It was not until ten that night that the whole courtyard meeting finally ended.
The residents had all done their part as neighbors, more or less.
In the end, they collected a total of 124 yuan and 36 cents.
First Elder Yi Zhonghai said, "Silly Zhu, take this to the hospital first thing tomorrow morning. I heard Dongxu still needs another operation, so it can't be delayed."
Silly Zhu nodded. "Don't worry. Leave it to me."
After the meeting, they returned home.
Lou Xiao'e first coaxed her four sons to sleep.
Then she sat beside Lin Zhen and chatted about everyday matters.
"Alas, life is unpredictable. Qin Huairu will have it hard, caught between both sides from now on."
Lin Zhen smiled and asked, "How could you tell?"
"Hmph. Jia Dongxu usually kept his guard up around the courtyard's bachelors. Now that he's bedridden, he'll become even more suspicious. Qin Huairu will have to show her face and handle things outside from now on. How could she not take flak from both her husband and mother-in-law?"
Lin Zhen nodded slightly. "Very clever. Your analysis is spot-on. This courtyard will have plenty of excitement from now on."
Lou Xiao'e tilted her face up to look at Lin Zhen.
She asked with a smile, "Why didn't you donate more? We don't really care about money. Was it because of Qin Huairu? Were you afraid I'd overthink it?"
Their family truly did not care much about money. Not long ago, word had quietly arrived from overseas.
The Lou family had built up a conglomerate business in Nanyang.
The thirty percent shares held by Lin Zhen and his wife had already grown to the million-yuan level.
Though he did not care about money, Lin Zhen would never help support the Jia family.
He shook his head slightly. "I was just saying you were smart, and now you've become silly again."
Lou Xiao'e protested, "How am I silly?"
Lin Zhen said, "You only know how to be kind to others, but you don't know how bad they can be. Doesn't that make you silly?"
Lou Xiao'e said, "Grandma Jia has a bad temper, and Jia Dongxu is narrow-minded, but Qin Huairu is still a decent person. If we can help, then we should. I won't be jealous."
There was nothing wrong with Lou Xiao'e saying that at this point.
Over the past few years, Qin Huairu had cared for her husband, raised her children, and served her mother-in-law.
She was extremely agreeable with everyone in the courtyard and looked every bit the good daughter-in-law.
She often shared parenting advice with Lou Xiao'e as well.
But Lin Zhen knew Qin Huairu's true nature.
Her family had not encountered hardship these past few years, so her cold-blooded, selfish, double-standard nature had yet to show itself.
But that did not mean she was a good person.
Even if she were a good person, he had no obligation to help her.
After all, she was the Jia family's daughter-in-law.
Leaving Jia Zhangshi and Jia Dongxu aside.
This workplace injury came with compensation and relief payments from the steel mill. No matter what, it was not his turn to fill the gap.
"Alas, my wife. Confucius said to repay kindness with kindness and grievances with fairness. The Jia family has never done us any favors. We can't be indiscriminately kind."
Lou Xiao'e smiled and said, "At home, a daughter obeys her father; after marriage, she obeys her husband. Of course I'll listen to you. I was only mentioning it because I was afraid you wanted to help Qin Huairu but worried I'd be jealous. I'm relieved that you won't help her."
"Hey! So you were trying to get information out of me?"
"Ah, hahaha... How would I dare?"
Early the next morning.
He Yuzhu brought 124.36 yuan in cash to the hospital.
Qin Huairu and Jia Zhangshi had stayed at the hospital all night.
Neither had slept a wink, and they only dozed off briefly before dawn.
When Silly Zhu arrived at the hospital, Qin Huairu hurried out of the ward.
"Silly Zhu, did Bang Geng and Xiao Dang make a fuss last night?"
"Don't worry. They were very well-behaved with First Aunt."
"Alas... How did something like this happen to us? I'm worried sick."
"Don't. You absolutely need to take care of yourself. Not just for your own sake—there's another one in your belly. Here's 124 yuan and 36 cents. The whole courtyard donated it together."
"Ah! This... this is too embarrassing."
"It's fine. We're neighbors, after all. I put in fifty yuan myself. Those two brats, Xu Damao and Lin Zhen, only donated four yuan. Hey, isn't that stingy?"
