Courtyard House: My Wife is Xu Huizhen

Page 24

Although he was illiterate, she understood what was written on the land deed; it didn't specify the ownership of the vacant land at all.

The side rooms on this plot of land were demolished early; it was already empty when it was purchased.

In fact, she knew in her heart that the corner room in the middle of the four rooms that He Daqing bought also belonged to the He family, but it was just not recorded on the land deed.

Although he knew it was unreasonable for him to jump out and stop her, he just wanted to annoy Sha Zhu.

He slapped me that day, and half of my face was swollen for two days. Now that my son and Yi Zhonghai are here, I won't lose out no matter how much we argue, and I can't afford to be hit again.

He Yuzhu was furious: "You, surnamed Zhang, shut up. What business is it of yours if I build a house here?"

In fact, He Yuzhu also had some doubts. When He Daqing bought the house, it was before the liberation.

I don't know what the higher authorities' policy is right now. If they don't acknowledge that this vacant lot in the corner belongs to me, then things will indeed be much more complicated.

Knowing he couldn't win an argument with Jia Zhangshi, He Yuzhu turned to ask, "Uncle Yi, what do you have to say about this?"

"this..."

Yi Zhonghai was immediately stumped. If he directly said that the land did not belong to He Yuzhu, he would offend him directly, and Yi Zhonghai would not do such a thing.

But if it were to stand up for He Yuzhu and engage in a verbal battle with Jia Zhangshi, he would be even more unwilling.

"You're asking me about this? I don't know either. Just check if the land is listed on your land deed."

Although Yi Zhonghai spoke in a grand and dignified manner, he had set a trap for He Yuzhu with his words.

He's over thirty, so of course he knows that the land deed only contains information about the house and not about any attached vacant land.

If He Yuzhu were to check the land deed, it would certainly not show ownership of this corner plot.

The above only lists the location and size of the house, and who the neighbors are.

But He Yuzhu was no ordinary person. When he and He Daqing went to complete the land deed transfer procedures, he carefully checked the information on the land deed and asked the staff whether the shack and land built in this corner belonged to them.

The staff clearly stated that the corner belonged to the He family.

He Yuzhu chuckled and asked, "What would you say if Granny Zhang's land belonged to our He family?"

Jia Zhangshi said angrily, "You say it belongs to you, so what? Why are you so sure of yourself? I could say it's my family's property."

Yi Zhonghai said, "Zhuzi, there's no use in arguing like this. Go inside and take out your land deed to see if this corner is owned."

Yi Zhonghai is digging another hole; he's taking advantage of He Yuzhu's ignorance.

He Yuzhu asked, "Are you saying that if there's no land deed, then the house belongs to the public?"

"Of course! You're a middle school student, and you don't even know this?" Yi Zhonghai said matter-of-factly.

He Yuzhu scratched his head: "I really don't know where the land deed is. Uncle Yi, why don't you take out your family's land deed and let me see what it looks like?"

Jia Zhangshi jumped out and shouted, "He Yuzhu, if you can't find the land deed, then these four houses are not yours either."

He Yuzhu shouted, "Are you looking for death?"

If Jia Zhangshi dares to talk nonsense again, He Yuzhu wouldn't mind going up and teaching her a lesson.

The He family has owned this house for many years; everyone in the courtyard knows it belongs to the He family.

If she were to jump out at this point and say no, wouldn't that just give He Yuzhu an excuse to hit her?

Just as Jia Zhangshi was about to spout nonsense, she saw He Yulu's murderous gaze and remembered the slap she had received last time, and immediately hesitated.

Jia Dongxu quickly smoothed things over: "Zhuzi, my mother just misspoke and was joking, don't take it to heart."

He Yuzhu snorted and then asked, "Uncle Yi, why are you still standing here instead of going to get the land deed?"

He Yuzhu, with the shrewdness of an adult, had already figured this out. If Yi Zhonghai were to produce the land deed now, he would have a reason to cause trouble.

The vacant lot to the east of He Yuzhu had no ownership certificate, and the same thing was reflected in Yi Zhonghai's house.

One of the three rooms on the east side is where He Yushui lives, and the other two rooms on the south side are where Yi Zhonghai lives.

Since Yi Zhonghai only had two rooms, he didn't have a kitchen, so he built a side room on the south side of the gable wall to serve as a kitchen.

This kitchen is not listed on the land title.

If Yi Zhonghai produces the land deed now, He Yuzhu can say that the land used for the side room is collective or public, and then Yi Zhonghai can demolish the kitchen.

Yi Zhonghai wasn't stupid; he knew exactly what was written on his land deed and guessed He Yuzhu's plan: to tamper with his kitchen.

Otherwise, there's no way to explain why He Yuzhu keeps trying to get him to hand over the land deed.

He found it very strange. He Yuzhu used to be so stubborn that he never used his brain when doing anything.

