My Mother-in-Law is Reborn [Seventies]

Chapter 153

Old Lady Yu tiptoed into Courtyard No. 44. The courtyards in this neighborhood all had similar layouts, so she was quite familiar with the place. She pushed open the gate, and as expected, it wasn't locked.

These days, it was rare for people to lock their main gates. She felt quite smug about her clever planning. Quietly stepping into the courtyard, it was eerily silent. At this hour—deep in the night—there was no way anyone was still wandering around outside.

She patted her chest, confident and unafraid.

She glanced around, locating the Zhuang family's house. But their window wasn't hanging any laundry; she frowned slightly, feeling a bit annoyed. However, she wasn't necessarily aiming to steal from the Zhuangs. Her eyes landed on the clothesline in the courtyard, where Wang Xiangxiu's family had hung their laundry.

There were some children's clothes hanging out, clearly mended with large patches. Old Lady Yu scoffed, yanked one of the clothes, and quickly stuffed it into her arms. Despite having stolen a piece of clothing, she wasn't satisfied and quickly headed toward the back courtyard, only to find even fewer clothes hanging there.

Just two big men's underpants were hanging in the yard. Without hesitation, she snatched them and tucked them into her embrace.

Old Lady Yu's gaze landed on the chickens in the yard. Due to the trend in this neighborhood, almost every household kept two chickens. Only her family hadn't kept any because they couldn't agree on who got to eat the eggs.

Old Lady Yu swallowed hard, imagining the deliciousness of a stewed chicken.

Chickens, especially, were a wonderful delicacy.

In an instant, Old Lady Yu decided to steal a chicken for dinner. A stewed chicken with mushrooms, oh, that was the best! She licked her lips and made her move. But instead of heading back with the chicken, she decided to go for the Zhuang family's old hen, which she had heard was the fattest.

This wasn't personal—if it were, she'd be targeting Bai Fendou in particular. No, she just wanted the fattest chicken since she was going to steal one anyway. And, well, she liked chicken butts.

Old Lady Yu returned to the front courtyard and headed straight for the chicken coop. Smirking with glee and malice, she reached out—silently, under the heated, windless night sky, the old hen was asleep until she suddenly felt an ominous breeze.

"Cluck cluck!" The hen flapped and pecked, causing Old Lady Yu to gasp in pain and yelp, "Ah!"

She barely managed to muffle her cry, her mind racing as she grabbed the hen and bolted, running as fast as she could.

"Thief!" a voice suddenly screamed.

Old Lady Yu stumbled, almost falling, but she forced herself to remain steady and kept running. Before she could reach the gate, she saw people from several households emerging. Zhao Guihua, carrying a stool, flung it at her. It whizzed through the air, landing with a crash, but it was too far and missed.

Her momentum, however, caused Old Lady Yu to trip and fall.

"Catch the chicken thief!"

Bai Fendou was already out, and he kicked her a few times. These days, everyone hated thieves. If you came across one, the first thing you'd do was beat them up, and the same went for them.

People poured out of the houses, swarming Old Lady Yu and starting to kick and punch her.

Old Lady Yu wailed, "Aaah! It's me, it's me!"

"I don't care who you are, you thieving scum!" someone yelled.

"This scoundrel of a thief!"

"Ah, so it's a chicken thief."

It was a chaotic scene, with too many people trying to get a piece of the action.

"Hey, wait, why does this pair of underpants look so familiar?" Aunt Wang rushed over from the back courtyard, too late to join the frontline of beating the thief, but she tried to grab a piece of the action. Instead of the thief, she pulled out a pair of underpants.

She examined them closely and exploded with anger, "Damn it! You even stole my husband's underpants, you old pervert!"

"What? She even stole underpants?"

"What kind of scumbag is she?"

While everyone was discussing, Wang Xiangxiu suddenly turned around, her face red with anger, "My son's clothes are gone too!"

"What, she even stole clothes?"

"This thief really doesn’t leave empty-handed."

"We have a major thief!"

"Quick, go get the police!"

At the mention of the police, Old Lady Yu wailed even louder. She was already beaten to a pulp, her mouth flooded with the metallic taste of blood. "I-I-I, it’s Old Lady Yu," she cried.

At this point, everyone looked at her more closely. Ming Mei shined her flashlight on her face and confirmed, "It really is her."

"Ah, I can’t believe someone from the same neighborhood would steal from us."

"It's hard to guard against thieves in our own backyard. I thought it was outsiders stealing from us, but it turns out it's someone from our own street. How could you do something so despicable? You wicked woman."

"Yeah, she even stole people's underpants…"

Aunt Wang, who had sharp eyes, spotted another pair of underpants and said, "Oh, that’s mine!"

Enraged, she continued, "You shameless Old Lady Yu! You thief, not only did you steal from my house, but you even took my husband’s underpants! You took mine and my husband’s too! You scoundrel!"

Li the Cook, watching all this unfold, felt thoroughly embarrassed and covered his face, groaning, "Oh, my pride… This woman obviously has an obsession with my underpants…"

Old Lady Yu stammered, "I-I-I…" She wracked her brain and blurted out, "I didn’t mean it! I-I just accidentally wandered in… Yes, I was just going out to pee and accidentally went into the wrong place."

