Siheyuan starts to activate the task system

Yan Jiecheng looked at the ornate and exquisitely decorated house in front of him, and a strong feeling of dissatisfaction surged in his heart. This house used to belong to his family, but because of a sudden earthquake, everything changed. He remembered that when Zhang Yuan and Sha Zhu decided to rebuild the house, he tried to persuade his father Yan Bugui to invest some money to help them complete the project, but his father firmly refused. Yan Jiecheng knew that although his father was smart, he was sometimes too stingy and only wanted to save money instead of taking risks to invest.

Now, seeing that this house was built so carefully by Zhang Yuan and Sha Zhu, Yan Jiecheng felt very regretful. If they could work together and invest money together, maybe they could live in such a luxurious and beautiful big house today. However, now everything has become the past, and he can only watch others enjoy it all.

In addition, Yan Jiecheng also remembered one thing, that is, other residents in the yard had asked Yan Bugui if he was willing to buy their houses. At that time, Yan Jiecheng felt that this was a good opportunity to solve the problem of tight housing for the family. But Yan Bugui, as a calculating person, was always unwilling to spend his own money to buy these houses. Yan Jiecheng knew that his father's attitude was not a good thing for the family. After all, everyone knew that the family really needed a larger space to live in.

As time went by, Yan Jiecheng felt more and more that he had suffered a loss. He realized that if he had been more determined to persuade his father to buy those houses, or to cooperate with Zhang Yuan and Sha Zhu, they would not have to live together with other families now. Seeing that the house that once belonged to his family had become so beautiful, Yan Jiecheng was filled with regret and helplessness.

At the same time, Yan Jiecheng was also jealous of Sha Zhu's restaurant business. He knew that Sha Zhu's restaurant was very successful, with many customers visiting every day and a booming business. Yan Jiecheng secretly thought about how to get a piece of the pie, so he began to constantly encourage his wife Yu Li to discuss with his father Yan Bugui, hoping that his father would invest money to support their business development.

Since Yu Li married into the Yan family, she has experienced many ups and downs. She was originally a kind and innocent girl, but gradually grew into a calculating and capable woman in this family environment. Yan Jiecheng knew that his position in the family was not as good as his wife's, and sometimes he even had to act according to his wife's mood. Therefore, when he proposed that Yu Li go to Yan Bugui to discuss restaurant investment, he was actually a little uneasy.

What Yan Jiecheng didn't know was that Yan Bugui had already seen through Yan Jiecheng's mind, but he was not in a hurry. He knew that Yan Jiecheng would discuss this matter with him sooner or later, and by then he would be confident enough to force Yan Jiecheng to sign a surrender agreement and let his eldest son and his wife work for him in his old age.

As expected, Yan Jiecheng and his wife finally lost their patience and came to the door. That night, the two sides launched a fierce negotiation. In the end, Yan Jiecheng had to make concessions and give 6% of the profit to Yan Bugui.

Seeing the helpless and frustrated expressions of Yan Jiecheng and his wife, Yan Bugui secretly rejoiced in his heart. He thought proudly: "I am who I am. I have eaten more salt than you have walked!" He believed that this victory proved his authority and wisdom as a father, and also taught Yan Jiecheng a good lesson.

Unfortunately, Yan Jiecheng and his wife took it for granted that business was easy to do. In order to avoid vicious competition with Sha Zhu's restaurant, they deliberately chose a more remote location. Although the location was remote, the flow of people was relatively small, but this way, there were fewer competitors. In addition, their dishes were affordable and tasted good, so many people patronized them every day. Seeing the daily profits, the couple felt as sweet as eating honey.

However, the good times didn’t last long. Not long after, a new store opened next to them, and this store turned out to be a branch of Sha Zhu! What made people even more angry was that as soon as this new store opened, it took away most of their customers. Seeing their store so deserted, Yan Jiecheng and Yu Li stamped their feet in anger.

That night, the two angrily ran to Sha Zhu's house to argue with him, accusing him of breaking the rules and opening a new store next door to steal their business. However, Sha Zhu was not a pushover. He was very good at talking and he made Yan Jiecheng and Yu Li speechless with just a few words. Yan Bugui saw that the situation was not good and wanted to say a few good words for his son and daughter-in-law, but he was so angry at Sha Zhu's words that he almost fell ill and was hospitalized. In the end, the whole family had no choice but to retreat.

