My happy life in a courtyard house with triplets.

Chapter 249: Jia Zhangshi Seeks Help from Zhang Lei

Zhang Lei wandered around outside the courtyard for a while before quickly heading back. Just as he reached the middle courtyard, Jia Zhangshi suddenly rushed out of the Jia family home, startling him.

Zhang Lei frowned and scolded Jia Zhangshi, who was gripping his bicycle handlebars, "Jia Zhangshi, what are you doing?"

Seeing Zhang Lei's displeasure, Jia Zhangshi quickly explained, "I know, I know, Zhang Lei... no, Fourth Master, I have something to say to you."

Hearing that Jia Zhangshi had something to tell him, Zhang Lei was full of doubts and urged, "Jia Zhangshi, what is it? Tell me quickly."

Jia Zhangshi's gaze fell on the pork ribs Zhang Lei was carrying, and she couldn't help but swallow hard. Seeing her expression, Zhang Lei tucked the bag of ribs behind his back and pressed her again, "Jia Zhangshi, what's wrong? I'm leaving if you don't tell me."

Madam Jia quickly reached out to stop her, saying repeatedly, "Something's wrong, something's wrong."

Seeing her dawdling, Zhang Lei patiently said, "What is it? Speak quickly."

Madam Jia then spoke up: "Fourth Uncle, it's like this, you see, there are three of us in my family, and I'm the only one who can work. My son is still in bed. I'm thinking, if I go to work, what will happen to my son? You're the Fourth Uncle in the courtyard, you have to help our Jia family."

Hearing this, Zhang Lei frowned, inwardly scoffing. This Jia Zhangshi actually wanted to go to work? It was like a rare occurrence. He asked to confirm, "Jia Zhangshi, are you really going to work?"

Jia Zhangshi nodded vigorously: "That's right, if I don't work, what will our family eat and drink?"

After hearing the explanation, Zhang Lei suddenly understood and asked, "Oh, I see. Do you have any ideas?"

Madam Jia shook her head: "No, if I had an idea, I wouldn't be asking you."

Zhang Lei thought for a moment and said, "Mrs. Jia, you're just worried that Jia Dongxu won't be taken care of while you're at work, right?"

Madam Jia nodded quickly: "Fourth Master, you are absolutely right."

Zhang Lei paused for a moment, then continued, "How about this, you can talk to Uncle San's family. As long as you're willing to spend the money, I think they'll definitely be willing to help you with this."

Jia Zhangshi looked doubtful: "Really?"

Zhang Lei nodded: "You can try if you don't believe me, and we'll see if it works. Although the Yan family is calculating, they are reliable when it comes to getting things done. Besides, even though Jia Dongxu is incapacitated, it's just a matter of eating, drinking, and relieving himself. As long as the Yan family gets the money, there will definitely be someone willing to do it."

Upon hearing this, Madam Jia frowned.

Seeing her hesitation, Zhang Lei advised, "Alright, don't worry about the money. Think about it, if you're not home, no one will know what might happen to Jia Dongxu while he's alone. If you could ask the Yan family to take care of Jia Dongxu and have them check on him from time to time, wouldn't that be good for you, your family, and your son?"

After hearing Zhang Lei's words, Jia Zhangshi finally nodded: "Fourth Uncle, you're right. Okay, I'll go ask Yan Fugui right now, and see if anyone in their family is willing to help take care of my son."

Zhang Lei immediately reminded him, "We're paying people to help, not offering free assistance."

Madam Jia quickly replied, "Oh, right, right, spend money, spend money."

Zhang Lei watched Jia Zhangshi run into the courtyard and shook his head helplessly. He knew in his heart that he had given her the idea, and whether Jia Zhangshi could carry it out was up to her.

When Zhang Lei returned home with the meat, he tiptoed to the door and cautiously listened to the sounds inside, fearing a heated argument was brewing. To his surprise, he heard the three women chatting and laughing, without a trace of discord.

Zhang Lei pushed open the door, waved the ribs in his hand, and said with a smile to the three people in the room, "You're in luck today. I happened to find some ribs for sale, so I bought some to make braised ribs for you."

