Courtyard House: Starting by inheriting the tradition and suppressing the barbarians.

At this moment, on the top floor of the factory office building.

Li Xuan stood by the window, holding a cup of tea in his hand, calmly looking down at the scene below.

Several jeeps and a truck with an iron cage had silently blocked all the exits of the office building.

That was the car belonging to the municipal bureau's special task force.

"Dr. Li, we are so grateful for the clues and ledgers you provided this time."

Factory Director Yang stood behind Li Xuan, his face filled with relief and admiration.

"If it weren't for your meticulous attention to detail, noting down every single shady act of these parasites..."

"Who knows how much more money he's going to drain our factory!"

Li Xuan smiled faintly and blew on the tea foam: "It's not that I'm good, it's that he's too greedy."

"Greed knows no bounds; he's like a snake trying to swallow an elephant. He's feeding himself into the line of fire."

"Let's close the net."

Li Xuan spoke softly, as if pronouncing a death sentence on an ant.

……

"Bang!"

The door to the deputy director's office was kicked open.

The loud noise terrified Xu Damao, who was counting his money.

His hand trembled, and the stack of ten-yuan notes spilled all over the ground.

"Who? Don't you want to live anymore?"

"You dare kick down my door!"

Xu Damao subconsciously adopted an air of authority, slamming his hand on the table and standing up abruptly.

However, when he saw who had rushed in...

The profanity that was on the tip of his tongue got stuck in his throat.

Four or five police officers in uniform, armed with guns, rushed in like divine soldiers descending from the sky.

The leader was the head of the Municipal Public Security Bureau's Criminal Investigation Department, who had a stern expression.

"Xu Damao! You're under arrest!"

The dark muzzle of the gun was pressed directly against Xu Damao's forehead.

"I...I..."

Xu Damao's legs went weak, and he slumped into the chair, his face turning deathly pale.

"Injustice...injustice!"

"Comrade, this must be a misunderstanding... I am the vice chairman of the Revolutionary Committee!"

"I'm a cadre!"

"cadre?"

The team leader sneered and threw a thick document at Xu Damao's face.

"Open your dog eyes and take a good look at this!"

"Reselling state-owned special supplies, massive embezzlement and bribery, and a corrupt lifestyle!"

"These individual offenses alone are enough to put you in jail for life!"

"take away!"

Two strong policemen rushed up and twisted Xu Damao's arms behind his back.

A pair of cold handcuffs snapped shut, locking his hands.

It also extinguished all hope for him in this lifetime!

"No! I'm not leaving! That's my money!"

"That's the money I gave to my son!"

Xu Damao struggled frantically, trying to grab the scattered banknotes on the ground.

"Don't touch my money! I'm going to Hong Kong! I need to find my son!"

"Behave yourself!"

The policeman kicked him in the back of the knee, and Xu Damao fell to his knees with a thud.

His face was pressed against the banknotes he cherished as his life, and he was held down tightly.

......

Ten minutes later.

Xu Damao was escorted out of the office building like a dead dog.

The square downstairs was already crowded with workers who had rushed over after hearing the news.

Everyone was so excited to see this once arrogant and domineering vampire finally brought to justice that they were moved to tears.

"Down with Xu Damao!"

"A major corrupt official! Execute him!"

"Xu Damao, you've finally met your match!"

Rotten vegetable leaves, rotten eggs, and even shoes were thrown at Xu Damao like raindrops.

Xu Damao's face was covered in filth, and he looked utterly disheveled.

But at this moment, he seemed to feel no pain; his spirit had completely collapsed.

Looking into those angry eyes, he suddenly threw his head back and burst into laughter, a shrill and manic laugh.

"Ha ha ha ha!"

"You bunch of poor bastards! What do you know!"

As Xu Damao was dragged toward the police car, he desperately turned his head and shouted wildly into the air.

"I have a son! I have a son!"

"My son is in Hong Kong! He's a rich kid! He's a multi-millionaire!"

"You bunch of good-for-nothings! You're all jealous of me! Hahahaha!"

His erratic behavior stunned the workers around him.

"Has Xu Damao gone mad?"

"What son? Isn't he childless?"

"She's probably gone crazy missing her son; it's both pitiful and infuriating!"

Li Xuan stood on the second-floor balcony, looking indifferently at Xu Damao, who was being shoved into a police car and was still struggling and shouting.

"Xu Damao, it's time for you to wake up from your dream."

With sirens blaring, the police car sped away.

It left behind a mess and a madman's legend about his "billionaire father".

On this day, the biggest cancer in the Hongxing Steel Rolling Mill was eradicated.

On this day, the worst "childless" resident of the courtyard finally got himself thrown in jail...

......

time flies.

October, 1977.

Autumn came exceptionally late that year.

But when that shocking news spread throughout the country via loudspeakers...

The entire land of China seemed to have ushered in spring overnight.

"All workers, farmers, educated youth who went to the countryside or returned to their hometowns, and demobilized soldiers."