Seeing that the catering business was not going well and he could not compete with Sha Zhu, Yan Jiecheng began to get anxious. He had originally thought that he could make a lot of money, but now it seemed that not losing money was good enough. Yu Li was much more courageous than Yan Jiecheng. She didn't want to keep losing money, so she decided to take the initiative. That day, she went directly to Sha Zhu. This time she didn't come to pick a fight, but wanted to discuss cooperation with Sha Zhu, or to join in.

Yu Li knew very well that the skills of her chefs could not be compared with those of the apprentices taught by Sha Zhu or Zhang Yuan. In this case, it would be better to change the strategy and seek cooperation. After listening to Yu Li's idea, Sha Zhu thought it was a good idea. So he took Yu Li to find Zhang Yuan.

Zhang Yuan was supportive of this matter. He thought Yu Li was smart and capable, and better at management and operation than Sha Zhu and Qin Jingru. If they could cooperate, they would achieve better results. After some discussion, Zhang Yuan finally agreed to cooperate.

Yu Li's cooperation with Sha Zhu was undoubtedly a betrayal to Yan Jiecheng. He felt that he was incompetent and could not bring a better life to his wife, while she was able to start a business with others and achieve success. This contrast dealt a great blow to his self-esteem, and his jealousy gradually swelled, which eventually led to the escalation of conflicts between the couple.

At first, there were only some minor frictions between them, but as time went on, these minor problems gradually accumulated and formed irreconcilable conflicts between the couple. Quarrels and cold wars became commonplace, and the relationship between the two gradually broke down. Finally, the conflict intensified to the climax, and Yan Jiecheng and Yu Li had a fierce conflict and even fought. Although Yan Bugui came to persuade them, his efforts did not work, and the two had fallen into deep opposition.

Yan Jiecheng eventually chose to leave the courtyard, taking a sum of money with him, claiming that he would go out and make some money and come back. However, his departure did not solve the problem, but instead put the family in a greater predicament. The third aunt became extremely depressed, her physical condition deteriorated, and she was eventually admitted to the hospital.

After the doctor's diagnosis, the third aunt was found to have stomach cancer. The doctor told Yan Bugui that her illness was caused by long-term overwork and malnutrition. This news shocked and saddened Yan Bugui. He realized that his careful budgeting, which he had always been proud of, was actually a failure for himself or his family, and he had never paid attention to the health problems of the third aunt in time. Now, he faces tremendous pressure and responsibility to take care of his sick wife and bear the medical expenses. At the same time, he also regretted not disciplining his son well, which led to the division of the family and the tragedy.

When Yan Bugui told Yan Jiefang, Yan Jiekuang and Yan Jiedi, the three were also shocked. They all showed concern for their mother's health but did not mention a word about the medical expenses. This made Yan Bugui blame himself again. He thought that he had calculated all the family affection just as Sha Zhu said. Although he successfully raised his children and treated them equally, he only taught them how to calculate but did not set an example for them about what family affection was. Now the retribution has come.

Zhang Yuan felt a pang of pain when he learned about this, and immediately went to find Yan Bugui. When he walked into Yan Bugui's house, he found several other neighbors in the house.

"Second uncle, first uncle, you are here too?" Zhang Yuan asked softly.

"Zhang Yuan, you are here too." Liu Haizhong and Yi Zhonghai answered in unison. They were not surprised because not only the three of them, but also Sha Zhu and other old residents in the courtyard had come here and cared about the condition of the third aunt.

Yan Bugui sat in a chair, his face full of fatigue. His eyes had lost their former shrewdness and calculation, leaving only confusion and helplessness about the future. The third aunt's illness, coupled with Yan Jiecheng's running away from home, this double blow almost made this lonely old man collapse.

"Thank you..." Yan Bugui said with a trembling voice, his face was bloodless and pale. At this moment, he was no longer the calculating and calculating Third Uncle, Yan Laosting, and the Abacus Master, but an old man who was defeated by life and family affection.

