Courtyard House: I fish in the heavens, a professional bird abuser.

The moonlight, cool and gentle, fell on the quiet alleyway, coating the bluestone pavement with a layer of silver frost.

He Yuanchao stared at Lou Xiao'e.

Those bright eyes, glistening with tears of excitement and happiness, seemed to be filled with the starlight of the entire night sky.

He could clearly see that in those beautiful pupils, only his own image was reflected, as well as the dazzling, boundless starry river behind him.

At that moment, an unprecedented sense of peace and warmth welled up in his heart, as if a ship that had been adrift for a long time had finally found a harbor to dock in.

He gently took her slightly cool hand in his. Her fingers were slender and delicate, with a faint, almost imperceptible tremor that came from the depths of her heart.

"Xiao'e," his voice was low and earnest, "I know that in this era, many things are best kept simple. But there are some things, some promises, that I want to give you the most solemn ceremony."

Under Lou Xiao'e's questioning yet expectant gaze, he took out a small velvet box, about the size of a palm, from the pocket of his Zhongshan suit.

The deep blue velvet shimmered softly in the moonlight, appearing mysterious and precious.

Lou Xiao'e's heart skipped a beat, and she instinctively held her breath.

He Yuanchao knelt on one knee, a gesture ahead of its time, which instantly brought tears to Lou Xiao'e's eyes.

He looked up at her, his gaze focused and reverent, and slowly opened the box.

The moment it was opened, a diamond ring shone with a dazzling and pure light under the moonlight.

The diamond wasn't large, but in an era when even glass was a rare commodity, the brilliance it refracted seemed to encompass the stars in the sky, so dazzling that people dared not look directly at it.

"Xiao'e, I don't have many fancy words. I only know that meeting you is the greatest luck of my two lifetimes."

He Yuanchao held the box in one hand and took her hand in the other, slowly and solemnly slipping the ring onto her ring finger.

"I hope that from now on, I will share your joys and sorrows. I hope that for the rest of my life, I will be there for you through thick and thin, and wherever your eyes fall, you will see me."

"Will you marry me?"

The ring fits perfectly, without any gaps.

But for Lou Xiao'e of this era, its significance is heavier than Mount Tai.

The moment the cold metal touched her skin, a surge of warmth rushed from the depths of her heart to her eyes, instantly blurring her vision.

Tears streamed down my face uncontrollably.

"Aid Korea..."

Lou Xiao'e's voice was thick with nasal tone and trembled slightly.

She looked repeatedly at the ring on her finger; its dazzling light stung her eyes, yet her heart felt as if it were filled with the sweetest honey, every corner overflowing with happiness.

She gripped He Yuanchao's broad, warm hand tightly, with such force that it seemed she wanted to merge her very bones and blood into his palm, as if she wanted to entrust her entire future to him without reservation.

"I...I do."

She used almost all her strength to say those three words.

Every word carried immense weight, yet was spoken with unwavering resolve. It was a response to all his deep affection, and also the most solemn promise he could make to his own future.

He Yuanchao smiled, his smile full of tenderness and satisfaction.

He stood up and gently pulled her into his arms, holding her tightly without leaving a gap.

The girl's body trembled slightly in his arms, yet it carried a reassuring softness and fragrance—a faint jasmine scent that was uniquely hers.

"Let's go home," He Yuanchao whispered in her ear. "Tell Uncle Lou and Aunt Lou the good news as soon as possible, so they can be at ease. Tomorrow, I'll go to their house to formally propose marriage."

"Mmm." Lou Xiao'e nodded vigorously in his arms, her cheek pressed tightly against his firm chest, feeling his steady and powerful heartbeat, her face beaming with an irrepressible, silly yet happy smile.

……

After escorting Lou Xiao'e back to the Lou family's small Western-style house, which appeared exceptionally quiet in the night, He Yuanchao did not go inside.