"Pfft, 'accidentally'? Do you think anyone would believe you? Who accidentally goes into the wrong place, steals clothes, underpants, and a chicken? Oh, and that’s my chicken… You stole my chicken!" Zhao Guihua screamed, slapping Old Lady Yu twice.

That old hen could lay eggs every day and was worth four or five yuan.

Though chickens generally sold for two yuan when meant for immediate consumption, such a reliable egg-laying hen was priceless and hard to come by.

"You damn thief! What did we ever do to you for you to steal our chicken? Your son almost ruined my son, and now you're stealing our chicken? I think you're just out for revenge. You…"

"Driven by malice!" Lan Sihai interjected.

Zhao Guihua nodded, "Exactly, malicious revenge."

She stormed on, "Your son got what he deserved when he was struck by lightning for his misdeeds. And now you hold a grudge against us—the victims—stealing our chicken? How utterly heartless!"

Aunt Wang ordered, "Yang Lixin, go call the police."

"Yes!" Yang Lixin hurried off.

Old Lady Yu screamed, "No! Don’t call the police! Please…"

She tried to escape, but Bai Fendou pinned her down. After all, he was closest to the door.

"Please, just forgive me. You’ve already thrashed me…" Old Lady Yu begged.

"No way! Justice must prevail! Otherwise, everyone will think our courtyard is an easy target!" Aunt Wang declared loudly.

Despite conflicts within their courtyard, they usually settled them quietly among themselves. But this situation involved an outsider, which was different. Old Lady Yu wasn't part of their neighborhood, so losing face wasn't a concern.

The commotion in their quiet courtyard soon drew the attention of their neighbors. Da Qiang and Wang Zizhen from a nearby courtyard emerged to watch.

Da Qiang admired his wife's sharp hearing as she roused him from their sleep. He hadn’t a clue what was going on, but Wang Zizhen instantly recognized Zhao Guihua’s voice and dragged him along.

Da Qiang looked bewildered, "Wh-what?"

Before he could process, his wife was already dressed, slippers on, and preparing to head out. As an expectant mother, he dressed hurriedly and followed, figuring it was never a good idea to let a pregnant woman on her own to a chaotic scene.

It turned out the news about her keen hearing was absolutely true. Their neighboring courtyard was indeed the source of the ruckus. But it wasn't surprising—they were the most notorious ones in the neighborhood for stirring up drama.

Da Qiang shouted to the crowd, "Let us through, let us through! Come on, dear, let’s move."

Sure enough, the scene was quite the spectacle, drawing a crowd of onlookers from the surrounding courtyards.

Da Qiang used his tall and mighty presence to clear a path for his wife to enter the courtyard.

By this time, everyone in the courtyard was up, even the children rubbing their sleepy eyes and standing at the door to watch the commotion. Wang Zizhen stepped closer and asked, "What's going on here?"

Aunt Zhou replied, "They caught a chicken thief. She not only stole chicken but also clothes from Yin Lai and Tong Lai, and even Aunt Wang's underwear."

Oh boy!

Wang Zizhen was astonished upon seeing the elderly thief and exclaimed, "She's so old and still stealing!"

"Age doesn't matter when it comes to stealing," someone retorted.

"Exactly!"

"What a mess this is."

The onlookers were all tiptoeing to catch a better view of the spectacle.

Old Lady Yu, realizing her escape was hopeless, began shouting curses: "You scoundrels! You must let me go, or my son will deal with you."

"Wow, you're the one who came to steal, and you dare threaten us?"

"This is really shameless."

"Indeed!"

"If you know what's good for you, let me go, or there are plenty of kids in this courtyard. Don't blame me for being merciless... AHH!!"

Zhao Guihua, with several children of her own, was especially sensitive to such threats. When the thief brought up the kids, Zhao didn't hesitate and slapped the old lady hard across the face, shouting, "You old hag, do you think we're easy targets? You've been at this repeatedly, and now you dare threaten our children? I'll beat you to death!"

"Aunt Zhao, step aside!"

Wang Xiangxiu was equally ruthless, grabbing the thief's hair and slapping her across the face!

Since Jin Lai was sent to a reform school, Wang Xiangxiu had become extremely protective of children. Now that this old lady threatened the kids in their courtyard, Wang couldn't hold back. Not to mention, the thief had even stolen their children's clothes. Wang didn't hesitate and delivered several hard slaps, leaving Old Lady Yu seeing stars.

"You... you..."

"What 'you'? Still threatening people?"

Aunt Zhou and the others weren't about to stand by either, rushing forward to join the fray.

Any household with children was furious.

Those words were seriously provocative.

Never seen such a shameless old woman.

"You're killing me! You're all trying to kill me! I'm an old lady, I'm so wronged..."

“What are you whining about? Didn't you say you'd harm the kids in our courtyard? Today, I'm going to beat you to death!”

Indeed, Old Lady Yu had ignited a surge of anger. The crowd was visibly agitated.