Zhang Yuan looked at Yan Bugui's worried and exhausted face, and couldn't help but sigh. He said sincerely, "Uncle, I have heard about Aunt. If you need any help, please let me know. You are welcome."

Hearing this, Liu Haizhong on the side also nodded and said, "Yes! Old Yan, if you are worried about the cost of treatment, we can discuss it together and find a solution. We can even organize people in the yard to donate money for you."

After hearing this, Yan Bugui was so moved that his eyes filled with tears. He thanked you repeatedly: "Thank you, Zhang Yuan, and Lao Liu. I can't rely on my children, but I didn't expect that at the critical moment, there are good neighbors like you who are willing to help me."

Seeing this, Zhang Yuan comforted him, "In fact, it's still timely to find out now. As long as you pay more attention to your physical condition in the future and prevent the disease from getting worse, Auntie should be able to hold on for a while."

Yan Bugui nodded in agreement, but his heart was filled with self-blame and regret. He realized that he had not cared enough for his wife over the years and had only calculated, which ultimately led to such consequences.

Yan Bugui thanked everyone, and when everyone saw that Yan Bugui's emotions had stabilized, they also said goodbye.

As night fell, the hustle and bustle of the city gradually subsided, and a depressing atmosphere filled Liu Haizhong's home. The dining table was filled with his favorite scrambled eggs, but even the aroma could not arouse his appetite. Instead, he poured himself one drink after another, as if he wanted to drown his inner troubles with alcohol.

The second aunt sat aside, watching her husband in a bad mood, she didn't dare to speak, wondering what had happened to make him so depressed. She silently stared at Liu Haizhong, her heart full of worry.

Brothers Liu Guangtian and Liu Guangfu also noticed their father's strange mood. They stood nervously by the side, always on guard. They knew their father's temper very well and were afraid that he would suddenly explode and beat them up.

At this moment, a childish voice broke the silence: "Dad, the eggs smell good!" It turned out to be Liu Guangtian's five-year-old son. He was attracted by the tempting scrambled eggs on the table and couldn't help shouting out greedily. This innocent child did not realize the solemn family atmosphere, he just simply expressed his desire for delicious food. However, this sentence was like a sharp sword, piercing the heart in the bangs. He stopped the wine glass in his hand, slowly raised his head and looked at the child in front of him. A trace of pain and helplessness flashed in his eyes, and then he lowered his head again and continued to remain silent.

Seeing his son suddenly peeking at the scrambled eggs on the table, Liu Guangtian was startled and filled with fear. He could not forget the painful memories of being beaten to death by Liu Haizhong every time he stole a bite of scrambled eggs. His body trembled involuntarily, as if that experience had come back to him.

Not only that, the same thing happened to Liu Guangfu. Whenever his father got angry, no matter if he was right or wrong, they would be beaten. These terrible memories quickly made their bodies recall the horrible experiences they had experienced, and their hearts were filled with fear and anxiety.

"Oh, come here, grandson, come and eat, the eggs are delicious."

Liu Haizhong's sudden words confused Liu Guangtian and Liu Guangfu, who thought that Liu Haizhong had been replaced by someone; he actually agreed to let his grandson eat scrambled eggs.

Liu Haizhong looked at the two brothers in front of him, and suddenly a wave of self-mockery surged in his heart. He realized that over the years, his behavior was not fundamentally different from Yan Bugui's. It was just that Yan Bugui was good at calculating, while he was more inclined to use violence. Thinking of Yan Bugui's current fate, Liu Haizhong was terrified. If he or his wife encounters misfortune in the future, will there be a filial son by his bedside? This question made him fall into deep thought, and he gave a definite answer deep in his heart: No.

"Have you two been blaming me all the time?" Liu Haizhong's eyes were fixed on Liu Guangtian and Liu Guangfu, and he asked in a serious tone.

Faced with their father's sudden question, the two brothers were stunned for a moment. They couldn't figure out Liu Haizhong's thoughts and didn't know what he wanted to do. Did he really want to understand their thoughts, or did he deliberately set a trap and wait for them to fall into it, and then find an opportunity to teach them a lesson. The two looked at each other, not knowing how to answer for a moment.