"By the way, Yang Xuan, what should we do about this?" He Yuzhu suddenly remembered that he had trapped Yi Zhonghai and Qin Huairu in the cellar.
"Silly Zhu, those two must hate you to the core by now," Yang Xuan chuckled.
"Let them be. If I'm scared, I won't trap them anymore." He Yuzhu actually felt a bit regretful, not because he was scared, but because he didn't want to get involved with those two.
"This is easy to handle. Go call Er Da Ye and San Da Ye; they are in charge here. They need to take the lead. Just say there's a thief in the courtyard. Oh, and we can't do this without Xu Damao," Yang Xuan couldn't help but laugh. Just imagining those people rushing in, opening the cellar, and finding Yi Zhonghai and Qin Huairu inside was quite comedic.
He Yuzhu got excited: "Then I'll go call Xu Damao first."
He Yuzhu quickly ran to the back courtyard and soon shouted at Xu Damao's door.
"Silly Zhu, what are you doing in the middle of the night?" Xu Damao yawned, his waist was not doing well lately, as he had been pressured by Lou Xiao'e to work hard every day.
Lou Xiao'e was also under a lot of pressure because she was worried that her belly wouldn't grow before the New Year. After so many years of marrying into the Xu family without having children, the words from Xu's parents weren't pleasant. Usually, she could avoid them, but during the New Year, she had to go pay her respects.
Lou Xiao'e didn't come out.
"Your hen hasn't been stolen, has it? I think I saw a thief in the yard just now. As soon as I came out of the house, I hid in the cellar," He Yuzhu said.
Xu Damao hurriedly went to check the chicken coop and saw that the remaining hen was still there, finally letting out a sigh of relief, but he was still furious: "They must have come for my hen. They stole one of my hens and still aren't satisfied, coming back for more! Where are they?"
Xu Damao angrily headed towards the cellar to catch the thief.
"Don't rush. Who knows if that thief has any weapons? If we both rush in and something happens, it won't be worth it," He Yuzhu said.
Xu Damao was very obedient; upon hearing that the thief might have a weapon, he immediately ran back and hid behind He Yuzhu.
"Silly Zhu, should we call for help?" Xu Damao suggested.
"We must call for help. Find three uncles to take the lead and organize the young people in the courtyard to catch the thief!" He Yuzhu said.
Xu Damao looked at He Yuzhu in confusion, wondering when this silly Zhu had become so clever?
One Da Ma's expression wasn't very good: "Your Da Ye just went to the toilet and hasn't come back yet."
He Yuzhu looked at One Da Ma and knew she must be aware of the situation.
If One Da Ye wasn't around, then they would look for Er Da Ye and San Da Ye.
Er Da Ye was very proactive about such matters. There weren't many issues in the courtyard, and his authority as a Da Ye hadn't had many opportunities to show itself. This night was a rare good opportunity. Old Yi was taking his time in the toilet! If Old Yi didn't go to the toilet, how would I have a chance? It would be best if he fell into the toilet and couldn't come back for a while!
San Da Ye wasn't very enthusiastic about things that didn't offer any benefits. Catching this thief would be troublesome regardless. There was no gain, and there was a certain level of danger. So, he simply handed over the authority to catch the thief to Er Da Ye.
Er Da Ye took the lead: "Everyone grab something. If you have wooden sticks or carrying poles at home, bring them. If you really don't have anything, grab a kitchen knife."
Yan Jiefang quickly ran into the kitchen to grab a kitchen knife, but as soon as he reached the door, he was caught by Yan Bugui by the ear: "I told you to grab a kitchen knife, not to actually go in and stab someone!"
Yan Jiefang didn't have the guts; he mainly wanted to look impressive with a kitchen knife.
Yan Bugui snatched the knife from Yan Jiefang's hand and put it back in the kitchen.
The courtyard was surrounded tightly, three layers inside and three layers outside, around the cellar entrance.
"Who put the stone mill on top?" Er Da Ye looked at Xu Damao in confusion.
Originally, Xu Damao wanted to say it was He Yuzhu's doing, but after a moment's thought, he felt that he couldn't let He Yuzhu take the credit. He had to handle this himself!
"Er Da Ye, it was me. I was going to the toilet, but when I heard a commotion in the courtyard, I came over and saw two shadows sneak into the cellar. I hurried over and put the stone mill on top," Xu Damao said vividly, as if he had really done it all.
He Yuzhu was taken aback; this guy actually stole my credit! Just as he was about to argue, he was pulled aside by Yang Xuan.
"Are you stupid? Xu Damao is taking the blame for you; you should be grateful! Why would you be foolish enough to try to take it back? When One Da Ye and Qin Huairu are released later, how do you plan to face their combined wrath?" Yang Xuan really wanted to laugh. He never expected Xu Damao to be this amusing.
He Yuzhu understood: "You had me call Xu Damao first just to..."
Yang Xuan quickly said, "As long as you understand in your heart, there's no need to say it out loud."
Liu Haizhong had Liu Guangtian and Liu Guangfu lift the stone mill and suddenly opened the wooden cover of the cellar, only to be greeted by Yi Zhonghai's grim face.
"Old Yi? Why are you here?" Liu Haizhong was also quite shocked.
Liu Guangtian, who was a bit dim-witted, exclaimed, "The chicken thief is actually One Da Ye!"
The result was a slap from Er Da Ye, who was righteous in his indignation.
After slapping Liu Guangtian, Liu Haizhong regretted it: "Old Yi, what are you and Qin Huairu doing in this cellar at this late hour?"
Yi Zhonghai's face was ashen: "Qin Huairu's family is running out of food, so I'm delivering ten pounds of cornmeal to her."
Liu Haizhong chuckled: "What you’re doing is not delivering cornmeal; it’s more like a spy rendezvous."
Everyone laughed meaningfully. In the dead of night, a lonely man and woman hiding in a cellar to deliver cornmeal—who would believe such a story?
Why couldn't Yi Zhonghai deliver cornmeal during the day? Even if he had to deliver it at night, why not let One Da Ma bring it over? Or have One Da Ma come along too?
Now it was like yellow mud in the pants—it's not shit, but it might as well be.
"Just now, we were standing by the cellar, and suddenly someone rushed over, kicked us inside, and not only covered the lid but also put something heavy on top!" Yi Zhonghai said angrily.
Liu Haizhong turned to Xu Damao: "Old Yi, did you kick them in?"
Xu Damao quickly waved his hands: "It wasn't me; it was Silly Zhu!"
Xu Damao pointed at He Yuzhu, "You, old six, were just waiting here!"
Xu Damao now understood why He Yuzhu was so concerned about his hen; it turned out it was all to set him up!
Liu Haizhong didn't believe Xu Damao's words: "Just now, you said it was you. That stone mill was also placed there by you."
"It really wasn't me. It was Silly Zhu. I can't move that stone mill by myself!" Xu Damao said.
Xu Damao was a bit afraid of Yi Zhonghai. Although Yi Zhonghai was currently in a very unfavorable situation.
Qin Huairu angrily said, "Xu Damao, you took advantage of me in the cafeteria a few days ago, and since you didn't succeed, you resorted to such underhanded tactics. What benefit do you gain from ruining my and One Da Ye's reputation?"