I am Jia Dongjin in the Siheyuan (Courtyard House)

Chapter 54 Group Fight

From her teenage years to now, Qin Huairu has seen many men covet her, but the man before her has a clear and honest gaze; he is not a bad person.

After working for half a year, her perspective had changed drastically, and she no longer cried for help in fear.

Otherwise, even if the person opposite her was a security officer, as long as Qin Huairu cried for help, in full view of everyone, she would easily be charged with hooliganism, with a 60% chance of being charged.

Qin Huairu knew that the other party was blinded by lust, but she was not angry. She simply pushed the cart to the side, hoping to get around him.

Seeing the woman turn the corner, Liu Hong followed her to stop her and strike up a conversation, which ultimately led to disaster.

As the obstruction continued, those secretly watching began to lose their composure. He Yuzhu was one of them. After finishing his work, he was resting with several kitchen helpers at the entrance of the canteen, smoking and chatting together. Unexpectedly, someone publicly flirted with Qin Huairu, which aroused his strong protective instincts.

Qin Huairu was He Yuzhu's neighbor in the courtyard house and also his colleague in the cafeteria. He Yuzhu had long harbored feelings for Qin Huairu. Under the influence of these three factors, He Yuzhu threw down his cigarette and rushed towards the two men, shouting, "Which bastard dares to act like a hooligan!"

At this time, the employees of the unit valued unity and shared hatred of the enemy. Seeing He Yuzhu rush forward, many employees of the third canteen also charged forward. Without saying a word, the canteen chefs gave Liu Hong a good beating.

When people are starving, human life is naturally not very valuable. Men have little entertainment, so they all love to fight.

After the cafeteria staff had beaten Liu Hong to a pulp, they were still not satisfied and began kicking him in circles.

The cafeteria staff were having a great time when a security guard happened to be patrolling by. Seeing his colleague being beaten, he rushed over to help without saying a word and called for backup.

At first, the security department was short-staffed and suffered a great loss. They were beaten to a pulp by the canteen chefs who had no problem getting food. As reinforcements from the security department arrived one after another, although these reinforcements did not eat as well as the canteen chefs, they were professional fighters after all, and their beating skills far surpassed those of the canteen chefs who were just tossing and cooking.

The situation has begun to reverse. Now it's the cafeteria staff who are being beaten and running away with their heads in their hands. The more fiercely He Yuzhu beat Liu Hong back then, the more badly he is being beaten now.

Soon, He Yuzhu was beaten to the ground. As fate would have it, he was surrounded by a large group of guards who began kicking him in circles.

In the critical moment, thanks to the brave and fierce Liu Lan, a female kitchen helper, she stepped forward and led a group of female kitchen helpers with mops and brooms to rush to the rescue.

Qin Huairu grabbed a bamboo broom and followed suit. Since the matter originated from her, she couldn't afford not to get involved; otherwise, she would be scorned and ostracized by everyone.

A group of women joined in, and the security department dared not and disdained to fight with women, so they could only retreat. The canteen staff also quickly returned, and after stabilizing the situation, the battle progressed to the final verbal sparring stage.

In verbal battles, the women's team had a natural advantage and secured a decisive victory, especially since the cafeteria was in the right from the start.

In movies and television, the police always arrive at the scene after the fact, and the leaders of the steel rolling mill were no different; they arrived late, after the farce had ended.

In Jia Dongjin's previous life, gang fights and brawls were major issues, but now they were nothing. Even when the police tried to stop the fights, they were often beaten bloody by both sides.

With more group fights, the police have gained experience in handling them, and no one is foolish enough to rush forward to stop them anymore. Instead, they are more interested in watching the excitement from the sidelines. It's not too late for the police to step in and stop the fight when both sides are tired.

The leaders of the steel rolling mill actually had the same thought in mind. No one wanted to be beaten up by their subordinates. Of course, they would wait until things calmed down before stopping the fight. This way, they could both demonstrate their leadership status and establish their authority, and also quell the conflict.