After all, such despicable actions were beyond what most people could even fathom.

"Excuse me, everyone, step aside. What's going on here? Did you catch a chicken thief?"

Finally, the police arrived. Upon seeing the scene, one of them exclaimed, "This is a bit too much!"

"Police officers, this person deserved it! She threatened us, saying if we didn't let her go, she'd harm the kids in our courtyard. With kids in every household, who could stand such threats?" Zhuang Zhixi immediately stepped forward to explain.

Despite being a bit groggy from last night's drink, he was now fully awake.

He added, "She even stole our big underwear. I mean, stealing is one thing, but this is just too absurd, right?"

The police officers frowned, casting a look of disgust at the old lady.

It wasn't just about the underwear, but the fact that she threatened the children.

In a community like this, where every family had children, such threats were deeply resented.

Old Lady Yu quickly changed her tune: "I didn't say that. I never..."

Zhuang Zhixi wasn't fazed. "Whether you said it or not, we all have ears. If you think we're singling you out, there are plenty of witnesses here, including people from your own neighborhood. Everyone can attest to what you said."

"She did say it."

"Old Lady Yu, what are you pretending for? Earlier you were so bold, threatening to harm the kids in their courtyard."

"You even said you'd have your son retaliate..."

"Exactly, ?????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????now you're denying it? Do you think we can't hear?"

...

Thieves were the most despised in this era.

No one was holding back.

After all, Old Lady Yu lived in this neighborhood, and who knew if this was her first offense? If she developed a habit, who could guard against her continually?

"Police officers, you must handle her seriously."

"Exactly, she shows no remorse."

If it were a child, many might overlook it. After all, children were often seen as naive and ignorant. But for an adult, especially one so elderly, to steal and then threaten others, that was truly outrageous.

Her moral character was beyond repair.

"Old Lady Yu, I knew something was off! Police officers, I suspect this old lady stole my clothes a few days ago."

A woman emerged from the crowd, saying, "I'm Cuifen, from the same neighborhood. About a week ago, my clothes went missing from the courtyard. I searched everywhere but eventually gave up. I almost reported it to the police. She told me it was probably blown away by the wind. Others said it was just an old piece of clothing, so I dropped it. But now, seeing this, I think she might have stolen my clothes too!"

"Oh, you lost clothes too?"

Cuifen: "Yes, what about you?"

"No, mine wasn't clothes, it was underwear. Mine went missing at night, and I didn't want to talk about it..." This was another woman from their courtyard.

"Oh?"

"Is she a serial thief?"

"Wait, I lost something too." This speaker wasn't from Zhao Guihua's or Old Lady Yu's neighborhood but from this street. She said, "I lost a singlet. I was too embarrassed to mention it."

"I... I lost socks." A man raised his hand.

"I lost underwear too." Another man raised his hand.

It wasn't that they didn't want to involve the police, but the items were small, personal, and not new, making it awkward to discuss. But now, with the thief caught in the act, everyone started speaking up.

"What kind of person are you? My underwear was stolen too, full of patches..." An old man chimed in.

The police officers: "... "

It was silent.

They had handled countless cases, seen all kinds of strange things, but each time they came to this street, they felt something different. This street was familiar to them.

But encountering an "underwear thief" left them speechless.

Zhao Guihua and the others didn't know what to say. Originally, they thought they had caught a weasel stealing chickens, but now it seemed the culprit was something else entirely: an underwear thief? Zhao Guihua stared at the old lady, sure that all these incidents were her doing.

Didn't she look scared? Her eyes were darting around.

Even Zhao Guihua, an amateur, could see it, let alone the experienced police officers.

"Do you know where she lives? Let's go and search her place."

Old Lady Yu let out a piercing scream: "No! You can't come!"

The crowd's expressions changed subtly, quickly realizing: "So it was you. You're really terrible."

"Damn it. Give me back my underwear!"

"What kind of person are you?"

"You can't go, you can't go. I didn't steal! I never stole!" Old Lady Yu, her face swollen like a pig's head, protested.

But her words held no credibility. Who would believe this old woman?

She didn't seem like a good person.

"Let's go!"

"No! I won't go!"

Old Lady Yu fell to the ground, rolling around, but the police officers weren't having it. They grabbed her and pulled her up.

Cuifen: "Follow me, she lives in my neighborhood."

She was so angry that she stomped back, leading everyone with her. Zhao Guihua and the others quickly followed suit. Zhuang Zhixi, being sharp-witted, quickly grabbed their startled hen and put it back in the little pen, saying, "Good girl, tomorrow I'll go catch worms for you to eat."

"Cluck, cluck, cluck!"

This was Zhuang Zhixi's promise to the hen, whether the hen understood it or not, Zhuang Zhixi was certain it did.

He quickly caught up with the group, and the crowd marched all the way to the very end of the alley, stopping in front of a house.

Cuifen: "This is it, officers. This is their house."

Despite the uproar outside, the Yu family inside could still sleep soundly. Even Old Man Yu, the husband of Old Lady Yu, was sleeping deeply, waking up grumpily at the knocking: "Who is it? Are you trying to die? How dare you disturb us in the middle of the night..."

