Qin Huairu panicked as soon as she heard Banggeng mentioned, terrified that he might blurt something out, and hurriedly grabbed his arm.
But Banggeng was already far too excited, shook her off, and bolted out like a little monkey.
Third Uncle and Liu Guangfu followed closely behind.
Xu Damao knew that Third Uncle and Liu Guangfu did not get along with Shazhu, so he was not worried that they would show favoritism.
Banggeng was just a kid and could not cause any major trouble.
Full of confidence, he put one hand on his waist and pointed a finger at Shazhu, provoking him: "Shazhu, let's see you slip through my fingers today! If I can't fix you today, my surname isn't Xu!"
Xu Damao danced around excitedly, while Shazhu remained as steady as a mountain.
Everyone looked on in confusion, wondering which of the two would have the last laugh.
Ever since they were kids, the two had competed against each other, always a hard match to call.
Second Uncle and the other two had already gathered around the table.
Everyone stretched their necks to look, like spectators at a magic show, eagerly waiting for something unexpected to come out of the pot.
"Second Uncle, you've got to look closely at this. Don't go wronging an innocent man!"
"Guangfu, is there anything unusual? Tell everyone!"
"Banggeng, wipe your snot! Don't let it drip into the pot!"
The three of them inspected the pot for a long time, then exchanged glances, clearly having found nothing out of the ordinary.
Second Uncle looked at Shazhu and said, "Shazhu, a boiled chicken can't talk, can it? Don't try to deny it. We're all neighbors here, and even if you admit it, nobody's going to drag you off to the police station. At worst, you just apologize and pay some compensation!"
"Second Uncle, that's not right. I'm a proper chef, making 37.5 yuan a month. I don't care about pocket change like that. But this is about my reputation! If I'm branded a thief, how am I ever going to find a wife?"
Hearing this, Xu Damao chimed in with amusement: "A wife, Shazhu? Someone's probably already keeping your bed warm!"
Qin Huairu's mother-in-law, sitting nearby, instantly darkened her face: "Damao, watch your mouth! Quit with the snide remarks!"
Qin Huairu was a widow. Though her life was tight, she had a sharp temper and was very active both in the courtyard and at the factory.
She put one hand on her hip, walked right up to Xu Damao, pointed at his nose, and shouted: "Xu Damao, you cursed with no offspring! You clearly know you're the one spreading rumors at the factory about me and Shazhu. It's one thing for me to be a widow, but how is Shazhu supposed to look for a partner now? With this hanging over him, what decent girl would ever want to marry him? Today you must give me an explanation, or I'm not letting you off!"
Xu Damao stepped back repeatedly, knowing he was in the wrong, and lowered his head in silence.
First Uncle saw the situation escalating and barked, "Enough! All of you, have some dignity! Talk business if you have it, and scatter if you don't!"
Unconvinced, Xu Damao protested, "First Uncle, it's as plain as day—Shazhu just refuses to admit it!"
He Yuzhu smiled and said, "The game isn't over yet. Where does your confidence even come from? Banggeng, use the chopsticks to flip the chicken over!"
"You got it, Silly Uncle!"
Banggeng grabbed the chopsticks off the table and gave them a hard poke, flipping the whole chicken over in one go.
With a loud slap, broth splashed everywhere.
"Hey, easy!"
Second Uncle hurriedly took a few steps back, terrified of ruining his newly changed clothes.
At that moment, Banggeng used the chopsticks to fish the chicken head out of the pot.
Although it had stewed for a while and was somewhat soft and mushy, the cockscomb was still clearly visible.
The sharp-eyed people present immediately understood why Shazhu had been so confident!
Honestly, if a man didn't have a solid backing, who would play dumb at a critical moment like this?
"We really wronged Shazhu!"
"I told you so! We watched him grow up. Sure, the boy has a sharp tongue, but you can count on his character!"
"Second Uncle, look at that! Not only does this rooster taste good, but it even talks back!"
"Banggeng is so clever. Shazhu didn't spoil you three siblings for nothing!"
Xu Damao was frantic with anxiety.
His family was well-off, so he didn't actually care about a single chicken; he had just wanted to use this chance to get back at Shazhu. He never expected a sure-fire win to fall through completely.
"This... this... Second Uncle, do you think maybe it's just a hen's head that was boiled too long, and that lump is just swollen?"
Second Uncle was already in a bad mood, and now he felt even more aggrieved. It wasn't his business to begin with, yet he had gotten dragged into someone else's farce.
"Damao, how can you even say something like that? Look at the time, you'd better go get ready to welcome your date!"
"Excuse me, is this where Xu Damao lives?"
A voice called out from the entrance of the main courtyard.
First Uncle stood up and said, "Everyone tidy up. Don't air our dirty laundry to outsiders. Damao, go out and welcome them right now!"
