In the Siheyuan Courtyard, Sha Zhu and Jia Dongxu were Yi Zhonghai’s loyal followers.
Jia Dongxu was also Yi Zhonghai’s apprentice and had always been looked after by Yi Zhonghai, so he was very obedient to Yi Zhonghai.
As for other young people like Liu Guangqi and Yan Jiacheng, because their elders had good relationships with Yi Zhonghai, they were often arranged to do errands.
As for someone like Xu Damao, this guy was a bit odd.
If you said he resisted the authoritarianism of the Siheyuan Courtyard’s managers, he actually got along quite well with them.
But if you said he followed the managers, this kid had a rebellious streak since childhood, occasionally spreading gossip about the managing elders, which often led to him getting beaten.
When Yi Zhonghai realized that Sha Zhu alone couldn't beat Lin Xiaoman, he looked around and immediately gathered a few young people to act.
Everyone was used to doing this kind of dirty work, and usually, they would follow Yi Zhonghai’s instructions, but today was a bit unusual.
Firstly, Yan Jiacheng and Lin Xiaoman were both from the front courtyard, and they had often worked odd jobs together recently. While their relationship wasn't necessarily great, it was at least outwardly decent, so he hesitated.
And Liu Haizhong had just had a fight with Yi Zhonghai, so it made no sense for Liu Guangqi, his good son, to immediately help Yi Zhonghai.
Finally, only Jia Dongxu and another young man from the middle courtyard, Niu Wa, heard the command and ran towards Lin Xiaoman.
These two weren't good at fighting, but they were clever. Knowing they couldn't confront Lin Xiaoman head-on, they exchanged glances and each rushed at Lin Xiaoman from a different side.
Lin Xiaoman’s martial arts were learned from a wandering Taoist when he was a child, emphasizing yielding to overcome hardness, using an opponent's force against them, and the unity of body and mind. He had already anticipated others coming, so when the two rushed at him, Lin Xiaoman dodged with a quick sidestep.
Jia Dongxu and Niu Wa ran too fast; by the time they realized Lin Xiaoman had vanished, it was too late to stop, and they directly collided with each other.
“Ouch!” The two rolled together like broken gourds, groaning incessantly.
By this time, Sha Zhu had recovered. With his richer fighting experience, he immediately began to direct, and the three slowly approached Lin Xiaoman in a triangular formation.
This time, they learned their lesson and knew not to rush.
“Heh heh, is that all you’ve got?!”
Lin Xiaoman naturally didn’t care about these few people, but before Lin Xiaoman could make a move, a tall figure suddenly sprang out from behind him, throwing punches and charging at Sha Zhu and the others.
This tall figure had just run directly from the front courtyard. As he passed Lin Xiaoman, he could still hear the other party’s heavy breathing. Even so, because of his speed and weight, Sha Zhu’s expression subtly changed when he saw him.
The person who came was none other than Lin Xiaoman’s elder brother, Lin Dong.
Although the two had a rift last night over the family division and were even preparing to go to the Neighborhood Committee today to handle some procedures, they didn't harbor deep hatred for each other.
Brothers are like tigers in battle, and fathers and sons are like soldiers on the front line. Lin Dong, who was at home in the front courtyard, heard someone say his younger brother was being bullied. He rushed over without a second thought.
Lin Dong was honest but robust, with an advantage in height and weight over Sha Zhu. The two had fought a few times growing up, and Sha Zhu never got the upper hand. Now, facing the charging Lin Dong, Sha Zhu decisively took a step back.
Sha Zhu’s step back wasn't a problem for him, but it really screwed over Jia Dongxu, leaving him to face Lin Dong’s fist directly.
This guy was all show; his body had been hollowed out by Qin Huairu, coupled with long-term malnutrition. After being knocked down by Lin Dong’s punch, he lay directly on the ground, stiff as a board.
Damn it, Lin Xiaoman no longer bothered to beat Sha Zhu and the others; he immediately went to check on Jia Dongxu.
It was good that his elder brother helped him, but if he sent Jia Dongxu, a man destined to die, to his grave prematurely, he would also bear responsibility.
Fortunately, the King of Hell did not take him. After being thrown to the ground and hitting it hard, Jia Dongxu curled up and began to wail.
Good, he wasn't dead.
Lin Xiaoman grabbed Lin Dong, who was still trying to charge forward.
“What, aren’t we hitting them?” Lin Dong asked gruffly.
“Only hit Sha Zhu and Niu Wa!”
“Damn it!”
Sha Zhu and Niu Wa had just been relieved that they had dodged Lin Dong’s punch, but now hearing Lin Xiaoman say that, they immediately cursed Lin Xiaoman’s shamelessness in their hearts.
Why couldn’t they hit Jia Dongxu? Didn’t they say to pick the softest persimmon to squeeze?
But facing the combined attack of the Lin family brothers, these two no longer had time to think and could only passively endure the beating.
“Bang bang bang,” without a doubt, Niu Wa was directly knocked to the ground. This guy played smart, actually lying there and refusing to get up.
Thus, the residents of the Siheyuan Courtyard had the rare sight of the usually arrogant Sha Zhu being beaten into a ball on the ground.
“Enough! Jiecheng, hurry and report to the Police Station!”
“You’re rebelling against the heavens! Your Lin family is rebelling against the heavens!”
The Lin family brothers’ beating of Sha Zhu and the other two happened so fast that Yi Zhonghai hadn’t even reacted before his few followers had lost their fighting capability.
Well, he usually bullied others, but now being bullied by others, Yi Zhonghai’s first thought was also the Police Station.
“You go call the police, if you don’t call the police, I’ll call for you! Not only will I call the police, but I’ll also get the Street Office and the Neighborhood Committee involved. I want to ask how this Street Office chooses its managers.”
Lin Xiaoman wasn’t worried about the Police Station coming. In this era, people admired martial spirit, and fighting was common. As long as nothing major happened, a small fight would at most result in being detained for a few days.
More importantly, today’s incident was initiated by the other party, and Sha Zhu and the others made the first move, so he wasn’t worried at all.
Hearing Lin Xiaoman question the managers, Yan Jiacheng, who had just been about to run out to find someone, awkwardly stopped. He looked at his father, asking what to do.
Yan Jiacheng knew that once the matter escalated, if Lin Xiaoman recklessly complained to the Street Office about the managers’ actions in the Siheyuan Courtyard, his father’s position could be affected.
“Jiecheng, you go back first.” Yan Bugui stepped forward at the right time.
He looked at Liu Haizhong, and the two walked together to Yi Zhonghai’s side.
“Lao Yi, matters of our Siheyuan Courtyard should still be handled within the Siheyuan Courtyard. I think we shouldn’t trouble the Police Station,” Yan Bugui advised.
“That’s right. A few people messing around didn’t cause any serious trouble; we can just criticize them later. In the courtyard, didn’t Sha Zhu and Xu Damao often scuffle? We never called the Police Station then!” Liu Haizhong added.
These two secretly resented Yi Zhonghai’s firm grip on the Siheyuan Courtyard’s top position, but neither their ability nor their skill was a match for Yi Zhonghai, so they could only grumble inwardly.
Now seeing Yi Zhonghai in a difficult spot, they were actually happier than anyone, and the smiles on their faces couldn’t be hidden at all.