The door creaked open, revealing a crowd outside, led by several police officers.

Old Man Yu instantly stuttered: "W-w-what do you want?"

His face turned pale as he said, "Y-y-you can't listen to rumors! My third daughter-in-law and fourth son are not that kind of relationship. They are innocent, there's no infidelity, you can't wrong them!"

At this moment, Old Yu's eldest son and daughter-in-law also came out, saying, "Yes, officers, this isn't true, it's just a misunderstanding."

The police officers: "..."

Your family is quite a mess.

They hadn't come to investigate this, but the family seemed eager to incriminate themselves.

The crowd around them fell silent, unsure of what to say.

The police officer cleared his throat and tried to regain composure, saying, "We're here because of Old Lady Yu's theft."

"What!"

"Theft?"

"Didn't she just go to sleep..." The word 'sleep' was cut off as Old Man Yu suddenly realized something—his wife wasn't in bed beside him. Was she out stealing?

Just look, even their family members were dumbfounded. They hadn't expected this at all.

Old Man Yu stammered quickly, "S-she's not that kind of person."

"She was caught red-handed."

"Uh..."

"What does this old lady want?"

"Yeah! Can't she just stop causing trouble?"

Even Old Yu's eldest daughter-in-law and second daughter-in-law were speechless.

This old lady is going to bring shame to the family, isn’t she?

Cuifen didn't bother with what they were saying. She forcefully pushed her way to the front and announced, "The clothes I lost a few days ago were stolen by her. And others have lost their underwear, socks, and shorts. It was all your mother-in-law! Move aside; the police officers need to search the house."

"Ah?"

The few Yu family members at home were even more bewildered.

She steals? And specifically underwear and socks?

What kind of hobby is that?

Even if she had stolen something valuable, it might have made sense, but what on earth is she stealing?

Everyone's faces turned grim. The police officers didn't care about that and quickly entered the house. The Yu family's small home was already crowded with people and belongings, making it a bit difficult to search.

Zhao Guihua pushed Old Lady Yu inside and said, "Hand it over yourself."

Old Lady Yu insisted, "I didn't steal anything."

She was determined not to admit it. She said, "I admit I went to your compound today to steal, but the things others lost have nothing to do with me. I didn't... Uh!"

As she spoke, she saw the police officers pull out a doll from a crack in the wall.

It was as if her voice had been strangled, instantly stopping.

"Ah! That's my clothes! That material is from my shirt…" Cuifen screamed, furious, and started beating her: "You scoundrel! My good clothes! How dare you cut them up! How could you be so despicable?"

The police officer turned over the crudely made doll, which had "Chen Erniu" written in crooked letters on it.

He looked up and asked, "Who is Chen Erniu?"

"Uh… That's their third daughter-in-law."

The police officer raised an eyebrow, while the other two daughters-in-law of the Yu family exchanged looks, also speechless.

The police officer continued digging through the wall hole and pulled out another one. To be honest, the old lady's doll-making skills were atrocious—the limbs were uneven, some were thick and some were thin, making it look quite bad.

But it was barely recognizable as a cloth doll.

He flipped it over and saw "Zhou Daniu" written on it, the handwriting almost illegible.

He asked, "Who is Zhou Daniu?"

At this moment, a burly man stepped forward. He was from this courtyard and worked in the same team as Da Qiang. He looked and, damn, it was his name. No wonder he hadn't been going well lately; it was this old lady's doing!

He kicked Old Lady Yu and sent her sprawling: "You old hag, you cursed me, didn't you?"

The police officer quickly stopped him, saying, "We're still investigating; we'll give you an explanation."

Zhou Daniu was panting heavily, like a raging bull.

Although people talked about science and civilization now, many were still superstitious. Seeing a doll with someone's name written on it made people think of the feudal superstitions of the past.

Everyone fell silent. The police officer continued: "Chen Bao Di."

An old lady with a gloomy face said, "It's me."

The police officer nodded and asked, "Are you in this courtyard too?"

The old lady shook her head, "I'm from the next courtyard."

The police officer glanced at the now silent Old Lady Yu and continued: "Guan Hehua."

"It's me. I'm the steward of this courtyard."

Guan Hehua glared at Old Lady Yu, not expecting her to curse even herself. She believed she had been kind enough to the Yu family, as they had many without jobs. Whenever the neighborhood had temporary work, she always fought for work for her own courtyard, including for the Yu family. Yet, the old lady still wanted to harm her.

The police officer continued, finding no more dolls in the wall crack. Others in the group also silently heaved a sigh of relief, thinking they wouldn't be turned into dolls. But the police officer glanced at Old Lady Yu and didn't stop. He continued searching elsewhere and soon found three more under the rafters. These dolls had patches on them.

"Ah, that's my shorts."

"And that other one is my shorts."

The police officer turned them over and said, "Jiang Er Shi."

The crooked writing was barely legible but still readable.

Jiang Er Shi rushed forward angrily: "I said why my chickens laid fewer eggs; it's because of you…"

She started tearing and hitting.