Shazhu rushed over, grabbed Xu Damao by the hand, and said, "Damao, you're the guest of honor today, so don't run around. Just sit right here, I'll go help you greet them."
Before Xu Damao could process what was happening, he found himself dazedly sitting back down.
It wasn't until Shazhu was almost at the door that it finally hit him: "Hey, hey, Shazhu, what does my blind date have to do with you?"
He Yuzhu chuckled to himself, *What does it have to do with me? That's my future son's big event!*
Standing at the entrance was a tall young woman with a slightly round face and an elegant demeanor.
At a glance, she looked completely different from the girls who grew up in the courtyard.
He Yuzhu recognized her instantly—it was Lou Xiaoe.
Lou Xiaoe's father was a capitalist, which decades later would make him a multi-millionaire.
Even now, with capital under heavy restriction, her family still lived in great affluence.
People always said to raise sons in poverty and daughters in wealth, and Lou Xiaoe had certainly been raised in wealth; she was naturally kind-hearted and left an exceptionally good impression.
He Yuzhu gazed at Lou Xiaoe, feeling as though he were looking at his future daughter-in-law.
***
"Shazhu, get out of the way!"
Having finally caught up after a long absence, Xu Damao roughly shoved He Yuzhu aside.
"Xiaoe is here, come on in."
With that, he reached out to steady Lou Xiaoe, but she deftly avoided his hand.
Lou Xiaoe had an easygoing personality, but deep down she possessed the pride and haughtiness of an upper-class upbringing.
She hadn't wanted to go on this blind date in the first place, but reluctantly agreed after her parents' endless persuasion.
The political climate had grown severe recently, and the Lou family's days were becoming increasingly difficult.
Father Lou was a man of vast experience and naturally wouldn't sit around waiting to be destroyed.
Not long ago, the Lou family had sent their only son away to safety, and married their eldest daughter off to a technician at a textile mill.
At first, the eldest daughter had fought back bitterly, but under Mother Lou's tearful threats and emotional blackmail, the matter was finally settled.
Lou Xiaoe was clever and knew very well that she could not escape this fate either.
However, she refused to marry rashly; she wanted at least to figure out what kind of person the man was.
Normally, a blind date should take place at the woman's home, but Lou Xiaoe had rejected that arrangement, believing it wouldn't reveal a person's true character.
Left with no choice, everyone had compromised, leading to today's meeting.
It was obvious that Lou Xiaoe held no affection for Xu Damao.
Before long, Aunt Yi, Aunt Er, and Third Aunt all crowded around.
"What a pretty girl!"
"You can just tell she comes from a prominent background—such extraordinary bearing!"
"That outfit must cost a fortune! I saw one just like it in the department store, even the eldest daughter-in-law was drooling over it. They say it costs a whole year's wages!"
Afterward, the group led Lou Xiaoe into the middle courtyard to sit and chat.
He Yuzhu introduced Lou Xiaoe to the older generations. Xu Damao was burning with impatience, but due to the presence of the elders, he couldn't act out.
As they were talking, another person arrived at the entrance.
"Master, you're out here!"
It was He Yuzhu's apprentice, Mahua.
"Mahua, it's the weekend! Why aren't you resting at home? What are you doing running over here?"
At the factory, everyone called him Mahua (dough twist). Over time, aside from a few formal occasions, nobody used his real name anymore.
Much like how He Yuzhu was called Shazhu.
At first, He Yuzhu hadn't gotten used to the nickname, but later he decided it wasn't worth making a fuss over and simply accepted it.
"Master, I left my keys in the kitchen yesterday, so I went back to get them just now. Walking along the small path behind the factory wall, I found a pair of underwear. I figured maybe Master Xu dropped it there last night, so I brought it over for you."
Hearing this, Xu Damao's face instantly darkened.
Regardless of whether it was true or false, the moment Lou Xiaoe found out, this marriage prospect was essentially dead in the water.
"Mahua, cut the nonsense, I've got important business here!"
Mahua dangled the underwear in his hand and said, "If it's not yours, I'll just throw it away."
He Yuzhu hurriedly stopped him, picked up a stick from the ground, and flicked the underwear out of Mahua's grip.
"Damao, I remember you asking me this morning why you didn't have any underwear to wear. This must be yours!"
"No, no, no! How on earth would my underwear end up over there?"
"That's strange, I distinctly remember you washing clothes just this morning. Banggeng, go check the clothesline and see if there are any underwear hanging there!"
Banggeng dashed off like a shot, circled the clothesline once, and shouted at the top of his lungs, "There's none! None at all!"
Shazhu spread his hands and said, "See? I told you it was yours!"
Second Uncle was now thoroughly invested.
