The Courtyard House: The story begins with He Yuzhu beating up the White Widow.

When He Yuzhu took Song Ran to the Badaling Great Wall, a black sedan appeared downstairs at the apartment building where Tan Lingya and her daughter lived. Shortly after, Lou Zhenhua got out of the car. Lou Zhenhua stood by the car door, staring at the apartment on the second floor for a few seconds, then sighed deeply and walked towards the stairs.

"Knock! Knock! Knock!" Lou Xiao'e, who was about to leave, heard the knocking, opened the door, and was stunned to see Lou Zhenhua. She called out, "Dad!"

Lou Zhenhua nodded slightly and asked, "Xiao'e, are you going out?"

Lou Xiao'e replied, "Yes! I went out to take care of some things." With that, Lou Xiao'e stepped aside. Lou Zhenhua entered the house and saw Tan Lingya coming out. He asked, "Didn't you go to the tea restaurant today?!"

Tan Lingya replied, "If you're not coming, I'll go over in a bit."

Lou Zhenhua looked at Lou Xiao'e and said, "Xiao'e, if your matter isn't urgent, could you sit down and talk to me?"

Lou Xiao'e thought for a moment and then closed the door.

Lou Zhenhua walked to the sofa and sat down, then gestured for Lou Xiao'e and Tan Lingya to sit down as well, asking, "Xiao'e, I heard you started a company?!"

Lou Xiao'e seemed to have anticipated that Lou Zhenhua would ask her about this. Moreover, Lou Xiao'e knew in her heart that this kind of thing couldn't be kept secret. Lou Xiao'e answered directly, "Yes!" Then she asked, "Is there a problem?!"

Lou Zhenhua said, "I have a pretty good idea of ​​how much money I give your mother, and how much secret money she has. Where did you get the money to start your company?!"

Lou Xiao'e replied matter-of-factly, "A friend gave it to me!"

Before coming, Lou Zhenhua had considered many possible answers, but this was the one he hadn't thought of. Lou Zhenhua laughed and said, "Xiao'e, even if you're going to find a reason, you should at least find a suitable one. Do you think I'd believe this reason?!"

Lou Xiao'e said, "Believe it or not, it's the truth." Then, changing the subject, she questioned, "Could it be that your first wife's family is stirring up trouble for you here, and you're asking me for money?!"

"Shut up!" Lou Zhenhua jumped up as if he'd been stepped on, saying, "You're becoming more and more lawless!"

Lou Xiao'e retorted, "Dad, isn't what I said true?!" Then, changing the subject, she continued, "Dad, what did you say to Mom back in Beijing?! Have you forgotten?! Is it because you've been sidelined by the first and second wives, and because you're old and have lost your ambition?! Is the once-powerful Lou Bancheng in Beijing really dead?!"

Lou Xiao'e's words struck Lou Zhenhua's heart like a series of heavy hammer blows. Lou Zhenhua sighed and said, "I am indeed old! I can't argue anymore. Now that you've started your own company, do it well!"

Tan Lingya asked, "Zhenhua, are you having some kind of trouble?!"

Lou Zhenhua laughed and said, "It's nothing, I just came to ask. As long as Xiao'e's money for starting the company is from a clean source, I'm relieved!"

Lou Xiao'e hesitated for a moment, then decided not to hide it from Lou Zhenhua and said, "Dad, He Yuzhu came to Gangcheng a few days ago. He gave me all my money."

"What?!" Lou Zhenhua exclaimed in surprise, then asked, "Where is he?!"

Lou Xiao'e replied, "He has already gone back."

Lou Zhenhua then asked, "He gave you so much money, didn't he ask for anything in return?!"

Lou Xiao'e shook her head and replied, "No! But he said that girls without money are easily deceived."

When Lou Zhenhua saw the radiant smile on Lou Xiao'e's face when she mentioned He Yuzhu, just like Tan Lingya had done when she spoke of him in front of others, Lou Zhenhua realized with a start that his daughter had fallen for him. Lou Zhenhua sighed inwardly again and asked, "Xiao'e, are you really sure you want to follow him without any status or recognition?!"

Lou Xiao'e laughed and retorted, "Dad, is a formal title really that important?!"

Lou Zhenhua was momentarily speechless. He stared intently at Lou Xiao'e for several minutes. After a while, as if he had made peace with himself, a bitter smile appeared on his face, and he said, "I'm sorry to you and your daughter. As long as you two are doing well, I'm at ease!" With that, Lou Zhenhua stood up.

Tan Lingya, who had been silent the whole time, suddenly spoke up: "Zhenhua, if you're not happy living over there, just move in with me. I don't want your money or your things, I just want you."

Lou Xiao'e chimed in, "Dad, give them whatever they want! If you can't bear to leave those old brothers who came to Hong Kong with us, my company just happens to be short-staffed. Let them work for me."

Lou Zhenhua asked with a smile and a teasing tone, "A hundred or so people? Can your fledgling company support them all?!"

Lou Xiao'e answered decisively, "They can live on it!" She then took out a business card and handed it to Lou Zhenhua, saying, "This is my business card; it has my company address on it. You can have them come to my company to find me."

Lou Zhenhua took the business card, glanced at it, and then put it in his pocket, saying, "I'll have them give it a try." He then looked at Tan Lingya with a hint of reluctance and said, "I'm leaving!"

Tan Lingya silently saw Lou Zhenhua to the door. After closing the door, Tan Lingya turned and saw Lou Xiao'e sitting on the sofa in a daze. She couldn't help but say, "Xiao'e, don't resent your father!"

Lou Xiao'e said, "Mom, Dad's visit today was a wake-up call for me. I can't do it all by myself. I need to find myself a capable helper!"

Tan Lingya asked, "You want to find your second brother?!"

Lou Xiao'e laughed and said, "Don't you know what kind of person my second brother is?! He wouldn't have become a live-in son-in-law if he hadn't been forced into it back then! I'll give him a call later and ask him to come over when he has time. I plan to have a good talk with him."

Lou Zhenhua came downstairs and got into his car. Fu Ming, Lou Zhenhua's bodyguard and the son of the housekeeper, who was sitting in the passenger seat, asked, "Master, where are we going now?!"

Lou Zhenhua snapped out of his daze and said, "Go to Sham Shui Po."

"Yes!" Fuming replied, then said to the driver, "Drive!"

After Lou Zhenhua left, Lou Xiao'e and Tan Lingya went downstairs. Lou Xiao'e had originally planned to call Lou Guoliang at the company, but for some reason changed her mind. Lou Xiao'e went to the tea restaurant with Tan Lingya and used the office phone to call her second brother, Lou Guoliang, who was in Macau. It's unclear what Lou Xiao'e said to Lou Guoliang, but the siblings agreed to meet in three days.