Others: "..."

Just speechless.

They couldn't imagine why this old lady would curse even chickens.

"Uncle Zhang's dog…"

"Old Man Huang, the janitor."

The police officers were speechless. They'd seen bizarre people before, but never this bizarre. Was this person sick or something? They kept finding dolls here and there, eventually uncovering more from the corner of a cabinet.

"Bai Fendou."

"Ah, that's my socks…"

Bai Fendou trembled with anger: "They were all made of clothes! Why did mine use my socks? Do you think I'm less than them?"

"You should be grateful; old man Huang, the janitor, had his shorts made into a doll."

"Yeah, besides, they needed to stuff something inside. Maybe all of you are stuffed with shorts."

"That's why she needed to steal so many clothes; otherwise, the material wouldn't be enough."

The police officer: "The dolls are stuffed with sand."

Old Lady Yu whispered, "If they were all stuffed with cloth, that would be too wasteful…"

"How dare you still talk!"

"You truly lack virtue."

The police officer: "Zhuang Zhixi."

Zhuang Zhixi: "That's me!"

"Ah, that's a rag I lost from my home. I thought it was lost, but it was stolen!"

Zhuang Zhixi: "..."

Well, at least it wasn't shorts.

"Wang Xiangxiu?"

Wang Xiangxiu was furious: "Why is there even me?"

She had no connections with this family, so how could this old lady hate her? Wang Xiangxiu instantly felt that all the hardships she had endured over the past year were caused by this old lady's curses. At this moment, no one would think that these dolls with people's names attached to them were just toys.

Anyone could see what was going on.

This was straight-up cursing people.

Life is always a mix of sweet, sour, bitter, and spicy, but seeing something like this would immediately make anyone attribute their misfortunes to it. It was infuriating.

"You wicked woman!"

Wang Xiangxiu was so angry that she lunged forward to hit her.

"How could you be so cruel? What have I ever done to you? Why curse me? You old hag! You..."

The police officer intervened, "Hold her back, hold her back."

Aunt Wang and Zhao Guihua stepped forward to restrain her. Wang Xiangxiu burst into tears, "Their family is bullying us too much."

The police officer continued flipping through the list, "Workshop Director Zhang Jianshe."

"Wow, she doesn’t even know him. Why curse him?"

Old Lady Yu pursed her lips and couldn’t help but say, "Because he didn’t promote my eldest son. His skills are at least good enough to be a deputy workshop director."

Everyone exclaimed, "Holy cow!"

Yu's eldest son widened his eyes, "Mom, what are you saying? Are you trying to ruin me? Why curse him?"

Yu's daughter-in-law, seeing so many people from the factory present, felt her vision go dark and fainted from sheer anger.

"Ah... quick, quick, carry her over..."

"This is really something, having a mother like this..."

"Maybe he wanted to be the deputy workshop director himself? Otherwise, how would the old lady know?"

"That makes sense."

Yu's eldest son, with red eyes, cried out, "I didn’t! I never did!"

"Oh, don’t cry!"

"Let’s see who else is on the list!"

The police officer continued, "Textile Factory Director Zhang Baoguo."

"Textile Factory Personnel Department Head Zhou Cheng."

"Textile Factory Gatekeeper Uncle Li, Li Aidang."

"Textile Factory..."

The list went on, and many names from the textile factory were mentioned.

"Why so many from the textile factory?"

"Don’t you remember? Yu Baoshan used to work at the textile factory. After his incident, the factory didn’t let his family take over his position."

"But cursing everyone from top to bottom? No wonder there’s a shortage of materials."

"Yu Baoshan broke the law. The factory had every right to fire him."

"Exactly. Yu Baoshan didn’t even show up for work, just took advantage of his position. The factory was being generous enough. Breaking the law means you get fired."

"Absolutely!"

"The people at the textile factory are really unlucky, getting cursed from top to bottom..."

The police officer continued searching and found nearly twenty-seven or twenty-eight dolls, mostly made from underwear, socks, and rags. The one made from Cuifen’s clothes was considered decent material.

The police officer said, "Alright, Old Lady Yu, you’re coming with us. This isn’t just theft; it’s also superstition. Let’s go!"

Old Lady Yu protested, "No, I’m not going with you. I just made these dolls to vent my frustrations. It’s not superstition."

"What do you call this then? And all the materials you used were stolen. You’re quite clever, stealing underwear..." The police officer saw right through her.

Indeed, Old Lady Yu muttered, "People are too embarrassed to report stolen underwear..."

"Holy cow!"

"This despicable..."

"My fists are clenched!"

Old Lady Yu immediately cried out, "You can’t hit me! You can’t! These things aren’t worth much..."

The police officer looked at her with disgust, "It’s not up to you to decide their worth. Let’s go."

"Ah, murder! Help! I’m not going!"

She rolled on the ground, but if that worked, what would the police be for?

They quickly restrained her. Old Man Yu hesitated, wondering if he should step in. The police officer said directly, "You’re coming with us too. You must have known about this, living in the same house."