He stood at the door, watching Lou Xiao'e, her face full of happiness and shyness, run into the house like a joyful lark.

He could almost imagine the scene of joy and excitement that would unfold in that quiet little building.

He turned his bike around, rode the Forever 28-inch bicycle, and rode back to the courtyard house filled with repression, jealousy, and filth, facing the evening breeze.

The evening breeze caressed his cheeks, bringing a touch of coolness, but it did nothing to extinguish the burning passion in his heart.

The loneliness of the past life, the reunion in this life, all the efforts and calculations, at this moment, have transformed into a profound happiness.

However, what he didn't know was that while he was enjoying the fruits of happiness, an even more insidious and vicious scheme targeting those around him was quietly taking shape in another dark corner of the courtyard.

……

The room of Sha Zhu reeked of alcohol, making people dizzy and lightheaded.

He and Xu Damao had already drunk half a bottle of cheap Erguotou (a type of Chinese liquor) with a dish of boiled peanuts in salt water.

The air was filled with the pungent smell of cheap alcohol mixed with the sour stench of men's sweat, a nauseating odor.

"...That little brat He Yushui has been completely bought off by that ingrate He Yuanchao!"

Sha Zhu's face was flushed from drinking, the veins on his neck were bulging, and his eyes were filled with the anger of being betrayed.

"Following me around like a little tail every day, calling me 'Brother Aid Korea, Brother Aid Korea' sweeter than a real brother! And what the hell are you talking about, learning to write! Bah! I think you're learning how to be a traitor's lackey!"

The thought of his sister growing increasingly distant from him and even frequently arguing with him, while obeying the "outsider" in his eyes, made him furious, and he slammed his fist on the table.

"Bang!"

The peanuts on the table were shaken and bounced up, with a few rolling onto the greasy floor.

"And those sycophants from the Yan family! Especially that brat Yan Jiecheng, he's practically He Yuanchao's dog now! He wouldn't dare do a disobey He Yuanchao! He treats He Yuanchao better than his own father, Yan Laoxi! Disgusting! Absolutely disgusting!"

Xu Damao squinted his bloodshot eyes, slowly took a sip of wine, and let the spicy liquid burn his throat.

A sinister smile, like that of a venomous snake, appeared on his face.

"Silly Zhu, what's the use of just getting angry? Will slamming the table kill He Yuanchao? Will it get your job back?"

"Let me tell you," he put down his wine glass and leaned forward, "if you want to bring down He Yuanchao, you have to cut down all the saplings around him, one by one! Clip his wings!"

"He Yushui and Yan Jiecheng are his most trusted right-hand men right now! As long as we ruin their reputations, make him all alone and deserted by everyone, then he'll be completely at our mercy."

"Make it stink? How?" Sha Zhu stared with drunken eyes, his mind a little foggy. The alcohol made him angry, but it also dulled his thinking.

"You don't understand, do you?" Xu Damao waved his finger smugly, his petty and self-satisfied appearance was disgusting.

He leaned closer, lowering his voice, which was hoarse and sounded like a venomous snake flicking its tongue, appearing particularly sinister in the dim light.

"These days, what's the most dangerous thing? Reputation!"

"Especially a girl's reputation! It's more important than life itself! Once you label her a 'loose woman,' she'll never be able to hold her head up high again!"

"Think about it, that little brat He Yushui, doesn't she love running into He Yuanchao's room? Doesn't she love practicing calligraphy? A lone man and a lone woman, alone in a room... Tell me, if some bad gossip starts circulating in the courtyard, how will she ever get married? Will He Yuanchao still have any pride? People will say he can't even control his own sister, he's morally bankrupt, what kind of engineer is he!"

Sha Zhu shuddered, instantly sobering up considerably.

He glared at Xu Damao, grabbed him by the collar, and pulled him up from the stool.

"Xu Damao! What the hell are you trying to do? No matter how wicked Yushui is, she's still my own sister! If you dare to have any improper thoughts about her, I'll fucking cripple you!"