The three women exchanged knowing smiles as they watched him carrying the meat. Ding Qiunan was the first to stand up: "Zhang Lei, I'll cook."

Unexpectedly, Lou Xiao'e stepped forward first, waved her hand and said, "You rest first, I'll cook."

Zhang Lei looked at Lou Xiao'e with a puzzled expression: "Lou Xiao'e, can you cook?"

Lou Xiao'e paused for a moment, then smiled awkwardly: "How about I take the money to have it done outside, and bring it back when it's done?"

Upon hearing this, Zhang Lei's face darkened, and he quickly waved his hand, "Never mind, I'll do it."

Seeing the two of them, Ye Shuqin smiled and smoothed things over, saying, "You two can just sit there and let Zhang Lei serve us."

Ding Qiunan and Lou Xiao'e listened and sat back down at the table. Zhang Lei felt a warmth in his heart seeing the three of them getting along so well, smiled knowingly, and turned to go into the kitchen to get busy. Although he could only cook some simple home-style dishes, the taste was passable.

An hour later, Zhang Lei came out carrying four dishes and a soup, proudly pointing to his masterpieces and introducing them: "This is scrambled eggs with chili peppers, this is braised pork ribs, this is scrambled eggs with tomatoes, this is steamed egg custard, and finally, seaweed and egg drop soup."

Looking at the dishes on the table, the three women smiled helplessly. Lou Xiao'e frowned and asked in confusion, "Zhang Lei, why did you make only eggs?"

Ding Qiunan, who was standing nearby, took a bite and said softly, "Zhang Lei, your cooking is not bad."

Zhang Lei smiled and explained, "I don't know many dishes, but I saw we had a lot of eggs at home, so I made extra. Eat up and try it."

Lou Xiao'e also picked up a bite and tasted it, then nodded: "Hmm, it's barely edible."

Zhang Lei was surprised by the evaluation and took a bite himself: "Really? I think it's pretty good."

Lou Xiao'e couldn't help but laugh out loud: "I was just kidding."

Soon, the four of them started eating. Zhang Lei had just picked up a piece of braised pork ribs, intending to hand it to Ding Qiunan, who had been exhausted the night before, to help her recover. But as soon as he lifted his chopsticks, he noticed that all three women's eyes were on his chopsticks.

He was a little embarrassed and stood up, waving his hand: "Don't worry, there are plenty." He handed the ribs to Ye Shuqin first, then to Ding Qiunan, and finally to Lou Xiao'e.

Lou Xiao'e took the ribs, muttering with some complaint, "Ugh, why am I last in line?"

Zhang Lei explained with a smile, "Qiu Nan isn't feeling well, so I put her before you in line. If you're not feeling well another day, I'll definitely take care of you first."

Hearing this, Lou Xiao'e nodded in satisfaction: "Alright then, you've passed."

Zhang Lei breathed a sigh of relief, and only then did he realize that Lou Xiao'e's behavior was somewhat out of character. He looked at her and asked, "Were you doing that on purpose just now?"

Seeing Zhang Lei's belated realization, Ye Shuqin laughed and said, "Honey, you're only just realizing it now?"

Ding Qiunan chimed in, "Xiao'e, stop teasing him on purpose. Look how nervous he is."

Lou Xiao'e looked at Ding Qiunan and pouted, "You, you always know how to speak up for him. You'll regret it later."

Zhang Lei looked at Lou Xiao'e with annoyance: "Lou Xiao'e, it seems it's time to teach you a lesson, otherwise you won't know who's in charge of this family."

Lou Xiao'e wasn't afraid at all, and said with her head held high, "Who's afraid of who?"

Seeing Lou Xiao'e's defiant attitude, Zhang Lei immediately gave up and waved his hand, "Fine, fine, I give up."

Lou Xiao'e, like a victorious general, proudly raised her chin, as if to say, "See? You can't beat me." Zhang Lei, seeing Lou Xiao'e's childish behavior, didn't bother arguing with her anymore. He thought to himself that as long as Lou Xiao'e and Ding Qiunan could get along, his little grievance was nothing.