"I didn’t know, I really didn’t!" Old Man Yu shouted, but his shifty eyes gave him away.

How could he not know? There were twenty-six or twenty-seven dolls in the house, and he wasn’t blind.

The police officer ignored his excuses, "Let’s go," and escorted them away.

Of course, as "evidence," all the dolls were taken as well.

"What a mess."

"There’s a bad apple among us."

"Wait, she stole our stuff. Is she just going to get away with it?"

"Exactly! Underwear is made of fabric too. I only have two pairs, and now I’m missing one. I don’t even have a spare to change into..."

"Let’s go tomorrow. All of us victims should go and ask for justice."

"Sounds good."

"What a disaster."

The night was long, and no one went home. They all gathered together, chattering away.

It turned out that almost every household on their street had been affected. Everyone was furious. They always knew the old lady was a bit mean, but this was downright evil.

How could she do something like this behind everyone’s backs?

The crowd was so worked up that they talked well into the next morning.

The next day, everyone had dark circles under their eyes.

Just thinking about it made them angry. Wang Xiangxiu furiously scrubbed clothes in the yard, treating them as if they were Old Lady Yu. Luckily, they had caught her in time, or her son’s clothes would have been turned into doll material too.

Aunt Zhou seemed distracted. Her last run-in with the law was over superstition, and this incident brought back memories.

Bai Fendou cursed under his breath. His doll was made from stinky socks. Why couldn’t it have been made from clothes? But then he thought about Zhuang Zhixi’s doll being made from rags and felt a bit better.

The pot calling the kettle black.

Zhuang Zhixi: "..."

He was just as unlucky.

He had no dealings with the Yu family. If there was any bad blood, it was because Yu Baoshan had once chased him with a knife. But he was the victim!

Zhuang Zhixi felt both innocent and wronged.

Ming Mei comforted her husband, "It’s okay, don’t be angry. Look, she’s been caught now. She’ll definitely face consequences."

Zhuang Zhixi: "Their family is too much."

Ming Mei rubbed Zhuang Zhixi’s face, "Why don’t you gather some people today? So many from the textile factory were cursed. They won’t let this slide either."

She asked, "Should you go and inform them?"

Zhuang Zhixi: "No need. The police will definitely notify the textile factory. Besides, others will spread the word too."

Ming Mei: "I hope she gets locked up."

It wasn’t that she was heartless, but the old lady had threatened their child yesterday. Their child was still so young and vulnerable. Whether Old Lady Yu was serious or just making empty threats, as a mother, she couldn’t help but feel furious.

Of course, they had to be cautious.

"She actually used our child to threaten us."

Zhuang Zhixi: "I’ll mention that when I go to the police station."

"Sounds good."

Sure enough, the incident from last night spread like wildfire. By the time Zhuang Zhixi and the others got to work, people were already asking about it.

"I heard your doll was made from rags?"

Zhuang Zhixi: "Go away. Why bring that up? I’m still mad about it."

Sister Cui teased, "Zhuang Zhixi, how did you offend that old lady?"

Zhuang Zhixi: "I was just unlucky to cross paths with their family. It’s because of that time her son..."

He wasn’t afraid to talk about it. He was the victim, but somehow, the victim ended up being resented. Their morals were just too twisted.

"Wait, I heard she even cursed people’s chickens?"

"That’s right, and their dogs too..."

"Good grief!"

They had never seen anything like this, even in the old days.

What a mess!

Zhuang Zhixi sighed, "Their family is seriously messed up."

Zhuang Zhixi was caught up in the commotion, and the same was true for others, mainly because Old Lady Yu had so many enemies that the number of participants was quite large. The workshop director of Yu the Eldest's workshop found out that he had been unwittingly cursed and spent the entire day with a dark expression on his face.

He deeply felt that his recent lack of luck was all because of that damn old lady.

Yes, it wasn't noticeable in daily life, but once he heard about being cursed, he immediately thought of a few unpleasant events.

It's safe to say that this was purely psychological.

But everyone thought this way, so they were all very indignant.

Before he even got off work, Bai Fendou came to the propaganda department to find Zhuang Zhixi and said, "Many of the victims plan to go straight to the police station after work. Are you coming?"

Zhuang Zhixi: "Yes!"

Bai Fendou: "Then meet at the factory gate."

"Okay."

These victims were divided into two groups: those who were cursed and those whose belongings were stolen. Just within their factory, the number of people involved was no less than fifty. Of course, some were related to the family members.

However, there were more people whose belongings were stolen than those who were cursed.

After all, a single pair of socks wasn't enough to make a cloth doll, so the number of people whose items were stolen was particularly high.

Although most of the stolen items were small, with only a few having their clothes stolen, the sheer quantity was significant. And this was infuriating! Who does something like this? As a family member of a machinery factory worker, it felt like the entire factory was losing face.

Another factory that was furious was the textile factory. Yu Baoshan hadn't been fired for no reason; the whole city of Sijingcheng (Beijing) knew what had happened. Having such a person in their factory was already a source of embarrassment, but it seemed they could lose even more face.