"Hey! Look how anxious you are!" Xu Damao coughed as he was being strangled, and quickly waved his hand, but his smile became even more sinister, showing no sign of being frightened.

"What can I do? I'm just saying, analyzing things. Besides, you're my brother-in-law, would I harm your sister? I'm just helping you get revenge!"

He slapped Sha Zhu's hand away and straightened his wrinkled collar.

"However, just spreading rumors isn't enough to be damaging. We need some... bombshells! Some solid evidence!"

His eyes darted around, and an even more wicked thought popped into his filthy mind.

"Shazhu, tell me, has He Yushui been getting quite close to that kid named Li Weidong from our factory's propaganda department lately?"

"Li Weidong? I think there is such a person." Sha Zhu frowned and thought for a moment. "That kid is fair-skinned and clean-cut, with greasy hair and a powdered face. He writes some pretentious poems all day long. He doesn't look like a good person." He had an instinctive hostility towards all male creatures that approached his sister.

"That's right!" Xu Damao slapped his thigh, a sly grin spreading across his face.

"Let's start here! Think about it, young men and women, like dry wood meeting a raging fire... just beginning to experience love, are most prone to making mistakes."

He leaned close to Sha Zhu's ear and whispered something to him.

His voice was extremely low, as if a demon crawling out of hell was whispering, each word carrying a hook, carrying deadly poison, drilling into Sha Zhu's ears one by one.

As Sha Zhu listened, his eyes widened, and his expression gradually changed from anger to astonishment, and then to a twisted mixture of hesitation, struggle, and vengeful pleasure.

His hand, gripping the wine glass, showed white knuckles and bulging veins from excessive force.

"This...this is too cruel! What if...what if it really ruins the rainwater forever..." Sha Zhu's voice was dry and hesitant. After all, she was his younger sister who had grown up with him since childhood, the only family his father left him.

"Damage? Compared to what He Yuanchao did to us, what is this?"

Seeing that he wavered, Xu Damao immediately sneered, his eyes flashing with resentment. He knew he had to add fuel to the fire and completely ignite the evil in Shazhu's heart.

"Think about it, he caused you to lose your job, and now you can only do odd jobs and have to be subservient to others!"

"He's ruined an old man's life; he's left him in the hospital to this day!"

"He caused Aunt Jia to be arrested! He made Qin Huairu cry every day, don't you feel sorry for her?"

"Are you just going to let this go? Are you willing to let him trample you underfoot and never be able to turn your life around?"

Xu Damao's voice was full of inflammatory rhetoric, and every word precisely hit Sha Zhu's sore spot.

"Shazhu, this is our only chance! As long as we ruin He Yushui and Li Weidong's affair, and then smear He Yuanchao's reputation, saying that he, as the older brother, hasn't disciplined his sister properly, only cares about his own glory, corrupts her, and causes such a scandalous affair... Then, let's see how he'll still have the face to be an engineer in the factory! Let's see if Deputy Factory Director Lou will still marry his precious daughter into such a family!"

The immense temptation, like the devil's whisper, echoed in Sha Zhu's ears, amplifying all the resentment and bitterness in his heart.

He recalled He Yuanchao's arrogant demeanor, the complex look in Qin Huairu's eyes when she looked at He Yuanchao, his own current destitution, and the disdainful glances from the people in the courtyard...

A reckless madness, like a flood bursting its banks, gradually overwhelmed the last vestiges of conscience and brotherly affection in his heart.

"Let's do it!"

Sha Zhu gulped down the wine in his glass and then slammed the ceramic glass onto the table.

With a sharp "crack," the wine glass shattered into pieces, sending shards of porcelain flying everywhere.

"Xu Damao! We'll do it your way! As long as we can make that bastard He Yuanchao stumble and taste the bitterness of disgrace, I'll risk everything!"