The previous incident had made him lose face, and he was dying for a chance to redeem himself.
He was a shrewd man and could tell at a glance that Shazhu was up to something.
"Shazhu, what is going on here? Tell everyone!"
"Second Uncle, I really can't say. If I say it out loud, Damao won't be able to sit here anymore!"
"Hmph, what's that supposed to mean? If he doesn't sit here, where else is he going to sit?"
"Well, that's hard to say. At the very least, he'd be sitting in the factory security office; at worst, he'd be heading straight to the police station. It's better if I don't say anything."
Xu Damao's face had turned completely ashen, and in his heart, he hated Shazhu to the core. *This bastard! Saying nothing or saying it makes it even more infuriating!*
Lou Xiaoe also caught the implication in their words.
Though she appeared naive and innocent, she was actually exceptionally bright.
Her coming here today was merely a formality, so she naturally wasn't going to dwell on this nonsense.
An Elder Uncle looked somewhat displeased. Although he despised Xu Damao's behavior, he felt it was improper for Shazhu to sabotage someone else's blind date like this.
The Elder Uncle was an excessively kind-hearted soul.
Even in *Love Across the Courtyard*, if it weren't for this Elder Uncle helping everyone out, the courtyard would have fallen apart long ago.
Knowing that this kind of stalemate was useless, the Elder Uncle spoke up: "Since everyone has met Miss Xiaoe today, we can all greet one another from now on. You should all disperse now and let Damao and Xiaoe talk in private."
Lou Xiaoe stood up and said, "Elder Uncle, there's no need. I'd like to go to Zhuzi's place and sample his culinary arts."
He Yuzhu chimed in, "Well, well! Miss Xiaoe actually knows about my cooking?"
"How could I not? Father has praised your culinary arts to me many times! I used to beg him to take me to your factory to try it, but he always said it wasn't appropriate."
Hearing this, He Yuzhu understood immediately. Lately, Deputy Director Li had frequently hosted a businessman with the surname Lou—that must have been Lou Xiaoe's father.
Hearing this, Xu Damao felt a surge of displeasure. His blind date wanted to go to He Yuzhu's house—what kind of nonsense was that?
No matter what, Xu Damao refused to let Lou Xiaoe go to He Yuzhu's place.
"Xiaoe, since you've made the trip, you might as well dine at my place. I've been preparing for days and have plenty of delicious dishes ready! If you go to He Yuzhu's place, aside from noodles, he can't whip up anything decent!"
"Xu Damao, I know you've hoarded plenty of gifts from the countryside, but don't embarrass yourself. I might not have the conditions for a grand spread, but putting together a decent meal is no problem!"
"Shazhu, stop bragging. Can you really make eight dishes? Don't tell me it's one plate of stir-fried cabbage, one plate of braised cabbage, one plate of cold shredded cabbage..."
"Xu Damao, we aren't just blowing hot air today. If any two dishes use the same primary ingredient, I'll admit I'm full of it!"
"Everyone heard that! Let's ask Second Uncle and Guangfu to witness this. Once you've got it ready, give a shout!"
"You got it! Everyone listen up!"
Lou Xiaoe really seemed ready to follow Shazhu away, which made Qin Huairu rather anxious.
Throughout the past year, her household had relied entirely on Shazhu's relief handouts to barely feed the kids.
If Shazhu brought another person into his household, how could she expect him to help her out in the future?
"Shazhu, Miss Xiaoe is here on a blind date with Damao! What do you think you're doing taking her away? First Uncle, you need to step in and manage this!"
He Yuzhu originally had no intention of paying attention to Qin Huairu's family—bullying a widow and orphans was pointless anyway.
However, he could tolerate interference in his life even less.
This was a blatant attempt to stop him from starting a family and cut off the He family line! Even though He Yuzhu came from the future and didn't care about carrying on the family name, in the 1960s, a man with no children would be the subject of endless gossip.
He just wanted to live out his life in peace and quiet, without being labeled a freak.
If Lou Xiaoe hadn't proactively thrown herself his way and given him a son, he might really have ended up without descendants.
In truth, He Yuzhu still had inner reservations; he didn't think Lou Xiaoe made an ideal wife.
Lou Xiaoe had been gentle and kind in her early years, but later she revealed a haughty, upper-class side.
She made a fine friend—reasonable and generous—but as a life partner, she was far too exhausting.
When it came to marrying a wife, the one he admired most was Teacher Ran Qiuye.
Such was the flaw of men: always greedy.
If he really had to rank them, he would want to marry Ran Qiuye most of all, followed by Lou Xiaoe, and lastly Yu Haitang, whom he hadn't even met yet.
Deep down, he felt Lou Xiaoe was much better suited to be a lover.
Of course, that was just a private thought—if words like that got out, it would be sheer heresy!