"Then... then thank you very much."
"It's nothing. You're my sister, after all!"
"Then I really will have to trouble you often in the future."
"Hehe, that would be my honor."
They spoke softly at the ward entrance, but Jia Zhangshi pressed her ear to the door inside and heard every word clearly.
The more Jia Zhangshi heard, the angrier she became.
She flung open the door and rushed out.
Slap!
She first gave Qin Huairu a hard slap across the face, then immediately moved to hit Silly Zhu too.
Jia Zhangshi bared her teeth, looking as though she wanted to devour someone.
Silly Zhu trembled all over in fright. "Y-you... what are you doing?"
"I... I... I'll beat you adulterers to death! My son is still lying in the ward, and you two are flirting at the door! 'I'll have to trouble you often in the future,' 'That would be my honor'—ah, ptui!"
Jia Zhangshi spat right in Silly Zhu's face.
Furious, Silly Zhu's eyes widened, and he raised his hand to hit her.
Covering her face, Qin Huairu cried, "Stop it! This is a hospital. Will you be happy if you wake Dongxu up?"
Silly Zhu wiped his face, his expression turning livid with rage.
"You vicious old hag, helping your family was a complete waste! Hmph, don't come looking for me again!"
Silly Zhu stormed off in a fury, while Qin Huairu crouched on the ground and began to cry.
Jia Zhangshi snapped, "Cry! You still have the nerve to cry! If I hadn't come out in time, would you have started discussing when to get married?"
Qin Huairu sobbed, "It's not what you think!"
"Do you think I'm blind or deaf? I saw it clearly, and I heard it clearly!"
Qin Huairu said, "Right now, the only person in the courtyard willing to help despite the risk of being misunderstood by you is Silly Zhu. If we offend him too, who will help us?"
"I don't need anyone's help!"
"Yesterday's operation already used up all our savings. The mill's compensation hasn't been approved yet. If we don't accept help, Dongxu can't have his operation today. Fine, I'll return the money to the courtyard. Is that enough?"
"Come back!"
Seeing Qin Huairu about to leave, Jia Zhangshi quickly called out to stop her.
"Go pay the bill. Don't mention this in front of Dongxu again!"
In fact, Jia Dongxu had already been awakened by the commotion in the ward, but he was not too worried.
It was fine as long as Silly Zhu was the one who came. As long as it was not Lin Zhen.
The person he suspected and guarded against day and night was Lin Zhen.
Although Silly Zhu and Xu Damao were also bachelors, and although they too envied his beautiful wife.
Qin Huairu did not think much of them.
Only when she saw Lou Xiao'e would Qin Huairu reveal a complicated look in her eyes.
Jia Dongxu, who was observant and suspicious by nature, knew all of this.
He knew his wife regretted rejecting Lin Zhen's proposal back then.
He knew she envied Lou Xiao'e's life.
There were no elders for her to serve, she was doted on by her husband, and her four sons were obedient.
Her husband earned plenty, never controlled her spending, and the household had refined grain every day and meat every week.
Compared to that, Qin Huairu truly suffered by following him.
She raised two children herself and still had to serve her mother-in-law.
Her husband's wages were low, and except during holidays, there was never any meat in the pot.
Jia Dongxu knew the gap between himself and Lin Zhen.
Qin Huairu was only twenty-five now, and her looks were on par with Lou Xiao'e's. It would be easy for Lin Zhen to take a liking to her.
"Mom, don't drive Silly Zhu away if he comes again. Our family needs a fool to do the dirty work these next few days."
"Oh, Dongxu, you're awake? Don't move, don't move. Mom will bring you some water."
"Mom, what did the doctor say? How long until I can go back to work?"
Jia Dongxu still did not know that he was paralyzed, and Jia Zhangshi did not dare tell him directly.
Her eyes reddened as she hesitated. "The doctor didn't say. There's another small operation today. It takes a hundred days to recover from broken bones and torn muscles, so at least three months."
"Three months is fine. I can endure it. Just keep an eye on Huairu from now on and don't let her talk to Lin Zhen. Don't worry about Silly Zhu. He's just a fool."
"Mm, Mom will listen to you. I'll definitely keep an eye on that Lin bastard!"
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