

"Should we bring back the dishes we didn't finish?"

"Bring them back for what? I'm not Silly Zhu. From now on, I can take you out to eat every night."

"Mm!"

Qin Jingru was overjoyed.

She felt as though her wonderful life in the city had already begun.

Following Xu Damao, she bought a floral padded jacket, a pair of black cotton trousers, and a pair of new canvas shoes.

By the time the two of them happily returned to the Siheyuan, it was already ten-thirty at night.

The moment they entered the Siheyuan, Lin Zhen smiled. "They're here! Hey, not bad, Xu Damao. Let's see if you can take a beating today."

Xu Damao's heart sank. "What's going on?"

Lin Zhen smiled. "Go take a look in the middle courtyard yourself and you'll know."

Lou Xiao'e said, "Silly Zhu is waiting for you with a wooden stick! You two left Bang Geng and Xiao Dang at home, and Qin Huairu didn't get back until nearly ten."

Qin Jingru asked, "Why did my sister get back so late? Didn't she say she'd be home by six?"

Lin Zhen said, "Grandma Jia got into a fight with Second Elder and his wife at the hospital. Jia Dongxu fainted dead away and they spent ages reviving him. You two, meanwhile, had a grand old time. Poor Silly Zhu was the one running around everywhere. Oh! Here comes Silly Zhu!"

"Xu Damao! You bastard, you still dare come back?"

Hearing Lin Zhen and his wife talking with Xu Damao in the front courtyard, Silly Zhu came running over with a stick in hand.

The moment Xu Damao heard him, he was so scared that he jumped on his bicycle and rode off.

"Silly Zhu! Come chase me if you've got the balls!"

Xu Damao was afraid of Lin Zhen, and he was afraid of Silly Zhu too.

But even when Silly Zhu beat him up, he still dared to talk back.

It enraged Silly Zhu so much that he hurled the stick at him, but missed.

"Bastard, don't come back if you've got guts!"

"Silly Zhu! What right do you have to hit people?" Qin Jingru was furious. She already regarded Xu Damao as her prospective partner.

"You! Fine, fine! You already know how to defend your man, huh?"

"It's none of your business!" Qin Jingru rolled her eyes.

"Qin Jingru, aren't you ashamed of yourself?" Seeing her arguing with Silly Zhu over Xu Damao, Qin Huairu scolded her in disappointment.

But Qin Jingru was not someone who meekly endured everything.

She immediately shot back, "You have no right to lecture me. Take care of yourself first!"

"You!"

"What about me? When Xu Damao and I went out, we told Lou Xiao'e. Xu Damao also told Lin Zhen that afternoon. Didn't the two of them tell you in advance? Besides, Sister, I came here to help you, not to go to prison!"

Lin Zhen frowned. "Can you keep your messy affairs from dragging my wife and me into them?"

Silly Zhu glared. "Lin Zhen, you knew that Xu Damao was taking Qin Jingru out this afternoon?"

Lin Zhen nodded, looking perfectly calm. "Yep."

"If you knew, why didn't you tell me?"

"Did you ask me? Besides, where Xu Damao and Qin Jingru go is their freedom. Even if they went to rent a room, I couldn't stop them. Don't fucking glare at me. You're no match for me in a fight!"

"You!... That bottle of liquor I gave you earlier was wasted on you!"

"Blame yourself for being useless. This morning, I told you to go straight to Qin Jingru, but you wouldn't. Xu Damao got there first. You had it coming!"

Qin Jingru curled her lip. "Hmph! Even if he came looking for me, I wouldn't be interested in him!"

Yi Zhonghai tried to mediate. "Enough, enough. Everyone go home. Stop arguing. It's not that serious. It's good that they're back."

Third Master Yan Bugui, who had been watching the show, chuckled. "They're back, all right, but they can't get into their own home now~"

Silly Zhu snapped, "Shut up, Old Yan!"

Yan Jiecheng shouted angrily, "Silly Zhu, who are you talking about?"

"I'm talking about your father. What, you two want to come at me together?"

Third Master was left with egg on his face. Embarrassed, he waved his hand. "Enough, Silly Zhu. You only know how to bully honest people like us. Try that with Lin Zhen."

Yi Zhonghai said angrily, "Enough. Everyone say less!"

Lin Zhen slapped his forehead. "Sigh, why does every little thing get dragged onto me?"

Lou Xiao'e said, "Forget it, let's go home. From now on, let's stay out of the courtyard's affairs."

"My wife is right. As long as we live our own lives well, that's enough!"