The other side had cursed the Yu family mercilessly.

Of course, the factory also sent someone to the police station, demanding that the matter be severely punished.

If this matter wasn't dealt with seriously, how could it be convincing? Moreover, the nature of this incident was too vile.

Zhuang Zhixi and the others went after work, while Zhao Guihua and the others had gone during the day to provide statements. They were the ones who caught Old Lady Yu first, although she hadn't succeeded in stealing the chicken.

Upon returning, as they sat in the courtyard chatting, they still couldn't understand how someone could do such a thing.

Zhao Guihua: "What will happen to her for this?"

"Who knows? It's not going to be small."

"Yes, I agree. Stealing and engaging in superstitious activities are both serious matters."

Zhao Guihua felt a bit disoriented, but she understood that different times had different norms. In this era of scarce resources, what she did was indeed a big deal. Still, she didn't feel sympathy for this woman. Using a child for threats was despicable in her eyes, and she hoped Old Lady Yu would spend a long time in prison.

It seemed that their thoughts aligned.

Ming Mei also hated the Yu family for using a child as a threat.

Zhao Guihua: "This family is truly terrible. Their family values were bad in their previous life, and they're the same in this one."

"Absolutely, have you heard? She even cursed Old Man Bai."

"Oh my god. Could it be that Old Man Bai was cursed to death by her?"

"Don't say that. People will think we're spreading superstition. Old Man Bai's death was an accident; we all know what happened back then."

"Right, right."

"But the timing of Old Man Bai's death was just too coincidental..."

"Don't talk about it."

"Alright, I won't."

Wang Zizhen hadn't gone to the police station and was now curiously asking, "Old Man Bai? What happened to Old Man Bai?"

Zhao Guihua: "There was a doll for Old Man Bai in their house, but since he passed away, she buried the doll below their window. We learned this when we went to give our statements today."

"Ah?" Wang Zizhen was stunned.

"It's said that Old Man Yu confessed. He claimed he didn't do these things. It was all his wife. He argued didn't work, and it involved the whole family, so he didn't dare to inform on them. But essentially, he didn't approve of it... Basically, he was just trying to clear his name. To distance himself, he revealed a lot about Old Lady Yu's actions. We overheard some of it when we went today." Aunt Wang added.

"This is truly, 'in times of peril, even a couple flying together may scatter.'”

"Exactly."

Zhao Guihua: "Old Lady Yu is truly ruthless. It's said that she would take out a doll every night before bed and viciously curse it."

She had a hard time expressing herself, adding, "And, it's said that she had even more dolls in earlier years, but after someone died, she buried them."

"Uh..."

Everyone rubbed their arms, feeling a chill in the middle of the day.

No wonder such practices were prohibited. Otherwise, it would really give people goosebumps.

"It's said that Old Lady Yu claimed such things were common in the countryside. The officers at the police station were so angry they asked her to name names, to point out who else did it. That left Old Lady Yu speechless."

"Zizhen, do they do these things in your village?"

Wang Zizhen thought for a moment and said, "I don't know. It might be, or maybe not. Our village might be remote, but we still follow the calls. Even if someone did these things, they must be doing them in secret."

Everyone shook their heads, expressing they couldn't understand.

But they weren't too shocked. After all, they had seen a lot and weren't easily shocked by small matters. Speaking of shock, no one in their courtyard was as shocked as He Lan.

He Lan hadn't experienced the heyday of the courtyard, so what she saw was already pushing the limits.

Since last night, she hadn't closed her mouth; she kept exclaiming.

She just hadn't seen anything like this before.

Zhao Guihua noticed He Lan's shocked and bewildered expression and smiled, saying, "Haven't seen this before, right?"

He Lan shook her head, "No."

She said, "This is truly..."

She couldn't even describe it. Although she was an educated person, she didn't know how to put it into words. It was just too absurd!

"This is nothing. There's a lot more going on in our courtyard."

"You'll see in the future."

"Exactly!"

Perhaps the incident was too outrageous, so Zhang San and his wife, who had been at home resting due to pregnancy, returned. Even Chen Yuan and Tao Yuyue, who had been absent from the courtyard for some time, came back. They all felt regretful that they had missed such a big event.

After hearing everyone's story, Chen Yuan subtly pursed his lips and said, "When I first moved here, I lost a pair of underwear."

"Ah?"

Everyone looked at him in surprise.

Aunt Wang, although she didn't like this man who would beat his wife, still reminded him, "Then you should go to the police station and tell the officers. Then we'll see whether they decide on compensation or something else, but there must be a resolution."

Chen Yuan nodded, "You're right."

He stood up and left. Tao Yuyue was stunned, her eyes flickering as she quickly chased after him, "Chen Yuan, wait."

Chen Yuan impatiently turned back, "What for? Can't I report something I lost to the police?"

Tao Yuyue pursed her lips, "Maybe you misplaced it?"

"How could that be? Do you think I don't know whether I lost something or not? What's wrong with you? Blocking me now? Who's in charge in our house, you or me?"

