Courtyard House: My Wife is Xu Huizhen

Page 216

"Da Mao is right. In the past, if there was any excitement, Aunt Zhang would run faster than anyone else."

"Yes, Aunt Zhang loves watching the excitement. As long as there's any commotion in the courtyard, she's the first to rush over."

"That's right, maybe Aunt Zhang knows something, that's why she doesn't want to come out."

Yi Zhonghai had previously built up a good reputation, but he has gotten into a lot of trouble in the past two years, especially after reporting Xu Wude and sending him to the police station.

This led to a lot of people having a negative opinion of Yi Zhonghai. It would be normal for an ordinary person, but he was the boss of the management department, which made many people dislike him and couldn't help but say a few more words.

Yi Zhonghai's face turned ashen with anger. He turned to Aunt Yi and said, "Go and see what's going on at Dongxu's house. Why is no one coming out?"

After hearing this, Aunt Yi took a few steps, lifted the curtain, and pushed open the door of the Jia family. She saw the four members of the Jia family sitting together, staring at each other.

Why aren't you going out?

Jia Dongxu had been wondering why his mother didn't want to go see the commotion. When his master's wife asked, he said, "Mother, why don't we go and see? That silly Zhu lost his bicycle. Of course we should go see him."

"This..." Granny Zhang didn't know how to refuse for a moment, and the expression on her face was also very strange.

Aunt Yi's heart skipped a beat. She had just thought that an outsider must have stolen Sha Zhu's bicycle, but Zhang's wife's appearance surprised her. A thought popped into her mind: could the person who stole the bicycle be Jia Dongxu? Zhang's wife must know something, which is why she changed her expression.

Two years ago, Aunt Yi felt very guilty for not being able to have children, and she was very obedient to Yi Zhonghai, letting him do whatever he wanted. Even though the family's savings were all gone, she didn't say much.

Ever since Widow Bai returned from Baoding, Aunt Yi noticed that Yi Zhonghai was often working overtime. She knew in her heart that he must be using overtime as an excuse to go to Widow Bai's place.

Furthermore, she and He Daqing crossed the line and are still entangled. Often, when Yi Zhonghai is working overtime, He Daqing sneaks into the east wing to meet with Aunt Yi.

At this moment, Aunt Yi's heart was completely on Sha Zhu's side. Since she was convinced that Sister Zhang couldn't escape responsibility, she stepped forward, took her arm, and said with a smile:

“Sister Zhang, since there’s nothing else, let’s go out and see what’s going on. Nothing has ever been stolen from this courtyard house in all these years, but this time a brand new bicycle has been stolen.”

"I have a cold and don't feel well. I don't want to go out and get chilled."

Grandma Zhang came up with an excuse on the spot, she really didn't want to go out, but Aunt Yi was determined and insisted on dragging Grandma Zhang out. With a combination of pulling and tugging, Grandma Zhang was finally forced out.

Qin Huairu and Jia Dongxu were quite open and honest. They had long wanted to come out and see what bad luck Sha Zhu had gone through, so they followed him out of the house.

Before Jia Dongxu could even get close, He Yuzhu asked, "Jia Dongxu, did you hear any noise in the middle of the night? Do you know who stole your bicycle?"

Jia Dongxu retorted angrily, "Don't try to pin this on me. Whoever stole it will have a son without an anus."

Granny Zhang couldn't help but roll her eyes, her face darkening and looking quite unpleasant.

He Yuzhu suppressed a laugh; he had never heard anyone call him an asshole before. He turned around and asked:

"Widow Zhang, did you steal the bicycle?"

Chapter 160

Granny Zhang jumped three feet high and shouted, "Silly Zhu, you'll die a horrible death! You actually falsely accused me of stealing it! I'll never forgive you!"

Yi Zhonghai chimed in, "Zhu Zi, what evidence do you have that Zhang's wife stole it?"

"Did I say she stole it? I was just asking, why can't I even ask?"

"you..."

Jia Dongxu was also very angry and shouted, "He Yuzhu, stop trying to smear our family. How could we possibly steal your bicycle? You're making false accusations. Believe me or not, I'll go to the police station and report you."

"Go ahead, and when you get to the police station, please report the theft for me. My bicycle was stolen, so I definitely need to report it. When the police investigate, they might catch the thief."

When He Yuzhu spoke, he stared at Granny Zhang with both eyes, which made her feel uneasy. At this moment, she was also a little afraid that if the police really found evidence, wouldn't she have to go to jail?

Seeing that Granny Zhang's face had changed color, He Yuzhu continued:

"Stealing a bicycle will definitely get you imprisoned. In prison, there will be endless work to do. If you can't work, you won't even get food."

Jia Dongxu had been imprisoned twice before, for a total of more than two years. After returning home, he talked about his life in prison. Of course, Granny Zhang knew the specifics. She thought that if she were to go to prison, it would be a life worse than that of a pig or a dog.

"Don't try to scare me. I... I told you I didn't steal it, I'm not going to jail."

Upon hearing this, everyone realized something was amiss. Why did Granny Zhang seem to be giving herself away without being asked?

Who is Jia Zhangshi?

Everyone turned around and saw that two police officers had entered the courtyard at some point, and it was one of them who asked the question.

Xu Damao pointed and said, "She is Jia Zhangshi."

When the police officers came in, Jia Zhangshi was terrified and shouted, "It wasn't me!"

Now everyone has solid proof. Judging from Jia Zhangshi's behavior, she really did steal the bicycle. Otherwise, why would she be afraid of the police?