After investigation, factory director Yang Weimin and logistics director Li Huaide were both dumbfounded and amused after understanding the whole story. Even Zhang Youde, the head of the security department who rushed over, managed to hold back his laughter.

After repeatedly questioning Qin Huairu and confirming that security officer Liu Hong had not acted inappropriately, Zhang Youde's attitude softened considerably. He apologized to logistics director Li Huaide and canteen director Li Youcai. Since no crime was involved, it was clear that the matter should be minimized and forgotten.

After communication and negotiation, Zhang Youde, the head of the security department, was very considerate. He admitted that the security department was in the wrong first and, in addition to apologizing, also agreed to the plan to compensate the canteen staff.

At that time, the security department was different from the security guards of decades later. It was mostly staffed by retired soldiers and was a cadre position. Their benefits, income and status were incomparable to those of the two.

Moreover, the security department is under dual management, possessing the dual identities of police officer and factory employee. As is customary, Zhang Youde, the head of the security department, also serves as the deputy director of the public security bureau, wielding immense power. In some respects, his status is not much lower than that of Director Yang.

Strictly speaking, only Zhang Youde, the head of the security department, has the real authority to punish the security personnel; Director Yang and others only have the right to make suggestions.

The security department bowed their heads and admitted their mistake. The tragedy turned into a celebration in the blink of an eye. The canteen had won the battle, and the canteen staff, with their bruised and battered faces, returned to work in high spirits.

The steel rolling mill is about to open for lunch. Fighting is nothing, but delaying the workers' lunch is a big deal, a hundred times more serious than a brawl, and belongs to the category of super-serious matters.

Despite his injuries, He Yuzhu insisted on getting food at the window. Occasionally, when he encountered a security officer with a bruised and swollen face, he would get a little extra food to show that he was magnanimous.

At that time, people were rough and no one cared about such minor injuries. Those who dared to fight were considered warriors and could enjoy the treatment of combat heroes. People liked to regard their injuries as medals. This was a unique joy and sorrow of people in this era.

"Hey, I heard the cafeteria and the security department got into a fight, and it was pretty fierce."

"So what? Do you know why they fought? I saw it all clearly."

"Brother, have a smoke and tell me what you think."

"Hey, it's all because of... you know, the prettiest girl in the cafeteria?"

"Because of her?"

"You bet! The fight was way better than in the movies, wow, the spectacle was amazing."

Violence plus beautiful women—these two factors can produce a Hollywood blockbuster, let alone a small steel mill with a lack of spiritual life.

The incident caused such a big stir that soon, thousands of employees at the steel rolling mill learned the whole story. Everyone was excited and discussing it with great interest.

He Yuzhu, in particular, was like a victorious rooster, tirelessly recounting the events to busybodies. Qin Huairu, the person involved, was completely unaware that she had been thrust into the eye of the storm.

As Qin Huairu's brother-in-law, Jia Dongjin was also asked about this matter by many people, which made him helpless and annoyed. He simply went out to find some peace and quiet.

At that time, people had not yet realized the value of real estate. There were empty plots of land everywhere. The steel rolling mill occupied a huge area, and the area outside the steel rolling mill was a wasteland.

The winter sun shone overhead, and the ground was covered with dry grass. Jia Dongjin simply lay down on the withered grass, staring blankly into space.

He had something on his mind and wasn't interested in the fight; he was just happy as long as Qin Huairu wasn't hurt.

Jia Dongjin casually plucked a withered grass and put it in his mouth, chewing the grass stem while staring blankly at the vast wasteland outside the gate.

The wasteland was vast, and in some places, traces of cultivation could still be seen. Clearly, this place was originally fertile land, but now it was overgrown with thatch.

Jia Dongjin stared for a long time, until a cold wind blew by, and then he sighed, "If it doesn't speak first when spring comes, what insect dares to make a sound!"