"Alternatively, cadres and recent high school graduates can voluntarily register to participate in the unified examination!"

The National College Entrance Examination (Gaokao) has been reinstated!

The National College Entrance Examination (Gaokao), which had been suspended for ten years, has finally resumed!

The news spread like wildfire through the Hongxing Courtyard.

It also flew into the hearts of everyone who longed to change their destiny.

……

In the backyard, in the Li family's study.

The heating was just right, under the bright lamp.

Li Xiaoyu, the youngest sister in the Li family, was writing furiously at her desk.

By this time, Li Xiaoyu had grown into a graceful young woman.

She inherited the good genes of the Li family and is beautiful and lively.

What's even more remarkable is that, under Li Xuan's protection and guidance, she did not become tainted by the frivolity of that era.

Instead, it cultivated a quiet, scholarly air.

"Brother, this math problem is too hard, I still can't solve it."

Xiaoyu bit the pen, her brows furrowed, looking somewhat discouraged.

"Which one? Let me see."

The one who spoke was not Li Xuan, but He Yushui, who was sitting to the side knitting a sweater.

The raindrops of today have long since shed their youthful immaturity, exuding an air of intellectual sophistication and competence.

Having been a college student a few years ago, she is now a key teacher in a middle school and is more than capable of tutoring Xiaoyu.

Rain took the question, glanced at it, and smiled as he picked up his pen: "This question isn't actually difficult."

"Change your perspective, don't get stuck on one thing..."

Li Xuan walked in carrying a plate of sliced ​​fruit.

Following behind were Su Yun, Hua Youlin, and Li Yue, the darling of the Li family.

"Xiaoyu, don't feel pressured." Li Xuan put down the fruit plate and patted his sister's head.

"I told you before, opportunity favors the prepared mind."

"I've been telling you not to put down your books these past few years, now you understand my good intentions, right?"

"Yes," Hua Youlin smiled slightly, "Little sister, your brother really does have the ability to foresee the future."

You absolutely must listen to him.

Although she couldn't understand what Li Yue was saying, the baby she was holding was still babbling incoherently.

It was as if they were cheering Li Xiaoyu on.

"Understood!"

Xiaoyu nodded vigorously, her eyes sparkling. "Brother, I want to go to medical school and become a doctor like Mom and you!"

"What ambition!"

Li Xuan smiled.

Xiaoyu's foundation is quite good, far exceeding that of her peers.

In addition, there's the "brain-enhancing liquid" he's been secretly giving her to drink these past few months.

Getting into Peking University or Tsinghua University is not a problem at all.

"Rain, you've worked hard these past few days. Please help Xiaoyu more." Li Xuan turned to Rain and said.

"Don't be so polite with me."

Rain rolled her eyes at him and laughed, "I watched Xiaoyu grow up too."

"If she succeeds in the exam, I'll benefit from it too, won't I?"

The study was filled with the sound of students reading aloud, brimming with hope and vitality.

This is a family of elites, striving with all their might for a better future!

......

Meanwhile, at the main gate of the courtyard house.

The withered yellow leaves were swept up by the wind and swirled as they fell onto the cold cement ground.

Qin Huairu was wearing her signature orange-yellow sanitation worker uniform and a face mask.

Just like a rusty machine, mechanically wielding a large broom.

"Shh...shh..."

The sound of the broom scraping the ground was monotonous and grating.

The loudspeakers by the roadside were still broadcasting news about the resumption of the college entrance examination on a loop.

The young people passing by were so excited that their faces turned red and their necks bulged, and they spread the news to each other.

"Great! I can take the college entrance exam now!"

"I want to sign up! I want to go back to the city!"

"I want to take the exam too! I want to be a scientist!"

Listening to these vibrant voices, Qin Huairu's eyes, visible outside her mask, were filled with a lifeless numbness.

college entrance examination?

University?

These two words were like stars in the sky to her, unattainable.

It even carried a hint of mockery.

She stopped what she was doing, straightened her already hunched back, and unconsciously looked toward the backyard of the courtyard house.

Even though they were separated by several courtyards, she could almost hear the laughter and cheerful voices coming from there.

Li Xuan is a divine physician and a great man.

His wife is a diplomat.

His sister, He Yushui, is a teacher.

Now even the youngest girl, Li Xiaoyu, is going to take the college entrance exam.

This family, like a dragon riding the wind, flew higher and higher, long ago reaching the clouds.

And what about her?

Qin Huairu lowered her head and looked at her hands, which were covered with calluses and cracks, and had black dirt under her fingernails.

She was just a street sweeper.

She was a widow.

She was a woman with a tragic fate: her mother-in-law had died, her husband had died, and her son was imprisoned in the far northwest.

"Stick..."

Thinking of her son, Qin Huairu felt as if her heart was being cut by a dull knife.

Bang Geng didn't even graduate from junior high school, he can't even recognize all the characters, let alone go to university.

Even if he could pass the exam, he's a convict with a broken leg right now, which university would want him?

"Karma...it's all karma..."

......