Tao Yuyue felt annoyed but still said, "You're in charge. I'm just afraid you might have made a mistake and embarrass yourself."

"Nonsense! You never wish me well!"

Tao Yuyue: "It's not that..."

At this moment, Chen Yuan didn't notice, but others did.

Something was definitely off.

Chen Yuan's underwear probably hadn't been lost.

Chen Yuan's attitude confirmed he wasn't lying, but perhaps Tao Yuyue had kept it? Or maybe Tao Yuyue knew what had happened.

Chen Yuan: "Get out of the way!"

Tao Yuyue grabbed Chen Yuan and said, "Come back home with me."

Chen Yuan: "What for?"

By this time, he finally realized Tao Yuyue's strange expression and frowned, "Is something wrong? Did you take my underwear?"

Tao Yuyue: "Let's discuss this at home."

Two people were tugging and pulling, quickly heading home. Everyone exchanged silent glances. Zhang San immediately said, "I'm going home too."

He darted over rapidly, clearly intending to eavesdrop.

After all, he was always at the forefront of gossip.

Aunt Zhou couldn't help herself and joined in.

Zhao Guihua twitched the corner of her mouth: "What is this all about?"

Although some were too shy to go and eavesdrop, they strained their necks to catch a glimpse. After all, Zhang San and the others would definitely share what they heard. Even He Lan stretched her neck, utterly curious.

Meanwhile, Tao Yuyue had already entered the house with Chen Yuan. She looked outside, slammed the door shut, and whispered, "I took your underwear."

"What?"

Chen Yuan stared at Tao Yuyue in disbelief, saying, "Why did you take my underwear?"

Tao Yuyue felt a bit awkward and explained, "It's not that I took your underwear; it's just that I didn't wash it properly and it got torn. I was afraid you'd be mad, so I threw it away."

Her eyes flickered as she tried to appear calm.

Chen Yuan slapped her immediately, saying, "You stinky woman, trying to play mind games with me. You tore it while washing, so you just threw it away? Do we have a goldmine at home that we can afford to waste like this? That torn piece could have been for my grandfather! You actually threw it away, you wasteful woman, I'll beat you to death!"

"Ah!"

Tao Yuyue suddenly remembered they were in the compound, not at home. She grabbed a frying pan and fought back: "Beat, beat, beat! That's all you know how to do! I wasn't born to be beaten by you! Are you used to beating people over there? Do you think I'm easy to bully?"

"You dare to fight back?"

"Why shouldn't I fight back? Do you think your mother or grandmother will protect you here?"

"You ungrateful woman, I knew you weren't good, ah..."

"Take this!"

"I'll kill you!"

Bam bam, the two engaged in a full-on brawl inside the house.

Zhang San, Aunt Zhou, and the others who were eavesdropping quietly remained silent. Zhang San sighed and knocked on the door: "Chen Yuan, Tao Yuyue, stop fighting!"

"Mind your own business!"

The couple responded in unison.

Zhang San: "..."

Aunt Zhou mocked him: "Look at you, meddling in other people's business, huh?"

Zhang San: "Truly unappreciative people."

"Get lost!"

"Go away!"

The couple yelled together, and the sounds of clashing resumed. It seemed they were now using appliances. The windows and doors shook as if they were about to fall. Tao Yuyue seemed to have been holding back a lot.

Zhang San looked at the equally curious Aunt Zhou and asked, "They won't end up killing each other, will they?"

Aunt Zhou: "Of course not."

She was sincere: "It's not easy to kill someone. Yesterday, we had a group fight with Old Lady Yu, and she's still fine."

Zhang San: "..."

Because of the commotion, everyone gathered around. Zhao Guihua even pushed a baby stroller. Little Tuantuan and Little Yuanyuan kicked their legs excitedly, stretched out their little hands, and exclaimed "Ah ah ah wow wow wow!" as if eager to enter.

Zhao Guihua: "You be good, we can't go in there."

"Waah!" The babies started blowing bubbles, obviously very anxious.

Zhao Guihua: "They’re in a blind fury. Grandma wouldn’t dare take you in there. What if you get hurt, my little darlings?"

"Ah huahua!"

Although Little Tuantuan and Little Yuanyuan were excited to watch the commotion, other children were equally eager. The banging noises made them think there was a big toy involved. Several children in their strollers became very restless.

But the parents didn't pay any attention.

They were all engrossed in the spectacle.

Zhao Guihua also ignored the eager children and focused on watching the commotion.

Inside the house, the fight continued. Tao Yuyue shouted, "Chen Yuan, you're just a good-for-nothing. You can't do anything right. Without your parents, you're nothing. You're just being tough with me; you can only beat me, what else can you do!"

"What are you, a good person? You can't even have a son."

"Pfft. I'm fine, it's you who can't!"

"It's you!"

"It's you!"

Tao Yuyue raged, "I’ll tell you the truth. I gave your underwear to a fortune-teller. She’ll curse you. If anything goes wrong in our marriage, it’s all your fault!"

Everyone: Oh ho! Another one into superstitious stuff?

Besides, what’s with your beef against his underwear?

It’s just bizarre!