Today, He Yuzhu is like an old fox, always thinking ahead of others in everything.

They easily deflected his questioning and even demanded that he produce the land deed.

Logically speaking, He Yuzhu shouldn't have changed so much. Could it be that I'm overthinking it?

However, I can't show my own land deed to avoid trouble.

"I think we should just let this matter go. If you want to build it, go ahead. I'm not going to interfere."

After finishing his sentence, Yi Zhonghai gave Jia Dongxu a wink, then turned and went into his house.

Jia Zhangshi didn't think that much about it. Although she found it strange that Yi Zhonghai would leave so suddenly, she continued to shout, "He Yuzhu, listen to me carefully. I said you can't build this house, so you can't build it."

"Who do you think you are? You think you can just say we can't build it and that's it?"

He Yuzhu walked forward angrily until he arrived at the Jia family's door.

Jia Zhangshi is just a master of empty talk; she thinks no one will dare to hit her when she argues with others.

But the last time He Yuzhu slapped her, she realized that if she pushed He Yuzhu too far, he would definitely hit her.

Startled, Granny Zhang quickly hid behind her son and demanded, "What...what do you want to do?"

Jia Dongxu also felt a little afraid of He Yuzhu, and questioned, "Zhuzi, don't do anything rash. Speak properly. We gentlemen use words, not fists."

Chapter 34: Where are you looking? Look again and I'll gouge your eyes out!

He Yuzhu stopped and looked the mother and daughter up and down. They were all talk and no action; if they really started fighting, the Jia family would be afraid of him.

"Alright, then let's talk this out. Does the land on either side of your house belong to the public or your Jia family?"

Jia Zhangshi fenced off a piece of land north of the house and raised rabbits there.

They also occupied a piece of land to the south of the house, which was piled with firewood and some miscellaneous items that Granny Zhang couldn't bear to throw away.

“This…” Jia Dongxu then realized that his own home also occupied a lot of space.

There are plenty of open spaces in the courtyard houses, but there's a general consensus that the open space belongs to whoever's house it's closest to.

It's a good place to store odds and ends, and no one will say much. After all, we've been neighbors for years, and no one will cause trouble since we all live in the same courtyard.

Today, Jia Zhangshi jumped out to accuse He Yuzhu of occupying public land, which actually goes against everyone's consensus.

These are things that everyone knows but no one says outright.

The Jia family and Yi Zhonghai were just being unreasonable and bullying He Yuzhu because he was young and didn't know any better.

He Yuzhu is now giving Jia Dongxu a taste of his own medicine, pointing out that the Jia family has encroached on public space, leaving Jia Dongxu speechless.

He Yuzhu said, "Jia Dongxu, don't cause me any more trouble in the future. Don't think that just because that incident is over, it's all in the past. If you cause me any more trouble, don't blame me for being impolite."

"you..."

Jia Dongxu was speechless. The last incident was over, and he had retrieved his confession. But if Sha Zhu continued to target him, would he still be able to smuggle parts out of the factory?

Is it still possible to have a secret stash of money?

"You can build it however you want."

After saying this, Jia Dongxu turned around and helped his mother into the house.

Madam Jia said angrily, "Son, you don't need to be afraid of him. What makes him so arrogant? If he dares to bare his teeth and claws again, then you should give him a good beating."

"Alright, Mother, how can you teach your son to fight every day? The neighbors are all watching."

Jia Dongxu's face was full of bitterness. He couldn't possibly tell his mother that Sha Zhu had discovered his theft of steel mill parts, that he had written a confession, and that his master had been extorted for 300 yuan.

"You're useless too."

Granny Zhang was so angry that she even cursed her own son.

He Yuzhu spat and ignored the neighbors watching the show. He went back to his house and closed the door.

When Yi Zhonghai and Jia Dongxu woke up the next morning, they had both returned to normal, smiling and greeting each other, and had become good neighbors again.

He Yuzhu cursed under his breath, "You slut," yet he could still chat and laugh with them.

Upon arriving at the restaurant's backyard, they saw Xiangcao and Xu Huizhen whispering together. He Yuzhu asked, "Xiangcao, haven't you made up your mind yet?"

"Yes!" Xiangcao stood up and explained to He Yuzhu with a worried look on her face.

Finding a job is not easy these days; even after taking two days off, Vanilla still hasn't found a suitable one.

Although she wanted to start her own business, she still had to pay rent and capital. As a waitress, Xiangcao didn't earn much, and she had to give a portion of her wages to her family every month. She had no savings at all.

Although Zhang Yong was a threat, Xiangcao had already handed over her wallet to the shopkeeper, so she felt that Zhang Yong had no leverage over her and she came to work despite her reluctance.

I felt that as long as I was careful, there wouldn't be any problems. He couldn't possibly actually rape me, could he?

After all, they had been threatened with leverage before, so they couldn't just resort to force.