Two police officers walked through the crowd, and then one of them pulled out a pair of handcuffs from his waist.

Click!

The cuffs were directly placed on Jia Zhangshi's hands. Jia Zhangshi was so frightened that her legs went weak, and she trembled all over, unable to utter a single word.

Jia Dongxu finally came to his senses, but he didn't believe that his mother had stolen the bicycle. He yelled at He Yuzhu, "Are you framing my mother? This is a false accusation, and you won't succeed."

Yi Zhonghai didn't believe it either, and walked up to her and said, "Officer, is there some misunderstanding? Aunt Zhang is a kind person, she wouldn't steal anything."

He Yuzhu retorted, "Yi Zhonghai, can you guarantee what you're saying? If it was Granny Zhang who stole it, are you going to compensate us?"

"this..."

Yi Zhonghai turned to look at Jia Zhangshi, who was already handcuffed. He saw that her face was ashen and she dared not utter a single word.

Qin Huairu was furious. Her husband had been to jail twice before, making her feel ashamed and inferior to others in the courtyard.

After finally enjoying a period of peace and quiet, it turned out that her husband was alright, and now it was her mother-in-law's turn to wear a silver watch.

Still holding onto a sliver of hope that this was a mistake, I said, "Officer, isn't there some misunderstanding? My mother-in-law is a good person, I assure you, she didn't steal the bicycle."

"This is certainly not a misunderstanding. We made this decision after investigation, and witnesses came forward to identify us immediately."

"What? There are witnesses too?" Qin Huairu asked in surprise.

"Yes, Jia Zhangshi stole the bicycle and sold it to a repair shop. We have already caught her."

Everyone heard this and started discussing it. No one expected that Granny Zhang would have the audacity to steal He Yuzhu's bicycle.

These words infuriated Yi Zhonghai and Jia Dongxu. They hadn't expected that Granny Zhang would steal things without saying a word. What was even more infuriating was that the theft wasn't kept secret and was discovered by the police the very next day. She was truly useless.

Jia Dongxu swayed angrily, almost falling to the side, and reached out to hold onto the pillar next to him, shouting, "Officer, isn't there some misunderstanding?"

"We'll find out soon enough whether it's a misunderstanding or not."

Two police officers came to take Jia Zhangshi into custody first, and then Er Lengzi came to identify her, so they had to stay here and wait for Er Lengzi to arrive.

Soon, amidst the murmurs of the crowd, two more police officers arrived: Sun Tie and Ye Dapeng, with Er Lengzi, the bicycle repairman, being escorted between them.

Er Lengzi walked in dejectedly, then pointed at Jia Zhangshi with his right hand and said, "It was her who stole the bicycle and sold it to me in the middle of the night."

Granny Zhang was momentarily dazed, then lost her balance and sat down on the ground, unable to speak.

"It really was Sister Zhang who stole it."

"My God, I never thought they would actually dare to steal it."

"Oh dear, our courtyard is truly full of talented people. Some steal from widows, some secretly steal and sell grain, some sell poisonous pig heads, and now another big thief has emerged, daring to steal bicycles."

These words made many people feel embarrassed and unable to save face.

For a time, all sorts of things were said, especially the bad things Jia Dongxu had done in the past. One by one, they were brought up. Jia Dongxu vaguely heard a few words and turned pale with anger.

"Mother, how could you do such a thing?" Qin Huairu was furious and couldn't help but shout. What kind of people are in this family? Her husband has been imprisoned twice, and this old woman dares to steal a bicycle.

Jia Zhangshi muttered, "Who told Sha Zhu to show off in the courtyard every day, eating fish and meat every meal? It's no wonder his bicycle was stolen."

Jia Zhangshi regretted selling the bicycle to Er Lengzi. If she had walked a few more steps to a different repair shop, she might not have been discovered.

Moreover, I suffered a loss yesterday; my innocent body was taken by that idiot. Since you're so heartless, don't blame me for being ruthless in return. If you can do the first thing, I'll do the fifteenth. Let's fight to the death.

Granny Zhang pointed at Er Lengzi and shouted, "Police officer, I want to report someone!"

"What are you reporting?" Ye Dapeng asked.

In a moment of impulsiveness, Granny Zhang blurted out, "It was that idiot who threatened me yesterday and then raped me!"

"You're talking nonsense. I gave you ten yuan. This wasn't rape."

"what?"

"My God, Aunt Zhang is over forty years old, and she still got slept with by Er Lengzi?"

"How embarrassing! So incredibly embarrassing!"

"This is so shameless."

"Think about it, Old Jia has been gone for more than ten years, so it's normal for Sister Zhang to want to find another man."

Immediately, there was a flurry of discussion, with all sorts of opinions. Xu Damao recalled his bizarre experience that night, and his face turned pale, feeling utterly disgusted.

However, no one cared about him at this time; everyone was talking about Granny Zhang's romantic affairs.

Er Lengzi never expected that Granny Zhang would bring up this matter. Assembling bicycles and selling them as stolen goods is already a serious crime, but if rape is added to the list, wouldn't he be going to spend the rest of his life in jail?

He panicked and shouted, "She's lying! This widow is the one who wants a man. She seduced me. I didn't rape her!"

"Officers, you must stand up for me! Even if he forced himself on me, how could I possibly be attracted to this ugly thing?"

Ye Dapeng and Zhang Tie exchanged a glance, nodded, and then said, "Jia Zhangshi, tell me in detail what happened yesterday."

"Okay, I said."