……

The next day, the news that He Yuanchao was getting engaged to Lou Xiao'e and preparing to get married spread like wildfire throughout the entire courtyard by breakfast time.

The shock of this news was no less than that of his assignment to the cadre housing, and perhaps even greater.

"What? Engaged? To the deputy factory director's daughter?"

Uncle Liu Haizhong had just returned from a "community affairs work meeting" at the street office, still holding an enamel mug in his hand. He was about to go home and scold his son when he heard this news. He felt that the little bit of "leadership" confidence he had just built up had been crushed and pulverized by a heavy truck.

Now, when he sees He Yuanchao, he doesn't even have the courage to speak loudly.

"It's over, it's over, it's completely over. He's the factory leader's son-in-law now, what am I, the second oldest in the courtyard, anyway..."

Xu Damao broke two bowls at home.

"Clang!"

"Clang!"

His eyes were as red as a bloodthirsty rabbit.

It’s over.

It's all over.

His fantasy of rising to power overnight through the Lou family was shattered completely.

There is no longer any possibility between him and Lou Xiao'e.

The immense sense of loss and resentment, like thorny poisonous vines, tightly bound his heart, suffocating him and bringing his hatred for He Yuanchao to an unprecedented peak.

Qin Huairu, meanwhile, was in the room, silently taking out a Dacron shirt that she had treasured for many years from the bottom of a trunk.

That light blue shirt was made of the finest material at the time, and she always hesitated to wear it, only taking it out to look at and touch it when she was in a good mood.

Those were her most cherished memories, her glimmer of hope for the future. Now, they should be buried forever.

With a blank expression, she found a pair of scissors and, "snip," "snip," cut the pristine shirt into irreparable pieces, one cut after another, heavy and resolute.

The entire courtyard was shrouded in a complex mix of envy, jealousy, and hatred.

He Yuanchao, however, was completely indifferent to all of this.

After discussing it with Lou Zhenhua and his wife, they decided to keep everything simple, skipping any extravagant engagement banquet and starting preparations for the wedding directly.

The date was set for a month later, on National Day, a day of national celebration—a good day indeed.

This decision made the Lou couple even more satisfied with He Yuanchao.

At this critical juncture, keeping a low profile is the wisest choice.

In the days that followed, He Yuanchao and Lou Xiao'e busied themselves furnishing their little home.

Thanks to Lou Zhenhua's connections and He Yuanchao's own generous bonus, they quickly managed to assemble the most luxurious wedding package of that era—"three turns and one sound."

The brand-new "Flying Pigeon" bicycle gleamed in the sunlight, its bell ringing crisply and melodiously. He Yuanchao gave his old Forever 28-inch bicycle to He Yushui and bought a new one for himself, specifically to take Lou Xiao'e with him.

The "Butterfly" brand sewing machine, with its black body adorned with gold patterns, makes a light and cheerful sound when you step on it, a warm and cozy melody for your future home.

A brand-new "Shanghai" brand watch, worn on Lou Xiao'e's fair wrist, looked even more exquisite, marking the happy times that were about to begin for them.

There was also a "Red Lantern" brand radio, with red knobs and a huge speaker. It was the most fashionable decoration in the house, and you could hear sounds from the capital.

Every item moved into the new home in the cadre building attracted countless envious glances, those glances concealing an indescribable bitterness and jealousy.

He Yuanchao even went to the supply and marketing cooperative and bought several feet of the most fashionable "Dacron" fabric and the best wool serge at the time, so that Lou Xiao'e could make new clothes.

Watching his fiancée holding up the fabric against herself, her face beaming with a pure and happy smile—a smile brighter than the sunlight outside the window—He Yuanchao felt that it was all worth it.

He just wanted to present her with the best things in the world.

However, just as they were filled with joy and immersed in their dreams of a better future, Xu Damao and Shazhu's wicked scheme, like a poisonous snake in a ditch, quietly unfolded.